Chapter 3046

Preparations for the Blood Moon Festival were numerous and tedious; although most were handled by the stewards and attendants attached to the seven great counts, the ceremonial segments requiring the counts' participation still demanded their attention.

During a break in the ceremony, several counts were able to rest briefly in the side hall.

Saiyin leaned against a high-backed chair upholstered in crimson velvet, idly turning an empty crystal wine cup in his hand; his complexion had improved greatly compared to two days ago, no longer the deathly pallor, the shadows under his eyes had faded somewhat, though irritation still lingered in his brow.

As the Blood Moon drew nearer, that latent ache and agitation, even if temporarily soothed by Jin Chen's blood, could flare up again at any moment.

Perhaps it was also because Saiyin had been pondering something, his gaze turning to Yue Ge, who stood silently by the nearby window.

Saiyin pressed his lips together, as if making a decision, and said, 'Yue Ge.'

Yue Ge slowly turned, tilted her head to look at him, then lightly laughed, 'Si Lan De, you rarely hesitate like this—what matters enough to make you so torn?'

'If one performs a first embrace on a blood servant while not fully lucid or in poor condition… will it fail?'

Saiyin still didn't understand why Jin Chen showed no signs of the usual weakness after a first embrace—no newborn blood clan frailty—and even being locked in a dungeon by him seemed as relaxed as a vacation.

This is too abnormal.

Yue Ge drew a quiet breath, astonished that the count, who for centuries had never had a fixed companion or descendant, had finally taken a liking to a blood servant.

'You finally have a prospective descendant? But… don't you feel anything yourself? Between the giver and the receiver of a first embrace, a unique bloodline bond is formed.'

Saiyin: '……'

Was he supposed to say that every time he touched Jin Chen—whether being fed on, whipped and embraced, or simply drawing near—he felt… wonderfully at ease, not wanting to think too much, just wanting to sink into it?

Such words, a noble vampire count would rather die than utter; speaking them would mean he was no longer fit to be a count, and he might as well stake himself on a cross.

Just as Saiyin wondered how to answer, another amused voice chimed in.

'Oh? A first embrace?' Fei'erwen had somehow come over, holding a freshly poured glass of blood brew, his curiosity undisguised.

'Saiyin, did you give that silver-haired beauty a first embrace?' Fei'erwen pressed on with interest.

'By the way, I happen to have a magic array that can test for this—if Jin Chen has truly become, or is about to become, a new-generation blood clan, even the faintest bloodline link or sign of transformation would be detected by this array.'

He paused, his gaze locking onto Saiyin, and asked, 'Want to give it a try?'

Saiyin's blood-red eyes flashed—this was exactly the answer he needed most right now!

The vague irritation that had risen in his heart from Fei'erwen's excessive attention to Jin Chen was temporarily overridden by his thirst for knowledge.

'I'll take you there.'

——

Jin Chen's new cell lay deep within the castle, requiring passage through several corridors and staircases to reach.

Fei'erwen stepped outside the door and grew more doubtful, saying, 'You didn't say you'd locked him in a cell, did you?'

This doesn't look like a cell at all!

The three‑room layout was already fairly comfortable, and many more things had been added.

Looking closely, the newly added items were either things Jin Chen had made out of boredom after waking, or they were clearly belongings that ought to have been Saiyin's—old books lay open on the desk with an unfinished quill, a vase sat on the windowsill holding a few freshly cut roses in full bloom.

Fei'erwen's gaze swept the room; the more he looked, the stranger it seemed—this place could well be the coziest spot in the entire castle.

Fei'erwen stepped inside, his eyes slowly scanning everything; the smirk on his lips deepened, yet a complex, unfathomable emotion flickered in his gaze. He said nothing.

The small tea room was empty, a half‑turned page resting on the armrest; Saiyin glanced around the vacant tea hall, his brows slightly furrowed, and said, 'He should be washing up—wait a moment.'

The dignified second‑generation blood‑clan Count Fei'erwen: '……Should I wait for him?'

Sure enough, a faint sound of trickling water came from the inner chamber.

Jin Chen had been lazily soaking in the bath, the warm water reaching only to his chest; his silver hair spread like waterweed, eyes closed in a relaxed doze, his demeanor uniformly at ease.

Hearing the commotion outside, one initially assumed it was Saiyin alone coming over and paid it no mind, but then voices of outsiders were heard.

Moments later, Jin Chen emerged from the inner chamber; steam made his pale skin flush with a blood‑tinged hue, his blue eyes shimmering with lazy water‑light as he glanced at the two in the tea hall, his brows slightly lifting—he showed little enthusiasm, yet wasn't cold either.

Yet that very expression caused Fei'erwen's countenance to shift for an instant.

It seemed to carry him back six hundred years to a night similarly lit by clear, cold moonlight.

He had once been fortunate enough to glimpse, from afar, the legendary forefather prince Motisi; His Majesty then appeared likewise, casually draped in a long robe, standing on the castle's high balcony and gazing into the distance, his silver‑haired profile lofty and remote, as if veiled by a thin mist from the whole world.

That scene became the most precious yet most blurred image in his long life.

'Long time no see, Count Fei'erwen.' Jin Chen's voice rang out, breaking Fei'erwen's daze.

Fei'erwen snapped back to awareness, quickly hiding that momentary loss of focus, his playful smile returning as he gave Jin Chen a slight nod: 'Yeah, long time no see.'

Saiyin inexplicably felt a twinge of jealousy.

Moreover, that damned slave was clearly just finished soaking in a bath that helps blood servants recover their vitality; each time, Jin Chen's scent grew more alluring, exerting a fatal attraction on him.

Saiyin had to strive hard to restrain himself from lunging into Jin Chen's arms in front of Fei'erwen, as he had done the past few nights, burying his face in the steam‑warmed nape.

His fingers clenched in his cuffs, his chin lifted high, his expression cold and arrogant—indistinguishable from the usual haughty Count Si Lan De—he snapped, 'Hurry up, Fei'erwen.'

Jin Chen noticed his unease and the corner of his mouth curled.

Fei'erwen walked to the tea table, leaned his staff against the wall, and with a light flick of his right hand above the tabletop, a dark‑red trace appeared from his fingertips, gradually forming an intricate, dizzying circular magic array.

Blood clan magic arrays usually hold great power, and all the more so when laid out by a count personally; once formed, a faint crimson glow circulated within the array's lines.

Saiyin, ever conscious of his dignity, tightened his face and ordered Jin Chen in a cold voice, 'Step inside.'

Jin Chen showed no annoyance, cooperatively walking into the center of the ominous, potent dark‑red magic array and planting his feet.

Ling Gun Gun popped out and squatted on Jin Chen's shoulder, 【Host, what is this magic array? The energy fluctuation feels weird.】

Jin Chen lowered his gaze, looking at the halo slowly rotating beneath his feet, and gave Saiyin a half-smile glance.

【Can you confuse the test results of the array that tests whether I am a blood clan?】

Ling Gun Gun patted its little paw on its chest, responding firmly: 【Of course! Host, what result do you want? Not a blood clan? Is it a blood clan? Or a half-blood clan?】

The smile in Jin Chen's eyes deepened a bit, 【It can allow the array to detect the contract bond.】

Ling Gun Gun: 【Covered by Lord Pixiu!】