The giant blood-red k'lor'slug, still dripping in blood, seemed to have understood Saryn's provocation and directly lunged with its maw wide open.
Rows of sharp teeth reflected in Saryn's eyes as he maintained his usual focused disdain.
Saryn sidestepped to the left of the advancing beast with a smooth spin and directly landed a savage overhead slash on the creature's rear left leg, severing it from the base of the crimson k'lor'slug's body.
Blood splattered all over the ground where the beast had previously stood, as it fell, unbalanced by the loss of a hind leg.
The ancient room trembled under the weight of the fall, dust and pebbles falling from the roof.
A screech tore through the chamber.
Pain gripped the giant k'lor'slug, a sensation it had never endured from the day it was born in the depths of the blood pool.
Since it could remember, it had been the one who had instilled fear in others, but for the first time, the beast felt what terror was really all about.
Being unable to even harm its prey and being hurt by it caused fear to rise in the heart of the beast.
But it didn't give up.
It reared up on its remaining five legs, compensating for the lost leg by putting more weight on the others.
Once again, it rushed at the man in front of itself, ready to devour him in a single bite.
"Hahahah! Come on! We're just getting started!" With a savage laugh, Saryn kept dodging the beast's relentless assault and hacking at different parts of its body, covering it in steaming scars.
"Screesh!" Despite the pain, the k'lor'slug refused to back down even for a bit and kept recklessly rushing at the terror-inducing Sith in front of it.
"Stop attacking in a straight line, beast! Learn from your mistakes at the very least!" Saryn screamed in fury as the beast kept repeating the same attack pattern, even though it hadn't worked before.
It couldn't be blamed for not trying different strategies.
It never had the need to learn any, since most of the fights it went through ended after its first bite.
But this time, as if it understood what Saryn had just said, it tried something different.
Rather than attacking with its maw, the beast tried to sweep Saryn off his feet with its lower body.
"That's right! Keep going till the bitter end!"
"Try new things! That's what it is all about!"
"You need to struggle to beat those stronger than you!"
"Even if you're forced to crawl, you can't stop!"
"Because if you do, you'll die." Saryn's eyes held deep praise as he looked at the blood-covered k'lor'slug in front of him.
Despite its body being covered in deep scars and blood flowing down from every part, it still didn't give up.
That was much more praiseworthy than the cowards he had encountered in the Tomb of Ajunta Pall.
The fight kept going on, the blood pool's temperature rose each time a part of the k'lor'slug's body was sliced and blood splattered on the ground.
The blood in the pool started boiling furiously as if it felt the inevitable fate of the k'lor'slug it had nurtured.
It was as if it was a sentient entity, using the dark side to express its anger at Saryn, yet powerless to change the outcome of the fight.
Despite the pain and fear, the beast never stopped until the very end, when its body couldn't even support it anymore.
Then, it lay there on the ground, with its multiple eyes looking at Saryn, still filled with fury.
"I'll remember you, k'lor'slug. "
"Take pride in the fact that, at least, you didn't die a coward." With one last slash of his warblade, Saryn decapitated the beast, ending this fight that, for once, had provided him with some entertainment.
'How far has this place fallen…'
'To think a mere beast proves more entertaining than the trash gathered at the Academy.'
'That won't do, I'll reform this place once I become one of the Dark Lords.' With disappointment, Saryn walked back to the edge of the blood pool he had felt come alive during the fight.
"Hurry it up, will you? I don't have all day." Saryn doubted the Blood Pool was truly sentient. At most, it was an ancient Sith creation, lingering on one of the galaxy's strongest dark side nexuses for ten thousand years, absorbing some of its power.
But, as if it had understood what he just said, the blood pool spat out the skull, now completely crimson in color, at Saryn.
"Perfect," with a smirk, Saryn caught the skull and directly walked to the exit of the room.
"I really need to take a shower." With a shake of his head, the ancient doorway closed behind him, and he exited the ritual chamber.
The moment he stepped back into Overseer Ragate's office, he felt the sharp contrast between the Academy and the Ritual Chamber.
The Academy felt modern, cold, and metallic, reflecting the Empire's modern infrastructure.
In contrast, the ritual chamber had a warm, bloody feel. It was the way of the ancient Sith, of whom he was a distant descendant.
The ancient Sith from Korriban and Saryn's own species were physically distinct.
For example, the ancient Sith only had three fingers, while Saryn had five.
That was due to a long period of interbreeding between the Sith and the Human dark Jedi who landed on Korriban, led by Ajunta Pall who ended up becoming the founder of the Sith Order after subduing the Sith species.
"It is done, Ragate." Having exited the ritual chamber, Saryn tossed the blood-infused skull at the Old Overseer.
