Chapter Ninety-Eight: Blood Fiend

The Land of Evil in Yibo was a place of excitement and fascination.

At least, that was how it felt to Meng Qi and Sinclair. Though they had already clashed with the local elven beauties, the wicked hunters of Hunter Pit, and the treemen only a few days after arriving, they had also forged a deep friendship with the minotaur chief from Green Demon Forest.

It happened in a small tavern. The upright and good-hearted minotaur chief was being made a fool of by a gnome, and Sinclair could not abide such injustice; he stepped in, taught the gnome a lesson, and settled the matter. For Sinclair, it had been no more than a trifle, but the honest and straightforward chief, Banner, took a great liking to him.

All of them were bold, hearty men, and Meng Qi was skilled at making friends. After a few rounds of drink and toasts, the three quickly became companions.

Though Chief Banner was not exactly bright, he was still the head of a clan and held some standing in Yibo. Thanks to that, Meng Qi and Sinclair were able to settle down there as well.

They arranged for Freya to stay at an inn near the tavern, and Meng Qi and Sinclair took turns keeping her company. The three waited together for Ye Ran to arrive.

Left waiting day after day, they did not receive Ye Ran, but instead heard bad news: several failed monsters from the New Species Forbidden Zone had broken out of the sealed grounds and were heading for Yibo.

For Yibo, this was no small matter. Though those who lived there were by no means decent folk, and demons were not uncommon either, no one wanted to have any dealings with the lunatics of the New Species Forbidden Zone.

As for the new species those madmen had created, the people of Yibo loathed them from the bottom of their hearts. Whenever anything of the new species came their way, their first instinct was to wipe it out, then wipe it out again, and then wipe it out once more.

"Meng, why are you here too? Shouldn't you be looking after little Freya?" Banner asked in surprise.

By dusk, several minotaurs from Banner's territory had armed themselves, and the neighboring elves had also drawn their bows.

Everyone was prepared. The moment they spotted those disgusting new species, they would shoot them dead on the spot.

Meng Qi was dressed all in white, looking quite elegant. The only flaw was his right hand, which was a prosthetic. Banner had spent five gold coins to have it made by the finest dwarf smith in Yibo.

"Brother Sin is keeping her company. I'll come with you. I've been cooped up at home so long I've nearly grown moss," he said.

Banner laughed heartily. "Good. Then stay behind us. Labrador, make sure you protect Brother Meng."

Labrador was a short but powerful minotaur who wielded two axes and cut men down as easily as chopping melons and vegetables. He was much trusted by Banner.

Minotaurs were stubborn as mules. Once they had agreed to protect Meng Qi, they would not leave his side for a single step.

The group set off in a grand procession toward the eastern reaches of the cursed land. Minotaurs, elves, and even the famed hunters of Hunter Pit all came, scattered here and there, numbering several hundred in all.

Meng Qi glanced around and said, "Labrador, are the new species really that strong? Do we need this many people?"

Labrador scratched his head and said honestly, "Brother Meng, they are very strong. Only the chief can beat them."

Meng Qi nodded and inwardly clicked his tongue. He knew how formidable the minotaur chief was. In Yibo he might not rank among the very top, but no one dared underestimate his monstrous strength.

"By the way, have you heard anything about my brother?" he asked.

Banner turned his head. "I've already sent men to ask around. There should be news soon. I'd like to meet your brother as well."

He stood three meters tall, scarcely less imposing than an ogre. When he spoke, his voice was deep and booming, loud and rustic, and the noble elves all looked displeased.

Soon the sky darkened, dark clouds covering it like a black curtain, with only the occasional low tree visible.

It was already deep night, pitch-black all around. The shifting shadows of the surrounding trees made the place even more eerie. The voices of the various races grew softer and softer until at last they fell silent, leaving only the disorderly sound of footsteps at their ears.

"Roar—"

From far away, they could already see the bloodstained stone stele planted at the far end of the eastern swamp. A tremendous roar rose from within the marsh, and all the races were startled.

Had those damned beastmen and failed creations already entered the swamp?

Low shrubs lined both sides, obscuring the scene inside.

"Thando, go take a look," the minotaur chief ordered.

The leading elven noble also said, "Aphilia, you go as well."

"Yes."

A nimble elf drew her bow and leapt away, vanishing in a few bound. But less than a quarter hour later, they all came back out. The sight within was a field of corpses and severed limbs, enough to frighten even the young minotaurs and elves half to death.

"Forget it. We'll go in together."

Seeing how utterly useless they were, the minotaur chief gripped his hammer and strode forward. The others refused to fall behind and followed at once.

Yet before they had even reached the bloodstained stele, they all stopped. The leaders' faces were filled with shock.

Ahead of them, a woman in a silk blouse leaned weakly against the stele. Two long shadows stretched out at her feet.

They were the shadows of a youth and a bull-headed beastman. Behind them lay another beastman with a horse-like face in a pool of blood. Its corpse was a ghastly sight, riddled with dense clusters of bloody holes that made the scalp crawl.

The battle between the youth and the minotaur was equally brutal. In close combat, every move was merciless. The youth's blades flashed as he fought with sword and dagger, and with every strike more blood holes opened on the minotaur beastman's body. At such close range, the giant warhammer in the beastman's hands was useless, and in the end it threw aside its weapon and fought hand to hand.

He had only managed to delay his wounds for a short while. Beneath the youth's superb martial skill, the minotaur beastman soon let out one final howl and collapsed into the bloodstained ground.

The youth gave a cold snort, stepped forward, and delivered another slash to its head. The ruthlessness of the act made all the elves and minotaurs inwardly tremble.

He flicked the blood from his blades and turned around. Even the minotaur chief at the front could not help taking a step back.

In the darkness of night, the cold-faced youth stood covered in black and red, blood streaming from his brow and chest. He looked like a god of slaughter risen from a mountain of corpses. Even the minotaur chief, who had spent years wandering among forest beasts and their fangs, could not help feeling a chill in his heart.

Ye Ran also saw them. He strode to Xiali's side, his nerves tightening once more.

"Kwa-kwa."

Two crows followed after him in stubborn refusal, circling overhead and flapping their wings incessantly.

"Hmph, so noisy."

Ye Ran's gaze turned cold. He reached out and seized the two clamorous crows. The pair of red-eyed crows shrieked as they beat their wings and struggled violently.

The minotaur chief and the elves suddenly changed expression.

"Don't kill them, they are..."

Boom.

Boom.

Two sharp explosions rang out from Ye Ran's palm. Driven into a frenzy, he crushed the two red-eyed crows in one go. Feathers and shredded flesh fell to the ground, leaving only four red eyeballs in his hand.

The crows were dead, but the four eyes were still turning in the centers of his palms, and behind each eyeball trailed a faint, threadlike red line.