Chapter 1: The Misfortune of Luck_2

There was a dagger.

Fighting bare-handed against a lunatic was far inferior to choosing a handy weapon.

But just as Arthur's fingers had barely touched the dagger, the other raised his hand sharply.

Whoosh!

A sturdy hemp rope, darting out from the shadows like a snake, not only tied Arthur's hands and feet together but also formed an extremely shameful bowing posture.

Arthur was thus hung upside down from the ceiling beam, but he could hardly focus on that, his eyes filled with confusion and uncertainty.

What was this?

Magic? A supernatural power?

Arthur was greatly alarmed inwardly.

He had thought the other was just a lunatic, but now it seemed... perhaps not!

Was there really such a thing as a bloodline?

Arthur guessed so, but deep down felt that things were increasingly amiss.

In the memories he had just seen, the predecessor as the 'Spirit Medium Successor' had firmly believed in the existence of mysteries in this world, yet had never encountered any, despite great efforts to find them.

At most, he had encountered two far less significant charlatans compared to the Kledos Family.

But now, the mystery was directly manifested in front of him.

The predecessor had sought it but never found it, yet he had stumbled upon it carelessly.

However, this did not make Arthur happy; rather, it set off alarm bells in his mind.

From his experience, defying the norm was not a good sign.

Moreover, the other had attacked his predecessor before!

In fact, the next moment displayed a scene that caused Arthur's scalp to tingle and would remain unforgettable for his entire life—

As he watched, the man with an ordinary face suddenly raised his hands to grasp the hair on the back of his head and, with a forceful tear—

Crackle!

Amid the sound of fabric ripping, fresh blood flew as if he was undressing, the man tore his skin and flesh off his body.

The bloody, intact human skin was carelessly thrown at his feet, while the blurry figure continued without any sign of pain, using the fresh blood from his body to draw on the ground.

This scene made Arthur feel suffocated, his body stiffening.

"This is a magic circle! It is used to exchange your bloodline!

Why exchange yours and not your grandfather's?

Compared to his cunning, you are far more naive!

Look, I disguised myself as a so-called client, and you walked right into the trap!"

The other mumbled incomprehensibly, hissing like a snake, his voice sounded distant and close to Arthur's ears, though he was clearly standing right in front of him.

Suddenly, a strong urge to vomit arose.

Discomfort made everything before Arthur's eyes seem hazy; he watched dizzily as the other's hands moved together, one drawing the magic circle and the other placing black and white candles along the boundary of the circle.

Soon after, the entire scene became distorted.

When Arthur's vision gradually returned, the so-called magic circle had been completed, forming an '8', with the six black and white candles placed opposingly within each 'o', already lit.

Under the flickering candlelight, the blood-stained flesh on the man and the human skin at his feet flowed into the magic circle like water.

The man finally revealed his true face—

A narrow, pale face, bald on top, with a black serpent tattooed on his scalp.

The serpent opened its mouth, revealing fangs and a crimson tongue, making one's heart tighten upon sight.

But the most terrifying was the man's nose!

Or rather, the absence of a nose, where there were only two pitch-black holes left on his face!

The man, whom Arthur was sizing up, seemed unconcerned as he took a step closer.

Instantly, the black void-like nostrils were right in front of Arthur, causing him to instinctively lift his neck—Arthur wanted to keep away from these nostrils, and at that moment, that was the limit of what the bound Arthur could achieve.

But he was immediately grabbed by the hair and yanked back by the man, who then moved even closer, the hot breath from his nose causing goosebumps on Arthur's neck.

It was as if he was sniffing something on him.

Disgusting, perverse.

Arthur struggled more violently.

If only he could break free, Arthur swore, not only would he punch the man, but he would also harshly stamp on him at least twice, aiming to crush that nauseating face.

Hehehe.

A hoarse, deep laugh squeezed out from the man's throat as he looked at Arthur, as if admiring a unique treasure in someone else's hands.

Greed and malice.

Arthur could clearly see the burning heat that emerged in the man's murky eyes.

So intense that his eyes stung.

Instinctively, Arthur wanted to dodge again.

But the man immediately raised another hand to fix Arthur's jaw, making it impossible for Arthur to dodge, forcing him to look directly at the man.

In just a few seconds, Arthur's eyes involuntarily started streaming with tears.

After another bout of hoarse, deep laughter, the man released his grip, allowing Arthur to sway hanging from the beam.

"The 'Dark Serpent Bloodline' I currently possess, acquired through plunder, is quite good already, but compared to the bloodline of the Kledos Family, which is nearly capable of resurrection, it is nothing!"

The man, confident of his victory, did not bother to hide anything, the unusual heat in his eyes becoming almost tangible as he stared into Arthur's eyes.

Arthur was stunned.

The man had just mentioned an exchange!

And he already possessed a plundered bloodline: 'Dark Serpent Bloodline'.