Chapter 113: Blood Test
December 3rd, Tuesday.
ever since accepting the Wang family’s commission, Wan Yue has been openly closing the emotional distance between herself and Jiang Yan. In the eyes of all the Hyacinth members, this seems to send a clear signal that Jiang Yan is about to become Wan Yue’s right-hand person, just like Zhao Peng.
Even Jiang Yao, who is considered to be unreliable and capricious, has occasionally faced Wan Yue’s fierce demeanor, but the underlying favoritism and pampering are also evident.
This is something that the Hyacinth elders like Xiao Ai and Liang Tai are well aware of.
Because in Hyacinth, bonds of friendship and strength do not conflict; one could even say that, under Wan Yue, the rise of an excellent companion is something everyone hopes for and is a part of collective security.
Just after midnight, Jiang Yan, in a winter lantern green shirt dress, quietly approached Wan Yue’s room.
This is Wan Yue’s personal suite in the Hyacinth villa, with a total area of over one hundred square meters, and the interior decoration remains the most luxurious.
Wan Yue seems to show no interest in seeking any simplistic or egalitarian concepts in these details; she simply adheres to her proud and aloof nature. Just like in the simple world of bees, there is always a queen bee that stands out.
At the door, Zhao Peng had already taken his position, smiling as he greeted Jiang Yan and opened the door, then stood guard outside like a door god.
“Not bad, your control over internal and external hormones has improved again these days. Even if you don’t have a special blood type, your talent is still outstanding.”
Without a twitch of her nose, Wan Yue smiled as she looked at the black-haired girl standing in front of her: “Are you ready?”
Jiang Yan nodded and took out a piece of paper from her pocket: “This is the test subjects that Brother Zhao Peng and I selected together.”
After glancing at the note, Wan Yue nodded in satisfaction: “Hmm, those at the bottom of the talent pool are more likely to show results.”
Having said that, a remote control appeared in Wan Yue’s hand, and with a gentle press, a bookshelf on one side of the room began to slide open, revealing a small new room.
It was a petite medical room equipped with various medical devices and surgical instruments, almost reaching the standards of an intensive care unit, far superior to the publicly available medical room in the villa.
Under Wan Yue’s guidance, Jiang Yan walked directly to one side of an automatic blood collection machine, rolled up her sleeves, and extended her pale arm into the blood collection port, her expression calm.
“If the test proves effective, then let Jiang Yao participate as well.”
Wan Yue personally took on the role of the blood collector, adjusting the machine’s parameters while softly speaking.
“Sister Wan, Xiao Yao has been drinking my blood, and when she was promoted to knight, she also received Brother Zhao Peng’s blood. If we supply blood externally at the same time, what if there’s a crossover and blood fusion occurs?”
Jiang Yan suddenly thought of this possibility and quickly turned her head to look.
Where did you get this half-baked theory? That was three or four months ago, and the blood fusion factors in her body have long since diminished.
Wan Yue pulled out a syringe from her pocket, shook it at Jiang Yan, still fixated on the screen of the blood collection machine: “The worst outcome is merely exacerbating the blood depletion reaction, resulting in a serious illness; it would not be worth the loss. If you don’t consider the cost-effectiveness, adding a hemolytic agent can reduce the probability of blood fusion.”
Overall, mutual blood sucking, even without triggering blood fusion, is harmful to growth due to blood fusion factors, and it doesn’t solve the issue of blood depletion.
Moreover, the higher the bloodline rank, the higher the chances of blood fusion. Those below the rank of attendants often have no dietary restrictions, as most blood servants don’t have the opportunity to advance to the rank of attendant before they die.
Oh, is that how it is?
The conclusion is harsh, but it is logical. Jiang Yan awkwardly nodded, recalling the situation from her first night of blood intrusion, thankful that Jiang Yao had foreseen the situation and did not act recklessly.
