Chapter 557: Chapter 45: Krimasha Relics (6)_2
Every mural inevitably featured humans wearing mage robes. As for regulars, there were Angels and demons. Interspersed were various other races, such as Elves, Dwarves, Beastmen, and the Dragon Clan...
Jones stopped to take a closer look.
Andrew, walking ahead, urged, "Hurry up, we’re not here for a picnic. The longer we stay here, the more danger we’re in. If you have anything you want to know, just ask me directly. If you look on your own, you won’t understand even half of it in six months."
Jones hurriedly caught up, "You just said the Blood Clan is human, what do you mean?"
"Didn’t your Blood Clan Elders tell you this?" Andrew countered.
"What should they have told us?" Jones looked baffled.
"The Blood Clan is human. Haven’t you ever thought about why the Blood Clan can turn humans into Blood Clan but can’t turn Elves or other races into Blood Clan? What exactly is the relationship between these two species? It can’t just be a coincidence, right?"
"I don’t understand what you’re trying to say."
*Andrew sighed helplessly at Jones’s terrified and shocked expression and spoke softly,* "I mean, the Blood Clan is human-transformed. It’s not just when you bite them that they turn from human to Blood Clan, but every Blood Clan member, including your ancestor’s Elders, was human-transformed. The Blood Clan is essentially the remnants of Krimasha, the failed human self-modification from the Krimasha Era."
Jones stood dumbfounded, staring blankly at Andrew.
Next to him, Dora’s eyes widened slightly.
Andrew glanced at Jones and smiled slowly, "Anything else you want to ask?"
"You’re lying to me," Jones said bluntly.
"I’m lying to you? Then refute my point."
"Calling them failures is wrong. How is the Blood Clan a failure?" Jones questioned, "The Blood Clan has unlimited lifespans, while humans have short lifespans. The Blood Clan has stronger magic talent and physiques than humans. Are these all failures?"
"Haha." Andrew laughed harder. He raised the fire stick to continue down the long corridor, sighing as he spoke, "You’re right, the Blood Clan has unlimited lifespans, greater magic talent, stronger physiques, all true. In fact, these were the goals set during the Krimasha Era human modifications. They accomplished it, highlighting the power of Krimasha Era humans. They successfully created a new species. Not only a new species, but one that humans could transform into. This meant it was essentially a rapid strengthening ability. But..."
"But what?" Jones quickly asked.
"But, unlimited lifespans, powerful magic talents, and strong physiques were not the ultimate goals of Krimasha Era humans. Their ultimate goal was to completely rid themselves of dependence on Angels and demons. On the surface, unlimited lifespans, powerful magic talents, and strong physiques might seem to accomplish this goal. However, this was not the case. To truly escape the control of Angels and demons, the most straightforward way was to defeat them without relying on anyone. At the very least, if not defeat them, they must at least be able to draw, having chips for equal negotiations. Can the Blood Clan do that?"
Andrew turned around to glance at Jones.
Jones stared blankly at him, brain somewhat muddled, unable to react.
"The Blood Clan can’t." Andrew sighed, continuing to walk forward, "Against Heaven, you know Sacred Magic’s lethality is beyond words, even more lethal than it is to demons or Liches. The Blood Clan is powerless in the face of Heaven’s forces. Against Hell... your bloodline contains all negative emotions. Demons can make you incredibly greedy and irritable with just a small manipulation. Without even starting a war, internal chaos ensues. Becoming the Blood Clan not only strengthens human abilities but magnifies weaknesses. Otherwise, why does the Blood Clan stay on the Kolin Peninsula? Why does the Blood Clan give up the continent to humans when they can turn humans into Blood Clan? Why drink human blood when any warm-blooded animal’s blood suffices? Is it just to show their evil nature? Why does the Blood Clan indulge in pleasure? Because the wisest choice for them is to remain separate from humans and never provoke Angels and demons. Once provoked, it’s a dead end."
Jones suddenly recalled Elder Bartholomew’s words echoing in his ears: "The Blood Clan cannot have faith." He stood there dumbfounded.
"You should thank me," Andrew said lightly, "If it weren’t for me telling you this, you might never know. The Krimasha Era humans wouldn’t depict such things in murals. Even if you combed through here, you wouldn’t find any information about the Blood Clan’s origins. They’ve always tried to modify themselves. That is Krimasha’s greatest secret and the true reason for Krimasha’s destruction. Angels and demons were terrified of Krimasha humans. After all, if they could create the Blood Clan, who could guarantee their next experiment wouldn’t succeed?"
Dora, behind them, listened in a daze.
"Where did you learn all this?" Jones asked in a lowered voice.
"The Divine Wood Library. During the Third Epoch, Elves had close relations with humans, and there are many records about Krimasha there. Though only fragments, they are enough to deduce the entire outline." Andrew held the fire stick up to illuminate the nearby mural, examining it closely as he spoke casually, "For a long time, both Wood Elves and Blood Elves have highly desired Krimasha’s technologies. Why? Because these two races were the closest to Krimasha during the Third Epoch, they knew how terrifying Krimasha knowledge was and how many secrets Krimasha people hid. Unfortunately, Angels and demons knew this too. They couldn’t tolerate a race on the Keltos Continent surpassing themselves."
"If that’s the case, why didn’t Angels and demons destroy the relics?"
"You brought a Lich with you, didn’t you?" Andrew turned cheekily to ask.
"Yes, Aunt Lucy."
"Where is she now?"
"Uh..."
"She ran into trouble too. This place is dangerous for her. In terms of power, she is not weaker than most Angels and demons. Furthermore, this place’s defenses originally targeted Heaven and Hell. For Heaven’s Sacred Magic and Hell’s Black Magic, it has extremely sensitive responses. Do you believe that the mere entry of an Angel or demon here would instantly activate all the Tomb Guardian Demons? Heaven and Hell cherish life dearly. They ventured into the Krimasha Relics and fell into traps, suffering heavy losses. After that, they gave up. The most important thing was that they believed even if they acquired the complete secrets of the Krimasha Relics, they had the capability to suppress it, as they had done before. And almost no race on the Keltos Continent could fully inherit the secrets of the Krimasha Relics. Thus, their risk of entering the Krimasha Relics seemed redundant."
"But... I still don’t understand. If Krimasha could create defenses strong enough against Angels and demons, how were they still suppressed?"
"Because the ability to defend against Angels and demons doesn’t mean they could fully control it themselves. Like summoning extraterrestrial deities using Forbidden Techniques, unsure if their opponents die, even if successful, they would be the first to perish. It’s a mutually destructive approach. The ability to use it is different from the ability to completely master it." Andrew stopped, holding the fire stick to illuminate another stone door ahead, "We’ve arrived."