When Mei was stopped by Chen Shuo, she frowned slightly, showing obvious resistance. "No, there's nothing to talk about."
"Is that so? I saw you hesitating earlier. You must be hiding something, aren't you?"
Chen Shuo's words were cold and direct.
Mei was startled at first, then showed signs of panic. "No... no..."
"You might fool others, but you can't fool me. I believe your decision to come with us isn't simply because we promised to save you, is it?"
Chen Shuo finally voiced what had been on his mind. How could a female vampire, who had been deeply hurt by humans, choose to trust someone just because of a few kind words?
If it were that simple, female vampires would have come out of hiding long ago.
What moved her must have been more than just their promises.
Mei was somewhat surprised that Chen Shuo had seen through this. Looking at him again, she realized she had underestimated the young man before her.
"So just tell me. I noticed earlier that your eyes were constantly, intentionally or not, fixed on Xiyan. So it must have something to do with her, right?" Chen Shuo pressed on.
Mei kept her head down, not saying a word.
But her silence only confirmed that something was wrong.
Chen Shuo was now even more certain that this had something to do with Su Xiyan.
This female vampire must know what was really going on with Su Xiyan.
"I..."
Mei hesitated, unsure how to explain. Chen Shuo noticed this hesitation but didn't rush her. Instead, he slowly walked to her side.
"There's something holding you back, isn't there? Don't worry, if you tell me, this will be your reward!"
Chen Shuo said with a smile, pulling out a bottle of enhancement potion from his person.
This was the last bit he had saved from before. Originally, Chen Shuo had planned to keep it for emergencies, but now he decided to use it to trade for the secret about Su Xiyan.
"What is this?" Mei stared intently at the enhancement potion in Chen Shuo's hand. As a vampire, her keen senses detected its extraordinary nature.
The powerful force contained within made her yearn for it uncontrollably.
If she hadn't been wary of Chen Shuo's strength, she might have even tried to snatch it. But the thought passed quickly, and she maintained her clarity and rationality.
"It's something that can change your craving for blood. Once you drink this, you'll no longer need to drink blood. You can live normally and become stronger."
Chen Shuo explained confidently, each word making Mei's heart tremble with shock.
Her eyes widened almost to the point of bulging, carrying a hint of disbelief. "How... how is that possible? How can such a thing exist in this world?"
If vampires didn't need to drink blood anymore, could they still be called vampires?
But the temptation was indeed great. If one could survive and grow stronger without drinking human blood, who would want to do such harmful things?
While she despised the treachery of human nature, she also didn't want to do things that harmed others.
If she could rid herself of the need to drink blood from now on, it would be an enormous blessing for her.
Even if she couldn't return to being human, at least she wouldn't need to hunt people for blood, wouldn't need to take risks, and wouldn't be targeted by hunters.
No matter how she thought about it, this was an incredible temptation.
"I won't lie to you. Haven't you noticed that I've never drunk human blood?"
Chen Shuo's counter-question plunged Mei into deep thought. From what she knew of Chen Shuo, she had indeed never seen him with the habit of drinking blood.
Not only that, but he had gone further and further down the path of eliminating vampires.
At first, she had assumed Chen Shuo must have practiced some evil vampire art, surviving by drinking vampire blood.
But in their subsequent interactions, Chen Shuo had always directly eliminated vampires, never drinking their blood.
This led her to rule out the possibility that Chen Shuo had practiced evil arts. His ability to live without drinking blood had always intrigued her.
And now the secret was right in front of her - who could resist such an offer?
"You're not lying to me?" While tempted, Mei still maintained a degree of caution.
"Do I have any reason to lie?" Chen Shuo casually swayed the glass bottle in his hand, speaking nonchalantly. "It's up to you. I can't use this anyway, so it wouldn't be a loss to throw it away."
Chen Shuo said, applying slight pressure to the bottle.
"Wait." Mei finally couldn't resist such great temptation and called out to Chen Shuo at the crucial moment.
Chen Shuo's lips curled into a smile; he had predicted this outcome: "Tell me, what's really going on with Xiyan?"
"Give me the thing first." Mei reached out to grab it.
But Chen Shuo wouldn't give Mei any chance, easily dodging her with one movement.
"I can give it to you, but you need to tell me first. You're not in a position to bargain with me. If you don't need it, I'll just destroy it."
Chen Shuo had gained absolute control of the situation. As long as Mei wanted it, he could manipulate her.
Chen Shuo had won this game of strategy. Mei couldn't resist such temptation; she wanted to change, and the first step required getting what Chen Shuo had.
"Alright, I'll tell you, I'll tell you."
"Su Xiyan bears the Mark Ritual of the vampire clan."
"Mark Ritual? What is the Mark Ritual?" Chen Shuo was slightly stunned. Even though he had reached the Demon Saint Realm, he knew very little about vampire clan matters.
Although he had learned some things through the system, there was still a great deal he only partially understood.
"It won't cause any physical harm to Su Xiyan, but it will reveal her location. All vampires can find Su Xiyan."
Mei's words made Chen Shuo frown deeply as he realized the severity of the problem.
Perhaps this curse wouldn't cause physical harm to Su Xiyan, but its consequences would surely be more terrifying than bodily injury.
What did it mean to have one's location exposed to all vampires?
It meant that vampires worldwide could sense Su Xiyan's existence. If they had any intentions toward her, they could find her just by following this sense.
With Su Xiyan's current strength, there was no need to worry about small fry.
But what about a Demon King? Or even a Demon Saint? If she caught the attention of such powerful vampires, the consequences would be unthinkable.
Because no matter how they tried to hide, they would be found immediately.
The enemy would be in the shadows while they were exposed. It was like showing their backs to the enemy.
"Can this thing be removed?" Chen Shuo asked, but Mei only shook her head in response.
The result was obvious - it couldn't be removed. This mark would follow Su Xiyan until the end of her life.