Chapter 2 Xiyuelis
1906 Words
The next second, the man took a step forward, heading straight for the vampire who had just seized Yun Wan.
He walked slowly, each step heavy as if stepping on every soul present. His long black trench coat swept across the ground, releasing an icy, intimidating aura.
Two attendants behind him bowed and followed in perfect unison, holding their breath so softly that they barely made a sound.
The vampire who had been gripping Yun Wan with a mocking grin moments ago turned deathly pale, trembling from head to toe. He did not dare lift his eyes to meet the man’s gaze, frozen stiff in place, too terrified to draw even a shallow breath.
He wanted to run, yet he dared not.
The man raised his hand. With barely any effort, his fingers locked firmly around the vampire’s neck. The crushing force lifted the creature clean off the ground.
The vampire’s feet dangled in mid‑air. He kicked wildly in agony, choking out broken gasps, all trace of his earlier arrogance and cruelty gone.
“Ah… Mr. Xiyuelis… what is happening?”
Every vampire around fell deathly silent, none daring to raise their heads.
Xiyuelis parted his thin lips. His voice was deep and frigid, every word carrying overwhelming oppressive weight, his English sharp and crisp.
“Griffin, you dare ask what is happening?”
He narrowed his crimson eyes, unbridled fury simmering in his tone.
“Do you think I do not know? You, a cannibal?”
Within the code of pure‑blood vampires,
“cannibal” was the filthiest, unforgivable taboo.
It did not mean feeding on humans. It meant drinking the blood and devouring one’s own kind.
This was the deepest forbidden law among vampires, a sin far worse than betrayal, cowardice or incompetence.
The moment Xiyuelis spoke those words, the faces of all surrounding vampires drained of colour. A chill ran through their bodies, and none dared to breathe.
“No… Mr. Xiyuelis… I did not do it, please believe me!”
Griffin refused to confess, begging for mercy.
There was not a flicker of warmth in Xiyuelis’ scarlet eyes. His fingers tightened further, his voice cold as ice.
“Do you think I cannot see what you do in secret?”
“Griffin, to dare practice cannibalism is to forfeit your right to live.”
One of the attendants stepped forward and bowed, presenting a pitch‑black cross sword etched with obscure runes. Its blade was dull and shadowed, reflecting no light at all.
Xiyuelis took it casually, gripping the hilt with the grace of someone accepting a glass of fine wine.
In the next instant, he loosened his hold and hurled Griffin violently to the ground.
Thud. A heavy crash sent dust flying everywhere.
Griffin crashed into the dirt. The pressure on his neck vanished. He curled up, gasping for air, letting out pain‑stricken hisses. He scrambled to lift his head, ready to beg and defend himself.
But he never got out a single syllable.
Xiyuelis looked down. No emotion stirred in his red eyes. Standing tall above the fallen man, he drove the black cross sword straight down through Griffin’s skull without mercy.
No scream. No struggle.
One strike, instant death.
Griffin’s body went rigid, then lost all life, dissolving into wispy black smoke beneath the Blood Moon.
Complete silence fell over the crowd.
Not far away, Yun Wan stood petrified, utterly stunned. Her eyes widened, she had forgotten to breathe.
She stared blankly at the fading traces on the ground, then lifted her gaze to the man holding the dark sword, his silver hair glinting with cold light.
He was breathtakingly handsome, yet so ruthless it nearly shattered her soul.
Xiyuelis was the ruler of House Xiyuelis, the most ancient, powerful and supreme of the seven great vampire clans of the Norseland Empire.
He was no ordinary noble, no minor lord. He stood atop the very peak of the vampire pyramid.
All rules, boundaries and order of the seven clans were decided by his single word.
In this land, his word was law. His wrath meant execution. That killing was not a feud or personal grudge.
It was a king eradicating a law‑breaking pest.
Under Norseland’s vampire laws, being pierced through the skull by the black cross sword was the cruellest and swiftest death for a vampire.
Ordinary wounds healed in the blink of an eye for them.
But this black cross sword nullified the core power of vampires. A stab through the skull — the seat of their power core — shattered their soul nucleus instantly. No regeneration, no rebirth, no second chance.
No thrashing, no agonised cries, no reprieve. One strike erased them from existence, leaving nothing behind.
Xiyuelis’ movement was clean, decisive and unhesitating.
This was not punishment. It was total annihilation.
Every vampire present froze with terror, heads bowed low. They all knew this sword strike was meant as a warning for everyone watching.
Ice coursed through Yun Wan’s veins. The horrifying scene replayed relentlessly in her mind. Her legs buckled, she could barely stay upright.
Survival instinct jolted her awake.
Run. Run right now!
Taking advantage of the fact all vampires kept their heads down and paid her no mind, she crept backward, then turned and sprinted toward the dark waves in the distance.
She would rather drown than have her blood drained or her skull pierced by a sword.
Yet she had only taken two steps before she was spotted. Two dark figures blocked her path.
They were Xiyuelis’ attendants. Moving as swift as wind, they seized her arms from either side, their grip so tight she could not struggle free.
