The next day, Shichen woke up, hunching his back, and listlessly left his room.
After a simple wash-up, Nangong Nayue also came out of her room, fully dressed.
"What's wrong with you? Didn't you sleep well last night?" Nangong Nayue asked, seeing him in such a state, her voice full of confusion.
"Uh… pretty much." Shichen nodded weakly.
"Had a nightmare?"
"Not that bad…"
"Then what is it? It's not like you had a wet dream, is it? Even that kind of dream shouldn't make you look like this."
"How could that be?!" Shichen retorted loudly, then asked curiously, "Nayue-chan, how do you know that men don't look like this after that kind of dream?"
"You just said so yourself." Nangong Nayue said expressionlessly.
"…"
"Tell me, what exactly happened?"
"Sigh, I might… still be a pseudo-Progenitor." Shichen sighed, honestly replying.
"What do you mean?" Nangong Nayue didn't understand.
"The Familiar I devoured from the Fourth Progenitor yesterday is gone…"
Last night, besides realizing that he also needed to suck blood to awaken Familiars, Shichen also understood that the Familiar he devoured had turned into his magical power.
Familiars are aggregations of magical power, so it was normal for them to transform into magical power after being devoured by him, but this transformation happened without his knowledge.
The Fourth Progenitor's Familiar couldn't become his Familiar at all, nor could it even survive in his body, so it directly transformed into magical power.
The magical power transformed from the Familiar was immense, but it was temporarily useless to Shichen. He currently needed means of attack and Familiars to serve as his weapons.
He had originally thought he could show off with the Familiar, Ice of the Enchantress, but it turned out to be a false alarm.
Isn't this no different from before?
Flamme hadn't taught him offensive magic yet, after all, he didn't even have magical power at that time, so there was no need to teach him everything at once.
"You even devoured a Familiar from the Fourth Progenitor?" Nangong Nayue asked in surprise.
"Yes, the original soul kept one Familiar for herself."
"The original soul?" Nangong Nayue looked at him, puzzled.
"The Fourth Progenitor was once divided into twelve sealed parts, which are the twelve Progenitor Vessels. Her twelve Familiars were also sealed within each Progenitor Vessel accordingly. And these Progenitor Vessels all have their own self-awareness; it's not an exaggeration to say they are the Fourth Progenitor's blood retainers. Any one of them could become the Fourth Progenitor, as long as they devour the other Progenitor Vessels." Shichen explained.
"So, the Fourth Progenitor hasn't been completely dealt with?" Nangong Nayue realized.
"You could say that." Shichen nodded, "Each of the Fourth Progenitor's Familiars is incredibly powerful, and each possesses different terrifying abilities. Even if one is missing, it's not that important."
"Then that means…" Nangong Nayue's expression became solemn.
"Yes, the Feast of the Blazing Light will still proceed as normal. At that time, it will depend on which Qualifier possesses more Progenitor Vessels to have the hope of awakening a new Fourth Progenitor."
"Doesn't this mean no problems have been solved at all? The Progenitor Vessels probably don't understand anything, do they? Won't that make things even more troublesome?" Nangong Nayue couldn't help but sigh.
The so-called Qualifiers are naturally the people participating in this banquet, and the condition is to possess a Progenitor Vessel. Needless to say, those who can obtain a Progenitor Vessel must have considerable ambition.
Helping the Fourth Progenitor awaken and gaining the merit of a Dragon's Retainer, no matter the purpose, it certainly won't be simple.
Immortality?
That's just the initial and basic goal. Once they become immortal beings, greater ambitions will naturally arise.
A Progenitor is an existence qualified to become a hegemon, an emperor. Having control over the Fourth Progenitor, it's impossible for the Qualifier not to be interested in becoming an emperor.
In a world where strength is revered, status becomes exceptionally captivating. They might even try every means to devour the Fourth Progenitor.
Nangong Nayue immediately saw through the situation.
"Don't worry." Shichen patted his chest to comfort her, "With me here, there won't be any problems then."
"Don't you not even have a Familiar?" Nangong Nayue glanced at him.
