Chapter Ninety-Five: The Whereabouts of Xingyu

"Stop right there, Liliana!"

White Night's figure blurred, then cut me off once more.

My body was still weak. In terms of speed, I simply could not compare with White Night in his prime, and I had no way of shaking off his relentless interference.

"Get out of my way. I don't want to fight you," I said coldly. White Night had already been someone I loathed; now that he had become a vampire, my disgust for him only deepened. But I had no certainty of killing him, so I no longer wished to tangle with him. Right now, all I wanted was to make sure Star Whisper was safe, and to find Liliel and the others as quickly as possible.

"Liliana, today I will not let you leave again." Madness flashed in White Night's eyes. "Star Whisper, Star Whisper. In your eyes, there is only Star Whisper. In my eyes, he's nothing but trash."

"You know where Star Whisper is?" At his words, my voice turned icy.

"Hmph. How would I know where that trash is? He may already be dead somewhere by now." White Night sneered. "In the end, he's only a despicable human. What right does he have to stand beside you?"

"My affairs are none of your business. What right does a fallen wretch like you have to question my choice? In my eyes, you are not even fit to be compared with a lowly human." My tone was freezing.

"What exactly am I lacking compared to him? In terms of background, in terms of status, and now I possess power far beyond his. Yet why, why is the only one in your eyes that trash?" White Night roared at me.

"You want to know why?" I looked at the increasingly deranged White Night before me and said evenly, "Because he has a truly human heart, one that can make me feel warmth. As for your hypocrisy and greed, they have only ever made me loathe you from the very beginning."

At my answer, White Night clearly froze for a moment, then burst into mocking laughter. "Hahaha, a human heart. And as a blood kin, you actually pursue such ridiculous things. Hahaha, that is hilarious." As he spoke, White Night lowered his head, and I could not see the expression on his face.

A moment later, White Night lifted his head and looked at me. The madness was gone from his eyes.

"Liliana, you are mine. Since you are unwilling, then I will have to use force. If I cannot have your heart, then I will have your body. Liliana, rest assured. I will cherish you well. You will be my most precious possession." A vicious smile spread across White Night's lips.

"How arrogant." At his declaration, my eyes burned with fury.

"Yes, arrogant indeed. The world itself no longer interests me. For me, having you is enough. Liliana, this time, I will absolutely not let you leave." White Night said excitedly. As soon as the words fell, he extended his claws and charged at me, the hooked talons slashing in an arc toward my chest.

"Dammit!"

Our claws collided. My weakness showed at once; White Night's claws were actually forced back.

"What is it, Liliana? Is that all the strength you have? Then show me the power that even the Vampire King feared. Let me feel it for myself!" White Night shouted excitedly.

Power that could even terrify the Vampire King? I did not remember ever mastering such strength. Even after releasing my bloodline, my power had not reached the level of a prince. At most, I could only stand on equal footing with the Vampire King.

"Dammit, dammit!" I kept dodging White Night's claws. My weakened body had no spare magic to sustain a battle, much less one against the White Night of this moment. Though he had not yet fully adapted to the power stolen from the Vampire King, it had to be said that he now stood among the strongest beings of this age.

"What is it, Liliana? I never expected you to be reduced to this little strength." White Night's expression turned savage. "Since fate is not on your side, then submit obediently and become my treasure!"

"Fate? I don't believe in fate. If fate truly exists, then I will break it myself!" I shouted in fury, gathering every last shred of magic within me for a final strike.

"Useless, Liliana. Today, you are destined to become my possession." White Night's claw stabbed toward my chest. Just as his talons were about to pierce me, a look of excitement lit his eyes. But in the very next instant, that expression turned to shock.

His claw had not touched my body. At the moment before contact, I used the spatial shift I had prepared long in advance, and his attack struck nothing but empty air.

"Do not think that merely stealing a little power allows you to behave so brazenly before me. In my eyes, you will always be nothing but a clown." My cold voice sounded behind White Night, and my claws rose without hesitation, driving straight toward his heart.

"Don't you want to know where that trash went?" White Night's words instantly disrupted my focus, and he used the opening to evade. My long-prepared attack missed as well.

"You know where Star Whisper is?" I fixed my gaze on White Night's eyes. From the self-satisfied gleam in them, I knew he was not lying.

"You want to know where he is? Then become my possession obediently, and I will let you reunite." White Night said with a smile.

"Was it you who took Star Whisper?" I demanded.

"Who knows?" White Night wore a ferocious smile. "Submit obediently, and I'll tell you. Otherwise, you may only be able to see his corpse."

"Dammit. If you dare hurt Star Whisper, I will make you wish you were dead." I roared in fury. My magic was now nearly exhausted; I had no power left to launch another attack, and White Night was clearly wary of me and unwilling to take further risks. Thus, the two of us remained locked in a standoff.

Dammit. If my body were not so weak, how could I fail to deal with a useless wretch who only relied on borrowed strength?

As we confronted one another, several figures were rushing toward us at great speed.

"Princess Liliana!" The man in the lead, someone unfamiliar to me, called out joyfully.

"Dammit, are reinforcements here? Then this ends now. Liliana, if you want that trash to live, come alone to the northern outskirts of the city three nights from now. If I sense anyone else following you, I will kill him immediately." White Night shouted at me. Then, before the unfamiliar man could reach us, he turned and fled into the night sky, vanishing without a trace.

I tried to accelerate and give chase, but my body no longer obeyed me. I had only rested through one day, and the damage left by the sunlight had not yet been fully cleared. The battle had drained every drop of magic from within me, and the lingering power of the sun surged back into me once more. Darkness flooded my vision, and I lost consciousness, my body falling from the night sky.

"What is going on?" Snow Orchid and Liliel, who arrived shortly afterward, cried out anxiously upon seeing me unconscious in the arms of the Wind Duke.

"Princess Liliana's body is being eroded by the power of sunlight. The battle just now seems to have exhausted all of Princess Liliana's magic, so she can no longer suppress the sunlight's power invading her body," the Wind Duke explained as he felt my weakened condition, answering the two anxious women. "As long as she rests for a while, she will be fine."

Hearing his explanation, both of them breathed a sigh of relief.

"Let's take Princess Liliana back first. We can discuss everything else after she wakes," Snow Orchid said to the Wind Duke.

"Yes." Worriedly looking at me in his arms, Liliel nodded softly. Then the four of us carried me toward the hotel where we were temporarily staying.