Don't worry, old friend. If what you say is true, I believe you won't mind. I'm just taking some necessary precautions. After all, you are Li Kang, a man who can even deceive the devil. I have to be on guard. I think you'll understand. If it were you, you'd do the same." Kaecilius said expressionlessly.
"Yes, I'd be even more ruthless," Li Kang thought helplessly.
"These are the Inquisitor's Shackles, specifically used to seal a sorcerer's magic. They were used by the medieval Inquisition to try sorcerers. I can't believe you still have a pair. For these shackles to work, someone must be willing to link themselves to them at the cost of their life. Only religious fanatics would use such a thing. You don't have to treat me like this," Li Kang said with a forced smile.
"Don't they all say I'm a fanatic of Dormammu? A madman who believes in Dormammu using an artifact created by madmen who believe in God—isn't that quite fitting?" Kaecilius even had the presence of mind to crack a joke.
The people around them chuckled, clearly enjoying Li Kang's misfortune.
"So, I wonder who would be willing to link themselves to these shackles? It's said that everyone who has ever linked themselves to these cursed shackles has met a terrible end. These shackles are cursed, damn it, with more than one curse. I wonder which brave friend is willing to bear this burden?" Li Kang held up the Inquisitor's Shackles and shook them in the air.
None of the apprentices stepped forward, because what Li Kang said was true. The Inquisitor's Shackles were stained with the blood of sorcerers, and sorcerers were famously fond of cursing their enemies before they died. There were at least a dozen curses on these shackles; anyone willing to link themselves to such a thing would have to be out of their mind.
"I am willing to bear this burden! I implore you to entrust this burden to me, Master!" Jill said, holding Sasha's body, looking at Kaecilius with determination.
Kaecilius looked at Jill sternly, "I sincerely regret your loss, but I will not give you a chance to harm Li Kang. I warn you, if you intend to kill Li Kang for revenge, you will face my endless wrath, understand?"
Jill's pupils constricted. She knelt on the ground and said firmly, "I understand! But I still insist on accepting this task."
Only then did Kaecilius show a slight smile. He grabbed Jill's shoulder and lifted her forcefully. Jill's body remained kneeling, but her soul was already in mid-air. Kaecilius quickly made complex gestures, and a magic circle appeared in the air, fixing Jill's soul within it. Suddenly, a thick red light emerged from the shackles, linking to Jill's soul.
Kaecilius then placed Jill's soul back into her body. He pretended to support Jill, but whispered in her ear, "This viper, Li Kang, is useful to us for now. I promise your revenge will come. Be careful, don't believe anything he says."
Jill slowly nodded in Kaecilius's embrace, and the two separated.
"Now, my old friend, we can depart." Kaecilius affectionately put his arm around Li Kang's shoulder.
An apprentice opened a portal nearby, and the group left Li Kang's room, reappearing outside Queens.
Li Kang pointed to an old building not far away. The sign on it read—Marshall Grand Theater.
"That's the vampires' lair," Li Kang said.
Kaecilius nodded. He took out a horn inscribed with incantations and blew it silently. Before long, several portals appeared behind him, and Dormammu's fanatics emerged, standing behind Kaecilius.
"Jill, keep an eye on him. The rest of you, follow me!" Kaecilius was a valiant warrior. He conjured a pair of mystic bladed swords and charged into the Marshall Grand Theater, leading the way.
At the entrance, a hunchbacked doorman saw Kaecilius and raised his hand to stop him, "Sir, the theater is closed now. Please come back tomorrow."
Kaecilius raised a hand, and a magical shockwave struck the doorman's chest. The doorman's chest completely caved in, and he was sent flying like a cannonball, crashing into the main door and creating a large hole.
The fanatics rushed into the theater. Two disciples used magic to create an illusory false door outside to avoid attracting unnecessary attention from passersby.
Inside the grand theater, the vampire sentries immediately detected the attack. Two sentries, armed with weapons, quickly rushed out.
One sentry leaped high, swooping down from the air, and pounced on a fanatic.
But while still in mid-air, he was bound by a dozen magical whips. Kaecilius went over and cut him in two with a single strike, slicing the vampire down the middle. Putrid black smoke hissed from the wound.
The other sentry was scared out of his wits. The attackers were clearly not ordinary people, not even hunters, but a group of well-trained sorcerers. Usually, these sorcerers operated alone, and even one was difficult to deal with. This time, good heavens, dozens of them had come. The sentry, being very quick-witted, turned and ran.
Kaecilius flicked his hand, "Nameless soul, extend your blood claw!"
A ghostly claw suddenly shot out from the wall next to the sentry, powerfully grabbing the sentry's arm.
Kaecilius held his mystic bladed swords to his ear and strode towards the sentry, like the most terrifying grim reaper from hell approaching.