A hemolytic agent obtained through special channels is often more valuable than useful; at the end of the folkloric market, it costs over eighty thousand per vial and only provides limited resistance to blood fusion, making it horrifyingly uncost-effective. Thus, attempting to use hemolytic agents to engage in the absurd business of mutual blood sucking among high-ranking bloodlines is utterly unnecessary.
Extracting two hundred milliliters of blood in a hemolytic state today, and another two hundred milliliters in a normal state tomorrow for comparative reference. Theoretically, the blood drawn in hemolytic state will yield better effects; it’s just that the sensation during blood extraction can be somewhat unkind, easily triggering blood thirst. You need to endure it and promptly eat the small golden pill afterward.
After finishing the final parameter adjustments, Wan Yue turned around, her expression very serious: “Jiang Yan, you must ensure that this matter is known only to you, me, Zhao Peng, and the future four of us. Not even Zhong Jing can know!”
There is no absolute loyalty in this world; it’s just a matter of how strong the temptation is. I also do not intend to let such matters be evenly distributed in Hyacinth; the ones who can walk with us are destined to be few.
Sister Wan is, after all, a genuine leader; in her heart, there are still several standards dividing the hierarchy, constantly observing and measuring who can accompany her to the end… Looking at Wan Yue’s face, Jiang Yan slowly nodded.
“Zhao Peng!” Wan Yue raised her voice slightly.
The door opened, and Zhao Peng appeared with a mixture of tension and anticipation outside the medical room.
“Inform Xiao Ling to do a good job calming everyone down.”
Nodding gently, Zhao Peng’s expression was serious as he stepped back.
…
Ten minutes later, Wan Yue and Jiang Yan almost simultaneously entered a hemolytic state, a wave of terrifying pheromones suddenly expanding.
One is a half-step viscount, the other a half-step baron; although the intensity of their blood is merely medium, there is no hostility or brutal killing intent, but rather an insurmountable and unstoppable aura that commands respect and strikes fear into the heart.
The wave of pheromones surged like a flood breaking a dam, expanding from the petite medical room, sweeping across the entire Hyacinth villa and engulfing the surrounding dark mountain woods.
Perhaps many winter hibernating insects would be instantly awakened in this invisible pheromone storm, only to perish in an instant.
In the collective dormitory, all the Hyacinth blood servants were jolted awake, their faces pale, filled with fear, and some even showed signs of fainting and convulsing from the excessive stimulation of pheromones.
Meanwhile, the Hyacinth attendants among the four individuals also showed shocked expressions as they ran into the corridor, some with weapons in hand, others clutching blankets, while some whispered in fear. If it weren’t for Zhao Peng passing by expressionlessly in the corridor, the attendants’ reactions might have been even worse.
This is how the higher echelons suppress the lower ones; even without hostility, the distinction between enemy and friend becomes blurred. Only through long-standing joint combat can one become familiar and adapt to mitigate such effects.
Having long received Wan Yue’s covert instructions, Xiao Ling, who was substituting for Zheng Shaolin in the Hyacinth villa as an instructor, now appeared in the blood servants’ collective dormitory, soothing the crowd’s emotions. Those with severe reactions were even required to receive injections to suppress them.
“Xiao Ling, keep everyone in their rooms and don’t let them run around. It’s Sister Wan guiding Jiang Yan’s practice in hemolytic control; there’s no need to panic.”
“Xiao Mei, can you still move? Change your clothes and come out with me.”
At the entrance of the collective dormitory, Zhao Peng remarked casually, and a small girl wrapped in blankets shivering quickly nodded.
…
Meanwhile, in a knight’s double room, Jiang Yao was sleeping soundly but was also awakened by this invisible shock, rubbing her eyes as she sat up.
She first froze for a second, but as the surging pheromone storm filled her senses, Jiang Yao leapt up as if her rear had been branded with a hot iron.
Not finding any weapons at her bedside, Jiang Yao dashed to the wardrobe, pulled out a submachine gun, and then crouched down next to the window, looking vigilant.
