Seeing the three pairs of eyes fixed intently on him, Augusto the vampire muttered a disdainful "lowly humans" in his heart to satisfy his sense of superiority.
Zhang Yuanqing gave a half-smile. "This fellow is looking down on us in his head. Knight, go over and give him a slap."
"Why don't you do it?" Zhai Cai retorted for the sake of arguing, but he still stepped forward and slapped the vampire across the face.
How could a dignified Sovereign of the Night endure such humiliation? Yet circumstances compelled him. The physical strength of the two young-looking men was far superior to his, and the masked mystery man had leaked just a sliver of aura earlier that filled him with instinctive dread.
He had no choice but to swallow his pride, abandoning any further internal monologues and speaking honestly about the history of the Blood Clan.
"There is a legend passed down among us vampires that the Blood Clan Progenitor was a deity dispatched by God-King Odin to the mortal world to watch over humanity. But only the true upper echelons of the Blood Clan know the truth.
"In reality, our progenitor fled to the mortal world to escape God-King Odin's pursuit. And the reason Odin hunted him was that our progenitor stole something from God-King Odin!"
*The Blood Clan Progenitor is connected to Odin from Norse mythology? I've never heard of vampires in Norse myths...* Zhai Cai searched his mental reserves, somewhat taken aback.
In tales of witches, vampires, and werewolves, the righteous figures were usually bounty hunters and the Holy See, and the Holy See's classes belonged to the First District, which leaned heavily toward Greek mythology.
As thoughts flickered through his mind, he heard Yuanshi Tianzun ask, "What did he steal?"
The President provided simultaneous translation.
Augusto the vampire did not answer immediately, proceeding at his own pace.
"Legend has it that in an unfathomably ancient era, in order to combat the evil god destined to destroy the world, God-King Odin hung himself from the trunk of the World Tree and pierced his own heart with a spear. He sacrificed himself to the World Tree, thereby obtaining the supreme power—Runes.
"The Runes evolved into twenty-four types of magic, becoming the source of all magic in the world. This was the World Tree's gift to Odin, the power and foundation by which he ruled over the gods, not meant to be coveted by any living being.
"Yet, two caterpillars on the World Tree took advantage of Odin's weakened state to steal the powers of death magic and life magic, respectively.
"The caterpillar that stole death magic transformed into a stunning woman, while the caterpillar that stole life magic became a handsome man.
"Enraged, God-King Odin laid down a curse with his divine status. He cursed the woman to be eroded by death magic, becoming a dark, sinister witch; she and her descendants would endure the punishment of fire.
"He cursed the man to be eroded by life magic, becoming a demon of the night. His descendants would never touch sunlight, dwelling forever in darkness. They would feed on blood, despised and abhorred by humanity for all eternity.
"Those two caterpillars were the progenitors of witches and the Blood Clan."
The trio exchanged glances. The Sole-Heir Knight looked at the President. "Is this legend credible?"
The President fell into deep thought, neither confirming nor denying it.
Zhang Yuanqing said in a low voice, "It's likely true."
The President and Zhai Cai turned their gazes toward him.
Zhang Yuanqing explained, "I once entered a special dungeon where I witnessed the arrival of the Demon Seed. There was a cardinal in that dungeon who told me that a witch's dark magic is a branch of Rune magic."
*So the powers of both vampires and witches originate from Rune magic?* Zhai Cai furrowed his brows.
"But I recall the Holy See's scriptures recording that vampires are Aberrants."
The President translated his words to Augusto, who sneered coldly.
"That is the shameless Holy See smearing our Blood Clan, describing us as those lowly creatures."
The President suddenly asked, "You are a vampire from the Middle Ages. You should know both Norse and Greek mythology. The Holy See's Wind and Lightning Mages, Knights, Alcoholics, and Lethal Alchemists all belong to the Greek mythological system.
"The Blood Clan stole power from Odin's Rune magic, so you should belong to Norse mythology. Why did you mingle with factions from Greek mythology?"
He asked this question primarily to clarify the ancient relationship and timeline between the two major mythological systems.
Augusto said, "Was I not clear enough just now? After stealing Odin's power, the Blood Clan Progenitor naturally had to flee. He and the Witch Progenitor escaped all the way from the Southern Continent to the distant Northern Continent.
"Territories were very strictly divided among the deities, and in an unfathomably ancient era, they had reached a non-aggression pact. That was why Odin could not send his warriors in pursuit across the border. Well, at least that's what I heard from our Blood Clan elders."
