Chapter 52: The Night of the Demon’s Wild Dance

The two stood in a stalemate for several seconds before simultaneously sniffing the air, each detecting the scent of fresh blood on the other.

“Which clan do you belong to? Why are you here?” the young maiden asked in a low voice.

“I was about to ask you the same thing,” Qian Ye replied.

A red glow flickered in the maiden’s eyes as she said, “You aren’t here to disturb my meal, are you?”

“I was just about to leave. But I have to say, your taste is rather lacking!”

“This is none of your concern!” the maiden hissed, revealing her vampire fangs in a threatening manner.

Qian Ye slowly retreated, turning the corner and continuing down the stairs at a steady pace.

The vampire maiden’s eyes flashed with a fierce light, but as she listened to the sound of Qian Ye’s steady footsteps and recalled the fleeting crimson glow in his eyes, she hesitated and finally let him go, silently running up the stairs.

Only when Qian Ye exited the building did he breathe a sigh of relief. He quickly activated the Bingsha Jue to suppress the blood aura he had forcibly summoned earlier.

Lingering any longer would increase the risk of being exposed. The moment he sensed the maiden’s blood, he immediately activated his dark vision and tried to stir the blood energy within him. Surprisingly, it worked so well that the maiden mistook him for one of her own kind.

Putting the incident behind him, Qian Ye quickened his pace towards another target.

As he passed an alley, Qian Ye narrowly avoided colliding with a tall, lanky man. Both of them froze, pulling back slightly.

Qian Ye didn’t stop, hurrying away.

The long-limbed man stood there for a moment, watching Qian Ye’s retreating figure, his brow furrowed in thought. He muttered to himself, “That person was carrying Eagle Strike! Strange, could he be from another legion of the expeditionary force?”

He shrugged, spitting disdainfully, and said, “I hate dealing with these scumbags from the expeditionary force! But why does this guy seem so familiar to me?”

This odd individual was Yu Renyan, who had taken his trip to Dark Blood City as a vacation. He had spent days hunting dark races alone, even joining a mercenary group to eradicate a nest of spider demons. It wasn’t until the situation on the plains grew tense that he decided to return to the city.

He brushed past Qian Ye but didn’t recognize the completely transformed Qian Ye, both in appearance and essence. Moreover, Qian Ye was carrying Eagle Strike, and those capable of using such a weapon were no ordinary individuals. Yu Renyan despised dealing with the expeditionary force and even if he did, he might not be a match for someone who could wield Eagle Strike.

He stood there for a while, feeling something amiss, but couldn’t pinpoint what. With a sigh, he left. Just as he stepped out of the street, Yu Renyan saw a burly man striding by and called out, “Stop!”

The man halted, slowly turning to face Yu Renyan with a menacing grin. “Looking to die?”

Yu Renyan cracked his knuckles, his voice icy. “I think it’s you who’s looking to die! I smell the stench of a gray-skinned mongrel on you!”

The burly man leaned forward, his tone cold. “So, a little hunter, huh? What of it? Do you think I’m like the other werewolves? You are mistaken!”

“Coincidentally, I seem to be a bit different from other hunters as well.”

With that, Yu Renyan charged at the burly man.

The battle erupted and ended in a flash!

Half the street crumbled into ruins, and then two figures separated, each flying in opposite directions and vanishing into the night, leaving behind a chaotic scene.

Not far away, Qian Ye was heading towards a five-story building. The sudden clash alerted him, and he turned to see the blur of a fast-moving figure streaking by the alley.

Both the speed and the emanating source energy made Qian Ye’s heart race. He quickly composed himself; in these perilous times, the more normal he appeared, the safer he would be.

Dark Blood City was in utter disarray, with an unknown number of dark races infiltrating and wreaking havoc.

But Qian Ye knew this wouldn’t last. The expeditionary force would not tolerate such chaos and would soon initiate a brutal search and extermination of the dark races. However, such searches often resulted in more innocent civilians getting caught in the crossfire than actual dark creatures. In a lawless city, the most vulnerable would always be the defenseless commoners.

Gathering his wits, Qian Ye observed the surroundings of the building.

Compared to the squalid high-rise he had just left, this building was clearly of a higher class. It had rows of floor-to-ceiling windows, freshly painted walls, and several large metal pipes for fuel, steam, and hot water. A burly security guard sat in the foyer, and there was even a parking lot in front.

People living here were considered upper-middle class in Dark Blood City.

Qian Ye headed straight for the entrance. The guard instantly rose, his massive two-meter frame blocking Qian Ye’s path. “Hey, kid, who are you here to see? This isn’t a place for you to loiter.”

