Chapter 1 Fangs

Fangs pierced the guard's neck, like two straws inserted into a bubble tea.

Aside from an initial scream, the guard could only whimper, as his blood frantically gathered at his neck and was sucked into A'ming's mouth.

In this state, he couldn't even scream, only experience a stifling, deathly oppression.

The guard seemed to hear the sound of blood flowing like a stream. His strength, his energy, even his soul, seemed to be constantly peeled away from his body.

Of course, he resisted. He couldn't accept his fate. Though he was blind and didn't know what kind of demon he had encountered, his sword still showed his unwillingness to give up and face death!

"Pfft!"

"Pfft!"

"Pfft!"

The sword ceaselessly churned and pierced through A'ming's body.

A'ming shuddered, but the satisfied smile on his face became more and more obvious.

For A'ming, this feeling, this warmth, this taste…

He had missed it for far too long!

At this moment, it was as if half a year of confinement was completely torn away. He found himself again, reverting to his true self!

Blood,

Sacrifice,

This belongs to me,

A feast!

When the guard opened the door and thrust his sword at A'ming, Zheng Fan almost instinctively grabbed a chair as a weapon.

Liang Cheng had been kicked away, his condition unknown. At this moment, Zheng Fan wasn't thinking about running away because this world was completely foreign to him.

Aside from this inn, aside from these seven, or rather, six people, where else could he go?

But A'ming's transformation and the subsequent turn of events left Zheng Fan bewildered.

Although he didn't understand – wasn't everyone supposed to be ordinary now?

But,

Things were at least developing in their favor.

Feng Si Niang also appeared at the door, watching the scene unfold. Unlike Zheng Fan, her eyes weren't filled with surprise, but with excitement!

He was recovering. No, even if it was just a little, he was really starting to recover!

Although she didn't know why, if he could recover, then... what about me?

Half a year of ordinary life was a torture for them, who had once been demons!

So, even after everyone had become ordinary, when Zheng Fan chose the second path, everyone showed excitement!

They were unwilling to be silent, unwilling to be ordinary, unwilling to live a normal life of birth, old age, sickness, and death. Even if they lost their power, even if they lost their former abilities, their hearts were still unwilling to be ordinary!

What's more, now, she saw… power!

"Ugh..."

The guard's skin began to wrinkle, and his body quickly deflated like a balloon being emptied of air.

Finally,

"Thump!"

The guard's body collapsed, leaving A'ming impaled on the door, his feet dangling above the ground.

Blood still stained A'ming's lips.

He stuck out his tongue and licked them, seemingly unwilling to waste any of the essence.

Then,

He lowered his head,

Looking at his mangled abdomen and the sword pinning him there.

A'ming reached out, but couldn't quite reach the hilt.

Zheng Fan immediately realized what was happening. He dropped the chair and ran to A'ming, instinctively wanting to grab the hilt, but hesitated.

It was said that when a person was stabbed, the weapon shouldn't be removed casually, as it could cause greater harm.

But did that apply to A'ming?

"My lord, how long will you admire the view?"

"Uh..."

Zheng Fan grabbed the hilt with both hands and tentatively asked again:

"Pull it out?"

"Pull."

Zheng Fan exerted force. The first attempt failed!

He took two deep breaths and tried again, this time without holding back.

"Pop!"

The sword was pulled out, and the momentum caused Zheng Fan to stumble back several steps before regaining his balance.

However, facing the situation, he really didn't know what to do.

Fortunately, he didn't have to do anything. Feng Si Niang came out of the inner room and unceremoniously kicked A'ming in the head, asking:

"Want me to find you a coffin?"

"Yes."

Then, Si Niang pointed to the pool of blood on the ground,

And said:

"Want me to stuff these guts back in? Sew up your stomach?"

"No need. I've had my fill of blood. As long as my head isn't broken, I'm fine."

"Tsk, tsk." Feng Si Niang said enviously, sighing, "You vampires are so convenient."

"Heh heh heh..." A'ming was actually smiling, though his voice was weak and feeble because his body below the neck was in such a miserable state.

"If you want convenience too, I can bite you."