*In ancient times, several major mythological systems coexisted and were aware of one another's presence...* Zhang Yuanqing suddenly wondered whether the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors had also known about the gods of Norse and Greek mythology.
Yet foreign deities had never appeared in Chinese folklore and legends.
As he pondered, he heard his uncle speak in a low Italian tone: "The deeds of your progenitor are infinitely distant to you. In the era you lived in, Odin had long ceased to exist. Did none of your descendants ever return to the ancestral lands?"
"Of course we did." Augusto showed a hint of bewilderment. "My footprints had long covered the European continent. If not for my hatred of drifting at sea, I would have even chosen to sail out and see the wider world.
"Yet despite traveling across Europe, I never encountered any extraordinary creatures from the Norse mythological system, with the sole exception of werewolves.
"Yes, werewolves are also extraordinary creatures of Norse mythology, though their bloodline is not pure. They are descendants of the Ice-Fire Demonic Wolf, and pureblooded Ice-Fire Demonic Wolves went extinct long ago."
Once his uncle finished translating, Zhang Yuanqing immediately recalled the item Little Red Riding Hood. The class it belonged to was indeed the Ice-Fire Demonic Wolf.
Back then, Fu Qingyang had searched all available records without finding any information about the Ice-Fire Demonic Wolf, guessing it belonged to the unopened Third District.
The pieces of information aligned.
Zhai Cai clicked his tongue. "To think that the notorious witches, werewolves, and vampires of medieval legend all belong to the Third District?"
Noticing the President's solemn expression, he asked quietly, "What do you think, sir?"
The President said in a heavy voice, "We all know the Spirit Realm has three major districts. The First and Second Districts have already opened, while the Third District has yet to launch. We know very little about it.
"The number of classes, abilities, relics, and the like of the Third District have never surfaced.
"I spent years searching for traces of the Third District across both the Spirit Realm and reality, finding a few items suspected to originate from it, but they were all recovered from First District ruins.
"They were passed down from when the two mythologies came into contact. Strictly speaking, they don't belong to the Third District."
He looked at the two young men and continued, "Hence, a strange phenomenon emerges: Where did the ancient practitioners of the Third District go? Of course, we cannot find ancient practitioners of the First and Second Districts in historical records either; only through dungeons did we unveil their mysteries.
"Since the Third District has not yet opened, it is normal that we cannot find its ancient practitioners. But this vampire is an ancient practitioner from a thousand years ago.
"Logically, during his era, he should have come into contact with ancient practitioners of the Third District."
Zhang Yuanqing and Zhai Cai exchanged looks, finally understanding.
"It truly isn't normal," Zhai Cai mused. "In other words, by a thousand years ago, the practitioners of the Third District had already perished?"
The corner of Zhang Yuanqing's mouth curled up. "Why overthink it? We can just ask this guy. Since the Blood Clan Progenitor hailed from the Third District, his descendants must have researched Norse mythology. Tracing and studying one's ancestors is common to all intelligent life."
The vampire was an intelligent, high-order creature; he had likely investigated and sought answers to such matters long ago. There was no need for them to rack their brains guessing when they could simply ask.
His uncle relayed the nephew's inquiry to Augusto, who shook his head.
"Regarding the Norse gods, our knowledge comes from myths and legends. Many extraordinary creatures believe Odin and the gods never existed, as no evidence of their existence has ever been found outside of myth. Only the powerhouses among the witches and the Blood Clan knew that the Norse gods truly existed. But they perished in Ragnarok."
The President asked in a low voice, "What theories and research do your kind have regarding Ragnarok?"
"An evil god destined to destroy the world descended upon the earth and wiped out the Norse gods," Augusto said.
"If it was a world-destroying evil god, why didn't it destroy you as well, sparing only the Norse gods?" the President countered.
Augusto was struck dumb. After several seconds of silence, he snapped in embarrassment and anger, "I am a noble vampire, a Sovereign of the Night, not a historian!"
The trio paid him no further attention and began discussing among themselves.
Zhang Yuanqing said, "In ancient times, a terrifying catastrophe indeed took place, leading to the death of Empress Wa, the administrator of the Second District. A similar disaster occurred in Greek mythology as well. I believe Ragnarok in Norse mythology refers to that same catastrophe."
His uncle gave an affirmative hum. "The issue is that after the First and Second Districts weathered that disaster, order stabilized anew, and ancient practitioners emerged in response to the era. Only the Third District suffered some unknown turn of events that completely severed its heritage. That may well be why the Third District has remained unopened to this day."
