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Chapter 318 Blood transfusion

Testing Victoria was fun. Dilan could relax with Victoria around, which was quite an achievement, especially since they were currently surrounded by tens of thousand spiders that possessed various abilities.

Their strength ranged from Ordinary Tierless monsters to Gold Tier-1 monsters bordering on the outskirts of the Spider Queen's Nest.

Dilan and Victoria were not able to reach the inner parts of the Nest because the tunnels leading to the inner Nest were protected by dozens of Tier-2 Spiders.

However, that was not important for the two because they focused on killing the spiders on the outskirts to collect all their Essence crystals.

Dilan leveled up [Switch], while absorbing four Essence crystals of every new type of spider he killed.

Through this, his stats improved a bit while Switch reached Tier-0 ★★★★★.

By now, [Switch] allowed him to relocate 100 Units of his stats, which was more than what he could have hoped for. It allowed him to do various things, especially since he could decide how many Units of each stat could be reallocated.

Things got a lot easier this way, which was why Dilan returned his focus on upgrading his Origin ability [Regeneration].

"It's time for me to feel a little pain," Dilan told Victoria when they returned to the base. He wanted to split up and fight on his own so that he wouldn't bother anyone while inflicting lethal injuries upon himself.

However, Victoria held his wrist just when he was about to leave.

"Do you want me to help you increase your natural regeneration temporarily?" She suddenly asked, looking deep into his sky-blue eyes. Victoria's face bore fine lines of concern and worry. She was fully aware of what Dilan was about to do and he didn't like it.

"If you say temporarily, you don't mean to turn me into a Vampire, I guess…how exactly do you want to help?" Dilan was clueless as to how she wanted to increase his natural regeneration but it was certainly helpful if he could believe Victoria's words.

He thought about it for a while and believed that it would save him lots of trouble if Victoria could help.

"I won't turn anyone into a Vampire if they don't request it from me. Even then, I might not like it because I don't find the thought of annoying subordinates around me entertaining. Taking care of them is a hassle, which you should know by now. Just imagine you have to lead your little group for hundreds of years… scary right?" Victoria forced a smile on her face as she spoke, and she tried to avert her focus on something else than Dilan, who looked deep into her eyes.

To her misfortune, Dilan had already detected that she looked a bit sad when she had spoken about turning someone and the topic of having subordinates.

'It might have been a bit naive of me to believe that she had lived an easy life till now. How can life be easy if you have lived for more than a thousand years?' He thought, believing that his earlier impression of Victoria might have been a bit foolish.

With a gentle smile, Dilan looked at her for a minute before he chose to switch the topic back to what they'd been speaking about.

"What exactly do you have to do to increase my natural regeneration?" Dilan asked, feeling genuinely intrigued.

"It's pretty simple. You give me some of your blood, and I return it to you after altering it in my body," Victoria explained in a simplified tone after the memories of the past were locked deep in the pits of her heart once again.

"You mean that you'll bite me and I will bite you back?" Dilan asked in an amused tone just to make sure that he understood properly.

"Yes…and no. It doesn't really matter if you understand what I mean but I will literally return every single drop of blood I drank from you. You will feel a bit weak after I drank your blood because I will have to drink a substantial amount of it before I can return it to you within around ten minutes," Victoria was not sure how to explain it properly in an even simpler way than she already did.

There were many big words she wanted to use but she knew that Dilan wouldn't really understand what she would say. After all, many of these words were something only Vampires used.

"Okay, that is fine with me. Let's go to my room then," Dilan nodded his head before he turned around when he finished speaking to Victoria.

She followed him as he walked to his room before they disappeared. Nobody thought that anything was wrong with Victoria clinging to Dilan, especially not after they had witnessed Victoria's clingy behavior to the Berg sisters and Dilan during the last few days.

However, even if someone were to notice something, Victoria would be happy about it, while Dilan couldn't care less. Others could think whatever they wanted about him such as he was a gigolo, a monster, a devil, or a Samaritan. In the end, the fact was just that he was a human…one, who was desperate for strength.

Dilan removed the Ilran Chestplate and the shirt underneath it, revealing his bare chest to Victoria, who let out a shriek the moment she saw him.

"Dilan~ What are you doing?~" She asked in excitement, licking her lips when she saw his ripped body. It looked like his body was created while keeping the image of Adonis in mind by an expert sculptor. Victoria couldn't see a single flaw in his body's structure, which was even rare for Vampires to possess; a perfect body.

Instinctively, Victoria approached him with fiery eyes. Her hands reached out and she began to lightly caress his chest with the tips of her fingers. It was an addictive feeling and Victoria had trouble controlling herself. She began to giggle but stopped the moment she saw Dilan's cold eyes.

"W-what?" She stuttered, instinctively taking a step back.

"Nothing. Can you start?" Dilan asked in a perfectly normal voice. His eyes changed back to radiating gentleness just like before. It was almost as if he had never looked at her coldly.

Victoria was not sure what had just happened but even Dilan was a bit astonished about his own reaction.

'Why did I feel so much hatred just because she touched my scars?' He wondered in confusion. Dilan didn't like if others touched his scars but he had never felt anger or hatred toward someone, who touched his scars before. That was weird, and an alien feeling even for Dilan.

Fortunately, the anger and hatred dispersed in an instant, and Dilan revealed his bare neck to Victoria, allowing her to bite him.

"Are you ready because it will hurt a bit?" Victoria asked before Dilan activated [Switch]. It would decrease his Health stat by more than 80 Units to make it easier for the noble Vampire to bite through his skin.

"Do it," Dilan nodded his head before he closed his eyes awaiting the prickling sensation and the pain Victoria would bring.

A moment later, Dilan was pushed onto the bed and Victoria landed on his lap. Her arms coiled around his neck just before she pulled his head closer to her as her fangs grew out of her mouth.

Chapter 319 Little Reward (*)

Dilan groaned weakly when he felt that his blood was being rapidly drained. His Health stat was much lower than before and he could feel the pain of having been bitten much clearer than ever before.

Every little sensation coursed through him like a vein throbbing with hot blood. It was almost as if his senses were enhanced as his Health stat had been relocated to increase his Mana. Dilan felt a bit weird as he noticed that his body was flushed by a sudden intense heatwave. His body reacted instinctively and he began to move subconsciously.

He tightly embraced Victoria, who was sitting on his lap. She squirmed lightly in surprise when Dilan hugged her all of a sudden but Victoria didn't avoid it. On the contrary, Victoria released her fangs from Dilan's neck for a moment.

His warm sacred blood trickled down her lips as she stared at Dilan with a crazed expression. She loved this feeling right now and lightly touched his chin to move it upward.

With a swift motion, Victoria changed the position in which she was seated on Dilan to face him directly. Victoria's body faced Dilan directly while he held her close.

Her eyes glowed crimson and her raw desire could be seen within them. When Dilan looked straight in her eyes, he smiled faintly as he removed her hand holding his chin.

Slowly, Dilan's left hand moved to her chin while he continued to hold her back with his right hand.

"You little pervert," Dilan mumbled quietly as his right hand dipped lower. He pulled Victoria closer to him all of a sudden as he moved one of her loose strands out of her face.

Victoria's heart was racing and she knew that Dilan could hear and feel her heartbeat because her bosom was pressed against his naked chest.

Her cheeks flushed red in embarrassment while Dilan's hand moved even lower, tightly gripping her butt.

"Mmm…" Victoria moaned subconsciously when Dilan grasped her tightly and her eyes widened in surprise.

Dilan smiled in response, thinking that Victoria was really cute and responsive without even trying.

"That's a small reward for your hard work," Dilan said in a teasing manner when he pulled Victoria's head closer to his.

He looked at her slightly parted lips and sealed them with his own in an instant. He nibbled at her soft and warm lips, kissing Victoria. She gasped in shock as she was taken aback by his sudden move but didn't back away.

Victoria coiled her arms around his neck and she pulled him even closer to herself as she returned the kiss with even more passion.

She had just wanted to help Dilan to upgrade his Origin ability with fewer problems and hadn't expected a reward. However, that didn't mean that Victoria wouldn't accept a reward, especially if the reward was what was about to happen.

Victoria took her time kissing Dilan patiently and explored his mouth with her tongue. Her thighs rubbed against his crotch as she was grinding hard and let herself loose in the situation. Her eyes glowed even brighter than before and it was as if she wanted to take Dilan then and there.

When Dilan's little monster reacted in response to her wild and seductive stroking, that was when she truly lost herself.

She began to moan and whimper as Dilan began to fondle her butt with one hand. His other hand reached out for her ample breasts and cupped it. His eyes began to gleam in want and the way she moaned in his ears was driving him insane.

It had been a while since he had last slept with someone but the current situation was still different than ever before. Right now, he was a high-leveled Ascender, an existence, whose emotions were much harder to control than earlier when he had still been a normal human.

Dilan could clearly feel that his wild instincts were taking him over and that he was about to tear Victoria's clothes apart and that he would claim her.

