Chapter 2178 Blood and Gore

Pain.

That was what brought Adam back from the pits of unconsciousness.

A sharp, persistent pain in his neck.

Someone was trying to cut his throat open.

Adam's flesh kept regenerating, however, making it difficult for the man to finish the job. Every time the dagger sliced through his skin, the wound would slowly close.

It was the pain that finally snapped Adam's eyes open.

His vision was blurry, and his head throbbed as though someone was hammering nails into his skull. He tried to move, only to feel a sharp pain shoot through his body.

The right side of his face had caved in. The impact had caused severe brain damage, knocking him unconscious despite his body's regenerative abilities. His face had only recently begun to return to its original shape.

Even now, his head felt as though it would split apart. But at least he was conscious. And he could still think. Although he was still delirious.

How long was I out?

Where's Genevieve?

Where's Valerian?

Adam instinctively reached for the dagger at his throat, grabbing its blade with his fingers.

The sharp edge sliced through his flesh.

He grunted in pain and immediately pulled his hand back. Blood trickled down his fingers, but the wounds had already begun to heal.

Damn… you…

He had acted on instinct without considering the blade's sharpness.

No matter.

He raised his other hand and formed a simple hand seal. Mana flared to life. The hair on his head suddenly began to writhe.

In the blink of an eye, his hair transformed into a mass of twisting serpents.

The Paladin barely had time to react. The serpents lunged forward and coiled around his neck. They tightened their grip.

The man's eyes bulged as he desperately clawed at the serpents, but their hold only grew stronger. His face turned red as the life was squeezed out of him.

Adam slowly sat up. He reached out and snatched the dagger from the man's hand.

With a deranged smile on his face, he murmured, "You fucked me… and now I'm gonna fuck you."

Then he thrust the dagger into the Paladin's face. Once. Twice. Thrice. A dozen times until the face was full of holes. The man's struggles ceased, and his body went limp. Only then did Adam stop.

The serpents released their prey and slithered backward, transforming back into strands of ordinary hair once more.

Adam dropped the dagger. His strength deserted him almost immediately. He swayed, then collapsed onto his knees.

"Where are you…"

His entire body hurt. His head was splitting. He had barely survived that hammer strike.

What was that?

That definitely wasn't a Transcendent Paladin.

A Saint?

He had barely survived that hammer strike. He inhaled large mouthfuls of air. Ignoring the searing pain inside his head, he assessed the situation.

His eyes swept across the battlefield. Blood and corpses everywhere.

The enemy was systematically slaughtering every guest present. With the poison dulling their senses, the guests could barely fight back. Some were still putting up resistance, desperately trying to defend themselves.

But how long could they last?

Against an enemy so overwhelming and tactical?

Not long.

One by one, they would fall. Slaughtered. Brutally.

The enemy would win.

It was all over.

But Adam couldn't bring himself to care about any of that.

He needed to find Genevieve.

That was the only thought occupying his mind.

"Where are you?" he whispered.

He looked around frantically, searching through the bodies scattered across the floor. His vision was still blurry, and his splitting headache made it difficult to concentrate. But he forced himself to keep looking.

Then his gaze fell upon a pair of corpses.

Familiar faces. Tiny faces.

Adam froze. His blood turned cold.

"No…"

He stared at them, unable to believe what he was seeing. Unable to believe there was such evil in this world.

"No, no, no. What are they doing here?"

Channing's grandchildren lay motionless on the floor. Their small bodies mutilated beyond recognition.

How could there be such evil in this world? How could someone kill children in cold blood? Innocent children.

They had never even held a blade in their hands. They'd never hurt anyone. Probably not even badmouthed anyone.

So why were they dead?

Adam's breath caught in his throat. Tears came unbidden.

Just a while back, these kids had been alive. They had been with their grandfather, their parents, surrounded by family and love and happiness.

Now they were gone.

Adam knelt before their corpses, pale and frozen.

If the children are here, then where was Genevieve?

They were hiding in her shadow.

If they were here, then…

"No, no, no, no."

He did not believe it. Did not want to believe it.

She couldn't be dead. No. She couldn't be. She couldn't.

Just when Adam thought his world had shattered and crumbled into ruin, he caught something moving in the corner of his eye.

A tiny figure peeked out from between corpses, staring at him with its round, black eyes.

Adam almost couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"Vesper?"

"Kree!"

The little Shadow looked around warily before scrambling toward Adam.

For a moment, Adam simply stared at him. His mind made the connection instantly. Vesper couldn't be alive without Genevieve. That meant she was still alive.

Adam felt relief wash over him, but it was quickly overshadowed by the urgency of the situation.

He grabbed the pudgy little Shadow and brought him close. "Where is she? Where is Genevieve?"

"Kree! Kree!" The Shadow pointed at his own shadow on the ground.

Adam took a moment to understand. He stared at the corpses of the kids, then at Vesper's shadow, then finally back at Vesper.

Vesper lowered his head pitifully. "Kree…"

Adam hugged the little guy. "It's okay. It's okay. Everything will be fine."

He could feel the little Shadow sobbing in his embrace. He carefully tucked Vesper inside his robes. "Stay here. I'll protect you."

"Kree…"

Adam took a deep breath and prepared to leave. He had only taken a few steps when a group of Paladins blocked his path. Adam stopped. Behind him, several more appeared, cutting off his retreat. He was trapped again.

He gritted his teeth and summoned the Viper.

There were more than a dozen of them. A couple of them were at the Transcendent Rank.

Under normal circumstances, fighting so many Paladins would have been suicidal. Let alone presently, when he was injured and exhausted.

But he had no choice. He had to make it out of here. Not just for himself. But for Vesper. For Genevieve.

Adam let out a roar and charged forward, the Viper hissing sinisterly in his grasp.

But before he could even reach the first Paladin, something unexpected happened.

The dozen or so men surrounding him suddenly froze. Spheres of water materialized around their heads, completely encasing them. Within moments, the water began to turn red.

And then, one after another, the Paladins collapsed to the ground like flies.

Then, through the blood and gore, a figure emerged.

A woman with blue hair.

Her Magus robes were in tatters, and her entire body was drenched in blood. She looked as though she had fought her way through hell itself.

Moonie Morelli.

Her gaze fell upon Adam. Then Vesper. Only then did Moonie breathe in relief.

She looked back at Adam and said solemnly:

"Adam Constantine, let's get the hell out of here."