Vampire Fang

Chapter 3

Li Jinyu helped her brother up and they slowly walked towards the Stone Pagoda Bridge. It was late at night, and she finally managed to find a guesthouse and book a room for her brother to rest. The owner gave the female college student a suggestive look, charged double the room rate, but said nothing. Li Jinyu stayed by her brother's side all night, blankly thinking, "Where did Zhou Wen go? Could it be... could it be that he went to leech off others again!"

Chapter Ten: The Way of the Celestial Masters

The next morning, Li Bing had recovered some of his strength. He frowned and said, "This vampire is too powerful. I am no match for it. I'm afraid Master will have to personally subdue it. I must set off immediately to return to Shouqiong Mountain to report to Master. Are you coming with me?" Li Jinyu said, "I need to stay here and keep an eye on Zhou Wen. We can't let him harm anyone else."

Li Bing hesitated for a moment and said, "Alright, you have the Three Flowers protecting you, the vampire can't hurt you, but still be careful, don't get too close!" Li Jinyu nodded and said, "I'll be careful myself. Brother, you have to hurry, Grandpa said that once a vengeful spirit has its own body, its magic power will increase dozens of times, and no one can subdue it!" Li Bing tried to reassure her, saying, "Don't worry, Master's magic is ten times stronger than mine, he will definitely be able to subdue that vampire." Although he said that, he himself was not confident.

The brother and sister parted ways at the entrance of the guesthouse. Li Jinyu returned to her dormitory, where Huo Lili, Ji Yun, and Dai Shuzhen were already up and washing. They grabbed Li Jinyu, pulled her to the edge of the bed, and interrogated her in detail about why she hadn't come home the night before and whether she had been with her boyfriend. Li Jinyu was already preoccupied, and their commotion almost brought her to tears. Seeing that she was truly angry, Ji Yun quickly stepped in to smooth things over, awkwardly pulling Huo Lili and Dai Shuzhen away.

Military training continued as usual. Today's activity was learning martial arts. Li Jinyu was listless, his eyes constantly glancing towards the boys, searching for Zhou Wen. Zhou Wen seemed perfectly fine, practicing his martial arts routine meticulously among the group, though his movements were stiff, as if he had sprained a muscle. Others didn't see anything wrong, but to Li Jinyu, Zhou Wen appeared to have the head of a vengeful spirit atop his head—how eerie and terrifying!

Xu Ye seized the opportunity to joke with Li Jinyu: "You're so lazy today, but he's in pretty good spirits! Where did you two go on your date yesterday?" Li Jinyu glared at her, thinking, "In good spirits? He must have been sucking people's blood again! That guy is disgusting!" However, ever since the battle on the ruins, she dared not provoke Zhou Wen again and could only keep an eye on his every move from afar. Huo Lili and the others thought it was just the young couple bickering and didn't take it to heart.

The murder at S University hadn't even faded from casual conversation when a fourth vicious bloodsucking murder occurred in G City. The victim was a female textile factory worker returning home late at night. The location was near the Second Prison west of Xinhongqiao on Zhanlu Road, and the time was late at night on September 18th. The woman was fully clothed, and her death was identical to that of the elderly woman from S University. There were fang bite marks on her right neck, and her body was completely drained of blood. The cash in her purse was untouched. Clearly, the killer's motive wasn't robbery or sexual assault, but rather… bloodsucking!

Chief Xie of the Criminal Investigation Brigade was in a real bind. The mayor had given him a strict order: solve the case within three months and give the citizens an explanation. Chief Xie was frantic with worry, working for three days and three nights straight without sleep. His body finally gave way, and he collapsed in the conference room. The hospital tests revealed a duodenal ulcer causing stomach bleeding; he needed a month of bed rest, or his life would be in danger.

Director Xie had no choice but to transfer these four bizarre murder cases to his deputy, Peng Shuguang. Peng Shuguang had risen through the ranks from the bottom; he was young, quick-witted, and adept at accepting new ideas. Unlike Director Xie, who was a staunch atheist, he began to suspect that the culprit behind these cases was the rumored demon or monster. Of course, these thoughts couldn't be shared with the lower-ranking detectives; if they got out, it would be very detrimental to his career advancement.