However, he didn't have anything against this and if he was going to be true to himself, he liked the thought and it surprised him. He merely smiled as he continued to caress her butt and fondle her breasts. Victoria's moans were a sweet melody to his ears and it was as if his body wanted to feel the pleasure of being with someone once again.

Victoria felt an itch between her legs. She was already wet and one of her hands slowly reached out for Dilan's pants, and her fingers fidgeted while trying to unbutton his jeans.

Before she could do anything, Victoria's body trembled as Dilan picked her up from his lap using just one hand. He smiled at her before he shook his head faintly.

"Not today, little naughty Vampire. You've to learn how to control your desires," Dilan mumbled in her ears while he continued to fondle her. She pouted to hear him deny her but before she could open her mouth to grumble, he kissed her passionately yet again. His breath hitched and it didn't look like he would want to let her go ever again.

Victoria gave in to Dilan and she allowed him to do everything he wanted to her as long as she could get him. She returned his passionate kisses with equal fervor and it was only a matter of time before they began to use their tongues. They fought passionately with each other, the sounds of muffled groans and gasps ringing in the otherwise quite room and it looked like they would never let go of each other.

Several minutes had passed before their lips parted again.

"Your words and your actions don't quite agree with each other," Victoria giggled sheepishly as she looked lovingly at Dilan. His face was overflowing with the desire to continue what they had started but oddly enough, he had stopped feeling her up.

Something in his expression had changed a bit. He felt conflicted as if he was contemplating something.

This bothered her, which was why she leaned forward to caress his chest in a seductive manner as she whispered, "Let's continue, Darling~"

Dilan just smiled at this before lifting one of his hands toward her forehead to flick his index finger against it.

"Ouch!" She instinctively squealed out in pain. A tiny bit of pain spread through her forehead and suddenly Victoria realized that her emotions and overflowing hormones had been released or retracted. The situation was weird but she could clearly tell that she was still able to continue what they had just begun.

Victoria looked at Dilan in confusion, not letting go of him. Weren't they going to continue? Was it over, just like that?

"Why can't we finish what we began?" Victoria asked in a clearly disappointed voice. She didn't understand the situation at all…it was so unsatisfying and frustrating…

Dilan felt that it was a shame as well but he could also tell that both his and Victoria's desires were something they couldn't control yet.

He didn't really want to destroy the entire base while sleeping with Victoria. Others might call him stupid for that but Dilan knew that once he unleashed his inner beast, the entire factory would collapse.

"To prevent death and destruction?" Dilan returned the question with a faint smile on his lips. He didn't want to stop either but he knew that he wouldn't be able to stop himself if he went any further.

Victoria didn't seem satisfied with his answer and she felt that Dilan was not as honest as his body that was craving for her. He was clearly still aroused, and the monster in his pants desperately wanted her but his mind was telling him otherwise.

"Is it because of Kathrine…or Yvonne?" Victoria asked with glaring eyes. Her expression had changed drastically and it almost looked like she was ready to kill someone.

Dilan just laughed her anger off before he pulled her closer to him once again.

"Don't speak such nonsense," Dilan whispered before he planted a kiss on her lips.

"Next time you'll get whatever you want."

Chapter 320 What doesn't kill me makes me stronger

Victoria was frustrated but she drank his blood nonetheless. She returned it to Dilan only ten minutes later, while ignoring his gaze. Her face was still flushed red and Victoria knew that Dilan was also still aroused but he didn't dare to act on his desires.

'What nonsense…how would we destroy the entire base just by having some fun??' Victoria complained inwardly, staring daggers at Dilan.

He noticed her expression and merely chuckled instead of explaining himself. There was simply no need to do so because he told her that the destruction of the shelter would be the inevitable result if they slept together.

Nonetheless, something had changed between them. Dilan had contemplated Victoria's behavior and the entire situation before. He had wondered if it was morally justifiable for him to get intimate with someone in his group, or if it would cause more trouble than it could help him destress.

However, while it had bothered him a bit before, Dilan couldn't care less anymore. He could do whatever he liked, and if someone didn't like it, they might come forward to raise their complaints or remain silent forever. Dilan didn't force anyone to stay with him and if they didn't like the way he led his group, they were free to leave. That would be best for everyone!

Dilan wouldn't force anyone to sleep with him, that was disgusting and a big no. He was not even actively searching for someone to have intercourse with, but it was impossible to ignore that Victoria was an otherworldly beautiful woman and that her advances were a huge turn on.

When Victoria returned his blood she had to bite him in the same position she had drained his blood from. She sat on his lap without hesitation and straddled him again. Her ample breasts squeezed against Dilan's chest as she returned his blood.

Dilan's hand automatically grasped her butt again, only to stop the moment Victoria returned his blood.

It was much warmer than before and for the first few minutes, the altered blood caused itches all over his body. Dilan had no idea what was actually happening but he could tell that his natural regeneration had increased. If there were any changes related to his healing, Dilan was able to feel it clearly.

Furthermore, a notification popped up in front of him, indicating that Victoria's action had been accepted by the system as well!

[The blood of a Matured noble Vampire has been utilized to fuse with and alter the host's blood. The host's natural regeneration has been boosted temporarily. Duration: 120 Minutes!]

"Two hours…that should be enough," Dilan mumbled as he finished reading the notification. Victoria retracted her fangs when she finished the transfusion of blood and she looked deep into Dilan's eyes. Something was bothering her and she didn't want things to get worse, which was why Victoria sighed deeply.

Victoria was just about to move back and get up when she heard a quiet voice in her ear and Dilan pulled her closer.

"Good job," Dilan whispered as he kissed her one more time before he allowed her to get up from his lap.

Victoria was stupefied and she looked at him in confusion. The thought that had bothered her a moment ago flashed through her mind like a mantra and her expressions began to change as worry, nervousness, anger and hurt chased each other to occupy her face.

"Do you not want to sleep with me because I'm a Vampire, or were you serious about doing it later?" She suddenly blurted out and demanded an answer. Her cheeks were flushed red and she was a bit exhausted from returning Dilan's blood without holding back a single droplet for herself.

For a Vampire, who was currently famished and thirsting for blood, especially Dilan's sacred blood, this was not easy. Victoria did it nonetheless, suppressing her wild instincts for Dilan's sake.

"Who the hell cares whether you are a Vampire or not? I think you forget that you're gorgeous…well and a bit psychotic but that is quite cute if you were to ask me. The reason we are not sleeping with each other is a simple fact that the base will collapse the moment you and I were to let loose.

You have to control your emotions much more precisely than anyone else here because you are a Vampire, but do you think that's possible the moment we let loose while submitting ourselves to our deepest desires and falling into the pits of pleasure?" Dilan didn't think that there was anything embarrassing in the given situation so he spoke calmly. He could tell that Victoria was truly bothered that they had unfinished business.

Dilan didn't need to lie since the truth was not really something worth hiding, so he continued to speak to her for a few minutes, explaining everything.

He was an Ascender, who knew that destruction would follow the moment he was to let his emotions take over his rational mind. Victoria was now an Ascender as well. She was a Tier-1 Ascender, and a Vampire, which meant that her emotions were already hyper-sensitive because of her existence as a Vampire, which further intensified the more Essences she absorbed.

Victoria may not have noticed it yet, but her behavior was slowly changing and she was getting clingier to the people she liked. Her mood swings were also apparent, which Dilan and the siblings Kathrine and Yvonne had also noticed.

It was only a matter of time before Victoria would be unable to hold her emotions back, which could end up in the devastation of the entire base. The most important thing in Dilan's group was to be able to control their emotions and desires. The moment this control was lost, ****, murder, and chaos would tear apart his group.

Dilan didn't want this to happen, which was why he had forced himself to control his desires and forced his mind to never give in to his body's demands!

He stood up from the ground and gently caressed Victoria's silky silver hair as she looked at him dumbfounding. After Dilan explained the entire situation, she felt embarrassed and like a horny pervert. Victoria hung her head in shame and turned around to avoid looking at him but secretly she was happy.

'He didn't push me away!' She screamed internally.

"I would start injuring myself now. If you cannot see too much of my blood without wanting to sink your teeth in me, it would be better for you to leave. Maybe, you can look for Kathrine and the others, or do something else you like?" Dilan suggested while he looked at Victoria from the side.

She had begun to giggle quietly a moment ago and Dilan could only gauge what must be going through her mind.

'A cute psychotic Vampire. That is something new, but it's not that bad, I guess.' Dilan thought before he lightly pushed Victoria in the direction of the door and closed it.

His expression turned serious a few seconds after he closed the door of his room after pushing Victoria out of the room. He took a deep breath and sighed as the Thunderbolt dagger manifested in his hands.

"The duration of [Switch] is two minutes. After that, the reallocated Health stats will be returned…I should inflict as many injuries as possible upon myself before letting Switch wear off….after ten minutes, I may even reallocate my Agility and Strength stats to boost Health to heal myself faster… If I do that, my lethal injuries should heal at a rapid rate…" Dilan was trying to come up with a plan and he liked what he had put together so far.

