Chapter 30: A Massive Army Pressing at the Border [Subscriptions Requested]

Looking at the metal box in Dr. Yorkson's hands, the grand hall fell into an instantaneous and profound silence.

Neither Amelia nor Lucian spoke first.

Serum Number One concerned the development and prosperity of their races, as well as the stability of their prestige and status within them. Naturally, both desired it.

However, the relationship between vampires and werewolves was deeply awkward. In the past, the two clans were mortal enemies; now, having sworn allegiance to Li Yang, they maintained a veneer of cordiality on the surface, but covert, cutthroat struggles beneath the surface had never ceased.

Yet, the current situation was different. They could no longer clash openly and brazenly as they used to; doing so would only incur the displeasure of the great Crown.

"Doctor, I would like to ask, is this serum effective for the first-generation werewolves?"

Marcus didn't have so many complex thoughts. Although he was the leader of the vampire race, ever since vampires first came into being, the core of power had never had anything to do with him.

He had never targeted the werewolf race either. His only concern right now was whether this serum could restore his younger brother's sanity.

It wasn't that he didn't want the serum for himself, but he believed that Li Yang had not yet arranged his transformation for a reason—there must be other plans in motion. He knew better than to inquire too deeply into this matter.

"The genes used in Serum Number One belong to a remarkably wondrous extraordinary creature. Theoretically speaking, any gene inferior to it will be assimilated by it, and the genes of the first-generation werewolves naturally fall within this scope."

Dr. Yorkson remained very polite toward Marcus. While others might not know, he was well aware that Marcus was the ultimate source of the vampire race. Dr. Yorkson had even studied Marcus's genes.

The first half of Marcus's genetic traits was almost identical to the Blood of Perfection. It belonged to the oldest, purest undead lineage, while the second half formed the foundation of standard vampire genes.

In contrast, the first half of an ordinary vampire's genes was a jumble centered around human genes, with only the second half consisting of unified vampire genes. As for pure-blood vampires, their genes were purely vampiric, completely unadulterated.

From this, one could perceive the hierarchy of potential within the vampire race. Without a doubt, Marcus as the progenitor possessed the greatest potential; pure-blood vampires held second place, while the converted vampires possessed the weakest potential.

Of course, these were merely potentials. In reality, the core of power among vampires was firmly held in the hands of those converted vampires, which inevitably made the position of pure-blood vampires rather awkward.

"Is that so..."

Hearing Dr. Yorkson's explanation, Marcus undoubtedly felt a wave of relief. He knew that the matter of restoring his brother's sanity finally had a path forward.

Yet he was not naive enough to demand the serum right then and there. Without a doubt, these five doses of Serum Number One were the prized possessions of both the vampire and werewolf clans. If he were to ask for them now, leave aside the werewolf clan, even the vampire clan would not give him the slightest face. If he wanted any, he would go directly to Li Yang to request them; after all, these had been promised to him beforehand.

"Elder Amelia, how do you propose we divide this batch of serum so that it is fair?"

After staring at each other for a long moment, Lucian finally lost his patience. He looked at Amelia and spoke with a solemn expression.

"Lucian, surely from this recent human campaign to encircle us, you can see that the foundation possessed by our vampire race is superior to your Lycan clan in every single aspect!"

Seeing Lucian speak up, Amelia smiled faintly and said with profound meaning.

"Bulls***! Who says you vampires are better than us..."

"Exactly... based on what, you bunch of weaklings..."

"..."

Before Amelia's voice had even faded, and before Lucian could respond, the group of werewolves standing behind him could no longer restrain themselves. Faces flushed with anger, they began to hurl curses and shouts.

"You bastards... all of you, shut your traps!"

Gazing at the indifferent vampires on one side and his own group of impulsive, foolish subordinates on the other, Lucian realized that even if he refused to acknowledge Amelia's words, the facts were undeniable. Overwhelmed with rage, Lucian could no longer contain his fury. He abruptly stood up from his chair and roared at his clansmen.

Seeing Lucian flare up, the wolves, though unconvinced in their hearts, still feared his authority. One by one, they clamped their mouths shut with resentful expressions.

"Perhaps you are right. Now is a critical time when the Crown requires people. This time, our Lycan clan will take a step back and settle for two doses of the serum."

Lucian sat back down and gave a wry smile. If he insisted on bickering unreasonably, he could undoubtedly extract more benefits, or at the very least force the vampires to make concessions elsewhere.

Yet, as the saying went, he was still the leader of a clan; what sense would it make to throw a petty, unreasonable tantrum? To gain tangible benefits while losing face was a losing proposition no matter how one calculated it.

