Chapter 22: Flipping His Coffin Lid

Between Dayingguo and Belgium lies a strait called the Dover Strait.

The strait is 40 kilometers wide and 55 meters deep, one of Dayingguo's key maritime routes, and also regarded as one of the world's busiest sea lanes.

Unfortunately, strict navigation and shipping regulations have been in place since 1977.

Fortunately, it is now 1911, and the steamship Ocean Goddess sails unimpeded through the strait; after five hours it finally docks at a Belgian port.

Since it was daytime, late morning when the sun was at its strongest, Su Qing and Selinna — well, they were vampires — had to stay hidden aboard the ship for their own safety.

Fortunately, after boarding the ship at midnight, they weren't just lounging; at least they figured out the vessel's itinerary.

Luckily, today the Ocean Goddess must finish loading cargo in Belgium before returning to Dayingguo.

Because of the era, cargo is loaded manually, making the process very slow; it is estimated to take at least ten hours to fill the hold.

That means the ship won't depart until at least nine p. m., which conveniently works for their plans.

In a secluded cabin aboard the ship, Su Qing carefully drew the curtains to block any sunlight, then turned and sat back in his chair.

"By the way, who is the ruling elder of this century?"

Selinna, wiping her Dog Leg Knife with an oilcloth opposite him, didn't look up and said, "It's Elder Amelia."

"Ah, it's her." Su Qing thought, recalling the film and comparing the timeline, realizing that at this point she is indeed the sole female vampire elder among the Three Great Elders.

In a scene from the 2003 film Underworld, one of the Three Great Elders, the female elder Amelia, is shown arriving in Budapest by train.

This time she has actually come to awaken the slumbering Marcus and hand over ruling authority before returning to her own slumber.

Speaking of Amelia, she could be called the most useless elder in Blood Clan history; despite holding the title of elder and living over a thousand years, she appeared for less than five minutes before being torn apart and drained by werewolves, dying in a most offhand manner.

And then there's Marcus, a walking embodiment of misery.

Although he is the vampire progenitor, he is subdued by his own turned vampire Victor, who flips the natural order; Marcus dares not raise his voice in daily speech, only daring to bluster when Victor sleeps—his behavior is nothing short of being utterly cowed.

But that's merely the surface.

Yet as the vampire progenitor, Marcus is far from simple; he can be said to be the strongest being in the Blood Clan.

Of course, his individual combat prowess is unmatched.

The reason he ended up submitting to Victor's breeches dates back to the thirteenth century.

In 1202 AD, Marcus, Victor, and Amelia together with the Three Great Elders launched a joint strike in a forest, using crossbow bolts and chains to seize the werewolf progenitor William.

At that time Victor's idea was to kill William once and for all.

But Marcus, loyal to his brother, could not accept that and argued with Victor on the spot.

But by then Victor had built up years of development, his troops strong and his power great, no longer regarding Marcus the progenitor as anything at all.

Realizing his words were useless, Marcus reluctantly fabricated a lie, claiming that if he and William were slain, vampires and werewolves would perish together because of their deaths.

He then decisively dropped to one knee, submitting to Victor's breeches, thereby sparing William's life.

Afterward, Victor had a craftsman build a prison to imprison the werewolf progenitor William—a prison known only to Victor himself.

Of course, Selinna was also involved.

Back then Victor spared Selinna not only because she resembled his daughter, but also because she was a living map.

As a child Selinna had played in that prison, and subconsciously she knew its location.

To prevent losing the prison's location to geographical changes, Victor kept Selinna close; in a pinch, biting her lets him read her blood to know the prison's whereabouts—convenient and swift.

"Any problems?" Selinna asked, seeing Su Qing's expression shift, sometimes raising an eyebrow, sometimes frowning.

"Nothing much, just thinking about something." Su Qing waved his hand, then changed the subject: "Where does Elder Amelia usually stay?"

Selinna pondered and explained: "The Blood Clan splits into the Western Council and the Eastern Council; the Western Council is based in Budapest, the Eastern Council in Northern Europe, and Elder Amelia herself oversees the Eastern Council."

"So she still needs to hold down the Eastern Council; she doesn't stay in one place long, swapping her seat every ten years. Right now this ten‑year term finds her in the Big House—that is, the Western Council."

Su Qing shook his head: "With her around, we have to be careful."

"I've never seen her act, but there's gossip within the Blood Clan that if she discovers the weakest of the Three Great Elders, perhaps we could subdue her."

Selinna frowned, laid out all the intel she knew, and even put forward a seemingly viable suggestion.

But the moment she voiced it, Su Qing shook his head and rejected it.

Although Amelia's performance is mediocre and her death was hasty, as an elder who has lived nearly a thousand years and drunk more blood than the distance they've traveled, she is certainly not that easy to deal with.

Su Qing would not be so arrogant as to think that he and Selinna alone could overcome Amelia.

"Then what do you suggest?" Selinna said, somewhat helpless.

Su Qing thought for a moment and said, "Let's go see Tailisi first; this guy is a historian who has followed Victor for several centuries, knows many secrets, and perhaps we can glean some useful information from him to counter Victor."

Selinna nodded, agreeing that he is indeed a rare elder among the Blood Clan, versed in many mysteries, but considering his personality she frowned and added, "This fellow is very cunning; he's unlikely to cooperate honestly."

Su Qing clenched his fist, heard a crack, and laughed, "Don't worry—if he won't be honest, we'll give him a beating; if he still won't yield, we'll keep beating him until he submits."

Selinna rolled her eyes, but said nothing; after all, they're vampires—a beating won't kill them.

Then she suddenly recalled, saying, "That corpse‑dissolving fluid is something Tailisi concocted."

"What a coincidence," Su Qing nodded in surprise, having to admit that aside from his poor marksmanship, Tailisi is a highly inventive person.

He stroked his chin and said, "When the time comes we can ask him for some corpse‑dissolving fluid, which will make disposing of bodies and traces much easier."

Su Qing rose to his feet and stretched.

Selinna's mood suddenly dipped as she asked, "Do you think we can succeed?"

Su Qing turned to face her, looking into Selinna's eyes, his gaze full of self‑assurance:

"Definitely—right now that old coot is asleep like a mummy, hardly waking without fresh blood; when the time comes we'll flip his coffin lid and drag him straight out."