A big smile appeared on his face as he activated [Switch] once again, preparing to injure himself lethally over and over again.

"What doesn't kill me makes me stronger…Literally!"

Chapter 321 Tier-1 Origin ability

[The host has survived another lethal injury. 12 out of 12 lethal injuries survived. First condition to upgrade the Origin ability [Regeneration] has been met!]

[The host reached all conditions to upgrade [Regeneration] to Tier-0 ★★★★★. Upgrade was successful!]

[The host survived another lethal injury. 13 out of 30 lethal injuries survived to upgrade the Origin ability [Regeneration] from Tier-0 ★★★★★ to Tier-1 ★.]

[The host survived another lethal injury. 30 out of 30 lethal injuries survived. First condition to upgrade the Origin ability [Regeneration] has been met]

[[Regeneration]- Tier-0 ★★★★★

Upgrade Requirements

1) Survive <30 > Deadly injuries.

2) Health stat of <100 > Units.

3) Kill a monster stronger than yourself and absorb its essence!(1/1)/OR absorb 25 Gold Tier-1 Essence crystals of monsters with regenerative traits!(5/25)]

[All conditions to upgrade [Regeneration] Tier-0 ★★★★★ have been met. Origin ability will be upgraded to Tier-1 ★! Congratulations!]

Dilan was flooded with a large number of notifications after he inflicted numerous injuries upon himself in a matter of 48 hours. There was not much time left for him to prepare himself for the attack of the Vampires but he was already glad that he had enough time to upgrade his Origin ability without any of the Vampires bothering him.

Victoria came to visit him a few times to see if she could help him by altering his blood once again but she quickly realized that Dilan's room was too dangerous for her.

Every single corner of the room was splattered with blood; Dilan's blood and Victoria had quickly noticed that she had to leave, otherwise, she might do something stupid.

Victoria had been frustrated about Dilan's comment on how difficult it would become for all Ascenders, including herself, to control their emotions and desires if they didn't train and contain it. She didn't really believe his words because she knew her body much better than anyone else.

However, when Victoria smelled the intense scent of Dilan's blood in his room, she quickly realized that Dilan hadn't been joking with her.

She went to Kathrine and Yvonne to ask them if they could help her to control herself better, but they were not really in a position where they had lots of time to spare.

Everyone was feeling tense and working hard to prepare themselves both mentally and physically to fight the Vampires that were bound to attack them in the near future. Sven was coming up with all kinds of traps and battle strategies to obliterate as many Vampires as possible before they could even reach the base. This was definitely not easy because Vampires were a bit more resilient than ordinary monsters, let alone humans.

Vampires could heal in almost all circumstances, and all the traps Sven came up with could only restrict them to a certain degree. As for the battle strategies, they were quite easy to make use of, especially since the Vampires would focus on collecting the five Sanctum Keys.

However, that was something Dilan presumed to be entirely useless. Before he left the base to upgrade [Switch] and to prepare everything to advance his Origin ability [Regeneration], Dilan told everyone that there was no need for any special tactics.

He would move away from the base after he finished everything necessary to pull the Vampires in his direction. Dilan said that he could fight alone if necessary but that the Ascenders could join the fight by attacking from the sidelines if they wished to. They didn't have to join the war against the Vampires if they didn't want to, but it would be their loss if they didn't get any benefits from killing the Vampires.

The Vampire's attack was one big opportunity and wasting it was definitely not the smartest decision in Dilan's opinion. However, now that he had finished upgrading his Origin ability, he could tell that his strength alone was already more than enough to defeat all of his opponents single-handedly.

With [Switch] and his Origin ability upgraded, he felt that the only thing he was lacking was equipment with special abilities or other weapons than the Thunderbolt Daggers.

After all, his Health stat had been amplified by close to 200 Units, which meant that there was not really an existence that could tear through his defense, even if they were to be at Tier-2!

This was ridiculous but Dilan liked it, especially since his Origin ability had become stronger than it had ever been!

[[Regeneration]- Tier-1 ★✭✭

[+75 Health]

Passive →Enhances regeneration

Active →Uses 1~30 Units of Mana to enhance regeneration effect drastically for up to 90 seconds!

<Burst Regeneration>→ Increases Health and Stamina by 15% for 10 Minutes. Can be used once every 24 hours.]

Dilan looked down at his body which looked like an old and mistreated training puppet for new Ascenders to train to thrust their weapons in. He felt a bit weak but overall his condition was pretty decent.

More than 30 freshly inflicted cuts could be seen on his body but all of them were healing rapidly.

When he had used [Switch], Dilan first reallocated as much Health as possible to increase his Mana. This allowed him to use [Regeneration] as often as he wanted with as many Units of Mana as possible. When the duration of [Switch] wore off for the first time, his Health increased once again.

After ten minutes passed, Dilan used [Switch] for a second time, increasing his Health as much as possible by reallocating his Agility and Strength. Through this, his Health easily crossed 200 Units than before. This was more than enough to heal the lethal injuries he had inflicted on himself earlier.

While he was still healing, Dilan forced himself to get up from the ground. He didn't put on any clothes because he was about to see one of their many healers. They could tend to his wounds while allowing him to move around without an issue.

[Burst Regeneration]! Dilan activated his new sub-ability [Burst Regeneration] to increase his Health and Stamina by 15% for the next 10 minutes. He didn't think that he would require this ability in the next 24 hours. Now was the best moment to use it, which was why Dilan activated it.

He looked out for the others while walking through the basement. His bare upper body was exposed to everyone, and so everyone was able to see the 30 rapidly healing injuries in his abdomen, followed by the numerous scars that covered his entire upper body.

His body might be flawless after it had been nourished and transformed by his Divine occupation's passive ability [ Warrior's Unparalleled Physique] but this didn't mean that the scars he had sustained in the past would heal.

Even the large scar in the center of his chest was still clearly visible. That injury was something he had received not too long ago, when the Primordial Ascension had occurred.

However, even if it was one of the most painful injuries he had sustained in his life, it was nothing compared to all the things he had faced before the Primordial Ascension. His life had been a mess before the Primordial Ascension and if one were to ask Dilan about it, he would actually say that the Primordial Ascension made things easier for him.

Life was worth fighting for once again, which was basically the complete opposite of before when he had felt hopelessly defeated. Now everyone could become strong, and everyone was able to do whatever they wanted to achieve as long as they worked hard for it.

Before the Primordial Ascension, life was weird and ruled by the wealthy and influential without a way to escape their grasp if one was weak and powerless.

The weak and powerless couldn't change their life for the better and would continue to suffer silently. However, that wasn't the case anymore after the Primordial Ascension had provided everyone with the opportunity to gain strength and the right to rule over their own life.

Dilan nabbed this opportunity, strived hard to improve himself and he had a long life full of adventures in front of him. He was ready to face all his opponents head-on, without an exception.

Dilan smiled apologetically when he found the infirmary that had been built in their base not too long ago. He saw that many young women and elderly men were working hard to tend to the injuries of several Ascenders.

It was not rare to sustain injuries while fighting monsters, so Dilan's arrival was actually not that surprising.

However, considering that it was their leader, the strongest Ascender they knew, who had been injured, everyone was a bit baffled at this sight.

"Look…his flesh is moving….woahhh!" A male teenager exclaimed as he looked at Dilan's injuries.

"Shhh, don't speak too loudly. We're new here, and we don't want to attract too much attention…Look how everyone reacts. They seem scared…something is wrong!!" A female teenager warned him after she quickly covered her friend's mouth.

Everyone looked at Dilan in fear, and he could only shake his head as he tried to calm everyone with a few words,

"I inflicted the injuries to myself, there is no powerful monster nearby to be worried about!"

"Isn't that even worse? Why is someone suicidal in this group??" The male teenager had removed his friend's hand from his mouth to blurt out his doubts once again.

This time, however, it was not his female friend, who answered him, but someone else, who was lying on a small side bed.

"Well…this suicidal man is our wonderful leader…your leader!"

Chapter 322 Challenge in the Forging Department

New Survivors found their way to their camp ever so often. There were many days when dozens of Survivors and also powerful Ascenders found their way to the base in search of food, shelter, and protection. Most of the time, Dilan's people accepted them which slowly increased their numbers.

But that was a necessity. They needed more people to build up a stronger defense and a society that worked together to become stronger. The more the merrier was Dilan's opinion, especially since they didn't know when huge armies of foreign races might attempt to raid the Shikan plains or Milarn in its entirety.

Dilan wanted everyone to work together as it would result in an efficient and mutually benefiting work environment, where everyone would receive something. Unfortunately, black sheeps kept popping up in the new batch of Survivors every now and then. They were quickly taken care of but Dilan was still pissed off at them.

He allowed himself to get treated, while he sized up the other patients, whose injuries were tended to with great care.

'These kids seem quite powerful. Are they new Ascenders?" Dilan wondered as he looked at the teenage boy and girl.

