Chapter 297 - 176: Rules of the Blood War, Believers of the God of Slaughter

Chapter 297: Chapter 176: Rules of the Blood War, Believers of the God of Slaughter

The other asked curiously, "Sir, what are Wanderers?"

"A bunch of fellows who couldn’t make it in their home planes and fled to the Shadow Realm," Pei Ze explained casually, taking a sip of his steaming black tea. "Every outer plane has people like that."

Wanderers, as the name suggests, are beings who have roamed to other planes.

These beings are either hunted by native factions, forcing them to flee their plane, or their entire world has been conquered or destroyed by a foreign civilization. Having lost their home, they have no choice but to seek refuge in other outer planes.

The survivors of the Pei Family, for instance, are now counted among these Wanderers.

Many outer planes host Wanderers, but their numbers are greatest in the demon-inhabited Bottomless Abyss, the devil-ruled Nine Layers of Hell, and the Shadow Realm.

Outer planes like the Star Realm and the Spirit Realm are far too dangerous. For anyone less powerful than an Elemental Mage, going there is suicide. As a result, Wanderers are exceedingly rare in those places.

And while the Shadow Realm, the Bottomless Abyss, and the Nine Layers of Hell are also perilous, they at least offer a chance of survival compared to the Star Realm and the Spirit Realm.

The Bottomless Abyss and the Nine Layers of Hell are unique cases. They are perpetually filled with bloody, brutal slaughter, which even gave rise to the Blood War, a conflict renowned throughout the Multiverse.

The so-called Blood War is the protracted conflict between the demons of the Endless Abyss and the devils of the Nine Layers of Hell. It has raged on and off for tens of millions of years with no victor declared.

No one knows when it began, nor when it will end; it is as if it has always existed. It is universally acknowledged as the most brutal and bloody war in the Multiverse. Once caught in it, no matter how powerful you are, you can only leave your fate to chance and pray for the favor of Lady Luck.

However, for all its bloodshed and brutality, the Blood War also offers immense benefits.

Due to the influence of some unseen cosmic law, a sliver of power is drained from any creature slain in the Blood War and used to strengthen its killer.

It’s quite common for a combatant’s power to increase by an entire level after a single major battle.

This is a major reason why the Blood War has persisted for over ten million years, beyond just the animosity between demons and devils.

Through the Blood War, demons and devils have cultivated countless high-level combatants, becoming one of the few top-tier planar factions in the Multiverse. Even the Star Realm Alliance dares not lightly provoke the Endless Abyss and the Nine Layers of Hell.

It’s worth noting that the rules of the Blood War apply not only to demons and devils but to any creature that participates. This has attracted many other races, eager to gain immense power, to join the fray.

Of course, not even one in a thousand who enter the brutal Blood War ultimately survives to obtain that great power.

Otherwise, the Blood War would not be known as the bloodiest conflict in the Multiverse.

Regardless, for many desperate Wanderers with nowhere else to turn, the Bottomless Abyss and the Nine Layers of Hell are appealing destinations.

They yearn to gain immense power in the Blood War, hoping to take revenge on their enemies or reclaim their conquered homelands.

For Wizards, however, the Blood War holds little appeal.

This is because gaining power through the Blood War has an unavoidable drawback: as one’s strength grows, their spirit and mind are gradually corrupted by the slaughter, making them bloodthirsty and cruel.

This is obviously unacceptable for Wizards, who must maintain their composure at all times and strive for self-mastery.

For every measure of power gained in the Blood War, one might later have to expend three to five times the effort to eliminate its side effects—a terrible bargain.

Therefore, with the exception of a few Wizards who follow more unorthodox paths, most have no interest in the Blood War.

This was another primary reason why the survivors of the Pei Family chose to flee to the Shadow Realm rather than the Bottomless Abyss or the Nine Layers of Hell.

"Wanderers need to visit settlements periodically to resupply, so there’s likely a settlement somewhere near their areas of activity."

Hearing this, Su Ya and Peng Yan’s eyes immediately lit up.

But then, Su Ya raised a question.

