Vampires fear not only sunlight but also silver.
Although silver is less lethal than sunlight, it can suppress a vampire's self-healing ability.
Generally, if a vampire is well-fed and its heart is not severely damaged, most injuries will heal quickly. However, wounds caused by silver are particularly difficult to recover from.
Many dormant vampires in the vampire clan are actually severely injured by silver weapons.
After school, Yu Xian immediately searched the cabinet for the silver ring he had used for inspection before.
It is said that even a mere touch of silver would cause a burning sensation on a vampire's skin, and prolonged contact could lead to skin ulceration. But as Yu Xian held the silver ring in his hand, he felt nothing at all.
"Is this considered a minor talent?"
"Probably, even a great talent of an ordinary vampire wouldn't be this ridiculous."
Yu Xian squeezed the silver ring into a ball, confirming that he had become immune to the restraining effects of silver on vampires due to his newly acquired ability, "Silver Blood."
The primary function of "Silver Blood" is not merely to resist the restraining effects of silver on vampires. Instead, it allows Yu Xian to absorb silver and transform his entire bloodstream into "Silver Blood."
Once his whole body is imbued with Silver Blood, his physical constitution will be further enhanced. He can also actively consume the Silver Blood within his body to form whips or threads, using them to attack enemies.
The immunity to silver's harm is merely a trivial side effect of this ability.
Clearly, this talent is not just a "good luck charm"—it's an extraordinary gift.
At this moment, Yu Xian opened his mouth, and his vampire fangs slowly emerged. He placed the balled-up silver ring on his fangs and instinctively sucked it in, feeling as if he were consuming a piece of jelly.
The moment the silver entered his body, it quickly fused with his blood.
"That's too little."
Yu Xian could clearly feel the "Silver Blood" born from the fusion of silver and his blood.
Compared to his previously cooled blood, the Silver Blood was slightly warmer, flowing through his body like a warm current—neither uncomfortable nor unpleasant.
As he adapted to this sensation, his craving for silver intensified.
However, it was now extremely difficult to purchase large quantities of silver, as his remaining money could only afford a small amount.
The main reason was that the vampire clan had been aggressively buying up silver, driving its price higher than that of gold.
Moreover, the vampires never sold the silver they purchased, leaving no one to know where they were hiding it.
Interestingly, the vampires had a rule: anyone who contributed more than ten tons of silver to the clan could bypass all trials and directly become a vampire.
Although this path to becoming a vampire did not grant access to the core of the vampire clan, the promise of immortality was enough to attract many wealthy individuals who feared death.
The vampire clan is extremely wealthy, largely because a group of wealthy individuals joined the clan through a certain channel.
Yu Xian racked his brains all night but still had no idea how to obtain more silver.
He considered going to the black market, but that place was too dangerous—even the vampire princess Nora had been attacked there, and he dared not have any more dealings with them.
Safety was more important than silver. He would rather slowly save money and collect silverware from the public than risk going back to that black market.
...
In the morning, Yu Xian basked in the sun on the balcony as usual.
But today, for some reason, a foul stench kept wafting into his nose—it smelled like a dead rat in a garbage dump, making him feel nauseous.
"Weird, why is there always this smell?"
Getting up from the lounge chair, Yu Xian sniffed around, and suddenly the stench appeared again—only to vanish the next second.
Wait a minute.
Yu Xian had a realization.
It seemed that the foul odor only became noticeable the exact moment the warm flow of Silver Blood passed through his nostrils.
In other words, when the Silver Blood surged through his nasal passages, it heightened his sense of smell, allowing him to detect scents he normally wouldn't notice?
He then consciously directed the Silver Blood to flow toward his nose—and sure enough, the stench returned.
Following the smell, he walked forward and looked down from the balcony—the source of the odor was coming from downstairs.
Most of the families living in this neighborhood are middle-class or higher. The family downstairs consists of three people—a husband who seems to be a lawyer, a wife who runs a clothing store, and their fourth-grade daughter.
"Could the whole family be dead inside?" Yu Xian wondered silently, holding his breath against the stench.
But he had seen them leave the house just yesterday. Even if they had died, it shouldn't have started smelling this badly so soon.
Whatever.
Yu Xian wasn't one to meddle in others' business. He quickly pushed the thought aside—besides, it was almost time to head to school.
He slung his backpack over his shoulder and headed out. On his way downstairs, he ran into the couple's daughter, also carrying her schoolbag. A sudden idea struck him, and he redirected the small amount of Silver Blood he had toward his nose. Instantly, an overwhelming wave of foul odor assaulted him—coming from the girl herself.
Ugh, disgusting.
Yu Xian quickly pulled that thread of Silver Blood away from his nose and shifted it to his right eye instead.
The stench vanished.
But then, through his enhanced right eye, he saw countless crimson, worm-like things writhing and entangled beneath the girl's skin.
"Tch… that's nasty…"
Yu Xian felt a surge of trypophobia at that moment.
Just then, the girl looked up and greeted him, "Good morning, upstairs brother." As she spoke, Yu Xian's pupils glinted with silver light. Through her mouth, he seemed to see countless worm-like creatures writhing like tentacles.
"Good morning," he forced a smile, his voice trembling.
He quickly descended the stairs, walking briskly toward school. Along the way, he frowned as the foul stench lingered around him, emanating from passersby.
One year ago, a shocking incident known as "The Rongcheng Tragedy" had rocked the nation. In a middle school in Rongcheng, all the teachers and students had been unknowingly turned into living dead, their brains hollowed out by a mysterious parasite. If not for a student who had secretly consumed a forbidden fruit and transferred to Rongcheng No.1 Middle School, discovering the horrifying truth, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
I remembered that a year ago, due to the Rongcheng Tragedy, the officials in Yin City organized a city-wide physical examination. It was during that examination that I was diagnosed with ALS.
After being diagnosed, I spent the next month in a daze, so I'm not sure if the examination revealed anything else.
Unexpectedly, the parasites from Rongcheng have quietly invaded Yin City. This is really troublesome.
"Should I report this?" Yu Xian hesitated, thinking to himself.
If he reported it, the authorities would definitely have the power to eliminate the parasites.
But the problem was, during the eradication process, they would surely conduct another round of physical examinations. And if he underwent the examination, his identity as a wild vampire would undoubtedly be exposed!
"Salty fish? What are you daydreaming about?"
Just then, Zhang Shou's voice broke Yu Xian's reverie. Yu Xian looked at him and saw that Zhang Shou wasn't infected by the parasites, which slightly eased his mind.
"Nothing, just couldn't sleep well," Yu Xian replied indifferently.
Zhang Shou yawned and asked, "You didn't stay up all night browsing that forum, did you?"
"What forum?" Yu Xian asked, puzzled.
Zhang Shou saw that Yu Xian really didn't understand, so he explained, "That forum, its name is literally 'That Forum.' You should check it out when you have time, especially the 'Forbidden Fruit' section. People there record the patterns of the forbidden fruit's appearance and predict where it might show up next. If it's predicted to appear in our Yin City, I'll definitely go and compete for it."
"Not everyone is willing to stay under others' control. Whether it's joining the vampire clan or other factions, it's almost impossible to surpass the progenitors. So, some ambitious people turn their attention to the elusive forbidden fruit, and that's why forums like 'That Forum' exist—to serve those people."
However, Yu Xian wasn't interested in such forums. Right now, he was more worried about the parasite problem.