"Hahaha hahahaha!" The demon vessel could be heard laughing in pure glee, his voice almost dark and otherworldly, echoing through the room. His eyes remained pitch black, as if shadows had spread deep inside them, giving him an even more terrifying presence.

Then he wiggled his mouth and swung it forward, unleashing half a mouthful of saliva that struck Max directly in the face. The dragon instinctively closed his eyes as the disgusting liquid hit him.

"That's what you get for thinking you can best me. Even if you defeat me, you can never defeat him, so let me go!" The demon vessel roared, gathering every ounce of strength in its body.

With a brutal kick, it smashed its leg directly into Max's abdomen, causing the dragon to skid an inch backward. Max instinctively let go of the vessel as it turned sharply and bolted into the hole created in the wall, attempting to escape.

'Seems like he was newly turned, hence he knows nothing about dragons,' Max sighed. He grabbed his shirt and wiped the disgusting saliva from his face, his eyes tracking the fleeing demon vessel carefully.

"Move out of the way!" the vessel shouted at the couple standing in front of him, shoving them aside with brute force as it bolted toward the exit in plain view.

"Now, which system skill can I use on him? How do I even kill him?" Max asked himself, surfing through his system screen while keeping one eye on the vessel's hand already grasping the doorknob.

'Okay, this is perfect.'

[Claw Slash Activated]

Max's claws began glowing with an intense orange light. Without hesitation, he swung his hand outward, generating a deadly claw slash in the air. With a loud whoosh, it sliced through the room at a terrifying speed, heading straight for the fleeing vessel.

TCHWK!

The slash struck the demon vessel's back neck precisely as his hand touched the doorknob. In an instant, his head was cleanly sliced off, sliding from his neck as his body slumped to the ground with a loud, heavy thud.

"AHHHHH!" The female escort screamed in sheer horror, her hands covering her mouth as she stared at the fallen body.

'Hpmh! And to think that just a few months ago, I struggled hard against a demon vessel. I nearly died at the hands of one. But now… I just killed one like it was a boring chore,' Max thought casually, flexing his claws slightly as he looked down.

"Aren't you focusing on the wrong thing right now?" Pix asked, shimmering into view, her eyes glinting with concern.

"Which is?" Max replied, raising a brow lazily.

"Now that you've killed him, how will you gain the information you wanted?" Pix questioned, her voice calm but firm.

"Oh yeah! That's right." Max mumbled, dragging a hand across his face as he heard the female escort shout again. She bolted out of the room, dragging the man along with her, leaving the room eerily quiet except for Max's footsteps.

Staring at the hole he had created using the three men's bodies, Max walked forward and took in the scene. Their bodies were sprawled across the ground, motionless and completely defeated.

"This will have to do." He murmured as he crouched down and picked one of the men up. With only half of his strength, he swung his hand across the man's face in a loud, resounding slap. In a split second, the man's eyes snapped open.

Tears streamed down his face, flowing in waves from the sting and pain of the blow. His cheek reddened instantly as Max's palm imprint remained firmly pressed against it.

When the man saw the pair of glowing yellow eyes staring down at him, his heart skipped dozens of beats in mere seconds. Scanning the room, his gaze landed on the demon vessel's headless body a few meters away, making his pulse race even faster.

'He… he… he killed him? But how? Terry is strong. But how did he die? He is strong enough to take on twenty armed men alone, and he lost to this stranger? Crap! This is bad,' the man gulped loudly, his eyes widening as he stared at the dragon standing calmly in front of him, glowing with lethal power.

"Pl…pl…please don't kill me… I beg of you, please don't kill me." He pleaded, bowing his head quickly in fear, unable to meet the dragon's piercing gaze. His voice trembled with every word, and his body shook uncontrollably.

"I won't kill you, as long as you tell me everything I need to know." Max coldly said, his yellow eyes burning as he stared down at the man in front of him.

"Anything! I will tell you everything you need to know. I won't hide a single thing, just please spare my life!" The man cried, hot tears streaming down his face, soaking the collar of his shirt.

"That's good." Max smirked, leaning back slightly with an air of casual dominance. "First off, what is going on in this town? And who exactly is that dude?" He asked, pointing toward the headless demon vessel lying nearby.

"Ye…yes, I know everything… we know." The man stammered, tears flowing freely. "He is something called a demon vessel, and he is not the only one. There are quite a few of them, and he is part of the second gang that secretly rules this town."

"Huh? Part of the second gang that rules this town?" Max asked, frowning slightly, his eyes narrowing as he processed the information.

"Ye…yes. They are called the Dark Forces, and they are ruled by a very powerful figure. So strong that even our gang leader could not defeat him, and we were forced to submit to their authority.

On the surface, it seems like two gangs rule this place, but in reality, the Dark Forces are the true leaders, holding our gang tightly under their control," the man explained, his voice quivering as tears continued to stream down his face.

"What did you guys plan to do with me today?" Max asked, raising an eyebrow. The man swallowed hard, his entire body trembling under the dragon's gaze.

"W…w…gulp!" he choked, gulping loudly as if trying to summon courage. "Part of the reason the Dark Forces spared our gang is because of a condition. We are forced to provide offerings to their leader at a certain time."

"Let me guess… humans?" Max asked, a look of disgust creeping onto his face.

The man nodded shakily. "Not just any humans, but those with a lot of essence in them."

"Essence? What is that?" Max asked, tilting his head in confusion.

"He means life force. Every human has it," Pix explained softly, her voice calm but serious.

"Anybody with a large amount of essence, we would lure using the escorts provided by our gang leader. Then, after drugging them, we would take them back alive to the leader of the other gang, who would do whatever he desired with them," the man continued, voice trembling.

"How do you know who has a lot of life force in them?" Max asked, raising a brow, his eyes narrowing.

"That's where the demon vessels working with us come in. The vessel you saw leaning against the wall can sense whether someone has enough essence, then signals the escorts.

When we sensed you and your friend, we realized your life force was very high, which likely meant you were hybrids. That is why a demon vessel came along with us," the man admitted, sobbing uncontrollably now.

"Three questions, and I want clear answers," Max said, leaning forward, his piercing gaze making beads of sweat form on the man's forehead. "First, are you part of the Dark Forces gang?"

"No!" the man shouted immediately, fear in every syllable.

"How many people have you lured to the Dark Forces?" Max asked next, his tone low and threatening.

"Th…thirty," the man replied, swallowing hard, completely unsure of how this stranger would react but frozen with fear.

"For my last question… your leader… where is he?" Max asked, his eyes glowing an intense, fierce yellow as the room seemed to shrink under his gaze.

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