Blood Queen - Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Returning to the City

***

The middle-aged man with a full beard was called Huang Gu, at least that was his name for now.

Huang Gu was just an unfortunate soul who, after being blood invaded, chose not to affiliate with any vampire family or faction. Instead, he went into hiding like a stray dog, changing his identity, and had now become a member of the small town.

Over the past 30+ years, Huang Gu had to change his location every 7-8 years. He slowly grew from a lowly Thrall-level, like an insignificant insect, to his current mid-level Servant status. However, due to his poor personal aptitude, he had been stuck at this level for over a decade, unable to advance further.

Perhaps in a few more years, he would have to change his identity again and find a new place to settle.

The memories of his former family had already become blurred. Huang Gu now only had a simple secluded life, and he had experienced the entire process of this country’s transformation from isolation to openness and prosperity.

……

Late at night, on the highway from D City to C City, a small truck began to slow down. After a few dozen seconds, it gradually came to a stop outside a tunnel entrance.

Several dozen cars were already stuck in front, and Huang Gu stuck his head out from the driver’s cabin to look into the depths of the tunnel. He could see a temporary checkpoint set up halfway through.

“Hey, this is the 4th checkpoint we’ve encountered today. Who knows what happened in D City a few days ago…”

Huang Gu flicked away his cigarette butt and spat out the window, then slightly turned his head to look at the cargo compartment behind him.

At this moment, Xia Yan was fully focused, pressed against the cargo compartment wall behind the driver’s seat. Her right hand held a gun that had been loaded and ready since they set out, while her left arm was wrapped around the drowsy Gu Yao.

For some unknown reason, Gu Yao had shown symptoms similar to blood thirst shortly after they set out. Her entire spirit seemed to be getting weaker and weaker, looking as if she was carsick, although her body temperature hadn’t shown any abnormalities yet.

Along the way, Xia Yan had even opened a bag of blood, attempting to feed Gu Yao, but she vomited as soon as it entered her mouth, as if the blood smelled unbearably foul to her.

Feeling the small truck slowly inching forward in the tunnel, Xia Yan quietly put away her gun.

“Officer, I’m heading to C City. Hey, it’s the May Day holiday, and my two nieces want to go play.”

After checking the driver’s license in his hand and comparing the photo, the stern-faced traffic officer didn’t say anything. The colleague beside him, also dressed as a traffic officer, used a device similar to a video camera to scan Huang Gu for about 10 seconds.

Seeing his colleague slightly shake his head, the police officer turned his gaze towards the cargo compartment, putting on a serious expression: “You’re driving a small truck. Carrying passengers in the back is against traffic regulations, don’t you know? I’ll write you a ticket, and you can pay the fine online yourself.”

Saying this, the two traffic officers walked towards the cargo compartment door, one in front and one behind.

“Hey, in our countryside, isn’t this how we always do it? When we’re not carrying goods, we sometimes give relatives a lift. It’s not a big deal.”

Huang Gu nodded and bowed, accompanying them to the side, and personally opened the cargo compartment door.

Two beautiful young girls were cuddling in the center of a pile of packages. The black-haired girl wore a light blue T-shirt with grey-black skinny jeans, while the light golden-haired girl wore a snow-white T-shirt with blue denim overalls. Both wore sneakers, looking just like college students out on a holiday trip.

“Uncle Huang, could you drive a bit slower? I’m feeling a bit carsick.”

Xia Yan first glanced at the traffic officers with a slight start, then spoke softly to Huang Gu, her arms tightening around Gu Yao.

The traffic officer holding the special device scanned the two girls for about 10 seconds, then shook his head slightly.

Facing the device’s lens, Xia Yan maintained her composure, but her heart was racing, and beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.

She knew this was the Dark Arrow Unit’s specialized thermal imaging recorder, capable of precisely sensing a person’s surface body temperature. This was already the 4th inspection they had encountered since setting out today, but it had become much simpler.

A vampire’s surface body temperature is generally about 2 degrees lower than that of ordinary people, enough to expose the identity of any unprepared vampire, or at least serve as key evidence.

At this moment, in front of the Dark Arrow members disguised as traffic officers, the outlines of the two girls were clearly visible on the thermal imaging recorder’s screen. The data seemed normal, and the light golden-haired girl’s body temperature even seemed a bit high.

“Is it worth it to save that little money? Aren’t you afraid of getting heatstroke in the car at this time of year? Sigh…”

Looking at the sweating girl, the traffic officer muttered and shook his head, making a gesture to let them pass to the blockade line behind him.

