Chapter 217 - 174: Vampire Count Ellick

Karen leaped aside as well, dodging the frigid blast, which wasn’t particularly fast.

The frigid blast had a limited range of only two or three meters around Ellick, resembling a modified Chong Ang Seal.

Most of the flames on Ellick’s body were extinguished by the cold, with only a few stubborn patches still searing his flesh. Within a two-meter radius around him, the ground was covered in ice crystals.

Fang Zhen got a clear look at Ellick.

Ellick stood about six-foot-five. He was extremely tall, with a pale, gaunt face and a sinister expression that made him look close to seventy. An irrepressible stench of decay radiated from his body like a sickness. His hair, however, was surprisingly thick and dark red—the color of blood.

The earlier flames had burned away most of Ellick’s red coat, revealing the Steel Armor he wore underneath.

His red hair had been singed away by the flames, yet it was regenerating at a rate visible to the naked eye.

Despite possessing such powerful regeneration—which should have indicated immense vitality—Ellick exuded the aura of someone on death’s door. He was shrouded in a miasma of decay and decline, a complete mismatch with his astonishing recovery rate. The contrast was deeply unsettling.

"Chong Ang: Extreme Cold! You were once a Curse Sealer?" Recognizing the seal, Gwendolyn cried out in shock.

"In your fleeting lives, there is far too much you cannot comprehend. Do not attribute everything to petty curse seals." Ellick offered a sinister smile, his towering frame casting a massive shadow over them.

"Now, who was it that just played a little joke on me with this rather fiery Alchemy Artifact?"

Ellick’s gaze swept over the group, his eyes holding an unholy, blood-red glint that made the faint of heart shrink from his sight.

BANG!

The crack of a gunshot was Fang Zhen’s reply.

A nine-millimeter bullet struck Ellick square in the forehead.

The impact snapped Ellick’s head back, but the bullet failed to pierce his skull.

A moment later, a chilling scene unfolded before them.

Ellick’s head, which had been thrown back by the impact, slowly straightened.

In the center of his forehead was a bullet hole.

However, the hole was rapidly shrinking and healing, squeezing the bullet out as it closed.

In just a second or two, the bullet hole on Ellick’s forehead healed completely, and the slug fell out.

Ellick caught the slug, holding it up to his eye to examine it.

"An interesting Alchemy Artifact."

Ellick looked up, his blood-red eyes locking onto Fang Zhen as a slow, chilling smile spread across his face.

"So, it was you."

"Allow me to..."

Before Ellick could finish, BANG—another gunshot rang out. A bullet tore into the blood-red eye he had fixed on Fang Zhen.

Ellick let out a furious shriek of pain.

Fang Zhen’s expression remained unchanged as he fired another seven or eight rounds in quick succession. Each bullet struck the Vampire Count in the face, riddling it with holes and forcing him to stumble back.

’He was always the one putting on a show, not the other way around.’

Not even a Vampire Count.

Fang Zhen refused to give this old vampire geezer a chance to grandstand. He wouldn’t even let him finish his line before opening fire!

After seven or eight shots, the Desert Viper clicked empty.

The magazine was empty.

Ellick’s face was a mangled mess, but he was still alive.

Apparently, the handgun wasn’t very effective against Ellick.

While the Vampire Count reeked of decay, his powers of recovery and his resilience were terrifyingly strong.

Even after Fang Zhen emptied his magazine, Ellick was still standing, clutching his face in agony.

The monster’s regenerative abilities were astonishing; the eyeball he’d just shot out was already starting to reform.

Seeing that bullets were ineffective, Fang Zhen decided to switch tactics.

He holstered his pistol and gestured to his side.

Laura, who had been holding his long spear, understood at once and tossed it to him.

Fang Zhen caught the spear, gave it an expert twirl, and settled into a high-guard, traditional martial arts stance.

"Don’t just stand there! Get him!" Fang Zhen shouted.

Gwendolyn and the others, who had been stunned by Ellick’s sheer presence, snapped back to their senses.

Even Pat, whose muscles were still stiff from the cold, regained his composure.

Furious at having been caught off guard, Pat let out a roar and charged forward.

Karen, Gwendolyn, and even Tos and Laura, who had been holding back, all rushed forward to surround and attack Ellick!

In an instant, blades rained down on Ellick in a chaotic flurry.

Ellick’s physical condition was superb. His movements were surprisingly agile, and despite his aged appearance, his strength likely surpassed even Pat’s. He was actually fighting the members of the Whig Society bare-handed.

However, Ellick was alone, while the Whig Society had numbers, weapons, and well-practiced teamwork.

After a few exchanges, Ellick actually found himself on the back foot.

Red Viper Laura was constantly circling to get behind him. Ellick was aware of her, forcing him to divert his attention to guard against her maneuvers.

However, a fierce assault from Karen, Gwendolyn, and Pat from the front drew his attention, causing him to momentarily neglect Laura.

This was the opening—the split second his attention was divided.