In the center of the hall, Meng Li, who had followed Li Xi, was introducing the situation in Kadu City to a vampire radiating an infinite aura of demonic power at the uppermost seat.
"My Lord Duke, a Leaf Village merchant group has recently appeared in Kadu City. They have two hundred dwarves, and with the weapons forged by these dwarves, the manpower originally lost from Kadu City is slowly recovering. Within a year, Kadu City will be able to return to its pre-blood sacrifice level."
So, there was another Duke here, at the same level as Nasel, who had died by Li Xi's hand. He was a level seven. After the multi-city blood sacrifice last time, not only was Dracula severely injured, but the vampires were also greatly weakened. There were only about a dozen Dukes left among the vampires. He hadn't expected to find one hiding here.
"Oh? Two hundred dwarves? What is the background of this Leaf Village merchant group?"
Meng Li wore a fawning expression. "Reporting to you, my Lord, this merchant group was formed by a C-class mercenary and a woman named Avril. It is said that they encountered this Bronzebeard dwarf tribe while on a mission and, after repeated invitations, persuaded the entire tribe to come to Kadu City. However, it is rumored that the Dragonborn Mourinho is also involved behind the scenes."
As soon as the name Mourinho was uttered, the hall, which had been filled with revelry, seemed to have its throat choked. All activity ceased. Even the previously lethargic Duke sat up straight, his eyes filled with solemnity.
People outside might not have a complete understanding of Mourinho, not knowing him well, only that he was a powerful Dragonborn.
But they knew. After all, it was the enemy who understood their opponent best. They had spent decades meticulously planning in Kadu City, and their success was imminent. But in the end, it was this person who interfered and snatched away the divine power crystal. Most importantly, the previous Duke, Nasel, had the power of Dracula's clone descending within him. With such immense power, he could have escaped even from a Saint-level being. Yet, he only went to pursue Mourinho, and within two days, news of his death spread.
Furthermore, according to Dracula, who was recuperating in the abyss, Nasel died at the hands of Mourinho. Their secret return to Kadu City was because they received news that the old fellow Demanga had completely left this place.
Without Demanga, Kadu City was like a free-ranging lamb. No wolf would let such a good opportunity pass. However, due to the uncertainty of Mourinho's whereabouts, they had been hesitant to act. Otherwise, they would have long since performed another blood sacrifice on Kadu City, condensed the divine power crystal, and helped Dracula recover from his injuries.
But the uncertainty of Mourinho, who seemed even more powerful than Demanga, forced them to hide in this remote area. Before confirmation, no one dared to set foot in Kadu City. That was an existence capable of instantly killing a level eight Domain expert.
Now, the newly arrived vampire Duke Aiwasi dared not say that he could survive an encounter with this Dragonborn. Therefore, he had sent the former city lord, Gadoro, and the current level four vampire Meng Li back to Kadu City to gather information. They were hiding here, deciding their next move based on the situation.
He hadn't expected to receive news about Mourinho so quickly.
"Is there anything more detailed?" All eyes fell on Meng Li.
Meng Li shook his head. "My Lord, according to my investigation, this Leaf Village merchant group is very simple. They occupy one street in Kadu City and sell the weapons forged by the dwarves to merchants who come to purchase them. They have no intention of annexing or expanding. Their personnel composition is also very clear. Besides the dwarves, there are only some ordinary people and a dozen low-level mercenaries."
"Did anyone personally see that Dragonborn?" Aiwasi asked again.
"No, this news came from a few minor mercenaries. If you wish to confirm the truth of the news, my Lord, we can capture those minor mercenaries and interrogate them severely. We will surely be able to extract some truth."
Aiwasi tapped his fingers on the chair made of eternally ancient jade, his mind constantly contemplating the possibility of Mourinho's appearance. He didn't take the few minor mercenaries seriously. In fact, there was another piece of information he had never disclosed: the divine power crystal refined by the Kadu City blood sacrifice had already been absorbed, and the absorption speed far exceeded Dracula's. This was personally heard by Prince Kenio directly from Dracula.
On the surface, his mission was to continue the blood sacrifice and gather energy for Dracula's deification. But that wasn't the case. After tens of thousands of years of accumulation, coupled with the four divine power crystals from the last blood sacrifice, Dracula had already gathered enough divine power for deification. He was currently only injured by the Dark Lady and dared not rashly ascend. Once his body recovered, deification would be instantaneous.
Therefore, his actual mission was to investigate who had absorbed the divine power crystal. According to Dracula's guess, only a powerful deity could absorb the divine power crystal so quickly. To avoid being caught off guard in the future, Dracula had sent people to investigate first.
The more powerful a person, the more timid they were, especially an ancient monster like Dracula who had lived for countless years. He understood the importance of information better than anyone.
Aiwasi dared not touch anything related to gods. Therefore, he took a detour and investigated Mourinho, because Mourinho had stolen the divine power crystal, so he must know who had devoured the divine power.
When he first learned of his mission, Aiwasi outwardly said nothing, but inwardly, he was cursing. Such a mission, even a prince might not succeed. Now, he, a mere Duke, was tasked with it. Therefore, Aiwasi had hundreds of high- and mid-level vampires and tens of thousands of low-level vampires under his command, all hiding here. He had only dispatched Meng Li, who knew Kadu City better than anyone, to sneak back.
