Chapter 213: Arrival of Doom

Chapter 213: Chapter 213: Arrival of Doom

Gideon Hart stepped forward. The towering Peak Grand Core master reached into his storage ring and pulled out a crystalline orb, pulsing with dense golden mana. Ancient runes covered its surface, glowing faintly.

"Convergence Orb," Gideon said, his deep voice carrying across the dune. "Everyone — pour your mana into it."

All fifty cultivators extended their hands. Thrum. Thrum. Thrum. Mana surged — fifty streams of energy flowing into the orb from every direction. The orb blazed. Fwooooosh. Golden light erupted from its surface, intensifying until it was blinding. The air itself vibrated.

The orb fired.

A single, concentrated beam of pure mana — compressed from fifty cultivators’ worth of energy — screamed toward the Sand Veil. PEW!

BOOOOOM!

The beam struck the sandstorm barrier. The impact sent shockwaves across the desert. Rumble. Sand exploded outward. The veil tore — a jagged hole, ten meters wide, ripped through the swirling barrier. The edges of the hole flickered, unstable, trying to close.

"GO! NOW!" Lucian shouted.

Fifty cultivators surged forward. Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh. They poured through the gap in single file quickly. The hole in the Sand Veil groaned behind them. Creak. It was already closing. The last cultivator slipped through just as the sand reformed. Fshhhhh.

Inside. The underground fortress opened before them — a massive courtyard carved from bedrock, surrounded by stone buildings, pillars, and torches emitting dim crimson light. The air was thick with the scent of blood.

Deep within the fortress, in a chamber lined with scrying formations, Rasheed al-Apep opened his eyes.

The Late Grand Core warden sat cross-legged before a sand basin — the control center for the Sand Veil. His hands, coated in golden mana, trembled. He had felt a brief ripple in the formation.

Something was wrong.

He stood immediately. Tap. His aura flared. He turned to the figure seated across the chamber.

Elder Zafira al-Apep. An ancient vampire with withered features and clouded eyes that glowed faintly crimson. His cultivation was Late Grand Core. His S-Rank Beast Taming ability made him the most versatile elder after Iskandar.

"Zafira," Rasheed said, his voice tight. "The formation was disturbed. Something pierced the veil."

Zafira raised an eyebrow. "A beast, perhaps. The desert is full of them."

"No." Rasheed’s jaw clenched. "That was not a beast. Send your birds. Check the perimeter. Now."

Zafira sighed seeing his friend paranoid again. He closed his eyes. Thrum. His S-Rank Beast Taming activated. Mental commands pulsed outward, reaching across the fortress.

From the tower above, a flock of hawk-sized birds with crimson eyes launched into the sky. Screech. Screech. They scattered — flying over the Sand Veil, circling the perimeter, scanning the desert with enhanced vision.

They found nothing.

Meanwhile, the Fifty cultivators, cloaked in Darius Thorne’s A-Rank invisibility, were already inside the courtyard.

"There’s nothing out there, Rasheed," Zafira said, opening his eyes. "You’re being paranoid."

Rasheed frowned. His instincts screamed otherwise. But he had no proof.

"Double the guards," Rasheed ordered.

The assassins moved first.

Lucian had assigned twelve Core Realm Knights — all trained assassins — to infiltrate the outer perimeter. They moved like ghosts through the fortress courtyard, their invisibility flawless. Tap. Tap. Tap. Silent footsteps on stone.

They found the human workers first. Dozens of them — mortal servants carrying supplies, cleaning corridors, tending to the vampires’ needs. They were collaborators, but Lucian had given clear orders: to kill anyone they see. The assassins incapacitated them silently. Thud. Thud. Thud. Bodies dragged into shadows.

Then the vampire guards.

Two Early Core Realm vampires stood at the eastern gate — bored, slouching, fangs visible. Yawn. The first assassin struck from behind. A poisoned blade — coated with a rare neurotoxin designed to suppress vampire regeneration — pierced the first guard’s spine. SHHHK. The vampire’s eyes widened. He crumpled. Thud. The second guard turned. A wire garrote wrapped around his neck. Twang. The assassin pulled. The head separated. Thud.

More guards fell. The western gate. The northern corridor. The armory. One after another. The invisibility spell held perfectly. The vampires couldn’t see, hear, or sense the attackers.

Until one of Zafira’s birds spotted movement.

The crimson-eyed hawk circled above the southern courtyard. Its enhanced vision caught a faint shimmer — a disturbance in the air. The bird’s eyes widened. Screeeech!

The bird dove. Its talons raked across the invisible figure of a Peak Core Realm assassin. Slash. The man screamed. Aaagh! His invisibility shattered. He was exposed — standing in the open, blood streaming from his face.

A vampire guard — Mid Core Realm — lunged from a nearby building. His fangs sank into the assassin’s throat. Crunch. The man gurgled. Blood sprayed as he collapsed dead to the ground.

Zafira’s bird transmitted the image to its master. Zafira’s eyes snapped open. His face drained of color.

"RASHEED! WE’RE UNDER ATTACK!"

Above the fortress, Lucian stood on a rocky outcrop, Primordial Sight active. His crimson eyes saw everything.

