Bright Sword Chapter - Slash

...The twenty-seventh night on the Lonely Island...

Zhi had become completely accustomed to talking to himself over these past few days.

"Time flies. Before I knew it, nearly a month has already passed..."

"Through these days of reconnaissance, I have fully grasped the movements of those savages."

"All those who were captured are still alive and doing quite well; they have food and water. Although I've thought about rescuing Ellis and Freya several times, it seems they are not in immediate danger based on the current situation."

"The one ruling over the savages is indeed a vampire, and an exceptionally powerful one at that. Now, these savages have not only set up defensive fortifications within the village, but they also conduct organized patrols every night. The reason for this is obvious: the vampire is still wary of something. Objectively speaking, it is definitely not wary of me, because to a vampire, I am merely a weak and powerless human."

"Then what is it wary of? If it believes the Witch is not yet dead, is it guarding against her? That is certainly possible. Or perhaps there are other demons on this island, demons that stand in opposition to this vampire?"

"The expedition team! Those guys weren't killed or captured by the savages; I only need to count the numbers to realize that. What if the expedition team wasn't wiped out? What if they were controlled by some demon? Then the patrols and the construction of fortifications would make perfect sense. It isn't guarding against a single entity, but rather an organized group just like itself..."

"Haha, how ridiculous. We humans are merely tools for these demons. The vampire controls the savages, another demon controls the expedition team, and I am controlled by the Witch. Haha, how interesting. Who will ultimately emerge victorious? The demons, or me? Let's see!"

Inside a cave on the Lonely Island.

A man dressed in mechanic's clothing laughed loudly, shouting, "Haha, little vampire, I don't care which clan you belong to; this Night of Demons will absolutely be mine!" Kneeling before the man were seventy or eighty humans wielding various bone weapons. The light in their eyes had completely vanished; perhaps they were nothing more than empty shells...

Not far outside the Lonely Island, a man was looking around. He prepared to enter the island but was suddenly blocked by two women who appeared out of thin air.

"No matter who you are, this island is the private property of the Holy War Council. Any unauthorized personnel are forbidden from entering!" One of the women said with a hostile attitude.

The man stood his ground and asked, "Is the Holy War Council one of the three most powerful organizations? The most vicious and terrifying one? Haha, I think you had better step aside, otherwise, I cannot guarantee what will happen next!" As he spoke, the man released his energy, and in an instant, the entire island was enveloped by his aura.

At this, one of the women stepped forward, saying in terror, "You actually possess such immense power. I have never seen you before. Are you an assassin sent by the Holy Temple?"

The man shook his head dismissively and said, "You are in no position to ask me any questions now. Don't you understand? If I wanted to, I could kill you in the next second. Now, answer my question: is some kind of ritual being conducted on this island? Is that missing passenger plane here?" The man's attitude turned menacing. The two women, who had been so arrogant just moments ago, suddenly became submissive. This was the nature of demons—prioritizing their own survival above all else.

The woman who had spoken earlier answered politely, "Both of your questions are correct. Could you please state your intentions?" The woman was extremely nervous because the man before her possessed strength far beyond her own; she only wanted to leave as soon as possible.

The man was very pleased to hear this answer. He smiled and said, "Since that is the case, I won't bother you any further! Also, it would be best to keep my presence a secret. I have ways of finding you!" After speaking, the man vanished from the spot.

The two women, still trembling in fear, finally let out a sigh of relief.

"Deacon, should we report this to the Council?"

"No. Our mission now is to wait for the Night of Demons to end. We will report to the Council only after it is over!"

"Understood, Deacon. I would like to investigate the passenger list; perhaps I can find a clue about that man."

"Fine. Aside from you and me, do not tell anyone else. Remember that!"

"Yes, Deacon!"

In the jungle of the Lonely Island.

Zhi continued to craft traps. The savages followed a very simple routine that never brought them near his current location, allowing him to build his various traps with peace of mind. For the final battle, those two hundred savages would all have to die in this forest of traps. Only then could Zhi face the vampire without any distractions...

Zhi looked toward the distant village and muttered to himself, "Let them enter this blind spot, and then I will activate all the traps..."

The method to lure all the enemies out at once was simple: attack the village directly. The greatest weakness of grass huts is their flammability. In just a few seconds, several large huts in the village were set ablaze. All the savages rushed out like madmen, searching everywhere for the enemy. Fortunately, they spotted their target immediately and hurled their spears...

The savages chased the enemy frantically, scouring the area for traces. In the dense forest, they were about to offer up their lives.

The activation of the traps was determined by the creator. Once the prey had fully entered the target area, the creator would trigger them. This was not difficult to master; with a little patience, the prey would always walk right into the snare.

The traps were activated, and the prey fell into complete chaos. This was exactly the result Zhi wanted, as it allowed him to return to the village to deal with his true target.

In the dark of night, a bat hanging from a tree stared intently at Zhi as he hurried toward the village, while in a dark corner, a man with snow-white skin smiled faintly...

Since he did not know the vampire's exact location, he could only start by rescuing those who had been captured. Because the fire in the village was raging, the people who had been locked up were desperately trying to break out, emitting strange, guttural cries: "Ugh... ugh..."

The cages were forcibly broken open—something that should have been impossible. Zhi stood before the people, gripping his silver sword tightly.

"I'm sorry, you are no longer human..." Before Zhi could finish his sentence, he charged into the crowd...

These so-called "people" only resembled humans in appearance; their features, movements, and sounds had completely transformed into those of another creature—an unknown entity with strange, gaping mouths, massive teeth, dull eyes, and hair that had fallen out entirely...

Zhi used every ounce of his strength, personally finishing off every one of these aberrations until there was no sound left. Finally, he leaned against a tree far from the village...

"I'm sorry, Ellis. I'm sorry, Freya. I couldn't save you..." The voice was faint, spoken only because he needed to say it.

As Zhi sat in a daze, a man appeared. With his snow-white skin and golden hair, even if he didn't identify himself as a vampire, it would likely be guessed. He looked down at the exhausted human with a sinister smile and said, "You are strong, but you are ultimately just a human. Give your life to me, hum—" The vampire didn't finish his sentence; two pure silver daggers had pierced his body. For a vampire, even a small wound caused by silver was fatal.

"Ahhhhh... ahhh... you... you human... how dare you... wound me..." Just like last time, he couldn't finish his words. The vampire, having lost all ability to resist, was hacked in two by the human's sword.

The human looked at the vampire, who was burning into ash, and said, "This Sword of Hadoreka will gladly accept you, vampire!"

The disappearance of one of the last two demons on the Lonely Island signaled the arrival of the Night of Demons. Offering blood at the heart of the Demon Altar would allow one to evolve into a being entirely different from what they were now.

A blood-red beam of light shot from the center of the Lonely Island into the sky; that was the location of the Demon Altar...

A demon in a certain cave sensed the arrival of this moment. Overcome with excitement, he dismissed all the corpses he was controlling and raced toward the center of the island, never imagining that only one outcome awaited him there...