Why can't humans do it too?

"Sigh," the more Su'er thought about it, the more painful it became. Su'er felt very cheated, extremely cheated.

"Why did you suddenly sigh?" Xin Ke asked, picking up a piece of nearly dried-out jerky and stuffing it into her mouth. "Weren't you sitting here perfectly fine?"

"...It's nothing, I'm just regretting that information," Sul replied, shaking his head without revealing his thoughts. His words, however sincere, were genuine. "If Riku had obtained that information, he could probably have devised many plans to improve everyone's lives."

Unfortunately, it's no longer possible to take it.

"I see~", Xin Ke turned her head thoughtfully, "Mr. Monkey seems to admire that monkey named Riku a lot?"

“Ah, that’s right,” Sue readily admitted. “He saved me, changed me, and led me to survive in this cruel world.”

Even if he is younger than me.

There was no answer; Xin Ke simply nodded as if she understood.

They wouldn't stay here for long. The vampire's death couldn't be confirmed yet. Although the goblin's airship was probably targeting the elves scattered by the vampire, it still couldn't be certain. Suer and Xinke were just resting here briefly to replenish their strength, waiting for their clothes to dry.

The only sound left in the air was the crackling of firewood. Suer took the opportunity to doze off for a while, but he woke up cold when he woke up again.

The firewood the two had collected earlier had burned out, and Suer touched the clothes next to the campfire... they were already dry.

It was time to leave. Unless he saw the vampire turn to ashes with his own eyes, Suer would always feel a lingering sense of oppression. The vampire, which longed for growth and evolution, would undoubtedly not give up on a sweet and vulnerable prey like Xin Ke.

The two of them have broken free from that state of being powerless and left to their fate.

If the goblin attack had any advantage, it was that it opened up a passage from top to bottom on one side of the strait. Although there were still many collapsed rocks blocking the way, it was much better than the old situation where people could only go up and down by rope.

"Do you know what that terrifying, seaweed-like monster we saw underwater was?" Sur asked Xin Ke casually, glancing at the churning waves in the strait out of the corner of his eye.

“The sea is the habitat of marine species, and the forest spirits have no intention of expanding into the sea.”

"So you mean you don't know?" Suer understood the underlying meaning in the woman's words and couldn't help but feel a little helpless—couldn't she just say "I don't know"?

Anything can exist in the primeval ocean, and it's practically impossible for terrestrial creatures to re-enter the sea. The two quickly moved on from the topic and continued on their way in silence.

With the illusion of the vampires gone, Suer quickly carried Xinke back to the top of the strait. On the plains in their line of sight, they saw a crashed airship, which was still emitting wisps of smoke and the flames inside were not yet extinguished.

Step by step, moving westward, Suer was like a tiny ant, small yet determined.

"If someone gets their blood sucked by a vampire, will they also become a vampire?" Unable to bear the unchanging scenery, Suer asked Xinke behind him.

"Heh, how could there be such a good thing?" Xin Ke chuckled. "The blood-sucking behavior of vampires is essentially the act of taking souls from blood, and then mixing those souls with their own to promote their growth and increase their power. The person bitten will also have their soul mixed, but will not gain the same abilities as the vampire. Instead, they will contract special diseases... In the end, it's a harmful thing with no benefits. Mr. Monkey's expectations have been dashed, haven't they?"

This woman keenly perceived the shortcut that Suer had devised.

"Well, I wouldn't say I was looking forward to it," Suer said, slightly embarrassed.

“But if we really have to point out a weakness, Mr. Monkey’s blood is like poison to all vampires, isn’t it?” Xin Ke murmured thoughtfully, her hand reaching around Su Er’s neck to pinch his cheek.

“…I’m already tired from carrying the great Miss Nirbalen on my back, please don’t add any more burden to me, thank you,” Suer said expressionlessly, avoiding Xinke’s bored hand.

The gesture changed to twisting.

This woman hit hard.

"Speaking of which, what's the deal with that assassin? Can a vampire that sucks the blood of a forest elf become that powerful?" Paying the price for his nickname, Suer grinned and changed the subject. "It's probably an exaggeration, right? Something about shocking even the gods."

"To be precise, it's because I'm just too strong as a genius," Xin Ke said calmly, speaking in a very narcissistic tone. She continued, "The abilities of vampires after they grow up correspond to the blood they absorb. The stronger the concentration of the soul, the stronger their power will be. In addition, they are a race that is good at illusion and secret magic. Combined with the power of the forest elves, their suitability is too good. It's not an exaggeration to say that even the gods are shocked. In the past, there have indeed been some very powerful vampires who have played with the Skywing race, which is made up of pure elves, at will."

