Several hours later.

On a cliff overlooking the river flowing along the border of the Horing Empire.

Lights were dim, a thin mist lingered, and under the dark night where even the moonlight was occasionally hidden by clouds, Lichtenstein Castle appeared even more eerie and unpredictable.

It was nearing midnight.

A figure streaked across the night sky, a strong wind pressure and whistling sound stirred up in the jungle air, accompanied by falling leaves and bone-chilling cold.

The figure's flying speed was extremely swift, and the stars in the night sky seemed to turn into streaks of light in his vision.

He lowered his eyes slightly, and the cliff, broken bridge, and castle rapidly approached in his sight.

Then, he gradually reduced his speed, as if about to reach his destination.

Under the moonlight, this figure in mid-air became increasingly clear. With handsome features, he possessed a sculpted physique. Almost perfect lines depicted the best combination of elegance and strength. Even among the vampires, he must be an extremely skilled fighter.

His deep eyes, shimmering with ruby-like light, were like cold chains, discerning everything.

"My excellent kin, died here?"

Count Palocas's voice was like a whisper emerging from the abyss, filled with irresistible majesty.

He swooped down and flew, and the moment he crossed the cliff, he could clearly see Lichtenstein Castle after the clouds dispersed.

The murderer had no way to escape this cliff. There were no signs of animal activity in the mountains and forests. And at this moment, the lights of the castle were still on, so it seemed that these guys were hiding in the castle.

And this castle was very sturdy, and it was also attached with a protective barrier that Palocas felt was powerful. If he used long-range magic attacks, he might not only fail to break through the defense, but also scare away the people inside.

In an instant, Count Palocas's body fell on the land far away from the castle like a meteorite.

The moonlight shone on his black formal attire, giving him a thin silver cloak, making him look more noble and mysterious at night.

"..."

Count Palocas stared at the castle from afar, his face looking exceptionally stern.

The base floor of the castle was still lit, and through the curtains with pale yellow halos, he could even see several figures looming.

It was as if they were having a cheerful banquet, not realizing what consequences their mistakes would bring, and they had not even cared about the anger that a dignified vampire count might unleash.

But soon, a flash of understanding flashed in Palocas's eyes.

"Just a few tricks."

Count Palocas chuckled softly, and his sarcastic and indifferent voice was particularly clear in the silent night.

The answer was simple. These self-righteous guys had set a trap in the castle, pretending to be relaxed to make him relax his vigilance, and when he entered, they would all pounce on him and fight him desperately.

Humans, these weak and humble creatures, occasionally have a few who try to defy the vampires with a foolish mentality.

The ending will always point in one direction, dreams shattered, people dead.

But Palocas liked humans who were willing to resist him very much.

Because the more he crushed them, the more he could experience some timeless fun.

This was the difference between the superior race and the worm-like race.

The Count moved slowly in the night, and his shadow gradually lengthened.

His authority, [Blood Frenzy], could increase his own attributes by a full double in a short period of time, and greatly reduce the degree of control.

This was also the capital that he had always been fearless and proud of.

The powerful demons and werewolves who had died in his hands were already countless, and the humans who were piled up into mountains of corpses were even more uncountable.

If the enemy's strength was not completely superior to him, they would only be crushed by him like worms.

Any wisdom, tricks, or strange control spells were meaningless!

Soon Count Palocas arrived in front of the gate of the base floor of the castle. He raised his hand and pushed open the gate of the castle without hesitation.

He was very interested in playing with these worms who liked to struggle. The harder the worms, the crisper they were when stepped on.

The door opened with a bang, and accompanied by bright lights and warmth, Count Palocas walked straight in, and the terrifying magic power and pressure on his body seemed to make the entire castle tremble.

"Where are the poor guys hiding?"

The door slowly closed behind the Count, isolating the cold wind and the silence of the night.

He stood in the sanctuary hall of the castle, his deep eyes slowly wandering around the hall, ready to welcome the scene of these weak and foolish humans pouncing on him in horror.

But.

The next scene made Count Palocas stop in his tracks.

His originally confident and playful eyes had now become slightly confused.

Everything was different from what he had imagined.

Count Palocas's gaze was attracted by the brilliance above the sky. The crystal ornaments inlaid with gold patterns above were like twinkling stars, scattering warm light into every corner of the hall. The magnificent light illuminated the dark stone carvings on the walls, and also left bright traces on the smooth white stone floor.

