Chapter 276: An Old Friend from Far Away
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Before they departed earlier on, they had gotten two important things done. One, Hao Ren had broadcasted the news of the crashed spacecraft to the entire universe; two, Vivian had couriered a swarm of bats to contact her old friends. So far, they heard nothing about the crashed spaceship. They just knew that a few civilisations had found accident reports most likely linked to the crash, and they were currently in liaison with the concerned chambers of commerce. Meanwhile, Vivian's bat parcels had already arrived in their destinations.
However, the veteran vampire, Vivian was totally immersed in her happy home life with her misplaced talent. Waking up every morning to find her food always there in the kitchen was the best thing in her life. For three days, she did not think about her bats. If Hao Ren had not asked about them, she would have totally forgotten about the bats until the next spring festival.
Hao Ren was curious about how Vivian connected with the tiny bats. Ever since they went to the Otherworld a month ago, these Blood Fog creatures had been operating independently with amazing self-care ability. This was despite the fact they were completely cut off from Vivian, whose mind was totally off the matter.
In the kitchen, Vivian was preparing the breakfast. She was enthusiastic when Hao Ren mentioned the bats. "That's my specialty. Many of my juniors tried to acquire the skill, but none could do it like quite like me. The bats they summoned had no consciousness. Even if they injected pieces of their consciousness into the summoned creatures, it only extended their lifespan for a week or so. Mine is totally at another level; my summoned bats live and think independently. They're my shadow clones when I control them with my mind, and they still live like the real thing even after mind control is disconnected. It doesn't matter how long they've been on their own, as long as mental connection is reestablished, they'll come back into my consciousness without a hitch. I'm an expert in blood magic."
Hao Ren looked at Vivian, bewildered. "Wouldn't you get schizophrenia?"
"Not at all. How complicated can the mind of a bat be?" Vivian shook her head. "They're just an extension of my consciousness. Their independent thinking isn't complicated. Once they return, they're no more than a memory to me. There have been issues, though; on longer missions, these little bats burn more energy, and need food. So, they eat anything..."
Vivian could not continue. She had a grotesque look on her face as if she recalled something she could not bear to think of.
Hao Ren could only wonder and decided not to press on his curiosity. He waved to Vivian, trying to bring the conversation back to business. "Let's focus on reestablishing contact with the bats. I wonder how many of them have found those people."
Vivian nodded as she cooked the vegetable soup while trying to interact with her bats, which were scattered all over Eurasia. Three of the bats were sent to wrong addresses, so they were on their way back, puffing and blowing while the rest had arrived at their respective destination. Some even found her old friends. She then began to contact these individuals, whom she had not seen for hundreds of years one by one.
Regardless, that did not affect her work at hand: she still cooked like a pro as though she had developed a separate brain, which specialised in household chores. It seemed like nothing could keep her from adding parsley into the wok...
As there was no more business for him in the kitchen, Hao Ren went back to the living room. He ended up glued to the morning news on TV, pondering what to do next for the next couple of days while waiting for breakfast. Nangong Wuyue checked her watch, it was time for Lil Pea's flu treatment session again. She picked her up and went into the kitchen. "You busy, Vivian? Would you please heat the water for Lil Pea?" Nangong Wuyue asked.
Meanwhile, Vivian was doing two things at once: she was cooking, and making long-distance calls. She replied, "No problem, just leave her here. No need for the rice cooker, just leave her in her pot will do. I can control temperature better than the rice cooker."
Nangong Wuyue placed the pot with Lil Pea in it on the stove and left. Vivian fired up the stove and knuckled Lil Pea's tiny head, all the while smiling as she poured some sesame oil into the pot. When the water was heated, Lil Pea breathed a sigh of comfort as she began to swim with her belly skyward.
Meanwhile, Vivian furrowed her brows because she had successfully made contact with one of her old friends, who apparently knew something about the Day of Return.
Using the bat as a transmission medium, the clear, deep but gloomy voice of a woman rang in her mind "...You've been shedding your responsibility towards your race for far too long. Many families have not been following the rules and got the Blood Clan involved in the Day of Return sh*t."
Vivian looked down at the vegetable soup in the pot. She kept stirring it while she spoke with her old friend. "Please don't tell me you were harrassed by the naive juniors as well. You're into the Day of Return too?"
"Indeed, someone came to see me—Heather-Anna, the Lucas Family and even the Ebbens. Perhaps they thought that an old fellow like me who survived since the Mythological Era would know more secrets than them. But I declined," the gloomy voice spoke a with steady tone of voice. "It's too dangerous. They don't know what demon hunters can do. They're not people who they can easily defeat even if the demon hunters are at their weakest. No doubt, the current generation of demon hunters can't be compared with those from the past, but they're still like the old hats. In a real battle, you don't want to take these young chaps lightly.
Vivian twitched her mouth slightly as she said, "You still haven't changed. Staying alive is your ultimate goal in life."
"So is yours. We've both survived since the Mythological Era. Those who don't put it as their goal are already dead."
"Don't equate the both of us. I was never interested in quarrelling or fighting in the first place, and I'm still not interested. Unlike you, who's always bending with the wind." Vivian tried to mock her, but not in a malicious way.
"You're not interested in the Day of Return?
"Why not?" The gloomy voice laughed coarsely. A picture of a sombre face amid flickling candlelight came to mind. "The sirens brought the news. They're even more mysterious than the demon hunters. Who knows what they know? Aren't you curious if the Day of Return is true?"
"Not in the slightest." Vivian gave a dry laugh as she grabbed some chopped green onions and sprinkled them inside the pot where Lil Pea was lying in. "Sometimes, when your perpective is broadened, you will realise how childish you were in the past. Fighting for dominance in this tiny Earth is... too narrow-minded."
"What do you mean?"
"You used to be a god, living in the high heavens, but have you ever really raised your head and looked up at the stars in the sky?"
The voice paused. Then, the woman said, "...You used to study the stars a few thousand years ago and everyone laughed at you. Now, humans have gone interstellar, and those old hats who laughed at you are no more. They're dead. So, I guess you were right, but what's the point? We let the opportunity slip away and now people are only concerned about survival. A race with no chance to speak its mind is not fit to talk about the stars."
A deafening silence ensued, after which Vivian said, "I'm exhausted. Let's end it here. But your intel is very valuable. My friends and I will visit you soon." So, she ended the long-distance telephatic dialogue.
"If you come, please come quietly. The situation here isn't particularly welcoming. I don't want some demon hunters coming after my a**."
Vivian smiled confidently. "Don't worry—I've probably spent more time with demon hunters than you."
"Then, I wish you peace, countess."
"Peace be with you too, Hesperides."