His reputation now represented the entire Lycan clan. If he disgracefully backed down over nothing, would his clan not have to lower their heads whenever they encountered a vampire from then on? Such a trade was never worth making, no matter how he thought about it.

"Since that is the case, consider this as our vampire clan owing the Lycans a favor. If you have any needs, just name them!" Amelia was a seasoned schemer and naturally understood the art of stopping while ahead. Since Lucian had been so straightforward, she could not afford to be petty. Given the deep foundations of the vampire clan, offering some compensation was only right, especially since they had gotten the better end of the deal this time.

"Compensation won't be necessary. I only hope that the next time there is such a windfall, our Lycan clan will be allowed to take advantage of it as well."

Since he had decided against demanding immediate benefits, Lucian opted to play it straight to the end. A poor man still had his pride, and he threw out a probing, meaningful remark.

Facing this topic, Amelia merely smiled and let it pass without taking the bait.

To be honest, the vampire clan was massive and complex. She alone could not completely dictate matters regarding the serum, let alone make promises to Lucian. At present, she was merely the head of one of the larger factions within the vampire clan; it did not mean she could cover the sky with a single hand.

After all, those vampire elders representing the ancient nobility were no fools. Serum Number One was a divine artifact capable of making up for every single flaw inherent to the vampire race.

The last time, she had shouldered immense pressure just to allocate those remaining two doses to two young pure-blood vampires. The distribution rights for this new batch had already been settled long ago.

...

In the twelfth month of the Yimo year.

At this moment, outside the city of London, the Marine Corps was rapidly assembling.

Looking at the neatly arranged military ranks and the tens of thousands of well-equipped soldiers before him, Marshal Hawke felt a surge of surging emotions.

Raising his head to gaze at the blazing sun in the sky, Hawke resolved not to repeat the ambush tactics that had failed him the previous time.

Instead, he intended to use a righteous and upright military force to eradicate the monsters and demons plaguing the empire in one fell swoop.

After the lessons of the previous incident, he had finally seen the reality clearly: purely in terms of individual combat capability, those vampires and wolves were simply incomparable to ordinary humans. Under such a premise, any talk of surprise attacks or ambushes was utter nonsense.

...

While the humans were making preparations, within Li Yang's manor, the vampire and werewolf clans had long since received the news.

By now, they were running about like ants on a hot pan, deeply anxious and restless.

As it happened, the birth of the Nirvana Golden Elixir was reaching its final stages, and Li Yang simply could not spare any free time to deal with these trivial matters.

"The human army is pressing upon our borders. Let's hear your thoughts—how should we respond?"

In the manor's grand hall, Amelia looked out over the restless crowd of werewolves and asked.

"What other choice is there? We can only take it one step at a time. It's broad daylight. This time, let the warriors of the Lycan clan take the vanguard, and ordinary vampires can stay in the underground laboratories without coming out to interfere."

Glancing at the daylight outside, Lucian flexed his muscles with a firm and resolute expression.

"The humans have arrived!"

At that very moment, Raze suddenly rushed in from outside the manor, his expression deeply grave.

"They've come quickly! Let's move."

Exchanging a glance with Lucian, Amelia, clad in battle armor, led a group of vampire blood-mages and charged out of the manor.

"Gather the clansmen, we move out!"

Issuing an order to Raze, Lucian broke into a run, sprinting toward the exterior of the manor.

...

A thousand meters away from Li Yang's manor, an army was slowly approaching. With over ten thousand men, it formed a vast, churning sea of humanity.

In front of the manor stood a group of upright, dark-brown-furred werewolves, numbering at least a thousand. At their lead was a giant werewolf, three meters tall and covered in silver fur.

"Awoooo... Arooo..."

"Charge! Tear them apart!"

"For the great God of Blood Mages!"

"..."

The moment the army closed in, Lucian, leading the pack, swung his gleaming wolf claws. Accompanied by a chorus of overlapping howls, the mass of werewolves dropped to all fours, sweeping forward like a dark tempest toward the approaching military force.

"Heavy artillery battalion, open fire..."

"Machine gunners, ready! Tear those beasts to pieces!"

At the rear of the army, Colonel James waved his command flag and shouted into his wireless walkie-talkie as he watched the charging horde of werewolves.

He was personally in charge of this campaign, and he had long since mentally prepared himself to either succeed or die trying. As for Marshal Hawke, he naturally did not make a personal appearance; as a high-ranking official of the empire and a marshal of its armies, his proper place was on the international battlefield. When it came to internal conflicts, his personal presence would change the very nature of the war.

"Rumble... boom..."

"Rat-tat-tat... bang bang bang... plop plop plop..."

"Awooo... oof... thud thud thud..."

"......"