Chapter 268: Recognition
The entire vampire realm remained tense beneath the darkened heavens.
Massive crimson formations floated throughout the sky while countless blood barriers layered over one another endlessly across the arena and surrounding territories. The earlier celebration had completely disappeared now, replaced by heavy silence and rising fear.
Above the dark clouds—
The humanoid shadows continued moving slowly.
Watching.
Waiting.
Their outlines twisted unnaturally behind the darkness while the pressure leaking from above continued increasing little by little.
No one knew what they were.
And that uncertainty only made the atmosphere worse.
The vampire forces remained fully prepared.
GrandLord Dreath floated high above the arena like a crimson sun radiating overwhelming blood mana pressure across the entire realm. Elder Achilor stood nearby with his expression darker than ever while Lord Vord continuously issued commands toward the surrounding emperor-level vampires.
The three cocoons remained heavily guarded at the center.
Faith.
Cornelia.
Ivira.
The countless vampires surrounding them had already become visibly nervous now.
Even the Moonshade family themselves remained uneasy.
Especially Cain.
Because unlike everyone else—
He had a very bad feeling about all this.
RUMBLE!!!
The dark clouds trembled again.
Several of the humanoid shadows inside shifted position slowly.
Then suddenly—
Space cracked open nearby.
BOOM!
A giant silver portal appeared above the vampire realm instantly.
Countless vampires raised their guards immediately.
But then—
Howls echoed from inside.
Deep.
Wild.
Ancient.
The werewolf race arrived first.
Dozens of massive silver-armored warriors emerged from the portal while terrifying beast pressure spread outward rapidly. At the very front stood a giant silver-haired man nearly four meters tall with glowing wolf eyes and massive scars covering his body.
The surrounding vampires immediately recognized him.
One of the fourteen Ascendant wolves.
The leader of the Silverfang Lycan Territory.
An existence feared throughout multiple realms.
The giant werewolf glanced briefly at the dark sky before narrowing his eyes.
Then suddenly—
He laughed loudly.
"Hahaha! Lord Vord!"
His voice boomed throughout the arena.
"So you finally surpassed that damned bottleneck!"
Several werewolves behind him laughed loudly afterward.
Lord Vord immediately descended slightly and cupped his fist respectfully.
"Lord Kael."
The giant wolf grinned fiercely.
"I heard the news and came immediately. Didn’t expect the sky would greet me like this though."
His glowing wolf eyes glanced upward toward the dark clouds again.
Even he looked somewhat serious afterward.
Then—
More portals opened.
One after another.
BOOM!
A massive emerald portal unfolded overhead.
Elegant mana surged outward instantly.
The elven race arrived next.
Tall figures wearing silver-green robes stepped gracefully from the portal while powerful nature mana spread across the surroundings. At the front stood an ancient elf woman holding a glowing wooden staff taller than herself.
Her emerald eyes remained calm despite the dark sky overhead.
The surrounding vampires immediately bowed slightly.
One of the twelve Ascendant dark elves.
The Guardian of the Emerald Twilight Forest.
An ancient existence older than many kingdoms.
She nodded lightly toward Lord Vord.
"Congratulations on entering the Ascendant realm."
Her voice flowed smoothly throughout the arena.
Lord Vord smiled respectfully despite the tense atmosphere.
"Lady Sylvera honors this realm."
The ancient elf woman glanced briefly toward Elder Achilor afterward.
"As for you..."
A faint smile appeared on her face.
"You’re still alive as usual."
Elder Achilor snorted.
"You sound disappointed."
Several nearby vampires awkwardly laughed lightly despite the tension.
Then—
Another portal exploded open.
BOOM!!
This time the entire arena shook heavily.
Golden flames burst outward while gigantic armored figures emerged carrying massive war hammers and axes.
The dwarven race had arrived.
The ground cracked beneath their heavy footsteps while the smell of molten metal and ancient forge fire spread across the area.
At the front stood a heavily armored dwarf with a burning beard made from actual living flame.
His muscles looked like forged stone while terrifying heat distorted the air around him.
The surrounding races immediately recognized him too.
One of the great dwarf forge kings.
An Ascendant-level existence capable of forging weapons feared even among emperor races.
The dwarf king looked toward Lord Vord and laughed thunderously.
"So the rumors were true!"
He slammed his giant hammer against the ground.
"About damned time you broke through!"
Lord Vord laughed awkwardly.
"It took longer than expected."
"Clearly!" the dwarf king roared.
Several dwarves laughed loudly behind him.
Then—
More portals appeared.
The winged race arrived.
The serpent race arrived.
Several dark spirit clans emerged afterward.
Even hidden races rarely seen outside ancient wars began appearing rapidly throughout the vampire realm.
Because news of Lord Vord’s breakthrough had spread extremely quickly.
An Ascendant vampire was no small matter.
And many of these races originally came simply to greet the vampire territory.
But now—
The atmosphere had changed.
Every arriving leader immediately noticed the darkened sky.
The humanoid shadows.
The pressure overhead.
The celebrations vanished quickly from their expressions afterward.
Soon—
The massive arena had become crowded with terrifying existences from countless races.
Ascendants.
Emperor-level beings.
Ancient leaders.
All staring toward the heavens seriously.
The pressure gathering throughout the realm became absurdly heavy now.
Even the Moonshade family looked overwhelmed seeing so many legendary beings gathered together in one place.
Former Patriarch Rivik swallowed nervously.
Zenaya’s Blood Owl hid behind her shoulder feathers.
Several weaker Moonshade members could barely breathe under the overwhelming aura filling the realm now.
Then suddenly—
One of the newly arrived race leaders froze.
His eyes widened abruptly.
He stared toward the sky above the arena.
No.
Toward someone floating there.
"...Impossible..."
Several others followed his gaze immediately.
Then one by one—
Expressions changed.
Shock.
Disbelief.
Horror.
The surrounding race leaders slowly noticed the figure floating above the arena beside Elder Achilor and Lord Vord.
GrandLord Dreath.
The moment the surrounding race leaders recognized GrandLord Dreath—
The atmosphere became even heavier.
The noisy arrivals.
The greetings.
The brief laughter from moments earlier—
All vanished instantly.
Silence spread rapidly throughout the arena as countless eyes locked onto the ancient vampire floating above the battlefield-like gathering.
Several newly arrived emperor-level beings visibly stiffened.
Even the Ascendant experts from other races narrowed their eyes carefully now.
Because unlike the younger generations—
They understood exactly who GrandLord Dreath was.
A legend.
A monster from ancient eras.
A being who once rampaged across countless territories before disappearing for ages.
Stories about him still existed among old races even now.
Entire armies erased.
Ancient blood wars.
Ruined kingdoms.
Upper-level dungeon conquests.
Even among Ascendants—
GrandLord Dreath stood near the very peak.
And now—
He had appeared personally.
The silver-haired werewolf leader Kael slowly lost his earlier grin.
His massive body remained tense while faint silver wolf mana flowed naturally around him.
"...GrandLord Dreath..."
Even his voice had become lower now.
Cautious.
Very cautious.
The ancient elf woman Sylvera narrowed her emerald eyes while gripping her wooden staff tighter.
"I thought you vanished long ago."
The dwarf forge king’s fiery beard flickered uneasily.
Several winged race leaders exchanged wary glances.
Even the serpent race experts remained unusually silent now.
Because regardless of race—
Everyone knew GrandLord Dreath’s reputation.
Especially older Ascendants.
And the problem was—
No one understood why he suddenly appeared personally.
The vampire realm had always been powerful.
Yes.
But the appearance of GrandLord Dreath himself changed the balance entirely.
Lord Vord noticed the surrounding tension immediately.
He awkwardly coughed once.
"Everyone..."
He forced a smile.
"There is no need for concern."
Several race leaders continued staring upward silently.
No need for concern?
