chapter 50

Chapter 50

Upon hearing these words, Ning Qiuyan trembled. He didn’t want to appear so weak, but faced with such a threat, he realized that it truly is hard for humans to control their instincts-it’s difficult not to feel fear.

Guan Heng had once said that they were all Monsters, and now, this was being proven true.

The filming was interrupted.

After finishing the video, the man simply stared at Ning Qiuyan for a long time, but didn’t actually bite him.

Ning Qiuyan couldn’t figure out why he had been spared, and could only hope that the man had already fed enough just now.

The man skillfully used his phone, sending the recorded video to Guan Heng.

In the remote, abandoned construction site, apart from the incoherent murmurs of the girl in the corner, there was no other sound.

Under the light, Ning Qiuyan lowered his head. He looked as though he had been frightened out of his wits, but in reality, he was thinking the entire time. He sadly realized that the escape scenes he’d seen in movies and TV shows were vastly different from reality. He couldn’t untie the tightly fastened ropes, nor did he know any escape route. What’s more, there was no light around, and he didn’t have shoes. There was simply no way he could quickly run out of this pitch-black, rubble-strewn construction site full of steel bars.

Half an hour after the video was sent, there was still no response from the phone.

The man checked his phone irritably. Ning Qiuyan caught a glimpse of the time.

It was four thirty in the morning.

At this hour, Guan Heng should still be awake-Ning Qiuyan knew Guan Heng’s routine well.

But perhaps that number really wasn’t in use anymore.

The man grew increasingly agitated, pacing restlessly around the room. Suddenly, he came closer and grabbed Ning Qiuyan’s hair, his snarling face looming in front of him: “Why isn’t he answering?”

Ning Qiuyan could only reply, “I already told you, I have no contact with Mr. Guan anymore. You just didn’t believe me.”

The man snapped, “But you’re his exclusive blood donor! Even if you’re not in touch, now that he’s received your video, how could he possibly ignore you?!”

“Because our agreement is over, it’s finished!” Ning Qiuyan’s scalp ached from being yanked, his eyes reddened, but his expression remained stubborn. “And after the crisis on Du Island was resolved, he went back into hibernation-he doesn’t need me anymore. That number might not even work now, and maybe he never even saw the video you sent!”

“Hibernation?” The man cried out, nearly hysterical. “For how long?”

Ning Qiuyan said, “A hundred years, two hundred years, it’s possible.”

The man let go, pacing in circles around the room. “Then what am I supposed to do? What should I do?!”

After pacing enough, he came back over, his arms braced on either side of Ning Qiuyan’s chair. “You’re lying to me. If he abandons everything, who will take care of his affairs?”

Ning Qiuyan kept his mouth shut.

He also wondered what to do now. Had someone at the hospital noticed his absence? Did the bloodstains trailing out from the breakroom mean someone else had also been harmed?

If someone reported him missing, how long would it take the police to review the surveillance and license plates, and track him here?

Perhaps this conversation gave away something. The man’s expression suddenly changed, and he started searching through the phone again.

The light flickered, and the nightmare continued to sway in the chaos.

“Lu Qianque.” The man was suddenly elated, his voice leaking out in a raspy whisper, “Lu Qianque is his lackey. Lu Qianque could definitely wake him up, and you even have his number!”

He reopened the contacts and dialed Lu Qianque’s phone number.

Ning Qiuyan frowned deeply, filled with unease.

The call was quickly connected.

The man put the call on speaker, and Lu Qianque’s voice came from the other end, sounding relaxed: “Hello, Xiao Ning. What made you think of calling me all of a sudden?”

The agreement had long ended, yet Lu Qianque’s number could still be reached.

Lu Qianque sounded no different than before, familiar and a bit roguish, as if he might tease Ning Qiuyan at any moment.

The man immediately turned around and shot Ning Qiuyan a vicious glare, clearly believing that Ning Qiuyan had lied about something earlier.

He rasped into the phone, “Lu Qianque, long time no see.”

There was a brief silence on the other end.

Then Lu Qianque’s voice turned cold: “Chi Yang.”

Of course, the man had a name too-Chi Yang. It seemed he and Lu Qianque were old acquaintances as well.
Lu Qianque said coldly, “I thought you had hidden yourself at the ends of the earth, but I didn’t expect you would still dare to show up. What have you done to Ning Qiuyan?”

