High in the sky, Xilutiya looked down at the vicious, hideous Seven-Headed Serpent. Waves of icy malice battered her. Anyone without a firm will or sufficient mental strength could easily lose the ability to fight under that assault.
Neither was a problem for her.
She shook her head slightly, dispelling the onslaught of malice, then darted through the air again, evading a snakehead that shot hundreds of meters upward to strike.
The serpent, though suppressed by the curse, still possessed formidable strength and showed no sign of falling. Xilutiya opened her palm for the third time and took out a blood-red essence crystal. It was a Blood Tempering Gemstone she had made while studying the Bloodline Curse in Blood Clan territory earlier that year. It had many uses, and she had five left.
She had never intended to treat it as an important combat resource. Today, facing this serpent, it happened to seem suitable, so she had brought it out to test the Blood Clan secret arts she had learned.
Though she had learned quite a few Blood Clan secret arts, she had rarely used them in battle. Apart from pursuing the Blood Clan thief who had stolen a Blazing Sun Essence Crystal aboard a train years ago, this fight against the giant serpent below was only the second time.
Holding the gemstone between her fingers, her hair dancing in the evening wind, Xilutiya touched it to her brow. The Blessing of True Crimson Blood she had received from Katera surfaced there, its pale-red mark like a flame, and resonated with the gemstone.
Soon the gemstone shone with a dazzling, uncanny red light, then instantly became blood-red petals swirling across the sky. The petals spun again and gathered beside Xilutiya's hand like a vortex. Twining together like spiraling vines, they