Peng Shuguang quietly changed into civilian clothes and took some time to visit a Taoist friend of his at the Sanqing Hall of Wanshou Palace in the city center. His Taoist name was Moyan, and he was a successor of the Celestial Masters sect. As the saying goes, "the truly wise live in seclusion in the city," and he had been staying in the most prosperous part of G City to cultivate himself, thereby tempering his Taoist heart and will.

After listening to his detailed account of the case, Mo Yan confidently said, "This was done by a vampire. It's recorded in the Taoist canon, and only magic can subdue it." Peng Shuguang knew that he was a highly skilled Taoist priest who didn't just chant sutras to swindle money, so he entrusted him to use magic to remove the vampire and specifically instructed him, "This matter must be carried out quietly, and you must not alert the media."

Mo Yan said, "Of course! But there's something strange. After that vampire killed Han Mei and Lin Yongshou, it didn't drink the blood of the third or fourth person for more than two months. What was it doing during that long?" Peng Shuguang's heart skipped a beat. Knowing it was a stupid question, he still asked, "G City is particularly hot this year. Could it have gone to another place to escape the heat?"

Mo Yan chuckled, "No, demons aren't afraid of the heat. I want to change my clothes and go to S University to see if it has left any traces. Could you give them a heads-up?" Peng Shuguang readily agreed. After returning, he called Principal Shen, saying that the investigation required a second investigation of the mound where the body was found. To avoid disrupting the school's normal teaching, he requested that an undercover officer come over the next day and asked for the school's assistance.

---Magpie Bridge Fairy

Reply [16]: The next day, Mo Yan took a shower, changed into a brand new suit, put on a tie and sunglasses, and took a taxi to the gate of S University. He showed the gatekeeper the letter of introduction that Peng Shuguang had written, and walked into the campus leisurely, while strolling around and looking for the subtle traces left by the vampire.

It was Sunday, and there weren't many students left on campus. Li Jinyu and her roommate were just coming out of the library when they bumped into the impeccably dressed Mo Yan. Mo Yan was taken aback when he saw Li Jinyu, and then pointed at her with a gesture that only those in the Daoist sect would understand. Li Jinyu understood, made an excuse to part ways with Huo Lili and the others, and followed Mo Yan at a distance to the Sijing River.

Seeing that no one was around, Mo Yan bowed to her and said, "This humble Taoist is Mo Yan, a disciple of the Celestial Masters sect. I cultivate in seclusion at the Sanqing Hall of the Wanshou Palace. May I ask which sect you belong to, young lady?" Li Jinyu couldn't help but laugh when she saw him dressed in a suit and tie and referring to himself as a "humble Taoist." She returned the bow and said, "I am Li Jinyu of the Maoshan sect. Your attire is really... really..." Mo Yan smiled and said, "I can't very well come to your school in a Taoist robe, can I? People will think I'm here to swindle people!" Li Jinyu's heart skipped a beat, and she asked, "You've come for the Vampire Fang, haven't you?" Mo Yan said, "That's right. That guy has caused a lot of trouble. Do you know where it's hiding?"

Li Jinyu sighed and recounted how Zhou Wen had been possessed by the vampire. Mo Yan frowned and said, "Strange, the vampire's true form can't be a fetus!" Li Jinyu said, "Should I call Zhou Wen out so you can see for yourself?"

Mo Yan said, "No rush. Why don't you tell the criminal investigation team about this?" Li Jinyu pouted and said, "They wouldn't believe that there are demons and monsters in this world. It's pointless to tell them!" Mo Yan nodded and said, "That's true. How about this, you take me to Zhou Wen tonight, and I'll perform a ritual to drive away the vampire. It'll be a way to rid the people of this scourge."

Li Jinyu glanced at him and said, "This is no ordinary vampire; it's a vampire with a thousand years of cultivation. Ordinary spells can't deal with it at all! My brother fought it a few days ago and almost lost his life, but it still managed to escape. You must not underestimate it!"

Mo Yan smiled and said, "Everyone can perform magic tricks, but each has their own unique skill. The Maoshan sect can't do it, but perhaps our Celestial Masters sect's magic can subdue it." Li Jinyu felt somewhat uncomfortable upon hearing this and said coldly, "Then you should try it. Don't blame me for not warning you. The other day, my brother set up the Heavenly Devastation Formation, but he managed to contain the Samadhi True Fire in his palm and easily dissolved the three combined forces of Zi You, Qing Ming, and Cang Ling. This kind of magic power is no joke!"

