Ascension Of The Blood Supreme

The second group of ten operatives moved through a different path in zone zero.

Unlike the first group that went into the blizzard region, this team was navigating a slightly warmer, mist-covered area.

The terrain ahead looked like flat, solid white snowfields. It was completely frozen across by the extreme climate.

"Keep a strict formation," the advanced rank 3 leader of group two said. "Group one and two isn’t responding to the comms. We proceed with extra caution."

"Understood," the scout said as he scanned ahead. "Wait, leader! Look ahead. I see something."

The group slowed down. They raised their weapons. Their affinities danced across their bodies as they approached a small ridge.

Lying in the snow were the frozen, torn remains of several chaotic beasts. Their dark blood had frozen into hard, black icicles. The trail of beast corpses stretched as far as the eyes could see.

"It’s a trail of chaotic beast corpses," the scout said. "Something slaughtered them recently."

As they neared the location, the squad leader looked at the dead beasts, inspecting the deep slash marks on their frozen hides.

"This was done by some powerful chaotic beast," the squad leader said. "We should follow the trail, but keep your distance from one another. Don’t crowd together."

"Yes, sir," the operatives said in unison.

The ten operatives stepped onto the flat, frozen ground. They followed the clear path left by the beast corpses.

The ground beneath their boots felt completely firm and solid.

They stepped forward with confidence, believing they were walking on a stable, frozen plain.

Aiden watched them from his base of operations.

This region was not solid ground at all. It was a vast, camouflaged marshy terrain. Deep, muddy swamps and freezing water filled the area, but the severe cold of zone zero had formed a thin, deceiving layer of ice and packed snow over the top.

To make matters worse, hungry, cold-resistant chaotic beasts lurked beneath the dark, icy marsh water, waiting for anything to break through the surface.

"Group two has taken the bait," Aiden thought quietly.

The squad of ten operatives marched further onto the hidden marsh.

As they moved deeper toward the center of the white plain, the normal temperature began to shift into colder air.

The weight of ten heavily armored rank 3 warriors walking across the same area started to put pressure on the fragile layer of ice.

Crack!

A sharp sound pervaded the air.

"Stop!" the squad leader said, freezing in his tracks. "Did you hear that?"

"It came from the ground," the scout said, his face turning pale as he looked down at his boots.

Before they could even attempt to leap backward, the thin layer of ice and packed snow beneath them broke completely.

The solid ground they thought they were standing on shattered into thousands of chunks which floated on cold swampy water.

Splash!

"Aaaahhhh!"

Seven of the operatives fell directly into the freezing, muddy swamp water beneath.

The water was bitterly cold, instantly soaking through their battlesuits and shocking their systems. The thick, heavy mud at the bottom of the marsh reduced movement in their legs and hands. This made it almost impossible to swim or push themselves back up.

"It’s a marsh! The ground is fake!" one of the intermediate rank 3 warriors screamed, thrashing wildly in the dark water. "Help me up!"

"Grab my hand!" another warrior said from a floating block of ice.

However, the cold water and the sudden fall were only the beginning of their nightmare.

The sudden splashes and human voices across the vicinity instantly alerted the rank 3 chaotic beasts lurking beneath the surface of the marsh.

Dark figures moved rapidly through the deep, murky water toward the struggling operatives.

Splaaash!

A massive, armored marsh beast erupted from the water. It appeared behind a beginner rank 3 warrior. It opened its jagged jaws. The jaws closed around the warrior’s upper body with brutal force.

Crunch!

"Argh!" the warrior screamed before he was dragged underwater. The mushy water was painted crimson.

"Beasts! There are beasts underwater!" the scout yelled in pure panic.

Chaos broke out.

The remaining operatives in the water tried to use aerial maneuvering to blast themselves into the air, but their worldly energy reserves drained at an alarming speed.

Before they could even activate their affinities, more aquatic chaotic beasts appeared out of the dark swamp.

Jagged teeth tore through battlesuits and snapped through flesh and bones. They dragged screaming operatives to the depths with lethal ferocity.

"Get out of the water! Jump to the solid edges!" the squad leader said. Water wings appeared on his back as he leaped onto a sturdy rock near the edge of the marsh.

An intermediate rank 3 warrior tried to jump out after him, but a long, razor-sharp tail shot out from the muddy water, piercing straight through his chest.

Puchi!

The warrior gasped. Blood came out of his mouth. The beast pulled him backward into the depths of the marsh.

Within less than two minutes, eight of the ten operatives had been dragged into the dark swamp water, their blood turning the white snowfields and floating ice chunks into a dark, frozen red expanse.

Only the squad leader and the scout managed to reach the firm, rocky terrain at the edge of the marshland. They panted heavily. Expressions of fear appeared on their faces.

They stared at the bubbling, blood-stained swamp water.

"They’re all gone..." the scout said, his voice shaking violently as he backed away from the water’s edge. "The entire squad was wiped out in seconds!"

The squad leader stared at the quiet marsh in fear. This place was very terrifying. Were they going to die here?

He realized with absolute horror that the trail of dead beasts hadn’t been left by a fleeing enemy—it had been laid out to lure them directly into this death trap.

"This wasn’t an accident," the squad leader said, his voice filled with dread. "We were guided right into this swamp by someone. Who at all could do this? Could it be one of the Eldorath Empire operatives? Were they not supposed to be dead? Wait... I need to report this to the team leader immediately."

However, before he could grab his comm, the water near the edge began to ripple aggressively. Several large, dark shadows under the surface turned their attention toward the two surviving operatives standing on the bank.

The beasts, crazed by the scent of human blood, burst out of the water and shot directly onto the land, snapping their jaws at the survivors.

Exhausted, terrified, and low on worldly energy, the scout stumbled backward and fell. A beast grabbed his leg and dragged him into the water.

His screams were cut short as he met his death.

The squad leader backed away desperately. He swung his weapon trailing with water blades at an incoming beast, but compared to the beast, he was slow.

Another massive marsh beast lunged from his blind spot. Its jaws closed around his neck, then around his whole body.

An animated glee appeared in the eyes of the rank 3 beast. It had been a long time since it tasted human meat. It was so delicious.

The other rank 3 beasts felt the same as they feasted on the bodies of the humans beneath the swamp.

Within a short amount of time, all ten operatives of group two were dead, swallowed by the camouflaged marsh and its lurking beasts.

3 kilometers away in his base of operations, Aiden observed the silent, bloodied marshland with calm eyes.

The moment the operatives lost signs of life, he absorbed their blood essence.

"Group two is completely dead," Aiden thought comfortably from his seat. "Only group three remains."

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