Returning to the Mysterious Era-Chapter 469 - Violent Doctors

The stench of blood was overwhelmingly strong in the dim pathway along the garden square. Laurent's headless corpse lay on the ground with dark-red blood gushing from his neck. A wide, fan-shaped area around it was drenched in crimson.

In a corner, Rachel trembled behind her father, Fein, who stood frozen in fear. They had witnessed the entire process, feeling both horror and dread in their hearts. Fein never imagined that Laurent, a former business associate, would turn out to be a monster with two faces on one head! Moreover, it had just attempted to rush forward and attack them!

However, these mysterious figures in black had intervened and cut off its head on the spot. Fein was both grateful to and terrified of these mysterious black-clad individuals. Their appearance and methods were far too savage and cruel.

They were the sort of people you would instinctively mistake for robbers or murderers if you met them on the street, prompting you to hide among the crowd. If that young man Laurent was a monster, these black-clad individuals didn't seem much different themselves. After all, only monsters could fight against other monsters...

Enveloped by the blended scent of flowers and blood, Fein finally regained his composure, casting a glance down the deserted, dim pathway. Those figures in black left without harming them. It was truly a blessing.

He exhaled deeply, feeling relief settle in.

His gaze drifted to the headless body on the ground, but then he noticed something in the nearby flowerbed. One after another, dense plant roots crept along the ground like snakes, forming a bizarre network reminiscent of human blood vessels.

The roots greedily sucked up the blood, gradually turning red. Some of them even crawled onto the corpse, forcibly piercing its skin and devouring its flesh. It was like a ravenous beast feasting madly. Laurent's body shriveled up before their very eyes.

Not far away, the flowers in the bed grew noticeably taller and unusually dense. Their red petals looked especially lush and dripped with color, emanating a strange fragrance.

The beguiling floral scent in the air grew even stronger.

"Ugh!" Next to Fein, his daughter Rachel retched.

Tears squeezed from her eyes as she covered her nose with a small hand. "Daddy, it's getting stinkier..."

Suddenly, Fein understood why the garden square's flowers were so lush and why their aroma was so potent to adults. These plants were nourished by corpses and watered with blood.

A single glance revealed that they were all man-eating flowers and bloodthirsty plants. He shivered violently when he recalled how many times he passed by this place and even leaned in to sniff the flowers' fragrance.

Stomach churning, he scooped up his daughter and sprinted home. He sensed something catastrophic was about to happen in this wealthy district.

Immediately, Fein decided to gather his entire family and flee at once!

***

At the cathedral's east gate...

"Who goes there?! Stay back immediately! I repeat, stay back!"

"Aaah!!!"

"Damn it, we're under attack! An enemy assault!!!"

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!...

A surge of blood-colored mist, shaped like a bat, descended straight from the sky, slamming into one side of the cathedral wall with a loud crash.

Part of the structure shook violently, shattering the stained glass windows bearing religious designs. Shards of colorful glass fell, pricking the shoulders of the men cloaked in black that were sprinting forward. Some pieces were crushed underfoot by heavy black boots and ground into powder.

Around three dozen doctors from the Treatment Ward roared in unison, brandishing their spiked gauntlets as they charged in with reckless abandon. Dark creatures rushed forth from the cathedral when they sensed grave danger, determined to keep the enemy at bay.

Strangely enough, each dark creature was dressed in a pure white priest's robe that presented a dignified, pious facade. Who could tell that beneath it lay warped, distorted bodies and grotesque faces with greenish skin and sharp fangs.

They hurled themselves forward with inhuman speed, instantly clashing with the Treatment Ward's violent doctors.

Sounds of savage brawling erupted! It was a chaotic and brutal brawl.

If one looked down from the cathedral's cross, they would see waves of white and black intermingling, like chess pieces devouring one another. A continual barrage of thuds resounded, and one crater after another quickly formed in the ground.

Some were from the doctors' fists; some were slash marks from their weapons; and others were caused by the clash of arcane energy and essence of calamity.

Walls were blasted apart, trees were destroyed, and roads torn asunder...

"Hahaha! I'm feasting today!!!"