“Just barely missed it… I’m lucky, always one step ahead of you.” Chi Yang kept his eyes on Ning Qiuyan. “I haven’t done anything to him yet. But I can send you a video first, so you can enjoy it at your leisure.”

With that, he hung up the phone and sent the previously recorded video to Lu Qianque.

After a while, Lu Qianque called back. This time, as soon as Chi Yang answered, Lu Qianque got straight to the point: “What do you want?”

“I want Guan Heng to come see me,” Chi Yang said with a sinister tone. “I want him to go to the Blood Supervision Council in person and revoke the pursuit order against me in front of all the members, and pardon me. Then, as you wish, I’ll disappear to the ends of the earth.”

Lu Qianque said, “Let Ning Qiuyan speak to me.”

Chi Yang thought for a moment, then put the phone on speaker and turned to Ning Qiuyan. “Speak.”

“Lu Qianque,” Ning Qiuyan spoke immediately. His throat and lungs had been scorched by thick smoke, and he had been slapped several times, the inside of his mouth torn. Every word was an effort, but he spoke very quickly. “I’m now in an unfinished building in Sujing-”

Chi Yang immediately gripped his jaw to warn him. “Shut up. It’s not your turn to tip them off!”

With that, Chi Yang took the phone and said to the other end, “Did you hear that? He’s still alive and well for now. If Guan Heng doesn’t come, who knows what might happen.”

“Guan Heng won’t come,” Lu Qianque replied calmly, sounding even more composed than expected. “You’re right-this young man is indeed Guan Heng’s Golden Blood, but their agreement ended long ago.”

Chi Yang’s expression changed. “Don’t try to fool me. I know you care about whether he lives or dies!”

“We do care. But as you know, Guan Heng has always been merciful and generous,” said Lu Qianque. “He has abstained from blood for years and has no appetite for human blood. Now that the agreement has ended, he no longer has any use for this young man. Sending people to protect him was merely to repay him for his contribution and ensure he lives out the rest of his life safely.”

The more Chi Yang listened, the more venomous his gaze became.

Lu Qianque continued, “If you had lived quietly outside back then, you would have been included in this protection network as well. For Guan Heng, it’s just a simple favor, not because anyone is special. If a human with some ties is taken, it doesn’t require Guan Heng to step in personally. However, I can take care of this matter.”

“You?” Chi Yang sneered, full of doubt. “Why you? Would the Blood Supervision Council listen to you?”

“This incident has already alerted Guan Heng,” Lu Qianque said. “I just reported the situation to him, and he gave me the authority to handle it. With his approval, I can represent Guan Heng at the Blood Supervision Council.”

Ning Qiuyan’s eyelashes trembled.

Guan Heng… already knows he’s been kidnapped?

So Guan Heng didn’t answer the call from the number Ning Qiuyan had saved in his phone, but did answer Lu Qianque’s. Does that mean, just as he thought, the number was only for use during the agreement? Or perhaps, as Lu Qianque said, he is nothing special to Guan Heng-just a human with some ties.

“I’ll give you two options,” Lu Qianque said to Chi Yang. “First, release Ning Qiuyan immediately. As long as he is safe and sound, you can enjoy your freedom for every day that he lives. We will suspend your pursuit order until Ning Qiuyan dies of old age. It’s a good deal-you could live freely for decades to come.”

This condition clearly wasn’t enough to tempt Chi Yang. He asked gloomily, “And the other?”

Lu Qianque replied indifferently, “Second, Ning Qiuyan is just an unarmed human. If you want to kill him, or drain him dry, do as you wish.”

Ning Qiuyan was startled, and even Chi Yang was taken aback, full of suspicion. “What? You’re really not afraid he’ll die?”

“He’s in your hands. Only you can decide whether he lives or dies, isn’t that right? If he dies, then I am truly sorry,” Lu Qianque even smiled a little, then his tone turned cold. “But I assure you, Chi Yang, Guan Heng will not tolerate any provocation. If you dare harm this human in the slightest, even if it’s just a single hair, no matter whether he lives or dies, you will wish more than ever to be caught by the Blood Supervision Council.”

