Back in the imperial capital, the Fifth Progenitor and Eighth Progenitor watched the dimensional opening after Vaan drew Abaddon away. They were tasked with keeping the rest of the vampires from invading.
Naturally, since there were only two of them, stopping more than two other Vampire Lords was impossible for them, let alone seven.
As such, they had to rely on soft tactics to buy time.
Several minutes passed without a single vampire sighted from the opening atop the slanted black pillar. The Fifth Progenitor and Eighth Progenitor started feeling relieved; they didn't need to confront the other Vampire Lords and could take it easy.
However, they rejoiced a tad too early.
At that moment, the shadow of a Vampire Lord finally emerged from the opening, followed by several more a few breaths later.
Like Abaddon, they took a moment to observe the foreign world from their high vantage point despite their struggles to resist the gravitational pressure. However, struggling under the pressure for a bit longer was better than recklessly charging into unknown danger.
Nevertheless, they were immediately surprised by the absence of battle.
Even Abaddon's presence could not be found in the area. That fact alone made them extremely wary and alarmed regarding the situation of the foreign world.
"Where is the Blood Ancestor? Didn't he enter before us?" the Second Progenitor frowned with doubt.
"The Blood Ancestor undoubtedly entered before us. But as for his location, I do not know… The first and second vampire armies have been wiped out, and the Blood Ancestor is missing… This situation does not look good. We best be careful," the Third Progenitor replied.
Meanwhile, the Fifth Progenitor and Eighth Progenitor recognized that the Second Progenitor was leading the group. They immediately took flight and went to receive them.
"I see the rest of you have decided to descend on this world," the Fifth Progenitor commented, keeping a safe distance from the black pillar's range of suppression while staying in sight of the Vampire Lords.
"Old Fifth, I see you are doing fine. What happened here? Where is the Blood Ancestor? I do not see him anywhere," Celeste Kyran the Seventh inquired, glancing around.
"The Blood Ancestor?" the Fifth Progenitor smiled before saying, "Probably still on a wild goose chase with the Soul Master."
"Did you just say… Soul Master?" Donovan Cromwell the Fourth frowned, feeling startled along with the other Vampire Lords, except for one.
"Oh? You didn't know? It looks like Klaus Albatroz didn't tell you why he woke you up, either. He withheld important information from us in hopes of using us to deal with the Soul Master! I don't think I need to remind you just what kind of existence a Soul Master is," the Fifth Progenitor stated, his expression turning increasingly cold.
"Is that true, Old Second?" Rosalie Orpheus the Ninth sought confirmation from the Second Progenitor.
However, the Second Progenitor remained silent on the matter.
Even so, under the increasing pressure of his peers' gazes, he eventually admitted, "That's right! But, so what? Did you die? No? I didn't think so. You have not faced the Soul Master, and the Blood Ancestor even acted first, saving you that trouble!"
"Instead of judging me, you should be thanking me! If I didn't wake you all up, do you all think you would have the chance to walk under the sun again? Don't forget that we are not that close."
"We wouldn't be working together if we didn't have a common enemy!" the Second Progenitor criticized, seemingly assuming a righteous stance.
However, his words only received the Vampire Lords' scoffs of contempt.
"Say whatever you want, Klaus Albatroz, but I will remember your unkind intentions," the Fifth Progenitor laughed coldly, adding, "Even though I don't agree with most of the things you said, you did get one thing right – I should thank you."
"Although you almost screwed me over, you did give me the opportunity to join the Soul Master's side."
Shortly after the Fifth Progenitor said that, the Vampire Lords' minds blanked momentarily.
"What did you just say, Old Fifth? You joined the Soul Master's side…?" Aleister Sanguine the Tenth repeated doubtfully.
"You heard me," the Fifth Progenitor acknowledged and said, "I have joined the Soul Master's side, and now I am here to give you the same opportunity."
"The Blood Ancestor initiated this war; it has nothing to do with you—at least not yet. You have not participated and killed anyone yet. As such, the Soul Master is not your enemy yet."
"However, he will be if you continue to serve the Blood Ancestor. Do you understand? The Blood Ancestor will undoubtedly die, but you don't have to go down with him. You can join the Soul Master's side like me and Old Eighth," the Fifth Progenitor persuaded.
"Don't be fooled by his honeyed words of deception!" the Second Progenitor laughed coldly before saying, "The Soul Master is only a Peak Demigod! No matter how much of a heaven-defying existence he is, he can't defeat the Blood Ancestor!"
"Furthermore, you have all absorbed the Blood Ancestor's divine blood! It's impossible to defy the Blood Ancestor!" the Second Progenitor solemnly reminded.
"That's right!" the Ninth Progenitor widened her eyes before raising her doubts, "Old Fifth, you were among the first to clean up your family. In that case, you should have also absorbed the Blood Ancestor's divine blood…"
"What kind of spell did the Soul Master cast on you to speak up for him? Joining the Soul Master's side is meaningless if we can't defy the Blood Ancestor. Instead, we will only earn his wrath."
"Also… A Peak Demigod-level Soul Master? Really? I can't believe you are putting so much faith in such a weak Soul Master," the Ninth Progenitor frowned.
"Hahaha, your doubts are reasonable," the Fifth Progenitor lightly laughed before shaking his head, "However, I am under no spell. Old Eighth and I have been liberated from the Blood Ancestor's control thanks to the Soul Master."
"Not only that, but we have also refined the Blood Ancestor's divine blood, completely making it our own! The Blood Ancestor's divine blood contains the secrets of his cultivation."
"You could say that right now, Old Eighth and I don't have any bottlenecks in our blood cultivation until the tenth stage of the Divine Blood Realm!" the Fifth Progenitor grinned.
Everyone's eyes widened at the shocking claim.