"...To put it simply, their abilities after they grow up can even deceive the laws of physics. Does Mr. Monkey understand what I mean?" Perhaps noticing Su Er's confusion, Xin Ke made a simple analogy.

However, Sull was even more troubled—what the hell was this about deceiving the laws of physics? Wasn't it just an illusion? Or had it reached the point of deceiving concepts altogether?

However, before Suer could say anything, a hoarse voice suddenly interrupted his conversation with Xinke.

“...Yes,” every word trembled, “There was such a great future ahead, there was such an opportunity to create new myths and new legends in this great war...and you destroyed it all with your own hands…”

Suer had only ever heard such a slippery and disgusting voice from one person before: the genderless vampire. However, unlike the childish voice he had heard before, the current voice was much more mature and weathered. If it weren't for the distinctive features being so obvious, Suer would have thought it was someone else entirely.

It's like growing up.

It's not just the voice that's matured; even gender has become distinct.

Without a doubt, it is male.

Chapter 101 He saw through it

The vampire had grown up and transformed into an adult.

At first glance, Suer could only make out a familiar shadow from the eyebrows and general outline of that face. It was no longer an androgynous appearance, but a clear sign that it was an adult male.

Her short, golden hair had turned gray, but not white; instead, it resembled metal. Even her originally scarlet pupils had turned silvery-white, and her fair skin had become a darker color, somewhat like bronze, but much lighter... This was yet another kind of familiarity.

"...Goblins?" Sur asked in astonishment.

To be fair, this vampire looks far too much like those goblins, both in terms of fur color and skin color. Combining this with the knowledge Xin Ke had just shared, Su Er couldn't help but have a bold guess.

Not only that, this vampire was not in good condition at the moment. Although there was nothing missing on his body, his subconscious action of covering his waist while he was speaking gave him away. His undamaged clothes were probably covering something.

"Ah, it's those trash," Sull's words ignited the vampire's fury. He cursed through gritted teeth, "They could have become the strongest vampires, but those guys, those idiots..."

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. The vampire's hand, raised in the air, trembled slightly. He was probably no better than someone who had carelessly lost a multi-million dollar lottery ticket. His voice grew lower and lower, and his suppressed anger infected the air with his emotional fluctuations.

"So you have also lost the chance to become part of the great being, but it doesn't matter... this blessing still exists..." He took a deep breath to barely suppress the anger in his heart, and the vampire's greedy eyes still lingered on Xin Ke - he still wanted that blood, that soul, even though the best effect had been lost.

But even if it rots in his hands, it's better than letting it slip away.

This delicious food is something only he can waste.

"You think you can take me on?" Su'er's face curled into a mocking smile, as if he had learned it from a certain woman. Without needing any discussion, he simply lifted Xin Ke up slightly from behind—she should understand, right? His plan.

“If you could do that, now that you’re an adult and your strength has increased, you should attack me directly, right?” Suer did his best to draw out the hatred. “Putting aside your unbridled desire to perform, you’re probably just an empty shell standing there.”

“Isn’t that so?” Su’er tilted his head slightly in a provocative manner. “You originally planned to use the blood of the forest elves for your advancement, but you were forced to choose to absorb the blood of the goblins as your coming-of-age ceremony. That probably speaks volumes… Those goblins are not easy to deal with, are they?”

Suer's gaze swept over the crashed airship in the distance. During the time he and Xinke were resting, it seemed that a lot had happened between these goblin and vampire species. After hastily completing its coming-of-age ceremony, this vampire species did not even have time to familiarize itself with its newly acquired power before rushing over and constantly searching the area around the strait, just to prevent Xinke and Suer from escaping its control.

"...The monkey has suddenly become talkative?" The vampire narrowed its eyes slightly, looking the monkey up and down, which had previously been almost invisible.

What Suer said was right. Only this vampire knew how weak he was at that moment. In order to survive, he struggled to absorb the bodily fluids of the dead goblin as a source of strength. The metallic smell of the bodily fluids made him want to vomit just by thinking about it... Ugh!

Its gaze gradually turned dangerous, the vampire's eyes sweeping over Su'er's neck. Some things were fine coming from that elf, but from a mere monkey... a monkey...