Hearing this, Chi Yang’s body suddenly began to tremble, and his teeth started to chatter uncontrollably.
Ning Qiuyan had no idea what the Blood Supervision Council was, nor did he know what Lu Qianque planned to do to Chi Yang, that could make Chi Yang this frightened.

Ning Qiuyan was simply surprised that Guan Heng and Lu Qianque seemed not to care much about whether he lived or died.

Of course, they were negotiating terms with all their might, making concessions, but Ning Qiuyan’s life didn’t seem all that important-his death wouldn’t make a decisive difference in the existing hatred between the two parties.

“This isn’t fair…” Chi Yang shouted, “Not fair! You can’t bypass the Blood Supervision Council to deal with me!”

Lu Qianque said calmly, “Fair? Don’t forget, from the day you used Bai Zhilan, you were destined for a bad end.”

He didn’t ask any further questions, nor did he demand to speak with Ning Qiuyan again.

Lu Qianque finally said, “You can choose: decades of freedom, or try falling into our hands. It’s up to you,” then hung up the phone first.

Chi Yang took two steps back and accidentally stepped on the girl in the corner.

Ning Qiuyan’s eyes had adjusted to the light; he could now see that the wound at the girl’s waist was no longer bleeding, but her body was covered in bloodstains. What he had thought were dirt stains on her filthy sweater were, in fact, dried blood.

Chi Yang’s nerves seemed to be on the verge of snapping-he suddenly jumped up, watching as the girl shrank back repeatedly.

Dawn was about to break.

The room was still dim, but from the hollow window one could see the clear hues of daybreak rising in the sky.

Chi Yang crouched at the base of the wall, still clutching Ning Qiuyan’s phone tightly, staring at it, hoping it would ring again at any moment.

But neither Guan Heng nor Lu Qianque called back.

The pros and cons of each choice were clear.

But the right to choose truly rested entirely in Chi Yang’s hands.

Ning Qiuyan couldn’t just sit and wait for death; he had to find a way to save himself-at this moment, he noticed a protruding, broken piece of rebar on the other side of the wall.

He watched Chi Yang’s expression, trying to gauge whether Chi Yang’s mania and neurosis might leave him too distracted to keep a close eye on Ning Qiuyan. But as Ning Qiuyan nervously observed him, Chi Yang suddenly stared straight back at him.

Ning Qiuyan’s heart gave a jolt. Forcing himself to stay calm, he said, “Just now, I heard you mention someone called Bai Zhilan… Do you know her?”

Chi Yang didn’t answer, perhaps weighing whether to simply kill Ning Qiuyan. His gaze was fierce: “You know about that?!”

Ning Qiuyan didn’t.

But all he could do now was try to stall for time, so he replied vaguely, “I-I saw a photo of her as a child with Mr. Guan on Du Island. Her name was written on the back, so it stuck in my mind. I asked Mr. Guan about it; I think she was a child he adopted.”

“Adopted?” Chi Yang spoke hoarsely, his tone full of contempt. “Yes, adopted-just like raising a well-behaved dog: pamper it, control it, but in the end, not even grant it a life.”

Ning Qiuyan didn’t understand.

He recalled the scars covering half of Granny Bai’s face-injuries like those of the Monster before him. He also remembered Granny Bai once told him she survived thanks to Guan Heng. There must be some past story behind all this.

But at this point, Chi Yang didn’t continue. He just stared at the girl on the floor with a dazed look, as if considering whether to drink her blood again. Suddenly, a faint sound came from outside the construction site.

That noise was distant and indistinct in the silence before dawn.

Chi Yang looked at Ning Qiuyan again. “Where did you see that photo?”

“In Mr. Guan’s studio…” Ning Qiuyan had a bad feeling-this topic, meant to distract him, might have been a wrong choice.

Unfortunately, it was too late. Chi Yang emerged angrily from the shadows and came up to Ning Qiuyan, his expression terrifying. “You lied to me… Lu Qianque must be lying to me. Guan Heng never lets just anyone into his studio-not just anyone can get in… They must be plotting something else.”

As he spoke, he picked up the phone from the ground, took out his own to record the number, then smashed Ning Qiuyan’s phone to pieces with a rock.

The phone was shattered.

Immediately afterward, Chi Yang kicked the girl awake and told her, “Get up and drive!”