Chương 113

Rudra was pinned against the broken stone pillar. His health bar was flashing a dangerous, deep red. The heavy red mist of the Blood Field was actively suffocating him, draining his remaining health to heal the Vampire Earl. Elfin Stone walked forward slowly. He dragged his red ego sword, Iyarugt, across the broken floor tiles.

"You put up a good fight for a human," Elfin Stone smiled coldly, raising his blade.

"But it is time to go back to sleep."

"I'm not a big fan of naps," Rudra coughed. Elfin Stone's eyes narrowed. He brought the red sword down with terrifying speed, aiming straight for Rudra's neck. Rudra didn't dodge. He pushed off the pillar and gripped his weapon.

"[Atlas's Rebound]." He spun the Staff of the Fire Lord. The heavy red sword slammed into the spinning bone. There was no physical impact. The kinetic force and blood magic vanished, banking directly into Rudra's staff. The ironwood immediately started vibrating. It felt like trying to hold onto a live missile.

"What?" Elfin Stone gasped, completely thrown off balance as his sword's momentum disappeared. Rudra didn't stop the spin. If he stopped moving his arms right now, the stored energy from a Named Boss's execution strike would detonate inside his own chest. He stepped directly into the Vampire Earl's personal space. Elfin Stone realized the danger. His body started to shift into black smoke to phase through the incoming attack.

"Nope," Rudra grunted. He pointed his left hand right at the vampire's chest.

"[Minor Tidal Push]." [15 Mana consumed.] A highly pressurized burst of water blasted out of his palm. It hit Elfin Stone at point-blank range. The sudden Stagger effect violently shoved the Vampire Earl two meters backward. It interrupted the smoke transformation for exactly one second. It was all Rudra needed. He planted his boots, spun his entire body, and brought the supercharged staff completely around in a brutal horizontal sweep.

"[Sweeping Gale]!" The hit smashed directly into Elfin Stone's ribcage. The banked damage of the execution strike detonated all at once, stacking with Rudra's 300% physical damage multiplier. KABOOM! The blast wave cleared the red mist completely out of the cathedral. Elfin Stone's chest instantly caved in. The Vampire Earl let out a horrible, bubbly shriek as the massive blunt force tore completely through his body. He collapsed onto the ruined floor, turning into a massive pile of grey ash.

Rudra didn't stop swinging. He expertly spun the staff in a wide figure-eight, bleeding off the remaining banked momentum into the empty air until it was perfectly safe to stop. He finally dropped his staff and fell backward onto his rear, completely exhausted. [You have defeated Vampire Earl Elfin Stone!] [You have acquired Elfin Stone's Ring.] The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. [You have acquired Iyarugt.] [You have acquired the 4th Piece of???.] [You have become the first player to capture a vampire city!] [You will receive bonus experience points and an increased item acquisition rate in all vampire cities for the next month.] [Experience has been acquired.] [Your level has risen!] Rudra wiped the sweat and blood off his forehead. He eagerly checked his status window. [Level: 299 (80. 1%)] Rudra blinked. He stared at the blue panel for five solid seconds.

"Are you kidding me?" Rudra groaned, dropping his head against the cold stone floor.

"I almost died to a Vampire Earl and I still didn't hit Level 300?" Before he could complain any louder, a sudden, burning heat pulsed against his chest. The Rune of Analysis bound to his soul began to glow brightly. [The Rune of Analysis has absorbed the lingering combat data of a Named Boss.] [Re-interpreting 'Extreme Blood Transfusion'...] [You have successfully analyzed and claimed the enemy's ability!] [Skill Attached: Extreme Energy Transfusion] [Extreme Energy Transfusion] [Active] [An aggressive, predatory technique derived from the Vampire Earl Elfin Stone. - When attacking, 50% of the damage dealt is actively absorbed. - You can instantly redirect this absorbed energy to recover your choice of Health, Mana, Divine Energy, or Staff Energy. Resource Consumption: 10 Staff Energy and 50 Mana per second while active. Skill Cooldown: 10 Minutes.] Rudra read the description.

The frustration over his experience bar vanished instantly. He didn't need to burn his limited mana for his old Divine Infusion heals anymore. As long as he managed his active drain, he could use his massive damage output to instantly refill his health and resources. It was the ultimate brawler's sustain.

"Okay," Rudra grinned, pushing himself up off the floor.

"I can live with eighty percent." He walked over to the massive pile of grey ash. Sitting in the dust was a red sword, a shiny ring, and a strange fragment of dark metal. He picked up the items and checked their stats. [Iyarugt] [Rating: Unique (Growth) Durability: 351/351 Attack Power: 793 - Sword Mastery Level +5. - The skill 'Blood Cry' is generated. - Decreases the healing ability of the target by 50% when they are hit. - A critical strike will cause a bleeding status that will last for 3 seconds. The bleeding damage will be proportional to your attack power. - The target's bleeding effect will be maximized when three combos are achieved. At this time, the damage done to the target will increase by 200% for 1 second. - When five combos are achieved, the target's thinking ability will be destroyed for 0. 3 seconds. At this time, you can link the skill 'Hell Sword.' Iyarugt is a sword made by the only blacksmith of hell, out of a soul and blood stones. It has exceptional damage for a one-handed sword. The soul of Iyarugt will turn the wearer into a master of swordsmanship. However, he rarely accepts anyone as a master. Conditions of Use: A person chosen by Iyarugt. Weight: 290]"A magic sword with an ego," Rudra mused, tossing the red blade lightly in his hand.

"Too bad I only use a staff. This will sell for a fortune, though." He tossed Iyarugt and the 4th Piece of??? into his inventory. Then he picked up the ring. [Elfin Stone's Ring] [Rating: Epic (Growth) - During normal attacks, 12% of the damage done to the target will be restored to you as health. - During skill attacks, 5% of the damage done to the target will be restored to you as health. - This effect is only invoked once every 21 seconds. - Strength, Stamina and Health +20 A ring that contains Earl Elfin Stone's unique magic power. It raises the potential and survival ability of the wearer. Weight: 1]"Now this is actually useful," Rudra said. He slipped the ring onto his finger next to the Forgotten Ocean Ring. Between his new Extreme Energy Transfusion and this vampire ring, his ability to out-heal damage was going to be completely ridiculous. He turned around. Past the ruined cathedral was a dark cave. His Abyssal Sonar was pinging heavily.

There was one place left in the 13th Vampire City. The treasure vault.

"Alright, Kratos," Rudra said, resting his bone staff on his shoulder.

"Let's go see what this guy was guarding."