Sister Wan seems to be in some trouble; I need to check on her.
In the dark room, no one responded for several seconds. Turning back, Jiang Yao realized Jiang Yan was not in the other bed.
“What the hell, why is Sister Wan using hemolytic blood to scare people in the middle of the night… I don’t feel any enemies, though. Wait, why is my sister also in a hemolytic state? Are they in a competition of who is more powerful?”
Quickly discerning the familiar aura among the chaos, Jiang Yao began to feel something was off. Her expression turned serious, and immediately afterward, her eyes turned red, another wave of half-step baron-level furious pheromone erupting and blending into the already tumultuous wave of pheromones in the air.
This action struck the already trembling little blood servants in the villa once again, several with poor self-control foaming at the mouth and losing control of their bodily functions, nearly driving the responsible Xiao Ling to collapse.
The pale gold-haired girl, dressed in cotton pajamas, was blissfully unaware of the havoc her actions were causing. She didn’t even bother to put on shoes and leapt through the broken window onto the villa’s roof, sprinting toward the source of the surging aura.
She flipped into a sideways jump, and Jiang Yao once again crashed through a window from the roof, landing in a corridor as she cautiously stepped forward, pulling the submachine gun’s trigger to prepare.
A door opened, and Zhong Jing, wearing only big shorts and bare-chested, groggily appeared in the corridor, blinking dazedly as he watched the pale gold-haired girl in pajamas with bare feet holding a submachine gun pass by him, her blood-red eyes flashing with murderous intent.
“Xiao Yao, why are you still awake!?”
Zhong Jing smacked his lips, yawning, and then suddenly snapped to attention a few seconds later.
In a swift motion, he dashed back into his room, and shortly after, Zhong Jing emerged holding a loaded handgun, his expression serious, following Jiang Yao closely.
When Jiang Yao carefully approached within seven or eight meters of Wan Yue’s room, she finally came to a stop. The sudden pheromone storm faded just as mysteriously as it had appeared, as if it had never existed. However, at this moment, a faint, familiar scent of blood wafted through the corridor, tinged with someone’s uniquely intoxicating fragrance.
Jiang Yao unwittingly licked her lips, her mind racing with a plethora of scenarios, and then her expression suddenly changed as she bent down to gather her strength and shot toward Wan Yue’s door.
Aiming the gun, and in the incredulous gaze of Zhong Jing behind her, Jiang Yao pulled the trigger, emptying all the bullets in two seconds!
With a cold face, eyes blood-red, and hands moving swiftly, Jiang Yao slapped a new magazine in, her expression indifferent, and kicked the door, which collapsed under the impact.
“What are you doing… do you find me unpleasant?”
Inside the room, Wan Yue was sitting on a side sofa in a rose-red silk nightgown, her sexy long legs crossed in front of her, the tips of her high heels dangling, holding a cigarette in her hand. Beside Wan Yue stood Jiang Yan, who was looking somewhat bewildered.
“Uh, I… was just…”
Jiang Yao was taken aback, looking at the still-smoking submachine gun in her hands, glancing at the shattered liquor cabinet that resembled a beehive and the glass scattered on the floor, then at the unharmed Jiang Yan, unsure how to explain herself.
Zhong Jing, also in big shorts, inexplicably squeezed into the room, one hand holding the handgun while the other grasping his hair, equally puzzled.
The scene was silent, pin-drop quiet, with the atmosphere still thick with the lingering smell of various fine liquors.
“This door is made of precious solid wood, worth fifty thousand. That liquor cabinet is worth ten thousand, and the liquor inside is at least worth another ten thousand, totaling seventy thousand. Starting next month, ten thousand will be deducted from your wages each month.”
Wan Yue exchanged her legs, exhaling cigarette smoke without so much as a glance at Jiang Yao.
“It’s not… I… I was just afraid…”
The submachine gun slumped at her side, awkwardly embedded in the solid wood floor, glancing at the bewildered Zhong Jing beside her and then back at Jiang Yan, Jiang Yao finally flushed and slowly retreated.
