Chapter 50: The Vampire’s Prey (50)
The Archbishop refilled the tea three times.
The Archbishop finally finished telling every last detail about the Tree Lizard’s time at the Church, from the time he accidentally blew up the chapel while experimenting with a new array, to the fact that he used to have to hug a doll to fall asleep as a child.
Yu Jiao maintained her fake smile of ‘reminiscing about my long-forgotten first love’ and occasionally chimed in with a few words.
“It’s clear that Miss Yu’s feelings for the Tree Lizard run very deep,” the Archbishop sighed, half-sincere, half-false. Then the Archbishop leaned in conspiratorially. “I know how to bring him back from the dead.”
Yu Jiao: “…”
No, thank you.
Though Yu Jiao was politely declining in her heart, on her face, she put on an expression of extreme surprise, a tearful smile.
“Really?!”
“Really.”
The Archbishop said with a composed air, “But… I need you to get something for me.”
“What?”
The Archbishop smiled slightly. “The badge that was ‘borrowed’ by the First Young Master Xie and has not been returned.”
Seeing that Yu Jiao seemed to hesitate, the Archbishop pressed his advantage and continued to persuade her. Yu Jiao watched with cold eyes as he twisted the truth, her face showing a timely expression of ‘being successfully persuaded’.
When the Archbishop’s mouth was dry, Yu Jiao finally seemed to have made up her mind and nodded. “Alright, I will—”
Before Yu Jiao could finish, her face went pale, and she suddenly coughed up a large mouthful of blood. An extremely alluring, bloody fragrance filled the air.
“Holy Blood?”
The Archbishop’s attention was drawn. He didn’t notice Yu Jiao’s lowered eyelashes, which hid the calculating, dark glint in her eyes.
The Archbishop took a drop of the blood and sniffed it. After a moment’s thought, he understood. “Miss Yu has awakened the body of the Son of God, but she lacks the corresponding power, so her body is breaking down step by step.”
A glint of cunning flashed in his eyes. A plan formed in his mind.
“But please rest assured, Miss Yu. My Church has records of a treatment. I will also help you with your physical problems.”
The Archbishop promised with a confident air and, as if to comfort her, patted her on the back.
Yu Jiao’s expression didn’t change. She let him secretly place a tracking array on her. She looked up, oblivious, and said in a sweet voice:
“Then I’ll have to trouble you, Archbishop…”
—Then I’ll have to trouble you to kill them.
“No trouble, no trouble,” the Archbishop replied cheerfully.
After a series of moves, both of them had achieved their goals. They both had smiles on their faces, and finally, they exchanged a look, each with their own ulterior motives.
***
The Archbishop was indeed swift.
The next morning, Xie Yanchuan left the academy alone.
Before Xie Yanchuan left, he stood by Yu Jiao’s bed for a long time. Finally, he put something in her hand and then left without looking back.
After he left, the feigning-sleep Yu Jiao opened her eyes and looked at the golden badge in her hand.
“…”
Yu Jiao let out a light, unreadable laugh.
—She had never thought that the usually rational and cautious Xie Yanchuan would actually believe the Archbishop’s slander and think that somewhere in the world, there was a miraculous cure for her body.
Compared to a desperate wait, Xie Yanchuan had actually chosen a path of death, to gamble on that one-in-ten-thousand possibility.
Yu Jiao’s smile faded.
Since Xie Yanchuan had made up his mind and had even left her the Church’s badge to protect her, then she would certainly not let him down.
She would definitely… make good use of this badge.
The news of Xie Yanchuan’s departure spread throughout the academy in a single morning.
As the leaderless blood-race members were in a state of panic, Xie Zhenye knocked on Yu Jiao’s door.
Xie Zhenye didn’t enter. His tall figure was hidden in the shadow of the door, like a mountain, covered in snow. The once-rebellious young man, who had loathed power, had now grown into a leader who could stand on his own.
“I have to leave with some people first. Jiao Jiao—”
“—Will you come with me?”
