An Unsettling Encounter and a Fateful Reunion

Outside Dongchuan City, in the rarely trodden wilderness.

[Two uncontrolled individuals have escaped from the Mutual Aid Society. Your mission is to neutralize them before they cause any trouble.]

Leaning against his motorcycle, Wu Liyun listened to the voice crackling through his communicator, drawing a sharp breath as the frigid air pierced him. He had mistakenly believed that becoming a Bloodkin would render him impervious to temperature shifts, yet the wilderness outside the city had just delivered a harsh lesson.

‘It’s truly cold,’ he mused.

[We’ve just received notification: according to the Association’s observations, the Winter Solstice Moon has moved near Three-Point Peak. The entirety of Dongchuan is now within its sphere of influence. We recommend you don protective gear before proceeding.]

Unlike the enclosed city, the climate beyond its walls often shifted dramatically, influenced by the active presence of Blackbloods.

This very instance served as a stark example: the mere movement of the high-ranking Winter Solstice Moon from within its territory to its periphery had plunged the entire outer region into a desolate expanse of ice and snow.

Could anyone truly inhabit such a place?

Even he, a Bloodkin, found the climate shifts wrought by the Blackbloods unbearable, making him wonder how the desolate inhabitants of the outer reaches managed to survive.

Donning a fully sealed protective suit and cranking up the internal temperature, Wu Liyun finally felt a tangible sense of being alive as the rush of warm air enveloped him.

He then produced a circular device; its screen displayed two incessantly blinking green dots, marking the targets of his mission: vampires deemed ‘uncontrolled’ by the Bloodkin.

“According to radar, target number one is near Safe House 3.”

Straddling his motorcycle, Wu Liyun set off towards his destination.

“Can you get to the point?” Yao Jing urged. Now, it was quite late, and Villy, seated on the opposite sofa, was already stifling yawns.

‘Didn’t you tell me to say everything I needed to say?’

Harboring these silent complaints, Wu Liyun resumed his narrative—

[You are nearing the target. Proceed with caution.]

“Understood.”

After deploying the miniature camera from his protective suit to survey the area, Wu Liyun meticulously observed his surroundings.

This was a derelict village near Safe House 3, its deserted streets littered with the shattered remnants of collapsed buildings, hinting faintly at a forgotten prosperity.

Wu Liyun recalled this place vividly: once a renowned resort, it had bustled with an endless stream of tourists daily. He himself had visited a few times, each experience proving thoroughly satisfying.

Yet, all of it had been utterly destroyed following the emergence of the Blackbloods. After the residents were relocated en masse to the city, most of the facilities had crumbled into ruins, left untended.

“Creak.”

Pushing open a still-intact iron door, he cautiously surveyed the interior of the house. According to his radar, one of his targets was concealed within.

Surprisingly tidy,

almost as if someone had been living there long-term.

‘Could a desolate inhabitant reside here?’

The thought instantly heightened Wu Liyun’s vigilance. He scanned his surroundings, and only after confirming no one was present did he dare to proceed.

Those peculiar beings who dwelled in the wilderness were often impossible to guard against; falling into one of their traps, even a Blackblood would find themselves in dire straits.

Continuing to follow the radar’s guidance, he reached the corner to the left of a bed, where an unmoving ‘person’ lay, a metal ring clamped around their ankle.

Wu Liyun bent down to examine it: a desiccated body, an indistinguishable face. The ankle ring, used for tracking, was still attached. Undoubtedly, this motionless corpse was one of his targets.

‘Had someone already taken care of it?’

“Click.”

“Who’s there!”

The sound of something falling echoed within the room. Wu Liyun straightened up, instantly on guard, his inner black blood surging, ready to enter combat at a moment’s notice.

Looking towards the source of the voice, he saw a small figure, cloaked in a black overcoat, had appeared in the room at some unknown point.

‘How? Had this figure been here the entire time? No sound of a door opening, no footsteps. He had confirmed no one was inside upon entering.’

‘Had it killed target number one?’

‘Was it human, or something else entirely?’

Before the black-clad figure’s inquiry concluded, it spoke again, its voice deliberately lowered: “Can you take me away from here?”

“Crash!”

Recalling certain ghost stories, Wu Liyun, his nerves already strained to their absolute limit, simply crashed through the house wall, fleeing the village in utter terror.

“So you just left her there alone?”

Villy gazed at Wu Liyun, speechless. Thanks to the photo that had been shown, she could already picture Xiu Lan tearfully sobbing.

“Do you know how terrifying her entrance was? I nearly thought I was going to die there. But I was truly foolish then. Why didn’t I just talk to her first?”

Wu Liyun pounded the table in regret. If only he had known then that the black-clad figure was Xiu Lan, he would have been ahead of the game from the very start.

“What happened after that? How did you two meet?”

Yao Jing inquired.

