Chapter 23: Unforeseen Suffering
Night fell, and Jiang Yan was unaware of any complaints from the late-night snack enthusiasts at the old street corner; she didn’t care to think about it. She was busy changing Jiang Yao out of a sweat-soaked nightgown.
Faced with Jiang Yao’s jade-like body, a sense of inexplicable tension and complex thoughts surged within Jiang Yan, lingering throughout the entire process of changing clothes. Although she didn’t exert much strength, Jiang Yan was already drenched in sweat.
The girl with light gold hair, in a dormant state, had a body temperature that fluctuated, and her pulse was irregular, making her sweat incessantly, which was quite different from Jiang Yan’s stable deep sleep when she was dormant.
What surprised Jiang Yan even more was that the intensity of Jiang Yao’s released aura was still rising, having already reached the level of a lower-tier servant, with no signs of peaking!
More than a month ago, Jiang Yan had noticed that the intervals of blood thirst for Jiang Yao were noticeably shorter than her own. Even without using boiling blood, Jiang Yao would need to consume her blood almost every three to four days.
Wanyue had once said that her blood was a very luxurious indulgence for Jiang Yao, and perhaps that was why her growth was astonishingly fast?
At this moment, Jiang Yao seemed like a bright lantern in the darkness, and the intensity of her aura was likely detectable to blood clan members of knight level or higher from a kilometer away!
Gritting her teeth, Jiang Yan took a small box from the medical constant-temperature refrigerator, containing two slender, crystal-clear external hormone inhibitors that Wanyue had sent specifically for Jiang Yao.
Perhaps the other party had anticipated that Jiang Yao would be in this situation.
One external hormone inhibitor could last about twenty-four hours. Although she didn’t know when Jiang Yao would wake up, it wasn’t the time to consider this issue. Jiang Yan swiftly jabbed the needle into the exposed thigh of the other girl.
After one minute with the miraculous concoction from the underground world, Jiang Yao’s pheromone release and fluctuation intensity calmed down, and after an hour, it had diminished to an almost negligible level.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door from the direction of the living room.
Jiang Yan frowned slightly, quietly gripped her dagger behind her, and approached the door.
Outside the door was the familiar aura of Sister Tan. Just like when they met in the afternoon, she was still in a state of chaotic blood thirst, perhaps even worse.
It seemed that Jiang Yao’s previous intensity had exposed the location of their rental place, or perhaps their residence was already well-known to Sister Tan.
When the door opened, Sister Tan stood there with a flushed face, a mix of red and white, and her slender body was trembling slightly.
“Girl, can you get me some blood?”
After a while, Sister Tan raised her head, revealing a tense expression.
Something wasn’t right. Wasn’t Sister Tan a member of a prestigious blood clan? Could she really be lacking blood? Jiang Yan frowned slightly, unconsciously touching the few strands of hair that had fallen at her ear, a new habit she had developed recently when pondering something.
A few seconds later, Jiang Yan slowly nodded.
“How much? I’ll pay!”
Seemingly grasping a lifeline, Sister Tan unexpectedly grabbed Jiang Yan’s shoulders and squeezed firmly, causing the latter to gasp in pain.
Blood clan knights, even without entering boiling blood combat mode, had physical qualities and strength that were incomparable to ordinary people.
“200 milliliters packaged for 2,000 bucks. I can have someone deliver it. If you need it urgently, I have a few bags at home; I can go get them!”
Jiang Yan had no intention of taking advantage of her channels to make a profit and directly quoted the price Wanyue had given her.
Although they had only met twice, Jiang Yan felt that settling within Sister Tan’s territory was the best option so far.
The other party’s true identity was a knight from a prestigious blood clan, and as long as she didn’t violate any taboos, she was indeed the kind of person who was gentle and easy to get along with.
This was evident from when Huang Gu had sent her here to settle down. No matter the reason for Sister Tan’s sudden distress, offering help could only be a good thing.
“Okay! Thank you!”
Sister Tan’s tense expression finally relaxed, and tears glistened in the corners of her eyes.
Jiang Yan retrieved all four bags of 200 milliliters of blood from the medical constant-temperature refrigerator. This amount was enough for Jiang Yan to use for a month, but now, for a knight suffering from unexplained blood thirst, it might not be enough.
