Abyssal Blood-Leech?
Kaelen felt a massive surge of confusion as he read the System prompt. How could it be a Sanguine Fiend one moment and a leech the next? Was this Fiend a person or a bug?
Just then, a sleek blue holographic screen materialized in his mind.
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RACE: Abyssal Blood-Leech (Harbors the dormant bloodline of an Ancient Void Parasite)
THREAT LEVEL: Emperor-Tier
TALENT: Blood Siphoning, Neural Parasitism, Undying Avatar
TRAIT: Highly sentient. Deeply addicted to human Aetheric blood.
Wait a minute... Neural Parasitism?
Kaelen's brow furrowed. Suddenly, he recalled the biological characteristics of earthly leeches. They were soft, boneless, and latched onto hosts to feed on their blood.
Could it be that the 'Abyssal Blood-Leech' the System is screaming about... is currently a parasite living inside a human host?!
As the horrifying thought struck him, a chill shot down Kaelen's spine. His sense of impending crisis exploded.
Don't tell me that Sanguine Fiend isn't actually a human Cultivator, but a meat-puppet being driven by a bug?!
With this terrifying realization, Kaelen turned his attention back to the leaked video on his datapad, focusing intensely on its contents.
The video's progress bar crept forward slowly.
In the video, heavily armored Enforcers were stationed around a stark, concrete execution ground. The Sanguine Fiend, a sack over his head, knelt on the ground.
An executioner in a high-tech exosuit drew a massive, humming plasma saber. Gathering his Aether, he viciously swung it at the Fiend's neck.
SQUELCH! THUD!
The blade rose and fell in a single, brutal motion. As the severed head hit the concrete and rolled away, it signaled the end of the Sanguine Fiend's life.
At that moment, Xander, stuffing his face with synth-pork, pointed at the headless corpse in the video and mumbled, "That psycho is finally dead. Good riddance! This really whets the appetite!"
However, Kaelen didn't respond. His brow furrowed deeply.
If it was just as he had theorized... that an Abyssal Blood-Leech was the one pulling the strings... then wouldn't the Enforcer Bureau's highly publicized execution have been completely, utterly pointless?
After all, a human possessed by a parasitic leech was nothing more than a disposable puppet. For an Emperor-Tier leech, discarding a broken toy was no problem at all. After losing its physical body, it would just need to spend a little effort to find a new one.
In other words, the Enforcer Bureau had achieved absolutely nothing but giving the real monster a haircut!
Possessing another body... how is that any different from an Undying Body?!
Kaelen grew incredibly worried. A resilient life form that couldn't be killed, combined with the technique of using human puppets as stand-ins, was cataclysmically dangerous.
So... this is the true terror of an Emperor-Tier Rift Beast.
Kaelen mentally assessed the power scaling. Without a doubt, a Rift Beast of the Emperor-Tier had long since surpassed the Awakened Grandmaster realm. Perhaps even Ascendant-Tier experts were nothing but juice boxes to them!
Terrifying. This is way too horrifying.
Kaelen shook his head, his heart pounding. This world really is too dangerous.
Although the System's threat assessments were always wildly broken, he absolutely couldn't let his guard down. If a city-destroying Star Beast actually showed up and he faced it with the same casual attitude he used to step on a cockroach... he would be doomed.
At this thought, Kaelen secretly reaffirmed his ultimate resolution.
Lay low. Build up stats. Stay steady. Don't try to be a hero.
As for actively seeking out the Abyssal Blood-Leech? Absolutely out of the question. If the sky falls, the tall guys at the Enforcer Bureau will hold it up.
"Hic! Old Kaelen, you free after work tonight?" Xander let out a satisfied belch, rubbing his stomach. "To celebrate the death of the Sanguine Fiend today, your bro is gonna take you to The Platinum Mirage to live a little!"
Upon hearing this, the corner of Kaelen's mouth twitched.
Here we go again... Always The Platinum Mirage.
The situation in the city is still highly volatile. A shape-shifting parasite is on the loose. I need to be extra careful.
Kaelen decisively raised a hand and politely declined. "I have plans tonight. Maybe next time."
"Next time again? What the hell is with you, man?" Xander's brow furrowed. "I'm treating you to pay you back for bailing me out... you're turning down a free VIP ticket?"
"I just have a feeling Neo-Veridia isn't safe these days," Kaelen said in a low voice. "You should be careful when you're out and about, too."
"Be careful? Ai, Old Kaelen, I really don't get what you're so paranoid about. The Fiend is dead now, what's there to be scared of?" Xander rolled his eyes, his voice dripping with disdain.
Kaelen fell silent. He didn't continue the conversation.
A strange premonition lingered in his heart. Before long, that Sanguine Fiend would reappear in the city. But words were wind, and he had no proof. In their eyes, he was just a low-talent librarian. Who would believe him?
...
[Late at night.]
Aether Enforcer Bureau, Incineration Room.
The massive industrial incinerator roared, a wave of searing heat sweeping through the sterile, metal-clad room. The decapitated corpse of the Sanguine Fiend lay on a cold slab.
SQUELCH.
With the sickening, unnatural sound of flesh splitting open...
A massive, dark-red leech, thick as a man's arm, violently burst out of the corpse's severed chest cavity, falling to the floor with a wet SPLAT.
Just then, the heavy doors hissed open. A morgue worker walked in, holding his datapad to his ear.
"Hey, honey. The signal's bad in this morgue. I have to work overtime tonight; the higher-ups assigned an urgent cremation task. I'll head back as soon as I'm done..."
He tilted his head, pressing the datapad to his shoulder, and pulled on a pair of thermal gloves.
However, before he could finish his sentence...
The Abyssal Blood-Leech on the floor coiled its body like a spring and shot upward with blinding speed, latching directly onto the back of the man's neck!
In an instant, the man froze completely rigid!
A moment later, a bizarre, sickly scarlet light flashed in the depths of his eyes.