The guard tapped a steel baton against his palm, eyeing Qian Ye’s adventurer garb with ill intent. Suddenly, his movements ceased as Qian Ye’s fist slammed into his gut!

Qian Ye’s entire forearm sank into the guard’s belly. The guard’s eyes bulged, his face draining of color, then flushing red.

Withdrawing his fist, the guard collapsed, slowly keeling over. Qian Ye struck the back of his neck with a chop, knocking him unconscious.

Qian Ye dragged the guard into the guardhouse, closed the door, and headed up the stairs, reaching the fifth floor in moments. There were only two apartments on this floor. Qian Ye stopped at the left door and knocked.

A small window opened, revealing a sharp, gaunt face. The man eyed Qian Ye warily, asking, “Who are you looking for?”

The moment he spoke, he went pale, staring down the barrel of a gun pointed at his face through the window. The gun was unusually large, and its ominous presence was evident. Seeing the glint of source energy, the man trembled, realizing his iron door was no barrier to such a weapon.

“Open the door,” Qian Ye said calmly.

Before the man could move, Qian Ye placed his left hand on the small window and, with a sudden burst of strength, tore the entire iron door, frame and all, from the wall!

The neighboring apartment’s window cracked open, revealing a plump, middle-aged woman’s face. She peeked out, her expression shifting from anger to shock, her heavily painted lips wide enough to fit a valve.

With a slam, the woman shut the window, extinguished the lights, and heavy objects thudded to the ground, followed by silence.

Ignoring whether the woman was truly unconscious or just pretending, Qian Ye entered the now unguarded room. The middle-aged man, now at gunpoint, backed away until he fell onto the sofa.

Qian Ye pulled up a chair, sitting across from the man, and asked calmly, “Mr. Liao?”

The man’s face went ashen, and he stammered, “Y-yes, I am! Hero, we can talk. I have some clout in the Sky Serpent Gang. Whatever you want, just name it! Anything within my power, I will do it!”

Qian Ye smiled. “What I want is simple: the bounty on my head. It seems to be a thousand gold coins, right?”

Mr. Liao leaped up, exclaiming, “You’re Qian Ye! How dare you… come back?”

“Not only have I returned, but I’ve also brought many gifts for the Sky Serpent. Mr. Liao, you are one of them.”

“I—”

Before he could finish, Qian Ye rotated the cylinder of his revolver, pulling the trigger. A source energy bullet ripped through Mr. Liao’s body, leaving a gaping hole in his torso.

Mr. Liao looked down at the horrifying wound, gurgling and trying to cover it with his hands. But his hands barely rose halfway before he collapsed on the sofa, motionless.

Qian Ye stood, hearing faint noises from the inner rooms. That must be Mr. Liao’s family—a wife, two concubines, and several children, according to the records. But this time, Qian Ye had no intention of extending the slaughter and turned to leave.

Killing Mr. Liao would be a severe blow to the Sky Serpent. Half of the gang’s success was due to Mr. Liao’s strategic planning.

Sky Serpent was a powerful Level 5 fighter, but his strength lay in defense, not offense. Mr. Liao enabled him to navigate the city’s factions skillfully and even build connections with the expeditionary force.

Eliminating Black Wolf and Mr. Liao was like removing two of the Sky Serpent’s fangs. The gang still had three elite fighters, but Bird should be cowering in fear, and the other two would need to reconsider their future after the Sky Serpent’s defeat. Dark Blood City was not dominated by the Sky Serpent alone.

All of Qian Ye’s actions tonight had yielded good results. He planned to rest and tend to his injuries before continuing to confront the Sky Serpent Gang in a couple of days.

Returning to his small inn, Qian Ye collapsed on the bed, exhausted. Today, he had expended a significant amount of source energy and was utterly drained.

In a secluded villa on the other side of the city, Yu Renyan stood in the bathroom, pouring a bucket of ice water over his head. He had three deep, long wounds on his body, the flesh mangled, nearly gutting him.

The ice water caused his face to twitch, but it washed out much of the clotted blood and debris.

Yu Renyan took a bottle of black liquid and aimed the nozzle at his wounds.

Out came a pale blue flame! The flame licked the wounds briefly, but Yu Renyan collapsed in agony, writhing and drenched in sweat. He panted, his eyes filled with hatred, madness, and a touch of exhilaration.

The burly man was extremely powerful, a Level 6 fighter whose combat skills rivaled Yu Renyan’s. Their brief exchange left both severely injured, but the burly man was likely in no better condition.

Once the pain subsided, Yu Renyan dressed and walked out of the bathroom, calling in a comely young woman. “Find out from headquarters what’s happening around Dark Blood City. Why are so many dark race vermin flooding in?”