Seeing the Elder Guardian emerge, everyone remained wary. After all, with Yaotiao’s whereabouts still unknown, they couldn’t afford to go all out just yet. After a brief discussion, they decided to withdraw first, prepare thoroughly, and return on the night of the full moon as agreed.
But sometimes, things had a way of aligning perfectly by coincidence.
Just as Ziqing and the others were leaving the vampire clan’s great burial chamber, and Meng Duo’er was about to break the barrier, Jun Buli spotted Li Qinqin walking alone in the distance.
“It’s her!” Jun Buli said, utterly stunned and furious. Fortunately they were within the barrier, or she would surely have heard him from that distance.
Everyone looked over, and all were startled. Ziqing couldn’t help herself, letting out a low, sinister laugh that sent chills down the spines of the girls beside her.
Meng Duo’er quickly stopped dismantling the barrier and retreated to the side with the others.
It really was Li Qinqin. She still wore her human-skin mask, her expression cold and haughty. She glanced at the sky, then opened the tomb gate—only to be about to close it again just as quickly.
In that critical instant, Ziqing whispered urgently, “Duo’er, take me in with you!”
Meng Duo’er’s reaction was swift. She broke through everyone’s barrier, and at the same time cast a separate barrier to slip in alongside Ziqing.
They moved so fast that by the time the tomb gate slammed shut, no one else had even registered what had happened.
Jun Beiyue couldn’t help but frown. Seeing this, Situ Jing’er laughed and tried to reassure him. “Uncle Beiyue, don’t worry. Sister Duo’er is completely reliable, I promise!”
Jun Beiyue of course knew Meng Duo’er was reliable—but Ziqing wasn’t! Driven by desperate maternal worry, what if she clashed with Li Qinqin inside?
Yet going in now, without a barrier, would only put them in greater danger.
Left with no choice, everyone accompanied Jun Beiyue to a concealed spot nearby to wait it out.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the hill, two heads emerged—one round, one long—bobbing up and down, appearing and disappearing, quite mysterious.
“One, two, three, four…”
“Smack!” A slap. “What are you counting for? It’s just a handful of people, no need to count!”
“Boss, do you really think the two of us can handle that many of them?” the short one asked, deeply skeptical.
At this point, the sky was still dim, not yet fully light. Baili Weisheng had gone to take Jun Yaotiao to find food, letting these two scout ahead first to see whether Li Qinqin had returned.
Little did they expect that the moment they arrived at the entrance, they’d run straight into a group sitting cross-legged.
“Have you forgotten we’re vampires?” the tall one said with disdain—disdain specifically for humans.
“Boss, but… that scholar and that kid aren’t vampires,” the short one said earnestly.
Smack—another slap. “You think everyone’s from another race?”
“Boss, I think… I think maybe they’re just passing through, happened to rest here,” the short one said again, eyeing Jun Beiyue sitting furthest out, sensing this man was no ordinary person.
Sitting there silently, utterly still, yet giving off an inexplicable sense of oppressive pressure.
The tall one looked too, hesitating. “Then what do we do? The Guardian ordered that no humans are allowed near our tombs!”
The short one thought for a long while, staring up at the sky, then said, “Boss, that’s not right, though. This place is so remote—no one’s ever passed through here in all these years. How could they just happen to be passing through?”
“Right!” The tall one gasped, smacking him again. If one looked closely, they’d surely notice the short one’s bald head already bore a faint handprint imprint from all the slapping.
“Could it be that they’re…”
Before the tall one could finish, the short one jumped in. “Another race!”
“Who’s there!”
Suddenly, Jun Beiyue’s sharp gaze swept over toward them. The tall one and the short one crouched down in fright on the spot, but just as they tried to flee, figures descended around them, surrounding them completely.
Sometimes intelligence affects even a vampire’s speed—Jun Buli was quick, his long sword already pressed against both their necks.
The tall one and the short one froze in terror, not daring to struggle, forgetting entirely that they weren’t even afraid of swords.
“So fast—I told you they were from another race!”
“You didn’t say that earlier!”
“What do we do now!”
“Ask him, why are you asking me!”
Both of them turned to look at Jun Buli in unison. Jun Buli’s mouth twitched—what an odd pair.
“You’re vampires,” Jun Buli said coldly. Their eyes were a deep, blood red, and their lip color was strange too.
“What are you?” the tall one countered.
“Not talking?” Jun Buli suddenly narrowed his eyes, baring his fangs. At the sight, the tall one and short one both curled up into balls. “Sky Wolf clan! You’re from the Sky Wolf clan!”
Heavens above! Earth below!
That little girl Jun Yaotiao’s Sky Wolf fangs had already been terrifying enough—if this was a grown adult…
If they weren’t mistaken, with just the two of them, they’d never withstand it. They’d be bitten to death!
“We’re vampires, just lowly underlings of the clan! Please, Great Sky Wolf, spare our lives!” the short one begged, collapsed in terror.
The tall one managed to hold on to some composure, hurriedly saying, “Great Sky Wolf, we… we… we actually know some of your clansmen. They’re… they’re right behind us, coming any moment now—if you don’t believe us, you can… just wait and see.”
At this, Jun Buli was startled. The Sky Wolf clan had been wiped out years ago, and only his own bloodline remained of the direct Solitary Isle lineage—could there really be another bloodline still in existence?
Just then, Baili Weisheng came walking over from a distance, carrying the still half-asleep Jun Yaotiao in one arm and dragging a roasted chicken with the other.
The moment he saw the backs of the group, he immediately recognized who was who.
“Yaotiao, wake up! Wake up quickly, your father and brother are right up ahead!” Baili Weisheng called softly.
Yet those few words seemed to work like a magic spell on Jun Yaotiao—she snapped her eyes open instantly and turned to look!
Those figures—she’d recognize them even as ash!
“Father!”
“Brother!”
She shouted loudly, immediately leaping down from Baili Weisheng’s arms and dashing forward!
The familiar cries carried on the wind reached them, and both Jun Beiyue and Jun Buli froze.
“It’s Yaotiao!”
“Yaotiao!”
Father and son turned in unison, and saw a small figure stumbling through the desert sand toward them, one foot sinking deep, then the other!
“Yaotiao!”
Jun Beiyue’s heart clenched with anguish. In a flash he was in front of her, scooping her up and holding her tightly against his chest.
“You scared your father to death!”
Jun Buli rushed over too, but stood off to the side timidly, not daring to move. He wanted so badly to hold Yaotiao, but felt too guilty to—he was the one who’d gotten his sister hurt.
Yet Yaotiao struggled with all her might to break free from her father’s arms, reaching up to touch his unshaven stubble, giggling as she deliberately asked, “Father, where’s Brother?”
“Right here!” Jun Buli spoke up at once.
Jun Yaotiao’s smile grew even brighter, reaching her little hands out toward him. “Brother, carry me!”
This little girl nearly brought both father and son to tears. Jun Buli immediately scooped her up, holding her tightly, repeating his apologies over and over. “It’s all Brother’s fault. Brother’s the one who got you hurt.”