Let you become my chū yōng (first embrace, turning someone into a vampire), and let you become a vampire.

"Alright, I'll think about it when I'm really old, so I can save money on cosmetics."

After a pause,

Feng Si Niang bent down, staring at A'ming's face, and continued:

"When did it happen?"

For half a year, everyone had been diligently and conscientiously turning over a new leaf, trying to be ordinary people. Who would have thought that suddenly, there would be a traitor among them.

"Yesterday."

"Why?"

A'ming turned his head with some effort, looking at Zheng Fan, who was still standing there holding the sword:

"My lord... has awakened."

For a moment,

Si Niang's eager gaze made Zheng Fan feel uncomfortable. Seeing that A'ming's condition was bad but probably not life-threatening, Zheng Fan immediately dropped the sword and ran to the other side, helping Liang Cheng, who had been stabbed and kicked away, to his feet.

This was the first time Zheng Fan had touched Liang Cheng's body. It was a bit heavy, and most noticeably, his skin was cold.

Liang Cheng's upper garment had a large tear, and there was a wound on his chest, but it didn't seem deep. The blood flowing out wasn't much, but it was black, like oil.

"Are you alright?" Zheng Fan asked with some concern.

Liang Cheng shook his head. "I'm fine."

If an ordinary person had been hit by that sword, they would probably have been cut in half, but Liang Cheng was a professional performer who broke stones on his chest at the inn. It was no exaggeration to say he was "thick-skinned."

"Clean up and send him away first," Feng Si Niang said.

The guard had been killed, and the young master had been captured alive. The next step was not to rush to interrogate and find out about the "worldview," but to deal with the aftermath first.

"My lord, please come with me," Si Niang said, then looked at Liang Cheng, who was clutching his wound, and pointed to A'ming, who was still lying on the ground. "Help him clean up."

Liang Cheng was weak, but he nodded. He tore a piece of colored cloth from the room, hastily bandaged his chest wound, and then began to tidy up A'ming, who was lying on the ground.

Zheng Fan was led by Si Niang into the inner room. The young master with the stockings around his neck was unconscious by the bed.

"Does my lord like stockings too?" Si Niang asked as she pulled Zheng Fan to sit in front of the dressing table.

"What man doesn't?"

"If you like them, I'll wear them just for you next time."

As she spoke, Si Niang took out many items from the dressing table drawer. She dug something out of a small jar and rubbed it in her hands, then applied it to Zheng Fan's face.

The smell was pungent, and his skin felt a burning pain. Zheng Fan didn't know what she was doing, and he didn't dare to ask. He just sat there.

"My lord, you can close your eyes."

"Okay."

Zheng Fan closed his eyes and felt Si Niang's hands rapidly "working" on his face.

Was she putting on makeup?

Or... was it a disguise?

After about ten minutes, Si Niang massaged Zheng Fan's shoulders a few times and said:

"My lord, you can open your eyes now."

Zheng Fan opened his eyes and saw that his appearance in the bronze mirror had changed drastically. He looked about 70% similar to the guard.

"My lord, we need to take off that person's clothes and put them on first. I need to tidy up here myself."

Wearing the clothes of the dead was taboo, but now that the person was dead, there was no such thing as taboo.

Zheng Fan nodded obediently. He pushed open the door and saw that the floor had been wiped clean by Liang Cheng. There was also a wooden bucket next to it, containing what had just flowed out of A'ming's stomach. If it was cleaned, it could be used for hot pot.

A'ming himself was placed in another bathtub, with only his head exposed.

Liang Cheng pointed to a corner, where the guard's clothes were piled up. "There's some blood on them. My lord, find some silk to tie around to cover it up."

"Oh, okay."

Without holding back, Zheng Fan began to change his clothes there.

Just as he finished changing, Si Niang came out of the inner room. Even though he was mentally prepared, Zheng Fan was still shocked.

The person who walked out was not Si Niang, but the young master.

This disguise technique was truly superb. It might have some flaws when used on others, such as himself, but when used on herself, it was completely effortless.

