The second Sand Worm, in all its glory and tremendous size, was burrowing as deep as it could while banging the top of its head furiously in a desperate attempt to get Jim and Anya out. A great feeling of discomfort coursed through its body as its blood vessels started to work overtime, given that thick clumps of blood were clogging them, leading to an increase in blood pressure. To make matters worse, Jim and Anya were nearly done clogging the main vein that acted as the main blood supply vessel to the beast’s head, more specifically its brain. To try and combat this, the beast banged its head, wiggled and jerked it furiously, and even started to rip off the scales on top. All this was in vain, for the two Blood Mutants were in too deep. Trying to stop them now was like trying to catch a flea inside your eardrum with your stubby fingers. You know it’s there, but it’s just out of your reach. "I think that’s enough!!" Anya pointed out, looking ahead at the thick wall that cut off a consistent supply of blood. "The other side’s completely void of blood. We can move into its brain now." The two quickly got to work and pushed through the blood wall, landing on the other side of the vein, which had blood up to their knees. Without wasting time, Jim and Anya sprinted as quickly as they could until they got to the beast’s white brain matter. Like the rest of the body, it was white as milk and soft like tofu, meaning that this was going to be quite an easy task to accomplish. "It’s getting hotter in here," Jim pointed out, having felt the internal temperature of the beast increasing. "Our bodies increase temperatures to ward off any disease-causing pathogens. Maybe this beast’s brain’s doing the same thing." "Then let’s hurry and get the hell out of here." Taking a deep breath, Anya puffed up her cheeks, filled her lungs with as much air as possible, and prepared to let out one of her powerful screams. All at once, she opened her mouth and sent out a deafening scream that echoed throughout the worm’s brain. Every cell, tissue, and vessel that was touched by Anya’s sound waves erupted and popped, causing swellings and brain fluid to spill all over. She did these three more times before finally creating blood blades. Jim did the same, and together, they sectioned off large chunks of brain matter. The worm’s body started to slow down. Its body activity deteriorated as it desperately fought to get the two Blood Mutants out of its head. Alas, all was in vain, for the two Blood Mutants had already accomplished what they came to do. The beast’s brain was too damaged beyond repair to resume its functions, and given that it lacked a proper blood supply, it couldn’t function any longer and eventually started to decompose. Anya and Jim did it. They killed the large Sand Worm by subjecting it to intense pain and discomfort from the inside, granting it a slow and painful death. "It stopped moving," Jim pointed out, having sensed the creature’s internal temperature reducing. "We did it. We killed the beast." "Good." Was all that Anya said as she made her way out from where she came. "We did what they made us do." "Well, if you put it like that." Jim shrugged and followed shortly after. While he felt a sense of pride for killing a massive creature such as this one, Anya felt disgusted once more that this was what she was subjected to become for the rest of her life. An organic killing being that lived off every species’ life essence as its food and weaponry. Such an incredible yet terrifying power to have. ********************** After roughly thirty minutes, according to the Granian time scale, had passed, Jim and Anya made their way to Ace and Cherry, who were by the foot of an incredibly tall mountain with One Horn, Helda, and Skyler. Upon arrival, they were met by Lord Grania and Grim, who had Skyler sit on the ground in a meditation position. Anya didn’t seem bothered enough to ask, so she moved on to find out what was next. Jim, on the other hand, was fascinated by this strange behavior and decided to find out. "Lord Grania," he spoke as he bowed, making sure to show the Granian ruler respect after he showed only a fraction of his power on Anya. "If it isn’t too much trouble, may I know why you are having Skyler do that?" "Certainly," the Granian emperor answered. He then closed his eyes and went silent for a moment before his body developed the same green aura Anya had seen. "This is an ancient technique that almost every intelligent being in the universe possesses. We learn to control our internal energy with flux, which is a continuous flow of energy. We call this Eneraflux. I shall show each one of you how to possess and control their energy, but as of now, the four of you need to get back to your training." "Eneraflux, huh?" Jim wondered, having recalled