Chapter 1 The Man Who Called Himself "Lord"

The man who called himself "Lord" was surrounded by the group, shrinking back in a broken chair whose color was indistinguishable. His face was etched with fear and vigilance. He clutched at his collar, his gaze shifting between Hao Ren and Vivian. "Who are you people?"

"We're from outside, so don't worry about our specific identities," Vivian said imposingly, arms crossed as she stood before Haimewen, looking down at the cowering man. "You're the lord here? Do you know what happened here?"

"Since you know I'm the lord, you should show a little respect!" Haimewen tried to muster a noble air, raising his voice. But he quickly reverted to his anxious state. "I don't know, I don't know anything—you should leave! You're not welcome here!"

His subsequent words basically amounted to the same thing: this was the lord's residence, and uninvited intruders were not welcome. Despite the immense chaos and anxiety, the man still tried to project his noble status. Of course, no one on Hao Ren's side bought it. As Haimewen became increasingly agitated, Cassandra suddenly placed her hand on his shoulder, bending slightly in an elegant and proper bow. "Please calm down. There are more of us."

This vampire with her unique temperament had a habit of speaking like a thug while maintaining the demeanor of a noblewoman. Hao Ren had only known her for two days, but he was already getting used to it.

But Haimewen wasn't used to it. He was stunned for a moment, not immediately understanding what she meant. Probably no one had ever dared speak to him like that before. When he finally realized, the lord belatedly exclaimed, "Are you bandits?!"

Cassandra maintained her elegant smile, explaining softly, "We're not bandits, but if you don't cooperate, I might kill you."

Everyone else: "..."

Whatever problems Cassandra had with her personality, her words were effective. Haimewen finally understood the situation and began to cooperate. He huddled in the chair, looking small and helpless. Although he unconsciously revealed the bizarre pride of an old noble when he spoke, his actions showed none of the dignity befitting his station. He only repeated a few phrases over and over in response to Hao Ren and Vivian's questions: "I don't know... I don't know what happened here. I was sleeping upstairs, you woke me up—where are my servants and butler?"

"Looks like his memory is messed up," Hao Ren muttered to Vivian helplessly, seeing Haimewen's condition. "He has no idea the town is finished—is his memory stuck before the change?"

Vivian nodded slightly, frowning at Haimewen. "What's the last thing you remember?"

"I finished inspecting the warehouse, dined in the great hall, and then went to rest," Haimewen said, quickly glancing at the center of the great hall and pointing to the long oak table, now completely covered in black ash. "That's where I dined—but why is it so dirty?"

Lili asked, "It wasn't like this before you 'slept'?"

"Of course not," Haimewen puffed out his chest proudly. "This is a beautiful house, and my servants keep it spotless to suit my status. But now... where are my servants?"

"If I'm not mistaken, they're long dead," Hessiana said casually, fiddling with her vampire whip. "Hundreds of years ago. The door's over there; you can go take a look yourself."

Haimewen looked at Hessiana, confused. Then, Duncan and Cassandra forcibly dragged him to the entrance of the mansion. When he saw the scene outside, clearly a ruined town, he was completely stunned. He hysterically clutched at his hair. "Nightmare! Nightmare! Nightmare!"

Hao Ren and the others watched the commotion from afar. Nangong Wuyue poked Sanba's arm with her tail. "Bro, what do you think is going on with this guy?"

"Maybe... some kind of ghost," Nangong Sanba said uncertainly. "I've never seen this type before. Emerging from the ashes, with a tangible body. Look at his feet—there are footprints and a shadow, which means he has weight and substance."

Hessiana smiled at the only demon hunter present, her tone teasing. "Expert, can you analyze the cause?"

"Perhaps the ashes in the secret realm were reorganized into his body by magical forces. Some necromantic rituals can produce similar effects, but unless we run a series of detailed tests on this soul, I can't explain how he was formed."

"Hold on, we finally found someone who can give us information, don't go scaring him to death," Hao Ren waved his hand. "Besides, we have no grudges against him. But you said necromantic rituals can produce similar undead beings... was this 'lord' consciously transformed into this?"

Nangong Sanba glanced at Haimewen, who was dejectedly following behind Duncan. "The key is that he seems to know nothing about his transformation himself—I initially suspected he became like this for immortality, but if he doesn't even know, then the transformation is pointless."

"Maybe he's lying," Lili said, pouting. "Maybe he turned the entire town's residents into sacrifices to transform into this immortal state. He's afraid we'll bring him to justice and kill him."

With Duncan half-supporting and half-dragging him, Haimewen stumbled back to the chair, clutching at his hair and muttering to himself, "Heavens... what happened... what is this cursed sight..."

Hessiana lifted the man's chin with her whip, her tone impatient. "Don't be so useless—you're still a noble, you should be calmer. As you can see, this town is destroyed. Whether you believe it or not, it was destroyed at least hundreds of years ago, and all the residents are gone, probably dead. As for you... tsk, you probably guessed it yourself. You're dead too, now an undead."

Haimewen surprisingly didn't react much, or perhaps he was too shocked to react. He just stared blankly at Hessiana's face, finally uttering after a long while, "Why?"

"Some kind of powerful black magic, that's the only explanation," Nangong Sanba said from the side. "We're exorcists from hundreds of years later, roughly equivalent to the priests and demon hunters of your time. We discovered this forsaken town, and you're currently the only one here who can speak—do you know who cast the magic on the town?"

"Black magic?" Haimewen repeated the words blankly, suddenly shivering, as if recalling something terrible. "Devil! It's a devil! I remember, a devil was lurking here! I was bewitched by him, I was... heavens, what have I done..."

The terrified man began to scream again, shrinking back as if the devil he spoke of was walking in through the door. Hessiana tapped him on the forehead with her whip, and a dark red blood curse rune imprinted on his forehead. "Calm down—is the devil you're talking about a sorcerer? Did he disguise himself as a scholar and lurk by your side?"

"Scholar... scholar!" Haimewen waved his arms wildly. "It was him, it was him! That monster who sold his soul to hell, he deceived me, I was blinded, I was..."

"That sorcerer should already be dead," Vivian interrupted. "He was said to be killed by demon hunters."

A strange look of surprise appeared on Haimewen's face, followed by a hint of relief in his eyes. Hessiana seized the opportunity to ask, "Do you know where that sorcerer hid? His black magic laboratory, and his spellbooks, do you know where they are?"

"I know, I know!" Haimewen jumped up from the chair. "He didn't live here, he was a solitary fellow, living in the old house behind the town, not far from here. I'll take you there, I'll take you there!"

Haimewen waved his arms nervously, then strode toward the door. Hao Ren and the others immediately followed.

Led by Haimewen, they left the lord's mansion and continued running along a small path behind the mansion towards the end of the town.

Finally, a thick fog blocked their path.

(My energy has been a bit low these past few days, so the updates have been quite late. If it's too late, please don't wait up... that means I've lost the battle for full attendance.)