"But Sir, where are we supposed to find these Wanderers?"

"The Wanderers who survive in the Shadow Realm are either powerful or extremely cautious. They don’t easily leave traces in the wilds, so finding them won’t be easy."

"But we aren’t targeting them," Pei Ze said, his gaze fixed on the shadowy mist in the distance.

"Not all Wanderers are permitted to enter the settlements. Those who are cast out often resort to attacking other Wanderers to get the supplies they need."

At these words, understanding dawned on Su Ya and Peng Yan.

Clearly, Pei Ze’s true targets were these outcasts.

For the past two days, they had been carefully concealing their tracks and auras to avoid detection by Magical Creatures. However, for Wanderers accustomed to ambushing others, discovering their presence probably wouldn’t be difficult.

’Perhaps we’re already being watched.’

The thought had barely formed when Su Ya saw a knowing smirk appear on Pei Ze’s face.

"Here they come. They’ve delivered themselves right to us."

Startled, Su Ya and Peng Yan immediately grabbed their weapons and rose to their feet.

But Pei Ze was faster. A point of ghostly light appeared at his fingertip, then erupted, transforming into a pale gray ripple that swept out in all directions.

Fear Technique!

Wherever the gray ripple passed, more than thirty figures suddenly materialized from the seemingly empty mist, all clad in hooded leather armor and wielding sharp blades.

They were poised to attack, but as the gray ripple swept over them, their bodies froze, and terror filled their eyes.

They recovered an instant later, however, and the bloodthirsty, cruel light returned to their eyes as they charged murderously toward Pei Ze’s party.

"Followers of the God of Slaughter."

Pei Ze’s gaze swept over the grotesque, blood-red masks they wore, and his eyes flickered.

It was the trademark of the God of Slaughter’s followers. That Divine Spirit, whose domain is slaughter itself, loves to see his devotees in such attire.

"So that’s why. No wonder they’re barred from the settlements."

If one were to name the most unwelcome divine spirits in the entire Multiverse, the God of Slaughter, Baal, would certainly be on the list.

This Divine Spirit loves and revels in slaughter above all else.

His followers are spread across many planes, and they delight in orchestrating large-scale, bloody massacres to please their god.

Because of this, the God of Slaughter and his followers are despised by many planar civilizations. Some powers even consider the God of Slaughter, Baal, an Evil God, and will hunt down his followers without mercy whenever they are discovered.

The reason the Shadow Realm’s settlements banned these people was now obvious. They clearly didn’t want their communities to suddenly erupt in a bloody, chaotic massacre.

"I didn’t expect to find followers of the God of Slaughter even in the Shadow Realm."

Pei Ze clicked his tongue in mock wonder, but his actions were merciless. A silvery liquid metal floated up from his wrist and rapidly formed into a volley of sharp spikes, which shot out in all directions like a torrential storm.

A rapid succession of sickening thuds followed. Like scythed straw, the attackers charging at the three of them collapsed one after another, dead on the ground.

In a single attack, more than half of the encircling followers of Slaughter were annihilated, leaving only seven or eight still on their feet.

"A Level 3 Wizard!"

One of the followers, apparently their leader, cried out in horror, his eyes wide with disbelief beneath his mask.

According to their readings, the Wizard’s Spirit fluctuations were only at the Level 2 Liquefied stage. Even allowing for a margin of error, he should have been a Level 2 Crystalized Wizard at most. Yet the combat power he had just displayed was approaching that of a Level 3 Wizard.

’What in the world was going on?’

"You guessed wrong," Pei Ze said with a slight smile. "I am a Second-level Wizard."

With a casual wave of his hand, innumerable metal spikes once again whistled through the air, forming a metal storm that engulfed the remaining followers of Slaughter.

These followers of Slaughter were generally at the level of fifth- or sixth-rank legends, with a few leaders reaching the seventh rank. Aided by divine favor, ganging up on a Level 2 Crystalized Wizard should have been a simple matter.

Unfortunately for them, they had run into a monster like Pei Ze.

For him, as he was now, anyone below a Level 3 Wizard could be annihilated with a flick of his wrist.