Chapter 280: Epic Cloak

Luo Jie's face froze, and he swallowed his words.

How did this gate open?

Everyone was astonished, and Mei Li Ge was even more full of question marks; she had been studying the gate's rune sigil and had just gotten a clue when the runes on the gate suddenly collapsed without any sign, utterly inexplicable.

"Did the rune sigil malfunction? Or did the magical gate fail?"

Everyone guessed in their hearts, but it wasn't the time to press further; as Lei En exerted his power, the towering stone gate emitted a low turning rumble and opened inward.

A slit in the gate leaked blood‑colored mist, and the rich scent of blood nearly made people vomit.

Bang!

The stone gate was fully opened, revealing what lay beyond.

It was a magnificent palace, the heavens arching more than twenty meters above the ground, its floor area roughly three to four thousand square meters, supported by massive stone pillars. In the center of the palace stood a gigantic blood pool dozens of meters in diameter, filled with a liquid that looked like fresh blood.

A torrent of blood overflowed from the pool, covering the entire palace floor and solidifying into a dark‑red carpet.

Directly opposite the gate, a terrifying statue stood.

The statue was just over five meters tall, its material unknown, its shape humanoid yet supported by three legs that held a torso riddled with holes; bone plates lined its chest, malformed arms extended from its sides with only four claw‑like fingers, and where a head should be on its neck grew a snarling huge mouth full of sharp teeth, as if it were screaming desperately, emitting an inaudible high‑pitched wail.

Atop that mouth sat a single, grotesque eye, whose horror defies description.

Around the massive single eye were eight slightly smaller eyes.

Each eye held a different gaze—bizarre, capricious, gloomy, chaotic, evil, brimming with greed, arrogance, jealousy, and other negative emotions… yet they also seemed to contain supreme wisdom, perceiving all things and the ultimate truths of magic!

Lei En only met its stare once; his eyes burned and tears fell.

He quickly averted his gaze and saw two tentacles extending from either side of the single eye, curling upward; their tips were not sharp but each formed a fang‑like mouth, tangled together above the head.

"This statue..."

Lei En's heart shook; this was the image of Lord of Chaos "Nai Yasin Lanqi"!

The Abyss's four great demon gods' names are known to all in Ai Lun E Si, yet few know their appearances, because a demon god's form is itself the embodiment of terrifying power; even a single glance drives ordinary people mad, sending them spiraling into the Abyss.

Even transcendents cannot stare for long, lest their souls become corrupted and lose control.

"Don't look at the statue!"

Luo Jie whispered a reminder, turning his own gaze away.

Whoosh!

Lei En and the others' arrival finally roused the master here; the blood pool churned, and a figure rose from the blood, its body surrounded by a blood‑colored aura, hovering in mid‑air.

He appeared as a middle‑aged gentleman, clad in elaborate ancient formal wear, his complexion rosy, features handsome, hair meticulously slicked back, and a striking blood‑colored great cloak draped behind him.

"Ai Rui Ting!"

Luo Jie called out his name, his demeanor guarded.

The others perked up, finally having found their hunting target, but that also meant the danger was only just beginning.

Lei En immediately used his Soul Eye to examine the vampire count's soul.

In an instant, dozens of Elements displayed.

Invisibility, Bat Transformation, Blood Evasion, Harvest Claw, Blood Transmutation, Damage Transfer, Pain Immunity, Bite, Pierce, Lightning Reflection, Resilience, Blood Cutting, Blood Boil Manifest… the vampire's myriad abilities, honed over countless years, formed a complete close‑quarters combat system.

What most caught Lei En's attention were three supreme Elements: Blood Demon Metamorphosis, Rank‑8 Swiftness, Rank‑7 Self‑Healing.

Especially Rank‑8 Swiftness, which made its speed terrifyingly high.

Speed is the hardest basic Element to improve, and Ai Rui Ting's power was no weak either, reaching Rank‑6, plus over a dozen blood‑type Arcane Elements!

Blood‑Flame Hand, Bloodfall Arrow, Pain Embrace, Blood Mark, Explosive Blood Sphere, Crimson Fever, Contagion, Blood‑thirst Frenzy…

Lei En was unfamiliar with blood‑type spells and had no time to scrutinize them.

But that was enough to show the vampire count's formidable strength—a caster adept at close combat and unbelievably fast!

Lei En felt it was a thorny situation; he despised fast opponents the most.

At that moment, Ai Rui Ting glanced at the stone gate and asked in surprise, "How did you get in?"

"You need not know."

Luo Jie replied with a nod toward Ya Si Ke; the high‑rank Pastoralist immediately understood, and as planned flung hundreds of teal grass seeds, which landed, merged with the palace floor's blood, rapidly swelled, and transformed the absorbed energy into a thick dark‑green fungal carpet.

In an instant, the palace's eerie aura weakened, and the ground became treadable.

Luo Jie was the first to step onto the fungal carpet, the others followed, and Lei En casually closed the gate behind them to prevent outside vampires from slipping in and disrupting the fight; Ai Rui Ting could not flee immediately.

For some unknown reason, Ai Rui Ting did not act at once; his reaction seemed sluggish.

Its gaze swept over the enemies, hands clasped to its chest, a face of arrogance and mockery, as if it had everything under its control: "Hunter, I have been on Zhu Bile Shan for years; you are the first transcendental to break in, this is your luck, but also your misfortune."

"You think teaming up with a few legends can hurt me?"

Luo Jie coldly replied, "The vampires slain by my sword may outnumber those you've seen; each vampire thinks it is the special one, but I have all of them dug out, heart removed, and devoured."

"You're no different!"