Panic exploded inside Yun Wan. She twisted and thrashed, screaming at the top of her lungs, pouring out a flood of Mandarin mixed with broken English.
“Let me go! Let me go! Help me!”
“Let me go! Let me go! Don’t hurt me! Please!”
The attendants frowned and snapped at her in fluent English, ordering her to be quiet and stop fighting.
Yun Wan understood none of it.
The attendants remained expressionless, their hold never loosening.
The English they spoke was incomprehensible to her. The few broken phrases she shouted sounded pitiful and feeble amid the suffocating tension.
Yun Wan knew her pleas were useless, but terror drove her on. She could think of nothing else, so she wept and repeated her cries over and over.
The attendants dragged her forward to stand before Xiyuelis. They bowed briefly, then shoved her forward without mercy.
Yun Wan lost her balance. She stumbled and crashed hard onto the cold ground. Her knees and palms stung badly from the scrape. She lay sprawled at the man’s feet, and when she lifted her head, she met his blood‑red, utterly emotionless eyes.
Xiyuelis looked down at her. Silver strands of hair fell over his forehead. His black trench coat radiated bone‑chilling pressure.
Even his breath carried suffocating dominance.
Yun Wan shuddered, forgetting how to cry.
She lay on the ground, still shaking, and glanced around.
Every vampire kept their heads bowed, not daring to make a sound or glance in her direction, filled with deference and dread.
It suddenly dawned on her.
All these vampires obeyed him. All feared him.
He was the only one who could save her.
The urge to survive overpowered all her fear.
Almost on instinct, Yun Wan threw herself forward and clung desperately to Xiyuelis’ leg, her cheek pressing against his cold trouser leg.
Her voice shook violently, choked with sobs as she begged.
“Please! Help me! Don’t kill me! I beg you!”
She clung to his leg, refusing to let go, treating him as her only lifeline in this hellish place.
Xiyuelis’ brows furrowed. Clear irritation flickered across his face.
This tiny human was clinging to his leg, crying loudly and chaotically.
Her broken words meant nothing to him, only fueling his annoyance.
He shifted his leg, ready to kick her away hard.
But just as his toe was about to push out,
a faint, astonishingly pure fragrance drifted into his nostrils.
It was not the stench of human blood, nor the sweat of fear.
It was a clean, unique, almost ethereal scent.
Subtle yet sharp, it pierced through the thousand‑year‑old coldness surrounding him.
He could not name it. It was neither cloying nor heavy, yet it seeped deep into his bones. His irritation froze mid‑fire.
Xiyuelis halted. The force of his kick vanished.
He lowered his gaze, his crimson eyes settling on the trembling girl clinging to his leg. For the first time, he truly studied her.
Yun Wan possessed soft, gentle Eastern features, pleasant to behold at first glance.
Her skin was fair and delicate, flushed with faint pink undertones, soft and supple.
Her face was small and smooth, with a pointed chin and lingering baby fat on her cheeks, looking utterly tender.
Her eyebrows were fine and light. She had round almond eyes, the corners drooping slightly. When frightened, they turned wet and glistening, like a startled deer, framed by thick, long lashes.
Her nose was small and straight. Her lips were naturally pale pink, full‑lipped. When she cried, they pursed softly, looking helpless and pitiful.
Her long, straight black hair was tousled by the wind, a few strands sticking to her neck and cheeks, accentuating her fragile, slender frame.
She held no menace. Not bold or fiery. She was quiet and pure, like moonlight.
That scent was coming from her.
One of a kind. It stirred something deep within him.
He wanted to bite her.
He craved that scent to his very bones. His fangs ached, pushing slightly out. He longed to bend down and sink them deep into her neck.
Xiyuelis stared down at the trembling Yun Wan. The alluring fragrance continued to fill his nostrils. His fangs pricked, and an overwhelming thirst rose in his throat.
He suppressed the dark emotion swirling in his eyes, his voice still cold and deep, and issued a short order to his attendants.
“Take her away.”
The attendants bowed at once, not daring to hesitate.
They stepped forward and gently lifted Yun Wan, who still refused to let go of Xiyuelis’ leg. Their movements were careful and respectful, far gentler than before.
As the attendants helped her to her feet, Yun Wan clearly caught the man’s English words.
For a split second, she froze, her heart hammering wildly.
She would not die?
This man, who had just executed a vampire with a single sword strike and eyes as cold as ice, would not kill her. He only ordered her to be taken away?
She looked up frantically toward Xiyuelis. He still stood towering above her, silver hair falling over his forehead, his red eyes unfathomable, revealing no hint of feeling.
Yet the suffocating aura of certain death had faded, just a little.
Yun Wan’s mind was in chaos. Fear and confusion warred within her, yet a faint spark of hope flickered to life.
He would not kill her.
He had them take her away.
Did that mean…
she was going to live?
She still could not relax. Her body shook nonstop. Yet light flickered in her eyes, as if she had grasped a sliver of hope for survival amid endless darkness.
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