Translator: Dj22031
Editor: Dj22031
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The Haiyin Castle at night was as elegant and mysterious as ever. Compared to its daytime appearance, the Haiyin Castle was even more charming at night.
The rich fragrance of flowers, the cool sea breeze, and the swaying shadows of the flower branches were the scene that vampires loved most.
When Bai Ju and Xiao Yao led a group of little monsters to meet up with the two special operations teams, they unsurprisingly saw Marne Haiyin and his butler, Salich, standing to his side and behind him outside the carved iron gate of the Haiyin Castle.
The tall and elegant vampire leaned on his cane, obviously having lingered at the gate for a while. Upon seeing the group coming up the mountain path, he took two steps forward and greeted them with a warm yet reserved manner. “Come.”
Bai Ju raised an eyebrow, his gaze sweeping over the castle behind Marne.
Unlike before, Bai Ju could now keenly detect the aura of vampires. Although he still didn’t understand them as well as the monsters of China, he could at least pinpoint their hiding places in the darkness.
Marne Haiyin noticed Bai Ju’s gaze, his smile deepening. He then softened his tone, swallowing back his words of welcome, and instead said, “Your Majesty, the children in my household, bound by etiquette, have not come to greet you in a grand manner. We hope you will forgive them. They have been waiting for a long time in Haiyin Castle, hoping to gain your favor and receive a little guidance.”
Bai Ju frowned almost imperceptibly— “Favor?” It sounded just like those demon kings who had tried to send him little monsters as concubines.
The vampires’ language and etiquette were truly baffling…
In China, a junior greeting someone usually signified warmth and respect, a matter of upbringing and the passing down of tradition; but in the eyes of these vampires, the juniors were like unmarried young ladies, possessing a unique reserve and a clear sense of inferiority, as if their presence was disrespectful to a distinguished guest.
Bai Ju wasn’t sure if this was standard Western etiquette, but he could see that the vampire hierarchy was extremely strict.
The language might also be related to this hierarchy. Bai Ju pondered for a moment, lost in thought, and didn’t immediately reply to Marne Haiyin’s words, appearing enigmatic, consistent with his previous persona.
Marne Haiyin, after all, still had some reservations about Bai Ju’s abilities and attitude. Those who were intimidated tried to tone it down, their conversation shifting from ingratiating remarks to perfunctory pleasantries, attempting to ease the tension on the way to the castle.
Bai Ju silently followed beside Marne, subtly sensing the array Qu Lang and his group had set up on the cliff face, occasionally responding with a polite murmur to indicate he was listening.
These vampires spoke too verbosely, their long sentences often lacking substance. Old Dog Bai, not being a good reader, merely pretended to listen, automatically filtering out the meaningless characters. With his Yao Yao listening beside him, Old Dog Bai could easily drift off. The vampires weren’t familiar with Bai Ju and, out of politeness, couldn’t keep staring at his expression, so they forced themselves to find topics to talk about.
Qu Lang, however, knew Bai Ju better. Seeing this, he nudged Xiao Yao beside him with his elbow and mouthed, “What is Bai Wang thinking?”
Xiao Yao glanced at Bai Ju’s “aloof” jawline, a hint of a smile appearing in his eyes. He pointed to the distant mountain wall with his finger and mouthed, “Check your formation.”
Qu Lang scratched his head, feeling that single people couldn’t understand certain unspoken understandings.
Fortunately, the path from the iron gate to Haiyin Castle wasn’t too long. After crossing a wide avenue, bypassing a fountain that concealed a legacy, and passing through a spacious garden lawn, one reached the steps of Haiyin Castle.
There were no tourists at Haiyin Castle today; the tables, chairs, and decorations from the previous dinner had all been removed, making the entire space seem larger and giving Bai Ju a wider view. He immediately noticed a subtle difference between Haiyin Castle and the previous two days.
Perhaps the magic array set up by Qu Lang and Ling Yun had taken effect, as the previously subtle fluctuations in the legacy revealed some clues.
His right eye felt slightly swollen. Bai Ju lowered his gaze, stepping over the steps of Haiyin Castle, and vaguely saw some bulging black threads flowing along the central axis of the entire building.
Standing at the entrance of Haiyin Castle, Bai Ju raised his head, looking towards the roof; although obscured by the buildings, he could still vaguely feel the abnormality in his right eye.
…No wonder.
After all, all the horror games at Haiyin Castle were inside the castle, so it was no wonder the person behind it would try to concentrate the power of all three inheritances in one place within the castle; with the accumulated soul fluctuations over the years, even things of the same nature would become more mysterious under the amplification of these fluctuations.
This also explained why the inheritance’s seal was targeted as a “ripe fruit” when it was extremely strong and showed no signs of loosening; because three times the power gathered in one place was more than enough to break the seal, and as long as these powers were artificially guided before they burst out, it was not difficult to systematically drain them all. It was quite a clever scheme.