It seemed she had held back for a long time, and just as Jiang Yan extended her hand with the blood bags, Sister Tan snatched them away, biting into one with her teeth and gulping it down.
After consuming two bags, her complexion finally eased, and then she lowered her head, letting a few tears fall to the ground.
“Sister Tan, come in and talk.”
Jiang Yan pulled the seemingly fragile blood clan knight inside and onto the couch. Perhaps influenced by the aura of the other party at that moment, a vague sense of melancholy welled up in Jiang Yan’s heart.
“Sister Tan, what happened to you? Why are you suddenly in such a state of blood thirst? Isn’t there a blood supply from your clan?”
At that moment, Jiang Yan no longer regarded Sister Tan as a high and mighty knight of a prestigious blood clan but more like an ordinary woman seeking comfort after being wronged.
“I… I’m pregnant… I don’t know why I was so careless… A few days ago, I went into a blood thirst crisis during pregnancy, and my husband was invaded by blood and couldn’t hold on… It’s my fault. I’m already exposed; my clan won’t help me anymore; they’d abandon me…”
Sister Tan wiped her tears like a little woman, her body trembling uncontrollably.
Jiang Yan’s pupils first contracted, then her whole body shivered, her skin crawling!
While still in training, Jiang Yan had stumbled upon some fringe materials about blood clans, which included content about female blood clan pregnancies.
Although the probability of a female blood clan member conceiving with a normal person was low, it was still possible. Once a female blood clan member became pregnant, her blood thirst intervals would shorten to almost be counted in hours, and her blood intake would increase sharply, continuing until childbirth!
Children born from a female blood clan member and a normal person, not to mention a hundred percent certainty, would have at least a seventy or eighty percent chance of being blood clan members. Moreover, a pregnant female blood clan member would likely suffer a significant decline in strength, requiring years to recuperate and possibly stopping growth altogether.
Another reason that sent chills down Jiang Yan’s spine was the sudden realization that female blood clan members also had physiological cycles just like normal women! During these cycles, the blood thirst intervals for female blood clan members would drastically shorten.
No wonder when she traded with Zhao Peng last time, she had selected a month’s worth, simply bought two extra bags for emergencies, and Zhao Peng’s strange expression at that time had left her puzzled for a long while.
Whether she and Jiang Yao had truly become genuine female blood clan members or some deeper form of monsters was still unknown. The thought of possibly entering a female physiological cycle made Jiang Yan feel a cold sweat all over; the image was so embarrassing it sent shivers down her spine.
“Sister Tan, it’s deep into the night. Why don’t you wait for me outside my store? I’ll bring you another batch of blood shortly! You must wait for me!”
Gritting her teeth, Jiang Yan decided to help Sister Tan. At the very least, she and Jiang Yao must prepare for the unexpected!
Sister Tan looked up, her face filled with gratitude, then pulled out a card from her pocket. “For these years, I relied on the family’s benefits and didn’t feel any urgency, so I haven’t saved much money. Here, it’s five hundred thousand; buy as much as you can.”
……
Sister Tan temporarily left, and Jiang Yan entered the bedroom to glance at the sleeping Jiang Yao before taking out her phone.
Zhao Peng’s dedication gave Jiang Yan a new understanding of Wanyue’s capabilities. In less than half an hour, an SUV parked downstairs. Zhao Peng remained as polite as ever and didn’t waste a word, jumping straight into the topic.
This time, Jiang Yan purchased blood worth two hundred thousand in one go, cleaning out all the stock Zhao Peng had brought, totaling one hundred bags!
After simply seeing Zhao Peng off, Jiang Yan took the fifty bags of blood and headed towards the now desolate old street.
Under the dim streetlights, Sister Tan stood alone by the roller door of the snack store, still looking dazed.
Jiang Yan returned the bank card directly, stuffed the blood-filled handbag into Sister Tan’s hands, and said, “Sister Tan, you should leave here quickly; otherwise, you’ll be discovered by those lurking around.”
Sister Tan silently stared at the handbag in her hands without replying, only wiping the tears from the corners of her eyes with her fingers.
Jiang Yan wasn’t good at comforting others, especially women. After giving Sister Tan’s arm a gentle squeeze for comfort, she turned and left.