“It was five days after that initial encounter. I had gone to [He Hai] for family matters, and only upon my return did I realize my camera, left behind in the ruined village, had been continuously transmitting data. Driven by curiosity, I meticulously reviewed the videos and, quite fortunately, discovered Xiu Lan within them.”

“Afterward, I ventured into the wilderness once more and brought her back to Dongchuan.”

Wu Liyun recounted this with a casual air, yet both knew full well the immense difficulty of searching for someone amidst the perilous wilderness.

‘What had compelled him to persevere?’

Villy felt a sense of crisis she had never experienced before.

“I have one more question.”

Yao Jing brewed another cup of black tea. He then asked, “What exactly is Xiu Lan’s Bloodthirst Syndrome? Or rather, does she truly suffer from it?”

After a brief silence, Wu Liyun spoke. “Brother Yao, since you haven’t experienced this illness, you wouldn’t understand. I’ve witnessed her during an episode and can assure you that Xiu Lan indeed has Bloodthirst Syndrome.”

“When she first had an episode, what kind of medicine did you give her? Was it a regular inhibitor or a special Bloodkin inhibitor?”

Villy pressed, knowing Wu Liyun’s next answer would unveil a portion of the truth.

“That day, I gave her a regular inhibitor, but it had absolutely no effect. So… taking a gamble, I gave her the Bloodkin inhibitor, and to my surprise, it actually stabilized her condition.”

“…..”

“…..”

“I see. It’s possible Xiu Lan’s current state is due to a lack of Blackblood supplementation.”

Considering Xiu Lan’s consistent hunting of Blackbloods during the time reversal, Yao Jing succinctly drew his conclusion. He turned to Villy and said:

“I will go to the Supervisory Bureau to retrieve some Bloodkin inhibitors. We’ll meet tomorrow at Xuyang, and I’ll give them to you. Remember not to overdose, and do not tell her the truth. Contact me anytime she takes them.”

“Understood. I will make sure to supervise her and ensure she takes her medication on time,” Villy replied earnestly.

The inhibitors contained Blackblood. Vampires, by consuming these Blackblood-infused inhibitors, transformed into Bloodkin.

The Bloodkin, in turn, were classified by Duo Shi as a type of derivative species. So, what then was Xiu Lan, who subsisted on Blackbloods and vampires? Pushing this further, what were Vanguard, and even the Heroes, who were closely connected to her?

The words of The Doctor and Mo Zhixing’s warnings echoed once more in Yao Jing’s mind.

The separated Outer Realm and Inner Realm, the Association and Supervisory Bureau operating independently, and the Heroes and Blackbloods defying all logic.

This world had always been rife with contradictions.

********

********

Hiding in a dim alley, Xiu Lan leaned against a wall and peered out, discerning several figures running down the street by the combined light of the moon and streetlamps.

“We should be safe now.”

The grey-haired girl let out a long breath, finally letting her suspended worries ease, and leaned against the wall, her chest heaving violently with each ragged gasp.

Today was, without a doubt, her unlucky day.

After leaving Yao Jing’s house, she had immediately run into a Night Watch patrol. She had assumed her Shadow ability to diminish her presence would allow her to pass unnoticed, but at the crucial moment, the ability had utterly failed her, leading to her being chased for several blocks by the Night Watchmen.

Xiu Lan could still recall the peculiar expressions on the faces of those Night Watchmen.

‘Dressed suspiciously in the dead of night, yet brazenly walking right past them.’

It was only when someone couldn’t help but call out, “Wait!” that Xiu Lan realized her Shadow ability to reduce her presence had failed. Everyone present could see her perfectly clearly.

After a moment of staring at the Night Watchmen, she made a decision she would deeply regret:

She instinctively fled!!

Ahhh! Ahhh! Ahhh!

Xiu Lan agonizingly clawed at her hair. Fortunately, her Shadow ability to enhance her physical capabilities hadn’t malfunctioned, allowing her to escape from those ‘big brothers.’ The cost, however, was that all the Night Watchmen in the area were now converging to apprehend her, a suspicious individual.

Xiu Lan tugged at her black overcoat. Whereas it once could wrap her entirely, it now barely covered her, feeling more like a short-sleeved garment. Not only was her body exposed, but even her face could only be partially concealed.

If she were caught now, or rather, if her face were seen, it would likely cause a major incident.

From what she had learned recently, while the Outer Realm and Inner Realm weren’t openly hostile, they maintained a one-sided state of wary vigilance. If Vanguard, a heroic figure of the Association, were discovered to be lingering here long-term, it could, at best, lead to her being sent home, and at worst, ignite a diplomatic crisis.

‘I’m not mentally prepared to go to the Inner Realm yet!’

After her attempt to transform into Liu Yu failed, Xiu Lan sighed once more. It seemed this method was also a bust.

“Hello.”

Someone tapped Xiu Lan on the shoulder.

“…….E-e-e-e-e-e-e-AHHHHH—”

After a brief silence, the girl’s scream tore through the night, piercing the heavens.