The Search

Squad leader Rafi brought them to the outer periphery of the inner castle and ordered everyone to split up to continue the search for the assassin. 'This must be God's will,' thought Ye Ming. He had just finished searching the inside of the inner castle and was just thinking of finding a way to go outside when squad leader Rafi, like he could read Ye Ming's mind, gave Ye Ming exactly what he wanted.

Like before, Ye Ming wandered around the outer periphery of the inner castle alone. He continued to look for treasure chests under the guise of searching for the assassin. While he was looking around, Ye Ming heard someone behind him ask, "Hey, what the hell are you doing? There's no way the assassin can hide in that patch of grass."

Ye Ming's body stiffened. He already recognized the voice that spoke – it was team leader Gasso. He immediately turned back and said seriously, "Reporting in, team leader Gasso. Captain Ali said to search every nook and cranny, so I cannot let a single inch of this place go unsearched, sir."

Gasso could feel a headache coming. He did not expect the newcomer to be a blockhead. Captain Ali's words were proverbial, but this guy actually took it literally. Had he no brain? Couldn't he tell that the ankle-high grass couldn't hide anyone? But he found the way this guy obeyed a command to the letter very satisfactory. After all, every superordinate wished for obedient subordinates.

Gasso did not know if he should criticize Ye Ming or praise him. After thinking about it, he said, "Forget it. Continue what you're doing." Gasso could not be bothered correcting him. He left with his partner to search other places.

The corners of Ye Ming's mouth curled up in mocking. He turned back and continued the search among the grass. Suddenly, he heard the sound of a system notification.

*Ding* [Congratulations, you have found a golden treasure chest.]

Ye Ming looked to his left and sure enough, less than five meters away, a golden treasure chest was sitting there. He happily walked over to it and muttered to himself, "I wouldn't have found this if I didn't search so thoroughly." The treasure chest contained materials which he pocketed. He continued his search in the lawn of the inner castle.

"Hey, you. Come here for a minute." A voice suddenly called out to him.

Ye Ming turned around and saw that it was one of the Vampires who shared a room with him. Ye Ming complained in his mind, 'F*ck off. What's with that attitude? We have the same status, you just came here a little earlier than me. How dare you order me around.'

Even though his heart was heavy with reluctance, Ye Ming still went over. "What's the matter?" asked Ye Ming.

"I found an old well. Go down there and take a look," said the Vampire.

'Damn you. Why don't you go down yourself. It's so dark I can't see anything inside.' thought Ye Ming as he inspected the inside of the well. He gave the Vampire another unhappy glance.

"What ya lookin' at? Can't you hear him? He told you to go down there," said his roommate's partner condescendingly.

Ye Ming rolled his eyes. If they weren't in Marquis Harland's castle, he would really like to give this guy the stab of death.

"I can't fly." Ye Ming gave a random excuse to try and brush them off.

"Not a problem. We've prepared a rope for you. We'll keep a grip on the rope from up here. You just have to go down to take a quick look. If you can't find anything, we'll pull you back up," persuaded Ye Ming's roommate.

Ye Ming took a deep breath. Right now, he should try his best to avoid any conflict. He could only compromise and agree to the request.

When the rude guy saw that Ye Ming had agreed, he instantly tied the rope around Ye Ming's waist. After he yanked it tight with force and confirmed that there was no problem, he said, "Okay, that should be fine. Go down."

"You guys hold on tight," said Ye Ming, pretending to be scared. In truth, he had already mastered basic flight, so he was not worried at all even if those two were to pull any tricks. Besides, he had not had a conflict with anyone since coming to Marquis Harland's castle, so he could think of no reason for the two Vampires to deliberately harm him.

"Don't worry, we will," his roommate said.

And so Ye Ming climbed onto the mouth of the well and slowly slid down with his hands pushing against the well's wall. The well was narrow at the top and wide at the bottom, so he soon found his arms not long enough to push against the well's wall anymore. He could only rely on the rope to lower him to the bottom of the well.

*Ding* [Congratulations, you have discovered a treasure chest!]

Ye Ming rejoiced when he heard the notification. There was actually a treasure chest at the bottom of this old well too! The two Vampires had actually helped him without knowing it. "I'm almost there. Keep lowering me," Ye Ming shouted at the Vampires above.

Under Ye Ming's command, the two Vampires soon lowered Ye Ming to the bottom of the well.

[Congratulations, you have discovered a platinum treasure chest!]

"Amazing! It's a platinum treasure chest!" Ye Ming wasted no time in opening the chest.

[Congratulations, you have obtained a vial of Marquis Blood Essence and five drops of Count Blood Essence!]

"WOW. Look at this harvest."

Ye Ming was still reveling in his delight when he heard his roommate above shout, "Oi! Did you find anything? You didn't get killed by the assassin, did you?"

Ye Ming quickly replied, "Nope, there's nothing here. Quick, pull me up." He put away the Marquis Blood Essence and Count Blood Essence and shook the rope.

Not long after, he felt his body slowly leaving the bottom of the well, heading upward.

When he climbed out of the well and saw the two Vampires above again, Ye Ming had to suppress the urge to give them a big hug. "They're good people. Really good people."

"Come on, let's go search somewhere else." When Ye Ming's roommate saw that there was nothing to be found here, he wasted no time in leading the other Vampire away to another place.

Ye Ming snickered behind them. He turned around and left as well because he had to continue looking for his treasure chests.

They searched for the entire night with nothing to show for it. They did not even find a strand of hair belonging to the assassin. There was not much else they could do, so Rafi gathered the squad and they returned to the separate courtyard on the outer castle.

After receiving the order to dismiss, Ye Ming did not waste a single moment to run back to his room. He instantly opened the Blood Coffin and went inside. He took out all the loot he got from the inner castle. He put everything else aside but the {Blood Demon Body Technique} manual and started learning the technique with fervor.

It turned out that the {Blood Demon Body Technique} focused only on one thing – speed. That made it highly compatible with the properties of the Vampiric Dagger.

The two complemented each other well. With the {Blood Demon Body Technique's} nimbleness and agility and the special effects of the Vampiric Dagger, Ye Ming could kill his enemy by taking them by surprise. The body technique was almost tailor-made for him.

A few days later, Ye Ming had somewhat mastered the {Blood Demon Body Technique}, so he started to refine Blood Essences again. He first refined the Marquis Blood Essence he obtained from the inner castle. The feeling of a majestic power surging in his body reappeared. Using the {Ancient Blood Refining Technique}, Ye Ming fully absorbed the Vitae contained within the Marquis Blood Essence, transforming it into his own power.

After refining the Marquis Blood Essence, he went on to refine the Count Blood Essences he had all at once. Ye Ming could feel his power had once again gotten stronger, but this time, it was not just his power. Perhaps because the Vitae contained within the Marquis Blood Essence was too powerful, even his mental power had grown stronger. His mind felt clearer than ever before, and his senses were unusually sharp. When he launched a mental attack, he no longer had to take a moment to gather his concentration before he could unleash the attack. He could now launch a mental attack anytime and anywhere.

Ye Ming was delighted.