Especially those emotionless, fish-like eyes. The sentry had lived for nearly a hundred years, but he had never been so terrified as he was today. He was indeed an elite who had lived for over a century, and he was ruthless enough in a life-or-death situation. He grabbed his arm, which was locked by the ghostly claw, and snapped it with a loud "CRACK!" The arm broke instantly.
The sentry let out an earth-shattering shriek and vanished down the corridor.
In a room at the end of the corridor, there were a dozen sturdy iron cages, locking up a dozen Bloodthirsty Berserkers. These Bloodthirsty Berserkers were either failed transformations or had fallen out of favor, going without fresh blood for too long. Their minds were completely consumed by sanguine fever, turning them into monsters driven by instinct.
Each Bloodthirsty Berserker possessed immense strength, agility, and regeneration. A single Bloodthirsty Berserker could easily tear a room full of vampires to shreds, but they lacked intelligence, even less than a wild beast.
If the sentry weren't a vampire, he would have fainted from the excruciating pain in his arm long ago. Even though vampires are highly resistant to pain, the sentry was still suffering greatly. He rushed through this room into the next, where several vampires who usually cared for and fed these Bloodthirsty Berserkers were dozing off.
"We're under attack! Quickly, unleash the Bloodthirsty Berserkers!" The injured sentry burst into the room, shouting.
The vampires were all startled awake. As soon as they opened their eyes, they saw Kaecilius and his group charging down the corridor, radiating killing intent. One vampire grabbed a large electrical switch and pulled it forcefully. The lights in the Marshall Grand Theater suddenly dimmed, and the cage doors of the Bloodthirsty Berserkers slowly creaked open.
The Bloodthirsty Berserkers had completely lost their human form. They no longer walked on two feet but on all fours, like beasts. Their eyes were a blood-red, and their mouths, unlike ordinary vampires with two fangs, were filled with three rows of fangs.
Their mouths were like abyssal bloodsuckers; a single bite would drain a victim's blood within ten seconds.
When Kaecilius saw these Bloodthirsty Berserkers, he frowned, "Everyone, come here and weave a magic net to kill these monsters!"
The fanatics gathered around Kaecilius. Kaecilius raised one hand, and a golden orb of light rose from it. The others also poured their magic into the orb.
The orb suddenly expanded, turning into a bright red magic net that crackled in the air.
When the Bloodthirsty Berserkers first came out, they all crowded at the door of the vampires' room. Even though they had no consciousness, they still hated the vampires who had treated them so cruelly. They frantically clawed at the door.
Unfortunately, not only the door, but the entire wall was made of twenty-centimeter-thick steel plates, and the window glass was super-reinforced glass from Stark Industries, which even rocket launchers couldn't shatter.
After trying for a long time without success, the Bloodthirsty Berserkers suddenly sniffed the air collectively. Being creatures of instinct, they smelled the fresh scent of blood in the air.
The Bloodthirsty Berserkers smelled the blood of Kaecilius and his group. They let out thirsty howls and turned to pounce towards the fanatics.
Kaecilius pushed the woven magic net forward with force. The net spun and rapidly approached. As soon as the Bloodthirsty Berserkers touched the magic net, they were instantly cut into bloody pieces. The magic net continued to rush to the opposite wall, leaving deep marks on the steel plate.
The vampires in the room stared, dumbfounded, as their Bloodthirsty Berserkers were so easily dealt with.
"You two, quickly go report to Marshall! We've been ambushed! The enemies are a group of sorcerers, and they are unstoppable!" The sentry shook two stunned vampires awake and sent them back to warn Marshall.
Kaecilius and the others stepped over the piles of corpses. The Bloodthirsty Berserkers' remains gave off a foul stench, like bodies that had been rotting for days.
Li Kang pinched his nose and came to Kaecilius's side. He shouted at the vampires in the room.
"You dark parasites! Tremble before the divine envoy of the Spreader, Dormammu, the God-King! Go proclaim this message to your false king! The invincible Dark Lord is coming! The entire world will tremble beneath our feet! You bastards of dark magic and disease, if you kneel before the divine envoy now, you might still get a quick death!
Otherwise, on the day Dormammu, the God-King, descends, blood will rain from the sky, up to your knees! Plague, death, war, and famine will run rampant in this world! Tremble, you insects! Your world is about to face its end! You will tremble, twist, and cry as you meet your demise! For the ruler of the Dark Dimension! The conqueror of all realms! The breaker of worlds! Dormammu, the Spreader, the God-King, has come!!!"
The vampires were all so terrified by Li Kang's speech that they couldn't speak for a long time.
Li Kang's passionate speech also moved the fanatics, who whispered among themselves.
"So he's on our side, that's great."
"Li Kang is a loyal follower of Dormammu, otherwise, how could his emotions be so sincere?"
"I think so too. After hearing him, I feel my blood boiling. How passionate he sounds about Dormammu, the God-King, descending!"
"It turns out he has always admired Dormammu so much in his heart. It seems I was overthinking it." Even Kaecilius was moved.