Chapter 268: Underground (GT Bonus)
A huge thank you to Greychimp for the Golden Ticket! Your support truly means a lot and keeps me motivated to continue writing and improving the story.
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After several hours of travel, Team 11 finally arrived at the outer territory of Ashveil Settlement.
The moment the armored vehicles came to a stop, everyone’s expressions turned serious.
The entire Ashveil territory was covered in a dense gray fog. It wasn’t ordinary mist, this fog felt unnatural, heavy, cold, and almost alive. Visibility was reduced to barely a few meters ahead. Even James’ enhanced vision was heavily restricted.
Ayesha frowned slightly. "I can barely hear anything inside."
The atmosphere instantly grew tense. Such conditions were perfect for ambushes.
Kavya stared into the endless fog surrounding the settlement. "How are we supposed to enter this?"
Before anyone could suggest a plan, Vikram calmly stepped forward.
"Leave this to me."
The next moment, multiple summoning circles appeared around him. Soon afterward, three powerful Plant summons emerged.
The evolved Fire Mage Treekin. The Phantom Treekin. And the Storm Mage Druid.
Compared to their previous Sprout forms, all of them had changed drastically after countless battles and level growth. Their auras alone were now powerful enough to pressure ordinary Hunters.
Vikram looked toward the Storm Mage Druid. "Stormy. Clear the fog."
Stormy nodded and slowly raised both arms toward the sky. The next moment, powerful lightning energy gathered around its body.
[Tempest Domain]
Cold winds instantly began spreading throughout the area. The surrounding atmosphere trembled violently.
Then Stormy activated another evolved ability.
[Thunder Cyclone Surge]
Massive spiraling storms erupted outward from its body. Powerful wind currents mixed with crackling lightning rapidly spread across the Ashveil territory. The dense gray fog immediately began dispersing violently.
Within minutes, the endless mist covering Ashveil completely vanished.
And finally, the true appearance of Ashveil Stronghold revealed itself.
However, the moment Vikram saw the source of the fog, his expression froze.
Surrounding the outer territory were countless strange dark-purple plants covering the ground. Their branches continuously released fog-like spores into the air.
Vikram recognized them immediately.
[Mostveil Phantom Fern]
A rare concealment-type plant, the exact same species he had once purchased from the Plant System to hide and protect his own territory.
For a brief moment, Vikram was genuinely shocked.
How could this plant exist here?
Meanwhile, the others simply looked confused while observing the strange vegetation. However, inside Vikram’s mind, many thoughts rapidly surfaced.
After a few seconds, he forced himself to calm down. Perhaps the Plant System wasn’t the only source of such plants. Compared to the overlapping mysteries of both Ruins, rare plants appearing elsewhere wasn’t impossible.
Thus, after only a brief hesitation, Vikram recovered his composure completely.
With the fog finally gone, the true face of Ashveil Stronghold became fully visible before Team 11.
An enormous dark fortress stood silently in the distance, cold, quiet, and strangely lifeless.
Vikram calmly looked toward the settlement and spoke softly, "Let’s go."
Without hesitation, Team 11 advanced toward Ashveil Stronghold together.
---
As Team 11 finally crossed into Ashveil Stronghold’s outer territory, everyone immediately became more alert.
The entire settlement felt unnaturally silent. There were no patrol sounds, no civilians, and no visible movement, only abandoned streets and ruined structures stretching endlessly before them.
The deeper they advanced, the denser the strange vegetation became. Dark-purple vines crawled across walls, black thorn-covered roots spread over the roads, and crimson plants pulsed faintly like living organs beneath the ground.
Suddenly, Rohit shouted, "Careful!"
The ground exploded apart.
Dozens of sharp vines erupted toward Team 11 from every direction.
[Spikevine]
Massive spear-like vines shot through the air at terrifying speed.
At the same time, another layer of thorn-covered plants rapidly wrapped around nearby buildings, attempting to entangle the Hunters.
[Thornvine]
And beneath their feet, dark red blood-colored vines silently slithered forward.
[Bloodvine]
The moment those vines touched the ground, the surrounding stone began corroding at a visible rate.
However, before anyone else could react, Feiry stepped forward calmly.
