The Embrace of Pain (2)

Inside a gloomy castle, a completely black Blood Coffin creaked as the coffin lid slowly slid open by itself. It did not take long before it made an opening large enough for a single person to pass through. Marquis Andrew Brujah sat up through the opening. The butler, who had been waiting patiently at the side, bowed down respectfully. "You're awake, Marquis."

Marquis Andrew flew from the Blood Coffin directly onto a throne. He parted his blood-red lips, exposing four sharp fangs, and said, "Blood. I want fresh blood."

The butler, somewhat at a loss, stepped forward and said, "My lord, the men sent to draw blood has yet to return."

Andrew furrowed his brows slightly when he heard that. He admonished the butler angrily, "What? Weren't they sent out yesterday? How are they not back yet?"

"Yes, my lord. I'm puzzled too; they should have returned long ago. I've already dispatched some people to look for them. I believe we will have news soon."

"Do we still have any blood in storage? I want it now," asked Marquis Andrew Brujah as he rose from his throne. He slowly walked down.

"We do, but it's not very fresh," answered the butler.

"Whatever. It'll have to do."

"Yes, my lord. I'll go fetch some for you right away," the butler said, and immediately left.

A few moments later, he came back with a tray in his hand, on which was a goblet filled with scarlet blood. He presented the goblet respectfully to the Marquis.

Marquis Andrew picked up the goblet and placed it under his nose for a sniff. An expression of disgust showed on his face. "How long has this blood been kept for?"

He put the goblet back down on the tray with some force. Thanks to that, the scarlet blood in the goblet swirled high, and some of it spilled out of the goblet onto the tray.

The butler got a little frightened seeing the angry Marquis. "They're only a day old, my lord."

Marquis Andrew was about to fly into a fit of rage when he caught sight of several people carrying something into the room. The leader of the group walked forward and said, "There's trouble, my lord."

"What is it?!" asked Marquis Andrew. He walked back up the steps and sat on his throne.

"Our men were killed."

"Huh?!" Andrew stood up from his throne in surprise. "Someone actually killed my men in the Brujah clan's territory? Who would dare do that?"

The butler had gone up to the two corpses and were now examining them carefully, "It's Rafa and Kus. They've been turned into dry corpses. This is unbelievable. Look at this, my lord," said the butler in shock as he pointed to the two corpses on the ground.

Marquis Andrew Brujah approached the corpses with quick steps and inspected them with a serious look on his face. After a moment, he said, "Their blood was sucked out of them. It's amazing, there's not a single drop of blood left. Dispatch people to investigate this matter at once. Spread the news that I'll reward anyone who can provide clues."

"Yes, my lord."

The ancient castle instantly came alive with activity. All the Vampires were sent out. They flew and ran around to conduct a large search effort around the area. Some went to the villages where the humans were kept and searched from house to house.

The butler led some men to the village where the mother and daughter lived in. The mother and daughter, who had just escaped with their lives, were once again thrust into the limelight. According to the informants, the pair of dead Vampires were here to capture the mother and daughter before they died.

The butler walked up to the woman and lifted her chin. The woman was shaking like a leaf. The butler's eerie eyes gave her chills. She did not know who it was that snitched on her. The humans had already fallen to such a state, and yet some still could not forget their selfish and greedy nature.

"Tell me. What did you witness? Who killed the two Vampires?" The butler stared at the woman coldly, as if he was looking at a bug.

"I... I don't know," replied the trembling woman. She did not even dare to raise her eyes.

The butler grabbed her young daughter by the neck and lifted her up. The girl's feet kicked about in the air in protest with a painful look on her face.

"Tell me, or I'll kill her. Do you want to see your daughter die in front of your eyes?"

"No, please, let her go! I'll tell you. It's the devil! Those two have their blood drained by the devil!"

The butler was furious. "Don't you dare me give me that crap! There's no such thing as a devil! If you won't tell me, I'll break her neck right now."

"No, it's true, I swear! I was running away with my daughter when a figure suddenly jumped out from behind, stabbed the two Vampires to death, and drained their blood," screamed the woman.

The butler put the little girl down and told the man next to him, "Get a painter here. Have him paint the man's portrait according to her's description."

The attendant nodded and left. He came back less than 10 minutes later with the painter.

The woman described Ye Ming's appearance in a trembling voice. It was close to dawn when Ye Ming's portrait was finally done. The artist showed the painting to the woman again, and she nodded her head in confirmation.

The butler turned around and said to the man beside him, "Draw her blood." He then returned to the ancient castle with the portrait.

Marquis Andrew Brujah was furious when he saw the portrait. "Hunt this man down! Spread the news that I will generously reward anyone who knows his whereabouts!"

"Yes, my lord," replied the butler. In less than a day's time, Ye Ming's portraits were posted everywhere in Marquis Andrew Brujah's area of influence.

Meanwhile, unaware of this, our protagonist was hiding in his room refining the Marquis Blood Essence he got from the Blood Coffin store.

Like he had done previously, Ye Ming activated the {Ancient Blood Refinement Technique}. His body heated up as a turbulent power started surging inside it. He was close to achieving a breakthrough the last time, so building on that foundation, he did not take long this time to break through to a Viscount. A power stronger than ever before filled his body to the point that it felt like bursting. His fangs and nails grew out further.

*Ding* [Congratulations, you have obtained the {Embrace of Pain} skill.]

Ye Ming was overjoyed to find that he had acquired yet another skill. Composing himself, he condensed the chaotic energy in his body a little more in order to suppress the sensation of bursting apart. Only then did he check out his new skill.

[{Embrace of Pain}: Gather up your mental power to launch an attack that would magnify the opponent's sense of pain several fold.]

The description was simple. It turned out to be another mental-type skill.

Ye Ming now had two mental skills, but he was still slightly lacking in physical skills. If only he could get his hands on some sort of physical combat skill -- he would be like a tiger that gained wings.

Of course, there was no point getting anxious over these things. With the Treasure Chest System at his disposal, gaining a physical combat skill was only a matter of time.