"Did you two fight on your own before you joined us, or are there others in your group then you two?" He asked straightforwardly while throwing them a scrutinizing look.

Their expression twisted when they heard Dilan's question and the young girl's eyes got teary while the boy clenched his fists.

"We are the last ones…but we were together with others…our entire class," The boy answered in a depressed voice, avoiding Dilan's gaze.

"Sorry for your losses, but the two of you did great. If you want to continue fighting, join the Elite Combat Unit after you two complete the basic training with Jeremy and Michael," Dilan advised calmly and his encouraging voice reached the two young teenagers, who lifted their heads to look straight into Dilan's sky-blue eyes.

Usually, they would get blamed for abandoning their classmates, even though that was not the complete truth. They had been betrayed and thrown out to fend for themselves and not the other way around. Thus, it was quite surprising that Dilan didn't ask them any further after he found out that they were the 'last ones' in their group.

He didn't think that it was important to pry into details, especially since Dilan's intelligence department already knew that they were worth being trusted. Every single new Survivor in their group had to go through an interview, where several Ascenders with special abilities and occupations would ask questions. If they passed by answering the questions honestly to a certain degree by telling the truth most of the time, they were accepted.

However, if they tried to trick or lie their way through the interview or answer certain questions in the wrong way they wouldn't be accepted. Weeding the liars from those who were genuine was quite simple as they had quite a few Ascenders in their group who possessed lie-detecting abilities, body language reading abilities, knowledge, and more.

Because of this, Dilan was not really worried about anyone in his group, not anymore.

After Dilan was fully tended to, he ruffled through the silky hair of the boy before he left their group. There were certain things he wanted to do, including increasing his level and his stats.

As his special condition with the Cursed Blessing [Will of the Primordial] restricted him from increasing his stats in a short time, Dilan chose the second-best option to become stronger; he picked up new equipment!

"Old Jeff, where the hell are you?" Dilan asked loudly when he reached the alloy factory where Old Jeff was supposed to be. He looked left and right but couldn't find the old man. Dilan frowned deeply when he could only see a few other blacksmiths working hard on the ores they forged to turn into weapons and other goods.

All of them could be considered Old Jeff's apprentices because he handpicked them to help him forge when they were in high demand for certain goods and he was falling short to keep up. After they were able to choose their occupation to advance to Tier-1, some of them chose a blacksmithing-related occupation, while others picked a different path.

Those who stayed behind were now considered knowledgeable blacksmiths with various great abilities to improve the quality of their goods.

Old Jeff was not the best blacksmith anymore but he was definitely the most intelligent one. His comprehension ability was unmatched and if someone was able to create new goods, then it was definitely Old Jeff!

That was also why he had high hopes of improving his equipment because Dilan was pretty sure that Old Jeff was done researching Wands, and that he had already created a product that combined the best of both; a weapon and a Wand in one!

"I've heard about your new invention, come here and let me see it!" Dilan shouted out loudly and in excitement.

However, Old Jeff didn't seem to be anywhere. Only when a young and frail-looking man reached Dilan did he slow down as he turned his head to the man with short black hair.

"I-I'm sorry L-leader….but Old Jeff went somewhere to study more…" the frail man seemed to be on the verge of crying as he looked at Dilan's unreadable expression. He was afraid of being punished for telling the 'bad' news.

"Oh? And where is he?" Dilan asked in return, astonished that Old Jeff went somewhere. It was not usual for him to leave the alloy factory.

"He…he bought a new ability from the trading hub, something called [Dimension of Enlightenment], or something similar…He can open a portal to an isolated dimension for a few hours a day using all the mana he has…He won't return until late at night…" The frail man's voice had started to quiver by now. Dilan only squinted his eyes because he was pretty sure that he was not that frightening.

'I look quite normal right now, don't I? I'm even wearing a pretty normal shirt…' Dilan thought and he shook his head lightly.

Another man saw how his colleague acted in front of the leader and he couldn't take it anymore. He approached Dilan and his colleague with a calm expression before he greeted them in an informal manner.

"I'm sorry for my colleague, Brian. He doesn't have much self-esteem. We're still trying to make him be more confident because his forged goods are extraordinary but that will probably take quite a while," The newly arrived young man interjected before he stretched out his hand.

"I don't know if you know me, but if don't, I will introduce myself. My name is Huan Iglav, I'm the Inscribing Blacksmith, or precisely, the man, who inscribes most of the runes on all the forged goods you find in the trading hub," The young man introduced himself with a prideful expression, which caused Dilan to smile wryly as he grasped Huan's hand.

He shook it lightly but quickly noticed that Huan wanted to turn this into a challenge.

"I wouldn't do that," Dilan said calmly and with a faint smile on his face.

"I'm sorry but I want to see how strong you are, leader!" Huan said as he began to use more and more force in his arm, and prepared himself to crush Dilan's arm.

"What a hassle, but okay, if you want to do it then test my strength," Dilan said with a shrug just before Huan used all the strength in his arm to overwhelm his leader.

His face was flushed red in a moment, and he began sweating heavily. Seeing that he wasn't going to win easily, his second hand reached out as well. He wanted to squash Dilan's hand but failed miserably.

Huan looked at Dilan's face which had turned expressionless as he quietly asked,

"Are you done playing around? If so, it's my turn."

Chapter 323 Experiments

"For someone who focuses on inscribing runes on pieces of equipment, you are pretty strong. But that doesn't mean you can keep up with Ascenders, who focus on fighting monsters. There is still a distinct difference in strength, you know?" Dilan tried to put some sense into the young man as he looked down to the ground.

Huan Iglav's legs had given in after he used all his might in a pitiful attempt to force Dilan's expression to change. This didn't work at all, which was why Dilan ended up squeezing Huan's hand a bit, nearly knocking out the young man.

Dilan didn't really have anything against a challenge but this was just a waste of time.

"At least, I can be reassured that there won't be a problem for you to fight the masses of Vampires…" Huan Iglav said weakly as he tried to get up from the ground. Dilan helped Huan before his gaze turned to Brian, who was trying to avoid attracting anyone's attention.

He smiled lightly at Brian and his attention moved to a smaller hammer that hung down the frail-looking man's belt. It reminded Dilan why he had been looking for Old Jeff.

"How far has Old Jeff's research progressed about the Weaponized Wands?" He thus asked with great interest before he lightly added, "I need a bunch of new equipment. My old boots have burned and the Blazing Serpentine Blade is way too weak against Vampires. It will merely burn them a bit and I may be able to do a few stunts with it, but that's the most I could do with it."

Dilan's eyes glimmered in excitement at the thought of getting new equipment and when both Brian and Huan saw this, a weird smile appeared on their faces.

"We…have a few experiments…if you want to see them…I mean…if you really want to…we could show them to you…" Brian was still a bit shy and he didn't dare to look directly into Dilan's eyes when Dilan looked at him but he was still trying his best to not cower under his gaze.

He seemed a bit excited to show Dilan his experiments and Huan nodded his head as he added,

"Old Jeff, Brian, I, and the other blacksmiths are always trying to improve. This includes using other materials to create some of the weapons we learned about in blueprints. Most of them failed because the properties of the materials we used were not compatible with the weapons we wanted to create but others succeeded. The simplest experiments include a few runes, Brian's additional attributes due to his Occupational Special trait, and Old Jeff's vast knowledge about Wands and his creativity!"

Huan seemed excited and it looked like he had already forgotten about the handshake 'battle' he had had with Dilan and failed miserably. He was not someone who was really bothered about losing a fair battle and Huan was pretty much satisfied with Dilan's strength. It reassured Huan that everything would be fine with Dilan as their leader, irrespective of the fact whether 10,000 Vampires attacked them, a horde of powerful monsters, or other races.

Dilan couldn't dislike Huan, so he followed the young man when he walked in the opposite direction of Old Jeff's small office. He motioned Dilan to follow him multiple times, which was what Dilan did. Even Brian rushed behind Huan, radiating a bit of excitement.

'To think that he is already in his 30s while acting like this,' Dilan shook his head with a faint smile on his lips. It was quite funny how excited men could be when someone was interested in the same topic as them, but Dilan understood this pretty well.

It didn't take them even a minute before they reached a big hall, where a few more blacksmiths were working. However, instead of hammering the steel bars in front of them, most of them were either thinking hard while staring down at the hot steel bar, or they were hesitating to strike it because they weren't 100% certain which angle they required to make use of so as to obtain the best result.

They wanted to become great blacksmiths, which meant that each of their weapons had to be close to perfection. Creating a perfect weapon was impossible but it was possible to improve slowly as long as they were working hard on their form, technique, and their abilities.

Huan ignored the blacksmiths and walked past them. Dilan and Brian followed them as well before they ended up in a small warehouse, or so it seemed. Dozens of shelves stacked with all kinds of forged goods could be seen in the small hall that had been turned into a customized warehouse full of experiential weapons and forged equipment.

"This is getting interesting…but why didn't I know about this?" Dilan asked in a sharp voice as his head flicked to Huan, who flinched upon hearing his question.

