Chapter 264: The Wolf Among Sheep

Chapter 264: Chapter 264: The Wolf Among Sheep

The other three behind Jarek didn’t hesitate. They drew their weapons—a pair of curved daggers, a massive warhammer, and a staff crackling with dark energy—and charged.

Garr, the hulking brute, was the first to reach him. His Peak Grand Core aura exploded outward, a dense, brownish-gold energy that crackled around his fists. On his right hand was an A-Grade gauntlet, a massive, segmented piece of star-metal that hummed with earth-attribute mana.

"You’re dead, you arrogant prick!" Garr roared, swinging a haymaker directly at Lucian’s face.

To Lucian, the punch was slow. He could see the mana flow through Garr’s arm, the way his muscles bunched, the slight overextension of his shoulder.

Lucian caught the fist.

THUD!

Garr’s eyes widened in shock. His punch, which could shatter a building, had been stopped dead by a single hand. Lucian’s fingers closed around the star-metal gauntlet, the metal creaking under the pressure.

"What—" Garr started.

He didn’t get to finish. Garr raised his other hand, and the ground beneath Lucian erupted. CRACK! A massive earth spike shot upward, aiming to impale him from below.

Lucian stomped down.

BOOM!

The earth spike shattered into dust, the shockwave rippling through the cobblestone street. Before Garr could react, Lucian’s free hand shot forward, his fist connecting with Garr’s chest.

CRASH!

Garr was sent flying like a cannonball, his body smashing through a stone wall and disappearing into the rubble. The three remaining attackers froze, their eyes wide with disbelief. Garr was their muscle, the physically strongest among them. And he had just been swatted aside like a fly.

Jarek’s face twisted with fury. "You bastard!"

He weaved a series of rapid hand seals, his mana surging. "Lightning Art: Storm Serpent’s Coil!"

CRACKLE!

A massive serpent made of pure, crackling lightning erupted from his hands. It was over ten meters long, its body coiled and hissing as it lunged toward Lucian with blinding speed.

Lucian brought out the Blood Reaver.

"Eclipse Sword Art, First Form: Crescent Moon Slash."

SWISH!

A crescent-shaped arc of dark Sword Intent tore through the air, meeting the lightning serpent head-on. BOOOOOOM! The collision created a blinding explosion of light and energy, the shockwave flattening the surrounding stalls and sending debris flying.

When the smoke cleared, the lightning serpent was gone. Jarek was staring at him, his face pale.

The hooded figure appeared beside Lucian, a dagger coated in dark, corrosive poison aimed at his throat. But Lucian’s Blood Sense had already tracked the figure’s heartbeat. He spun, his hand shooting out and clamping around the figure’s throat.

CRACK!

He snapped the hooded figure’s neck with a sickening crunch. The body dropped to the ground, lifeless.

The woman, the one who had called him an idiot, turned and ran. She was fast, her Peak Grand Core cultivation propelling her through the crowd.

Lucian activated Light Steps. He appeared directly in front of her, blocking her path.

She skidded to a halt, her face a mask of terror. "P-Please... I was just—"

Lucian smiled. His fangs elongated, his crimson eyes glowing with predatory hunger.

"I guess you’re just unlucky."

He grabbed her by the shoulders, his fangs sinking into her neck. She screamed, but the sound was muffled by his hand. He drank deeply, pulling not just her blood, but her blood energy and life force directly into his body. Her skin turned pale, then grey. Her struggles weakened, then stopped entirely.

Lucian dropped the corpse, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. He removed her storage ring, then turned his attention to Garr, who had just crawled out of the rubble.

Garr took one look at the scene—the dead woman, the snapped neck, the blood dripping from Lucian’s chin—and ran.

Lucian didn’t pursue. He had more important prey.

Jarek was already running, his lightning-enhanced speed carrying him through the panicking crowd. But Lucian was faster. He activated Light Acceleration, appearing behind Jarek in a flash of golden light.

BAM!

Lucian’s boot connected with Jarek’s back, sending him crashing into a nearby food stall. The stall collapsed, wooden splinters and spilled wine flying everywhere.

Jarek scrambled backward, his hands raised in surrender. "Wait! Wait! I’m sorry! I didn’t know who you were! I’ll give you anything! Star Coins! Mana stones! Just—"

Lucian grabbed him by the hair, slamming his head into the ground. CRASH! The cobblestone cracked. He lifted Jarek’s head and slammed it again. CRASH!

"Does it look like I care about your Star Coins?" Lucian asked, his voice calm.

CRASH!

"Please..." Jarek sobbed, blood streaming down his face.

CRASH!

Lucian stopped, holding Jarek’s bruised, bloody face inches from the ground. "Do you know anything about the darkness? The night?"

"I... I don’t..." Jarek stammered.

Lucian sighed. "You know what? Don’t worry."

He slammed Jarek’s head into the ground one final time, knocking him unconscious.

Lucian placed his palm on Jarek’s forehead. "Mind Read."

WHOOSH!

His mental power invaded Jarek’s mind like a flood, tearing through memories, thoughts, and secrets. Images flashed—Jarek arriving in the Tower with his group, fighting beasts, finding the city. They had been here for over a week. Different people appeared at different intervals. The first floor was vast, with over forty-seven cities like this one, each protected by a guardian beast. The darkness lasted for eight hours before disappearing at dawn.

And then, Lucian saw it.

A memory of a massive tree, its branches reaching into the sky, its leaves glowing with a soft, golden light. The tree was surrounded by powerful beasts, but its fruits—Starfall Fruits—were a treasure beyond compare. Each fruit contained condensed star essence, enough to instantly break through to the Astral Realm.

With my Origin Devouring Art, I can absorb the fruit’s essence directly, Lucian thought. I can accelerate the process and break through instantly.

He pulled his hand back. Jarek’s mind was a mess, his consciousness barely holding together. Lucian raised a finger.

"Mind Spike."

ZZZZZT!

A concentrated lance of mental energy pierced Jarek’s brain. His body convulsed once, then went still. Dead.

Lucian took Jarek’s storage ring and waved his hand. FWOOSH! Blue-white flames erupted from his palm, consuming Jarek’s body in seconds, leaving only ash.

He walked away, disappearing into the crowd.

A few minutes later, Lucian sat in a small, quiet restaurant near the city center, a glass of deep red wine in his hand. The restaurant was mostly empty, the patrons too terrified to be out after the display they had just witnessed.

Lucian took a sip of the wine, savoring the rich, sweet taste. He had purchased it with a single low-grade mana stone—the currency of the Tower was mana stones, not Star Coins.

He checked his shadow storage. He now had a total of 2,500 low-grade mana stones and 200 mid-grade mana stones, all taken from the storage rings of Jarek’s group.

The system materialized beside him, its small white form hovering over the table. "You know," it said, its voice dripping with approval, "I have to admit, your ruthlessness is commendable."

Lucian swirled his wine. "Well, I just returned the favor."

"Still," the system mused, "you could have taken the S-Rank lightning sword from Jarek’s storage ring. That’s a powerful weapon."

Lucian shook his head. "Blood Reaver is better. It’s a semi-special grade weapon now. If it continues to grow, it’ll become a true special grade weapon—the grade above S-Rank. A lightning sword is useful, but it’s not worth the trade-off."

He took another sip of wine, his mind drifting back to the memory he had extracted from Jarek.

Lucian set the glass down, his crimson eyes gleaming with determination.

"Looks like I have a tree to find."