A cloud of sinister, bloodstained mist dove down, swallowing two dark creature ‘priests’ whole, and rising back into the air. An instant later, two agonized screams rang out, echoing with the sound of bodies detonating in midair.

Two heads and a pair of eyes plummeted to the ground amid the falling rain of blood.

Whoosh!

A fierce wind howled as a black-robed figure stained with blood appeared in the center of the battlefield. Fog Man’s face remained ashen, though his lips were bright crimson. The mist that formed the right half of his body was writhing, turning a deeper shade of red.

He cast a casual glance across the battlefield and suddenly threw away his cloak. The mist on his entire right side surged wildly, condensing into a massive blood-red arm that was over three meters long.

Fog Man sprang forward like a cannonball, swinging the hideous giant limb straight ahead.

Boom!

The ground shook violently as cracks spread further across the street.

He left a half-meter-deep handprint in the center of the battlefield, surrounded by spiderweb-like fissures. Within that handprint lay several crushed, mangled bodies that were utterly lifeless.

Hiss...

Beside the crater, Fog Man waved a hand, inhaling the thick, steaming blood mist back into his body while looking deeply intoxicated.

"That's the flavor! That's the flavor! I can taste their despair in their final moment before death! It's so delicious, so delicious! Dark creatures make far finer dining than ordinary humans; their despair before death is at least three times as flavorful! Keh keh keh keh keh..." His eyes roll back in a crazed expression of delight.

He lowered his head and cackled. The right half of his face that was made of mist was like jumping flames, resembling a horned demon emerging from molten lava.

Boom!

Suddenly, an enormous dark figure appeared from the wide swathes of shadow on the ground like a tank, smashing a fist toward Fog Man.

"I've been waiting a long time for you!!!" Fog Man's body exploded outward, transforming into a huge, blood-red bat. The scarlet, menacing swirl of mist slammed fiercely into the figure. Massive red and black silhouettes collided and started to wrestle in midair.

Szzz!

A shockwave from the force of both sides swept across the center of the battlefield. All who were caught in its path, whether doctors from the Treatment Ward or dark creatures, coughed up blood as they were hurled backward. Several unfortunate souls that were too close to the clash crashed to the ground and never moved again.

"I'm going to devour you!!!" The blood-red bat soared skyward, howling furiously.

Swish! Swoosh!

The red and black forms continued to crash into each other amid the shockwaves.

A bizarre black Shadow Demon in humanoid form stood nearby, coated with layers of tar-like substance that sloughed off to reveal corroded cracks. It suddenly raised its head, revealing four glowing red eyes on its face.

Another squad from the Treatment Ward burst through the cathedral's west gate like a giant hammer.

They were led by a gaunt old man who clad in a loose black cloak that emphasized his withered frame. Yet, the elder was ahead of all the muscled men in black, acting as the heaviest iron hammer. He strode in great, swift steps, each footstep creating a crater beneath him.

In contrast, his face remained blank and his eyebrows benevolent; his wrinkled arms slowly unfolded and pressed lightly against each dark creature rushing toward him.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

But those figures are hurled backward. Some were flung so hard they burst apart under the massive pressure while others slammed into the cathedral's wall at high speed, leaving a gaping hole with half their bodies dangling limply.

Though the elder appeared frail, he was far more violent than the group of black-clad hulks around him. In just one exchange, he crippled or killed nearly fifteen dark creatures.

His blood-stained hands hung at his sides.

"Charge in," Hermit ordered in his usual calm tone. Behind him, however, the doctors grew fervently excited, roaring for blood.

Around thirty of them split into two equal groups and spread out to either side of Hermit. They stormed toward the west gate of the cathedral where dark creatures were endlessly emerging, showing not a hint of fear.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Thick metal bolts that were the size of thumbs, whizzed through the air, striking dark creatures and piercing the walls behind them.

A doctor wielded his sword with bloodshot eyes and bulging arm muscles, splitting a dark creature in two with a single slash!

Another burly man, swinging both fists, pinned a dark creature to the ground and pummeled it to a pulp.

Crash... crash... crash...

Suddenly, a massive swarm of bloodsucking bats poured out from within the cathedral. They enveloped two Treatment Ward doctors in an instant, and agonized screams echoed out.