"That's just the Fourth Progenitor's Familiar that's gone; my own Familiars are just as strong." Shichen said without any basis.
"Then where are your Familiars?"
"Uh… they're still dormant. Do they need to be sacrificed to awaken them?"
"How do you do that?"
"…" Shichen pursed his lips, silently looking at Nangong Nayue, his gaze involuntarily drifting to her fair neck.
"Why are you looking at me?" Nangong Nayue asked curiously.
"I need to suck blood…" Shichen honestly said.
"Suck blood…" Nangong Nayue immediately took a step back, covering her neck, and vigilantly staring at him.
"Nayue-chan… are you serious about taking that step back?" Shichen's mouth twitched.
"Hmph! What else? Wait for you to suck my blood?"
Nangong Nayue understood the bloodlust vampires experienced, which meant they needed to be aroused.
"I'm innocent, I'm not that casual."
"I hope so… And let me state in advance, sucking my blood is useless."
"Of course, I know that."
"Wait, you're not going to make a move on Sayaka, are you?" Nangong Nayue narrowed her eyes, staring at him dangerously.
"How could that be? How old is Sayaka? Am I that kind of person?"
"Who knows if you are that kind of person." Nangong Nayue pouted.
"…" Shichen said aggrievedly, "Where's the most basic trust between people? Nayue-chan, you're hurting my feelings like this."
"Hmph! It's not like you suddenly said you wanted to suck blood and are only interested in little girls." Nangong Nayue crossed her arms, unmoved.
"When did I ever say I was interested in little girls? I'm interested in you, Nayue-chan."
"If you can be interested in me like this, what's the difference from being interested in little girls?" Facing Shichen's sudden confession, Nangong Nayue's expression remained calm, "Besides, haven't you only been interacting with little girls? That one named Aiba Asagi, and Sayaka."
"Isn't Teacher Sasagawa an adult woman?" Shichen couldn't help but retort.
"What do you mean?" Nangong Nayue's eyes turned cold, "You want to make a move on that stupid dog?"
"No, no, impossible." Shichen quickly waved his hands in denial.
"Hmph, it better be." Nangong Nayue snorted coldly.
"Sigh, Nayue-chan, can't you trust me a little?" Shichen sighed helplessly.
"That depends on your performance… So what are you planning to do? Go around looking for women to prey on?" Nangong Nayue changed the subject and asked.
"It's not that exaggerated!" Shichen shouted, "I'm not planning to awaken my Familiars for now."
"Then what about the Fourth Progenitor matter?"
"Don't worry, the Progenitor Vessels can't be found all at once; it'll probably take a year or two."
"Is that so? You know quite a lot." Nangong Nayue said calmly.
"Aren't I amazing?" Shichen smiled proudly.
"…" Nangong Nayue rolled her eyes at him, annoyed.
"In any case, we can live a stable life for a while."
"You really won't make a move on little girls?" Nangong Nayue couldn't help but ask again.
"Nayue-chan… if you keep this up, I won't be polite to you." Shichen looked at her seriously.
"What? What do you want to do? I don't think you can do it at all." Nangong Nayue was fearless.
"You said that?"
"If you have the guts, come on."
"Alright!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Shichen suddenly reached out and touched Nangong Nayue's head.
Nangong Nayue shook her head helplessly, and her entire being vanished.
"Is that all you've got?"
A voice came from behind her. Shichen didn't say much, turning around without hesitation to continue reaching for her head.
Whoosh!
Nangong Nayue disappeared again.
Shichen also used spatial magic, sensing the spatial fluctuations, and chased after her.
The two flashed back and forth in the living room, completely like children chasing and playing.
"Nayue-chan, don't run!"
"Why wouldn't I run? Let you pat my head? I really don't know what's so good about patting it."
"You don't understand."
"And I don't need to understand."
"You wait, I'll definitely catch you!"
"I taught you; it's still too early to catch me."
"But I have more magical power than you. When you run out, let's see what you'll do! Heh heh~ Then you'll just have to let me do as I please."
"Are you stupid? How much can you consume in this room? You'll be fine for days."
"…"