Chapter 37: Forever Seventeen
By the time 7 AM rolled around, the sun was already pleasantly warm. Having nothing else to do, Yu Xian experimented with the new ability he had just acquired.
He fixed his gaze on a tree not far ahead. A bubble appeared at his fingertip, and he sent it flying toward the tree, instantly piercing straight through the trunk. With a flicker of his thought, the bubble curved through the air and punched a perfectly smooth hole through a nearby boulder.
The bubble was unaffected by gravity and possessed no kinetic energy of its own. Its speed depended entirely on how fast Yu Xian's thoughts were, while its destructive power depended on how much force the bubble itself could withstand.
Yu Xian continued accelerating the bubble, pushing it faster and faster. After it reached several times the speed of sound, the bubble suddenly burst and vanished.
Yu Xian mused. The bubble membrane can't withstand any more air resistance.
It wasn't that the bubble was incapable of moving any faster. The real limitation was the membrane's inability to withstand the increasing air resistance. If the membrane had infinite durability, Yu Xian could propel the bubble to near-light speed or even the speed of light.
He created two more bubbles. This time, he reduced their hardness but increased their elasticity. Pressing a finger against one of them, he found that it had indeed become much bouncier. However, without his active control, the bubbles remained in place, concentrating all of their rebound force at the point of contact.
A new idea occurred to Yu Xian. This newfound bounciness can prove useful in ways I hadn't even considered. What if I increase the stickiness?
Although his Blood Energy had mutated, the effects he had previously developed had not disappeared. If anything, they had become even stronger.
He created a bubble with extremely powerful adhesive properties and pressed a finger against its surface. Sure enough, his finger was instantly stuck to it. He then tried to pull his finger free, but even with all his strength, he couldn't break loose. Unless he was willing to cut off his finger, he would remain firmly attached to the bubble.
There was another way to break free. He simply needed enough strength to destroy the bubble. As long as it burst, he could move freely again. The problem was that not many people were capable of doing that. At the very least, someone would likely need to be in Eagle rank or above.
If Yu Xian prepared several of these bubbles in advance and used them to choke points where an opponent exerted force, he could probably restrain even some powerful Eagle-rank individuals.
A bird landed on a nearby tree and observed him and Bluebird. Yu Xian sent a bubble looping through the air. It quickly attached itself to the bird's back and carried the struggling creature to his hand.
Staring at the struggling bird, he asked, "Bluebird, if the Aberrant Parasites have already started infesting birds, does what we're doing still have any meaning?"
"Trust headquarters," Bluebird replied nonchalantly. "The strategists have undoubtedly considered every possible scenario. Since they've made this decision, there must be a reason for it."
Yu Xian directed the bubble carrying the bird toward the distance before nodding. "Yeah, I understand. It's just that this is my first time participating in an operation on this scale. I guess I'm a little too nervous."
He continued experimenting with his bubbles, making them spin or trying to alter their shape. The sun gradually crept toward its zenith, its heat intensifying by the minute. Bluebird whipped out a parasol for shade and watched Yu Xian try out his abilities in the heat.
As she watched the energetic young man standing beneath the sunlight, she asked, "Salted Fish, are you really a vampire?"
Yu Xian nodded. "Of course."
"Then do you drink blood?"
"Of course I do. I drank some blood just yesterday."
The Blood of Pangu was still blood, after all. Since he had consumed it, there was no reason to deny it, even though the experience of drinking the Blood of Pangu had been anything but pleasant. The memories contained within it were far too painful. He even wondered whether Pangu was still trapped in an endless dream, eternally creating new worlds within the primordial chaos.
Then a thought occurred to him. There was still quite a bit of silver stored inside his spatial ring. He took out a lump of silver, opened his mouth, and sucked it into his body as casually as if he were drinking soy milk through a straw.
A sense of surrealism washed over Bluebird. What kind of bizarre vampire is this? He can stand under the sun and eat silver. The whole picture feels absurdly out of place.
Bluebird asked, "By the way, how old are you?"
"Seventeen. What about you?"
"I'm twenty-four." Another question came to her. "Wait, don't vampires turned through the First Bite remain physically frozen at the age they were turned? Doesn't that mean you'll be seventeen forever?"
Both vampires created through the First Bite and wild vampires remained physically fixed at the age they were turned.
Yu Xian nodded with a smile. "That's right. So, no matter how many years pass and no matter who asks me, I'll always be seventeen."
Bluebird instantly threw him a look of skepticism. Is the answer he gave me actually true or false?
At that moment, however, Yu Xian froze as an important question occurred to him. He looked at Bluebird. "Bluebird, vampires that are born naturally can grow up, right?"
Bluebird nodded. "That's right. Although vampires have very low fertility rates, there are still some who are born naturally. They start as babies, so they obviously can't stay babies forever. As far as I know, they stop growing once they reach a certain age."
An image naturally formed in Yu Xian's mind. Years later, he remained exactly as he was now, while Nora had grown into a tall, mature young woman. Standing together, they looked like siblings or, perhaps, even mother and son.
I wonder what Nora will look like when she grows up. Will she still be as airheaded as she is now?
As his thoughts wandered further and further afield, the Pangu Heart within his body thumped. He immediately cleared away the jumble of thoughts in his head and pressed a hand against his chest.
Tomorrow, I will awaken my first Pangu Divine Art. Hopefully, I'll hit the jackpot and awaken Pangu Immortality on the first try.Of course, if I can't get that one, Pangu Divine Strength wouldn't be a bad consolation prize either.If not it either, then Pangu's Space Rend wouldn't be a bad draw.
While Yu Xian was busy daydreaming about the future, several of Zhou Tai's personalities were gathered inside a cave deep within the mountains. Each controlled a different body, and all wore grim expressions as they discussed their situation.
Zhou Tai No. 2 said, "It looks like we're surrounded."
For once, Zhou Tai No. 3 spoke seriously. "This is a real problem. They've probably figured out our weakness."
No. 5 shot to his feet and, in a voice brimming with murderous intent, declared, "Then let's kill them! Kill every last one of them!"
No. 2 frowned. "Our priority is finding a way to get the original body out. As long as the original body survives, we won't die."
Although an Aberrant Parasite had replaced Zhou Tai's original personality, the remaining personalities stemmed from the original Zhou Tai's illness. They all shared a common root. If that parasite were killed, they would all die as well. Naturally, they had never revealed such a critical weakness to Chen Qingsong. In fact, they had never even spoken of it among themselves. That was why none of them could figure out how the humans had discovered it.