Mo Yan opened his mouth in surprise and said, "It's that powerful?" He immediately reassessed his opponent and pondered, "So I'm no match for it either. Hmm, could you pluck a hair from your classmate's head and I'll try the Soul Suppression Technique? Even if I fail, there's nothing to lose."

Li Jinyu asked, "Won't this harm Zhou Wen?" Mo Yan shook his head and said, "No, we, the Celestial Masters, only eliminate demons and monsters. We would never harm the bodies of mortals, or we would be punished by Heaven!" Li Jinyu nodded, thought for a moment, and then said, "I'll find a way to get the hair and bring it to the Sanqing Hall for you. You can perform the spell, and I'll protect you."

Mo Yan said, "Thank you, but we Celestial Masters' magic is not passed on to outsiders, so you'd better avoid us." Li Jinyu thought to herself, "Grandpa said long ago that the people of the Celestial Masters' sect are stingy, I've just made a fool of myself." She gave Mo Yan a few perfunctory words, without mentioning taking him to see Zhou Wen, and then made an excuse to return to her dormitory.

Section Eleven: Soul-Suppressing Technique

Mo Yan noticed that Li Jinyu was somewhat unhappy, so he could only smile wryly and silently explain to himself, "These are the rules left by our sect, and there's nothing I can do about it." He watched Li Jinyu leave, and suddenly saw a student-looking man greet her. The two of them then stood in front of the bell tower and chatted.

Li Jinyu put his hands behind his back and secretly gestured to Mo Yan. Mo Yan wondered, "Could that person be Zhou Wen possessed by the vampire?" He closed his eyes, whispered a few incantations, and then slowly opened them. The scene on the S University campus was crystal clear. He could clearly see that the boy had the head of a vengeful spirit on his head, and his appearance was like that of an underdeveloped fetus.

Mo Yan took a deep breath and chanted a spell. A faint white light emanated from his pupils—this was the "Spiritual Awareness" technique, a secret art passed down through the Celestial Masters sect. The boy's body gradually became transparent in his eyes. He finally discovered that the part of the vengeful spirit that had invaded the human body had mutated into a monster from a Taoist canon, its entire body covered in colorful patterns, and an inner core the size of an egg spinning rapidly, shimmering with dazzling light.

Mo Yan gasped in shock; it was actually a vampire king.

The boy was none other than Zhou Wen, completely unaware of what had happened. He had no recollection of what had transpired; all he felt was excruciating muscle soreness, as if he had run fifty 1000-meter races—his most hated physical education test. That day, bored in his dorm, he went for a stroll and unexpectedly bumped into his classmate, Li Jinyu, in front of the clock tower.

---Magpie Bridge Fairy

Reply [17]: While Li Jinyu was being perfunctory with Zhou Wen, she carefully examined his shoulders, looking for any fallen hair. However, Zhou Wen had just washed his hair that morning, and there wasn't a single hair or even a dandruff flake to be found. Li Jinyu had no choice but to have a sudden inspiration. She said, "I was planning to invite you to the movies last time, but I had a stomachache and couldn't go. The weather is nice today, so let's go to Rongxi Hall and see what movies they have."

Zhou Wen had already harbored some suspicions. He wasn't the type to be easily self-absorbed. He hadn't known Li Jinyu for long, and they weren't very familiar with each other. Why would she be so proactive in approaching him? She was a beautiful woman, while he wasn't a handsome guy! But then he thought, whatever her intentions, he wouldn't suffer any loss anyway. He said indifferently, "Okay, I like watching movies. Watching movies is like watching different lives."

Li Jinyu looked at him with some surprise, not expecting this unassuming fellow to utter such philosophical words. She thought, "God is very fair. If He takes something away from you, He will definitely give you something else as compensation. The blind man's ears are particularly sensitive, and the deaf man's eyes are particularly sharp. Although Zhou Wen's appearance is not good, he still has some thoughts in his mind."

Each lost in their own thoughts, they walked side by side, a few fists' width apart. This morning, Rongxi Hall was showing the French comedy "La Grande Vadrouille." Zhou Wen had bought two tickets first, but Li Jinyu refused, saying, "Didn't we agree I'd treat you?" Zhou Wen hadn't expected her to be so insistent, and quickly replied, "Oh, I forgot! Oh well, it's a habit now. Maybe next time!"

