178 Casualties (1/2)
Bu-bump. Bu-bump. Bu-bump. The sea of blood seemed to ebb and flow with the beat of Ed's own heart. He felt an innate connection with the blood, feeling it to mostly be connected to water and light. The blood near the surface of the sea occasionally formed the shapes of various animals and monsters. The creatures lived their entire lives in just a few seconds, growing and aging before collapsing back into the sea.
Instinctively, Ed reached his hand towards the sea. The bloody sea moved towards him, swirling like a tremendous whirlpool. Little by little, the sea was being absorbed by him, and with it came knowledge of how to use it. However, there were bits and pieces that seemed to be incomplete or missing entirely. Perhaps Bai had not fully mastered the law, or maybe the transfer process caused parts to be lost. He would need to work to fill in these areas himself in the future.
Soon, the sea of blood was gone, and Ed woke up from his slumber. Upon awakening, he attempted to close his hand while standing up. He sighed in relief as he felt it was there. He didn't know how long he fell unconscious for, but it appeared that all of his limbs had already healed. Glancing to his left, he saw Bai's dead body right where he had left it. 'Camazotz's tail really saved me this time.' He thought just as he felt a few more tiny flakes of his mana-core float away. His face immediately darkened. 'First, I shattered my soul, and now I've fucked up my mana-core.' He sighed while shaking his head. It seemed he was far too prone to causing devastating damage to himself. There was a time where the only thing he ever damaged were his own limbs. Oh, how he longed for those much simpler injuries.
Curious about his new powers, he tried activating the blood law he had stolen. He knew how to use it instinctively, as if it was his own arm or leg. However, he failed when attempting to use it. This made sense when considering that he was still limited to only a single path at the moment. He would likely need to heal his soul before the blood law became available to him, just like with his original powers.
With nothing else to gain, he opted to leave the Purple Origin Sect Castle. Bai was dead, and he felt great satisfaction over it. Of course, the price was heavy, but he still would choose to do it again if given the option. By killing Bai, he had regained control over his own environment. In the future, he would continue to eliminate other undesirables that did not fit into his world view. Especially Nexus, whom he was very eager to destroy once and for all, though he would need to find Feather first in order to realize his goals.
Exiting the castle, the battlefield was revealed. The elemental giants were all gone, as the Purple Origin Barrier had stopped functioning with Bai's death. However, the damage was already done. The Mongol Army had torn the cultivator armies to shreds. There were countless dead bodies flowing in rivers of blood, and almost all of them seemed to be from the cultivator armies. Cracks and crevices also covered the battlefield, and the blood rivers flowed into many of them. Ed didn't see a single cultivator remaining, and as far as he could tell, the battlefield was entirely deserted of living beings.
'Where did everyone go?' Ed frowned as he looked around. Even if the Mongol Army had won, the sect leaders should have at least survived. Even if they hadn't, the Mongol Army itself should still be nearby.
Without his mana-batteries, Ed was incapable of his usual method of flight. He activated Camazotz's wings and flapped them as best as he could. He awkwardly flew in the sky, and he felt extremely uncomfortable with the foreign flying method. On the bright side, it wasn't too hard to do, likely because of the strong power of the wings.
Flying higher and higher, he scanned the mountain and battlefield for any signs of life. Soon, he spotted a single silhouette near a tall tree. He immediately flew over and landed in front of the tree. ”Haru?” He said in surprise.
Haru struggled to lift his head, a dark look in his eyes. He was nailed to the tree by manullium stakes, making it so that he was unable to heal or escape. He remained silent as he stared into Ed's eyes.
Ed reached for the manullium stakes near Haru's shoulders, arms, and legs, pulling them out one at a time. Once the stakes were removed, Haru's wounds began to heal rapidly. He slumped to the ground while looking down at it. It was as if he had no motivation or hope for the world anymore.
A red flash appeared in Ed's eyes as he grew impatient with the boy. He wanted to use his red shadow to force out an answer. However, he chose to wait patiently instead. Forcing things often led to the least desired outcome, and he needed to know what had happened with the war.
After several minutes, Haru finally seemed to recover a bit. ”They killed everyone.” He muttered under his breath. ”The cultivators never stood a chance...”
”What about the sect leaders?” Ed asked. ”They should've escaped, right?”
Haru hesitated a moment before shaking his head. ”Only Sect Master Long escaped. Everyone else died.”
”Even Sect Leader Fang?!” Ed questioned in shock. Even if the Mongol Army was stronger than expected, and the sect leaders were tired from their previous battles, they couldn't have just killed the strongest cultivator in China so easily, could they?
Haru let out a long sigh. ”It's all because of the Earth Dust Sect!” His eyes turned red from rage. ”They killed Scrub and took Hina too! I won't rest until every one of their God damn heads is on a fucking stake!” He shouted as he forced himself to stand up. Doing so made him dizzy, causing him to lean against the tree for support while gasping heavily for air.
”Calm down and tell me what happened.” Ed requested while forcing Haru to sit back down.
Haru's face looked miserable as he nodded and began recanting the tale...
...
Hours earlier, when Ed had just entered the Purple Origin Sect's castle.
Haru swung his sword towards an ice elemental, slicing it into pieces. Purple Origin Sect cultivators, Water Snake Sect cultivators, and others surrounded him. However, they too were fighting off the elemental giant hordes. It didn't matter who was enemy or foe previously, as now it was everyone versus the Mongol Army and elemental giants.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! The ground repeatedly trembled as the Mongol Army shot off one volley of mana ammunition after another. With each wave of fire, at least a hundred cultivators would die.
”I can't take it anymore! I surrender!” A cowardly Lightning Eel Sect member begged in front of the Mongols.
The Great Khan lead the front line. He snorted in disdain as he aimed his steam rifle at the surrendering enemy. His army copied his movements exactly as they simultaneously squeezed their triggers. BOOM! Another huge elemental explosion engulfed the man and the other nearby cultivators.
Other cultivators also tried to escape, but they were quickly shot down from the sky. Casualties were skyrocketing at an unprecedented rate. Fortunately, the sect leaders had finally made their way over, and hopefully, they would be able to turn the tide of the war.
”ENOUGH!” Sect Leader Fang angrily shouted as over a dozen elemental clones left his body and rapidly flew forward. At the same time, Sect Leader Li and Sect Master Long rushed forward to enter close combat with the Mongol Army.