Chapter 85: The Shrine
Meanwhile, the bloodfire did not disappear all at once. It fought. The bloodfire became thinner. The heat covering the platform weakened. The red light on the grave stones dimmed.
Garran Velkhur stared at the scene with disbelief.
His forbidden art was being broken. Not blocked. Not dodged. Not pushed aside by a stronger barrier. It was being absorbed. The bloodfire he released from the Blood Ember Stone was vanishing into the hidden lines under the platform, then rising toward the ruined shrine above them. It was flowing upward like it had found a new master.
Garran’s face twisted.
"What is this?"
Robi and Celia were both looking up.
Robi’s silver wall still stood in front of him, but his eyes were fixed on the broken shrine. Celia stood behind a barrier with one hand raised, frozen between defending and attacking. She had seen Lucard do impossible things already. She had seen him kill Dorian. She had seen him absorb the heart. But this was different. Garran’s bloodfire was a forbidden art powered by a Blood Ember Stone. It was not normal blood. It was not a simple spell. Even strong mages would avoid touching it directly.
Lucard was absorbing it.
For a moment, Celia forgot the battlefield. She forgot the dead ground, the shouting men, and the dangerous heat. She only saw Lucard standing above them between the broken shrine pillars. His black cloak moved in the cold wind. Red-black fire rose toward his hand. A faint crimson light burned inside his eyes. The whole scene looked like something painted by a mad temple artist who loved both death and beauty too much.
Then Garran followed their gaze.
His eyes moved to the broken shrine.
He saw Lucard.
The young man stood above the platform, one hand pressed against the cracked shrine stone. The last streams of bloodfire were entering his palm. His clothes were still dark. His face was calm. His presence had changed.
Robi could not explain it in one glance, but he felt it. The young man looked stronger than before. Cleaner. More complete. As if some missing part inside his body had just locked into place.
Baron Ravencroft saw him too.
His face immediately changed. "That is him."
Tina stood behind a tomb stone, still trembling, but the moment she saw Lucard, hatred returned to her eyes.
"That is him, Lord Garran. That is the bastard. He is the one who killed Dorian. He pulled out his heart. He killed your grandson."
Adrian also saw Lucard, and fear tightened around his throat. His hand went to his chest again. The blood spell inside him still existed. He could feel it sometimes, moving like a cold thread under his skin. Seeing Lucard above them made that feeling worse.
Garran slowly turned fully toward the shrine.
His eyes burned.
"You."
Lucard did not answer immediately.
Garran’s voice became heavier. "You are that bastard from House Vardros."
Lucard was not listening to him yet.
Inside his mind, the blood path continued to open messages one after another. Each notification appeared clearly in the dark space of his thoughts. The world outside became quieter for a moment. Garran’s anger, Robi’s stare, Celia’s shock, Ravencroft’s fear, Tina’s hatred, all of them moved to the edge of Lucard’s attention.
His real focus was inside his own blood.
[Blood Absorption has improved.
Blood Control has improved.
Blood Storage has improved.
Healing through absorbed blood has improved.
Foreign blood energy digestion has improved.]
Lucard felt the difference clearly.
His body had changed.
Before this, his flesh had still been too weak. It had been repaired by chaos energy and strengthened by the First Blood Circle, but it was still the body of a low level mortal noble. Now, after entering the Second Blood Circle, his vessel had truly become crimson. His veins had become stronger. His heart beat with deeper force. His muscles no longer felt hollow. His bones held power better. His blood moved faster and smoother, like a river that had found a wider path.
He was not a superhuman monster yet.
Not by his old standard.
But now his body had at least reached the level of a strong normal human. A trained warrior’s body. A body that could run, fight, heal, and hold power without feeling like it would break from every serious spell. He could absorb mana and blood faster than before. He could pull energy from wounds faster. He could digest violent blood more safely.
That was a good step. Still too small. But good.
More notifications appeared.
[Bloodfire Trace Absorbed.
Bloodfire Use Unlocked.
The host can now use a weakened form of Bloodfire.]
[Warning: Bloodfire is unstable at the current level. Overuse may damage the vessel.]
Lucard looked at his palm.
A tiny red-black flame appeared above his skin.
It was small, only the size of a candle flame. But unlike normal fire, it moved like liquid blood. It bent toward his fingers, then curled back into his palm. Its heat was not only on the surface. It wanted to enter flesh and burn the blood inside. That made it dangerous even in a weak form.
Lucard closed his fingers.
The bloodfire disappeared.
Another message opened.
[Crimson Vessel Special Effect Activated.
The host’s vessel can absorb mana from liquid-form energy.
Examples: Blood, poisoned blood, cursed liquid, liquefied elemental mana, bloodfire, magic fluid, and other liquid mana forms.
Note: The absorption speed and safety depend on the host’s level, vessel strength, and the quality of the energy.]
Lucard’s eyes sharpened slightly.
That was more valuable than the Bloodfire itself.
Liquid-form energy.
Blood was already his food. But now mana mixed with liquid could also be eaten more easily. Poisoned blood. Cursed liquid. Elemental liquid. Bloodfire. Monster fluids. Alchemy waste. Some kinds of molten mana. In this lower world, many noble families used strange materials in potions, rituals, bloodline awakenings, and experiments. That meant more things could become resources.
The path had widened.
Another line appeared.
[Next Blood Circle: Blood Mage Vessel.
Requirement: Reach Level 30.
Expected Vessel Change: The host’s body will take one step beyond a strong mortal body and begin forming a genius body for mana, spells, and blood magic.]
Lucard smiled faintly.
"Interesting... A genius body. I am looking forward to it. "
In this lower world, people worshipped talent. They bowed to bloodlines, mana circles, family inheritances, and natural gifts. Soon, the body they had called mudblood would become a genius vessel through their own blood.
That was amusing.
Below him, Garran’s patience ended.
"Are you deaf, boy?"
Lucard finally looked down. His gaze fell on Garran.