SLASH!
With one swing of my solid-blood axe, I split a boulder in two as easily as if I’d just cut through butter.
Wow... until just a month ago, I would’ve never believed I could do sothing like this. And now, thanks to John Hardley’s teachings, not only can I do it, but it’s actually beco ridiculously easy.
My hands, clenched around the axe, tremble with excitent.
Now that lania has beco my constant source of nourishnt, I’d planned to cut ties with John for good tonight — but seeing what I’ve beco capable of thanks to him... well, I’m not so sure anymore.
I’m certain I could split materials far tougher than this, but that rock is the best the Hudson Highlands can offer tonight.
It’s the first ti I’ve ever set foot outside the outskirts of New York with John.
He told my progress has reached a point where training in his private park is no longer sufficient, and that it’s ti to move to a more isolated place — a place where I could unleash all my strength without risking unwanted attention or destroying his villa.
Up to now, I’ve limited myself to using Sanguis energy to shape solid-blood weapons or fire sharpened projectiles — I can now master Spike Bullet perfectly. But those applications are only a tiny fraction of what a vampire can do.
To destroy that massive boulder, I had to resort to a technique I’ve only just begun to experint with — Blood Rage.
Long story short, it consists of deliberately increasing the speed at which blood flows through my body, massively boosting my physical strength and speed.
But putting that kind of strain on my blood vessels is anything but healthy, so in my current state, keeping it active for more than a few seconds could lead to a collapse of my circulatory system.
It sounds incredibly complex, but it’s harder to explain than to do.
John had given a week to split that rock, and instead I managed it in less than three hours — I won’t deny I’m pretty pumped and proud of myself.
The smartest move would’ve been to pretend I was struggling, then co back here on my own and train in secret. Instead, I made the mistake of confirming John’s sixth sense about my talent.
Keeping him at arm’s length was hard enough before, but now that he’s seen what I can do... shit, I think I really screwed up.
But tonight we’re not alone.
With us is also John’s loyal henchman, Hank Dalloran — the brainless mountain of muscle.
I hadn’t seen him in a while, and I definitely didn’t miss him.
And yet, according to John, his imnse stupidity is balanced by unmatched brute strength — purely in terms of physical power, he’s even superior to Alex and John themselves.
Shit, I really hope that’s just an exaggeration ant to scare , because...
«You’re improving day by day, visibly so, Jace Lance. I didn’t tell you earlier so as not to discourage you, but you should know that Blood Rage is a very sophisticated technique taught to the elite warriors of Mildelar — the vampire kingdom on Elyndra. Normally, an average vampire takes two or three days to begin mastering it at a basic level like yours, while I’ve seen young talents perfect it in a single hour. Let’s say you fall sowhere in between, leaning toward prodigy — and that’s precisely why it’s ti to put you to a real test,» John says with evident satisfaction.
He pauses briefly to take a puff of his cigar, then turns his gaze to his lackey.
«Hank Dalloran — he’ll be your opponent. Definitely a tougher challenge than splitting a rock in half — probably too tough for soone at your level — but I want to see just how far you can push yourself.»
That troglodyte Hank doesn’t need to be told twice and imdiately positions himself in front of , about ten ters away, staring at with an impatient grin.
Look at that idiot — he’s trembling with excitent like I’ve never seen anyone do before. Hell, he looks like when I’m about to fuck a new MILF I’ve just picked up in so lounge bar.
It’s obvious that brute can’t wait to get physical, but I’ll wipe that psycho grin off his face soon enough.
He may be physically unbeatable, but strength alone ans nothing without technique. Being muscular without knowing how to strike is like handing a gun to a child.
That said, I’d be lying if I claid I wasn’t even a little nervous. I an, that walking mountain of muscle is John Hardley’s right-hand man — he has to be capable of sothing.
«Hank, keep it in that empty head of yours that this is just a test to see how much our dear Jace has improved. So don’t kill him,» John warns.
«I’ll do my best, boss,» Hank grunts with his usual caveman mug.
Oh yeah, fantastic. The fact that John had to tell Hank not to kill — and not the other way around — is already sothing I should be worried about.
It’s clear he considers far weaker than his goon, but I’ll do everything I can to make him eat those words — my pride is on the line.
Finally, John gives the signal to start the fight.
Instinctively, I leap backward imdiately in a series of quick bursts, the blood axe already clenched in my fist.
If there’s one thing I learned from the beatings Kimberly gave , it’s that when you’re facing soone whose strength is unknown, the safest move is to keep your distance.
I have no need to engage him in close combat right now — thanks to my perfect mastery of Spike Bullet, I now have long-range attacks in my arsenal, so there’s no point in taking unnecessary risks by getting too close.
I barely have ti to widen the gap between us when, right before my eyes, a truly terrifying sight manifests itself.
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