Chapter 208: A Mysterious Peak Grand Core Vamp.

Chapter 208: Chapter 208: A Mysterious Peak Grand Core Vamp.

The Sand Domain howled. Fshhhhhh.

Lucian stood at its center, his Light Armor cracking, his Crimson Vessel straining under the relentless pressure.

Lucian thought, I need to end this now.

He bit his thumb. Pierce. Blood welled up. He flicked his hand — four drops of blood scattered in four directions. Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip.

Blood Clone.

Four identical copies of Lucian materialized around him. Each one solid, each one armed with a blood sword, each one radiating his exact mana signature. Thrum. Thrum. Thrum. Thrum.

They scattered. Four crimson streaks blasting through the Sand Domain in different directions. Flick. Flick. Flick. Flick.

Ramses reacted instantly. Sand spears launched from the avatar’s hands, each one tracking a clone. FWISH. FWISH. FWISH. FWISH.

The first clone was impaled through the chest. SHHHHK. It dissolved into blood mist. Sizzle. The second clone was crushed by a sand fist. BOOM. Gone. The third clone ran directly into a wall of compressed sand. CRASH.

But the fourth clone reached Ramses.

It detonated.

"Blood Explosion."

BOOOOOOM!𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

The blast was catastrophic. A sphere of compressed blood energy erupted inside the sand avatar’s chest cavity. The explosion tore through the compressed sand from the inside out. CRACK. CRASH. Fshhhhhh! Sand exploded in every direction. The avatar’s torso was blown open. Ramses’s actual body was exposed for the first time.

Lucian was already moving.

Light Acceleration. Flick. His body became a blur. The black greatsword blazed with dark light — Sword Intent concentrated along its edge.

The air along the blade’s edge distorted, bending light, warping reality itself.

HEAVEN’S SEVERANCE.

SWISH.

The slash cut through the space between the blade and the target. The slash bypassed every layer of sand, every defense, every barrier Ramses had built.

SHHHHK.

A deep wound opened across Ramses’s chest. From his left shoulder to his right hip. Blood sprayed. Splatter. Ramses’s eyes widened as he staggered backward, clutching his chest. Blood poured between his fingers.

The sand avatar collapsed. Fshhhhhh. Without Ramses’s concentration, the construct dissolved.

Lucian pressed forward. Another Heaven’s Severance. SWISH. The dark light flickered along the blade again. Ramses raised a sand wall. Fshhhh. The slash cut through it and carved a groove across Ramses’s thigh.

Ramses screamed. Aaaagh! He stumbled. His sand manipulation flickered. Desperation filled his eyes. He gathered every remaining grain of sand in his domain into a single, devastating projectile.

"Sand Calamity."

FWOOOOSH!

The spear was unlike anything before. Five meters long, compressed to the density of tungsten, spinning at impossible speed. It could pierce through Grand Core defenses. It screamed toward Lucian’s chest with killing intent.

Lucian dropped the greatsword. Clatter. He raised both hands. Blood claws materialized in the air around the spear — ten crimson claws, each one hardened to an insane durability. They clamped around the spinning projectile. GRIIIIIND. The spear’s rotation tore at the claws. Blood sprayed from Lucian’s fingertips. Sizzle. His arms shook. The spear pushed him backward, his boots carved grooves in the asphalt. Screeeech.

Behind him, the Khalfani Grand Hotel loomed. Mickey and Clara were still inside.

Lucian’s crimson eyes blazed. He clenched his hands. The blood claws tightened. CRACK. The spear’s momentum halted. It hung in the air, trembling, fighting against Lucian’s grip. Then the blood claws crushed it. Shatter. The spear disintegrated into loose sand that fell harmlessly to the ground. Pitter-patter.

Ramses’s eyes widened. Impossible.

Lucian snatched the greatsword from the ground. Whoosh. Light Steps. Flick. He closed the distance in a heartbeat. The greatsword drove forward. SHHHHK. It punched through Ramses’s right shoulder, pinning him backward. The tip protruded from his back. Blood geysered from the wound. Splatter.

Ramses screamed. Aaaaaagh! His legs buckled.

Lucian grabbed him by the throat. Grip. His clawed fingers pressed into Ramses’s neck. He lifted the man off the ground with one hand. Ramses’s eyes were wide with shock and terror.

"You..." Ramses gasped, blood bubbling at his lips. "You’re not human. What are you?"

Lucian didn’t answer. His Blood Sense triggered — powerful signatures approaching fast. Multiple Grand Core presences. Cairo’s Task Force, responding to the explosion.

He dragged Ramses back toward the hotel. Drag. Drag. Ramses’s feet scraped across the broken asphalt. Lucian kept the greatsword in his shadow storage. Clara and Mickey emerged from the ground floor entrance.

Lucian crouched in front of Ramses, who lay crumpled against the hotel lobby wall. Blood pooled beneath him. His breathing was ragged.

"The Apeps location. Now."

Ramses didn’t answer. His eyes burned with defiance despite the pain.

Lucian grabbed Ramses by the collar and dragged him into a side room off the lobby. Bang. The door shut. He turned to Clara and Mickey.

"Wait out."

Clara’s expression tightened as she nodded.

The screaming started thirty seconds later.

Aaaagh!

Crack.

Aaaaaagh!

Crack. Crack.

Eventually, Ramses mental defenses cracked as Lucian infiltrated his mind.

Memories flooded Lucian’s consciousness.

Meetings with hooded figures in the deep desert. Meetings. A location deep in the Sahara — eight hundred kilometers southwest of Cairo. An underground fortress carved into ancient bedrock. The entrance hidden beneath a rocky plateau.

The Temple of the Forgotten Sun. The Apep family base.

Then — another vampire. One Lucian hadn’t seen before. A Peak Grand Core vampire with silver hair and golden eyes. His suspicion was confirmed — the Apeps had more than one Peak Grand Core vampire.

Then — something unexpected. A memory of Ramses meeting with Minister Harun Nasrullah. The Minister wasn’t just protecting the Apeps politically. He was a direct collaborator. World Government intelligence fed directly to the vampire families for years.

Lucian pulled back from Ramses’s mind. His breathing was heavy. The Mental Power drain was significant.

Ramses’s eyes snapped open. His pupils contracted. He stared at Lucian with pure, unadulterated horror.

"You — you saw everything—"

"Everything," Lucian confirmed.

Ramses’s face contorted. Desperation replaced defiance. He pushed himself upright against the wall, blood dripping from his broken fingers.

"Wait — wait!" Ramses’s voice cracked. "I can give you everything else. Credits, resources, weapons and even my connections. The Khalfani network spans the entire continent. I can disappear. You’ll never hear from the Khalfanis again. Just let me live. Please."

Lucian stared at him. His crimson eyes were cold.

"No," Lucian said. "I already know the location of your money. Your storage rings. Your vaults. Your connections. Everything you just offered — I can take for myself."

A Blood Needle formed at Lucian’s fingertip.

Shhhhk.

It pierced Ramses’s heart.

Ramses’s eyes widened. His body slid down the wall. Thud.

Lucian stood up and walked out of the room.