Li Jinyu glanced at him, thinking, "Showing off? Really or not? Is he trying to imply that I've had many girlfriends in the past? Humph, you think there will be a next time? He's after your hair!" But she said politely, "Then I'll have to trouble you."

The two entered Rongxi Hall. The movie had been playing for a while, but the hall was almost empty; hardly anyone was watching. It's true, few people would watch this kind of outdated film these days. Action movies, gunfight movies, romance movies… and even pornography are popular. Zhou Wen, however, was thoroughly enjoying himself. The human's every move was full of comedic effect, and while the vampire was changing his body, it was also subtly changing his mind.

Taking advantage of his inattention, Li Jinyu secretly plucked a hair from his head. She moved quickly, and by the time Zhou Wen sensed something and turned to look at her, Li Jinyu was already pretending to be amused by the movie, failing to arouse his suspicion. Li Jinyu had schemed against Zhou Wen time and again, ostensibly to help him escape the control of the vampire, but ultimately she felt somewhat guilty. She willingly sat with Zhou Wen in Rongxi Hall for over an hour, watching a completely unfunny comedy—this was a small form of compensation, though even Li Jinyu herself didn't realize it.

After the movie ended, Zhou Wen suggested going out for dinner, but Li Jinyu declined, saying she had made plans with Huo Lili to go to KFC. The two parted ways in front of Rongxi Hall. Li Jinyu held his hair and walked all the way to the Sijing River, wanting to see if the successor of the Celestial Masters sect was still there.

Mo Yan was indeed still waiting there. He smiled and said to Li Jinyu, "I saw you asked Zhou Wen to go to the movies, so I knew you wanted to pull his hair out in the dark." Li Jinyu had never liked his self-righteous tone. She handed Zhou Wen's hair to Mo Yan and said, "Take this and use it for your spell. I'm going back."

Mo Yan carefully took the hair and reminded Li Jinyu, "I just used magic to examine him closely. There's a vampire king attached to his body. You'd better stay away from it." Li Jinyu didn't turn around and said, "Thank you, but you should be the one staying away from it. It can't hurt me."

Mo Yan chuckled to himself, thinking, "Who do you think you are? You've only studied Maoshan Taoism for a few years and you've become so arrogant. Our Celestial Masters Taoism is the true orthodox sect of Taoism!" He was suddenly filled with curiosity and used his "spiritual awareness" magic to observe Li Jinyu again, only to find three green lotuses rolling up and down inside her body, which greatly surprised him.

At midnight that day, Mo Yan performed a ritual in the Sanqing Hall, lighting forty-nine celestial lanterns arranged in three circles. He sat cross-legged in the center, holding Zhou Wen's hair in his left hand and a peach wood sword in his right, murmuring incantations. After about half an hour, he released his left hand, and the hair, as if it had come to life, stood upright in front of him, twisting and turning, gradually forming the outline of a tiny person the size of a mung bean.

Mo Yan bit his fingertip and drew a soul-summoning talisman on the talisman paper, inserted it into the peach wood sword, chanted a few incantations, lit the talisman paper on the sky lantern, and shouted "Hurry!" A gust of wind swept through the hall, making the forty-nine sky lanterns sway precariously. Mo Yan muttered to himself, "Its soul is coming!"

Before he could finish speaking, Zhou Wen suddenly appeared before him, his eyes bloodshot, two sharp fangs protruding from the corners of his mouth, staring coldly at him. Mo Yan remained completely calm; he knew this was merely a phantom formed from a soul, posing no harm whatsoever. He took another talisman, drew a soul-suppressing talisman on it, bit his tongue, spat out a mouthful of blood, and raised his hand to stick it onto Zhou Wen.

To everyone's surprise, the soul-suppressing talisman turned to ashes and vanished without a trace the moment it left his hand. Mo Yan was immediately taken aback; he had never encountered anything like this since mastering his magic. After a moment of stunned silence, the muscles in his face twitched, unsure of what had gone wrong.

Zhou Wen suddenly said coldly, "If you want to meddle in other people's business, you should first consider your own strength. You don't have the Three Flowers protecting you, yet you dare to summon my soul. Are you tired of living?" Mo Yan then realized that the Zhou Wen in front of him was not a phantom formed from his soul. He was so frightened that his soul almost left his body. He was frantically trying to use the most powerful spells of the Celestial Masters Sect when Zhou Wen moved extremely fast. His five black and shiny claws had already deeply penetrated his skull.

