From the unfortunate vampire Mary, Murphy quickly learned about the various events that urred in Kadman City an hour before the Astral Realm rift erupted.


    But she herself didn’t actually know much either.


    ording to her, that day she was hiding with her lover Mork in a dark little street-side room doing some spicy things that couldn’t be described without getting censored. It was only because of vampires’ keen perception of spirit energy that they noticed the Nocturne barrier being suddenly shut down.


    Afterwards, Mork took her to investigate all around the city’s shadows.


    Well, from this detail, we could see that the fool vampire who previously reminded Murphy to “eat well before hitting the road” was actually a loyal fellow to his family.


    This could be seen from his willingness to risk being burned by sunlight to investigate the crisis for his family, which was not something any random vampire would bother involving themselves in.


    However, these two unlucky lovebirds obviously had terrible luck.


    ording to Mary, they had only just gone out and hadn’t figured out what was going on when they were immediately ambushed and beaten down by those treacherous scoundrels who disregarded martial honor.


    Those traitors who had already defected to the Wolfsbane n not only shut down the city’s barrier core but also made off with much of the family’s wealth, and even members like the corridor guards and the patriarch’s personal guards who were theoretically absolutely loyal were involved.Mork was killed on the spot, his vampire heart even stolen, while Mary barely escaped with her life.


    But not because the traitors spared her out of chivalry, only because they ran out of time and casually tossed the heavily injured Mary onto a garbage pile to die before swiftly evacuating the city. Mary crawled out of the garbage pile just in time to witness Kadman City being swallowed by the Astral Realm rift.


    She should have died there.


    But she was lucky enough to be discovered by a group of fleeing family outcasts and brought out before the Astral Realm’s spirit energypletely engulfed the city, eventually making her way to take refuge in Bataxin after much wandering.


    “Mork and I were official family members, so we had a certain prestige among the outcasts. That’s why when we settled in Bataxin, we caught the attention of the local overseer, old Joel.”


    Mary had now been brought out of the basement.


    She guzzled the blood bottle Murphy tossed her to recover some strength while copsed on the ground, taking out her family’s si ring she had hidden somewhere to prove her identity. She then continued reporting the following events to Lord Murphy.


    It was evident that the suffering Mary had endured had nearly driven her to despair.


    Murphy’s appearance was undoubtedly her only hope of surviving and reiming her identity, so she spilled everything she knew like water pouring from a bamboo tube without needing any prompting from Murphy.


    “But Joel was a fool, a madman, and a disgusting scumbag! He took advantage of my weakness to do some…disgusting things to me! He even tried to make me his descendant, but he was just a mediocre nobody!


    He had already exhausted all his potential just by barely passing the Silver Trial at the lowest possible standard. He could neverpare to my poor, beloved Mork.”


    Mary’s tone took on a tinge of sadness, but she quickly continued:


    “Joel learned of everything that happened in Kadman City and thought the Blood Vulture n had been wiped out, so he foolishly started colluding with the Thorn n. I don’t know if he had already been secretly in cahoots with the Thorn Nightwalkers beforehand, but his information was soon answered.


    They sent people over and kept taking in family traitors.


    I strongly objected!


    Especially after hearing that Lady Tris had be the new grand duchess, I felt we should return to Kadman City and pledge allegiance to her. However, I overestimated the integrity of my kinsmen.”


    She reached out and touched her chest.


    There was a horrific brand there, as if seared by a red-hot horseshoe infused with spirit energy to prevent a vampire’s healing ability from mending the wound.


    She said:


    “Fear drove Joel insane. He knew his actions would invite terrible retribution if discovered, so he branded me with the shameful mark of a ve and locked me and my servants in here. He then began even more actively contacting the Thorn n.


    We had already lost hope until your warriors discovered us.”


    Murphy narrowed his eyes and looked down at the utterly debased female vampire. After a few seconds, he said:


    “You’re clearly lying, but I’m not asking if you’re loyal, that’s something we can discusster. The issue is that what you’re saying doesn’t match the reports from my warriors. It was you who actively called out my name, which is what made them spare you all. Yet you im you heard news of Tris bing the grand duchess!


    But you didn’t know beforehand that I had be the lord of thesends.


    You’re obviously hiding something!


    Mary, I’ll give you onest chance. Speak clearly!”


    Murphy’s keen perception and his ability to unravel the holes in her words with a single sentence made Mary’s entire body tremble. She let out a wail, then a few secondster hugged Murphy’s feet and cried out:


    “No, my lord, I haven’t deceived you! I’ve just… I’ve just experienced something very strange, and I thought that ignoring those outrageous facts might make you think I’m not talking nonsense, rather than saying them outright.