The evolved Fire Mage Treekin slowly raised one arm. The inferno nucleus inside its chest glowed brightly.
[Infernal Burst Barrage]
"BOOOOOOM—!"
Dozens of compressed fire spheres erupted outward. The entire battlefield exploded into flames.
Spikevines burned apart instantly. Thornvines turned into ash. Even the Bloodvines rapidly shriveled beneath the overwhelming heat.
Feiry continued walking forward through the burning battlefield as flames spread around him like a natural disaster.
Then he activated another ability.
[Flame Territory Manifestation]
A massive wave of crimson fire expanded outward from his body, engulfing everything in the surrounding area. Within moments, the entire outer vine defense system of Ashveil Stronghold was reduced to burning ashes.
Pooja helplessly muttered, "At this point, my fire abilities feel decorative."
Several people laughed lightly, but their expressions quickly turned serious again.
Because the moment the plant defenses were destroyed, the true defenders of Ashveil finally appeared.
From the surrounding buildings and shadows, large numbers of Vampires emerged. Unlike ordinary settlement guards, these Vampires wore black combat armor and moved with military precision, clearly elite forces.
The leading Vampire roared, "Kill the intruders!"
Dozens of Vampires immediately rushed toward Team 11.
However, before the team could even move, Phanty silently stepped forward.
Its shadow vines slowly spread beneath the battlefield. The surrounding darkness itself seemed to distort unnaturally.
And the next second, the massacre began.
Phantom Treekin disappeared completely.
Then suddenly, "SHHHK!"
One Vampire’s head flew into the air.
Before the others could react, another was silently pierced through the chest from behind.
Then another.
Phanty moved like a living nightmare, no sound, no hesitation, only silent death.
The elite Vampires couldn’t even track its movements properly. At one point, three Vampires tried attacking together, but shadow vines erupted from beneath their own shadows and pierced directly through their bodies.
Within only a few minutes, the battlefield fell silent once again.
Burning vines covered the streets. Vampire corpses lay scattered throughout the settlement.
Feiry calmly extinguished the remaining flames around Team 11, while Phanty silently returned to Vikram’s side as though nothing had happened.
Rohit stared at the destroyed battlefield and finally sighed. "...Sometimes I forget we’re supposed to help in these battles too."
---
Meanwhile, while Team 11 continued advancing through Ashveil Stronghold on the surface, deep beneath the fortress, the underground laboratory had already received emergency alerts.
"WARNING." "OUTER DEFENSES DESTROYED." "INTRUDERS HAVE ENTERED ASHVEIL STRONGHOLD."
The warning echoed repeatedly throughout the underground facility. Several Vampire scientists immediately became nervous.
However, the gathered Barons remained relatively calm. They already understood one thing clearly, the Hunters had finally arrived.
At this moment, Viscount Alaric stepped forward slightly and looked respectfully toward Seraphina.
"Count. You should leave this place immediately and return to the Princess. We will handle the Hunters."
The surrounding Barons nodded in agreement. Although losing Ashveil Stronghold would be unfortunate, the Count herself absolutely could not be exposed. She was far too important to the Vampire future.
Hearing Alaric’s words, Seraphina calmly nodded. "Very well."
Her expression remained completely composed, showing not even the slightest trace of nervousness. As though Team 11’s arrival was barely worth her attention.
She calmly walked toward several important experimental devices located at the center of the laboratory, sealed blood samples, mutation research cores, experimental records, and several glowing green biological containers.
The next moment, Seraphina slowly raised her hand.
Space itself suddenly distorted slightly around the equipment. Immediately afterward, the machines simply vanished.
The surrounding Barons watched without surprise. However, if any Hunter had witnessed the scene, they would have immediately realized something terrifying.
Seraphina possessed Space-Type abilities, one of the rarest and most dangerous ability categories in existence.
She continued calmly storing away the most valuable experimental materials one after another. Entire research systems disappeared before everyone’s eyes with terrifying efficiency.
At this moment, Victor Draven frowned slightly. "Count... if the Hunters breach the underground levels—"
Before he could finish, Seraphina calmly interrupted him.
"If you succeed... the laboratory continues." Her crimson eyes narrowed slightly. "However... if you fail... activate self-destruction immediately."