In the most conspicuous position in the hall, a grand and spacious long table occupied the space. The silver candlesticks shone brightly in the fire, reflecting the shadows of the light dancing in the air. And those high-backed chairs carefully carved from brown oak were neatly arranged on both sides of the long table.

In such a luxurious banquet hall full of symbols of power and status, several men and women were sharing dinner around the central long table. They raised their glasses to each other, and laughter and conversation echoed in the banquet hall.

The scene in front of the Count was full of extravagance and prosperity, making him unable to help but recall the carnival nights of golden splendor, singing and laughing.

But the atmosphere of this banquet carried a strange sense of harmony, as if it were a gluttonous feast for those grand and upright villains in world history who could never disappear!

With the intrusion of Count Palocas, their laughter gradually stopped, and they all stared at Count Palocas.

Palocas: "?"

Could it be that these people...

Were really holding a banquet?

……

At the very late hour of night, the Iklit Academy’s Gerald Memorial Square shimmered with a soft, white light.

The hour hand on the clock tower was nearly pointing to twelve.

However, at this hour, the square had strangely become restless again.

Compared to the lively and expectant atmosphere of this afternoon, even though many students had gathered again in front of the steps where they could see the giant open-air screen, the atmosphere was unusually depressed and heavy.

Ever since Frey had defeated the Maiden of Destruction near dusk, Lanqi had only explained to the clergy and the three members of the chamber of commerce that he would be hosting the Count that night. Afterwards, he had shut down the [Shadow World Recording Program].

It wasn't until eleven o'clock that Lanqi reopened the live broadcast.

The students, understanding that the end was approaching, couldn’t help but stay up late again to watch at the square, even though they knew it was a dead end.

What they saw, however, was that the nine were really having a dinner.

A literal reception!

"What exactly does Lanqi mean?"

"Is he really not going to try anything?"

Many students asked blankly.

In fact, until Count Palocas truly arrived, some of them still believed that Lanqi would take action next and carry out crucial preparations.

If this group of challengers could survive the five days of Shadow World berserk state in this cage-like desperate situation and come back alive, this Shadow World would be nothing short of a miracle.

The only chance of survival now was to survive tonight. Then, before dark on the second day, everyone would work together to cut down trees and build bridges, continue to escape separately from the chase battle on the second night, and then everyone would have to play a game of cat and mouse with the vampire Count in the Horing Empire for three days and three nights.

This was the slim chance of survival that they could bring about by catching the traitor ahead of schedule and without any casualties.

If there was still the threat of traitors, they might not even be able to build bridges or escape together in the Horing Empire!

But no matter what, everything depended on surviving tonight.

And then there were four more nightmare-like days.

Perhaps losing to the vampire Count tonight was also a kind of relief.

The fact was that Lanqi seemed to have no intention of fighting anymore. He was holding a final banquet and calmly welcoming death.

On the road at the edge of the square.

Mordan Gassiges looked at the giant open-air screen with a calm expression. Finally, as if he couldn't help it, he sneered.

As the son of a marquis, he originally had a good chance to possess Hyberian, but Lanqi had stepped in and even threatened him with the law.

He still remembered the sentence Lanqi had said to him, "You admitted it yourself," making him lose face.

Unlike most of the students, he only felt extremely happy at this moment!

"A pathetic guy… has finally reached the end of the road, right?"

Mordan hummed. It would be good if Lanqi died, and it would be even better if he took that jinx Hyberian with him.

Too arrogant confidence will eventually lead to destruction.

Faced with the vampire Count, a natural disaster-like creature that completely overwhelmed humans in terms of race and was irresistible, all petty cleverness seemed as ridiculous as clowns.

Next, a poor guy would panic and burst into tears, be cruelly ravaged until he lost face, and finally have his belly ripped open and die miserably!

Mordan could already imagine the future scene.

He was only curious now—

How long could Lanqi continue to hold out in front of the vampire Count!

However.

On the screen.

Lanqi, sitting at the head of the long table, gently swirled the light rose-colored liquid in the tall glass. A unique aroma of wine, which was unsure whether it was mellow, fruity, or fragrant, seemed to waft over and into the lungs.

He never put the wine in his mouth.

Even though Count Palocas had arrived, Lanqi's expression had not changed in the slightest.

He leaned back in his chair as if he had seen all the prosperity, experienced vicissitudes, and was tired of heart and mind.

Turning his cheek, he glanced at Count Palocas out of the corner of his eye,

"Little Pa, you're here."

(End of this chapter)