"Eh…I don't know. Isn't it Old Jeff's task to report the proceedings of the forging department to you?" Huan asked in an uncertain voice. He didn't want to get Old Jeff into trouble but he thought that Dilan had already heard about the experiments and that he may have simply forgotten about them.

However, from the looks of it, Dilan was oblivious to what happened in the forging department, which was a bit odd, but Dilan's expression eased up quickly. That was a good sign and Huan didn't feel like he was suffocating anymore.

"Well, I knew that Old Jeff is experimenting with various things, otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to create the Blazing Molotov Daggers for Williams but I didn't know that more blacksmiths were experimenting as well. Maybe, I just missed that when I didn't attend the daily meetings," Dilan shrugged.

After he thought about it for a moment, he was actually not that bothered that he wasn't aware of the experiments.

He had looked at a few weapons and could tell that they were not ready to be either mass-produced or used by someone with low mana control.

[Silver Steel Dagger] |Forged| <Bronze Tier-1>

Forged with a Unique technique, the Silver Steel Dagger is an exceptional weapon with which a proficient wielder may be able to injure and even kill a Silver Tier-1 monster!

[+7 Strength], [+5 Agility]]

"The Silver Steel Dagger is quite impressive. The blade is paper-thin and it will break upon colliding with bones of Silver Tier-2 monsters, or monsters with extremely thick hide but it's razor-sharp, nonetheless," Dilan mumbled when he read through the description of the Silver Steel Dagger.

It was clearly a forged good and it was quite easy to wield the weapon.

"Weird…it doesn't need much mana to supply the Silver Steel Dagger. Maybe even a Tierless Ascender can wield the weapon. That would increase his stats manyfold…amazing!" He continued to speak, only to realize something he didn't notice before, "Wait…There are even forged goods that boost stats?"

Dilan was a bit baffled but he recalled something Huan had said when he spoke about Brian a while ago. His head turned in Brian's direction to see the frail man's embarrassed expression.

"Is that your Special trait? To give forged goods stat boosts?" Dilan asked in curiosity but Brian could only shake his head.

"I..unleash the potential…of the weapons…I forged…as long as the compatibility of weapon and material is good enough, I can create even better weapons…for example….please look at this!" Brian had yet to warm up to Dilan but it was easy to tell that he was trying his best to please their leader.

Dilan regarded this highly, which was why his attention turned to the area Brian pointed to before he froze in place.

"….is that still a weapon?"

Chapter 324 Huge

Dilan first thought that he was simply staring at a huge piece of metal and not a weapon. It looked heavy and cumbersome to move but both Brian and Huan smiled foolishly as they rushed to the weapon when they noticed that Dilan was interested in it.

"Balzaki, the Butcher of the Living, might look a bit weird because we tried to create a unique greatsword but take a look at its information!" Huan's hands were trembling lightly as he pointed in the direction of the weapon. His eyes were fixated on Dilan, who quickly noticed that Huan was excited.

Dilan's eyes moved from Huan to Brian before they finally ended up resting on the huge greatsword.

It was more than two meters long and didn't look the slightest like an ordinary greatsword. If Dilan had to make a comparison, it looked more like a huge, altered version of a Cleaver knife.

The hilt of the greatsword was black in color due to the black leather that was used to envelop the hilt to give the weilder a steady grip and it was 25 centimeters long to help him maintain his hold while swinging it rapidly.

The two-meter-long blade covered a small area in front of the handle, preventing the wielder's arm from being injured as any attack would first collide with the blade. There was a small gap between the hilt and the blade but this bother Dilan much.

The blade had a dull backside that was also much thicker than the sharp frontside and it looked quite like a weapon that would be created in an Era where Mechas and Intergalactic wars were held rather than most weapons Dilan had used until now.

While the blade was two-meter-long it was also 25 centimeters wide and covered by numerous dimly shining runes and other engravings. They attracted his attention, just like the thick black knob at the end of the hilt.

"You created such a cumbersome weapon just to practice engraving all these runes on it, didn't you?" Dilan asked with a frown. He didn't know whether to laugh or to cry, especially since he seemed to like the weapon.

The notification he received from the system about Balzaki, the Butcher of the Living, was something that intrigued him because there were a few things that might help him in the fight against the Vampires.

Some information mentioned in it was definitely exaggerated but Dilan was pretty sure that Balzaki was a weapon that could cut through the defenses of an existence at Tier-2!

[[Balzaki] |Forged| Gold Tier-1

[+20 Strength]

A massive sword that can be wielded fluidly despite its size and weight. The sword can cut through all kinds of living beings with ease thanks to the masterfully sharpened blade.

Weapon proficiency while wielding Balzaki increases according to the host's weapon Battlelust.

[Death toll(passive)] Soul fragments of the beings killed with Balzaki will be absorbed. The energy within the Soul fragments will be drained and used to strengthen both Balzaki and the wielder! Soul fragments will be released after 30 minutes.]]

"Balzaki….is the best…weapon we could create…until now…" Brian added meekly while avoiding Dilan's gaze. Dilan grinned wildly as he caressed the black blade of the ginormous weapon lovingly. It was heavy which he noticed the moment he picked it up but that was not of his concern.

He could lift more than a ton with his Strength, so wielding Balzaki with one hand was no problem at all.

"I will take it," Dilan declared quietly while his grin widened.

"You…will take it? Really?!" Brian seemed astonished. The Unique Greatsword was certainly not a weapon Dilan would usually wield. Until now, Dilan had only used a spear, the various daggers, and the Blazing Serpentine Blade. It was widely known that Dilan didn't like cumbersome weapons that slowed him down in a fight.

"Yeah, of course, why not? I mean…my Agility is high enough to help me move through a horde of opponents and with my high Health stat, I won't be slowed down easily. As for my Strength, I believe I am strong enough," Dilan said without thinking too much.

He wielded Balzaki with one hand and quickly noticed what the description of the weapon meant with 'can be wielded fluidly despite its size and weight', or the increasing weapon proficiency the more Battle lust the wielder has.

Dilan was quite excited right now and ready to jump into a battle at any moment, and this was directly reflected in the way he wielded Balzaki.

His new weapon was quite decent and after a few simple moves and thrusts, Dilan could tell that it was a perfect weapon against the Vampires, especially the passive ability of Balzaki, called [Death toll]

"The more I slaughter in a short period, the stronger the weapon and I will become. If there is no limit or restrictions, entering the Spider Queen's Gate before the Vampire's attack would be a smart choice…" Dilan mumbled while he was deep in thoughts.

Huan and Brian looked at each other before they smiled lightly.

"Looks like the experiments we did together were a success!" Huan said, grinning from ear to ear, while Brian nodded his head eagerly.

Brian approached Dilan quietly before he showed him something else they had been working on not too long ago.

"If you need anything else, just take it…we want to help in the fight…against the Vampires!" Brian said as he looked Dilan in the eyes. Brian's eyes moved hurriedly and his lip twitched when Dilan flashed him a smile.

"It's nice that the two of you want to help, but don't go around handing your weapons for free. Lend your experiential weapons to others while demanding some resources in exchange. That way you can finance your future experiments while you guys will be able to see how powerful your weapons truly are…or if they're failed products!" Dilan came up with a way where the blacksmiths could help in the Vampire war while still gaining benefits.

They didn't have to set exorbitantly high prices for the weapons they would lend out, but it would certainly help if they had to give the blacksmiths something in exchange.

"Eh…okay…" Brian tilted his head lightly before he turned his attention to Huan in uncertainty.

"Sounds good, I guess," He merely said as he shrugged.

Dilan continued to discuss with the two blacksmiths for a few more minutes before he left the alloy factory. After that, he returned to the trading hub where he purchased various treasures in exchange for one of the Thunderbolt daggers that were in his possession.

The Thunderbolt dagger might not come with a special ability or additional stats but that was not further important because it was made out of the Talons of a Bronze Tier-2 monster.

Dilan got a new pair of shoes, a new pair of gloves, a necklace, and a new ring in exchange. These four treasures were more than enough for his stats to increase drastically, to a state where he was pretty sure that nothing could kill him anymore.

He knew that he was getting too full of himself after his Origin ability was upgraded to Tier-1 but he couldn't help it.

His Health had crossed 200 Units with all the enhancements he received. This was not something he could simply ignore when the most powerful monster they faced was merely a low-leveled Bronze Tier-2 monster!

Dilan's average stats were currently much higher than the Thunderbolt Eagle and that was something he knew perfectly well.

Knowing that, Dilan took a deep breath, and was about to leave the base to increase his stats a bit more. There were a few things he wanted to test out with his new equipment and he wanted to get to familiarize himself with his weapon a bit more so as to make sure that he knew how good it was and if he would face any problems while wielding it.

However, his entire plan fell apart when Bianne rushed in his direction, holding one of their few messenger devices.

"The Blue Star camp contacted us…they're coming!!" She breathed heavily and gasped for air but that didn't deter Bainne from shouting at Dilan, whose expression turned sour.

