According to the pact with the Mouthpiece of the Night, the Vampire Ascension Ritual came with exceedingly intricate requirements.
Beyond sacrificing 1,674 vampire spawn to an evil, great entity, there had to be seven meticulously nurtured spawn who served the lord of sin, each embodying one of the seven deadly sins: pride, envy, wrath, sloth, greed, gluttony, and lust.
As their master, the vampire needed to genuinely, wholeheartedly "love" these spawn.
And once the ritual commenced, the power and blood within these spawn would flow into the primary host, absorbed entirely by the vampire.
Take Alexia, for example—she was the embodiment of pride.
Duke Brad had banished his youngest son, Todd Lackman, to Sige Town in hopes that in that remote backwater, he would grow into the embodiment of envy, ultimately serving as the perfect feast for his Ascension Ritual.
Yet before Todd could enjoy this supreme honor, Langpu had reduced him to mincemeat across round after round of experiments.
"Curse that red dragon..."
At the thought, Duke Brad gritted his teeth in fury.
"I must find another special spawn to take Todd's place. Ideally, a spellcaster."
During ascension, a vampire did not merely drain their victims of blood; they also absorbed all of the spawn's abilities, including spellcasting prowess. That was precisely why he had taken such pains to cultivate Todd into a wizard.
"A spellcaster..."
Duke Brad pondered for a moment. Suddenly, he recalled the insolent vampire spawn captured not long ago. That spawn seemed to be an Arcane Trickster, possessing an exceptionally high affinity for dark powers.
"Isn't that one ready-made?"
A smile tugged at the corner of his lips. That was an intriguing piece of prey, but now it had fallen entirely under his control.
Duke Brad relished this aloft feeling of absolute control. He enjoyed his prey's resistance, and even more, he loved watching the look of despair wash over their faces.
To a vampire who had long lost the sense of taste, it was nothing short of sweet, mellow wine.
Duke Brad could not help licking his lips.
"Such an unruly human, forced to watch helplessly as he is controlled and made into a sacrifice, utterly unable to resist... How truly exquisite that will be."
"I can hardly wait..."
A gleam of anticipation flashed in Duke Brad's crimson pupils, hideous and terrifying.
...
"For the glorious ascension..."
Langlibaitiao stood inside the iron cage, mimicking the mindless blood thralls as he muttered under his breath, "For the glorious ascension..."
He had secretly hidden the Rebel Emblem beneath his tongue, keeping it concealed from the guards who had searched him from head to toe.
Watching the blood mist gradually permeate the air and the sacrificial circle glowing with an eerie light inside the cage, Langlibaitiao wanted to cry but had no tears. *Fuck, am I actually gonna get sacrificed here...?*
Suddenly, a formidable pressure rooted in bloodline pulsed forth.
The blood thralls dropped to their knees one after another, licking the ground like devout zealots.
Langlibaitiao knelt along with them.
To grow stronger, he could endure crawling between someone's legs if necessary.
What was a simple kneel?
He could stomach it!
Still, his eyes stole a glance at the uninvited guest.
The newcomer had pale skin and crimson eyes, draped in a magnificent black robe trimmed with gold—it was Duke Brad Lakeman.
Langlibaitiao's heart leapt with excitement. *The old geezer is finally here!*
Yet when Duke Brad's gaze swept over him, Langlibaitiao hurriedly bowed his head, not daring to make another peep.
"Very good. His power is still plentiful."
Duke Brad smiled with satisfaction.
He raised a hand casually. Amidst the flurry of flapping wings, hundreds of bats swarmed out from the darkness, coalescing into a giant hand that enveloped Langlibaitiao and carried him out of the iron cage.
The duke's cloak billowed slightly as his entire body levitated into the air.
Soon, they arrived at the stone platform where the ritual was being staged.
The bats dispersed, and the darkness obscuring Langlibaitiao's vision finally cleared. The moment he laid eyes on the spawn bound to the stone pillars, his eyes went wide.
Anyone else in this environment would have felt sheer terror, but Langlibaitiao's train of thought was clearly wired differently, and his focus was rather peculiar.
As a seasoned pervert, his eyes instantly locked onto the duke's eldest daughter, Alexia Lakeman, completely naked and displaying her snow-white body.
*Holy crap, they're going this far?!*
*And there's not even any holy light covering it up?!*
*No, no, Langlibaitiao, you can't let lust blind you.*
*You're the man who's going to become the King of Games!*
At that thought, he reluctantly tore his gaze away, resuming his spellbound act. Fortunately, Duke Brad was still lost in admiration of his own masterpiece and hadn't noticed anything amiss.
Even so, out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Yeno Lakeman, also strapped to a stone pillar, present here to represent the deadly sin of "sloth."
*Ugh, my eyes!* Langlibaitiao lamented inwardly.
Just then, Duke Brad turned to look at Langlibaitiao, a flash of bloody-red light glinting in his eyes.
"What is your name?"
"Langlibaitiao."
Langlibaitiao answered truthfully.
He was terrified that his guise would be seen through, and before getting any loot, he would be swatted dead on the spot by the vampire duke.
Fortunately, Duke Brad detected nothing out of the ordinary. The corners of his mouth simply curled upward as he said softly:
"A strange name... But no matter. From this moment forth, your name is Todd Lackman. You are my youngest son, banished to the fringes, and you burn with maddening envy toward your siblings. Do you understand?"
"Now, let me ask you again: who are you?"
"I am Todd Lackman, your neglected youngest son."
"Very good. Say it again."
Physically, Langlibaitiao acted totally submissive, but in his mind, he was already cursing the old vampire's ancestors back eighteen generations. He had seen people groveling to claim someone as their father, but never someone forcing a son onto themselves!
*Who the hell wants to be your son, you old bastard?!*
Langlibaitiao roared inwardly, but out loud he obediently recited, "I am Todd Lackman, your neglected youngest son. I envy my brothers and sisters."
"Very good."
Duke Brad nodded slightly.
He studied Langlibaitiao, who stood like a marionette, rubbing his chin as he furrowed his brow in deep thought.
*Merely having this spawn take Todd's identity doesn't seem enough to make me feel "love" toward it.*
Duke Brad was a monster through and through, capable of forcibly conjuring a twisted, perverse "love" purely to achieve his ends.
Yet while he could deliberately steer and control it, he couldn't just invent emotions out of thin air.
"The flesh and emotion are inextricably entangled."
"In the eyes of mortals, extreme carnal lust seems to naturally give rise to love. In that case..."
Duke Brad looked back at Langlibaitiao. This time, an unsettling glint flickered within his crimson eyes, tinged with some inexplicable desire.
A sudden chill washed over Langlibaitiao, and a terrible premonition surfaced in his mind.
Though his expression remained frozen, alarm bells were already screaming inside his head.
*Wait a second... What the fuck is this old fossil trying to do?!*
Chapter 134