Chapter 7

1

After sunset, the city remains bustling. Even in this city, the noise never stops. Nightfall is just another beginning of human life, just like the vampires moving through the darkness. Although they lurk in it, hiding from human detection, their former nemesis has returned. Once they are discovered, humanity will surely launch another siege against them.

"Cain, still stubborn even after all these years in this survival of the fittest era. Can you still survive by feeding on human blood? Humans are no longer the weak prey they used to be," I sighed as I watched the vampires in the city through the large glass window of my room.

"That's because we don't have overwhelming power," a voice came from behind. It didn't sound like Qin Yin, and at this time, Qin Yin hadn't returned yet.

"Do you always enter other people's rooms without knocking? Or perhaps you never used the front door," I said.

Guests are welcome, but impolite guests are not appreciated.

"Kings don't need to knock," Perla, the vampire queen, the last one, and perhaps the revival of vampire royalty, said.

"Hiss~" Perla's long black nails grabbed my neck, and the lights in the room instantly went out under her magic, making the night the realm of vampires.

Perla looked at me seriously. In the darkness, vampires can see more clearly, making it easier to recognize who I am.

"Even though your hair has turned black, I can still recognize you even if you turn into ashes."

"We've only met once, I didn't think I made that big of an impression!"

"Where is my sword?" Perla went straight to the point. That sword symbolized her power and dignity, so retrieving it was her top priority.

"I'll give you the sword, but not now."

"What do you mean?"

"Do you like having conversations like this? It feels a bit kinky," I said calmly.

Perla's nails directly pierced into my flesh, thinking that it would make me compromise, or maybe she still thought I was human.

"Aren't you afraid of bleeding?"

"Ah! I could bleed every day, I'm used to it," I replied.

Perla released her grip on my neck, which was deeply marked by her five nail holes. Fresh red blood slowly flowed out, but for some reason, Perla did not have the desire to drink blood. However, the blood holes on my body were healing, changing at a speed of one per second.

"You're not human, are you?"

"No, strictly speaking, my body is human. But when humans gain enough power, they can sit on an equal footing with gods and demons. Humans just lose because of their immaturity," I carefully wiped the bloodstains from my neck, calmly speaking. I understood that Perla wouldn't kill me until she got her sword back.

"You are definitely not human. You can receive information from the painted symbols and your blood can resurrect me. You have the blood of the Demon Dragon. There's no way you're human."

"Interracial marriages between humans, gods, and demons have been happening for thousands of years. Are there still not many half-human, half-demons now?"

"Alright, so how can you return my sword?" Perla seemed to not want to discuss whether I was human or demon. She clearly knew her objective.

"If you want the vampire race to revive, don't let your subordinates draw too much attention, and don't focus too much on this city. It's not good for you," I said.

"What are you trying to say?"

"I want to restore The Demon Realm to its rightful path. I need a powerful backing," I said.

"What's there to restore in The Demon Realm? Hasn't it always been like this?" Perla sat on the bench and crossed her long, fair thighs. She didn't expect a human like me to say something like that.

The current state of The Demon Realm is already different from what I remember, and although I do want to correct it, the times are changing, and there are many things I can't control. I just want to find the answers I am looking for in crisis after crisis. And if I successfully return to my past identity, there won't be too many obstacles in finding the third path to retrieve my lost memories.

"Will this be beneficial for me?"

"If you get your sword back, I will also help with the revival of the vampire race." My conditions are simple, but definitely enticing. However, I never expected Perla's answer to be "consideration." I don't understand why she needs to consider such conditions; it should be straightforward. Once she agrees, many questions will be resolved.Well! Maybe I thought too simplistically. After a long time, I tried to think in the way of the Demon Dragon again, but it seems that I can't do it smoothly.

After that, Pella disappeared into the night sky. She still had many questions in her heart, but now she couldn't ask anything.

2

One hour after Pella left, Qin Yin returned from outside, but I'm not sure where he went specifically. People have freedom, but it's not as crazy as the demons seeking freedom.

"I thought you would stay outside overnight before coming back!" I couldn't help teasing Qin Yin when I saw him come back with a gloomy mood.

"Today, the fifth elder performed a ceremony, and another candidate left, the only girl." Qin Yin seemed to be very concerned about Qin Hui's death.

"Only one candidate can survive when they meet, isn't that the rule you guys set?"

Qin Yin picked up the crystal stone I placed on the bedside, read the information on it, and then shed a few tears.

"Hui, you used to be my best friend, and we once made a pact to go to the end together."

"Is it because of this crystal that you haven't seen each other for a long time? Come with me." I pulled Qin Yin and walked out of the room, out into the streets, all the way out of the city. On a hill outside the city, I erected a simple tomb, a lonely tomb.

"This..."

"Qin Hui!"

"..." Qin Yin stood in front of Hui's grave, unable to withstand the onslaught of sadness. His eyes were already teary, and tears flowed like rain.

Qin Yin embraced the wooden board on Hui's grave and cried for a long time, perhaps reminiscing about the happy moments with his good friend.

"I went to the Elder's Court today, and they distributed your information. But it seems like they handed out Bai Qin Yang's information, wanting everyone to get rid of you first." Qin Yin wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes. He had to make a big decision to pull himself out of sadness. He didn't mean to blame me, although he already knew that I killed Hui. Qin Yin knew it was inevitable in this selection process.

"In the evening, Bai met Qin Hui, but Bai didn't want to kill. On the contrary, he wanted to deceive the heavens, but it seems like he failed again!"

Qin Yin frowned, looking puzzled. "Why?"

"Haven't you noticed that every time the Elders take the souls of the losers away?" I asked back.

Qin Yin instantly felt that there was a lot of information and couldn't quite understand. After thinking for a while, he said, "No, every time the Elders take them away."

"They have strange gloves on their hands, right?"

"Yes."

"That's right. those gloves are the tools to extract souls. Every time they take away the losers, they rush to take their souls before the death god of the Underworld comes to guide the soul back to the Underworld, then they retrain the next generation of candidates."

"Next...next generation?"

I walked up the hill and looked down at the city, which was very restless.

"Death is liberation. You should be happy for Hui, but she was forcibly brought back into this painful game. I'm starting to dislike the Elder's Court more and more."

"I've always hated them, a bunch of old people who don't know what they want."

"Tomorrow, after the motorcycle race, I want to personally pay a visit to these lonely old people."

I kept watching this night city, bustling, mysterious, and gloomy. This is how I feel about this city that never sleeps now.