Beating Heart

Xue Yang's first vampire lowered his head respectfully.

"Right away, my lord."

He turned around and started leading Xue Yang into the town.

Using his connection, Xue Yang instructed the ghouls carrying the Li couple, Bai Ling and the deplorable trash.

'Take the Li couple into a room within the city lord's manor and do the same for Bai Ling. Make sure to block out any windows. And the trash… take it to a dungeon. Just make sure he lives.'

With that, Xue Yang was done preparing for the day that would soon arrive.

The two travelled deep into the town.

Some buildings were on fire, while others were utterly erased from existence.

In a single night, the town completely transformed from a vice of den to rubble.

Rivers of blood flooded the streets, and corpses that weren't turned into ghouls were scattered everywhere.

'I should build a stockpile of blood.'

As Xue Yang walked past, he collected all the blood on the streets and drained all the remaining blood from the corpses, turning them to dust.

The blood flowed into one of his storage rings in preparation for the future.

One had to be prepared for all possibilities, and for Xue Yang and the new vampires, not having blood with them for emergencies would be akin to being caught with one's pants down.

Xue Yang had already experienced a lack of blood and felt the mind-gnawing hunger that ate away at his reasoning and sanity.

'Never again…'

Most importantly, he didn't want the same tragedy to ever repeat itself…

"We are here, my lord."

He had brought Xue Yang to what looked to be a restaurant, or at the very least, that's what it used to be.

They walked towards the garden at the back of the building.

There, he saw ghouls not far from a wall circling someone.

Xue Yang could sense that they were human, and his barely beating heart reacted for some unknown reason.

*Badum*

*Badum*

He touched his chest with a look of confusion.

'What is this?' He questioned.

Xue Yang started walking towards the group.

"Back off, you monsters!"

'What?'

The voice sounded familiar, too familiar.

'It can't be…'

"Move out my way."

He instructed the ghouls, who parted, revealing the person they were blocking.

When he saw the supposed man, his eyes grew wide from shock.

Swallowing some saliva, Xue Yang couldn't believe his eyes.

Standing by the wall holding a kitchen knife was what looked like a young man.

They were wearing old and cheap, loose-fitting robes.

Their face was dirty, and they had dark rings under their eyes as if they hadn't had a good night's rest in days.

They had blue eyes, and their head was covered as if they had short or no hair.

Xue Yang recognised this person at a glance.

"Li Qing?" He asked, his voice breaking slightly, still not believing what he saw right before him.

Hearing Xue Yang call out to her, Li Qing looked at him. 

Tears started to form in her eyes as she shouted to warn him.

"Xue Yang! Run away. These monsters are dangerous!"

Xue Yang smiled and appeared before her, embracing her in a hug.

"Shh, everything is alright. You have nothing to worry about. You're safe now."

"W-what…" She stammered, but Xue Yang interrupted her.

Petting her head, he says, "I will explain everything later. There are more pressing matters."

She pushes herself away slightly from Xue Yang, tears still swirling in her eyes.

"My parents! Please help me. Xue Yang, the city lord's son, took them. I… I don't even know if they're still alive…"

He smiled and wiped a tear threatening to fall as he gently rubbed her back.

"They're safe. I've already saved them. We can see them now if you'd like. The trash that brought this misfortune to you will never be able to harm anyone ever again."

It was as if a weight was lifted off her.

She couldn't believe it was finally over and her precious family was safe.

The flood works were unleashed, and she started to cry.

Xue Yang embraced her tightly, allowing her to cry into his large, powerful chest.

"Thank you. Thank you." She repeated over and over.

Xue Yang smiled as he continued to comfort the crying beauty.

He kissed her on the head and said, "It's nothing. I'm just returning the favour."

Thanks to everything being resolved and her safe feeling around Xue Yang, Li Qing passed out from exhaustion.

She was physically and mentally tired yet held on, even prepared to fight monsters that cultivators couldn't handle.

Xue Yang couldn't help but be impressed as he carried her in a princess carry back to the city lord's home.

"Kid?" He called out.

"Yes, my lord?"

"You did great. I will be sure to reward you. For now, instruct the ghouls to hide and then come to the manor to rest."

"Thank you, my lord." With a large grin, he thanked Xue Yang and got to work.

Originally, Xue Yang had different plans for the boy, but good work and achievements had to be rewarded.

Xue Yang brought Li Qing into a room and gently placed her on a bed.

A couple of hours passed, and Li Qing managed to wake up.

She found herself staring at an unfamiliar ceiling.

She shot up, frightened of what was happening, but then she saw Xue Yang and remembered everything.

"You should have slept more." Xue Yang smiled.

He watched Li Qing sleep, wanting to be there when she woke up.

"Where are we? Where are my parents?"

Xue Yang smiled and walked over to the bed, sitting beside her.

"We are currently in what used to be the city lord's home, and we can see your parents, but they won't be awake for a while. They have been through a lot and need to rest."

Li Qing smiled, "That's fine. I just need to see them."

Xue Yang nodded his head and picked Li Qing up.

"Ahh!" She yelped out of surprise.

Embarrassed, she hid her head in his chest and mumbled.

"I can walk there myself."

Xue Yang let out a light chuckle.

"I know. But I feel like carrying you." He winked.