In the middle of winter, with only big shorts on, you’re barging into my room with a gun, how strong is your D-scent? Do you want me to accuse you of sexual harassment? Get out!
Wan Yue shifted her gaze back to Zhong Jing, but before she could finish her words, he had vanished like a rabbit fleeing.
Watching this little interlude and the debris scattered across the room, Jiang Yan couldn’t help but crack a smile.
Two minutes later, as Wan Yue finished the last puff of her cigarette, Zhao Peng entered the room with a pale Xiao Mei.
“Xiao Mei, right? Don’t be nervous, come over, let me take a look.”
Wan Yue kindly beckoned to the young girl.
The little girl probably hadn’t calmed down from the previous pheromone storm, trembling all over, seemingly very afraid of the people in this room, as if a little lamb had stepped into a wolf pack.
“Five years of blood intrusion, intermediate blood servant, it’s quite slow, with the lowest talent. Without special opportunities, it might take you ten years to reach the rank of attendant, and you won’t live long…”
Her words were soft but brutally blunt, causing the little girl to finally break down in tears.
“This rare blood from Africa belongs to a viscount, consider it a gift to you. I hope it can break your growth shackles. It’s also an attempt I’m making; there may be certain dangers involved; are you willing to try?”
Wan Yue took a small spherical flask from Jiang Yan, containing two hundred milliliters of fresh blood collected during Jiang Yan’s hemolytic state.
Gently shaking it, the bright red blood stained the interior of the glass, gradually transitioning from deep to light, glistening enticingly under the room’s lights.
“Thank you, Sister… Wan!”
Perhaps sensing an irresistible intoxicating fragrance, Xiao Mei bowed deeply and hurriedly stepped forward to take it.
The little girl was overly excited, her hands trembling as she cradled the flask.
Rare blood from a viscount felt like a slice of heaven dropping down from above.
“Drink it here; don’t be afraid. If anything happens, I’m here.”
Wan Yue’s beautiful eyes were fixed on the girl’s face, continuing her soothing words while exuding an unyielding authority.
Glancing around at everyone, Xiao Mei cautiously removed the cap from the flask and slowly drank down the two hundred milliliters of blood. Not just Wan Yue and Jiang Yan, even Zhao Peng was staring intently.
Dazedly lifting her head and smacking her lips a few times, Xiao Mei appeared to be lost in the wonderful experience, almost like waking from a dream.
Seconds later, her facial skin turned bright red, as though she had consumed a massive quantity of strong liquor in a short period, and her body temperature surged rapidly, akin to uncontrolled hemolytic state.
The empty flask clattered to the floor as the girl collapsed, unconscious.
“She jumped straight to the upper-tier blood servant… and how could she suddenly enter a sleep state!?”
Zhao Peng’s face was shocked, hardly believing what he was seeing. He had previously consumed rare blood from advanced bloodlines, but never before had the effects been this exaggerated, shattering Zhao Peng’s understanding.
Stealing a glance at the unperturbed Wan Yue and Jiang Yan, Zhao Peng felt a long-lost flame of excitement rising within him.
“Probably apart from the aristocratic families in Europe and America, no viscount would give their rare blood to a blood servant. I hope it’s not overly stimulating… Zhao Peng, take her to the sleeping room and have Xiao Ling watch over her properly.”
Wan Yue waved her hand dismissively, and Zhao Peng exited the room with an excited expression, carrying Xiao Mei.
With just the two of them left in the room, Wan Yue suddenly stood up, walking rapidly around the room, her face beaming with uncontainable joy.
“Heh, just two hundred milliliters… the效果 on a blood servant exceeded expectations. If it were a knight, the effect would likely be significantly reduced, but it would still be useful. This also means that your and Jiang Yan’s blood can solve the bottleneck issues of talent and growth.”