“…No, that’s not right.” The vampire walked around the motionless Sul a few steps, half-closing his eyes and sniffing lightly. “Although the scent is a bit too bland mixed with the blood of the forest elf, it has a unique charm if you listen carefully…Is the monkey injured too?”

The vampire's gaze fell directly on Suer's self-inflicted cut arm, even though the arm was hidden behind him, supporting Xin Ke's back. Faced with such a predatory gaze, Suer involuntarily tensed his arm, but then felt Xin Ke gently squeeze his shoulder, and then he controlled himself to relax.

He almost forgot that he had to cut his arm while underwater to get rid of the terrifying monster. Although he had bandaged it after getting ashore, it obviously couldn't hide it from the vampires who were very sensitive to the smell of blood.

"No, that's definitely not right," the vampire's expression kept changing. He seemed to have thought a lot into his mind, and gradually he suddenly realized, "So, magic was cast on the monkey? Or was it fed a magic potion?"

"No wonder he's suddenly become so talkative," the vampire chuckled strangely, then suddenly raised his voice and said sharply, "You taught him to talk like that, didn't you?! Forest Elf!!"

"?"

However, the astonishing deductions about vampires are not yet finished.

"He was so sharp-tongued just a moment ago, but now he's so silent... Is he using this monkey as bait?" With a smug smile that seemed to see through everything, the vampire pointed at Xin Ke and continued, "He deliberately made him say things that would provoke me, hoping to make me retaliate by drinking his blood so he could easily assassinate me... You've got a good plan, sacrificing just a useless slave to get rid of a vampire!"

"..."

With a blank expression, Suer didn't know what to make—was this what genius was...?

"That's not all!" The vampire's desire to perform seemed to be greatly satisfied. He excitedly waved his arms and said, "While I was enraged and lost my mind to attack this monkey, you took the opportunity to attack me. What a perfect plan! Unfortunately, I saw through it all!"

"..."

Suer opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say.

My blood is really sweet, why don't you come and try it?

"There's nothing I can do, they've seen through everything," a long sigh came from behind, and Xin Ke lamented sadly.

"Oh yes, what should we do?"

Surgan responded in a very dry voice.

Chapter 102 Illusion

"Since the great vampire has already seen through my pathetic scheme, why not come over now?" Xin Ke invited with a half-smile. This arrogant woman actually used two honorifics for the first time ever.

It's bait, but also an ace. Xinke's triple magic is the ace, but Suer's role can also change into a new ace at any time. It all depends on which one this overconfident vampire will swallow.

"Heh, of course... I wouldn't dare," the vampire sneered disdainfully. He took two steps forward without fear, then suddenly stopped. Not only that, but his figure once again disappeared into the air as if erased by an eraser.

"Although being forced to drink the blood of those gophers made me extremely angry, I also gained some strange abilities from it," the vampire's voice drifted in the air around Sul and Hinko, sometimes near, sometimes far, its exact location uncertain. "Whenever I try to get closer to you, my heart races, constantly reminding me to stay away. How interesting~"

Interesting my foot! Isn't this the very sentimentality that goblins are so proud of?

Upon hearing this, Suer knew that it would be difficult to lure this naive vampire into a trap. While it could not be said that this vampire had fully inherited the unreasonable characteristics that Okan had bestowed upon the goblin species, it had certainly inherited a great deal of them.

Although the opportunity to obtain the blood and soul of the goblin and evolve into the most compatible form has been lost, it doesn't seem to be all bad. The goblin blood has made this vampire even more troublesome.

"Hmph hmph hahahaha," the vampire's voice was filled with the joy and smugness of a successful revenge. "Just run away from here and save yourselves. I'm very patient... I'll be right next to you, launching surprise attacks from the darkness from time to time, until you collapse from exhaustion and have no ability to resist anymore—that's when I'll reap the rewards."

Having wisely chosen a strategy of attrition, this vampire had no intention of directly clashing with Sul and Xinke. He had already seen the weaknesses of this forest elf and monkey, and was following the guidance of his newly acquired intuition.

He just needs to wait patiently while adapting to the abilities he has gained as he grows.

“…”, Suer remained silent, his face turning grim.

"Ah~, by the way, just a friendly reminder, you two should probably keep moving~", the vampire paused deliberately, keeping everyone in suspense, "...those goblin creatures aren't all dead yet~, and they're slowly approaching this way, guided by the traces I~ accidentally left behind..."

Grass.