After dealing with the vampire hunting party at the hotel, Adrian and Clarisse immediately moved to the vampire stronghold in the city - a seedy bar that served as their local headquarters.
"Ah!"
"Please, spare me..."
"That matter truly has nothing to do with us..."
A vampire, covered in blood, knelt on the cold, slick floor, begging desperately. His voice trembled, and his eyes were filled with terror.
Clarisse's face was expressionless, her gaze as sharp as ice. Without hesitating for a second, she delivered a clean, powerful punch. Intense flames instantly engulfed the vampire, reducing him to ashes that dissipated into the air.
With the fall of the last vampire, the entire bar plunged into dead silence. The mixed scents of blood and char filled the oppressive space.
"Your Eminence, the mission is complete," Clarisse said to Adrian, who was standing at the entrance, as she stepped out of the bar. Their teleportation portal had opened precisely at the bar's doorway, accurate and efficient.
"Snap..."
Adrian snapped his fingers, and the surrounding elements instantly became active. Holy light wrapped around the entire alley. The dark, damp alley was purified thoroughly, leaving no trace of blood or struggle, as if nothing had ever happened.
"Let's go. We've done a good deed," Adrian said calmly, turning to walk out of the alley.
Their figures gradually faded into the alley, eventually disappearing into the night. The secluded alley returned to its usual silence, but in the underworld, a huge uproar was stirred.
"Have you heard? The vampire hunting squad got wiped out!"
"It was the Catholic Church's doing."
"The Catholic Church is that strong?"
"It was that Mutant who had a bounty on him before..."
Discussions erupted everywhere, and the news spread like wildfire throughout the underworld.
The vampires' defeat drew serious attention from various factions. The vampire hunting squad was a renowned presence in the entire underworld, yet they were completely annihilated by just two people from the Catholic Church, even though they were fully armed. This was simply unbelievable.
"He's grown to this extent?" In a dark corner, a person who'd been following Adrian received the news. His expression grave, he pulled out his phone and dialed several numbers.
Because of the conflict between the vampires and the Catholic Church, the underworld was in chaos, with undercurrents surging. Even higher-ups in some countries began to notice the friction between the two sides and put pressure on both the Catholic Church and the vampires, hoping they wouldn't escalate the situation.
If supernatural powers were exposed, it'd inevitably cause social unrest. Even the existence of Mutants had always been suppressed by various forces, let alone more secretive dark creatures.
However, the Pope's response was exceptionally firm.
Either hand over the culprits who massacred the church, or the vampires and the Catholic Church would go to war. Faced with this spiritual leader of hundreds of millions of believers worldwide, some high-level national officials didn't dare be careless.
Someone once suggested assassinating the Pope, but this idea was quickly shot down. The assassination of a Pope would be an even more sensational event than the assassination of a Prime Minister. Catholic believers worldwide would riot, and the country that gave the order would face international isolation. This was the special status of the Catholic Church in the world.
United States, New York City, top floor of a skyscraper.
"Damn it! Damn it!"
"Why is that bastard still alive?"
"He even became a member of the Catholic Church!"
In a luxurious office, a middle-aged man in a high-end suit roared in rage, sweeping the documents off his desk. His face was twisted with anger, and his eyes were filled with murderous intent.
"Boss, the most urgent thing is to find a way to eliminate that Mutant."
"The guy's currently on a mission in the U.S. and has even clashed with the vampires. This is a perfect opportunity."
The assistant beside him pushed his gold-rimmed glasses, analyzing calmly.
The lab was bombed, and the data was destroyed, but this didn't mean they could rest easy. After all, Mutant abilities were strange and varied, and one called telepathy could even read and mess with memories, which was pretty terrifying.
The middle-aged man didn't dare gamble. He was wealthy and didn't want to put himself in danger. Even if there was only a tiny possibility, it had to be completely wiped out.
"Contact The Hand for me."
"Let them name their price. Get rid of that guy for me."
The man finally calmed down, a ruthless glint flashing in his eyes.
The bounty previously issued in the underworld was now useless. People who'd had ideas about Adrian had, after witnessing his conflict with the vampires, backed off. Adding another bounty would easily expose him, so he thought of the notorious assassination organization... The Hand.
It was full of ninjas skilled in assassination, and a lot of Mutants and super-powered individuals had met their end at their hands. This was the best solution he could think of at the moment.
"Understood, I'll take care of it now." The assistant bowed and left the office.
The middle-aged man slumped into the leather office chair, muttering, "Adrian..." His words were full of apprehension and anger.
Meanwhile, in a hidden vampire castle, the atmosphere was equally tense.
The captain of the hunting squad returned severely wounded, and the news he brought enraged the high-ranking vampire Elders.
"The Catholic Church..." an Elder said through gritted teeth, his aged face clouded with gloom.
They hadn't expected the Catholic Church to be silent for so long, only to make such a striking move. The Mutant named Adrian hadn't even lifted a finger—a single woman had defeated the vampires' elite hunting squad.
"Bang!"
Just then, the door was violently pushed open. A group of violent and sinister-looking vampires entered, led by Deacon Frost, the leader of the half-blood vampires.
"I heard you ran into some difficulties. Need help?" Deacon flashed a sinister smile, looking at the Elders present, his eyes full of mockery.
"Who let you in?"
"This is a meeting for pure-blood vampires, not for you to participate in!"
An Elder slammed his hand on the table and stood up.
The vampire Elders, already pissed about the Catholic Church situation, instantly erupted in fury. The half-blood vampires actually dared to challenge their authority—this was absolutely intolerable.
"Pure-blood vampires?" Deacon sneered.
"Just you incompetent bunch?"
"If you weren't still useful to me, you think you'd still be able to give orders here?"
His gaze suddenly turned savage.
As he spoke, he raised his hand and gripped an Elder's head, squeezing with such force that the Elder groaned in pain.
"What do you want?" The Elder sitting in the center took a deep breath, asking with forced composure. The current situation seemed to have spiraled out of control.
"The vampire race has reached a point where it needs to be reformed."
"You guys have lived for ages, but you've made no contribution to the vampires. The so-called pure-blood vampires are nothing but a joke."
Deacon said coldly.
He looked around, his voice filled with undeniable authority: "Your only value is to become the stepping stones on my path to getting stronger."
Deacon's subordinates had already taken control of the situation—all the vampire Elders had been grabbed by his men.
"What exactly do you want to do?"
"You really think by killing us, you can control the vampires? Naive!"
The central Elder spoke again.
"Heh heh... Hahahahaha!!" Deacon burst into maniacal laughter.
"You know how much I've sacrificed to achieve my long-held wish?"
His eyes became fervent: "Now, it's your turn to contribute to the vampires."
Deacon signaled his subordinates to take all the Elders away. The Elders didn't resist—maybe they believed Deacon wouldn't actually kill them, thinking he had other motives.
But they didn't know they'd already become sacrifices for a terrifying ritual.
After all the vampire Elders were taken away, Deacon pulled out a yellowed parchment from his coat, his eyes gleaming with madness.
"Blood God Sacrifice Ritual..."
"If I succeed, I'll gain power comparable to Dracula."
He softly read the words on it, a twisted smile forming on his lips.
His voice gradually rose, filled with ambition and desire: "What vampires? By then, I'll be the new King of the world!"
This parchment was a fragment of the Darkhold. To get this fragment, Deacon had spent countless human and financial resources, searching the world for decades, and now he'd finally achieved his goal....
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