At this moment, Wan Yue’s mind was already racing with names of knights and attendants in Hyacinth, like a carousel of thoughts.
The same thoughts flickered in her mind, making it hard for her to choose.
Jiang Yan also sighed in relief, gently stroking her hair by her ear, smiling without speaking.
Xiao Mei receiving Wan Yue’s reward and taking a foreign bloodline secret medicine jumped straight into the upper-tier blood servant and entered the promotion sleep. The news spread like wildfire among the little blood servants.
On the surface, at least, surprise and envy dominated, with many little blood servants in similar situations to Xiao Mei clenching their fists.
Xiao Ling personally escorted Xiao Mei into a special promotion sleeping room; from ten days to up to half a month, the Hyacinth villa will give birth to a new attendant, officially joining the Golden River Club.
This is the most anticipated matter for every blood servant residing here.
The chaos triggered by Wan Yue and Jiang Yan’s inexplicable strong hemolytic state finally calmed down, and the Hyacinth members returned to sleep one after another, avoiding talk of the earlier awkward moments.
Outside the main hall on the first floor, in the chill of winter mountain winds, Jiang Yao sat with an expression of indecision on the steps, already devoid of sleepiness.
From the depths of the villa behind her, the sounds of jubilant blood servants could be heard as if a momentous occasion had occurred. Jiang Yao clasped her knees, staring vacantly at the small square, which only had a few embers of red left, her face filled with疑虑不解.
Zhong Jing, who had changed into sportswear, also walked out, holding two cans of beer.
“Still mad?”
Zhong Jing opened a can of beer, cheerfully downed half of it, drinking with satisfaction: “Your master is often mysterious; you need to get used to it.”
“I don’t know if it counts as being angry; I guess she treats me as an outsider… How was I supposed to know what they were doing, and it smells like my sister’s blood?”
Jiang Yao picked up her empty submachine gun, bored, dismantling it into parts, her face filled with displeasure.
“Ha ha, you don’t really think your master was drinking Jiang Yan’s blood, do you?”
“That’s a normal reaction; actually, I noticed that both your master and Jiang Yan looked happy at that time. After all, there were so many people here, and you were the first to arrive, and heh heh, I could say I’m the second.”
Zhong Jing’s subtly flattering words instantly lifted Jiang Yao’s spirits, a hint of pride returning to her face: “It’s no big deal; I just did what I needed to do… Last time, when I went with you to steal medicine for Brother Zheng, it was the same.”
As she spoke, Jiang Yao’s bare little feet were playfully tapping on the steps again, showing her relaxed mood once more.
A gust of mountain wind swept by, and the girl beside her clumsily hugged her arms. Zhong Jing chuckled, directly removing his sports jacket and draping it over her.
Slowly turning back, Jiang Yao gently grasped the edge of the jacket, her face slightly flushed.
“Zhong Jing, I’m hungry and want to eat barbecue.”
Clutching the jacket, Jiang Yao dashed back upstairs, and a few minutes later, she returned in a hurry, now wearing a pair of athletic shoes.
The bonfire in the small square, which was about to extinguish, was given new life, roaring back to flames.
Zhong Jing prepared the ingredients from the dining room, skewering them and placing them by the bonfire; for every skewer done, he’d bring it over to Jiang Yao.
No overly affectionate words, just meeting all her requests while keeping an appropriate distance of ambiguity.
Jiang Yao said nothing; she only ate and drank, occasionally glancing at the young man beside her, a strange smile on her face, until the sky began to lighten.
The bonfire had long been extinguished, still giving off a comforting residual warmth. Just like last time, Jiang Yao rested her head on Zhong Jing’s thigh, her long hair spilling over as she fell into a deep, sound sleep.
“I did nothing at all!”
Feeling someone approaching from behind, Zhong Jing raised his hands high in surrender.
“Thank you.”
Jiang Yan smiled, bending down to hug Jiang Yao and turning to head towards the main building of the villa.