As the small truck drove out of the tunnel, Xia Yan’s body relaxed, leaning weakly against the cargo compartment wall, feeling as if her entire body was soaked in sweat.

Now, they had successfully entered C City.

……

J District, C City, an old riverside neighborhood awaiting demolition.

Across the river, brightly lit skyscrapers were within reach, while here it was like a series of huge garbage piles waiting to be sorted and recycled — old, messy, lifeless, and empty.

Under the dim street lights, a small truck slowly drove by, finally stopping in a dark corner.

The cargo compartment door opened, and Xia Yan supported Gu Yao’s weak body as they got off the truck. She gave a grateful smile to the bearded uncle.

“There’s still some of this temperature-raising medicine left, you keep it. It’s good to be prepared. As for the internal and external hormone inhibitors, consider what I gave you earlier as a gift. I can’t give you any more, they’re expensive. You’ll have to find a way to get them yourselves.”

Huang Gu, with a cigarette in his mouth, fished out a small paper box from his pants pocket and handed it to Xia Yan.

After being monitored and accompanied all the way, Xia Yan knew she had made the right bet this time. The middle-aged vampire man in front of her, who at most would be considered an E-level mission target, was a trustworthy fellow of their kind.

“This is the contact information for C City’s underground shop. Blood, temperature-raising medicine, they have it all. If you’re lucky, you might even be able to buy both internal and external hormone inhibitors there. As for your identity issue, you can contact this person to solve it.”

Huang Gu pulled out another piece of paper and a business card, waved them under the street light, then folded them together and handed them to Xia Yan.

“Thank you, Uncle Huang…”

Xia Yan nodded lightly, tightening the travel bag on her shoulder and steadying Gu Yao’s body.

“I’ll take care of the aftermath of the Yang Ping family affair. As for the road ahead, you’ll have to choose for yourselves… Remember the rules of the vampire world, don’t drink ordinary people’s blood in someone else’s territory. If you don’t know the background of others, avoid them if you can. We vagrant vampires can live longer if we keep a low profile and avoid trouble. Sigh, even vampires have their own society.”

Saying this, he laughed self-mockingly and pulled open the car door.

The figures of the two girls gradually disappeared into the darkness. The half-life of the external hormone inhibitor drug injected a few hours ago had not yet passed, so Huang Gu couldn’t sense their specific whereabouts.

The surroundings of the small truck fell back into silence, even the distant street light dimmed weakly. Huang Gu exhaled the last puff of smoke and took out his phone.

“Sister Wan, it’s me, Huang Gu… Mm, I’ve found two promising newcomers, but there’s something strange. Their strength after blood boiling could reach the Servant level. Could you take a look…

“…Yes, they have rare blood types. I suspect they might be former Dark Arrow members who were blood invaded, possibly related to the Tang family incident yesterday morning.”

After hanging up the phone, Huang Gu started the small truck and drove away.

In the demolition-pending neighborhood forgotten by the prosperity of the times, in a dilapidated building that had already lost half of its walls, Xia Yan gently laid down the confused Gu Yao.

In the dim candlelight, Xia Yan gazed at the weak, flushed face of the light golden-haired girl, touching her feverish arm. After a few minutes, she silently unwrapped the gauze from her wrist and once again raised the fruit knife.

The previous cut had healed without a trace at some unknown time, leaving her wrist looking new. A new line of blood appeared, oozing droplets, and the air was filled with an invisible fragrance that only certain groups could smell.

Gu Yao, leaning against Xia Yan’s side, twitched her nose a few times, then suddenly opened her eyes like a puppet being controlled. Her pupils turned red within seconds, but the depths of her eyes remained lifeless.

Almost before Xia Yan could reach for the cup, Gu Yao tightly gripped her wrist and pressed her small mouth against it.

The sound of greedy sucking and swallowing rose and fell softly. Xia Yan felt as if Gu Yao’s tongue was trying to penetrate her wound.

“Huang Gu looked at me and Xiao Yao with a kind of fear, but when he first appeared, his strength was far above mine and Gu Yao. Xiao Yao’s burst state, which came from who knows where, instantly left Huang Gu powerless. It’s probably something only a Servant-level would have.”

“What did that terrifying giant flesh monster turn Xiao Yao into? And what about me? Am I really okay?”

Stroking the side of Gu Yao, who was muddled but engrossed in blood-drinking, Xia Yan fell into deep thought.

A gust of wind blew out the candle in the corner of the wall. Gu Yao, with a face full of satisfaction and happiness, fell asleep in Xia Yan’s arms. Xia Yan, however, had no hint of sleepiness and just stared blankly at the night sky through the broken wall.