The surrounding atmosphere instantly became colder. Everyone present understood the meaning behind those words.
No evidence. No survivors. No traces. Exactly like Bloodfang Stronghold.
Alaric placed one hand over his chest respectfully. "It will be done."
Soon afterward, the gathered Barons began moving toward the upper levels together, Victor Draven, Alaric, and the remaining Vampire Barons. Terrifying blood auras gradually spread throughout the underground facility as they departed.
Seraphina remained standing alone inside the laboratory for several seconds afterward. Then she slowly looked toward one of the monitoring screens showing Team 11 advancing through Ashveil.
Her gaze eventually stopped on Vikram specifically.
For the first time, a trace of curiosity appeared in her usually calm eyes.
"The Plant Summoner..." she quietly murmured.
Because according to the reports from Victor and Bloodfang Stronghold, this Hunter was becoming increasingly unusual, especially his summons. And for some reason, after seeing the Mostveil Phantom Fern outside Ashveil get recognized by him, Seraphina suddenly had a strange feeling.
As though Vikram himself... might also possess secrets far beyond ordinary Hunters.
---
The moment both sides prepared for battle, Vikram suddenly spoke calmly through the team communication device.
"Follow the original plan."
Immediately afterward, Team 11 split into two groups.
The first group remained behind to directly engage the Vampire Barons. The second group quietly moved deeper into Ashveil Stronghold.
At the battlefield entrance, Feiry slowly stepped forward. Its inferno core glowed brighter and brighter. Beside it, Phanty silently merged with the surrounding darkness.
Standing behind the two summons were Isha, Carol, Raghav, Imran, James, Arjun, Pooja, and Vikrant. This was Team 11’s main offensive combat group.
Their task was simple: hold the Barons in place, prevent them from interfering, and if possible, kill them.
Victor Draven’s expression darkened as he realized the remaining members were missing. "They’re trying to enter deeper inside!"
However, before the Barons could move, Isha calmly stepped forward and cracked her knuckles.
"Your opponents are us."
The next second, Feiry activated its flames completely.
[Inferno Territory Manifestation]
Crimson fire exploded across the battlefield instantly. The entire fortress entrance transformed into a sea of flames.
Phanty disappeared into the shadows entirely.
At the same time, Raghav laughed loudly before charging directly toward one of the Barons. "BOOOOOOM!"
Their collision shook the fortress.
Carol’s purple-pink aura silently spread across the battlefield, causing several Vampires to freeze mentally or attack illusions. Pooja combined her flames with Feiry’s inferno attacks. James provided precision support fire. Arjun moved rapidly throughout the battlefield at terrifying speed. Imran tanked multiple Vampire attacks head-on. And Vikrant’s shockwave strikes continuously disrupted enemy formations.
Within moments, the entire battlefield descended into chaos.
Meanwhile, during all this, Vikram quietly led the remaining members deeper into Ashveil Stronghold.
The support and investigation group consisted of Vikram, Rohit, Deepak, Sana, Bushra, Kavya, Ayesha, Shade, and several support summons.
Unlike the others, they avoided direct combat completely. Vikram remembered Bloodfang Stronghold clearly. The moment the battle turned disadvantageous, Victor had immediately activated self-destruction and destroyed most of the evidence. Vikram refused to let the same thing happen again.
This time, his priority wasn’t battle. It was information.
The deeper they went, the stranger the fortress became. Unlike ordinary settlements, Ashveil contained hidden corridors, research markings, sealed metallic doors, and a strange biological smell lingering in the air.
Rohit quietly frowned. "This place doesn’t feel like a normal Vampire fortress."
Deepak nodded seriously. "It feels more like a laboratory."
Shade silently moved ahead through the shadows, scouting the pathways. At the same time, Ayesha suddenly stopped walking and lowered herself toward the floor.
After several seconds, her expression changed slightly. "...Below us."
Everyone immediately looked toward her.
"I hear machines."
The atmosphere instantly became serious.
Because that meant one thing.
The real Ashveil Stronghold... was underground.
Ayesha pointed toward the floor again. "The sounds are directly below us."
Immediately, everyone stopped. However, after carefully searching the surroundings, they failed to find any hidden entrance, no stairs, no elevator, no visible passage.
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