"What is certain is that the impact on the Third District was far greater than on the First and Second Districts," Zhang Yuanqing noted. "The Ice-Fire Demonic Wolf must have fled to the Second District during that disaster, eventually breeding werewolves. Out of that entire mythological system, only one class managed to escape."
"Not quite!" His uncle agreed with the first part of his nephew's statement, but disagreed with the latter half. "The Ice-Fire Demonic Wolf is an evil class, and evil classes are foreign. The Ice-Fire Demonic Wolf didn't flee during that disaster; it was born from it, survived by chance, and wandered into the First District."
The Sole-Heir Knight glanced at Yuanshi Tianzun, then at the President, muttering, "The intelligence you're discussing is far too high-level. Could you spare a thought for the feelings of a low-level Spirit Realm walker like me?"
"Want to learn high-level intelligence? Depends on what you're willing to trade for it." Zhang Yuanqing patted the Sole-Heir Knight's shoulder, then looked at the vampire in the coffin. "What should we do with this fellow? Kill him so I can refine him into a yin corpse, seal him back up, or groom him into an enforcer for the guild?"
The President chuckled. "He's a world-class protected animal; refining him into a yin corpse would be a waste. However, this guy is wild and hard to tame, savage and violent—an ungrateful wolf you can never truly win over. He can be controlled on ordinary days, but he's prone to backstabbing at critical moments. Hand him over to the Sole-Heir Knight.
"Only a Knight's power of covenant can keep him in check."
At that point, he looked at Zhai Cai and added, "This fellow counts as two Level 7 Dominator items."
Zhai Cai shrugged. "No problem!"
Having an immortal, nearly unkillable vampire as a minion was far more useful in his eyes than two items of the same level. After all, items lacked intelligence and demanded costs for their use.
With that, he drew his knightly straight sword, planted it in front of him, and pressed both hands onto the pommel, his voice grave:
"Vampire Augusto. I, Zhai Cai, in the name of a Knight, forge a covenant with you to become master and servant, never to betray, aiding each other until the end of our days.
"Are you willing?"
His demeanor became sacred and solemn, his body faintly radiating a bronze glow.
His uncle translated his words to Augusto. "You only need to answer: willing or unwilling."
Augusto looked thoroughly resistant, even disgusted. He said in a deep voice, "What happens if I refuse?!"
"We seal you back inside the coffin." Seeing Augusto inclined to refuse, his uncle added leisurely, "Let me remind you: after the Holy See fell, this treasury fell into a peculiar pocket space. Aside from us, who possess the key, no one else will ever enter this place. In other words, you will continue slumbering until the end of your life."
"I don't believe you!" Augusto shouted. He wanted to wait for the next batch of treasure hunters.
"What status do you hold that makes you worth deceiving?" his uncle said with a genial smile.
Augusto's expression contorted, his sharp black nails scraping harsh grooves into the silver coffin.
After a prolonged struggle and weighing of options, he ultimately yielded.
"I am willing..."
His uncle nodded toward Zhai Cai.
Zhai Cai commanded in a low voice, "Offer your blood."
Having dealt with Knights before, Augusto slit his wrist with a sharp claw, guiding black blood toward the straight sword.
The blood was instantly absorbed into the blade, and a potent, bright bronze light rippled outward.
In the unseen realm, rules seemed to establish themselves, bearing witness to the covenant.
Zhai Cai drew his sword back and said calmly, "Walk with me!"
Carrying the gas lamp, the President bypassed the silver coffin and continued forward. Zhang Yuanqing and Zhai Cai followed behind like henchmen, trailed in turn by the reluctant vampire Augusto.
Soon, however, his attention was drawn to weapons hanging on a wall not far ahead.
The President leading the way stopped as well.
Three items hung on the wall. The first was a cane roughly one meter long, wrapped in green air currents. It was pristine white throughout, the shaft seemingly sculpted from white jade, topped by a carved pair of jade angel wings.
The second was a silver knight's straight sword with a cross hilt. Its blade shone with sharp brilliance, reflecting the warm firelight of the gas lamp, completely free of rust even after half a year.
The third was a half-meter-tall wooden puppet carved in the likeness of a broadly grinning boy.
Beside the wall sat three padlocked bronze chests, their surfaces inscribed with sealing arrays.
His uncle spoke with noticeable delight: "They're all Dominator-grade."
Zhang Yuanqing and Zhai Cai charged forward like hungry tigers falling upon a lamb.
Chapter 913