"Already? Did we miscalculate their arrival?"

Chapter 325 Real Leader?

"How many are they?" Dilan asked the moment he realized that their time was running out.

He handed over his messenger device to Felia and call them once the Blue Star camp's scouts would note a large number of 'Ascenders' passing through their camp. Dilan didn't think about telling her that these Ascenders were Vampires and that they were about to attack his camp. It didn't really matter and there were no benefits he would receive on his side.

He was not sure how Felia was currently doing or what was happening to the Blue Star camp but based on the bits of information she shared, it was pretty obvious that the Blue Star camp's situation was not that great ever since Dilan and the others left.

"She couldn't say much because the scouts, who reported that there was a high number of Ascenders passing by their camp, didn't see much. It was night and even with the scout's [Sight in the Night] abilities, they weren't able to see much. The only information she had was that there were many, and that some of them were riding monsters!" Bianne's voice cracked with fear as she revealed everything Felia had told her.

Dilan nodded his head as if he understood before he nibbled on his lower lip.

"Sven was about to start preparing the traps today, wasn't he? That means we have little to no preparations…" Dilan mumbled while Bianne's body started to shudder involuntarily.

"Will we die? No, right? That cannot happen. It won't happen." Bianne mumbled to herself, her expression growing worse by the minute.

"Stop! Don't panic! If they just passed by the Blue Star camp, we should have almost half a day left before they reach us. Even if they have mounts, who cares? Gather everyone!" Dilan instructed hurriedly while various thoughts flashed through his mind.

He got a headache just by thinking about the mounts, a variable he hadn't factored into consideration.

'Of course, they can use mounts to speed up their travel,' Dilan frowned deeply before he turned his head to Bianne, who had yet to move.

"Everyone? Like everyone in the Inner circle or literally everyone?" Bianne asked while fidgeting with her clothes to control her trembling hand.

"Literally everyone. We'll go to war," Dilan asserted before he turned around as well.

"I will go to the trading hub and the alloy factory, you gather everyone outside the base," He ordered as he dashed in the direction of the trading hub.

Seeing that Dilan arrived once again, the attendant bowed to him and flashed him a smile.

"How may I help you, Boss?" She asked before she froze as Dilan approached her with quick steps. His gaze caused chills to run down her spine and she involuntarily stepped back.

"The Vampire attack will start in half a day at the latest. Be prepared to equip hundreds of Ascenders with good working equipment. Tell them that they can lend it for the battle and that they don't need to worry if it gets destroyed… I will cover up for all the damages and expenses if that's necessary," Dilan said while his expression didn't change in the slightest.

The female attendant opened her mouth slowly before she closed it once again. After a while, she opened her mouth again but no word escaped it.

"We will take care of everything. There is no need to compensate the trading hub for damages. The Vampire attack will be considered a War of our entire group, not only yours," A familiar voice reached Dilan from the left. He turned his attention to the manager of the trading hub and quickly noticed that she was glaring at him.

"Why would you need to compensate us if something gets damaged? You and the others provided most Essence crystals, most ability crystals, and most treasures for the trading hub. It belongs to you, either way, just like the entire group.

You can do whatever you want. Stop acting like a fool and behave like a leader. Your people need you, we need you!" She added, visibly angered. Dilan smiled wryly in response before he nodded his head.

His eyes shone brightly and he took a few deep breaths to calm his wildly palpitating heart.

"You're right. Thanks," Dilan said before he thought about something for a second or two as he continued to speak, "Provide everyone with the equipment they need, it doesn't matter what it is. We don't know how many Vampires will come, so we need to go all-out from the beginning!"

After Dilan finished what he had to say, he left the trading hub quickly to dash in the direction of the alloy factory where all blacksmiths and all training Ascenders were located.

Meanwhile, the manager and her attendant were left alone.

"Why did you say that he should stop acting like a fool? Wasn't he just trying to be considerate and prevent any potential problems from occurring if some goods were to be damaged?" The female attendant asked when she was sure that Dilan was well out of earshot. In her opinion, Dilan was a great leader, even if he looked a bit scary sometimes.

"You don't understand. A leader needs to be decisive, he needs to know what his subordinates have to do, and he needs to be greedy, and sometimes selfish, or a devil," The manager responded in return, looking at the door of the small shop, where Dilan had walked out of and disappeared.

'Until now, he had never thought of himself as a leader. He had pushed his responsibilities aside and only acted as the leader of the group since he is the strongest and the only one, who is truly feared and respected.' She recalled.

Dilan was a great leader, she could tell that. However, they didn't need someone, who always protected them, right now. In a war, a single individual would never be enough to emerge victorious. Dilan might be able to kill everyone because he was strong enough but facing thousands of opponents would inevitably result in his subordinates getting attacked.

As a leader, Dilan was not able to protect his people at all times. They had to fight their own battle without Dilan's help and he had to mentally support them. As long as Dilan could keep their morale and hope high, they were bound to win.

However, if he acted like he didn't need others, and that he could defeat everyone without their help, his Ascenders would slowly lose their motivation to become stronger.

Dilan may not even notice it but when he had proposed that he could fight the Vampires all by himself and that the other Ascenders could fight from the sidelines, he made a big mistake.

In the trading hub manager's opinion, Dilan had yet to realize how important it was for him to act like a real leader and fight by their side instead of fighting all by himself.

In fact, even after Dilan listened to the manager's words, he had yet to fully digest what she might have meant. He didn't think that he had done anything wrong yet he had irked her.

Only when he reached the alloy factory where he could see all the Ascenders, who were working hard to become stronger, did he notice something that changed his opinion entirely?

'I'm a fool. I am literally a fool…just how stupid am I?' He smiled bitterly and straightened his back as his eyes turned serious. He enhanced his vocal cord with mana and issued a simple order that could be heard through the entire alloy factory.

"Ascenders, gather in the Base. We need to prepare for war!" While he issued the command, Dilan released an overwhelming charismatic presence that influenced everyone subconsciously. They stopped training abruptly and turned in his direction before they began to shudder.

Dilan's battlelust was clearly perceptible and his eyes turned fiery. A storm was brewing and Dilan was gathering everyone to face the storm and tear it apart!

The blacksmiths gathered all their goods and brought them to the trading hub before they built their own small station to undergo maintenance with all the treasures in the trading hub.

Meanwhile, the other Ascenders hurried to the base, where everyone had already been gathered. More than 3000 Survivors and Ascenders had gathered around him. Their eyes followed Dilan, whose steps reverberated through the entire hall.

His expression was stoic and he walked slowly as his gaze roamed through the crowd of his people. Their eyes were glued on Dilan, while their bodies shivered lightly as if the Grim Reaper hummed the song of death while pressing his scythe at their necks.

"The first Vampire families will arrive soon," Dilan said in a tense voice that reached every corner of the base. There was pin-drop silence and even the sound of drafts of wind splashing against the base's wall could be heard, followed by the sobbing of a small child as the tension around Dilan increased further.

Everyone around him stiffened as they realized that the threat was encroaching upon them and that this could very well be their last day to stay alive. Meanwhile, a crazy smile appeared on his face when a ginormous weapon manifested in his hand.

Balzaki's dull backside landed on his shoulder and the ground below him began to creak but Dilan kept smiling as he unleashed all the power he held back before, intensifying the tremendous presence he executed.

"And I want all of you to fight right by my side! Let's kill them…together!"

Chapter 326 For the Undying!

"I know that I'm not perfect, that I could be a better leader, and that I won't always be able to please everyone while leading this group," Dilan started to address his people in a low voice that reverberated through the entire open space of the base.

"I am fully aware that the Vampires are going to wage a war against us because of the five Sanctum keys, which is my fault, at the end of the day. I wanted the entire group to gain the advantage of fighting against Vampires and to procure their Blood Essences because of their obvious use, and I never considered your opinions.

Everyone should understand that we need to become stronger after facing the stronger and more powerful monsters that appeared around and within Shiron during the last few days, and I hope that all of you can fight by my side against the Vampires.

I want our group to be the strongest and overcome all hurdles with all of you! However, this won't be possible if we stay as weak as we're right now." Nial cleared his throat after he had spoken a bit. He was trying to find the right words to convey what he felt and what he expected from his group.

It was not necessary for him to gain glory on the battlefield or to force anyone to fight, but fighting was more of a necessity in order to survive in the new era that had descended on Milarn.

"We need to become tougher. Stronger. Faster. Nobody is allowed to die at the hands of the Vampires, who are going to attack us, or due to any of our future threats. All of us should advance together and become an indestructible group…a group that has zero casualties and where nobody dies…I want all of us to become Undying!" Dilan's imposing voice caused the hearts of the Ascenders and Survivors around him to start beating wildly.

Everyone stared at Dilan with wide eyes and some were fidgeting with their clothes. A few Survivors were trembling but whether that was because of excitement or fear was not something Dilan could tell right now…it seemed to be a mixture of both fright and excitement…

'Was that fine?' He wondered, scratching the back of his head before he smiled wryly as he looked in Sven's direction.