The following evening, Li Jinyu saw the news in the newspaper that "Taoist priest Mo Yan of the Sanqing Hall of Wanshou Palace was murdered." She almost collapsed. She ran to a secluded phone booth on campus and called her grandfather in tears, urging her brother's master, Pan Ziping, to come down the mountain quickly to stop it.

Her grandfather lowered his voice and said, "Your martial uncle has important matters to attend to and can't leave. Put the matter of the vampire on hold for now, and don't provoke it!" Li Jinyu said angrily, "Five lives have already been lost, what could be more important than this?" Her grandfather was silent for a moment, then said, word by word, "Yes! Fifty lives are more important than five lives!"

---Magpie Bridge Fairy

Reply [18]: Li Jinyu was stunned. Her first thought after she came to her senses was, "The world is in chaos, and demons are running rampant!"

Section Twelve: Target Practice

Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, military training is nearing its end. The day was clear and sunny, perfect for an outing. The instructors took all the freshmen to Qionglong Mountain for live-fire exercises. The car departed from the main gate of S University, heading west along Sijing Street. The students were excited, chattering as if they had returned to the carefree days of elementary school.

Zhou Wen stared blankly out the window as the city transformed into a town, then into the countryside, with fields of yellow and green rice paddies stretching as far as the eye could see, the air filled with the earthy scent absent in the city. Ge Hui noticed that Zhou Wen had been unusually quiet these past few days, so he nudged Zhou Wen's arm. Zhou Wen slowly turned around and asked, "Is something wrong?"

Ge Hui was somewhat embarrassed by his cold attitude and could only awkwardly say, "Did you see that? There was a mule walking by just now. It was a mule, not a donkey." Zhou Wen said "Oh," and turned his head to continue looking out the window. He and his classmate seemed to be in two completely different worlds—one was human life, and the other was the world of demons.

Li Jinyu was filled with a sense of foreboding. She saw that the vengeful spirit, resembling a fetus, had almost completely disappeared into Zhou Wen's skull, with only a shallow portion of the crown of his head still protruding. The vampire was gradually taking control of his body; this would take time. When the final moment arrived, would Zhou Wen still be Zhou Wen? Would he mutate into a bloodthirsty vampire king? Li Jinyu didn't know.

The car stopped at the foot of Qionglong Mountain. Everyone jumped out of the car with joy and lined up in two rows at the instructors' shouts, walking along the rugged mountain road toward the shooting range. Qionglong Mountain was originally a public cemetery built by the local township government, but it was later requisitioned by the 83110 unit stationed in G City. Many tombstones, leaning to one side, still remain on both sides of the mountain road.

Suddenly, Ge Hui pointed to a tombstone and exclaimed, "Look, there's someone with the surname 'Death'! That's a really rare surname!" Cai Wenyuan asked, "Death what? A dead person? A corpse?" Everyone crowded around to take a look. Only the surname was still somewhat legible on the tombstone; the given name below had long been obliterated by wind and sun. Liu Zifeng curled his lip and said, "Chinese surnames are incredibly strange. I've heard that there are surnames ranging from one to ten!"

The instructor turned around and saw the group stopped halfway up the mountain, a large group of students engrossed in studying the tombstone. He roared, "Let's go! What's so interesting about a dead person's tombstone!" The group surged forward, chasing after the tombstone. Li Jinyu was about to chant a few incantations to appease the wandering ghosts in the grave when he suddenly saw a hideous demon emerge from behind the tombstone. As soon as it approached Zhou Wen, it was vaporized into a wisp of smoke by Zhou Wen's yang energy.

Qionglong Mountain is only two or three hundred meters above sea level. A simple shooting range was built on the top of the mountain. About twenty targets were erected in a row. A deep pit was dug in front of the targets. A group of People's Liberation Army soldiers ran over and jumped into the pit in an orderly manner while shouting commands. About fifty or sixty meters away from the targets, a row of Type 54 rifles was placed, with a People's Liberation Army soldier guarding each rifle.

The instructor ordered a group of freshmen to run to their rifles and lie down, ready to fire. A PLA soldier nearby loaded six bullets into their hands and handed them the rifles. The instructor shouted the order: "Attention...Aim...Ready...Fire..." A series of crackling sounds rang out, puffs of blue smoke rose from the muzzles, and the muffled gunshots echoed across the shooting range, like firecrackers during the New Year.

