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"Absurd!" the Blood Tax Officer couldn't help but hiss. "If he is valued by the Duchess, why would he participate in the celebration? Moreover, as a high-ranking vampire, participating in the celebration and competing with the people for profit is taboo."

Another blood tax official echoed in a deep voice, "Exactly! The festival rules clearly state that high-ranking vampires can only participate on the night of the hunt. The first five nights are a stage for the weak and ordinary members of the clan to prove themselves!"

The church messenger remained calm, seemingly having anticipated the blood tax collector's questioning: "The Duchess's will is unfathomable. The bishop merely conveyed a decree. As for why Your Excellency made an exception to pay attention... that is beyond our comprehension. The decree has arrived; the choice is yours."

These words silenced the two blood tax collectors.

The Duchess's will is absolute; they may question the rules, but they would never dare to openly disobey her orders.

In the end, they had no choice but to put away their weapons, bow to the church messenger, and disappear into the blood mist.

The most imposing Blood Tax Officer glanced intently at the spot where Chi Que had disappeared, then looked at the priest: "In that case, even on the night of the hunt, we still cannot attack that person?"

The priest calmly replied, "As per usual practice."

The blood tax collector nodded slightly, the chilling aura around him subsided, and he too disappeared into the depths of the blood mist.

......

Under the glow of the blood moon, a gigantic stitched monster, composed of twisted flesh and bones, exuded a strong stench of decay.

But it was already dead.

Without using any equipment, relying solely on the physical enhancements brought by the dragon blood transformation and his control over blood energy, Chi Que found an opening in just a few breaths and then delivered a fatal blow.

The massive body collapsed with a crash, and a cloud of blood surged forth, quickly condensing into new spoils above its corpse.

A dark red blood crystal fell into his hand.

Since getting rid of the Blood Tax Collector, he has resumed his hunt. He finally found a big fish, but after killing it, he discovered that this blood crystal was completely different from the dragon blood crystal he had found yesterday.

"At that time, it was on the verge of death, but suddenly it unleashed a ferocious power far exceeding its previous strength, relentlessly locking onto me and pursuing me... that power..." Chi Que recalled the state of affairs at that time and fell into deep thought.

That explosive power in an instant was simply... simply like forcibly activating some kind of life-draining secret technique, or rather...

Chi Que's gaze sharpened.

Dragon blood transformation.

This thought gave him a jolt.

"Perhaps that's why I was able to obtain Dragon Blood Essence Crystals, instead of ordinary Blood Crystals," Chi Que mused.

That's why he's stronger than ordinary high-ranking vampires, because what he uses isn't ordinary blood crystal at all.

As for ordinary blood crystals, although they are still superior to ordinary blood energy in essence, they are far from having the ability to almost touch the source of life, and at least cannot be used to improve flesh and blood essence.

Following this line of thought, an even more chilling conclusion emerges: 'If even her retinues can wield the Demon King's power, then what about the princess herself? Could she... be the Demon King's daughter?'

Chi Que once suspected that Ke Lei might be that princess, but if the Demon King's power did not actually originate from the Blood Moon, but from that princess, then this reasoning would be completely untenable.

She doesn't have any dragon-like features.

Chi Que shook his head, suppressing his thoughts for the time being. As it stands, only the princess's retinue can bring him any benefits.

"Easier said than done." He sighed inwardly. Without activating Dragon Blood Transformation, the blood energy of his familiars was almost indistinguishable from that of normal monsters, making it incredibly difficult to find them.

His luck was a bit off today.

During this time, he searched repeatedly in the blood mist, but was unable to detect any blood energy fluctuations similar to those of the black-armored knight.

The transformation brought about by the dragon blood essence crystal made him crave more, and ordinary blood crystals could not satisfy his desire at all.

The defects of the pool prompted reflection.

Perhaps, let's try a different approach?

Since hunting down family members is like playing the lottery, inefficient and risky, why not start from the source?

That mysterious princess...

She is the core of all this; her retinue possesses the power of a demon king, but what about her? Why did she perish here? What is the essence of her power? What kind of entanglement exists between her and the duchess?

If we can find any traces left by this king, their value would probably far exceed that of hunting down ten or a hundred of his followers.

The blood mist began to thin, signaling the end of tonight's celebration. Chi Que withdrew his blood energy, his dragon wings dissipated, and he landed lightly in a deserted alley. A familiar, soft humming sound drifted on the wind.

"Chef, are you done?" Mia asked with a pure smile. "You look a little tired."

Looking into her bright eyes, Chi Que's slight annoyance strangely dissipated: "Yes, it's over."

He nodded: "How's the choir's work going?"

"Yes! Today we're singing a requiem." Mi'er nodded, then took out a small cloth bag from behind her. "Here, this is some late-night bread the church gave to the choir. It's delicious! I'll share half with you."

The two walked on the quiet street. The blood moon disappeared, and Mi'er hummed an off-key melody softly. Chi Que also relaxed a little, feeling this brief, almost illusory peace.

......

Chi Que packed the restored dish into a thermos and went out.

The square was quiet under the cover of night, as if the bloody killings that had occurred before had never happened.

Aston was waiting in the shadows when Chi Que steadily approached and handed him the thermos: "Here's the food you wanted."

Aston took the thermos, feeling its warmth in his hand. He quickly examined it, and after confirming its restorative power, he immediately put it away: "As expected of a chef's cooking, the effect is excellent."

"You flatter me." Chi Que waved his hand, seemingly casually mentioning, "Speaking of which, you mentioned the Demon Kingdom before. I heard that there was once a princess here? Was she also a high-ranking member of the Demon Kingdom?"

Chi Que's idea was clear: since it was called the Demon Kingdom, it must be closely connected with the Demon King. And since a princess with the power of the Demon King had appeared here, she was very likely a person from the Demon Kingdom.

So, perhaps we can find clues about the princess through Aston, a high-ranking official in the Demon Kingdom.

"A princess? No, the Demon Kingdom has never had a princess." However, Aston's answer was beyond Chi Que's expectations.

He restrained his urge to ask more questions. One question could be attributed to curiosity, but pressing for more would inevitably arouse suspicion.

It seems we still need to look for clues in the past. Since he is now regarded as a high-ranking official of the Demon Kingdom, there must be a reason for it.

And the reason for this is very likely in the past.

Moreover, he did not completely believe Aston's words. Aston's status as the Duke of the Demon Kingdom gave him too many reasons to conceal the truth. In fact, even he himself did not know about the connection between the princess and the Demon Kingdom.

"Besides, even if the princess is really from the Demon Kingdom, the duchess would never kill her," Aston said casually.

Chi Que was taken aback: "What makes you say that?"