    I had heard a voice before!


    It suddenly appeared in my mind, proiming to me that you woulde to save us. I don’t know how to describe it, but it was like it just manifested in my heart and announced where hopey.”


    “A voice?”


    Murphy narrowed his eyes and asked, “What kind of voice? Describe it to me in detail.”


    “It was indistinct, like many voices ovepping,” Mary said hoarsely. “It just kept repeating that Murphy would save us, but itpletely ignored my pleas and questions.”


    “It suddenly appeared in my weakened slumber. I don’t know how to describe it, but if I had to, it was probably simr to what those believers call ‘divine revtion.’ Back when I used to collect money by tormenting those old religion fanatics, I asionally heard them say they could hear the whispers and murmurs of the deity they worshipped.


    That voice appeared just once like that!


    I remember it clearly, the night beforest.”


    “The night beforest?”


    Murphy thought to himself.


    Wasn’t that when he had set out from Crimson Citadel with Maxim and Adele?


    If this terrified female vampire was telling the truth, did that mysterious voice foretell the events of tonight? It did sound like some unique “divine revtion,” but the issue was that vampires were Eternal Sin Descendants. Why would this happen? Had some deity suddenly changed their mind or gone insane, developing a wondrous interest in piles of crap?


    Vampires didn’t even have their own deity.


    Wait!


    No!


    A sh of lightning suddenly crossed Murphy’s mind, causing all his muscles to tense up as the scene of the Sacred Blood Hall’s copse shed into his memory. When that sub-space rift copsed into the Astral Realm, that grotesque and twisted sub-space shadow attempting to enter the material world was still calling out to Femis!


    That twisted demonic spawn created by sacrificing nearly half the elite of the Blood Vulture n by Salrokdar, referred to as the “Night Mother” that indescribable thing.


    In a sense, wasn’t that creature the “deity” Salrokdar created for the vampires?


    Could it be…


    Hiss!


    Murphy suddenly gasped for cold air.


    He abruptly realized that the greatest gain from this Bataxin expedition might not be executing the traitors or deterring the restless Thorn n, but rather this unfortunate Mary pleading at his feet.


    But Murphy waspletely ignorant of such mysterious theological knowledge. Fortunately, he had the most preeminent theological schr on the continent as his superior.


    Tris would definitely be able to discern more from this.


    “Maintain some dignity, Mary.”


    Murphy lowered his head and looked with disdain at the unfortunate vampire clinging to his legs. He said in a low voice, “The information you’ve brought back is precisely what the grand duchess and I need, so you can be pardoned. However, you did make a mistake by not aiding your n in their time of crisis but instead standing idly by, hoping to profit from it. You know, it’s a sin that is difficult to forgive.”


    “I know I was wrong, my lord. I’m willing to pay any price, I only beg that you view me as part of the Blood Vulture n again,” Mary pleaded, prostrating herself on the ground.


    “I’m willing to offer up my blood essence, to be your…”


    “I don’t currently need more servants, and your fate should not be decided by me,” Murphy waved his hand dismissively.


    “Pack your things and bring along those followers who suffered with you. Follow my warriors back to Crimson Citadel. The esteemed Lady Tris will decide your fates. And since you’ve implicated the Wolfsbane n in the family’s rebellion and mentioned Countess Cecilia’s name, the power to judge your future lives also does not lie in my hands.


    Perhaps Lady Femis will take an interest in you all.


    After all, as the Countess of Anderma, she does need some trustworthy followers to manage her domain.”


    Upon hearing this, Marypletely went limp on the ground.


    She had survived.


    This was the best oue she could hope for after enduring such suffering.


    Beyond this, she dared not ask for more.


    The main reason was that as soon as Murphy arrived in Bataxin, he unleashed a frenzied massacre on the traitors here, clearly intending to show no mercy to any of the old rebels. This bloody approach terrified survivors like Mary, making them truly realize what kind of person this young and handsome lord was.


    In front of such a person, simply escaping with their lives was already an immense mercy.


    “Max, keep an eye on them,” Murphy summoned his servant and instructed him.


    “Then take my warriors and the prisoners back to Crimson Citadel. Adele will remain here to assist Lady Palen in controlling this trading town. I must return to Crimson Citadel first.”


    “Rest assured, master, we will handle everything,” Maxim said solemnly.


    Murphy nodded, his massive crimson bat wings spreading in the darkest hour before dawn as he took flight, rapidly soaring into the night sky apanied by the Blood Vulture Spirit Revnor.


