Chapter Thirty-Eight: The Ancestor of the Vampire Hunter

“Where does he live?” Liu Yunfei wasn’t afraid of distance.

“In Stockholm, Sweden. He’s lived in that castle for over five hundred years. We don’t dare go near it, not even approach. I’ve heard there’s not only Henry, but even more formidable vampire hunters there, and Henry commands a powerful armed force,” Rudolf replied.

“That’s not a problem. I can fly. As long as I know his location, I can reach any corner of the earth in no time,” Liu Yunfei said. “I’m willing to help you.” After listening to the little boy’s ordeal, Liu Yunfei felt genuine sympathy. Though he was angry about the innocent couples the boy had killed, Liu Yunfei believed it was better to help him redeem his soul than to kill him. If he could be turned back into an ordinary human child, he would neither harm nor threaten anyone again.

“Thank you, but we don’t know your name yet,” Rudolf said.

“Oh, forgive me. You may call me Awahid.” Liu Yunfei, thinking of his Arab-looking face, decided against revealing his true identity—otherwise, he’d have to explain himself for ages. “Let’s go now. I’ll take you all, and it’ll be quick. Blink and we’ll be there.” He reached out his hand proactively.

Perhaps the trauma from four centuries ago still lingered; Rudolf shrank back reflexively, hesitating as he looked at Liu Yunfei.

“I’ll go with you.” Little Harry stepped forward resolutely.

Seeing Rudolf’s timidity, Liu Yunfei comforted him, “What’s wrong? Are you afraid? Don’t worry, I’ve fought Henry twice already—both times I drove him off. The second time, I broke his thumb, and he ran away crying. Honestly.”

“Really? The moment I first saw you, I knew you were extraordinary—a handsome young man, you fascinate me. I think I’ve fallen in love with you,” said Alice, the female vampire who had been silent till now. She approached Liu Yunfei, pressing her ample bosom against his arm.

“So, Rudolf, will you come or not?” Liu Yunfei ignored Alice. Though this centuries-old enchantress was alluring and adept at seduction, the thought of her age instantly dulled his interest. Besides, who knew how many men she’d been with over the years? Liu Yunfei, still a virgin, was unwilling to let his first time be such a loss.

“With such a dashing young man, what vampire hunter could scare me?” Alice said, wrapping Liu Yunfei’s arm tightly against her chest.

Driven by his familial love, Rudolf overcame his fear and nodded at Liu Yunfei. However, Liu Yunfei now faced a dilemma: his cloud wasn’t big enough to comfortably carry all three companions. “How about this—I’ll ascend and fly, you two adults hold onto my arms, and Harry can cling to my leg.”

“I want to hold your leg too, handsome Awahid,” Alice cooed.

“Are we too many? We could transform into bats and cling to you,” Rudolf suggested—the most practical solution.

“Then you two transform into bats. Rudolf, have you been to Stockholm before? I haven’t, so you shouldn’t change. Tonight I can fly, but I don’t know the way.” Liu Yunfei thought to himself that a GPS would solve this, though he worried about being tracked.

Two bats hung inside Liu Yunfei’s suit, and pulling Rudolf along, he soared on his cloud, instantly arriving in Sweden’s largest city, Stockholm—a city of fourteen islands and one peninsula, connected by over seventy bridges, earning the nickname ‘Venice of the North.’ The time zone was close to Florence, and it was midnight; at this moment, a torrential storm raged, thunder booming beneath Liu Yunfei’s feet. He pulled Rudolf into the clouds, swiftly descending.

“There, that island ahead.” Rudolf pointed through the rain. The island wasn’t flat, but a mountain rising from the sea, dotted with steep-roofed houses built along its slopes, the whole island resembling a giant castle. Darkness shrouded the scene, and each flash of lightning cast shadows of rooftops and trees beneath their feet. The four of them were drenched, looking like drowned rats. Harry, whether from cold or fear, clung to Liu Yunfei’s coat, trembling.

When dawn broke and the sun rose, the vampires would be unable to leave, so Liu Yunfei pressed onward. They had landed in the woods before the largest building on the island. With such a vast area, finding one person would be difficult; Liu Yunfei abandoned the idea of searching for Henry secretly, instead exposing himself to lure Henry out.

He opened the small door within the main entrance—many classical European buildings are built this way, since the main doors are too large, a smaller door is fitted inside for daily use. Entering, Liu Yunfei was disappointed to find only a church, but the image on the altar wasn’t Jesus; by the lightning’s glow, Liu Yunfei glimpsed a portrait of a Chinese man dressed in ancient scholarly robes.

“What sort of church is this? Who is depicted in that portrait?” Liu Yunfei whispered to Rudolf, who shook his head and shrugged, indicating he didn’t know.

“Is your midnight visit merely to inquire about that? If so, I can answer you.” Unexpectedly, someone was inside the dark church.

The group looked toward the voice. With a crisp sound, a lighter ignited a candle on the table, its glow illuminating an elderly face—somewhat resembling a Chinese man, his hair and beard white, deep wrinkles etched across his forehead.

Liu Yunfei gestured to the three vampires not to be afraid, and walked toward the old man.

“Good evening, sir,” Liu Yunfei tested in Chinese.

“Sorry, young man, though I have Chinese blood, I don’t speak Chinese,” the old man replied in English.

“Oh, pardon me. Good evening. We’re just passing through and apologize for disturbing you,” Liu Yunfei said politely.

“No matter, you are, after all, our guests. Come, look here.” The old man brought the candle to the portrait. It was indeed a Chinese man, not very old, about forty, wearing a scholar’s cap and robes, dressed like a Han dynasty literatus.

“This is our ancestor, who came here a thousand years ago. To save countless people from slaughter, he bravely sacrificed himself and founded a sect, so we honor his portrait here for our descendants to admire,” the old man explained.

“That is truly noble.” Liu Yunfei pressed his palms together and made a Buddhist salute to the portrait. Then he said, “But when those executioners laid down their knives, this great ancestor surely never imagined that his descendants would begin to kill others.”

“Young man, it seems there’s a misunderstanding between us. Though I don’t know why you feel that way, I can only assume it’s prejudice—or perhaps you’ve been misled and deceived by bad people,” the old man said, glancing sidelong at Rudolf and Alice.

“May I ask, how did you discern they were bad people?” Liu Yunfei directly pointed out that the ‘bad people’ referred to the vampires.

“Have you seen their shadows?” The old man extended the candle forward; its flickering light showed only Liu Yunfei’s shadow on the ground.

“May I ask, do you have a shadow?”