My health recovery is incredibly fast.

What kind of person would need the power of Kallers' bloodline?

A thought popped into Xia Zuo's mind: "Could it be the work of the Bloodline Research Group that studies artificial bloodline power?"

"What you can think of, the Holy Mark Department and I can think of too."

Rexol held up two fingers and said:

"I just made a guess that the clues in the skull inscription will point to a scapegoat."

"Now, I have a second guess. The Holy Emblem Department has already arranged for the Tribunal to investigate everyone in the Bloodline Research Group, but in the end, they will find nothing. This group may have hidden the problem very well, or it may just be another scapegoat."

"Let me ask you another question," the bald man asked, "Why was it specifically Karles whose bloodline power was drained?"

Xia Zuo glanced at the bio-alchemy room. "Because he's the only one who'll be frequently unconscious these past few days, creating opportunities for others to extract bloodline power. The other pure-blood mages and I have remained conscious, leaving no chance for others. Most importantly, none of us will allow anyone to take our bloodline power."

“Hmm, that’s true, but…” Rexor lowered his voice, “but, Shazo, do you think all pureblood mages can be as resolute as you?”

Xia Zuo frowned and fell into deep thought.

Rexor shrugged. "You've interacted a lot with Letunia, Sinfia, and Krestor, but you don't know much about their descendants. The cloaked figures we're tracking won't ask you or Letunia if you're willing to trade your bloodline power. As for whether the cloaked figures will contact Letunia's descendants, that's uncertain."

“Oh, I understand.” Xia Zuo nodded. “You want me to investigate the pure-blood mage faction. The cloaked man may have contacted some of the pure-blood mage descendants, but was rejected by them. That’s why he took the risk of extracting Karles’ bloodline power, even if it would expose some secrets and attract the attention of the Holy Mark Department and the Inquisition.”

"Yes, that's what I wanted to say."

Rexol put the five image gems into his pocket.

“Let’s go out. Let’s split up. You go find Letunia and the others and get some answers. I’ll go to the Ancient Sea Fortress and summon some Demon Hunters to help with the investigation.”

The two left the bio-alchemy room.

Rexor used illusion magic to copy the images from the six image orbs, gave them to the Inquisition guards who came to investigate, and then left with Shazo.

Chapter 3 Elements

Just as Shazo and Rexor went their separate ways, something was happening somewhere on this continent.

...

The underground caves of the Wild Hammer Kingdom are numerous, complex, and diverse.

Over thousands of years, changes in river channels have given rise to a vibrant network of underground rivers. Countless underground rivers spread out like a spider web in places unseen by people, creating numerous caves caused by water erosion and tectonic movements.

Somewhere underground in the Wild Hammer Kingdom, several large underground caverns, which had been excavated, expanded, and reinforced by human hands, were bustling with activity and people.

A figure in a white cloak moved through the hurried crowd of alchemists, passing unimpeded through pneumatic gates.

His white figure was reflected on the white tiles of the corridor wall, the two blending into one, like a white shadow floating in the air. In just over ten seconds, he went from the entrance of the cave to the depths of the cave.

The person in the white cloak walked through a heavy metal door.

This room appears to be a multi-purpose alchemy room, with a typical high-end alchemy table, desk and chair, shelves, and a lush potted plant in the corner.

A crew-cut man in a short robe was fiddling with glass bottles on the alchemy table, oblivious to the white-cloaked figure behind him.

The man in the white cloak stood silently in the doorway. After the metal door closed, he opened his arms as if to embrace.

Two silver sand hands appeared beside the cloaked man. One hand unbuttoned and unzipped the cloak, while the other pulled on the hood, tearing the cloak off and throwing it into the furnace of the alchemy table.

A faceless human with white skin appeared before them.

Next, the two silver sand hands picked up scissors and a scalpel respectively, cut open the faceless human's face, cut his skin, and peeled off his skin.

This skin is not human skin.

Its exterior has artificial skin, while the inside is a thin enchanted metal film.

Silver Sands sliced ​​the skin in two with his palm and tossed the artificial skin into the furnace. The enchanted metal film was rolled up and placed on a shelf.

The faceless human, stripped of its artificial skin, did not expose its internal organs; instead, it appeared as a humanoid creature composed of high-ranking elemental servants.

Its head, arms, abdomen, and legs are each controlled by a high-ranking elemental servant. Its heart and lungs are enclosed in an airtight metal box, protected by a magical shield conjured by the high-ranking elemental servants.

Silver Sand Hand removed the metal box and placed it on the alchemy table, then vanished. At the same time, the high-ranking elemental servants who made up the humanoid creatures also disappeared.

The crew-cut man, wearing gloves, opened the metal box, took out the cap tube, and poured the scarlet liquid from the tube into a glass container.

The emptied scalp tube and metal box were thrown into the furnace by the crew-cut man.

"Boom." The crew-cut man pulled the rope ring, intensifying the fire, and watched expressionlessly as the hood tube and metal box melted and disappeared in the flames.

The potted plant in the corner of the alchemy room swayed slightly, its upright branches rustling against the wall as the leaves and twigs brushed against it.

The man with the crew cut looked over when he heard the sound.

