Chapter: Vampire Bait
As night fell, darkness enveloped the town of Kote.
The streets were deserted.
Cheng Yu built a simple stove with bricks and stones on the side of the street, placed an iron pot on it, and started a fire underneath.
Herman and the others were lying in ambush in the surrounding houses, carefully watching the situation on Cheng Yu's side through window cracks.
Water was boiling in the iron pot. Fresh pig blood, bean paste, minced ginger, soy sauce, water starch, and other ingredients were placed on the table next to it.
After the water boiled, Cheng Yu put the pig blood into the boiling water and boiled it for a while, then took it out, rinsed it with cold water, and cut it into small square pieces.
He poured out the boiling water in the pot, added lard, and heated it to 60% hot.
Added bean paste, chopped green onion, minced ginger, and minced garlic—stir-frying continuously to bring out the fragrance.
When the oil turned red, he added a small amount of water.
Then added chicken essence and soy sauce for further seasoning.
After all the seasonings were mixed evenly, he added the pig blood that had just been cut and stir-fried.
Originally, cooking wine was added to this dish to remove the fishy smell.
However, to better attract the Blood Clan, Cheng Yu didn't add cooking wine and retained the bloody smell of pig blood.
Fresh pig blood had a strong smell of blood mixed with the fragrance of various seasonings. It permeated the streets of Kote Town, drifting everywhere—penetrating everything.
In a remote alley in Kote Town, several pairs of scarlet eyes suddenly opened.
"This... is such a unique smell of blood!"
"This isn't a simple smell of blood. The blood smell is mixed with other spices."
"It's too fragrant—ten times more fragrant than fresh blood!"
"I want blood! I can't control myself!"
Cheng Yu stir-fried the blood for a few minutes and thoroughly cooked it.
After the blood was fried, he thickened it with water starch and sprinkled chopped green onions and pepper powder on the surface.
"Done!"
Cheng Yu put the plate of stir-fried blood on the small wooden table next to him and sat beside it, waiting quietly.
Smelling the aroma of stir-fried blood, all the vampires hiding in Kote Town ran out.
On the street, pairs of scarlet eyes were like ghosts crawling out of hell.
There were eight vampires total.
"There are so many vampires hiding in Kote Town?"
Herman, hiding in the dark, was shocked. He'd originally expected only two or three vampire remnants in Kote Town.
Unexpectedly, there were eight.
There were only ten of them. He didn't know if they could beat these eight vampires.
At the same time, the eight vampires followed the smell and walked to Cheng Yu's stall.
"What is this? It smells so good!" a vampire asked Cheng Yu.
"Stir-fried blood," Cheng Yu said.
"The mellow smell of blood plus various spices—I feel the blood in my body boiling!"
Another vampire closed his eyes, looking like he was enjoying it.
The relationship between fresh blood and stir-fried blood was similar to the relationship between raw meat and fish-flavored pork shreds. Fish-flavored pork shreds were definitely much more delicious than raw meat.
"Such delicious blood. Do you want to eat it?"
Cheng Yu picked up the plate of stir-fried blood and smiled at the eight vampires before him.
The eight vampires nodded frantically, saliva almost flowing out. This thing smelled very fragrant—they dared not imagine how delicious it tasted.
However, the next moment, Cheng Yu's palm tilted slightly. The plate of stir-fried blood fell to the ground. Click! The plate broke into pieces. "Such delicious stir-fried blood is gone. Do you think I did it on purpose or accidentally?"
"Boy, you..."
The eight vampires were instantly enraged by Cheng Yu.
"Come on. Kill me."
Cheng Yu tilted his head slightly and raised his middle finger to the eight vampires.
Though they didn't know what the middle finger meant, seeing Cheng Yu raise it, the eight vampires inexplicably had the urge to kill him.
"Boy, you've angered us!"
"Take our anger!"
The eight vampires bared their fangs and claws. A pair of blood-colored wings grew from their backs.
They were about to attack Cheng Yu when eight purple thunderbolts suddenly fell from the sky and hit the eight vampires directly.
The eight vampires were charred by the thunderbolts, spewing black smoke from their mouths, twitching all over.
These eight vampires weren't real vampires but humans who'd been transformed into vampires. They were stronger than ordinary people but not too strong—probably equivalent to first-tier warriors.
Cheng Yu kicked a vampire with his foot. "Your anger is extinguished so quickly?"
At that moment, Mina ran out of a house next to them.
Raising her right wrist toward Cheng Yu, the lightning arc on the purple bracelet was crackling.
"Cheng Yu, this magic item is so powerful! It subdued these vampires in one go!"
The purple bracelet was the treasure Mina had gotten in the secret labyrinth: the Thunder Bracelet.
It could release powerful thunder attacks.
"It really is powerful."
This Thunder Bracelet was a high-level magic item opened from a golden treasure chest. The price of a high-level magic item was several thousand or even tens of thousands of gold coins.
After observing the reactions of the eight vampires just now, Cheng Yu could now be sure that for vampires, stir-fried blood was indeed top-notch delicacy.
If I encounter Blood Queen Aphra next time, I'll have a way to deal with her.
Herman and the others walked out of the wooden house next to them, looked at Mina, then looked at the eight vampires with black smoke.
Herman said to Cheng Yu, "Brother Cheng Yu, your orc wife is really amazing!"
It was the first time someone called her Cheng Yu's wife. Mina was a bit uncomfortable. "That... Actually... I'm not Cheng Yu's wife yet."
"Not a wife? Then girlfriend. It's the same."
Herman laughed proudly and was very grateful to Cheng Yu for helping him subdue the eight vampires.
"It's just a small matter."
Cheng Yu had happened to pass by Kote Town, and Herman happened to be his number one donor, so he helped.
Herman was very enthusiastic. "Come to my fiefdom when you have time. I'll let the civilians of the fiefdom line the streets to welcome you!"
"Really?"
Cheng Yu knew Herman had a title and fiefdom but didn't know how big it was.
"Of course it's true!"
They stayed in Kote Town for one night.
The next morning, Cheng Yu said goodbye to Herman and the others and headed toward Bailu Town.
Herman and the others took the eight vampires back to the Northern Fortress.
After several days of long journeys in the wild, Cheng Yu and his three companions finally arrived at Bailu Town.
Bailu Town was still as peaceful and harmonious as ever—many pedestrians on the street, many shops on both sides.
After passing through Bailu Town and walking north for about ten minutes, Cheng Yu returned to his manor.
After not coming back for so long, the garden in front of the manor was full of fallen leaves. Various crops on the farm were growing vigorously. Sweet corn was ripe. Tomatoes were ripe and rotting in the field.
Mina took out the key, unlocked the manor door, walked into the living room, and lay down at the long table. "After a few days of eating and sleeping in the wild, it's still more comfortable at home."
Cheng Yu sat on a chair to rest.
Originally, 100,000 skewers of bird meat barbecue had been sold at the Northern Fortress. Over 10,000 skewers had been consumed in the labyrinth to bribe those monsters.
After leaving the labyrinth, to complete the system task, a lot of barbecue had been sold to adventurers.
Now Cheng Yu's system warehouse only had a few thousand skewers of barbecue—could be sold in Bailu Town. He didn't plan to sell barbecue at the Northern Fortress again.
First, the Northern Fortress was far from Bailu Town. Second, the fortress environment was very closed—not as comfortable as living in his own manor.