The scarlet sky hung over the Umbra Expanse like a shroud of grim terror. At this hour, no Lord was foolish enough to step beyond their borders. Night belonged to the monsters, who succumbed to a mindless, bloodthirsty frenzy.
While the uncommon ones could maintain some rational state, the common monsters could not. If there was no prey, they attacked each other. Every lord followed the same pattern: hunt in the morning, build the territory at night.
At the depth of the Umbra Expanse, far beyond the reach of the fledgling settlements, the higher-tier monsters began to stir. Massive, ancient entities that usually remained dormant in the shadows stirred under the influence of the Nightfall Surge. Giant shadow drakes and gore-fiends let out roars that shook the very foundation of the expanse, their cries echoing through the trees and chilling the hearts of any Lord who dared to listen. The woods weren't just dark; they were alive with a hunger that felt personal.
Malphas stood guard outside the temple like a loyal knight, not wanting to disturb his lord.
'I wonder how long it will take for the Lord to reach the next stage. Given his extraordinary ability to manifest summons without the need for scrolls or constructs, his talent must be at least SS-grade,' he mused, his arms folded across his chest.
Minutes bled into hours.
As the clock struck midnight, the air within the temple began to ripple. A chaotic vibration of pressure surged outward, snapping Malphas to attention. Sensing the volatile energy, he ignored protocol and rushed inside.
He found Leo seated in the center of the hall, his body racked with visible tremors. He was clutching a D-rank Aether Core. Crimson veins, thick and pulsing, had erupted across his hands and were climbing toward his throat.
'No…' Malphas froze. 'He didn't.'
Clenching his own hands, he nervously muttered, "How could you try to absorb a D-rank core when you haven't even broken through E-rank?"
Malphas stood paralyzed. Even with his memories fragmented, he knew the fundamental laws of energy. No matter the talent, a vessel could not contain a surge from a source two ranks higher. It was a death sentence.
Inside his own mind, Leo was fighting a losing battle. He had reached 75/100 after consuming the E-rank cores, and in a fit of impatient curiosity, he thought he could just 'sip' from the D-rank core to tip the scales. He had been wrong. The energy was an ocean trying to fit into a cup, and the cup was starting to crack.
He had intended to take only a fragment of its power, to skim the surface of its vast reservoir to push his F-rank threshold over the edge. But the moment his will touched the core's surface, the skim became a flood.
The first sensation was one of absolute, blinding heat. It felt as though molten iron had been injected directly into his marrow. Leo's back arched, his spine snapping taut as his muscles locked in a violent spasm. A silent scream died in his throat, choked off by the sheer pressure of the aether rising through his chest.
''Fuck my impatience,'' he cursed, the words a frantic echo in the red haze of his mind.
Across his hands, the transformation became visible. His skin didn't just turn red; it began to turn translucent, revealing the network of veins beneath. These veins weren't the normal blue or purple of a human; they were a thick, glowing crimson, pulsing with an erratic, jagged rhythm. They began to climb, snaking up his forearms and wrapping around his biceps like hungry parasites. Every time the energy pulsed, the veins thickened, threatening to burst through the skin.
His bones began to groan. It was a wet, grinding sound that resonated through the quiet temple. The energy was trying to expand his skeleton, to force his frame to accommodate a rank he hadn't earned.
Just as his vision began to fail, a series of system prompts flickered into existence.
[Ding]
[Bloodline Reaction Detected]
[Excess aether detected beyond vessel tolerance]
[Primordial Bloodline forcibly engaging]
[Excess energy is being redirected toward Bloodline Awakening]
[+0.50%]
[+0.20%]
[...]
The D-rank core didn't just break; it was consumed, pulled into Leo's skin as if by the gravity of an ancient predator. Malphas recoiled, his shadow flickering in the dim light. "Impossible... how can this be?"
The angry red veins began to recede, and the crushing pressure in the room vanished. Leo's breathing slowed as the agony turned into a dull, heavy warmth.
[System Warning: Directly absorbing high-rank cores beyond the current threshold is strictly prohibited to prevent vessel collapse]
[Ding]
[Rank Advancement Successful]
Lord Rank: E-Rank
Bloodline Awakening: 7%
Aether Integration: Complete
New Effects:
Significant enhancement to physical attributes
Passive Aether resistance increased
Sanguine Essence consumption efficiency improved
Summoning stability and duration increased
Leo let out a long, ragged breath, wiping sweat from his chin. He felt different. He wasn't just stronger; he felt more substantial, as if he were more 'real' than he had been moments ago.
When he opened his eyes, the clarity was staggering. He could feel the heartbeat of the territory itself, the movement of his undead soldiers outside, and the resonance of Malphas's soul tied to his own.
Malphas immediately dropped to one knee.
"Congratulations, my lord," he said, his voice thick with newfound reverence. "You have accomplished a feat that defies the very laws of this world."
Leo let out a dry cough, trying to hide the fact that he had nearly blown himself up. "Of course. Did you actually doubt me, Malphas?"
"My lack of faith is inexcusable. I offer my life as penance for my doubt." Without hesitation, Malphas drew his blade and pressed the cold steel against his own throat.
Leo scrambled to his feet, his exhaustion forgotten. 'Wait, wait! Is this guy a total maniac?'
[Ding]
[Conditions Met: First Rank Advancement Achieved]
[Talent Resonance: Primordial Sanguinary Archive has unlocked a new summoning layer]
[New Banner Unlocked: Heroic Echoes]
Leo stared at the screen, his heart racing. "A new banner?" he whispered.
Malphas, who was still holding the sword to his own neck, paused as he felt the shift in the air. "Lord?"
Leo ignored him for a moment, his eyes glued to the Crimson interface that appeared in front of him. Unlike the standard summon, which felt cold and mechanical, this one felt alive. It pulsed with a regal, ancient energy.
"Heroic Echoes..." Leo read the description. "Summon the spirits of Lords who lost their lives to the Origin. These entities retain their past talents and memories, bound to the current Lord through blood and soul."
His hands trembled with excitement. This was exactly what he needed. If he could summon a previous Lord, his territory would be unstoppable. He could already imagine a legendary warrior standing beside Malphas.
Then, his eyes drifted to the bottom of the screen.
[Cost per Summon: 500 Sanguine Essence] [Current Total SE: 266]
The smile on Leo's face died instantly.
"Five hundred?" he shouted, his voice cracking. "I almost died for twenty-five points, and you want five hundred for just one pull?"
A hollow feeling in his stomach replaced his joy. It was like being shown a feast while locked in a cage.
"Is something wrong, my lord?" Malphas asked, finally lowering his sword.
Leo slumped against the temple pillar, feeling defeated. "The price of greatness is too high, Malphas. Way too high."