As the words left his mouth, Luo Jie suddenly hurled a crystal‑like alchemical bomb, only pigeon‑egg sized, straight at the opposite statue.

Ai Rui Ting reached out through the air to grab it, but the alchemical bomb suddenly accelerated, slamming into the statue and exploding.

Boom!

The Lord of Chaos's statue collapsed, shattering into pieces and emitting a terrifying aura that made hearts race.

That aura lasted only a few seconds.

The previously vague oppressive pressure vanished as well, letting everyone relax as if a hanging sword above their heads had been moved aside.

Ai Rui Ting, seeing this, trembled with rage and screamed furiously, "You dare desecrate my master's statue; all of you shall die!"

It waved its hand forcefully, and the blood pool beneath it boiled instantly, spewing countless streams of blood that formed hundreds of red arrows, raining down like a waterfall onto everyone.

Four‑Ring Spell—Bloodfall Arrow!

As it acted, Luo Jie consumed a large fragment of soul, triggering "Devour Demon Mutation"; his eyes filled with blackness, his strength and speed surged, and he vanished into shadow, leaving Lei En, Mei Li Ge, and Ya Si Ke behind.

Mei Li Ge raised her hand to summon a wind wall, blocking most of the Bloodfall Arrows, though some still pierced through.

Lei En raised his shield to block in front of the two.

Bang bang bang bang…

The massive shield quivered under the barrage of arrows, blood exploding on its surface; Lei En's left hand that held the shield went numb, but his body remained as steady as a rock, and no arrow inflicted direct damage.

He lowered the shield slightly and looked ahead.

Ai Ruiting's blood‑cascade arrow was only a distraction; the blood pool beneath his feet boiled more fiercely, he opened his mouth and exhaled a puff of black smoke, which mixed with the blood to become mist, spreading rapidly outward.

Lei En's pupils narrowed; this dark‑red mist behaved like a living thing, reproducing at a terrifying speed, turning into a plague of countless tiny insects.

Once inhaled into the lungs, it would infect instantly.

The technique is called "Scarlet Fever Plague"; aristocratic vampires of legendary rank excel at using it against large‑area foes, converting them into their blood servants.

Luo Jie's plan included a contingency: Ya Si Ke's purification art can ward off the plague, but it must be re‑cast every few dozen seconds without pause.

Just as Ai Ruiting released the Scarlet Fever Plague, Luo Jie rushed in.

His silver sword thrust at Ai Ruiting from behind; amid the flashing silver light, Ai Ruiting suddenly turned, snatched the sword in a lightning‑fast grab, and a wicked grin curled at the corner of his mouth.

Luo Jie pressed both hands against the silver sword and pushed forward; the blade scraped Ai Ruiting's palm, scattering a spray of sparks.

"Hmph!"

Ai Ruiting suddenly surged with power, yanking the silver sword toward himself, closing the gap with Luo Jie, while his other hand swung toward Luo Jie's throat.

His ten fingers sprouted sharp claws, the vampire's innate "Reaping Claw."

The stronger the vampire, the sharper its twin claws, their most relied‑upon melee weapons—unmatched in sharpness, able to easily Tear hard armor.

Luo Jie formed a seal on his hand, and a golden shield manifested around his body.

Bang!

Kun En's shield held for only half a second before Ai Ruiting ripped it, his claws lunging straight for the throat.

At the hair‑breadth of disaster, another white figure appeared behind Ai Ruiting.

A slender anti‑magic sword pierced the vampire count's blood‑light barrier; it was about to pierce his red cloak and cause damage, so Ai Ruiting abandoned the nearby Luo Jie, his form turning into blood mist to evade.

In the next instant, it appeared atop the palace, looking down at Yisu, clad in white assassin garb, and the narrowly‑escaped Luo Jie.

"Shadow Assassin!"

Ai Ruiting was both shocked and angry; had he not reacted quickly, he might already have been gravely wounded.

Yisu's strike missed, and he slipped again into the shadow realm, waiting for a chance to ambush.

Luo Jie looked up at Ai Ruiting, did not attempt to attack him, and instead produced several alchemical bombs and hurled them at the blood pool.

The blood pool supplies vampires with a constant flow of energy; if it isn't destroyed, cutting down Ai Ruiting becomes several times harder!

Ai Ruiting let out a cold sneer and did not intervene.

The alchemical bomb sank into the blood pool with a few gurgles, disappearing like a mud‑ox in the sea without exploding. A red sigil shot from Ai Ruiting's fingertip onto Luo Jie at the pool's edge, making him shudder, his eyes bloodshot, his expression agonized as he struggled desperately against the control of his Willpower.

Ai Ruiting did not descend hastily; just as he was about to resume casting at Luo Jie, a massive fireball shot toward him.

Sensing danger, he prepared to dodge, but several vines sprouted from the sky above, weaving into a net that ensnared his body.

Ai Ruiting's claws swiped a few times, easily shredding the vines, though his movement was still half a step too slow.

Rumble!

Mei Lige unleashed a six‑ring fireball that detonated solidly on Ai Ruiting, flames erupting and sweeping a radius of dozens of meters; the scorching heat burned the scarlet mist in the area completely clean.

A figure shot out of the fire—it was Ai Ruiting.

He was cloaked entirely in a red mantle, several parts charred, his mouth corner bleeding, yet the wounds were not severe, healing at a visibly rapid pace.

Mei Lige's expression was stunned.

It was her most powerful spell, yet it could not threaten the opponent.

Lei En's keen eyes spotted the issue and shouted, "Its cloak is epic gear, at least it has high‑grade magical resistance!"

Mid‑shout, Ai Ruiting's figure vanished.

Lei En saw clearly—the vampire count was coming toward him!

(End of Chapter)