Aengus and Bella stood atop a towering mountain, before a giant cave.
At the entrance of the dark cave was an ominous red statue of a coiled serpent.
"Hubby, you said the Ancient Red Serpent Deity had marked you, right? So, we need to destroy this temple to weaken his influence. Although the effect won't be immediate, if we continue destroying his temples, your problem might be solved more easily," Bella said, gathering energy in her palm to destroy the statue.
"That's not a bad idea. We should order the army to destroy all of the nearby temples as well," Aengus agreed, letting her proceed as she wished, while he send a message to Sienna using her Naga pearl. Her Naga pearl was now much stronger and more useful for long distance communication.
Both of them remained cautious, in case any unexpected problems arose, though the likelihood seemed low.
To start, Bella conjured a small ball of Phoenix flames to test the temple's defenses.
"Kaboom!"
The fireball landed on a transparent protective barrier.
"So, it seems there are indeed someone inside," Bella mused, glancing at Aengus.
Aengus gave her a small nod and looked at the spot where the fire was slowly burning through the barrier itself. The effects of the Phoenix flames were immediate.
Clatter, clatter, clatter.
With earthshaking vibrations, several demonic serpents emerged from the large cave. Their figures towering 20 metres, menacing.
"Our guests have arrived!" Bella said, smiling dangerously.
Aengus inspected them using Appraisal and all of them were ordinary, their power at Greater Demon at best.
So, this was just a trivial fight.
But, Activating his All-Seeing Eyes, Aengus could make out several human figures inside the cave, their silhouettes appearing miserable and frail.
"Bella, there are humans inside. Don't destroy the cave," Aengus cautioned, his curiosity piqued about their origins and how they were captured.
"Oh, okay," Bella replied without hesitation, trusting his abilities completely. He had proven them many times by now.
Hiss... "Who are you? Hiss... Why are you attacking this sacred temple?" one of the serpents hissed, trying to initiate a conversation.
Their gaze shifted from Bella to Aengus, attempting to gauge the motives of the two half-breeds.
"It's you?" they hissed, seemingly recognizing Aengus.
The Duo's gaze shifted to the menacing Red Serpent statue, its eyes glowing with a bloody hue.
"They must have been offering them to this 'Deity' they call it," Aengus said, his special golden eyes seeing through the process.
"Oh... So these fools were trying to perform a resurrection ritual. But it's impossible to bring back the dead," Bella added, her tone indifferent. She glanced at Aengus, her voice softening. "Hubby, I'm not saying this to target your former human lover or anything."
She was talking about Aria's resurrection as they didn't she was already alive.
"I know," Aengus nodded, though doubt lingered in his mind.
"That's good..." Bella sighed in relief, subtly watching him from the corner of her eye.
"We need to end their suffering. They can't live like this," Bella said, preparing herself to disintegrate the lifeless bodies to ashes.
As Aengus habitually activated Appraisal, he found something intriguing. Among the lifeless bodies, one held a Unique Skill—and it was astonishing.
"Wait! Bella!" he shouted, stopping her flames mid-air.
Bella glanced at him, perplexed. "Why did you stop me? Can you bring them back from the brink of death?"
Aengus gently shook his head. "No, it's not that. I have some business with one of them," he said, leaning closer to inspect the body.
He placed his hand over the Unique Skill holder's chest and activated Skill Absorption.
[ Congratulations! You have acquired a new Unique Skill: Mana Harvest (Rare) ]
[ Mana Harvest:
1. Faster Recovery of Your Mana reserves from the environment surrounding you.
2. Absorb your enemy's Mana to increase your own Mana reserves. ]
Aengus was satisfied by the notification. He ignored the other skills, which were ordinary and of no value to him. The person was a young boy, barely at level 19, but Aengus didn't care.
What mattered most was the Unique skill Aengus needed to recover his energy faster.
The boy drew his last breath as Aengus drained his Unique Skill from his fragile soul.
Bella watched his satisfied grin with curiosity.
Aengus turned to her. "You can send them off now, Bella."
Bella nodded and began to finish the task suppressing the curiosity as she realised he wasn't willing to tell her some of his Secrets yet. It made her a little disappointed, but she believed it would be solved eventually.