Chapter 1868: 1056: Beneath the Dark Hall_2

Chapter 1868: Chapter 1056: Beneath the Dark Hall_2

“So that’s how it is, I didn’t expect it to be such a grand undertaking.”

Upon hearing this, Leo Ray nodded thoughtfully.

It seems that what Jasper Richardson referred to as a failed barrier is precisely the “Blood Feast Barrier” mentioned by the Scarlet Queen, which is the key to sustaining the lives of “members of the Blood Clan.”

It must be said, it is remarkably similar to a transmission network.

“To be honest, Your Royal Highness Prince Holy Lion, this plan had already begun secretly during the reign of the previous Human Royal Family of the Ironhand Archipelago, and it was their long-cherished wish.”

The Scarlet Queen concealed nothing from Leo Ray and continued, “After all, the Ironhand Archipelago suffered heavy losses in the previous wars with the Grimm Kingdom, even the royal family members perished one after another, eventually leading to the line’s extinction, not to mention the ordinary citizens.”

“And as long as one is converted into a ‘member of the Blood Clan’ through the ‘Blood Feast Ritual,’ not only will their lifespan be greatly extended, but their own strength will also be greatly enhanced, which will significantly enhance the overall strength of the Ironhand Archipelago.”

“More importantly, this is much more suitable than simply expanding the population.”

“After all, although the land of the Ironhand Archipelago is relatively fertile, due to being frequently blockaded by the coasts by the Grimm Kingdom and the Pars Empire, it is still difficult to maintain self-sufficiency in times of disaster.”

“And having a well-trained army costs much less than supporting a large ordinary force, be it from the perspectives of equipment, food, or other costs.”

“As for us of the Blood Clan, we naturally agree with this plan. After being forced to move to the Ironhand Archipelago, our strength was already less than a tenth of its original.”

“Selecting outstanding individuals from the talented Human Clan and completely transforming them into true members of the Blood Clan would also enhance our strength.”

After listening to the Scarlet Queen’s introduction, Leo Ray nodded thoughtfully.

In this way, the sequence of events became very clear.

The “Blood Feast Ritual” of the Ironhand Archipelago was ultimately completed with the joint push of the Human Royal Family of the past and the Blood Clan.

However, when the “Blood Feast Ritual” was truly implemented, the Human Royal Family of that time no longer existed.

As Leo Ray thought of this, the Scarlet Queen’s somewhat helpless voice sounded again.

“Yet, what we never expected is that though the ‘Blood Feast Ritual’ was finally completed, it became a prison of its own making, a shackle binding our Ironhand Archipelago.”

“This is truly a highly ironic matter.”

As the Scarlet Queen said this, the other Blood Clan ministers also shook their heads helplessly.

“Is it because, beyond the coverage of the ‘Blood Feast Barrier,’ the humans converted into ‘members of the Blood Clan’ cannot maintain their normal state for long?”

Leo Ray immediately understood what the other was implying, nodding thoughtfully, “Just like the current situation, under the premise that the ‘Blood Feast Barrier’ has already failed, the entire population of the Human Clan has fallen into unconsciousness.”

“Your Royal Highness Prince Holy Lion, indeed, this is exactly the predicament the Ironhand Archipelago is currently facing.”

The Scarlet Queen’s voice was filled with helplessness, shaking her head as she said, “Although due to differing strength levels, the soldiers will not faint immediately like ordinary citizens, they still cannot hold out forever, which ultimately led to this situation.”

“If this continues, the citizens will soon die one by one due to being unable to maintain their Blood Clan characteristics.”

The Scarlet Queen’s voice was filled with regret, “This is completely different from what we imagined at the start.”

“Initially, we believed that after being converted into ‘members of the Blood Clan’ for a period of time, the citizens would slowly break free from the ‘Blood Feast Barrier’s’ constraints.”

“But a century has passed, and despite countless attempts, we found that the citizens still cannot live normally outside the barrier, even using blood drinking to maintain themselves did not have a decisive effect.”

Listening to the Scarlet Queen speak this far, Leo Ray pondered for a moment before inquiring, “Then why are children under a hundred years old not affected by the disappearance of the barrier?”

“We have conducted detailed research on this point; it is because the blood characteristics of children are not yet fully developed, once exceeding a certain threshold, they will still share the same fainting status as ordinary citizens.”

The Scarlet Queen, who was leading the way, nodded to Leo Ray, responding, “This causes the current strange phenomenon, only children are active in every corner of this kingdom.”

“But if the ‘Blood Feast Barrier’ remains unrecoverable, these children will one day face the same fate, until they completely lose their lives.”

As the Scarlet Queen’s despondent voice fell, the other Blood Clan ministers wore equally grave expressions, even their steps grew heavier.

It is clear, though the Blood Clan rules over this Human Kingdom, there is still some responsibility and commitment there.

This can also be seen from a glimpse of the description of the little girl Bella, as the major figures of the Blood Clan have always been harmless to the ordinary citizens, and even extremely amiable.

With this, the last of the three questions he previously had was also resolved.

Thinking of this in his heart, Leo Ray pondered for a moment before furrowing his brows and asking, “Your Majesty, do you have no other means to change all this?”

“To be honest, Your Royal Highness Prince Holy Lion, the research on this matter has never ceased for a hundred years, but it still yields nothing. After all, the secret spell of the ‘Blood Feast Ritual’ itself was something we encountered by chance in some ancient Blood Clan relic, making it impossible to compare with past cases.”

The Scarlet Queen’s eyebrows drooped as she sighed lightly, saying, “In hindsight, making that decision back then was indeed too hasty.”

“At least, Your Majesty and all present have provided the people of the Ironhand Archipelago with a century of peaceful time.”

Leo Ray nodded slightly at the Scarlet Queen, then changed the topic, “Since there is temporarily no solution, then let’s find a way to restore the normal operation of the ‘Blood Feast Barrier’ first.”

After speaking, a curious expression appeared once more on Leo Ray’s face.

Currently, almost all aspects of the ‘Blood Feast Ritual’ are very clear; what still puzzled him was only one thing.

That is, how does the ‘Blood Feast Ritual’ even work, to be able to transform the entire population of the Human Clan into beings with Blood Clan characteristics? It’s simply unimaginable.

As Leo Ray displayed curiosity, around him, his vigilant subordinates also cast glances containing the same expression.

“Everyone, we have reached the destination.”

Not long after, the crisp voice of the Scarlet Queen rang out again.

She stopped at a fenced platform edge, nodding to Leo Ray, “Your Royal Highness Prince Holy Lion, come take a look.”

“Understood.”

Responding, Leo Ray quickly moved to her side.

Once standing next to her, Leo Ray looked out past the fence, instantly filled with astonishment and awe.

Directly beneath the platform was an extremely vast depression, almost stretching beyond the sight’s end.

Lit by magic spheres, one could see the surface of the depression covered with crimson bloodlines resembling a spider web, with the widest spanning several meters, and the narrowest about the width of an arm, distributed evenly across every corner of the depression.

These bloodlines of varying width resembled the meridians of a human body, becoming thicker near the center, branching out into finer and more numerous lines as they extended outward, reaching deep into the ground.

While being shocked by this blood-red scene, Leo Ray squinted his eyes, looking toward the center of the depression.

A slender half-figure, wrapped in countless bloodlines, emerged before Leo Ray.

However, when Leo Ray gathered all his energy to finally see the face of that slender figure clearly, he couldn’t help but widen his eyes, filled with shock.

Though the slender figure’s eyes were tightly shut, face pale as paper, the looks were indistinguishable from the Scarlet Queen beside him, almost impossible to tell apart.