Edge of the Apocalypse

Chapter 490: Prologue

The sea breeze was strong, but Eric stood as straight as a javelin. He was already close to fifty this year. Of course, for a Level 28 Origin Energy expert like him, his body was still in its strongest state when he was around thirty years old. This state could last for another ten years before slowly sliding back. If Eric was able to break through to Level 30 in these ten years, then what he would receive would be a transformation of his life.

Every expert who broke through the level 30 barrier, regardless of race, would have their lifespans greatly prolonged. Naturally, the period of power and prosperity would be prolonged as well. And the extension was at least fifty years. Just thinking about the next 50 years, the body would not age at all, and it would be enough to make one move forward with full motivation.

However, every time Origin Energy leveled up by one level, the amount required to advance to the next level would increase exponentially. Therefore, only a small number of people could stand at the top of the power pyramid. Naturally, Eric was no exception. He missed the time when his Origin Energy increased rapidly when he was young. It was also a time of war, and Eric spent almost every day on the battlefield for eight years.

He enjoyed the pleasure of slaughtering his enemies, and at the same time, he felt the moving feeling of his strength expanding. It was also in those eight years that he earned the title of Bloody Earl. Unfortunately, after breaking through to Level 25, the increase in Origin Energy slowed down greatly. Only by occasionally entering the Origin Energy Star Sea would one be able to gain a chance to grow rapidly. However, there weren't many such opportunities, and three years had passed since the last time he had leveled up.

Eric yearned to be strong, and even more yearned for this feeling of strength to last long enough. And now that he was already Level 28, he would be able to usher in the most significant transformation of his life if he were to advance by another two levels. However, he also knew that these two leveling upgrades, especially breaking through to level 30, weren't easy. Therefore, when Mason promised him that he would give him a precious bottle of Origin Liquid as long as he completed the mission he had given him.

Origin liquid is a precious item that is absorbed from the human body, or natural origin energy, and processed by secret methods to be preserved in liquid form. A single bottle of Origin Liquid was enough for Eric to level up immediately. This would greatly shorten the time it took for him to advance to Level 30, and such a thing was not something that could be bought with money. With the royal family's care for the four dukes, they only received such a bottle of Origin Liquid every five years.

Earl like Eric had worked hard for his entire life, and if he didn't have the opportunity, he wouldn't be able to obtain a bottle, no matter how low-grade it was.

If not for Mason's generous offer, Eric's madness would not have provoked the Naga clan so easily. One had to know that this mutant had countless connections with the royal family. One of the most direct relationships was the current emperor's favourite imperial concubine, who had half the bloodline of the Naga Clan. With just this little bit of relationship, people would have to consider it when they wanted to touch the Naga Clan. As for Sword Lord Mason's large faction, they needed to hide their strength and use Eric, who was completely unrelated to him before, after several trials and tribulations.

Otherwise, even if a mere Naga was unable to wipe out this mutant, Mason would still be unable to do so. However, he was able to break into the corridor of the Nether River by himself, so there was no need to be so troublesome.

Eric narrowed his eyes and stared at the Sunrise in front of him, waiting for the two of them to sail into the open sea. At that time, it was time to launch an all-out attack. That account book must not fall into the hands of the royal family, otherwise it will cause countless troubles!

Blood energy surged, and the bloodthirsty light in Eric's eyes grew brighter and brighter.

Belmond frowned. Although they were far apart, Eric's obscure but murderous aura was clear. Belmond didn't know what kind of person that was, but he knew that the other party wasn't simple. The killing intent in that might almost made Belmond smell a sweet smell of blood. This was not simple. One had to know that the two sides were so far apart, and the other party did not intentionally release any aura. The killing intent had already reached this level. One could imagine that he was a figure who had walked out of the Corpse Mountain and Sea of Blood.

Even if such a person's level wasn't high, it would still be quite troublesome. Moreover, how low would a person who could inadvertently condense killing intent to such an extent be?

Belmond secretly compared himself to his opponent and concluded that if he were to attack with all his might, he would probably have a chance to escape from this kind of person's hands. He couldn't help but be secretly speechless at this result. Although he hadn't advanced to LV20, because of the Black Devil Wings, he was still a bit stronger than an ordinary LV20 Awakened. If he could only escape in the hands of the other party at his level, then the Azure Dragon Knights at the bottom of the bilge would not be his hands or feet at all.

Fortunately, there were Lily and a few other Elders on the boat. Lily's level was unknown, but Belmore had already felt her might. In terms of pure strength, she shouldn't be much inferior to that person. However, Lily was still too young, and her combat experience probably couldn't compare to that of a battlefield butcher. As for Wei Fu and the other elders, they had at most Level 25 Origin Energy, and with them on their side, it wasn't as if they didn't have a chance of winning.

