Chapter 136: A New Quest

Chapter 136: Chapter 136: A New Quest

Far away from the Monster Camp, on the main continent, a strange fluctuation suddenly appeared within a dense forest.

The surrounding trees began to tremble as space distorted, forming a circular portal in the middle of the forest.

A deep crimson light shone from within the portal, and before long, several figures stepped through it.

They were all humanoid, but their pale skin, crimson eyes, and sharp fangs made their identities obvious.

Vampires.

The moment the last vampire stepped through, the portal behind them slowly disappeared, leaving the group standing in the middle of the forest.

There were more than twenty of them, and the weakest among them was already at the Sovereign Realm.

At the front of the group stood a tall man with black hair and crimson eyes. He looked around the unfamiliar forest before taking a deep breath.

"This is the main continent?"

"Yes."

A female vampire standing behind him nodded.

"Our information says that this continent is a middle-level continent. There are countless humans here, along with Orcs, Elves, and many other races."

The man’s eyes narrowed slightly.

"Then our first objective remains the same."

He looked toward the distance.

"Find the Ghoul Lord."

The vampires immediately became serious.

Their Female Vampire Lord had sent them here for one reason.

The Ghoul Lord.

Although they did not know exactly where he was, they had received enough information to know that he was somewhere on this continent.

However, finding one person on a continent this massive was almost impossible.

That was why they had another plan.

"We cannot search for him blindly," the man continued. "We need information."

A vampire stepped forward.

"Should we begin searching through the cities?"

"No."

The man shook his head.

"Humans are everywhere. If we suddenly begin searching for a powerful undead being, it will attract too much attention."

He paused for a moment.

"We need people who will search for us."

The vampires understood immediately.

"A network?"

"Exactly."

The man smiled.

"We will establish our own network on this continent. We will recruit humans, beasts, criminals, nobles, adventurers... anyone who can provide information."

"And those who are unwilling?"

His smile disappeared.

"They will become Blood Servants."

The vampires immediately began spreading out.

Some would enter nearby towns.

Some would search for influential humans.

Others would look for talented individuals who could be turned into Blood Servants.

They would create rumors about mysterious beings that could grant power.

They would find people desperate enough to seek that power.

And once those people came to them, they would slowly expand their influence.

It would begin with a handful of people.

Then dozens.

Then hundreds.

Eventually, their network would spread across the continent.

And every piece of information would eventually lead back to one name.

The Ghoul Lord.

The vampires had no idea how long it would take.

But they had time.

And unlike ordinary creatures, vampires could wait.

As the group disappeared into the forest, a new force quietly began taking root on the main continent.

No one knew what would happen when that force eventually collided with Ronan.

---

Several weeks passed.

Then another month.

Then another.

The Monster Camp continued to change.

The number of participants continued to decrease, while those who remained became increasingly powerful.

Battles happened almost every day.

Some people disappeared into the forest and never returned.

Others came back covered in wounds, carrying the corpses of powerful monsters.

The ranking constantly changed.

Those who had once been considered geniuses were surpassed by people who had remained hidden.

Some people discovered new abilities.

Others evolved their traits.

There were even participants who managed to break through to the King Realm.

As for Ronan, he spent most of his time hunting.

He rarely returned to the main camp unless he needed something.

The deeper regions of the island had become his hunting ground.

There were King Realm beasts everywhere, and as his strength increased, the number of creatures he could hunt continued to expand.

His body also continued to change.

Four months had passed since he arrived at the Monster Camp.

And today, Ronan stood in the middle of the forest while looking at his status.

He had finally reached the peak of the Sovereign Realm.

Nine-Star Sovereign.

Only one step remained before the King Realm.

But that final step was not something that could be crossed easily.

Ronan looked at the changes in his status with satisfaction.

His Blood Sucking trait had continued to grow through his constant consumption of blood, while his other traits had also increased through countless battles.

During the past four months, he had obtained two additional racial traits from different beasts.

The first came from a particularly fast beast that specialized in movement.

The second came from a creature with an extremely powerful perception ability.

Neither trait was as overwhelming as Destruction Incarnate, but both had proven extremely useful.

