Chapter 108: Dark Night Forest
Beneath the vast and looming sky, pressing down on the restless forest, everything felt uneasy. This was an ancient dark night forest, and everywhere one looked, there were traces left by distant ages. Decaying branches and vines, thick and clumsy trees stood in the midst of grass, gazing at the sparsely scattered cold stars in the sky.
Faintly, one could hear the melancholy and sorrowful song of elves, like a veil of mist, hazy and poignant.
Cyril led the wolf pack stealthily through this kind of dark night. Its entire black fur gently swayed in the moonlight, and its golden eyes stood out especially in the darkness.
“We’ve been running for almost two hours, but I haven’t seen the edge of the forest. It’s a bit strange,” Alpha Trnald wondered. He had ample experience traversing the dark night forest and usually could see the river outside the forest within an hour. But now, all around them were trees shrouded in the night, adding a more eerie and mysterious atmosphere.Belonging © NôvelDram/a.Org.
“Did we get lost?” Hazel sniffed around, not sensing anything unusual.
“It’s midnight now; stopping might be even more dangerous. Predators like lions and bears could appear anytime,” Alpha Eric vigilantly observed the surroundings.
“At least, in the dark night forest, we won’t run into vampires.” Mylixe attempted to reassure her son, brushing against Eric’s fur.
Mylixe’s words lightened the atmosphere among the wolf pack.
The wind whispered softly, rustling the leaves with a muffled sound. The fog thickened, and the entire forest became dim, obscure, and desolate. Hanging on a tall tree were one or two deep black bats, their blood-red eyes staring fiercely at the wolf pack invading the forest.
The wolf pack passed through this giant tree, not noticing the tree covered with decadent and enchanting rose vines. On the ground, a thick layer of faded petals and dried yellow leaves had accumulated.
A gust of wind passed, the branches lightly biting, revealing thorny stems hidden under the shelter of green leaves. Several red rose petals lifted with the wind, like a few flamboyant butterflies chasing and playing.
Cyril paused his steps, his gaze following those few petals of bright red suspended in the air. A hint of confusion appeared in his pupils, which quickly turned into astonishment, and he let out a wolf howl.
“Stop, we’re surrounded!” Cyril immediately declared their situation through a mind link.
Soon, a man dressed in black, surrounded by two rows of vampires in black and white, walked out uniformly, centered around him. They were scattered in the darkness, revealing blood-red eyes, and their pointed fangs were particularly prominent under the moonlight.
“Good evening, my fiancée, our queen.” Hawthorne’s skin was almost transparently white, forming a strong contrast with his bright red lips, making his appearance eerie.
“Vampires! What do you want?” Alpha Trnald angrily stepped forward.
“It’s not your turn to speak, you mongrel dogs. Hazel, come over, take a look at this.” Hawthorne held a red gem pendant, tempting Hazel.
The color of the ruby seemed to have a magical quality, calling out to Hazel, like a distant beckoning.
“Come, my child, my blood kin.”
Rita, upon seeing the pendant, fixed her ocean-blue wolf eyes on the ruby. Her mind felt hot and swollen, emitting a mournful howl, seemingly in a struggle with the vampire blood inside Hazel.
“Ah-Hazel, my head hurts… Hazel… my temperature is dropping…” Rita’s breathing gradually became rapid and irregular. She was forced to lose contact with Hazel, who shifted back into human form.
“Ah-” Hazel held her head in her hands. Her fangs became sharper, as if drawn by the ruby, gradually approaching the vampire group. Hawthorne took out a dagger, hesitated for no moment, and cut a gash on his own wrist.
Deep red blood immediately surged out, filling the air with the fragrance of ylang-ylang, a pleasant scent radiating a deadly allure.
Unable to resist the allure of fresh blood, Hazel rushed forward and bit down on Hawthorne’s bleeding wrist. The blood dripped into Hazel’s mouth.
Gradually, the pounding of Hazel’s heart became more intense, and the temperature of the blood rapidly dropped. Her eyes shifted to blood red, glowing like bloodthirsty rubies in the darkness. The bloodthirsty factor within Hazel surged, and she needed more blood to awaken her memories.
Eyes glowing with a bloody light penetrated Hawthorne’s pale neck. Hazel saw the fresh blood flowing through delicate veins. She smelled the sweet fragrance of fresh blood and let out a low growl from her throat, biting into Hawthorne’s neck. The blood, like nectar, eased Hazel’s restlessness.
“Hazel!” Alpha Cyril watched everything unfold. He tried to contact Hazel through mind link, but it had no effect. To make matters worse, other vampires had begun to attack the wolf pack. He forcefully bit off a vampire’s neck and rushed towards Hawthorne.
Hawthorne swiftly dodged, holding onto Hazel. At this moment, a crow’s caw echoed in the forest, and another group of wizards in black robes appeared. Their skin was normal, with the appearance of ordinary humans.
This group of black-robed wizards was the second most powerful force in the Northern Continent. Different from the orthodox wizards of the McGo Family, they excelled in using dark magic and forbidden spells. The reason Cyril and the others were trapped in the dark forest was because these black-robed wizards had cast dark magic on the forest.
“Malissa, what are you doing here?” Elmer noticed a witch who looked similar to Malissa, who had been attacked earlier.
The central figure among the black-robed wizards took off her hat, revealing her face. She didn’t expect to be recognized by the wolf pack.
“The esteemed members of The Iron Star Pack, I didn’t expect us to meet again in this way.”
“She is Lilith!” Luna Eunice stared fiercely at the witch.
“Hush-you’re all calling me, and yet, not entirely me.” The witch raised an eyebrow, lifted a hand, and lightly tapped her face with her long nails. It looked effortless.
“Lilith is my noble soul; Malissa is just a disguise to get closer to Kassandra.” The witch raised her head, her hand sliding down to pick up a magic wand.
Cain had been creating vampires in the Northern Continent, but they were not pure-blooded. He had always longed for his blood to be passed down. Later, during his massacre in the dark forest, he encountered Lilith, the lover of the demon king Satan.
Lilith was a powerful witch, but her appearance was hideous. Her skin was pale, eyes surrounded by heavy dark circles like snake eyes, gold vertical pupils making her fearsome. Her lips were dark, and her long black hair looked lifeless.
Lilith fell deeply in love with Cain at first sight, using her magic to entice him closer. Under Lilith’s seduction, Cain ultimately betrayed God, selling his soul to Satan. He received Lilith’s teachings and used blood to generate various powers. The subsequent vampires were no longer mere bloodsuckers; they possessed a variety of special abilities.
To better perpetuate their bloodline, Cain became Lilith’s slave. Together, they gave rise to pure-blood vampires. When pure-blood vampires see Cain’s blood, they are influenced and controlled by his will. Azrael is the 15th generation pure-blood, which is why Hazel loses control when she sees Cain’s ruby.
Her will is now completely under the influence of the progenitor vampire, Cain, and has gone into a total rampage.