hearing that name before. "Isn’t that a mathematical unit used in engineering?" Having adhered to Lord Grania’s orders, Jim teamed up with the others who were standing in front of long, green barrels that were sealed. Before them was One Horn, who had four gadgets in his hands. As soon as Jim stood at his barrel, One Horn placed the gadgets around the Blood Mutants’ necks before allowing them to open the barrels. "These are Blood Mutant blocker collars," the Granian spoke. "Do not fret; they only limit you from transforming. You can use your blood abilities but not be able to transform." "What’s all of this for?" Anya muttered while tugging on the collar. "The four of you are going to scale to the top of this mountain." As he spoke, the four Blood Mutants gazed up at the mountain and failed to see the peak, meaning that it was further than their eyes could see. "The barrels in front of you contain your blood supply, which will be your food for the duration of your trekking. You can either decide to carry the barrels on your back or you can take your fill and hope to gather meat from the creatures you’ll encounter." "How dangerous are the beasts?" Ace asked, hoping that they would be dangerous enough for him to gather either stat points, experience points, and hopefully even Blood Points. "I cannot be of use in understanding how powerful they are, Ace." The Granian answered, not wanting to give too much information. "The difficulty will depend on your strength. If you are stronger than them, they will not be as dangerous. Be mindful, this trek will take several days depending on each one of your individual strengths. You may begin within an hour’s time." After receiving their instructions, the Blood Mutants looked down at their barrels and opened them. Their noses were hit with the minty scent of Granian blood. Neither of them wanted to find out where the blood came from or how the Granians acquired it. Instead, they remained dumbfounded at how good it smelled and looked in their eyes. To a normal human, it looked like a barrel of green fluids with an iron-like scent. To the Blood Mutants, it looked like a barrel of precious treasure in their eyes. The green blood had a slight glow to it, and its minty scent gave it an alluring and welcoming warmth, which was oddly confusing for them. "Is it just me, or does this blood look...." "Different than normal," Ace answered, for he and Cherry had tasted Granian blood before. "It doesn’t look like ordinary blood." "Looks too good to be true," Cherry answered back as she dipped her finger to take a lick. "Wow, guys, you should try this!!" She said while dipping her hand in to scoop more for herself. The others did the same and began to drink as much as they could. After an hour, Cherry’s barrel was at its halfway mark, Anya and Jim were left with only a quarter of a barrel given that they had strained themselves earlier, and Ace’s was barely moved. Having already replenished himself with the worm’s blood, he took a suitable amount of blood to fill his blood tank just in case anything happened. "Excellent. I believe all of you are ready to proceed." One Horn returned once more, this time prepared to see the Blood Mutants off. "The mountain contains three different terrains on three different layers. The first layer, which is the bottom of the mountain, is about twelve hours to scale and is mostly level ground with loose soil. The second layer, which is the middle of the mountain, is the biggest layer and has a rocky terrain. It takes almost a full day of nonstop climbing to scale it. Once there, you will find sharp rocks and boulders and encounter signs of wildlife. The final layer is composed of icy gravel and grit. It’ll take you ten hours of nonstop walking, but be warned, you will find more dangerous creatures there. "Lastly, once at the top, you will find a small facility for you to rest. Once the three of you arrive, you will begin the third phase. The purpose of this training is to prepare you for the various terrains you will face during the war. You’ve faced the flat, hot terrain, and now it’s time to face the mountainous terrain. Be sure to exercise your blood skills as well. Begin!!" Get full chapters from 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝⟡𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕥⟡𝕟𝕖𝕥 One Horn watched as the four Blood Mutants made tendrils on their backs, which they used to carry the blood barrels. Jim was at the front, having assumed the position of leadership. Anya walked alone in the middle with her hands folded, while Ace and Cherry walked together at the back. It was going to be a long and perilous journey into the unknown, but for Ace, it was going to be an opportunity for him to grow in strength and hopefully move up to the Blood Bishop Rank.