Under the Andes

Zhalu Village is located seven or eight kilometers northwest of Zack Town, at the foot of the Andes Mountain.

At this moment, a roaring bonfire crackled and popped at the edge of the village.

A group of short, dark-skinned, miniature people spread out to surround the fire.

Though they wore only animal skins covering their private parts, beads of sweat stood out on their bodies in the cold, desolate night wind.

In the shadows cast by these people, a group of children lay bound tightly on the ground, many of them whimpering in tears.

Wearing a hat woven from feathers, an alluring woman with her face painted in scarlet and white patterns raised her hand and shook the silver bell in her grip.

The sound of the bell was not loud, but it was crisp, cutting through the clamor to ring clearly in everyone's ears.

The alluring woman shrieked something, gesturing downward with her hand; her tone was as shrill and chilling as the cry of a night owl.

Miniature people began to step forward with basins, splashing red liquid onto the ground according to a pre-planned layout.

Soon, a bizarre red octagram pattern appeared on the ground, surrounded by a ring of cryptic symbols.

Merely looking at these symbols was enough to evoke a sense of profound malice.

The woman raised the bell above her head and shook it frantically.

The miniature people at the perimeter wore cruel smiles, revealing rows of sharp teeth.

They drew black stone knives from the belts at their waists and walked toward the group of bound children.

The alluring woman stretched her body gracefully, dancing while shrieking into the air.

Following her movements, the other miniature people joined in, swaying wildly to the rhythm of the drums.

Under some unknown influence, the octagram emitted a dim red light, and the small hearts piled in the center began to melt like red ice.

The wild dance finally ended, and the organs fused into a mass of gelatinous matter.

This gelatinous mass moved with a sense of animalistic intent, sliding in one direction.

The crowd parted to let it pass, and the mass crawled onto the corpses of the children.

It enveloped a child, paused for a moment, and then its volume grew slightly.

Then, it continued to repeat the process.

Its speed increased, and in the final seconds, it could devour an entire corpse.

Eventually, it transformed into a monster resembling a wild boar, though far more terrifying.

The monster's skin was a ghastly, deathly pale; it stood about two meters tall and was three meters long, with two half-foot-long tusks protruding from the corners of its mouth.

The alluring woman was overjoyed, her body blurring into an afterimage as she flickered to the monster's side.

Dense, gray, tentacle-like filaments erupted from her mouth, wrapping around the boar.

The moment the filaments touched it, the boar let out a shrill, miserable scream.

Soon, the sound stopped abruptly.

The filaments wrapped around the boar like a cocoon, leaving not a single gap.

The woman stared intensely at the gray cocoon, reaching out to stroke it as tenderly as one would a lover.

Before long, the gray cocoon rapidly withered and rotted away.

A more terrifying monster broke out from the cocoon.

Four long tusks now protruded from the boar's mouth.

A row of white bone spurs, each as thick as a thumb, grew along its back, while its belly was covered in a dense cluster of eyes.

These eyes reflected a variety of emotions: some cruel, some fearful, some despairing, and others insane.

"Roar!" All the monster's eyes glowed red as it let out a roar toward the sky.

The alluring woman walked back to the bonfire, picked up a piece of burning charcoal, and scrawled a string of symbols crookedly on the open ground.

After finishing, she raised her hand, shook her bell, and headed toward the mountains.

The monster sprinted to her side, and the miniature people hurried to follow.

Five days later, at the church.

Sunlight streamed in through the small skylight, leaving a path of light.

Kraun sat upright like a schoolboy, while the priest leaned lazily against a chair, recounting knowledge about various monsters.

"Vampires are a mutated form of evil human; how they truly came to be is lost to history. They loathe the sun and become weak under its scorching rays, yet they grow stronger in the darkness of night."

"They possess extreme speed and strength far greater than an ordinary human, though they are weaker than a Werewolf."

"They possess blood-based magic, allowing them to drain the life force hidden within blood to restore their stamina and heal their wounds."

Thump, thump. A knock on the door rang out abruptly.

Nick's brow furrowed, a flicker of annoyance crossing his face.

He had given strict instructions that he was not to be disturbed during this time.

"Father, Sheriff Hull is here to see you on an urgent matter," Avina's gentle and melodious voice sounded from outside the door.

"I'll be stepping out for a moment," Nick instructed before striding away.

About a quarter of an hour later, the priest hurried back in, clutching a few books. "I have some business to attend to, so you stay here and continue your studies. These are my old notes on mysterious species; study them well, and do not slack off on your physical training. Once my application process is completed within the Church, the transcendent potion will be delivered."

"Has something happened? Perhaps I can be of assistance."

Kraun stood up, expressing his desire to fight alongside the priest.

After these few days of practicing the Gold Shield technique, his swordsmanship had reached a level that would shock even a true Witcher.

Nick shook his head. "It's not necessary yet, lad. You will only be able to help once you become a true transcendent. Do not think that because your swordsmanship is well-trained now, you are ready. If I were to use my full strength, my speed and power would leap to an entirely different level. When power is great enough and speed is fast enough, technique cannot bridge a gap that seems like a mere line but is in reality as vast as a chasm."

He was about to say more, but the priest had already waved his hand and turned to leave.

Walking to the doorway, Nick turned his head slightly and said softly, "You didn't think that my strength was fully revealed at the slaughterhouse last time, did you?"

Wasn't it?

Kraun stood up, his face full of astonishment.

"My strength was less than half revealed. After advancing to a transcendent, you will discover that you have entered a whole new world. Therefore, during this time, you only need to dig into your potential as much as possible and avoid taking any risks."

"Less than half revealed..."

Beyond his shock, Kraun was filled with longing.

He clenched his hands into fists, his heart resolute: With the Golden Wall, my growth will reach a level that others can only look up to.