After spending the entire morning online, the temperature began to rise by noon, prompting Liu Lei to decide to take a shower. With his head slightly dizzy, he entered the bathroom without grabbing any clean underwear, thinking the towel would suffice. After showering, he realized he couldn't find the towel, only to recall that the maid had taken it for washing earlier that morning, and the new one hadn't been delivered yet. No matter, he thought, since there was no one else in his room. Barefoot and towel-less, he walked out of the bathroom, rubbing his wet hair, only to find someone sitting at his computer—Nia, the violent girl! Liu Lei yelped and quickly covered his lower body, while Nia turned around and scoffed, "What are you covering? It's so small, who would look?" His masculinity offended, Liu Lei fumed, "Small? Do you think I'm small?" Nia said nothing, pointing at the computer screen. Liu Lei turned to see an adult website displayed, the man on screen in an unflattering pose. "You actually watch this kind of site? Do you have no shame?" "If you can watch it, why can't I? Besides, how else would I know that yours is so tiny..." "Ah—!" Liu Lei screamed in fury.
Liu Lei later believed this incident led to the failure of their first sexual encounter, as Nia's ignorance left a psychological scar on him. Whenever the topic came up, Nia would yawn and give him a playful slap on the head, saying, "It's your lack of experience, and now you're blaming me!"
After being thoroughly crushed by the encounter with the violent girl, Liu Lei decided to take a walk to clear his mind.
As he strolled along the bustling streets of Paris, though not exceptionally handsome, Liu Lei possessed an undeniable charm, and he couldn't help but notice the flirtatious glances from several young women. Amused, he thought, *See, violent girl, you don't appreciate me, but I'm clearly quite popular!* He whistled at a few women who seemed interested, having a merry time, when a familiar voice suddenly called out from behind, "Liu Lei!" His breath caught. It had been so long since he heard that voice, and for a moment, he wasn't sure it was real.
Slowly, he turned around. There, standing a short distance away, was Lian Feng, smiling as he watched him. Dressed in a sharp suit, his hair, once tied in a bun, now cascaded in a casual ponytail behind him, his lips curling into a relaxed smile. A wave of disorientation washed over Liu Lei, as if nearly twenty years of trials and tribulations had evaporated into a fleeting dream, while the memory of Lian Feng knocking on the door of a sleeping vampire, as if it happened just yesterday, became vivid again. His eyes misted over, tears mingling with the happiness, tasting faintly bitter. He slowly shook his head in disbelief, then moved forward to embrace Lian Feng tightly.
*Clink.* The sound of two glasses colliding. Liu Lei had not brought Lian Feng back to Christopher's home but instead took him to a winery in the countryside, wanting to offer him the best he had. After they clinked their glasses, Liu Lei asked, "How did you find me?"
"Not long ago, a strange and powerful energy appeared in Russia, somewhat similar to yours. I mean, the energy of your kind. It seems Western cultivators fought over it, and the Lord sent me to investigate. While I was here, I thought I'd check on you. Dong Ye received the items you sent. Mr. Jiang left his contact details with him, and I tracked you down. Once I knew you were in France, I used my Yuan Shen to locate you—finding you wasn't that hard." Dong Ye was the CEO of "Dragon Saint" Corporation, and Lian Feng's disciple. Liu Lei nodded, then asked, "How are things at home?"
Lian Feng took another sip of wine. "Everything's fine. Your parents are doing well with me, no need to worry. There's no pollution on Mount Diancang, so they'll live longer than they would in the city. It's a pity they're too old. Otherwise, I could teach them some methods of cultivation, and maybe they'd live long enough to see you return." Liu Lei fell silent. Lian Feng asked, "How have you been all these years?"
"What do you think? You don't need to investigate. I know everything you want to know..." He then shared his experiences from the past years. After listening, Lian Feng's expression turned serious. After a long pause, he said, "From what you're saying, that so-called president is probably not just fighting for the rights of dark creatures, is he?"
"I think you're right. He's very calculating, and I fear he won't stop at anything." Lian Feng nodded. "I was planning to stay longer, but now it seems I must head back quickly. That president is too familiar with the strength of Asian cultivators. This upcoming catastrophe may drag Asia into it as well. I need to return and inform the Lord to prepare." Though Liu Lei knew Lian Feng was right, he couldn't help but feel reluctant to see him leave so soon. "Stay a couple more days. It's not urgent. We haven't seen each other in over ten years..."
"No, I must leave tomorrow. It's a matter of urgency. I'll give you a communication jade. Here's how it works. Continue gathering information for us, and let me know if anything happens." Lian Feng handed Liu Lei a jade pendant and a jade plate, then finished his wine. "Your wine is good. Bring me a few bottles tomorrow. I'll take them back for everyone to try."
After bidding Lian Feng farewell, Liu Lei returned to the villa and retreated to his room to surf the web. He was beginning to enjoy the internet more, often thinking to himself that as long as the internet existed, even with a thousand years of life, boredom could be staved off.
Around noon, a servant came to summon him for lunch. The servants here were no ordinary people, but either lower-tier werewolves or the last generation of bloodsuckers. Without much power, they often became targets for bounty hunters. However, under Christopher's protection, they were better off serving him than constantly hiding to stay alive.
In truth, Liu Lei no longer needed regular meals, but old habits were hard to break. Since Christopher still needed to eat daily, they kept a regular meal schedule. Liu Lei's typical lunch consisted of a bowl of blood soup and a glass of red wine. Today, as he picked up his glass, he noticed two extra sets of cutlery on the table. Surprised, he asked, "Are we having guests?"
"Yes, sir," the servant replied. "Miss Nia is now staying next door."
"What!" Liu Lei jumped up. "That crazy woman is staying next door? For how long?"
"I don't know, sir."
"This can't be!" Liu Lei shouted. "Let that violent freak stay next to me? Who's going to guarantee my safety? I've never seen such an undignified, barbaric, ignorant, rude, arrogant woman! Most girls are 'three no's,' but she's a 'six no's'—how could the old man from the Tremere family choose such a woman as his heir?" At that moment, the servant hesitantly interjected.
"Sir..."
"Huh?" Liu Lei, annoyed at the interruption, turned sharply. "What?"
The servant meekly replied, "Miss Nia... she's standing right behind you..."
"What?!" Liu Lei spun around, and Nia's flushed face was only a millimeter away from his. He stumbled backward, knocking over a chair. Nia glared at him, gritting her teeth. "Say what you just said again. I didn't quite hear you the first time."
"Did I say anything?" Liu Lei grabbed the unfortunate servant, playing dumb. Nia screamed and lunged at him, but Liu Lei shouted, "Christopher, help!"
A hand reached out from behind to grab Nia, but it wasn't Christopher. It was an elderly man with silver hair. Liu Lei then remembered the extra set of utensils on the table. The last set belonged to this man.
"Greetings, sir. Please, take a seat," Liu Lei said, grateful for the elderly man who had just saved him. He pulled out a chair with great courtesy. "Ah, may I ask who you are?"
The man laughed heartily. "Me? I suppose I'm the one you were just referring to as the old fool with a bad head!"