"We can give it a shot, but we must be swift. Judging by the voices emanating from that blood-red mist earlier, Black and his team weren't the only ones here."
"Others might be chasing after those Blood Sources that flew away."
Ethan didn't object but offered a cautious reminder.
The group nodded in agreement.
They then mimicked the actions of Black and his comrades, reactivating the Magic Circle.
It radiated a mysterious blue glow, sketching intricate patterns that enveloped the corpses of Black's group.
Under the influence of the Magic Circle, these bodies underwent a peculiar transformation.
Much like seasoning is essential for cooking, the offerings to Oksd's Heart needed a certain ritualistic preparation.
Subsequently, the bodies descended into that dark abyss encircled by stones, and the luminance of the Magic Circle faded away.
"This Magic Circle seems a bit odd."
Sherry said in bewilderment, pointing at the bottomless pit on the ground.
"Why not just toss the sacrifices directly into it? Why the need for a Magic Circle?"
"Perhaps the ancient god, Oksd, had peculiar tastes."
Pale Wolf quipped, an unusual jest for him.
Ethan's focus wasn't on that. Staring intently at the abyss, he suddenly sensed something and urgently shouted to the others, "Brace yourselves, the Blood Source is about to spew out!"
As if to validate Ethan's words, the ground began to tremble.
Thud, thud, thud!
The rhythmic pulsations were deep and resonant.
Though Ethan could see nothing but darkness in the pit, in his mind's eye, it connected to a colossal, beating heart.
At this very moment, that heart was thumping vigorously.
Crimson blood erupted from this gargantuan heart, surging from the pit and splattering into the sky, forming the blood-red mist they had observed.
The essence within this blood, the Blood Source, was propelled in all directions due to the heart's forceful ejection.
"So, this is the entire phenomenon and process?"
It seemed Ethan had grasped the situation.
However, this understanding didn't offer much aid.
The Blood Sources shot out in every direction with the mist, and despite the group's readiness, intercepting them all proved impossible.
"Leave those heading off in the distance. For now, we need to get out of here!"
Ethan commanded.
Without hesitation, the group trailed behind him, swiftly moving away from the vicinity of the pit.
Soon after, a vast swarm of people rushed in like frenzied flies, making the area near the pit incredibly bustling.
"Who initiated the sacrificial ritual? Didn't we agree that it would only be activated once everyone was present?"
"Tsk, there's no shortage of selfish people anywhere!"
"Wait, it seems some are missing?"
"Missing? Who's missing? No, where's Black's group?"
"Black and his team went after the Blood Source, perhaps they haven't returned."
"No, they're dead."
At that moment, an elderly figure stepped forward.
With cloudy eyes and a face densely etched with wrinkles, he appeared somewhat ominous.
A flame-like pattern was marked on his forehead.
Among the group, he was the most formidable, a pure fire mage, adept at various fire spells.
He was respectfully addressed as Mr. Alaric.
"Dead? Mr. Alaric, are you jesting?"
Someone questioned.
Alaric slowly shook his head, stating, "They are indeed gone. I can no longer sense their life force, and even the traces of their existence are gradually fading."
"It suggests they have perished. And, if my intuition serves me right, they were the ones sacrificed in the recent ritual."
The crowd descended into chaos.
Such an incident was unprecedented.
After the cave's center had collapsed, chaos ensued for a while.
But once the turmoil subsided, order was established, with nearly every survivor participating in laying down the rules.
And one of those rules was that newcomers couldn't lay claim to the Blood Source.
Therefore, whenever new adventurers reached the heart of the cave and were discovered, they would be sacrificed, becoming droplets of Blood Source.
This was the fate of the vast majority of newcomers.
However, now, there had been a twist.
"Whoever dares challenge the rules we've set forth is our enemy! We must find and sacrifice them. Surely, that would yield even more Blood Source!"
"Indeed, this is what we must do."
Mr. Alaric expressed his agreement and added, "Also, regarding that black dragon from before, I'm close to pinpointing its current location. Once found, we should capture it and offer it as a sacrifice as well!"
"Mr. Alaric is absolutely right!"
The crowd echoed in unison.
Yet, the identity of the one who had killed Black and his companions remained a mystery to them.
In the face of such uncertainty, they dispersed in search of the scattered Blood Source.
At this juncture, Ethan and his party had retreated to a cave at the periphery, deliberating on their next steps.