Judging from this perspective, the person behind it was definitely not someone who had only come to Haiyin Castle once or twice; they may have come several times in different forms, and it may not even have been after the last inheritance…
Bai Ju pondered, many clues quickly forming in his mind.
It’s someone who has lived for a very long time.
It may not be a person, and it may not even be a single person; it could be some other “thing”. It could also be a group of people who had been plotting for a certain goal for generations.
The vampire inheritance of Haiyin Fortress was Yin, a rare and pure power, carried by flesh and blood, not the common cultivation vessel of Chinese demons.
However, such inheritances were not uncommon on the Chinese continent, though they were mostly concentrated in certain special places. But after the decline of the divine path and the closure of the underworld, these places were hard to find. If one was determined to find them, it was not impossible, but one must have similar power reserves, and the rest depended on the right time and place.
Natural Yin Gathering Cave, Taiyin Abyss; Heavenly Punishment Graveyard, Ghost Market, Yellow Spring River… all were similar Yin places, and all were places where this power converged.
A glint flashed in Bai Ju’s eyes.
He hoped he hadn’t misjudged… whether this whole thing was aimed at Xiao Yao, or at him, Bai Ju, or both, was still unclear. But if all these clues matched, he felt that perhaps this matter was aimed at him.
After all, the place where his parents were buried was one of these special places, Heavenly Punishment Mountain Graveyard.
…If it were anything else, it would be fine, but if the person behind this really had designs on his parents, Old Dog Bai would turn into a mad dog in no time.
Without making a sound, Bai Ju reached out and tugged at Xiao Yao’s hand, signaling to Marne that they needed to check their surroundings, then turned his head and said, “Yao Yao, come with me.”
Xiao Yao naturally agreed but felt a sudden chill in Bai Ju’s usually warm palms.
Meeting Bai Ju’s reassuring gaze, Xiao Yao paused for a moment, then beckoned Ji Yun to the two of them: “You organize today’s array detection data and conclusions. Bai Ju and I will check and discuss them with you later.”
Bai Ju nodded and added, “I’ve also prepared some cultivation techniques for zombies. I’ll give you a written version later. You can study it and ask me if you don’t understand anything.”
Ji Yun’s eyes lit up, and he nodded hurriedly: “Okay, Bai Wang! I’ll go prepare today’s array summary right away.”
Now he finally had someone to discuss cultivation theory with; before, he couldn’t find anyone who could understand his analysis, so he could only simply and crudely list the conclusions and probability data for others to refer to. He was also grateful that these freaks from the Special Operations Bureau trusted him, otherwise he would really have no use at all.
A hint of approval appeared on Bai Ju’s face. Talented individuals like Ji Yun, born with exceptional intelligence, were actually the best candidates to serve as imperial advisors in the past. They could use their wisdom to discern the secrets of heaven without suffering the backlash of possessing the power to defy fate. Instead, they often lived to a ripe old age thanks to their wisdom. Historically, there were ordinary humans like Ji Yun who lived to be three hundred years old, roughly the same lifespan as a common minor demon.
Considering this, it seemed to explain where this guy’s perpetually youthful face came from; it was probably not just a genetic issue.
Although starting to study this now was a bit late, judging from Ji Yun’s performance, at least he had entered the right path.
Unable to resist shifting his gaze to Xiao Yao, Bai Ju thought, his Yao Yao truly deserved to be called an imperial star.
The emergence of a new imperial star would bring a cluster of rare talents. Bai Ju had initially been 80% certain about Xiao Yao’s identity, but now he had to raise it to 90%, or even 100%.
Not to mention… he had seen far too many exceptional individuals around Xiao Yao.
Xiao Yao spoke a few more words to Ji Yun, mostly about the arrangements for the other members of the special operations team. As he spoke, his voice gradually softened…
While Bai Ju kept staring at him. His gaze was direct, obvious, and hard to ignore, but it was unclear what he was looking at.
Xiao Yao couldn’t take it anymore.
He quickly finished his instructions, not looking up at Bai Ju, but simply tugging at Old Dog Bai’s arm and pulling him away: “Let’s go, Brother Bai.”
Bai Ju snapped back to reality: “Hmm.”
Bai Ju coughed lightly, following Xiao Yao’s lead, and whispered to him, “Yao Yao, take smaller steps…”
Feeling inexplicably embarrassed by Old Dog Bai’s stare and wanting nothing more than to escape everyone’s gaze, Xiao Yao was speechless.
His ears turned red, and he squeezed out a few words through gritted teeth: “…Don’t stare at me.”
Bai Ju: “???”
What kind of boyfriend wouldn’t let you look at him? He’d seen his whole body; what was wrong with looking at his face?
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