Hidden in the pit, the People's Liberation Army soldiers waved barbed wires, reporting the scores on the target paper to the recorder in the distance. The instructor, while looking at the targets, would exclaim to the students: "You got 37 rings... You got 41 rings... How come you only got 12 rings? Your glasses were shattered, and you only hit this many? How were you trained?"

When it was Zhou Wen's turn to fire, it was already the fourth to last batch. The PLA soldiers had become somewhat lax and weren't keeping such a close watch. He squinted and tentatively fired a shot. The bullet seemed to be in slow motion in his eyes, spinning rapidly as it rushed out of the barrel. The vibrations distorted the surrounding scenery, like a stone thrown into water creating ripples.

Zhou Wen's heart skipped a beat: "How did I develop superpowers?" The moment his attention was diverted, the bullet flew off to who-knows-where. He missed that feeling, so he focused his gaze on the bullseye and clearly saw a wire slowly drawing the Arabic numeral nine.

Zhou Wen fired the remaining five bullets in one go, severing the wire precisely. The PLA soldier hiding in the ditch was startled. "Damn it, whose marksmanship is so accurate?" Everyone burst into laughter. The instructor gave Zhou Wen a strange look, thinking to himself, "This must be a coincidence!" With so many people present, everyone thought it was a coincidence, but only Li Jinyu knew that Zhou Wen had done it on purpose!

---Magpie Bridge Fairy

Reply [19]: The live-fire shooting exercise for the freshmen ended quickly. Ge Hui said with a long face, "Oh no, I only got 15 rings. I'm going to fail the military training this time!" Liu Zifeng comforted him, "Don't worry, I just secretly looked at their records. No matter how many rings you got, the recorded score is at least good." Cai Wenyuan patted his shoulder and said, "That's right. Some of the girls even got zeros. You at least got double digits."

Seeing Li Jinyu walk past, Liu Zifeng quickly caught up with her and asked, "Li Jinyu, how many rings did you score?" Li Jinyu replied, "Not good, only twenty-something. How about you?" Liu Zifeng proudly said, "I scored over fifty!" Li Jinyu glanced at Zhou Wen and asked him, "What about Zhou Wen? How many rings did he score?" Liu Zifeng said, "Blind cat, lucky mouse! He broke the PLA's barbed wire; all the bullets flew outside the target!"

The instructors repeatedly ordered the students to line up and descend the mountain, but the students ignored them and ran down the mountain laughing and joking, as if they were on a picnic. Fortunately, the military training was almost over, and the instructors weren't very strict. They chatted and laughed with a few girls, making them giggle and cover their mouths from time to time.

On the way back, everyone sang the revolutionary song "Returning from Target Practice" in unison. The chemistry students, being mischievous, egged the instructor on to sing "The Moon on the Fifteenth" in his off-key voice, and everyone clapped and laughed. Only two people on the bus didn't laugh: Zhou Wen, who stared blankly out the window, oblivious to everything around him; and Li Jinyu, who noticed something unusual about Zhou Wen's skin exposed outside his uniform—upon closer inspection, she saw faintly shimmering, multicolored patterns!

It was already noon when the car returned to S University. Everyone scattered, rushing to nearby restaurants for a bite to eat. Zhou Wen declined Ge Hui's invitation and staggered back to his dormitory alone. He felt something stirring inside him; he was incredibly thirsty, but didn't want to drink water. He... wanted to drink blood!

Zhou Wen was startled by the deep-seated desire within him. He staggered to the large playground, crawled into the air-raid shelter, and plopped down on the ground, burying his head between his knees, trembling violently. He didn't know why he had such a terrifying thought. Unconsciously, his eyes turned blood red, two snow-white fangs protruded from the corners of his mouth, and black, gleaming claws grew from the tips of his ten fingers. The patterns on his skin became increasingly clear. Zhou Wen's last thought before losing consciousness was: "I'm going to die!"

Li Jinyu had been secretly following him, witnessing all the changes that had occurred in Zhou Wen. On September 29, 1994, in the dark and damp air-raid shelter of S University, Li Jinyu suddenly felt a wave of weakness. Her classmate Zhou Wen had finally turned into a complete vampire!

