Ghoul.

Seeing his house upside down, Mickey didn't panic and closed the door instead.

Chirp-!

X tried to express his worry, but Mickey just ignored him and headed straight to the security room. He knew this place boasted about being secretive in their ads, but that was all just a marketing strategy.

"Listen, kid, I'm telling you, we don't have any cameras with us," the head security guard insisted, standing at the front of the security room with his arms crossed.

"I swear on our company's honor, we only verify whether the people entering have an apartment here or are visiting relatives. That's the extent of our security protocol."

Mickey's expression remained cold.

"Did anyone enter using my name today?"

"At what time?"

"Around 9 am and 12 pm."

The head guard took a notepad, but before he could check anything, he found a giant red raven standing in front of him instead of Mickey.

Agony filled his face as he shrieked.

"What is that?!"

The moment he finished his sorrowful cry, X brought his beak down and took a bite of his body. The guard was squished, leaving only his knees on the ground as blood flew everywhere like fireworks.

"This is the highest you can grow." Mickey jumped off X's back. "It also seems you won't shrink until you are finished digesting him."

X didn't say a thing. The blood raven felt a strong force on its neck, almost like it was about to burst out. He wasn't used to consuming a person's whole body.

Mickey let the bird handle its own matters as he walked into the security room.

It was filled with television screens on all sides, but what made the young man raise a brow was the sight of a young woman in the corner of the room. She was wrapped in a bathrobe, shivering like she had seen the devil himself in the flesh.

'This is why he was refusing to let me in.'

Mickey just ignored the brunette and walked over to the main screen.

The moment he touched the keyboard, a dirty thought popped into his mind.

'Didn't Jiang Yilan and Yi Long Fei make out in this building?'

He swiftly found the video he needed, trimmed the unnecessary parts, and posted it online on one of those free websites.

He knew that he didn't have the strength to beat Jiang Yilan now and couldn't kill Yi Long Fei, yet.

In the future, it would be even worse. Even so, that didn't stop him from putting stones in their path.

Typical third-rate villain moves.

After that, he began to analyze the video of someone breaking into his apartment, and his expression grew increasingly perplexed by the second.

The cloaked figure's method of breaching his apartment's door was remarkably sophisticated, leaving no discernible openings or clues that could reveal their identity. Even the most brilliant minds on Earth would struggle to crack the code. Yet, this wasn't the primary source of Mickey's concern.

The silhouette walked like he was using his upper body to pull his legs, and his arms often dangled around.

Mickey remembered a profound beast with such a trait.

"A ghoul..."

When vampires bite a human, that person becomes a ghoul at the cost of losing their freedom. When a person becomes a ghoul, they lose the ability to access their Primeval World. They will start to absorb Qi naturally just like how beasts do. Hence, they are called profound beasts instead of Book Lords.

"Which vampire sent him to my apartment? Could it be my twin sister? No, she does not have a ghoul."

Mickey had a helpless smile, and a bead of cold sweat could be seen on his face.

He watched the video of the ghoul terrorizing his apartment with a deep gaze, and he let out a strained laugh when what he didn't want to happen actually took place.

"Who told those relatives of mine about that ring, huh?! This is something I never had a backup plan for." Mickey could only helplessly talk to himself as he saw the ghoul take away the ring that was swimming in his blood.

Mickey's eye didn't blink as the video continued to progress, and at the end, the ghoul seemed to realize his weakness as it shouted,

"Gu Mickey, meet me at the Summer's Playground at 11 tonight!"

Mickey's pained smile deepened. "Does he think I don't know that ghouls get stronger at night time? Well, that's true since only a select few higher-ups of this city know about it."

Mickey's expression turned cold once more. "He didn't mention anything about retrieving the ring. I don't know anything about him, and I'd rather not get involved."

Just then, a warm golden light emanated from the tattoo on his chest, and he felt a sudden itching pain. The light seemed to be calling to him, and Mickey's demeanor shifted dramatically.

"Do you want me to go, Lee Yan?" he asked, his voice tinged with a mix of curiosity and trepidation. The cold facade Mickey had maintained until now crumbled, and for the first time since his transmigration into this world, he revealed a genuine, heartfelt smile.

The tattoo's reaction was not unprecedented. Whenever it behaved in this manner, a soft, whispery voice would echo in Mickey's ear, uttering a single, enigmatic name: "Lee Yan."

Initially, Mickey had been perplexed by these occurrences, but as they recurred, he began to talk with the voice, responding to its seemingly one-sided conversation.

Although the voice never directly replied, Mickey had grown attuned to its subtle cues, and he had started to grasp the underlying messages. A few days prior, the voice had conveyed a disturbing command.

Mickey had to kill everyone at the dietary orphanage, lest he face unspecified consequences.

After setting that orphanage on fire, this is the first time it is communicating with him again.

Mickey felt a little itching on his chest as the skull glowed twice before vanishing.

"You are right. I should prepare ways to run away if things go south."

The light glowed again, and Mickey chuckled.

"I know, I am a coward. Cowards live longer. Lee Yan, you were brave to face me that night; I can only have that sort of courage when I am the strongest person."

The light didn't reply, and Mickey put his palm on it. "I missed you; I thought that after burning the orphanage, you weren't interested in me anymore. My mood board was all about you these past few days."

"..."

Mickey's expression suddenly turned cold. He turned back to look at the woman who was trying to use the back door to escape. "I almost forgot about her."

Blood Blade.

...

In a picturesque park on the western edge of Acoustic City, a couple strolled hand in hand, drawing admiring glances from passersby. Their striking good looks made them a perfect match, and onlookers couldn't help but feel a twinge of envy.

However, as time went on, the couple's reception changed dramatically.

People began to regard them with disgust, their expressions twisted in distaste at the couple's perceived shamelessness. Whispered insults and derogatory comments even began to reach their ears, casting a shadow over their once-idyllic stroll.

"Tell me you love me."

"Daddy, Ah! You are killing me!"

"Harder, let it reach all the way!"

"Argh! My back hurts!"

Yi Long Fei was the first to feel troubled; some of his bedroom phrases were being used out in the open. Worse, people were looking at them while they were doing it.

"Did something happen? Why do I feel chills all over?"

Jiang Yilan, who was on the merry-go-round with him, didn't say a thing.

To her, this was a political relationship.

Her "Grading" grimoire had shown Long Fei with an S rating, something out of this world. With this, she knew that Long Fei was going to be a powerful Book Lord.

'As long as I am with this man, I can have enough power to control the whole city. The price I have to pay for that doesn't matter as long as it doesn't disrupt my reputation, which I worked so hard to build.'

Ding-!

At that moment, something that made her reputation fall to rock bottom entered her phone.