MTLNOVEL Chapter 429: Blood Moon Ritual [Part 4]
Warlock Ch 429. Blood Moon Ritual [Part 4]
Marenvell's laughter echoed behind them as roots lashed out, and the floor shook under the battle.
But Damian didn't look back.
He couldn't.
Because Cedric's time was almost up.
And the price of failure was the end of everything.
[System Notification]
Blood Moon Ascension Ritual: 1 Minute Remaining
Damian could feel the seconds bleeding out of the sky.
His boots slammed against the ancient stone, shadows streaking past him in blurs as [Spectral Surge] flared through his veins—and this time, he wasn't running alone.
Selena ran beside him, her lithe frame moving fast, low, her breath sharp and uneven. Her usually elegant stride was frantic now, boots barely touching the ground. She wasn't just running with him. She was running for Cedric.
Behind them, chaos reigned.
A ranked magus leapt from the corridor above—his robes a blur of midnight blue, sigils glowing along his arms.
Arch Magus Belthorn <Lv 190>
Rank A+
Abilities: Arcane Burst, Gravity Field, Mirror Veil
He raised his hands, mouth opening to cast—
But Lysandra was already in the air.
She slammed into him like a meteor, a shockwave of frost exploding outward from her glaive.
His barrier cracked.
Then shattered.
Then he screamed as Lysandra drove her ice-forged weapon straight through his gut and pinned him to the wall, where frost surged outward, consuming his body in seconds.
She ripped the glaive free, snarling, "Try that shit again, I dare you."
Another monster—this one a hulking construct with a molten core—burst from a side wall, screaming like a tortured furnace.
[System Notification]
Corebound Colossus <Lv 183>
Abilities: Magma Slam, Flame Breath, Elemental Detonation
It didn't even make it ten steps.
Victoria threw her glaive like a spinning sawblade—it sliced through the construct's neck, embedding halfway into its molten chest. The beast roared, turned—
And Evelyn struck.
[Arcane Bolt]
[Curse of Agony]
The combination tore through its mana flow like acid. One final burst from Victoria, a charged impact with both hands, split the construct wide open in a geyser of flame and oil.
They didn't pause.
Because more were coming.
Evelyn hurled two explosive scrolls into the hallway behind them, setting a wall of magic fire as a barricade. Victoria hacked through another spectral swordsman trying to flank them, twisting the blade mid-slash with a flourish that severed the creature clean in two.
And Lysandra?
She was a storm. A blur of silver frost and death, her glaive dancing in the air as she ripped through wave after wave. One demon tried to blindside her—she froze his legs mid-air, spun, and cleaved through his skull. Her scales shimmered with residual energy, her golden eyes blazing.
But even as they pushed forward, the panic in their breathing couldn't be ignored.
"I can't keep this pace," Evelyn panted, mana flickering.
"You don't have to!" Damian's voice echoed back. "Just buy us one more minute!"
[System Notification]
Blood Moon Ascension Ritual: 0:45 Seconds Remaining
He grabbed Selena's wrist.
"We go now."
She nodded, teeth clenched.
[Shadow Step]
[Shadow Step]
[Shadow Step]
Three flashes of movement.
Stone warped. Air screamed.
They appeared at the massive door.
A towering gate carved from blackened fae wood and arcane crystal. Wards shimmered across the surface like threads of starlight—twisting and writhing.
Selena didn't hesitate.
She drew a blade across her palm and slammed her hand onto the central crest.
Blood ran down the grooves—filling the inlaid lines.
The gate shuddered.
[System Notification]
[Royal Signature Confirmed: Delyanis Lineage]
[Access Granted]
The gate opened.
And the world dropped.
They stepped into the top of the tower—
And everything burned.
Above, the tower's ceiling was gone—blown apart or torn open, revealing the blood moon in full. It glared down like a watching god, its crimson light soaking everything in unnatural hues.
And in the center— Prince Cedric.
Strapped to an obsidian altar, vines laced with glowing runes wrapped around his wrists and throat. His eyes fluttered weakly. Blood ran from his chest in rhythmic pulses into the massive circle carved into the floor below.
A magic formation—no, a forbidden array. Larger than the tower itself, carved into multiple layers and glowing with ancient, angry light.
At each of the five points of the circle—
Damian stopped.
No.
No, no, no—
He knew what they were.
The moment he saw the items embedded at each cardinal direction of the summoning circle, his heart dropped like a stone through his stomach.
Selena's breath left her in a strangled gasp.
"What… what is this?"
At the northern point— The Scales of the Molten Sky Serpent. Dragon Tribe.
He remembered that.
That was the day they exiled him.
Claimed he had stolen it.
It was here.
At the east— Tears of the Moonborn Oracle.
He remembered the whispers. "He made her cry."
Lies. He had never even met her.
The south— The Eldertree's Mana Core.
Burned. He'd been blamed for it.
His name—Kaelan—branded across the death of a sacred entity.
The west— The Bone Mask of the Wailing Ancestor.
He was accused of desecrating it. That one hurt most.
And at the final point— His breath caught.
A twisted, desiccated body, blackened and still faintly glowing with infernal power.
Corpse of Demon King Velgrath.
The soul inside Damian screamed.
'You DARE—?!'
Pain slammed through Damian's mind. His vision blurred with red static as the demon king's rage exploded from within.
'THEY USE MY BODY LIKE A TOY?! A RITUAL TOOL?! I WILL BURN THEM TO ASH—!'
Damian staggered, nearly dropped to one knee. He clutched his temple, snarling through gritted teeth.
"Shut up… shut up—Not now!"
"Damian!" Selena grabbed his arm, shaking him. "What is this?!"
He didn't answer. He couldn't. His vision spun.
Ralvek's voice echoed from the far end of the platform.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" the senator said calmly, stepping forward in robes laced with every tribe's insignia. "Each tribe's symbol. Each sin laid at your feet. The perfect offering to summon something beyond gods."
Damian's eyes snapped up.
Ralvek smiled. "They hated you, Kaelan. Blamed you. Banished you. So I used you. And now… you get to watch the world burn in your name."
Selena's hand went to her blade. "You monster—"
"Ah ah," Ralvek raised a finger. "Not until the ritual ends."
[System Notification]
Blood Moon Ascension Ritual: 0:10 Seconds Remaining.