Draconic Vampire : Curse of the Blood

Chapter 65: Who is he?

Keith looked at the judgment pillar which was emanating a tremendous amount of aura. The layers of passage that opened were connected to the pillar with countless blood runes. He could feel something profound coming out of the pillar as his vision was getting sucked in.

“The passages you see represent a major stage of blood condensing. The outermost layer is for barons, then viscount, count, and so on. Only those who have sufficient blood-qi will be able to pass the corresponding passage.

It not only tests your blood core as it contains almost eighty percent of your life energy. It also takes into account your other techniques as well that give you higher reserves of blood-qi. It may be your family technique or it may be your own special physique.” Valencia said while looking around the students.

“What about the original genes? How does the pillar measure it?” One of the female students at the early stage of baron asked.

“I am getting there, dear junior.” She looked at the new student with a smile and continued.

“The pillar will examine your blood in the meantime and show the results in the runes circulating on its body. This process will take more time, so we will take ten students at a time and repeat the process until everyone is tested.

“Ten students will be spread around the outer layer. With only their strength and blood-qi techniques, they can advance further. No one is allowed to use any artifacts. If any artifacts are  detected inside the passage, you will be automatically disqualified, and your ranking will plummet.”

“So we can use our advanced blood-qi techniques to boost our blood-qi temporarily. Is that allowed?” One young student who was sitting in the front row asked with a frown.

He was at the middle stage of baron but Keith sensed his aura to be quite profound and higher than even some final stage barons.

“Yes, excluding artifacts you can use any means necessary to advance further. It will depend on your blood-qi and also blood-qi techniques, as to how far you will go. 

“Now, we will start the first event. In the starting phase, we will go through one row at a time. Anyone who wants to take the test later or needs some time to unequip an artifact can  withdraw and rejoin at the end.”

She gestured to the first row students to come, and eight students from the first row got up from their seats. The total number of seats was over a hundred, but it was now a circular arrangement, the ones who were facing Valencia got up first as she pointed at them.

The two who were sitting beside the eight were wearing many artifacts in their hands and neck. They withdrew from the test and slowly equipped their artifacts.

Seeing this, two other vampires sitting on the other side got up and walked with the remaining eight.

As they approached the outermost passage, the two count-level vampires from the student council guided the ten to the correct positions and withdrew to their own positions. 

The ten students exchanged looks contemplating whether to go in first or wait for others to enter first. There was an awkward silence, but soon two students stepped forward and the rest soon followed.

Hong!

The runes inside the outer layer became active and changed shapes as the students stepped on them. Then a huge pressure enveloped them. Their complexion changed and some showed signs of struggle as they couldn’t tolerate the pressure. 

They were of course early-stage barons, who had the lowest level of blood-qi. Three vampires who were at the final stage of baron were unphased. They did feel the pressure, apparent from their faces, but it was not enough to block their movement. 

The three stepped forward and tried to enter the next phase. With each step they took, the pressure increased even further and when they were at the end of the layer, their bodies were showing signs of withdrawal.

Among the three, one activated his blood-qi technique and tried to move to the viscount layer. From his apparent struggle, it was evident that it was extremely difficult to move under such pressure. But he still managed to take a step to the next passage.

When his legs touched the viscount layer, a towering pressure which was many times stronger than what he was facing right now, repelled him. Clenching his teeth, he stood there like a statue. The veins in his legs were popping as the pressure was so overwhelming.

After some time, the judgment pillar shinned and the runes who stayed still started moving. Ten runes appear, isolated inside ten circles, each facing one vampire standing on the outer layer.

Almost all the runes looked similar, except for one which was double the size of the others.

“Oh! We have a special one here.” Valencia looked at a girl, who was an early stage baron.

“You have one-tenth of the original genes. Congratulations! You are currently ranked first. Your early-stage baron level won’t help you keep the ranking, but I’m sure you will stay relatively high.

“As for the others, you have some original genes, which is common for all nobles in the continent, but it is still lower than one-tenth,” Valencia said.

“You, who stepped on the viscount layer will get the second rank, and the other eight will be ranked according to the analysis of the judgement pillar.” Saying this, Valencia used her fingers to activate her rune card.

From the ceiling, a large piece of squared-off metal floated several meters higher from the pillar. The names of the first ten participants appeared on the metal plate.

Keith also analyzed the metal plate which was more than ten meters long. It was enchanted with several blood runes, and as the name was being written, it glowed like fire.

“You can go to your seats. Now, the next ten students come to the exact positions.” Valencia ordered.

Without wasting any time, ten students suddenly got up and walked to their respective spots. The same process continued and all of them tried their best to move one step further.

Two students managed to cross the viscount stage, albeit with great difficulty. Their ranks appeared on the metal plate and the second rank slid down as the new ranks were updated.

Several batches of students took the test but only a handful of them had managed to cross the viscount stage. When only nine students were left from the first row, one of the students who declined the first test joined them.

Among the nine, the middle stage baron who gave off a powerful aura also joined. Keith was particularly waiting for this student, as he showed the most potential, according to him.

The ten students stood in their spots and the runes governing the layers analyzed their blood-qi. The middle stage baron,  who Keith was keeping an eye on, moved forward with a strange confidence. 

As he stepped further into the baron layer, there was not a single sign of unpleasantness. He walked like he was taking a stroll in the park. 

“He has profound secrets…” 

Keith heard Annica’s voice from the nearby seat. 

“Do you know anything about him?” Keith asked curiously.

“No, I don’t know his origins, but from the way he is moving forward within the passage, I believe he is from a royal family.” She said slowly.

“Why do you think so?” 

“Because He didn’t even use any blood-qi techniques even though he is just a middle stage baron. The pressure is high enough to make the final stage barons struggle, so, him walking like that means he has a great physique.

Besides, he isn’t even putting in any effort. Let’s see how far he can go.” Squinting her eyes, Annica closely followed the young students’ movements.

“But he could be from a lower family as well,” Keith argued.

“Unlikely.  His demeanor screams of majesty, and from his previous nonchalant expression, he knew all about the test beforehand.” Annica replied.

Keith turned his head and looked at the center of the stage with renewed interest and fixed his eyes on the youngster.

The other vampires also fixed their sights on the intriguing vampire, so did the three student council members.

“Do you think it’s him?” 

The vice president of the council asked Valencia who was keenly watching the movements of the young student.

“Maybe, I know he was within this batch of students, but his information was blocked off by the deans and only higher-ups can inquire about him.” 

Valencia looked at the higher stage where all the professors were watching with dean Jesper of the blood summoning department. Their presence was entirely hidden and nothing could be seen except for the shadows of their figures.

“We will know soon enough.” 

Her sights shifted to the judgment pillar which was reacting after the assessment of the blood of the participants.

Ten circles appeared, facing each student, but the most significant difference was a huge circle facing the young boy which was several times larger than the others.

All of the students looked at Valencia to hear the results of the test, but they could guess from the huge runes inside the large circle that the boy was incredibly special.