One of the Peak Grand Core masters — Serena Holst — stood beside him. Her icy blue eyes tracked the faint mana disturbances below.

"One of ours is down," Serena said, her voice flat.

"That’s to be expected," Lucian replied coldly. "But we’ve already eliminated a reasonable number of their forces. Their outer guards are gone. The element of surprise served its purpose."

Below, the fortress erupted. Alarms blared. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. Vampire guards poured from buildings. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Dozens of crimson eyes blazed in the dim light. They mobilized quickly.

Then the elders emerged.

BOOM. BOOM. BOOM. BOOM.𝒻𝑟ℯℯ

Four buildings exploded outward simultaneously. Debris rained across the courtyard. Crash. Rumble. Four figures launched into the air, landing on different buildings surrounding the courtyard. Their auras erupted.

A fifth figure followed.

Lucian’s Primordial Sight locked onto each one.

Elder Rasheed al-Apep

Race: True Born Vampire

Cultivation: Late Grand Core Realm

Ability: A-Rank Sand Manipulation

Elder Malik al-Apep

Race: True Born Vampire

Cultivation: Late Grand Core Realm

Ability: A-Rank Venom Body

Elder Iskandar al-Apep

Race: True Born Vampire

Cultivation: Peak Grand Core Realm

Ability: S-Rank Shadow Serpent

Elder Zafira al-Apep

Race: True Born Vampire

Cultivation: Late Grand Core Realm

Ability: S-Rank Beast Taming

Apophis al-Apep

Race: True Born Vampire

Cultivation: Late Grand Core Realm

Ability: A-Rank Shadow Serpent

As each elder’s status window materialized before Lucian’s eyes, they felt a sensation of being observed at the deepest level. Their eyes snapped upward toward the outcrop where Lucian stood. Every single one of them flinched.

His Primordial Sight stripped them bare. Every ability, every cultivation level, every weakness — exposed beneath his crimson gaze.

Five elders. Four Late Grand Core. One Peak Grand Core. And behind them, flooding into the courtyard, five Mid Grand Core vampires and ten Early Grand Core vampires. The full military force of the Apep clan.

Lucian’s eyes swept the fortress. He extended his Blood Sense across the entire underground structure.

No Seth.

His lips curled. An evil smirk spread across his face.

"Their patriarch isn’t here," Lucian said through the telepathic link, addressing the entire force. "Seth al-Apep is absent."

Serena’s eyes widened slightly. "The Peak Grand Core patriarch? Are you certain?"

"I’m certain. I can see every signature in the fortress. He’s not here."

Lucian turned to Gideon and Serena.

He rattled them off. "Rasheed — Late Grand Core, A-Rank Sand Manipulation. Versatile, long-range fighter. Don’t let him control the terrain. Malik — Late Grand Core, A-Rank Venom Body. Close-quarters combatant. His body produces paralytic venom. Don’t let him touch you. Iskandar — Peak Grand Core, S-Rank Shadow Serpent. The most dangerous. He can manifest shadow serpents that drain mana and carry letal toxins. He’s yours."

He looked at Gideon. "You take Iskandar."

Gideon’s eyes narrowed. "The one with the S rank Shadow Serpent. I’ll handle it."

He turned to Serena. "Take on some of the late Grand Core Vampires."

Serena nodded. "Understood."

Lucian then pointed to the youngest-looking elder — Apophis. "That one. Apophis al-Apep. Late Grand Core. A-Rank Shadow Serpent. He’s Seth’s son — the Vice Patriarch. I want him alive."

He turned to the two Late Grand Core masters — Darius Thorne and Linnea Frost. "Take him alive. He might have information we need."

Darius cracked his knuckles. Pop. Pop. "Got it."

Lucian scanned the remaining vampires. "Five Mid Grand Core. Ten Early Grand Core. Distribute among the Mid and Early Grand Core Knights accordingly. Clara, Mickey — you know your targets."

"Understood," Clara said through the link.

"Copy that," Mickey added.

Below, the five elders stood on their respective rooftops, their crimson eyes scanning the courtyard.

Gideon glanced at Lucian. The Peak Grand Core master’s skepticism from earlier had evaporated. The boy had just read every elder’s ability and cultivation level from a distance — without any visible tool or artifact. That wasn’t the capability of an ordinary Early Grand Core cultivator.

Below, Apophis stepped forward on his rooftop. He was a tall, lean vampire with sharp features and shoulder-length black hair. His crimson eyes blazed with authority. As Vice Patriarch, he commanded the clan in Seth’s absence. His aura flared. BOOM. Late Grand Core pressure rolled across the courtyard.

He looked up at the fifty cloaked figures now revealing themselves on the ridges and rooftops surrounding the fortress. His eyes swept across them — humans. Dozens of them. Grand Core cultivators.

His jaw tightened. Then he spoke. His voice echoed across the fortress.

"Who are you people?"

Lucian stepped forward to the edge of the outcrop. His silver hair caught the desert wind. His crimson eyes blazed in the dim light. His black coat billowed behind him.

He looked down at Apophis. His evil smirk widened.

"Your doom."