The plant in the pot shook and stood up, pulling its roots, thighs and feet out of the soil, and the branches on the trunk spread out like human arms, looking as if it had stretched out its waist.

The potted plant, having left its pot, walked lightly toward the crew-cut man.

A woman's voice rang out in the alchemy room.

“Rexol has intervened, and the Holy Mark Department and the Inquisition are also investigating this matter. You shouldn’t have acted so impulsively.”

“You should know very well that we are only lacking the bloodline power of a pure-blooded mage.” The flat-headed man’s voice was completely flat, sounding as if it had been synthesized using an alchemical device.

The female voice continued, "You've succeeded now. Don't test the Demon Hunter School's limits any further."

"No," the crew-cut man said coldly, "not enough."

He picked up the glass container and gently swirled the crimson liquid inside. "This amount is only enough for me to test whether Callus's bloodline power meets the requirements; it's far from the minimum amount needed to actually execute the plan."

"Sigh..." The woman sighed, and the potted plant swayed slightly, turning to walk back to the flowerpot. Dozens of slender roots extended from her planters, gathering up the soil along the way and following her steps back into the flowerpot.

The crew-cut man turned his gaze away from the potted plant and released his silver sand palm to help him control the alchemy equipment.

He poured the scarlet liquid into the slender test tube.

After a series of alchemical processes, many tiny blood-red crystals appeared in the crimson liquid.

The crew-cut man put on magnifying glasses and carefully counted the number of blood-red crystals.

He nodded in satisfaction, sealed the test tube, and placed it in the freezer next to the wall for storage.

Then he returned to the alchemy table and pulled the rope again, igniting the flames in the furnace.

“Kales’ bloodline power is up to standard,” the crew-cut man said, facing the flames.

The flames flickered a few times, coalesced into a human face, nodded to the crew-cut man, and then disappeared in the firelight.

The crew-cut man turned off the furnace, unfastened his alchemical robe, peeled off his shirt and underwear with his silver-sand hands, and then slashed his skin with a sharp razor.

This is yet another humanoid creature constructed from high-order elemental minions.

Silver Sand Palm disassembled the humanoid creature bit by bit, removing the alchemical devices from different parts and hiding them in the storage cabinet by the wall.

A moment later, the high-ranking elemental servants and the silver sand hand were disbanded and disappeared from the spot.

After the brief period of excitement, the alchemy room was empty and silent.

...

On the other side, in the teaching area of ​​the outer hall.

Shazo was sitting in Christo's office.

Two pure-blood female mages with their heads buried in their chests were sitting in the chair opposite him.

These two female pureblood mages are only about eleven or twelve years old. They are considered little girls, both among ordinary people and among pureblood mages.

"Alright, I understand your situation."

Xia Zuo rubbed his temples.

“I will discuss this with your mothers, and she will inform you of the punishment. Considering that you have not yet graduated from the academy and have not absorbed the element of light, your crimes will be reduced accordingly. However, some minor punishments are unavoidable. Now, leave here.”

The two little girls stood up, bowed to Xia Zuo, and then tiptoed out of the room.

Christo's figure appeared in a red light.

She approached Xia Zuo, glanced at the confession on the table, shook her head, and said with a slightly grave expression:

"Another scapegoat, isn't he? Just like that unfortunate guy who got dragged into this because of the Gabison special hood tube."

“Yes, Christo.” Shazo nodded, glancing at the two little girls’ testimonies.

According to them, about seven days ago, a handsome and tall man stopped them near the university and used alchemical perfume, illusion, and mental magic to bewitch them.

The man's goal was to extract information from them about the types of blood magic they possessed and the extent to which their bloodline power had awakened.

After confirming that their blood magic skills and bloodline power were rather weak, the man left.

With such clumsy methods and so many traceable clues, everyone knows this is yet another scapegoat pushed out by the mastermind. He will be treated well in court, along with the scapegoats connected to Gabison brand head caps.

"Any news from the Holy Mark Department and the Inquisition?" Shazo asked, looking up at Christo.

"Yes, there is." Christo pulled out a chair and sat down.

"Ten minutes ago, the Holy Emblem Department sent an official letter to the Standing Council of the Two Halls Conference. The gist of the letter was that they had conducted a self-examination and found that all aspects of the identity emblem were in order and that the top-secret parameters of the emblem had not been leaked. However, they could not explain why the forged identity emblem could activate the teleportation crystal."

Xia Zuo nodded. "As expected. What about the courtroom?"

"The courtroom is questioning Callus."

Christo's delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly.

"Before Karles gained membership in the Temple, only the Witcher School could deal with him."

"After he became a member of the Temple, the authority of the Inquisition was higher than that of the Demon Hunter School. You know what kind of people those are; even if there's nothing wrong, they'll still dig up some problems."

"I estimate that the court will eventually find a charge to imprison Callus for a period of time. That's not necessarily a bad thing; at least it protects him to some extent."

"Any progress with Rexor?" Krestor asked.

“He hasn’t replied to the message yet.” Xia Zuo shook his head.

"Click, click..."

"Click, click..."

The two men's secret communication rings rang simultaneously.

"What a coincidence, could it be a message from Rexor?" Xia Zuo took out his communication ring, glanced at the message on it, and his expression froze.

Christo had the same expression, a mixture of disbelief and barely concealed anger.