Their tactical strategist stepped forward and a resolute expression appeared on his face as he lightly slapped Dilan's back as if they had been friends for years.

"That was quite good. Don't worry about it, your forte is combat, not being an overly charismatic Politician who tries to win votes for his presidential candidature," Sven said with a small smile to tease Dilan.

Dilan rolled his eyes at this comparison but said nothing and simply accepted it as Sven took a step forward.

He cleared his throat and looked at the 3000 Survivors and Ascenders with the same indescribable expression as before.

"As some of you may have heard by now, we will be facing the first batch of Vampires soon. In approximately eight hours, the first Vampires will arrive, and we have yet to get more information about their numbers or their rough strength," Sven blatantly revealed without talking around the bush.

He looked at the Ascenders and Survivors, whose faces paled with every word he uttered, at the desperation that gleamed brightly in their eyes and the panic that was about to erupt and lead to mayhem.

"There is no need to panic. Dilan should be able to defeat the Vampires all by himself. He probably doesn't even need us," Sven's voice was cold and silent, but the weight his words carried, caused everyone to quiet down in an instant. The hearts of the Ascenders and Survivors were still beating rapidly but everyone started to look at Dilan as if he was their last hope.

'That's not what I wanted!' Dilan just thought as he looked over to Sven with a deep frown, 'What the hell are you doing? We wanted them to join the fight, not to stay behind, stop scaring them more than they already are…'

Dilan didn't speak his thoughts out loud and that was not necessary as Sven glanced over to Dilan to wink at him once. It was as if everything was going according to his plan.

Sven returned his attention to look at the crowd before he spoke again.

"But even if Dilan can fight on his own, he won't be able to block the advance of all attackers. Some of them will slip through and extinguish every single life in our small base.

If we don't face them head-on all of you will keep relying on Dilan, on a single individual to save you against opponents that may number in 1000 today, or ten, if not a hundred times that in a few months. The Vampires are only the beginning of the tide. We don't know when other races will arrive on Milarn or even the Shikan plains.

In fact, the moment a hostile race appears with hundreds of thousands of powerful beings, even one powerful individual won't be enough to kill all of them.

Dilan would be tired out and killed. It may not look like this right now, but I, Kathrine, Yvonne, and especially Dilan need every single one of you just as much as you need our protection. We are one group, and we will fight together!" Sven said in a euphoric voice, raising his arm in a victorious position.

He glanced over to Dilan as if he was expecting something, but Dilan could only cringe at the attempt.

'Is that really necessary?' He asked inwardly, knowing pretty well that it was actually necessary.

As such, he activated Switch before he took a deep breath.

[-Switch- has been activated. Please select how to reallocate your stats!]

[100 Health Units have been deducted. Strength increased by 100 Units!]

"Let's advance, break through, and survive until time itself ends, We are the…UNDYING!" Enhancing his voice with enough mana, Dilan roared out as if he gave a war cry. His last line almost created a shockwave that swept through the surroundings, shaking the trees, the metal fence, and all the Survivors and Ascenders around him.

"For the Undying, us, who will never succumb to our fate!" Dilan shouted out, releasing all his strength at once as he punched his fist into the air. A thunderous sound echoed through the surroundings as Dilan's punch created air pressure that flung some of the Ascenders, who was the closest to Dilan, to the ground.

Dilan had a hard time controlling his facial expressions and containing his raging emotions but everyone around him looked at Dilan with a baffled expression.

Victoria's eyes turned crimson and she licked her lip in excitement.

"As expected…he is the best!~" She mumbled before punching one of her fists in the air just like Dilan.

"For the Undying!!" Victoria shouted out while releasing all her strength at once as well.

Her presence changed to a ferocious Vampire with infinite power that shook the hearts and minds of the Ascenders around her.

Slowly but steadily, all of the survivors followed suit and punched their fists into the air as the air around them crackled with nervous excitement that swept through the entire base.

"For the Undying!!" They shouted at the top of their lungs. Everyone released the powers they usually restricted.

The Survivors were high on adrenaline that coursed through their body didn't even realize the suppression that would have otherwise overwhelmed them due to all the powers that pushed them down as they raised their fists high in the air.

In less than half a minute, everyone's fists were raised in the air as the overlapping voice of thousands of humans echoed through the entire city, chanting the warcry like a mantra.

"For the Undying!!"

Chapter 327 Hell will break loose

"You did great, Dilan! I never saw everyone so excited to fight!!" Kathrine clasped her hands together as she smiled radiantly.

She looked at Dilan in excitement and could hardly believe that he was only 21 years old. Which 21-year-old would be able to lead a group like Dilan was doing right now?

"He has a lot to learn but his actions today were pretty neat. There was a lot he could have done better but there is room for improvement in giving a motivational speech in front of others," Sven said in a simple and straightforward manner, almost dousing Kathrine's excitement like blowing on a candle flame.

She glared at him and felt like hurling her fist at him but her own sister nodded her head at Sven's comment.

"I thought Dilan couldn't speak well in front of big masses. He is not really an extrovert or good at socializing but he did pretty well….even I was excited. It was weird," Yvonne remarked when stating her opinion about the meeting with everyone that had ended just a few minutes ago.

Everyone was ready to give their best to fight against the Vampires and the other existences that would challenge and attack them in the future. Not all of them were combat-oriented Ascenders but that was not necessary, to begin with.

All Survivors could help in their own way, whether it was to collect some corpses after the battle, tend to the wounds of the injured Ascenders, provide enough potions and supply them to everyone during the battle, or do anything else as the need arose.

There were numerous ways to show their support in a war, and participating directly in the battles was only the most apparent one. One could see the contribution of the fighting Ascenders clearly but that didn't mean it was the only important task.

Everyone would play a crucial role and Dilan made this clear by stating that he wanted to fight with everyone, together in whatever way they could support him!

"My heart skipped a beat when I listened to Dilan's speech. It may have been a bit rough but I believe that everyone, who knows Dilan will feel like me!" Yvonne added, smiling lightly when she recalled that Dilan wanted to fight with everyone instead of storming into the group of Vampires all by himself.

Fighting alone had been the first plan he had proposed and it was only obvious that Yvonne and the others didn't like it.

Not only would fighting alone mean that Dilan clearly showed everyone that he didn't need them, which would demotivate his people, but it would also lead to all the Ascenders starting to believe that they didn't have it in them to become stronger which in turn would mean that Dilan would always be forced to fight alone.

The Ascenders would feel useless and they would stop working on increasing their powers instead of giving their all to become stronger.

During the last few days, all the Ascenders had worked tirelessly to become their strongest self. Dilan and the others had noticed this. If Dilan would have chosen to fight alone, despite all this, it would have dampened the spirits of the majority of group members who would have felt that their leader didn't trust them. The resultant effect would have been much worse than the worst-case scenario in the war against the Vampire families.

Even if Dilan wanted to act in a way wherein the least Survivors would be injured, or even meet their deaths, he couldn't just fight by himself all the time. This would cause more trouble and deaths in the long-term than training his people to join the fight right from the beginning would.

Dilan slowly began to understand this as well, which was also why he brought Silas and Kuhn along with himself to fight against the Blood Legion.

Dilan was slowly changing and the only thing he needed was some experience with the mindset of fellow humans, social skills, and enhancing his leadership skills. He moved in the correct direction but he would need some time to become the best version of himself.

Everyone could tell this but they also knew that Dilan was working hard to change for the best. This was not only great for the people around him but also very helpful for himself as well.

"How about we split up and distribute the tasks of the distribution of weapons and treasures, and setting up a few small traps in the next few hours? I know that we cannot make something big but with the use of the Survivors, and the Ascenders, who won't join the battle later, we should be able to create a few deadly traps, right?" Dilan understood that his friends meant the best when they talked about how he had changed but it felt a bit weird.

He was trying to change but it didn't feel like he had actually changed, not for the better, at least. It was a fact that he was not a born leader and his only advantage was that he was quite imposing, respected by the others for executing his rules and that he was powerful enough to overwhelm everyone.

Instead of an ordinary King, who sat on his throne, and ruled everyone with an iron fist, he felt more like a Warlock, who fought at the front of the army, and led them while facing the deadliest and strongest opponents fearlessly.

Of course, Dilan had not forgotten what fear felt like, but his fears were certainly not a few monsters, or Vampires, even less if one of those Vampires acted like a needy cat that demanded belly rubs.

Ever since the day he and Victoria had spent some alone time, Victoria had become even clingier than before. Everyone noticed this but they didn't really think much about it. Only the women in the Undying Group realized that something must have happened.

Kathrine and Yvonne were the most affected by this realization but they quickly got back to their senses when they realized that Dilan continued to treat everyone equally. It was only Victoria, who had changed, and not like Dilan had fallen head over heels for her.

This was a good sign but also somewhat worrisome because the minds of the women began to imagine the worst.

'Is he a casanova, who will take everyone he likes?'

'So pouncing at him will result in spending a beautiful night with him? Maybe I shall test it out!'