Aiwasi had made up his mind. This mission was a matter of fate. If it succeeded, good; if not, it didn't matter. Nothing was more important than survival. If it weren't for this endless lifespan, who would want to be a universally reviled vampire?
Looking at Meng Li kneeling below, the former city lord of Kadu City, Aiwasi, with a serious expression, said, "I will note your contribution first. Now, you return to Kadu City and continue to monitor this small merchant group. Report to me as soon as there is any news."
"Yes, my Lord."
Meng Li didn't know that this matter was so complicated, involving gods and divine power. He only knew that a month ago, he was an old man on the verge of death. Now, he was a being with an endless lifespan, no need for medicine, no need to live precariously, no need to worry about falling asleep one day and not waking up. To gain the favor of the Duke, he had to complete his first mission as a vampire flawlessly.
Just as Meng Li was bidding farewell and walking to the door,
"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!"
Three explosions sounded, and the gate was instantly buried by debris.
The hundreds of vampires in the hall leaped to their feet, their blood-red eyes like man-eating demons.
Over a hundred vampires of level four to five simultaneously surged, sending the two hundred low-level vampires serving them flying to the corners. Their eyes were fixed on the gate, and their spiritual power constantly emanated, forming ripples in the air.
"Who is it?"
Unfortunately, they found nothing. No one was outside the door.
Just as all the vampires were drawn to the explosion at the gate, thunder roared behind Aiwasi. Hearing the sound, Aiwasi's scalp tingled, and his whole body tensed. Apart from light-based magic used in sacrifices, lightning-attribute magic was also a nemesis to vampires. If it were a normal lightning attack, Aiwasi wouldn't have reacted so strongly. At his level seven, he was actually quite similar to a normal person. The fact that every pore on his body was warning him to run or die was overwhelming.
However, in Aiwasi's blood-red eyes, he saw a flash of lightning. It pierced through the castle wall, constructed of thick, solid stone, at extreme speed. His fingers had just been raised when his chest was pierced. The immense power made him clearly feel his heart being clutched by a dragon's claw. With a slight squeeze, he would be dead.
Facing the person who had ambushed him, with dark red scales all over his body, broad dragon wings behind him, and a face he had seen in portraits countless times, Aiwasi felt a deep bitterness in his heart. He had been so low-key, why was he still targeted?
Without giving Aiwasi a chance to think, Li Xi directly crushed Aiwasi's heart and kicked him with a foot as big as fifty to sixty yards. With just a flying kick, the entire hall seemed to be swept by a typhoon. Aiwasi, spitting blood all over, fell to the ground, already flattened into a human pancake. If he could still survive like this, Li Xi would be impressed. Looking at the pancake-like Aiwasi now, he definitely didn't have Nasel's ability and was surely dead.
In the blink of an eye, the vampires present were stunned. Their Lord Duke, a level seven, was killed in an instant by a surprise attack. This was an unimaginable scene for them. He was a veteran vampire who had lived for tens of thousands of years, capable of meeting Dracula. Countless renowned figures had died at Aiwasi's hands. Even now, in some cities, terrifying legends of Aiwasi were still circulating. But today...
They hesitated, their worldview shattered. But Li Xi did not hesitate. Dealing with so many high-level vampires would not be easy.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
'Bang!'
Four shadow clones instantly appeared. As soon as the shadow clones appeared, they instantly flew to the outer periphery of the hall. Simultaneously, they bit their fingers and slapped the ground heavily.
"Summoning Jutsu - Rashomon!"
Four gates, located between the human realm and the underworld, were summoned. The giant wind chimes swayed in the wind, their melodious sounds like the singing of the god of death. Every time this happened, life was lost.
The four Rashomon gates tightly enclosed the hall, dozens of meters high, reaching directly to the cliff face. Three of the Rashomon gates even pierced into the cliff. With a metal thickness of two to three meters, let alone these mid- and high-level vampires, even Aiwasi, if he were reborn, would have to exert all his strength to break them.
"Attack together, kill him, or none of us will live today." The vampires present realized, seeing the four massive gates, that this Mourinho was determined to defeat them all, otherwise, he wouldn't have blocked all escape routes.
Unfortunately, Li Xi had already flown to the top of the Rashomon, his hand seals completed. His chest bulged high, and he unleashed a blast towards the vampires below who were spreading their bat wings, attempting to attack him. The same action was performed by the four shadow clones who had just summoned the Rashomon, only with different jutsus.
"Water Style: Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave!" x3
The wave-like flood engulfed all the vampires who were taking flight. Even stranger, this water did not flow away through the gaps. Instead, it formed a giant water sphere, trapping all the vampires. The four Rashomon gates acted like a sealed water tank, and the vampires were like small fish fry inside.
Vampires were all expert fliers. In the air, they were capable of catching birds with their bare hands. But just as birds could not live in water, vampires, facing a different environment, were as clumsy as toddling children. The wider they spread their bat wings, the less control they had over their bodies, being tossed around by the constantly flowing water. Many times, serious collisions occurred. Several vampires, unable to adapt to the aquatic environment, crashed into each other, letting out a string of bubbles from their mouths. Just as humans could drown, vampires could too. However, the stronger the individual, the longer they could stay underwater.