Xie Zhenye’s gaze was also like a heavy mountain range.
If Yu Jiao were really the illegitimate daughter of the vampire family, ‘Yu Jiao’, then leaving with him, away from the conflict, would certainly be the best choice.
But unfortunately, she was the player, Yu Jiao, who had come to this world with a mission.
“No…”
The sickly young woman leaned weakly against the bed and slowly and firmly shook her head.
“I want to wait for Yanchuan to come back.”
“…”
Xie Zhenye silently nodded, turned, and left, and did not appear again.
The sun set.
Those who should have left had left. Looking at the desolate academy garden, Yu Jiao dragged her increasingly heavy body and rolled out of bed.
—Before she went to the Archbishop to ‘seek death’, there was one more arrangement that needed to be prepared in advance.
Yu Jiao activated [Concealment] and avoided the patrolling followers. Based on the information she had gathered before, she went to the temporary dungeon where the Church held its prisoners.
After knocking out the guards, Yu Jiao lifted her skirt and walked through the dark, bloody stains, the empty cells, and the wailing figures, to the end.
A grating, electric sound crackled.
A huge, tall wolf was weakly curled up in the center of the iron cage. Its brown fur was stained with blood and matted. Yu Jiao could vaguely see the array beneath it, slowly operating, an invisible electric current lashing its body without pause. Its eyes were closed, and it didn’t make a sound, only occasionally twitching in pain, which was the only proof that it was still alive.
I always seem to see Lin Qiuzhe in a dungeon.
Yu Jiao sighed. But this time, he couldn’t even maintain his werewolf form.
Because Lin Qiuzhe was the ‘experiment’ of the Church’s traitor, the Tree Lizard, and the eldest son of a vampire family, after he was captured by the Church, his situation would naturally not be good. But the Archbishop coveted his power, so…
The mountain-like giant wolf suddenly moved and, with difficulty, opened its eyes. When its gaze fell on the beautiful figure at the dungeon entrance, it was stunned for a moment. Lin Qiuzhe subconsciously twitched his nose and, realizing it was not a hallucination, his golden, beast-like eyes burst with a bright light, like two dazzling night pearls, making the dark, cramped cage look like a museum display case.
Lin Qiuzhe staggered to his feet, but was met with an even more severe lashing.
“Don’t move.”
Yu Jiao hurriedly took two steps forward, reached into the cage, and soothingly stroked its mane. “Do you want to get out?”
The giant wolf let out a soft whimper, like a stray dog, found by its master.
Shing.
Yu Jiao drew a knife, its cold blade reflecting her smiling face.
“Then be good. Don’t struggle or resist.”
…
…
Knock, knock.
A careful knock sounded.
A knowing smile appeared on the Archbishop’s face. He eagerly stood up and opened the door.
As expected, Yu Jiao was standing outside, her face colorless, panting. She held out the golden badge and said urgently, “I’ve brought it—”
“Good, very good.”
The Archbishop snatched the badge. “Men!”
The dazed young woman was immediately seized by two followers and forcibly dragged away. Looking at the Archbishop, who had turned on her, Yu Jiao finally seemed to have grown a brain.
“You! You lied to me?!”
The Archbishop put the badge away and laughed loudly. “Miss Yu is too naive. Just wait to collect the bodies of those twins!”
Hearing this, the satisfied Yu Jiao feigned a struggle and was locked in a cage.
Though it was called a cage, it was not the gloomy dungeon where Lin Qiuzhe was held, but a warm room. After all, the Archbishop still wanted to present the ‘Son of God’ to the higher-ups of the Church to get a promotion and a raise.
Yu Jiao comfortably stayed here. There was food when she was hungry, a bed when she was tired. Without having to act and worry about the mission, her complexion even grew a little rosy.
Yu Jiao waited like this for a few days, but what came was not the sound of clearing the game, but a chaotic brawl.
Closer and closer.
Bang!
The locked door was suddenly kicked open.
