Chapter 184 184 - So Interesting
Sniff Sniff…
Yep, that was definitely blood. But why?
Renan's mind raced through the possibilities. It didn't entirely make sense to him. Blood wasn't so easily smelled unless it was shed in large quantities. That was especially the case given that he was still descending stairs, not even capable of seeing the blood yet.
There was also no reason to be spilling blood. Even if it were the case that there was some sort of human sacrifice or blood magic, it certainly wasn't something that could be learned and used effectively in so little time.
Power wasn't gained so easily. It may seem that way to the players, who could simply gain levels through EXP, but no one on earth had a system, did they?
One could not be strengthened enough to perform magic as advanced as human sacrifice rituals could not be done in a simple year or two, especially in an environment on earth.
Though overly speculating was useless. He reached the bottom of the stairs and found himself in a corridor with reinforced doors. He moved forward carefully, checking each room.
Most were storage, filled with boxes of equipment and supplies. One appeared to be a server room, racks of computers humming quietly.
He couldn't quite pinpoint the source of the scent, but a faint rustle caught his attention. He followed the sound, making his way to a simple office connected to a small laboratory.
A few white coat scientists were standing around, examining equipment and making notes on tablets. These were professional researchers, probably hired through normal channels, completely unaware of what they were really working on.
Given the scent of blood, they likely knew it was something shady, but it was guaranteed that they weren't entirely in the know. After all, who would willingly work towards their own doom?
No one.
And with them, was the director he had come for.
The man looked exactly as Renan remembered from his previous reconnaissance. Beyond his appearance, what really signalled him out was his soul. A terrifying dark aura radiated from the man, though no one present except Renan could sense it. There was a darkness clinging to the man's soul, a minuscule fragment of the Dark One.
The director was speaking to one of the scientists, gesturing at something on a computer screen and giving instructions Renan couldn't quite hear from his position.
Renan prepared himself, readying the spell that would end this quickly and cleanly.
But then something caught his eye. He felt a stronger scent of blood, and he lightly turned his head towards the source. In the corner of the laboratory, set up on a raised platform and surrounded by monitoring equipment, was a sealed glass chamber.
Inside that chamber, suspended in midair with no visible support, was some sort of bloody congealed mess.
It wasn't fleshy, there was no muscle, bone, or skin. It was more akin to clotted blood in a large mass. It pulsed with every faux heartbeat which sent blood rushing through what resembled blood vessels, though they weren't that.
Now this... was something Renan knew nothing about. He stared at the chamber, his mind racing through possibilities.
What the hell was that thing?
No, seriously, the heck?
First off, what was being created in there? Even that question wasn't as clear cut as it seemed. His first thought was that an artificial body was being created, so that either a foreign will could infiltrate it, or it could come with great power from Masteria.
Yet, there was also the possibility that it wasn't for a body at all, but something else. Perhaps it was a way to generate mana. Perhaps it was to be turned into a consumable for a boost. Or perhaps any other number of things. He had no way of knowing just yet.
He turned his attention to the director. A spell? No, no.
He changed his mind.
Renan reached his right hand into his coat, and took out something else. A dagger. He had been a magician forever, and so for any combat solution, his mind automatically goes to spells.
However, the only reason his strength was supernatural on earth was because of Narinder's blessing, which equally boosted various statistics.
That meant he could be just as good as a warrior, thief, bowmen, or anything. Granted, he didn't know any thief skills, so…
But the point.
He swiftly made his way behind the director and slashed at his neck. His power boost was nothing to scoff at, he cut through flesh and bone effortlessly, severing the mans head instantly.
Thud.
A cold impact rang out as the man's body hit the floor, alongside the sharp leaking of blood as it splurted from his neck.
Lumi jumped back, making sure not to let any of the blood splurt on him. It was preferable he didn't step in the blood puddle, because then he'd leave bloody footprints behind.
"AHHHH!" The scientist the director had been speaking to immediately burst into screams at the sight in front of him. A man had died! Completely out of nowhere, his head had been severed!
The scream caused the rest of the scientists to look over…
"HOLY SHIT!"
"What the-"
"HELP!"
Instantly, the scene turned to chaos. Not a single person was coordinated. Some just stood in shock, others yelled, and others still immediately ran for it. Renan considered those the smartest. If an invisible force just killed someone, you get out! You don't want to be next.
Regardless of the commotion, his job was technically done. He just had to get leave. However…
His gaze turned to the chamber, his eyes narrowing. Whatever it was, he might as well destroy it. He took a few steps, gazing at the ball of blood. He raised his wand…
The only problem with physically destroying it was that it was in a reinforced glass container. He surely had the strength to destroy it, but it would rip everything he had on to cover his skin. He didn't want to leave any cells behind that could be investigated if he lightly scraped his hand.
Light Shower.
A stream of light penetrated the glass, immediately cracking it as the force pierced inside. The spell hit the ball directly, sending the blood splattering across the glass.
"..." Though it looked entirely destroyed, Lumi still sensed hints of lifeforce.
Sure enough, it began to congeal once again…
Renan's brows furrowed slightly as he observed the mass continue to writhe and reassemble itself against the glass.
It wasn't particularly strong, that much was obvious.
Light Shower had pierced through both the chamber and the mass with ease, dispersing it without resistance. Any conventional organism would have been completely destroyed from such an attack, yet this thing had simply reformed. There had been no sign of damage beyond temporary displacement.
Which meant the issue wasn't durability.
It was its structure.
"…Right."
He felt a faint sense of irritation at himself. Of course it had survived. He had essentially tried to "pierce" something that had no vital points to begin with. There was no heart to destroy, no brain to disrupt, nor any core that governed its existence. Even if he blasted half of it away, the remainder would simply pull itself back together.
It wasn't that his attack lacked power. It was that the concept of piercing damage didn't apply.
He should have realized that immediately.
Renan slightly adjusted his grip on his wand, his mind shifting toward alternatives. If physical disruption didn't work, then the solution had to be something that could either completely disperse it or erase it entirely. Heat would work. However, his powers here weren't as powerful as in Masteria.
There was the change that it was as simple as disrupting its internal biology, but also the chance he'd need to evaporate it. Taking the chance wasn't wise.
He was still considering his options when the mass suddenly moved.
It slammed itself violently against the cracked section of the glass chamber, and the already weakened structure gave way instantly. The reinforced glass shattered outward.
Renan stepped back instinctively, observing the mass.
It could move?
That hadn't been apparent before. Its previous state had suggested something stationary, perhaps even incomplete, yet this was clearly an intentional action. Whether that movement was driven by instinct or some form of rudimentary intelligence, however, was a far more concerning question.
He didn't get the chance to dwell on the question.
The moment it broke free, the mass surged forward toward the director's corpse lying in a rapidly spreading pool of blood. The reaction was immediate. The blood on the floor began to shift, drawn toward the mass in thick streams, while the remaining fluid within the corpse itself was forcibly extracted.
Renan watched closely, his eyes narrowing slightly.
The mass quickly grew in size as it absorbed more and more blood. Then it began shrinking back to normal size as the mass grew denser, its pulsing becoming more pronounced as it integrated what it had absorbed.