The confidant said, “Elder, the position of Clan Leader must be held by someone with both virtue and capability. Your subordinate believes that such a critical role can only be fulfilled by you!”
Nangong Yuanwang pondered for a long while before replying, “While it’s true, the arrow is already on the string. Even if we want to impeach the third elder, we must wait until this matter is resolved. However, even with a strategy of using one enemy to fight another, we cannot do nothing. Send some people to infiltrate Heilu City, keep an eye out for opportunities, and see if anything can be done.”
The confidant agreed, then flattered, “Young Master Song Zining is just a fledgling, how many battles has he really fought? With your personal involvement, success is guaranteed. When you return victorious, everyone in the clan will rally behind you!”
Nangong Yuanwang was pleased, and couldn’t help but stroke his beard with a smile.
Qian Ye rushed forward, not taking long to leave the mountainous area and reach the edge of the war zone. As he passed through a valley, Qian Ye suddenly heard the faint roar of engines. He immediately concealed his aura and stealthily approached, only to find a sizable convoy moving slowly along the valley.
The convoy consisted of over ten heavy trucks, their cargo covered tightly with waterproof tarps, making it impossible to discern what they were carrying. Nearly twenty troop transport vehicles, more than the number of trucks, accompanied them. The escort force was sizable and the warriors were not weak. From the sheer strength of the guards, it was clear the convoy carried valuable goods.
The Blood War Zone was a place of utter chaos, with no rules or laws to constrain anyone. Battles broke out constantly. This convoy’s presence in the war zone was indeed daring and risky. Even if the Empire’s forces intercepted the convoy, they could blame it on the dark races. During the Blood Wars, no one would have the inclination to investigate, and even if they did, they wouldn’t find much.
Therefore, despite having triple the usual escort, the convoy proceeded cautiously, choosing the most discreet routes. Qian Ye had no particular thoughts about the convoy and didn’t intend to get involved, so he prepared to quietly retreat.
But Qian Ye suddenly found the convoy somewhat familiar. Upon closer inspection, he finally noticed the issue. Though the trucks were disguised and their markings painted over, they still retained many original features. Qian Ye remembered that Song Zining’s Ningyuan Heavy Industries had a large number of these types of trucks. These models were quite new and uncommon in the Evernight. However, the escorting forces were not Ningyuan Heavy Industries’ squad, appearing to belong to three different groups, likely temporary mercenaries. This was why Qian Ye didn’t recognize them at first.
Given the convoy’s secretive movements, Qian Ye decided not to approach further to avoid misunderstandings and continued south. He walked at a moderate pace, most of his attention focused internally. Next to his heart, the newly formed blood core seemed to have entered a dormant state, showing no signs of activity.
Vampire blood cores completely replaced the function of the heart, usually pulsating slowly to circulate blood, but he had never heard of a dormant blood core. However, Qian Ye had also never seen a blood core embedded with crystals.
On his journey, Qian Ye had tried multiple times to activate the blood core, finding that by inputting more origin power, there were faint signs of activity. After several attempts, he had a sudden thought—could it be that the formation of the blood core had not consumed enough essence blood, leading to its dormancy?
This thought made Qian Ye sigh bitterly. The shocking amount of essence blood required to form the blood core had already left him astounded, and now it seemed even that was not enough, forcing the core into dormancy.
A vampire’s blood core not only replaced the heart but was also the source of various powerful abilities. Yet, Qian Ye still wasn’t sure what the new blood core had brought him, aside from the reinforcement of his vampire constitution, which had elevated his physical strength to a new level. But this alone seemed a meager return for such a terrifying consumption.
After half a day, the iron curtain overhead was at the edge, revealing a line of clear sky in the distance. Here, in the traditional territory of humanity, the dark races were far from reaching this far.
The Blood War was still in its early stages, and the dark races were less prepared than the Empire, suffering major losses. However, the dark races’ overall strength far exceeded the Empire’s. As they continued to deploy heavy troops, the battle would become increasingly fierce, and the current calm was only temporary.
In the distance, another military unit appeared. This unit numbered nearly a thousand, well-equipped, and traveled in dozens of troop transport vehicles, rumbling towards the war zone. The trucks bore no markings.
Qian Ye hid in a nearby grove, waiting for the unit to pass. A strong presence clearly oversaw the convoy, with piercing eyes that almost penetrated the small grove. Qian Ye felt a chill run down his spine, slightly startled, and further concealed his blood aura.
The strong individual scanned the grove, finding nothing unusual, and the convoy rolled past the trees.