'As long as someone is otherworldly beautiful they won't have any problems getting close and intimate to Dilan…I see…'

Dilan and the others had heard all kinds of rumors but none of the men paid much attention to it.

Some were jealous of Dilan because he was the center of the women's attention, however, they also understood that Dilan was not someone who would pounce at any girl who threw herself at him.

In fact, they sometimes wondered if Dilan was even interested in women, especially because Victoria was almost sitting on him, and batting her eyelashes at him with desire every now and then. She would take Dilan right in front of everyone if he would allow her, that was even something Kathrine and Yvonne understood.

'This bitch!' Katrine cursed inwardly the more she looked at Victoria. Victoria was a likable person but only when she was not with Dilan. Otherwise, she was a real bitch, who would do everything possible to get close to the person she liked.

"Yeah, let's split up. Everyone with suitable abilities should come with us as well. We will dig a huge pit and lay out spikes on the ground. This won't kill them but some Vampires will certainly fall into the pit and sustain injuries, slowing them down.

Remember, the traps we can build won't kill the Vampires because of their superior healing ability but we can slow them down as much as possible!" Sven tried to ignore the happenings around Dilan as he shared his plans but that was hardly possible.

He secretly praised the young man for being able to stay serious despite the fact that one woman clung onto him like a needy girl, while another one was glaring at her to death.

"Let's do that then. I finished picking my equipment earlier, so you guys can leave to pick your stuff while I will help with the traps," Dilan stood up from the chair, indirectly pulling Victoria with him.

"You will go with Kathrine and Yvonne," Dilan turned his head to Victoria, who looked at him with puppy eyes but he ignored that.

Victoria pouted, trying to make Dilan change his opinion but that was hardly possible. At the end, she sighed before nodding her head.

"Alright, Darling…" Victoria mumbled before she smiled schemingly as she bent forward, planting a kiss on his lips before she rushed outside the office, where all of them had been seated.

Dilan could only shake his head before he turned to Sven as if nothing had happened.

"Where will we start?" He asked, only to notice that Kathrine and Yvonne's face had turned red, and that everyone looked at the two women, wondering what they would do next.

Nobody could tell whether their faces were red in embarrassment or anger, but it looked like hell would break loose the moment they uttered a word.

"Dilan…."

"VICTORIA!!!!"

Chapter 328 Arrival

"Is that deep enough?" Dilan asked as he looked up to Sven, who observed the huge pit with a complex expression.

"It will be fine. We need more traps than one. Let's not waste too much time digging the pits," Sven answered after a few seconds. He motioned his hand and Dilan jumped out of the twenty-meter-deep hole with ease.

He cleaned his blue-scaled gloves while ensuring that none of his new pieces of equipment made the wearer uncomfortable. It would be annoying if they would feel uncomfortable when battling. Dilan wanted to avoid the distraction if possible.

"Let's move on, we don't have much time," Pierre suddenly appeared near them, wearing several new pieces of equipment, while he was holding several crimson-colored pipes with a pointy end.

Old Jeff walked next to Pierre, surveying him and the equipment with squinted eyes. He held his hands behind his back, which made it seem like he was an old lord, who was observing the work of his subjects.

It was an interesting sight but Dilan's feeling about Old Jeff's presence quickly disappeared as the old man jumped down the pit, where he would install the [Burning Touch Spikes]. As the name suggested, they would be ignited the moment someone touched them after they've been installed.

The Burning Touch Spikes were not high-grade forged goods but they would certainly be able to hold back the Vampires, who fell into them…for a short time, at the very least.

Dilan meanwhile walked off after seeing Old Jeff, who had emerged from his enlightenment room not too long ago.

"By the way, are you sure that you picked enough treasures? If I'm not wrong, you exchanged your gloves, put on a necklace, and a new ring as well. Oh, and your boots seem to have been replaced as well," Oliver observed and noticed the changes as he looked at Dilan.

Oliver didn't need many new pieces of equipment. Thus, he ended up with Dilan the moment he exchanged some of his unused stuff with the Thunderbolt Dagger that Dilan had sold at the trading hub.

"That's more than enough. I mean, everyone can pick up as many pieces of equipment as they want but if they chose too many, either their body won't be able to keep up with the high increase of stats, or they won't even be able to use all your equipment because your mana control is too bad," Dilan stated as he looked at his new equipment.

[Boots of Yamil] <Gold Tier-1> treasure

[+20 Agility]

These boots once belonged to the Scout-Unit that was extremely loyal to the Yamil Kingdom and would even sacrifice their lives while serving them. They're comfortable, easy to wear, and adjust to the foot size of the wearer. Wearing them will make you feel light like a feather!

[Aquatic Gloves of Heretia] <Silver Tier-1> treasure

[+5 Health], [+5 Stamina]

[Minor Water Control] – The wearer can control the surrounding water for 10 Seconds. Mana will be drained according to the amount of water the wearer desires to control! –

The gloves have been manufactured from the hide of an Elite Lamia and a Wytera Starfish's scales. On the outside, they are hard as stone but on the inside, the gloves are warm and cozy. You will never want to let them go after wearing them once!

[Necklace of Replication] <Silver Tier-1> treasure

[+8 Mana]

Special trait – Can store/replicate one ability per day. Any replicated ability can be used a total of five times! –

Special necklace that once belonged to the Doppelganger race.

[Ring of Ice] <Bronze Tier-1> treasure

[+3 Mana]

[Icicle] – The wearer can use between 1 and 5 Units of Mana to manifest and control an Icicle!

Dilan chose most treasures because of their special abilities and traits. The additional status points might be quite helpful but they were only an additional benefit. In order to protect himself in the best possible ways, Dilan wanted to have all the treasures' abilities. Whether he would have to use them later or not was actually not important.

He already felt that he had picked up a lot of treasures. All of them had to be empowered by a tiny bit of highly potent mana. Only someone at Tier-1 would be able to possess such potent mana, which was also why most Tier-1 treasures could only be wielded by Tier-1 Ascenders.

Of course, there were exceptions, but these Ascenders were special.

"We don't have much time left. Let's focus," Dilan said when he finished looking through his new equipment once again.

He looked at the others, who were a bit tense, especially Sven as he wanted everyone to be fully prepared for the battle that lay ahead of them. Dilan thought that it was impossible to be perfectly prepared for anything but it was obvious that preparations were important, even if it was just to stay mentally calm. Sitting idle in the face of impending danger was hardly a smart choice.

Hours passed and everyone was a bit exhausted when they finished setting up their traps. Everyone, who would join the fight, had put on some new pieces of equipment. They were ready to fight with all their might and the new equipment would definitely be helpful.

More than 1300 Ascenders were ready to fight, which was much more than Dilan would have expected. In the end, the 1000 Ascenders were put in groups of five. This set-up was basically the best because it was preferable to have a designated team for a specific function namely healing others, supporting them using stat-amplifying abilities, fighting long-range, a meatshield that would block all advances, and a close-combat fighter group, who would deal the most damage.

This set-up was quite simple but it allowed the small group to fight a wide variety of opponents. As long as the healing and supporting Ascenders were protected and nobody overestimated their own prowess, nothing would go wrong with that plan.

That was what many thought and they followed the common group set-up they had been introduced to.

However, Sven also created various special groups, where everyone was focused on long-range attacks, assassination, and protection or the use of elemental attacks.

There were numerous Ascenders with unique Occupations and abilities in their group. Creating a perfect group might be possible with them but this would take up too much time to test out the teamwork of various Ascenders, and gauge if they were even able to perform what Dilan and the others presumed them to be able to work out together.

Today was not the time to fool around, which was what everyone understood clearly.

A single mistake could lead to the death of an entire group and that was not something anyone wanted to happen.

Safety was much more important than an overwhelming win, which was also why Dilan wanted to make sure that all-powerful opponents would be taken care of by him and the other powerful Ascenders.

"Nobody was able to reach the requirements to advance to Tier-2 yet, right?" He asked just to ensure himself while looking over to Yvonne and Kathrine, who were still bickering with Victoria. The beautiful Vampire stood in between the sisters, smiling lightly as she acted as if she couldn't understand why they were angry with her.

"Huh? What?" Kathrine asked when she realized that someone called out her name. Yvonne had understood Dilan's question, which was why she took away her sister's opportunity to earn brownie points.

"A bunch of Ascenders, including Kathrine, have reached Level 25. Just like you thought it is the highest level one can reach Tier-1. The advancement requirements are different from before and we need to complete 'missions' according to the path we want our occupation to advance.

These missions are quite difficult, which is why nobody has been able to complete their advancement until now!" Yvonne explained in a simple manner and she looked at Dilan as if she was expecting something.

"But that doesn't mean the Vampires were not able to advance to Tier-2. I guess, we have to be prepared for everything…" Dilan just mumbled, ignoring Yvonne's gaze as he heard something from his right.

A car horn honked loudly and its sound echoed through the entire base before a simple yet impactful comment reached them.

"They're coming!"