Yu Jiao blinked and met a pair of familiar, pale eyes. His constricted pupils only slightly relaxed after seeing that she was safe. Just as he was about to step forward, the man suddenly paused, lowered his eyes, and seemed to hesitate.
His well-defined right hand, which was on the door, was covered in bulging veins.
When he looked up again, the emotion in his eyes had calmed.
“Jiao Jiao,” a cold voice sounded. “I’m sorry. I was late.”
“…Yanchuan?”
The man let out a soft hum and gently embraced her, murmuring to himself, “I’m sorry… Come with me.”
Yu Jiao nodded silently. She couldn’t very well throw a tantrum and say she didn’t want to go.
Under Xie Yanchuan’s meticulous protection, no follower could get close to Yu Jiao. The two of them successfully met up with the others he had arranged. A blood-stained underling came up. “Ah, Zhen—”
Xie Yanchuan shot him a glare and froze him in place.
The quick-witted underling’s mind spun, and he awkwardly stopped. “These followers are really like cockroaches!—Hey, boss, don’t mind my smell!”
“Retreat.”
Xie Yanchuan didn’t even look at him, giving a concise command. With that, he held the weak young woman and stepped over the scattered bodies of the followers.
Yu Jiao leaned against his hard chest, her gaze sweeping over his fully armed gear and his clean, blood-free shirt, finally landing on his sharply lined jaw.
Yu Jiao said: “Ah, I wonder where Zhenye is. Is he in danger.”
The man paused and shot her a cool glance. “What? Worried?”
Yu Jiao smiled and nodded, then shook her head. The expression on her face was like she was looking at a riddle, laid out in the open.
Xie Yanchuan was so flustered by her look that his eyebrow twitched, and his Adam’s apple bobbed lightly. He pressed his lips together and said nothing more.
The two of them remained silent. For a moment, there was only the sticky sound of their shoes, stepping on the blood.
His footsteps suddenly paused.
Their path was blocked by an uninvited guest.
Feeling the man tense, Yu Jiao looked up from his embrace and was not surprised to see an equally familiar, handsome face.
This person was covered in blood and dust, which only made his cold, pale face look like jade, like a lotus. His cool, dark eyes were fixed on them.
—Two Xie Yanchuans.
A very cold laugh.
The dirty Xie Yanchuan’s gaze was sarcastic as he looked the clean one up and down. His voice was filled with a suppressed impatience:
“Xie Zhenye, what are you doing in my clothes?”
“…”
A dead silence. It came with the unstoppable force of a steamroller.
The vampire underlings tiptoed and held their breath, retreating to the edge of the battlefield.
After being exposed, Xie Zhenye showed not a shred of shame. Except for not looking at the ‘victim’ in his arms from beginning to end, his actions were quite calm and unflustered.
Xie Zhenye lowered his eyes, placed Yu Jiao on a nearby long bench, and took off the jacket that belonged to Xie Yanchuan, wrapping it tightly around Yu Jiao.
Then Xie Zhenye met his brother’s cold, sharp gaze.
Xie Zhenye ran his five fingers through his hair, messing up his neat hairstyle. Between the messy strands of hair were a pair of sharp eyes.
He curled his lip: “To keep warm.”
Xie Yanchuan sneered and strode over.
Neither of them spoke again, their gazes like a mixture of fire and water.
Xie Yanchuan lowered his eyelids and, with great seriousness, wiped the blood from his face with the back of his hand. His jade-like knuckles were stained with blood. The wiping motion paused, then he clenched his fist and swung at the punchable face.
“…”
An onlooker sucked in a breath.
Cough.
Xie Zhenye turned his head and spat out a mouthful of blood.
The tip of his tongue touched the inside of his broken mouth. He smiled nonchalantly. When Xie Zhenye looked up, his eyes were cold, and he fiercely counterattacked.
The long-suppressed conflict finally erupted.
The two were fist-fighting, like two beasts, locked in a deadly battle.
