After they left the weird place with a cosmic background, Ian and Alaric finally met their destination. There, Ian saw the Grand Elder and three unfamiliar faces waiting for him.
The Grand Elder had an indifferent expression, while the three beside him appeared obedient due to the Grand Elder's suffocating pressure. When the Grand Elder saw Ian and Alaric finally arrive, his eyes lit up, and his indifference gave way to enthusiasm. "You're finally here."
On the other hand, the three beside the Grand Elder almost had their eyes pop out from their socket as they saw what it was.
'W-what!? The king would actually join this venture!?'
'How is this possible? Why would the king personally move? Does our mission in the secret realm this time not seem simple?'
No one doesn't know Ian now. After all, he had been crowned as the king. Although there were no such things as an inauguration ceremony. The Vampire Council spared no expense to make Ian's existence known. Not to mention, Ian wasn't anybody in the first place. Even without the title of the king, his prestige as the Commander who brought victory against werewolves made him comparable to an A-list celebrity in the Blood Realm.
The three looked at each other with shock on their faces. Their eyes held meaning. At this time, they bowed to Ian in awe. They actually managed to meet two of the most terrifying existences in the blood realm. The real core power. The Grand Elder and the King!
They couldn't contain the excitement in their heart.
Ian smiled at them. "No need to be polite. Just act normal in front of me. I don't like bullshit pleasantaries. Not to mention, you guys managed to secure the slots to enter the secret realm against the tough competition. You deserve this. You are the elites of the empire." He said with an even tone.
At the side, the Grand Elder suppressed the smile on his face. 'He's a natural at this! I thought he had no political acumen or charisma required to become a leader. But he just doesn't see it himself, but he possesses such qualities.'
Ian didn't know the Grand Elder's thoughts. Even if he knows, he might just slap the Grand Elder to death. After all, it's not a matter of being charismatic. It's just a commonplace practice on Earth. To act friendly to everyone with a smile. It doesn't matter if the smile was fake or natural.
The three didn't expect the king to acknowledge them. Their faces were flushed, and it was like they were injected with chicken blood. It doesn't really matter what the meaning of the words is. What matters is the one who says it. Ian was the king with the highest status! How are they not be excited?
"..."
Ian was speechless at them. With some hesitation, he couldn't but ask: "What are your names?"
"Mark Tuan!"
"Mojica Jush."
"Peter Park Gom."
"Good names..." Ian nodded.
At this time, the Grand Elder finally spoke. "It's time for us to enter. You three don't need to bother with our business inside. You can do whatever you want in the outer and inner rings. Your role was only to fill the slot. But if you get a good performance, I'll let you get access to the Blood Chamber!"
Alaric was taken aback, and the three were surprised. Ian, on the other hand, didn't show any reaction. Well, he doesn't know what the hell Blood Chamber is.
Grand Elder let out a heavy chuckle as he saw their astonishment. "Only this time because the king is with us. Normally, only the 12 Seated Elders could enter the Blood Chamber once every hundred years."
Ian was stumped so he had to ask what the fuck is Blood Chamber which Alaric gladly explained before he bid his goodbye to them.
What is Blood Chamber? Simply, it allows one to project their consciousness to the past. To meet the strongest historical figures of the Blood Realm and gain insights. Either through a battle with them or a discussion!
How many eras does the Blood Realm have? Every era had birthed exceptional vampires who developed unique blood techniques and had rich combat experience, and had their own fighting style. Just the opportunity to interact with them was undoubtedly priceless.
Even Ian, after he heard this, was quite tempted. This was another opportunity to grow stronger. As the king, he had the privilege to access anything within the Blood Realm freely!
Such a useful thing! Why haven't they told him about this earlier!?
'It seems I need to know more about what the Blood Empire could offer. There might be a lot more opportunities than I think.' Ian thought, secretly pleased with the pie that landed on his plate.
With this, Mark, Mojica, and Peter became visibly even more motivated, and they were thankful that the king had decided to join the journey to the secret realm.
Just like that, at the age of 29, Ian and his impressive team entered the secret realm through a teleportation formation hidden in a secret library just beneath Ian's chambers. The teleportation formation released bright, blinding rays of white light, and they just simply vanished.
At the age of 30, Ian and his team thoroughly explored the outer ring with no mishaps. They encountered other teams of dark races such as Lich, Zombies, Ghouls, Demons, and Werewolves. However, due to the unspoken rule, everyone minded their own business and didn't attack each other. Just the Outer Ring was as big as a continent.
At the age of 32, Ian and his team thoroughly explored the Inner Ring, which was ten times bigger than the outer one. It took a whole two years. But for vampires, two years wasn't even worth mentioning. As long-lived creatures, their perception of time was vastly different. Even a hundred years was just a blink of an eye for them.
Ian tried to devour the flesh of beasts in the Inner Ring, but they barely budge his stagnant growth of biomass. Ian found it reasonable because now, the beasts in the Inner Ring were insufferably weak for him.