"At present, we possess thirty-two droplets of Blood Source," Ethan began.
From the earlier eruption, there were well over a hundred droplets of Blood Source.
However, Ethan's group managed to intercept only twenty-nine.
Along with the one given by Eluna and the two that Black's group had chased, the total amounted to thirty-two.
"Would any of you like to give it a try?" Ethan asked.
"While the requirements for using the Blood Source are demanding, it seems one can absorb it bit by bit."
"Moreover, with thirty-two droplets at our disposal, even if an attempt fails, it wouldn't matter much."
Faced with Ethan's proposition, the group was somewhat stirred. However, in the end, they all declined.
"I'd rather get accustomed to the power I currently possess first. With the enhancement from the red jade, I've already experienced a significant boost."
"If I were to undergo another surge in power, I fear I might lose control," Sherry reasoned.
Although she yearned for immense strength, she didn't want to become a slave to that power.
Pale Wolf's decline was more straightforward: "I feel I might not be able to absorb it. Besides, my awakened Giant Clawed Werewolf Bloodline seems to resist it."
"It appears that absorbing the Blood Source now would be detrimental."
After the two of them shared their thoughts, Ethan turned his gaze to Eluna and Mia.
Eluna shook her head, "I've tried it before, but I failed."
Mia responded similarly, "Lord Ethan, I feel I'm still far from ready. After all, absorbing the Blood Source requires one's Bloodline to be elevated to a rarity level or above."
With everyone having declined, only Ethan was left.
However, upon reflection, he too chose not to absorb it.
The presence of the Blood Source could be sensed by others, which posed a significant risk.
Eluna had made an attempt, but she had failed and was unsure about the consequences during the absorption process.
If the process couldn't be interrupted and others detected the presence of the Blood Source, it could spell disaster.
"I'll absorb it once we return to our domain," Ethan resolved internally.
Meanwhile, as Ethan and the group were deliberating, elsewhere in the underground cavern, two groups of individuals were in disarray.
"What on earth was that creature?" one exclaimed.
"Damn it! It cost me an incredibly precious magic scroll! Luke, this is on you. Had you not suggested taking the shortcut, we wouldn't have lost track of that lad, Ethan, and certainly wouldn't have encountered that horrifying beast!" another fumed.
Luvi grumbled and railed against Luke with no restraint.
Equally vexed by the creature lurking within the walls, Luke retorted with annoyance, "If you don't shut up, you imbecile, I might just align myself with the Azure Empire's House Shadie or even the Imperial Royalty. They're far more accommodating than you!"
This rebuke silenced Luvi instantly.
Elsewhere, following the orders of the Flame Witch Hilna, Savi and his team, who were on a mission to retrieve the great artifact of the ancient kingdom, were also ambushed by the same bizarre creature.
"What in the world is that? It's utterly revolting, oozing out of the walls like that!" Savi fumed.
The blisters that Hilna had previously seared onto him with flames had now dissipated, and he appeared wholly rejuvenated.
Before Savi and his companions lay a humanoid corpse drenched in a blood-red mucus.
This figure, seeming as if crafted from sanguine mire, was unrecognizable in features or gender.
To Savi's group's dismay, this mucilaginous entity seemed impervious to regular weapons; only flames sent it recoiling in fear.
However, confronting it was undeniably wasting Savi's precious time.
"Do not bother with this filthy creature. Fulfilling the queen's commands is of utmost priority!" Savi ordered his subordinates.
Subsequently, disregarding the entity, the group sped towards the cavern's center, following the path marked on their map.
Such creatures weren't exclusively encountered by Luvi and Savi's teams.
In the cavern's plaza, many similar entities manifested.
Enveloped in blood-colored mud and emitting a nauseating, metallic odor, these creatures filled the space once occupied by adventurers, who had now vanished without a trace.
Suddenly, these monsters ceased their movement, then melted into the ground, disappearing entirely.
Simultaneously, deep beneath the center of the cavern, a scene unfolded that mirrored Ethan's imaginings: indeed, a massive heart throbbed.
However, there was a distinct difference.
The heart's surface sprouted numerous tentacles, which intertwined and enveloped each other to form a blood-red cocoon.
Within this crimson cocoon, a person lay dormant.
Updated from fr𝒆ewebnov𝒆l.(c)om