To say that they were brothers, turned against each other, was not quite right. Neither of them seemed to be dealing a fatal blow. But to say that they were just having a small fight was also not quite right. Their expressions were equally sinister, as if they wanted to tear a piece of flesh from each other.
The onlookers were stunned.
Some of them were brought by Xie Zhenye, and some were brought by Xie Yanchuan, who had heard the news. The two sides just watched, with no intention of getting involved in the brothers’ family affairs.
Outside this magnificent fight scene, no one noticed that a huge shadow was slowly approaching Yu Jiao, who was in the VIP viewing seat.
Amidst the flying rubble, a young woman’s cry of alarm was suddenly heard.
“Ah! Help!”
The crowd hurriedly looked over and saw a giant wolf, holding the young woman’s collar in its mouth, flinging her onto its back and fleeing. In just a few seconds, it was almost out of sight.
The twins immediately stopped fighting, their similar faces growing even more sinister. They called a tacit truce and chased after it.
—Even in their pursuit to save her, it was as if they were competing to see who could run faster.
The slow-witted blood-race students hurriedly gave chase.
“Is that the one who turned into a wolf? He looks so fierce.”
“He seems to be controlled by the Church. I wonder what he’s doing, kidnapping Yu Jiao…”
Over there, Xie Yanchuan and Xie Zhenye were chasing the giant wolf’s tail. They rushed into the familiar auditorium. The slender young woman was lying in the ruins, her life and death unknown.
“Yu Jiao!?”
The two of them rushed forward without a shred of hesitation, their conflict set aside. One of them picked her up, and the other checked her pulse.
Under Xie Zhenye’s nervous gaze, Xie Yanchuan looked up. “She’s fine. She just passed out.”
Before the two of them could breathe a sigh of relief, the dilapidated array, which had been buried in rubble, burst into new life. A red light flashed, and the wind was like a knife, an ominous current circulating.
“Thanks to the Tree Lizard.”
The Archbishop’s triumphant laughter echoed in the auditorium. “Even if the array set up by a genius is broken, if you use the foundation he left behind to set up a new one, the effect is quite outstanding.”
The Archbishop’s figure appeared at the edge of the array. He was holding a staff in one hand and a badge in the other, a picture of a victor.
“Ha! Speaking of geniuses, long before I saw you two, I often heard that the Xie twins were a genius, split in two.”
Hearing this, the genius, split in two, studied the array at his feet with a blank face, giving no reaction.
The Archbishop was not annoyed. He paced around the circular array. “Don’t waste your energy. Although this array doesn’t have much of an attack effect, it can trap you to death.”
Bang!
Xie Zhenye slammed his fist on the barrier with all his might. A ripple-like pattern spread, but the barrier was not damaged at all.
Xie Yanchuan crossed his arms, frowning in thought.
The Archbishop watched the two of them make their useless efforts with cold eyes. He lifted his chin slightly. “You now have two choices.”
“First, sign a blood contract, promising not to harm any follower of the Church again, and offer the ‘Son of God’—that is, Miss Yu Jiao—to the Church.”
Two pieces of parchment were thrown in. Xie Yanchuan, as if he hadn’t seen them, stepped on them and continued to examine the array.
Amidst Xie Zhenye’s sneers, the Archbishop continued, “It’s a pity. If you choose one, you can both live. Otherwise, the second choice…”
“You two.”
The Archbishop’s malicious gaze swept back and forth between the twins, as if he were looking forward to a bloody good show.
“Can only kill each other.”
Seeing that the twins both froze, the Archbishop’s lips curled in satisfaction. “Seize the other’s power to complete your own bloodline. Then you can break through the limit, break the array, and win the beauty!”
—Of course, when two snipe and clam grapple, it is the fisherman who profits.
The Archbishop added in his heart with a smile.
“How about it? Which one do you choose?”
The echo resounded, as if it were the malicious lure of a demon.
Xie Yanchuan looked up and met Xie Zhenye’s gaze. Then they both looked at the unconscious young woman in the center of the array.