Si Niang walked up to Zheng Fan with white powder and silk in her hands, arranging his hair while covering the blood stains on his clothes.

At this moment, Zheng Fan couldn't help but sigh:

"Too similar."

Si Niang smiled, proudly saying: "My lord, my disguise used to be called the second greatest evil art in the East."

"What's the first?"

"ps (Photoshop)."

"..." Zheng Fan.

"Alright, all done." Si Niang picked up the sword, sheathed it, and placed it in Zheng Fan's hands. "My lord, let's go downstairs."

This was the planned procedure. Since they had come to the inn, they had to leave, so the inn could be cleared of suspicion.

Zheng Fan imitated the guard's posture, holding the sword in his arms, and followed Si Niang down the stairs.

At this hour, the inn was not as lively as during peak hours, but there were still four or five tables of customers drinking.

Seeing the two figures, one of the customers couldn't help but slap the table and laugh.

Si Niang, looking embarrassed, glanced around and scolded:

"Vulgar, unreasonable!"

The scolding was forced, and her face was as red as if someone had caught her pigtail.

The details were absolutely perfect.

Zheng Fan continued to follow Si Niang expressionlessly, holding the sword. He didn't have Si Niang's acting skills, and he didn't dare to improvise at this time.

The "young master's" embarrassment only made the customers laugh even harder, and some rude words were thrown over even more recklessly.

The young master quickened his pace, hurriedly leaving the inn, as if he couldn't stand to stay there for another moment.

Just as they walked out of the inn, they saw Blind Bei returning from outside.

One hand carried a snack package, and the other carried some fine silk.

It was easy to imagine that Blind Bei had "served" the city patrol officer's wife very well, staying late into the night, and even receiving generous gifts upon leaving.

The two sides met at the door, nodded almost imperceptibly, and then those entering continued to enter, and those leaving continued to leave.

Zheng Fan followed Si Niang, walking down the street.

To be honest, this was the first time Zheng Fan had walked so far. The farthest he had ever gone before was Blind Bei's fortune-telling stall at the entrance of the inn.

After walking for about a quarter of an hour, Si Niang slipped into a side alley, and Zheng Fan naturally followed.

The alley was a bit like a hutong (alley) in old Beijing, with the doors of each household close together.

Si Niang took out a key, opened a door, and motioned for Zheng Fan to come in.

"My lord, this is another foothold we have in this city. Change your clothes now, and then we'll go back. Take off the clothes, and I'll take care of them."

"Oh, okay."

...

"So, there was almost an accident?"

Blind Bei sat beside the bathtub, holding an orange, peeling it as he asked.

"Sort of. We underestimated this world,"

A'ming said calmly, sitting in the bathtub.

"Well, that was my mistake." Blind Bei generously admitted his mistake in planning.

"It was your mistake, but it doesn't matter, because I think only a world like this can excite us."

Blind Bei nodded as he put a segment of orange into his mouth, then held another segment to A'ming's mouth.

"If I eat it, it'll leak out," A'ming said.

"I want to see."

A'ming didn't open his mouth.

Liang Cheng was still wiping the floor, doing the cleaning.

Blind Bei thoughtfully said: "We still don't have enough manpower. Oh, right, we need to get some ash from the stove and spread it around here later. There's still a smell of blood."

Liang Cheng nodded, indicating that he understood.

"Fortunately, there were no real dangers. Now we're just waiting for Xue San to come back with the stolen goods. However, I still think that what's really useful to us is this big fish you just caught. After tonight's work, our initial view of this world should be successfully opened."

"You guys keep busy, I'll go interrogate the young master."

"Wait for my lord to come back and interrogate him personally," A'ming said.

"But I think my lord won't do it, and will push it to me to do it instead."

"But the process still needs to be followed," A'ming reminded.

"Hiss..." Blind Bei sucked in a breath in surprise, turned to look at A'ming in the bathtub, and a smile gradually appeared on his face, saying: "So, is that why you were the first to recover part of your strength?"

"What?"

"We agreed to pretend to be demure, but you secretly licked your way to the front."

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This is my second book on Qidian, and I need everyone's recommendation tickets.