After the Sunrise arrived at the outer sea, the Nagas would be moved to the underwater palace, and Belmore and the others would be sent to another port before they could return to Ark Harbor by other passenger ships. Before that, they shared a boat. Belmond could only join hands with them to resist, but the sound of footsteps came from behind. Taylor and the others followed Qila.

Taylor raised his eyes to look into the distance, but because there was no sign on the ship, he did not know who the other party was. Just as he was suspicious, Weaver said in a deep voice, "That's Eric."

"Bloody Earl?" Taylor was shocked.

"There's no mistake," Weaver nodded. "We took the ledger last night and left immediately today. It must be beyond Eric's expectations. In his hurry, he couldn't mobilize enough force to stop us, so he was the only one who took action. Besides him, who else in Orca Harbor had such strong killing intent?"

"If only it was him." Lily waved her little fist and said, "Then I have a chance to ruthlessly fix this damn Earl!"

Wei Fu shook his head and said, "Your Highness, don't be careless. Eric is a Level 28 expert. Moreover, his combat experience is not something Your Highness can compare to. Your Highness should not be weaker than him in terms of strength, but in terms of experience, he is your weakness. Therefore, don't be careless when facing Eric."

Lily curled her lips and was dissatisfied with Wei Fu's words that had raised other people's spirits and destroyed her prestige. However, he knew that Wei Fu's words were correct, so he did not refute. Weaver said to Taylor, "Prepare for a water battle. It looks like they're planning to go out to sea before they make their move."

The Grand Elder of the Naga Clan sneered, "That's good too. We need to let them know who the Naga Clan was afraid of when they fought at sea."

Belmond suddenly realized that he had almost forgotten that the Naga Clan lived in the deep sea, and that the sea was their home ground. On this battlefield, their combat strength was estimated to be the most conservative, and they would have to increase by one or two levels.

Taylor immediately went down to prepare, dispatched the guards to the deck of the ship, and ordered people to take out artillery shells and other items from the warehouse to prepare for battle. The eleven Azure Dragon Knights also arrived on the deck. After Wei Fu warned them, they all nodded and jumped into the sea from the bow of the ship, disappearing without a trace. They entered the sea in this direction, and Eric did not notice anything unusual from the angle of view.

As a result, Eric's three nameless warships sailed out of the sea, following closely behind the Sunrise. As soon as he left the sea, the count said coldly, "Full speed, prepare to attack."

Apart from him this time, none of the fighters and sailors were from Killer Whale Harbor. The two big assassination groups were involved in the battle. Among them, the Night Specter was a dark force that Eric had secretly nurtured over the past decade. They had always been secretly working to cut off some enemies that Eric could not kill openly. This assassination gang had 50 assassins, with Steel Cannon and You Lotus as their leaders, they had already killed many of Eric's opponents.

As for the other group, it was the local assassination guild, Snake Concubine. Snake Belle's master was Marlene, and the morbid woman was Eric's mistress and his partner. The killers under the Snake Concubine were all women, and the seven poisonous snakes that Marlene had focused on nurturing were even more beautiful. However, due to the urgency of the matter, Marlene did not have time to call back all the vipers. Only three of them came to Killer Whale Harbor with Marlene, coinciding with her participation in this battle.

But for Eric, neither the Night Ghost nor the Snake Belle were the main characters in this operation. At best, it was only to restrain the other party's role as an expert. The real protagonist was him. Eric was trembling gently. He had already begun to imagine the sensation of tearing apart Princess Naga's body and listening to the fresh blood flowing in the young body.

The killing intent on the count's body grew even stronger.

Eric's warship was still hanging behind the Sunrise, while the other two warships, carrying the Night Specter and Snake Belle's killers, surrounded the two sides. The left and right warships were three minutes faster. They moved ahead and drew a clear arc on the surface of the sea. The Sunrise was a merchant ship that was characterized by its heavy load and was therefore capable of hoarding large quantities of supplies needed to cross the oceans.

His speed wasn't slow either, but he couldn't increase his speed in a short period of time like Eric's warships. As a result, the Sunrise was gradually caught up by the two warships. At this time, gunfire flashed on both sides of the merchant ship, and the Sunrise took the lead in firing its cannons, opening the prelude to the naval battle!

Two rows of guns continued to bombard the ship. One by one, the cannonballs whistled across the sea, causing one's heart to tremble. They were thrown onto the sea near the warship, causing water columns to explode. The warships also began to counterattack. However, due to their speed, they were not equipped with heavy artillery. They were only conventional naval artillery. This kind of cannon's power and range were far inferior to the Sunrise's guns. As the rounds of gunfire descended, the Sunrise suffered only minor damage.