Born in Blood



The meeting had been adjourned.

All the Elders had left, except Liam and Usan who remained behind.

Until the two week period, there was nothing for Liam to do.

And with one arm, things were… difficult.

He couldn't fight, train too hard or forge intricate things without both his hands.

So…

Liam would take this time to work on the Triumvirate Body.

But for that, he needed test subjects.

2 weeks was not enough time to make a specialized technique like that.

But at least he could begin with the basics.

By now, Elder Jax had already finished setting up the Ravenous Leash chains.

They could now work for humans.

Over all, that was the gist of what Liam told Usan.

Usan slightly furrowed his brows when he heard Liam's plan.

But Liam reassured him that he was only using 'criminals' as his test subjects.

Only then did Usan agree.

…As if all of them weren't criminals.

Nevertheless.

Liam commanded Jargon to capture several groups of bandits and bring them back to him. Alive. 

Enthusiastically, the man agreed and ventured out with several Shadows and Acolytes.

Until they came back, Liam spent his time practicing with his Transfiguration.

Expel was one branch of Transfiguration.

If Liam could Expel something from his body, surely he could Admit something?

Maybe add another arm to his body?

It just so happened that Usan's arm was given back to him by Myriad Brush as a 'gift'.

And Usan hadn't patched it on his body yet.

So, Liam simply asked Usan for his arm.

It was evident from his face that Usan felt unnerved by the request.

But he complied anyway, on the condition that Liam gives him back the arm.

Liam agreed and took the arm.

In his quarters alone, Liam picked up Usan's arm and placed it on his shoulder.

Then, he tried to connect the limb to his shoulder using tendrils of flesh.

On his command, the arm slowly fitted into place.

Liam's eyes widened as he slowly felt the nerves of his body and Usan's arm connect!

He had gained feeling in that arm!

But it was extremely faint and numb.

And as Liam continued practicing with it, he quickly realized that it wasn't getting any better.

It was too faint and distant, and no matter how deeper his tendrils of flesh interweaved with the arm, it didn't change.

Maybe it was because of the difference between the two Ranks?

Usan's arm was Rank 5, after all.

But after finding a spare Rank 2 arm (somehow laying in the storage room), Liam connected it with his body.

It was the same.

This meant that Liam's Transfiguration was not yet strong enough to add parts to his body.

But it did confirm the ability.

Admit did exist!

In several ways, this was perfect.

Once Admit was usable, Liam could simply add it to his body, then Expel it without losing any important body-part!

At the same time, Liam could just add small pieces of flesh into his body to increase his muscle mass.

That way, he could churn out more strength into his attacks and defenses.

Not only that, but this solved something else.

The Shifter could change its bodily structure and even imitate abilities of other creatures.

…Could Admit do something similar?

Liam was getting excited just thinking about it.

It simply filled in too many blanks as an ability.

…But it was locked.

'Maybe once I get into the upper-tier of Rank 3 Blood, the connection will get better.'

Finally, Jargon brought back more than 75 cultivators after a week and a half.

There was more, but he'd already killed off those that weren't of the same cultivation level as Liam was.

53 cultivators.

53 test subjects.

A special underground basement was set up for these specific experiments.

If anyone saw the inside, they'd be amazed to see how clean and tidy the place was.

In fact, it was very similar to the high-class hospitals back on Earth.

However, there were strange containers filled with viscous liquids and cylinders here and there.

But there was something eerie about the place too.

Mainly, the black chains that were lodged into the ground besides the patient's chair.

Why would a patient need to have their neck, arms and legs chained?

***

Liam inspected the state of the 53 cultivators that Jargon brought up.

They were a bit beaten and bruised, but they were in one piece.

Most of all, they were pissed and vigilant.

But they couldn't do anything.

A few Elders gave them stern gazes, which instantly melted away their hostility.

But some were actually excited.

After all, the Temple just won a massive tournament.

Maybe in exchange for working with them for a day or two, they could receive something back?

'Hopefully the chains work as intended,' Liam thought.

One couldn't have his victim running away, could he?

Liam entered the room the bandits were being held in.

With a nonchalant look, he gestured for a random bandit to follow him into the basement.

The man looked on edge, his breathing erratic with sweat dripping on his face.

"Don't worry. I'm just doing a few light tests," Liam reassured. Then, he took out 3 giant 'Ora' Stones and threw them to the man. 

"You can have another three by the end of the procedure."

The man's attitude instantly changed, along with everyone in that room.

With a wide smile, the man entered the basement.

When he saw the chains, he felt a bit scared.

But he agreed and strapped himself in nonetheless.

As soon as Liam put the inscribed chains on him, the man's eyes faded out of focus, and he slowly lowered his head.

As though he had powered down.

Liam smiled.

Then, he started cutting into the man's head with some sharp tools.

The man didn't react at all, his head still down.

At the same time, Liam applied his mental waves.

Liam was attempting to 'extract' the mental sphere from the mind. 

Suddenly, the man's mental sphere cracked and shattered!

The man slumped over, dead.

'Damn it. Too much force.'

Liam took out a pen and paper and started to write on an inscribed notebook:

'Subject No. 1 has failed. Excessive force must be lowered when dealing with the mental sphere extraction.'

Using his dark flames, Liam cleansed the entire place of the cultivator's presence, before writing on his notebook again.

'Beginning with Subject No. 2.'