"Now tell me what you see."
"Indeed, you return, child, I heard the screams of the shyracks and the rippling of the blood pool and the dying breath of the Bloodfiend. I heard the sounds of its death and knew you had succeeded."
"The skull you brought back, your rage and your actions drowned it with the dark side. It is part of you. I can read it." The old woman looked intensely at the skull in her hands.
"Then what does it say?" Saryn asked in anticipation.
"A great opportunity will come to you."
"It will make your rise amongst the Sith much smoother than others."
"If you use it well, it could even lead you to one of the highest seats." Now looking at Saryn's eyes, the old woman spoke of what she had seen by reading the bloody marking carved in the skull.
"And what is this opportunity supposed to be? When will I encounter it?" Saryn asked, despite guessing she wouldn't be able to answer any of those questions.
"That is all I see for certain, child. I can say no more," as expected, Overseer Ragate shook her head.
"I am thankful, Ragate. I owe you one." Not bothered with it, Saryn's smile once again appeared on his face.
"Thank you, child."
"This old woman will still be around until the next keeper of the old ways appears on Korriban at the very least. You are always welcome to come back." The old Overseer answered with a smile.
"I'll see you around then, Overseer." With a nod, Saryn departed from the office.
That was a rare show of respect from Saryn.
Since he had figured his standing in the Academy's hierarchy when Rance promised to support him, he hadn't felt the need of showing respect to mere Overseers.
But Ragate was different. She was old and wise, and had also been of help to him. There was no reason for him not to call her by her title.
'Well, not knowing the exact future doesn't matter much.'
'What I know is, if this opportunity exists, I can't let it slip by.'
'I don't want to be an Apprentice for a decade. I have better things to do.' As he walked through the cold, metallic halls of the Academy, clasping his hands behind his back toward his personal room, Saryn thought about what the old lady had said.
Saryn was absolutely confident that, in time, he would become a Lord or even a Dark Lord with a seat in the Dark Council.
The question was not if, but rather when, he would become one. If he could save a few decades by taking this opportunity, he definitely would.
'At the very least, I need to become a Lord as soon as possible so that I can start building some proper connections and my own faction.'
'What an enjoyable day it has been. For now, I need a shower.' Feeling sticky from the blood, Saryn shook his head and headed toward the showers.
While Saryn was taking a shower, two women, one old, one young, met in a private office on the third floor of the Academy.
"My Lord, your chosen Acolyte has completed the Ritual of Blood and Bones successfully." Ragate respectfully addressed the lady in front of her.
"Did he now? He is indeed as good as I saw earlier, in the training grounds." Lord Zhorrid remained seated behind her desk with an interested look in her eyes.
"What do you think, Commander? Isn't my future Apprentice as good as I told you? Even the Ritual of Blood and Bones that no one managed to pass in the last decade wasn't enough to stop him." Lord Zhorrid said, addressing the leader of her bodyguards proudly.
"Absolutely, my Lord." Commander Jakker didn't even hesitate to agree. He knew better than to enjoy the lady he was guarding.
"Commander, I already told you to be more casual with me." With a pout, the Lord looked with a side eye at her bodyguard.
"Ah… Yes, Lady Zhorrid." Jakker couldn't refute the request.
"Much better."
"So, what did you see in the skull, Ragate? I heard from my father that you could even see the future while looking at the blood-infused skulls." Lord Zhorrid's focus once again went back to Overseer Ragate.
"It is indeed possible, my lord."
"But most of the time, the future remains obscured. It was so this time as well." Overseer Ragate didn't let anything show on her face and lied to the Lord about what she had seen, just as she had not revealed all she saw to the young pureblood earlier.
"How unlucky."
"I would have loved to hear about what kind of future my Apprentice is fated to have." Regret and sadness flickered across Lord Zhorrid's eyes.
"Too bad, I guess."
"But passing the ritual already proves he's nearly ready for my trials."
"Now, only his classes remain, and then, my cute Apprentice will be ready to serve me." An innocent smile appeared on Lord Zhorrid's face as she imagined the future.
"Indeed, my Lord."
"You will have gained one of the most excellent Apprentices to have walked the sands of Korriban once he finishes his class. I will congratulate you in advance." Overseer Ragate congratulated.
"You are correct again, Ragate."
"You people of the old ways really understand the Sith ways the best." Lord Zhorrid nodded happily.
"I will take my leave, my Lord. I still need to tend to the Ritual Chambers." Overseer Ragate bowed respectfully.
"Go ahead, Ragate. Great job again today!" Lord Zhorrid returned to her work, reading a datapad that flashed with holographic text, and Ragate exited the office and returned to her own Chamber.