Chapter Two: Who's Inside My Body? Section One: Yin-Yang Eyes

Looking at the unconscious Zhou Wen, a terrifying thought suddenly flashed through Li Jinyu's mind: "Kill it while I have the chance!" Her heart pounded, and she walked towards him step by step, supporting herself against the wall. The vampire that had taken five innocent lives was right in front of her. Li Jinyu tried to convince herself: "This isn't Zhou Wen, Zhou Wen is already dead..." Hesitantly, she put her index finger to her lips, bit it, and began to draw a complex talisman.

The smell of blood startled the vampire within Zhou Wen's body. He slowly raised his head, chuckled coldly, and said, "I know what you're trying to do, but it's too late! I'm going to drain all the blood from your body. This is what happens when you meddle in other people's business!" He suddenly leaped up, grabbed Li Jinyu's wrist, and opened his mouth to bite at the carotid artery in her right neck.

At the critical moment, a blue lotus the size of a bowl suddenly appeared in front of Li Jinyu's throat, exuding fragrance and flowing light. Zhou Wen's sharp fangs were held by the blue lotus, as if biting into a ball of cotton candy, unable to move forward or backward. This, on the contrary, aroused his wildness. Zhou Wen let out a low growl, his neck cracking, and his fangs approached her tender skin inch by inch.

A second blue lotus appeared before Li Jinyu, its power even greater, forcefully pushing Zhou Wen back half a step. Li Jinyu looked at him with pity, hesitated for a long time, and finally said softly, "You should leave quickly. If a third blue lotus appears, it will harm your body!"

---Magpie Bridge Fairy

Reply [20]: Before the words were finished, Zhou Wen's body had already undergone a strange change. The vampire's claws and fangs quickly retracted, his blood-red eyes returned to normal, and the patterns on his skin gradually faded away. "No! Brother, please! This is my body, give me back my body!" A childish little boy's pleading voice suddenly rang out in his body. Li Jinyu was shocked. This was not Zhou Wen's voice. Who was in his body?

"Brother, please! No—don't—" The voice grew increasingly shrill, filled with fear, regret, and resentment. Li Jinyu could hardly believe her eyes. She saw the vengeful spirit, shaped like a fetus, rise slowly from Zhou Wen's crown, exposing itself to the air and turning into a wisp of smoke, disappearing without a trace.

Zhou Wen seemed to wake from a nightmare. He stared blankly for a while, shaking his head vigorously, wondering why he was sitting in a dark and damp air-raid shelter. Li Jinyu let out a long sigh of relief. The two blue lotuses, no longer sensing the threat of the vampire fangs, gradually disappeared into her body.

Zhou Wen stared at Li Jinyu, stammering, "What exactly happened? How did I get here? And how did you get here? You... why was there a lotus flower on your chest? And it's gone!" Li Jinyu forced a smile and said, "It's a long story, let's talk about it another time. I... I'm very tired, goodbye!" She turned and ran out of the air-raid shelter, feeling very puzzled: "How could he see the Three Flowers Protecting the Body?"

Zhou Wen was completely baffled. He tried desperately to recall everything that had happened, but his mind was blank, and he couldn't remember anything. "Forget it!" Zhou Wen felt a surge of frustration, so he comforted himself, "Strange things happen every year, but not as many as this year! I'll find an opportunity to ask Li Jinyu later; it seems she knows more about it."

His stomach was rumbling loudly, but Zhou Wen temporarily put his worries aside and strolled out of the air-raid shelter. He suddenly sensed something was off; everything on the playground seemed unchanged, yet somehow different. However, calming his stomach was the most important thing, so Zhou Wen didn't have time to look closely. He hurriedly left through the north gate and ran to the small restaurant he'd eaten at on the first day of school. He ordered a large bowl of sauerkraut rice and a bowl of beef and vermicelli soup, quickly filling his stomach.

"That felt so good!" Zhou Wen patted his stomach contentedly and walked back with a calm mind. Having eaten his fill, his blood had flowed to his stomach to aid digestion, and his brain was slightly oxygen-deprived, bringing waves of drowsiness. Zhou Wen just wanted to find a place to get a good night's sleep. He groggily returned to his dormitory. Liu Zifeng and the others were all asleep in their beds; the entire Building 2 was immersed in slumber, even the cicadas in the trees were silent.

Zhou Wen kicked off his shoes and lay down on the straw mat. As soon as his head touched the pillow, he fell fast asleep.

