Deep in the West Sea, ten thousand miles from Dragon Mountain Imperial Capital, on a barren volcanic island, thirteen crystal skulls the size of water jars floated in midair. Several thousand Flying Serpent Yin Family necromancers in gray robes stood upon the ground. Viscous dragon blood mixed with powdered magic crystals had been used to trace an evil sacrificial formation across the earth. Standing upon its lines, they chanted incantations in low voices.
Thirteen beautiful elven maidens, thirteen mighty Titan warriors, thirteen honest-looking dwarven strongmen, thirteen brutish descendants of the orc royal bloodline, as well as sacrificial offerings from nearly a hundred intelligent races—goblins, Gnomes, humans, and more—lay on the ground. Their chests had been cut open, and several thin blood vessels connected to their still-beating hearts. Those fist-sized hearts were slowly rising into the air.
There were exactly thirteen individuals from every race used in the sacrifice, corresponding precisely to the thirteen crystal skulls.
At the core of the sacrificial formation, thirteen Flying Serpent Yin Family elders stood steadily with bone staves in hand. A crystal skull floated over each of their heads. Sinister and grotesque in shape, those transparent skulls spat threads of evil light from their eye sockets, continuously pouring them into the Yin Family elders' bodies. Strange knowledge, surging like ocean tides, was forcibly fed into their souls, while their life-source power was slowly drained away.
In just a few breaths, life force equal to three thousand years of an ordinary person's lifespan had been drawn from these Yin Family elders. Their faces became haggard and weary, yet uncontrollable ecstasy showed in their eyes. During this sacrifice, they had once again obtained unprecedented, miraculous knowledge from the crystal skulls.
Amid crisp cracking sounds, the hearts floating over the sacrificial victims' chests suddenly shot upward. Thin blood