[Traits]

[Blood Sucking Lv.10]

[Flesh Assimilation Lv.18]

[Battle Lust Lv.15]

[Destruction Incarnate Lv.24]

[Limitless Potential Lv.2]

[Windrunner Lv.15]

[Predator’s Perception Lv.12]

Ronan looked at the last two traits.

Windrunner greatly enhanced his movement speed, while Predator’s Perception allowed him to detect changes in his surroundings far more accurately.

Both had already become important parts of his fighting style.

His abilities had also increased.

[Abilities]

[Mind Manipulation Lv.6]

[Ghoul Creation Lv.20]

[Ghoul Command Lv.11]

[Mind Control Lv.4]

[White Bone Skin Lv.14]

[Extreme Density Lv.15]

[Impact Force Lv.17]

[Crushing Roar Lv.18]

[Annihilation Force Lv.10]

[Limit Break Lv.1]

[Wind Step Lv.14]

[Predator’s Sense Lv.11]

[Blood Trail Lv.13]

Ronan smiled.

His arsenal had become much larger than when he first entered the camp.

He could move faster, perceive danger from farther away, track enemies through their blood, and fight enemies much stronger than himself.

Most importantly, he had finally reached Nine-Star Sovereign.

Ronan closed his status panel.

"One more step."

King Realm.

He had been stuck beneath that realm for quite some time, and after seeing how powerful the people at the top of Monster Camp were, he was becoming increasingly impatient.

Just as he was about to continue hunting, a familiar notification appeared.

[Ding!]

Ronan stopped.

A system notification appeared before him.

[New Quest has been issued.]

His eyes immediately became serious.

[First Evolution Quest.]

[Requirement: Evolve the Blood Sucking racial trait beyond its current limit.]

[Condition: Kill Sovereign Realm Vampires and absorb their blood to strengthen the Blood Sucking trait.]

[The host’s Blood Sucking trait must undergo its First Evolution.]

Ronan stared at the notification.

"Vampires?"

He had not expected that.

He looked at his Blood Sucking trait.

It was the only racial trait he possessed that had yet to undergo its First Evolution.

He had obtained it from the vampires on the previous continent, and although it had continued to become stronger, it had always remained behind his other major traits.

Now the system was finally forcing him to evolve it.

Ronan continued reading.

[Additional Quest will be unlocked after the First Evolution.]

[Additional Quest: Kill a King Realm Vampire Lord.]

[Reward: Unknown.]

Ronan’s expression slowly changed.

"A King Realm Vampire Lord?"

For a moment, he remained silent.

Then he remembered his trip to the Abyss then

The female Vampire Lord.

She was the first Vampire Lord he had ever encountered.

She was also the one who had attacked the city and was currently hunting him.

Ronan’s eyes narrowed.

"Looks like I’m going back to the Abyss."

He had not forgotten about her.

In fact, he had always known that sooner or later, their paths would cross again.

She had been searching for him.

Now the system had given him a reason to search for her.

The reward for killing a King Realm Vampire Lord was still unknown, but Ronan had no intention of letting such an opportunity pass.

More importantly, he needed vampires to evolve his Blood Sucking trait.

And the Abyss was filled with them.

Ronan looked toward the deeper part of the forest.

He had originally planned to remain in Monster Camp until he reached the King Realm.

But things had changed.

There was no reason to stay here forever.

He had already gained far more than he expected.

His traits had grown.

His abilities had grown.

His battle experience had grown.

And he had gone from being someone who could barely fight a King Realm beast to someone who could kill them.

Now he needed something else.

Vampires.

Ronan smiled.

He remembered the female Vampire Lord who had nearly gotten him killed on the previous continent.

"I wonder how strong you’ve become."

He had no idea that while he was thinking about her, her forces were already spreading across the main continent.

He also did not know that a vampire network was slowly being established in the shadows.

And he certainly did not know that the vampires were searching for the very same person he was preparing to hunt.

Ronan turned around.

For the first time in months, he stopped looking toward the deeper regions of Monster Camp.

His destination was somewhere else.

If he wanted his Blood Sucking trait to undergo its First Evolution, he needed vampires.

And if he wanted the reward from the second quest...

He needed a Vampire Lord.

Ronan stretched his body before walking away from the forest.

A faint smile remained on his face.

Then, without looking back, Ronan disappeared into the forest.