Chapter 157 - 153: Esmi Is Here?

Rale and the others also looked behind Ryder as they heard the noise coming from there.

They noticed that the sound was coming from the small pond that was behind them.

The Ice that seemed unbreakable until now was cracking up. Small cracks were being developed on it that were spreading everywhere in the surroundings.

"What is happening?" Ryder muttered as he saw the cracks covering every corner of the frozen pond.

"It doesn't feel right. Why is it cracking now?" Rale let out with a frown on his face.

"No idea. The book didn't mention anything about the frozen pond. It definitely came into existence after he left," Ryder responded.

The Vampire General just looked at them in confusion, wondering what they were talking about. What book?

"It might just be a delayed reaction after he crashed on the ice. It happens sometimes," Ryder said.

He ignored the pond and turned back to look toward Viden.

"Back to the topic. Vampire General Viden, what do you think we should do to you?" Ryder asked the Vampire General.

"Kill me! Even death is better than being captured by you!" the Vampire General replied fiercely.

"Did you have an affair with someone from the Demon Realm in the past?" Ryder inquired just to be sure that Viden wasn't the father of the girl that was waiting back in his kingdom.

"Cheh, I would rather die than have an affair with someone from the Demon Realm!" the Vampire General declared resolutely.

"Good. That makes it easier. We still can't kill you, or the other Royal Vampires will be able to sense that we killed a Vampire if we were in close proximity. That might be troublesome during our future endeavors. But that doesn't mean that you can't die," Ryder said, smilingly.

"Rale, Remove his hand and legs, and let's just watch what happens when a Vampire is killed by the specters. It might be a good experience," he said to Rale.

Rale nodded his head as he gripped the hand of the Vampire General and ripped it off. 

"You have fast healing, but I don't think you can regenerate your limbs," Ryder muttered.

Rale kept going on and ripped his arms and legs.

"Let's continue ahead. Throw him like a shield when we meet the specters," Ryder told Rale.

"Yes, Your Highness," Rale said with a bright grin on his face. 

He could see a glimpse of Demon Emperor Salem in Ryder's decisions. He didn't go easy on Viden and didn't lose himself in anger, either, which made Rale even more impressed.

They left the lake and continued towards the depths of the Valley of Wandering Souls.

*****

The Cracking of the ice in the lake continued even after they left, along with the melting.

After a few hours, a hand came out from one of those cracks. The hand seemed to be rotten, but it had flesh. It didn't seem like a specter. After the first hand, another hand came out from a different crack.

******

Ryder and his team continued ahead. Rale still had Viden in his grip.

"Where are all the specters when we need them?" Ryder muttered with a wry smile on his face.

After a few more minutes, they saw some specters coming towards them.

"Rale, throw him," Ryder commanded.

Rale nodded his head as he threw the body of Viden towards the Spectres.

Even though the specters were the spirit forms, they were special as they could touch the others. They also ate the bodies of the ones they found.

As soon as the body of Viden was thrown towards the Spectres, they ignored everything else as they moved toward Viden.

Viden's body was slowly being eaten, but he couldn't do anything. His healing was slower than the rate his body was being devoured. Even though he was in pain, the Vampire General still didn't make any pained noise. He didn't want to give satisfaction to the enemy by allowing them to watch him scream.

After some time, more specters came there. They also targeted the Vampire General.

Soon, the Vampire General was utterly devoured. Not even the single remain of his body was left behind for others to see.

"I don't like that we had to kill you that way, but that was the only way. We can't spoil the relation between the Demon Realm and the Undead Region by letting you go. There was just too much at stake," Ryder muttered as he looked towards the place where the Vampire General used to be.

He raised his bow and fired an arrow towards the specters. Now that the Specters had done their work, they decided to wipe them.

Soon, the specters were also wiped out under the barrage of attacks.

Ryder continued forward with his team. Rale had hidden his wings once more and sealed his powers again.

"There is no one here. Why are you keeping it sealed?" Ryder asked Rale.

"I'm just more comfortable this way, Your Highness," Rale replied.

They traveled throughout the day. The Inner Region also didn't pose much threat to Ryder and his team since they had Rale, who was technically one of the strongest beings in the Demon Realm.

Ryder didn't even know what Rale's level was, but he assumed that it was higher than a thousand.

They reached the end of the Inner Region right when it was the night time. There was another Protection Cave between the Inner Region and the Core Region. 

Ryder decided to spend the night inside as it was a known fact that the beings inside the Valley of Wandering Souls were stronger at night. He didn't want to deal with the Guardian of the Valley of Wandering Souls in the night.

They entered the cave. Unlike the last cave, this cave was completely empty, and it wasn't hidden by stones either.

Ryder told Rale to take care of everyone before he logged out of the cave. By the time, everyone was familiar with Ryder's habit of sleeping in a different space. Most of the guys were amazed that there existed a treasure like this.

Ryder woke up in the real world and took off the Divinity Glasses. He sat up. 

*Yawn*

"Today, I have nothing big to do. I'm just going to be lazy at home and rest. I think I deserve a break before I get back to the other missions," he muttered with a relaxed look on his face as he stretched his arms.

He was about to get off the bed when he got a message notification.

He picked up the phone and saw the message, which was enough to make his face lose its color.

The message was from Esmi that said that she was coming to his house and that she would be there in a minute.