After the unit departed, Qian Ye emerged from the grove, watching the dust cloud recede, frowning. In that moment, Qian Ye keenly sensed the blood aura from that person. Despite the excellent concealment, it couldn’t escape Qian Ye’s true vision. To his surprise, he discovered over a hundred high-ranking vampire warriors hidden within the unit.
The appearance of a mixed human and dark race unit at the edge of the war zone was highly unusual. Their movements were worth close observation. Judging by their route, they would soon converge with the mysterious convoy, likely targeting it.
Since the mysterious convoy was probably related to Ningyuan Heavy Industries, Qian Ye could not ignore it. He sneered, his killing intent rising, and followed the unit led by the vampire strongman.
The mixed unit moved swiftly, intercepting the convoy in a hilly area beyond the canyon. It was clear they had precise intelligence, otherwise, they wouldn’t have headed straight for the target.
Upon seeing the rapidly approaching unit, the convoy fell into panic. A middle-aged man, his face ashen, shouted, “How could there be interceptors here? Damn it, someone betrayed us!”
The people around the middle-aged man shared similar expressions. The distant unit, judging by its size, was clearly far more powerful than the convoy.
The middle-aged man jumped onto a truck, shouting, “No one is to flee! In this place, there’s no escape, and they won’t spare anyone! Everyone prepare for battle; we’ll fight them to the death!”
The convoy’s mercenaries, though from different teams, quickly mobilized. The trucks were protected in the center, while the troop transports formed a defensive perimeter. The middle-aged man directed the opening of a truck, revealing a camouflaged self-propelled heavy cannon.
The intense battle erupted, and the heavy cannon began to roar, overwhelming the battlefield with deafening sounds. Each shot sent waves of soldiers flying. Even high-ranking vampires, if hit directly, would be severely injured if not killed.
In the center of the mysterious unit, several figures stood atop the command vehicle, observing the battle. Most had pale faces, dressed in elegant, retro attire, with blood-red eyes, clearly high-ranking vampires, led by two Third-Level Viscounts. Besides the vampires, there was a human, not very powerful, only Level 8, yet the two viscounts treated him with respect, indicating a special status.
As the heavy cannon fired repeatedly and the attacking vehicles were destroyed one by one, the middle-aged man nodded, saying, “With such defenses, multiple times the normal, this convoy is real. Our intelligence was correct.”
The leading vampire viscount grinned menacingly, saying, “To know if it’s real or not, we just need to check the cargo.”
He gestured, and the other viscount dashed out with incredible speed, crossing the battlefield, tearing open a truck, grabbing a crate, and returning like lightning, dropping the crate on the ground. His swift entry and exit ignored the convoy’s defensive perimeter.
This display filled the mercenaries with despair. They could only scream and unleash furious firepower to alleviate their fear.
The crate was opened, revealing neatly arranged gun barrels. The human man picked up a barrel, examined it, and nodded, “These are barrels for Second-Level Origin Power rifles. No mistake, this is the shipment.”
The vampire viscount grinned, saying, “Then what are we waiting for? It’s time to dine.”
Just as the viscount was about to order the attack, the human man interjected, “Viscount Kas, send the message back first. The lord is awaiting a decision.”
Kas, visibly displeased, still gave the order. Moments later, several blood eagles with crimson wingtips took flight, heading towards the distance.
Atop the hill, Qian Ye watched the blood eagles fly overhead, silently noting their direction, and continued to approach the battlefield. He was within sniper range but didn’t stop, advancing until he was within five hundred meters. He then drew his vampire sniper rifle and fired.
At this distance, aiming was unnecessary, and with Qian Ye’s skill, he wouldn’t miss. The targets on the command vehicle felt the threat too late to dodge, resorting to defensive measures.
The origin power bullet whistled in, surprising the target, neither the leading Viscount Kas nor the important human, but another speed-oriented vampire viscount.
The viscount grunted, his protective blood aura shattered, and a fist-sized wound appeared on his thigh. While not a serious injury for a vampire, it would affect his speed.
Having scored, Qian Ye charged at full speed, firing again. But Kas was ready, shifting to avoid the bullet. He saved himself, but not his men. A blood knight behind him was blown off the vehicle.
Qian Ye fired two more shots on the way, missing Kas. Kas used his unpredictable vampire movement to great effect, dodging three shots on the limited space of the command vehicle.
However, Kas suddenly felt something amiss. Turning, he saw that besides himself, the human, and the other viscount, all his subordinates were gone, either dead or injured.
Qian Ye was now only a few dozen meters away, his speed erupting. He appeared like a phantom before the command vehicle, his Eastern Peak sword cleaving down with mountainous force!
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage