Bloodhowl Highlands.
Two figures descended into the center of the camp, revealing Raine and Black Falcon.
Having already received the emergency transmission, Herbert, Kyle, and the others immediately rushed over.
"Raine! Are you alright?"
Kyle looked him up and down.
Seeing that Raine had multiple torn wounds but was clearly brimming with energy, he finally let out a breath of relief.
At that moment, the usually taciturn Black Falcon suddenly burst into laughter.
His laughter echoed across the entire highlands, drawing curious looks from nearby soldiers.
Raine stared at him in slight astonishment.
In his memory, Instructor Black Falcon was never one to smile—yet now he was laughing this loudly.
After laughing for a full half minute, Black Falcon took a deep breath, grabbed Raine by the arm, and lifted it high!
"Brothers! Look closely!"
"This—this is a soldier of our Seventh Division, Scarlet Wall Patrol!
Raine · Valeri!"
His voice carried to every corner of the highlands.
"The alien-race 'geniuses' from Crimson City who dared to announce they would hunt him down—he slaughtered four of them in one go!"
"Right in front of that old bastard Quin!
Right in front of countless enemy troops—cut them down like chopping vegetables!"
"..."
The camp fell into deathly silence for a heartbeat.
Then—like a volcanic eruption!
"ROAR—!!!"
"Beautifully done!! Raine! Well done!"
"Hahaha! That was satisfying—damn satisfying!"
"Let those bastards keep being arrogant! This is their fate!"
Thunderous cheers and roars erupted from countless soldiers!
Many were so excited their faces flushed red, fists pumping fiercely in the air.
The oppressive tension brought by the alien-race geniuses' threats was completely swept away by this cathartic victory, transformed into incomparable pride and morale!
"Kid, hurry up and tell us—what exactly happened?"
Herbert squeezed forward impatiently.
"Yeah, yeah! Tell us in detail—how did you kill them?"
Matthew and the others looked at him with eager anticipation.
Surrounded by the crowd at the center of the camp, Raine recounted the entire battle before Crimson City.
When they heard how he nailed the succubus through the chest with a single spear, everyone clicked their tongues, secretly thinking this kid was ruthless as hell.
When they heard how he took Krug's stone fist head-on and counter-killed him, they sucked in cold breaths.
When they heard how he summoned the Infernal Griffin to kill Narkus, the crowd cried out in exhilaration.
After the story ended, the soldiers were still buzzing with excitement, discussions overlapping.
Raine, meanwhile, quietly withdrew to one side and began inspecting the spoils of this expedition.
He glanced at the system panel—his bloodstone count had reached an astonishing 63,550!
Although he had spent 5,098 bloodstones on temporary boosts, killing four Elite-rank geniuses had netted him over ten thousand bloodstones in total!
Not to mention all the supplies inside their storage equipment!
"One move, all problems solved—and a huge profit."
Raine felt deeply satisfied.
First came the three storage items. He extended his mental power inward.
Myris's supplies contained plenty of clothing, but also several bottles of charm-boosting and mental-recovery potions, some exquisite gemstones, and a sizable amount of bloodcore.
There was also a parchment scroll, branded with a lifelike phoenix totem, emitting faint fluctuations of flame.
Krug's and Narkus's rings likewise contained large quantities of bloodcore and strange ores.
Several bottles of ability potions labeled with effects such as defense enhancement, explosive strength, and mental clarity.
Three flame mushrooms radiating scorching heat—and two similar ancient scrolls.
One bore a ferocious chimera totem; the other, a dignified griffin totem!
"Totem scrolls?"
Raine's heart stirred.
These were clearly one-time consumables similar to ability scrolls or talismans. Once infused with Nex and activated, they could release the power represented by the totem, for offense or defense.
Judging from the fluctuations, the power of these three scrolls was definitely not weak—likely capable of withstanding Expert-rank attacks!
"They didn't even get the chance to use these life-saving scrolls…"
Black Falcon looked at the three scrolls Raine had taken out, also somewhat surprised.
These were obviously extremely valuable trump cards.
Raine understood immediately.
Krug and Narkus were probably too confident—or were saving them for a more critical moment.
As for Myris, she had simply been killed by his lightning-fast ambush, without any chance to react.
He handed one totem scroll to Kyle.
"Uncle, keep this scroll. It'll be useful in a critical moment."
Then he took out several bottles of life-healing and stamina-recovery potions and distributed them to Kyle, Gore, and the others.
Kyle and the rest were both touched and a little embarrassed, but Raine merely waved it off.
For him, the fastest way to grow stronger was through bloodstones and bloodcore. Giving these supplies to his teammates would increase the team's overall survival rate.
...
Inside the sealed chamber, bloodcore was piled like mountains.
Some of it came from the patrol's daily supplies, but far more had come from the alien-race storage equipment.
[Ding! Detected that the host possesses a large quantity of bloodstone.
Proceed with permanent rank advancement?
Current bloodstone amount supports advancement from Formal rank to Elite rank!]
Raine did not hesitate, immediately choosing to advance.
To reach Elite Rank 1, he needed 19,303 bloodstones. Even after spending that, he would still have over forty thousand bloodstones left as strategic reserves for temporary boosts.
"Permanent advancement to Elite rank brings a much greater blood-energy capacity and a stronger physical foundation."
Raine felt the surging power within his body.
"But the progress of the Obsidian Golem Body and Blood Pact has only just begun.
It's time to go further!"
He closed his eyes and fully activated the Obsidian Golem Codex.
The mountains of bloodcore in the chamber seemed to be tugged by an invisible force, beginning to tremble faintly.
Threads of Nex energy in countless colors were forcibly extracted from the bloodcore, converging toward Raine.
Scorching heat, icy cold, corrosion, blazing flames—various attributes were forcibly broken down and refined!
The dark-gold patterns beneath his skin flickered incessantly, emitting faint sizzling sounds.
[Ding! Absorbing large quantities of alien-race bloodcore essence.
Obsidian Golem Body—physical strength continuously increasing…]
[Detected bloodstone · Gargoyle.
Stoneform Skin trait slightly enhanced.
Base physical defense of the skin increased.]
[Detected bloodstone · Soul Devourer.
Mental resistance slightly increased.]
[Detected bloodstone · Heartwitch Succubus.
Bewitching Eye charm effect slightly enhanced…]
After an unknown amount of time, nearly one-third of the bloodcore pile in the chamber had vanished.
The dark-gold patterns on Raine's body now possessed a three-dimensional texture, as if inlaid beneath the skin.
He opened his eyes, a flash of dark-gold light passing deep within his pupils.
Just by sitting there, the stone slab beneath him silently spread with cracks.
"The two-star Obsidian Golem Body has improved again!"
Raine felt the surging power inside him.
"My physical strength has increased by at least thirty percent!
Resistance to corresponding attributes has risen significantly—and most importantly, my self-healing ability…"
He brought two fingers together like a blade and lightly sliced his arm.
A wound appeared instantly—but the bleeding stopped at once, and the wound healed at a visible speed!
In just a few minutes, it was completely restored!
"Not bad."
Raine nodded in satisfaction.
This kind of recovery would be an enormous advantage on the battlefield.
There was still plenty of bloodcore left, but he did not continue improving the Obsidian Golem Body.
Biting off more than one could chew was unwise—his body needed time to adapt to such a rapid surge in strength.
He then turned his attention to another forbidden art that urgently needed improvement—Blood Pact!
The power of the Infernal Griffin spoke for itself. At a critical moment, it had even unleashed strength beyond its tier to kill Narkus!
If he could contract another partner, it would greatly expand his tactical options and allow him to deal with more complex situations.
He quickly calmed his mind, recalling every detail of the contract formation when he had bound the Infernal Griffin.
Using his blood energy as the foundation and mental power as the guide, he began slowly sketching the complex, ancient dark-red contract runes in the void.
Soon, the dark-red runes took shape once more, hovering in midair.
They rotated slowly, and within the red glow, a gentle aura gradually seeped out.
Second by second passed.
The runes merely continued to emit a tranquil presence, with no other movement.
Raine did not grow impatient. He maintained the stability of the runes continuously, while the bloodcore pile beside him visibly dimmed!
Just as he was considering whether to increase his blood-energy output—
Hummm~~~
A clear, bell-like chime suddenly echoed from within the contract array!
The formation rippled like water, and the shadow of the magical beast inside shifted gently.
Immediately after, a milky-white pillar of light brimming with vitality shot skyward without warning!
It pierced through the thick ceiling of the chamber, rippling through the space before Raine.
Within the light, it was as if moonlit forests whispered, as if clear springs murmured softly.
In the next instant, the radiance converged and condensed.
A magnificent creature stepped forth upon gentle moonlight, silently appearing before Raine!
The creature was snow-white from head to toe.
Its fur was as smooth and supple as the finest silk, naturally radiating a hazy glow.
Its form was elegant and flowing, filled with power yet incomparably light.
Most striking of all was the spiraled horn upon its brow—crystal clear, like moonlight condensed into crystal!
A holy creature—
The White Unicorn!