Easy for him to say.
That was GrandLord Dreath.
The same vampire monster whose stories were still used to frighten younger generations into obedience.
The giant werewolf Kael slowly crossed his arms.
"...You should’ve warned us he was here."
Lord Vord looked helpless.
"How exactly was I supposed to announce that?"
Even Elder Achilor snorted lightly afterward.
The surrounding races remained cautious anyway.
Because now they had two terrifying problems simultaneously.
The dark clouds overhead.
And GrandLord Dreath himself.
The giant humanoid shadows within the clouds continued moving slowly now.
Their outlines becoming clearer little by little behind the darkness.
Some looked thin and elongated.
Others bulky.
Some possessed giant wings.
Others had too many limbs.
The pressure descending from above only continued growing stronger with every passing moment.
Yet strangely—
GrandLord Dreath still had not attacked.
And that fact slowly began bothering the surrounding leaders.
The ancient elf Sylvera narrowed her eyes.
"...Why is he waiting?"
The dwarf king frowned deeply.
"Good question."
Normally—
An existence like GrandLord Dreath would not tolerate unknown beings invading vampire territory skies like this.
Especially with such obvious hostility.
Yet he remained floating there silently.
Watching.
Careful.
And that alone made the surrounding race leaders increasingly uneasy.
Because if even GrandLord Dreath hesitated—
Then whatever hid within those clouds was not simple.
Kael’s glowing wolf eyes moved upward again.
"...Those things..."
He could feel it too now.
The pressure inside the dark clouds no longer resembled ordinary monsters.
It felt wrong.
Ancient.
Distorted.
Like beings that did not properly belong to the natural order.
Several Ascendant race leaders had already begun secretly preparing defensive techniques quietly.
The winged race experts unfolded faint golden barriers around themselves.
The serpent race activated hidden poison formations beneath the arena.
Even the dwarves quietly gripped their weapons tighter now.
Meanwhile—
The vampire forces themselves looked increasingly nervous.
The emperor-level vampires surrounding the cocoons maintained formation strictly, yet many continuously glanced upward uneasily.
The three giant cocoons floated quietly in the center while dark clouds churned endlessly above them.
Faith.
Ivira.
Cornelia.
Still asleep.
Still transforming.
Completely unaware of the terrifying situation developing overhead.
Cain stood silently near the Moonshade family while observing everything carefully.
His headache had not disappeared.
If anything—
It worsened.
The pressure leaking from the clouds continued increasing rapidly now.
And deep inside—
Cain’s instincts screamed louder and louder.
Because he recognized something nobody else here understood.
This did not feel like ordinary invasion.
It felt targeted.
Deliberately targeted.
And the timing...
The timing was too perfect.
Cain’s expression darkened faintly.
Meanwhile above—
GrandLord Dreath finally narrowed his eyes fully toward the heavens.
The dark clouds twisted violently afterward.
One of the humanoid shadows inside slowly moved closer toward the cloud surface, becoming slightly clearer.
A tall silhouette.
Distorted.
Its limbs looked unnaturally long.
Its head tilted strangely.
And faintly—
Glowing eyes opened within the darkness.
Several weaker vampires immediately stumbled backward in fear.
Even some emperor-level beings frowned heavily now.
The silver werewolf Kael growled softly.
"...Those things aren’t normal."
No one disagreed.
Then suddenly—
Another rumble shook the heavens.
RUMBLE!!!
This time black lightning flashed across the clouds briefly.
And for a split second—
Thousands of silhouettes became visible behind the darkness.
Not dozens.
Not hundreds.
Thousands.
The entire arena fell silent afterward.
Even the surrounding Ascendant leaders looked visibly serious now.
The dwarf king’s fiery beard flickered harder.
The ancient elf Sylvera slowly tightened her grip on her staff.
Kael’s wolf eyes narrowed dangerously.
Then finally—
One of the race leaders spoke quietly.
"...Why isn’t GrandLord Dreath doing anything?"