Zhou Wen slept soundly until 7 p.m. before being woken up by Ge Hui. Seeing Zhou Wen fast asleep and noticing his listless state over the past few days, Ge Hui was a little worried that he might be sick. Zhou Wen sat on the edge of the bed and said, "I'm fine, I'm just really sleepy. I want to sleep more." Ge Hui said, "I got you some food, do you want to eat some? It's hot, it'll go bad if you leave it any longer."

Zhou Wen was grateful for Ge Hui's concern. He thanked him, got out of bed, and splashed cold water on his face, which made him a little more awake. He ate most of his food, but then sleepiness overcame him again. He couldn't stay awake any longer and said to Ge Hui, "No, I need to sleep. Don't worry about me, I'll be fine!" He didn't even bother to clean up the food bowl and fell back asleep on the bed.

Liu Zifeng muttered to himself, "Eat and sleep, sleep and eat again, what a pig!" Ge Hui pretended not to hear and helped Zhou Wen take his food bowl out to wash it. Liu Zifeng said, "Why are you spoiling him like this? Just leave it on the table and let him clean it up himself!" As Ge Hui walked past him, he whispered in his hometown dialect, "He hasn't been feeling well these past few days. We're in the same dorm, so it's only right to take care of him. Hey, Liu Zifeng, do you have a problem with Zhou Wen?"

Liu Zifeng was startled, worried that his thoughts would be seen through. He smiled awkwardly and said, "I don't have any opinions, I just can't stand it!" Ge Hui hesitated for a moment and said, "Don't take Li Jinyu's matter to heart. It's her business if she wants to get close to Zhou Wen. As for Zhou Wen... you should be more open-minded. You live in the same dormitory and will see each other all the time, so why bother?"

Liu Zifeng said awkwardly, "What does this have to do with Li Jinyu? What a joke!" Ge Hui didn't call him out on it, and replied, "It's best if nothing happens. We're all brothers, we can talk things over." He picked up his rice bowl and went out. Liu Zifeng stared at Zhou Wen, thinking painfully, "What's there to talk about in this kind of thing! Am I supposed to ask him to give Li Jinyu to me? Damn it, why would Li Jinyu choose him!"

The next day was the freshmen military training drill, and after that, we could go home to celebrate National Day. Everyone was very excited and didn't sleep well the night before. We got up early in the morning, changed into our military uniforms and caps, and ran in formation out of the south gate. We walked north along Shimei Street, crossed the Sijing River, and arrived at the east campus of S University.

The drill was held on the newly built large playground on the East Campus. The freshmen stood in more than a dozen square formations according to their departments, neatly lined up on the lawn, waiting for the inspection of the leaders of the 83110 Unit stationed in G City. A jeep slowly drove into the playground, and an officer with a protruding belly got out. Accompanied by President Shen Jibei, Vice President Zhang Keming, the heads of various departments, and two guards, he walked past the square formations and toward the reviewing stand.

The officer wore a kind smile and waved to the formation from time to time, saying, "Hello, students!" Everyone shouted in unison, "Hello, Commander!" "Thank you for your hard work, students!" "Serve the people!" The voices were so loud and clear that they startled the nearby birds, which fluttered up and chirped in protest.

Zhou Wen stood in the queue when he suddenly noticed an old man sitting alone in the stands north of the main platform. The old man's hair, eyebrows, and beard were all white, and he wore a tattered mandarin jacket, watching their performance expressionlessly. Zhou Wen felt extremely uncomfortable. What were the security guards at S University doing? How could they let such a stranger in on such a solemn occasion?

The leaders took their seats on the platform, and Shen Jibei announced the official start of the military training drill. First, everyone stood up and played the national anthem; then everyone sat on the ground and listened to the speech by the regimental commander of the 83110 unit stationed in G city, followed by enthusiastic applause. Principal Shen Jibei then spoke, followed by enthusiastic applause. Vice Principal Zhang Keming then spoke, followed by enthusiastic applause. The instructors' representative spoke, followed by enthusiastic applause. The student representative spoke, followed by enthusiastic applause. Finally, the School of Finance and Economics and the Department of Physics performed a marching drill, the School of Law and the Department of Chinese Language and Literature performed a martial arts demonstration, and the Department of Mathematics performed a shooting demonstration.

Everything was proceeding smoothly, except for the Chemistry Department. The school leaders unanimously agreed that this year's Chemistry Department was the most chaotic and undisciplined in its history, so they didn't even consider them for any opportunities to show off.

---Magpie Bridge Fairy