    The “Wound of the Astral Realm” hanging in the horizon was like a purple beacon guiding his direction.


    —


    Dawn soon arrived.


    The citizens of Bataxin, fearful all night, cautiously opened their doors, fully expecting to see corpses strewn everywhere.


    After all, themotion of over a hundred vampires and hundreds of Blood Servants battling in the cityst night was enough to terrify everyone within.


    It was even possible that this ill-fated city itself was destroyed inst night’s great war.


    However, that was not the case!


    There was nothing on the streets, not only no corpses strewn about, but even the aftermath of battle was barely visible.


    Only some Blood Servant members of the “loyal faction” were joyfully directing the city’s vagrants to clear the streets, loading faded stone statues that glimmered coldly in the sunlight onto carts to be taken outside and destroyed.


    Any knowledgeable merchant knew that those were the only remnants left behind when a vampire died.


    Since no one stopped the city’s residents from going out, they quickly gathered to inquire about what exactly had happenedst night. Soon, a sensational piece of news spread like a thunderp through this small town with only a few thousand permanent residents.


    Bataxin’s previous Blood Vulture overseer, Hatham Joel Lessenbra, was personally executed by the Count of Kadman for colluding with northerners and attempting to undermine Blood Vulture authority.


    Joel’s subordinate descendants who had been lording over others were all eliminated, and his Blood Servants, kept like wild dogs, had been captured. Supposedly, they would be executed today at noon on the city’s main trade street.


    The new administrator of Bataxin, thedy nicknamed “Grandma” nche Palen Fedo, was collecting evidence of theseckeys’ crimes.


    And this was what surprised everyone.


    The merchant woman nche Palen Fedo, born in a small vige in the Ice Bay region north of Bataxin, had somehow risen to high status and been granted a knighthood by the Count of Kadman, fully responsible for certainmercial affairs under the count’s rule.


    Reportedly, she had been authorized to form a small organization to manage Bataxin.


    ording to rumors passed down several times, all members of this organization would be appointed by Lady Palen herself, so the city’s major merchants had already hurried to the Horseshoe Inn where the knight was staying, hoping to gain some benefits for themselves.


    These matters had little rtion to themon folk of the city, no matter which lord was ruling over them,moners never got a say.


    They were only interested in two things.


    First, Palen was not particrly well-known among the merchants eking out a living in Bataxin before, just a wealthy merchant running trade routes and selling daily goods. There were also persistent local rumors that Palen’s wealth came from murdering her own poor husband, killed by her and her daughters.


    That was a terrible usation, but the question was how such a merchant ofplicated origins became a servant of an esteemed vampire count?


    Second, just how many vampires died in the cityst night?


    Seeing those faded statues being carted out of the city one by one made one’s head spin, fearing that maybe all the Blood Vulture lords who had recently gathered in the city were killed by the newly appointed count?


    Wasn’t it said that the Blood Vulture n was already ruined? How did such a powerful vampire count suddenly emerge?


    Well, it seemed the Blood Vultures’ domain was not lost after all.


    That was for the better, too.


    Themoners were familiar with the 400-year rule continuing, so they wouldn’t have to adapt to the new order of thesends after enduring the horrors of the Ten-Year War.


    Although the vampires were a bunch of good-for-nothing bastards, it was hard to imagine what Transia would be like without them.


    Meanwhile, at the old Horseshoe Inn, the smug innkeeper was instructing the head chef to take out the establishment’s best ingredients to prepare an exquisite lunch befitting a knight for his esteemed niece Lady Palen.


    All the inn’s employees wore smiles, as happy as if they had found money on the street.


    Because most of them were from the same vige as Lady Palen, and now that she had achieved sess, everyone’s future would undoubtedly improve. Just look at thesemon folk of Transia, their dreams so humble.


    However, in the inn’s best room upstairs, Lady Palen was not so delighted.


    She was currently discussing important matters of grain trade with the fivergest local merchants seated before her.


    She did not mince words, directly telling them:


    “If you do this well, you’ll get what you want! The count has already promised that after obtaining enough grain for his domain, he will bestow Bataxin upon me as my territory. And I promise you all as well!


    Once I secure this territory, you will absolutely have a ce on the city’s governing council!


    You all know me, when myte husband and I did business together, we were renowned for our integrity!


    But if we bungle this, gentlemen…


    Just think aboutst night’s ‘Bataxin Massacre’. I feel that it wasn’t just a show for the vampires, what do you think?”