In less than a second, two dried corpses collapsed to the floor.

Swoosh!

The bats immediately coalesced into a tall man who was elegantly dressed like an aristocratic gentleman. He leaned on a cane with a white scarf around his neck. His complexion was ghostly white, as though dusted with powder, with sharp fangs protruding from his mouth.

"Who are you people?! This is the Eclipse Society! Even Shadow Hunters don't dare to come here lightly, yet you all flock in to die!" The high-ranking Blood Race member glared in fury, raising his hand to point at one of the Treatment Ward doctors.

He curled a finger and activated an ability to manipulate blood in another's body, causing the man's blood to boil instantly. The burly doctor groaned in agony as blood spurted from his nose and mouth.

Swoosh!

A dark shadow suddenly cut through the air.

Boom!

In an instant, the ground beneath the high-ranking Blood Race crumbled into a dark pit roughly two meters deep. The same elderly man now stood there. He leaped out of the pit, eyes fixed on the high-ranking Blood Race member, who had scrambled away.

The vampire took a deep breath with a serious look in his eyes. He could tell that the old man wasn't to be taken lightly.

Crack... crack... crack...

The sound of bones expanding and rubbing together rang out. Despite Hermit's seemingly gentle face, his entire body underwent a savage transformation. His muscles swelled as coarse hair covered his body.

In less than half a second, a massive black ape was standing there, casting a broad shadow.

The high-ranking Blood Race's eye twitched at the sensation of an aura that completely outclassed his own. The elder, who had now transformed into a giant ape, was exuding Qi at least three or four times stronger than before.

Ding! Buzzzz...

The hulking ape slowly straightened as a black totem marking lit up across its skin, radiating an aura of a terrifying apex predator.

Hermit's form expanded even more until his muscles were nearly bursting. His eyelids continued to twitch as the high-ranking Blood Race member involuntarily took a step back.

He seemed to realize that perhaps, just maybe... He might lose the fight... If so... Was it wiser to withdraw?

However, Hermit granted no chance to retreat.

Boom!

The ground shattered as a massive black shadow sprang several dozen meters forward, looming over the vampire's head to cast an overwhelming shadow.

Elsewhere, at the cathedral's south gate, a tall woman with a seductive figure walked forward with a sultry cat-like strut, smiling alluringly as she headed toward the cathedral.

Dark creatures attempted to rush her from the sides, only to be devoured in a single gulp by a monstrous python. No matter how many appeared, it swallowed them without discrimination, relishing every bite.

The doctors from the Treatment Ward didn't dare approach their leader at all. They simply lingered at the periphery. Among the prisoners on the third level of the Savage Beast Den, Nine Serpents' dark creature transformation was the most severe, rendering her mind the most deranged.

Even though she was one of the Treatment Ward's captains, she could become so deranged that she would be unable to distinguish friend from foe. This was especially true when she was eating. She would become fiercely protective of her meal.

Only when the Director of the Treatment Ward was present did she hold back slightly. However, since the Director wasn't present, Nine Serpents abandoned all restraint.

Her head was dainty and her face was adorned with a captivating smile. Yet her hair was woven into nine serpents; the further each snake extended, the thicker it became, eventually growing as thick as a barrel. Each massive maw covered a radius of a dozen or so meters; if a dark creature appeared within that range, it would vanish instantly.

Suddenly, all nine serpents halted, simultaneously turning toward the cathedral entrance. Their vicious pupils fixed on a figure slowly emerging, a flicker of human-like delight gleaming within those eyes.

"I never imagined I'd stumble upon such a sweet morsel! Heh heh..." Nine Serpents giggled behind her hand, though bloodshot streaks crept further across her eyes. "The Director's reward will be mine! How lucky~"

"Lucky?" says Blood Shark, stepping out from the shadows, cloaked in a thick murderous aura. When he caught sight of the doctors' cross emblems, a cruel, twisted grin flashed across his face. "Half a year ago, I badly injured your Director of the Treatment Ward and devoured half the doctors who tried to surround me! Yet you still dare to show yourselves before me. What a death wish! In that case, I'll be the one to end you!"

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