Chapter 189: Bloodthirsty Jasmine

"I—" Jasmine began, but horror suddenly flooded her face and she snapped her mouth shut. Tears welled in her eyes. "Dongqing, let it go. We can't afford to cross him. Don't go after him. He'll kill you!"

Feeling her tremble against him, Yang Dongqing's fury burned even hotter. "Who is he? I'll kill him even if it costs my life!"

"No, no, no... I don't want you to die! Please, just drop it, okay?" Her panic spiked again, and she broke into uncontrollable sobs. Over the past few days, she had suffered nightmare after nightmare of him being murdered.

To her, Murong Yun was a noble, and the nobles were the absolute rulers of the Chiyan Empire. Any commoner who offended a noble was dead meat, and even transcendents were no exception. That deeply entrenched class hierarchy was carved into the bones of every Chiyan Empire citizen.

His heart breaking for her, Yang Dongqing pulled Jasmine into a tight embrace. "I won't ask anymore," he consoled her. "Don't cry, Jasmine. It's all over. I'm right here, and I won't let anyone hurt you."

Held in that long-missed embrace, Jasmine leaned her head against his shoulder. Her tears quickly soaked through his shirt.

"Jasmine, why are you so cold? Did you catch a chill? You've lost weight, too. Let me go make you a bowl of hot noodle soup—you must be starving."

He kept his voice soft and soothing, but the fury in his chest hadn't faded an inch; suppressing it only made it burn hotter. Unwilling to worry Jasmine, he planned to step away to cook the noodles and question Su Mu. Since Su Mu was the one who had rescued her, he had to know who abducted her.

What he failed to notice, however, was that the word "starving" acted like a trigger. The joy of their reunion vanished from her mind as agonizing hunger frantically stimulated her hidden instincts.

Standing quietly by the door, Su Mu watched Jasmine. His Tinted Glasses reflected a pale, demonic face as two razor-sharp fangs slowly extended from her mouth.

Her eyes shifted, stripped of all humanity in an instant. Nothing remained but bloodthirsty feral instinct!

Clang!

The sound of clashing metal rang out at Yang Dongqing's neck. The sharp fangs were blocked by his steel-hard skin, grinding hard enough to throw faint sparks.

"Jasmine, what—" Yang Dongqing froze, completely failing to process what she was doing. The next moment, his steel-hard skin finally gave way, and the fangs sank deep into his flesh.

As if entirely out of his control, the blood in his body surged wildly toward the puncture wounds.

Jasmine gulped it down. A flash of satisfaction crossed her demonic features, and the bloodthirsty gleam in her eyes flared even brighter!

Wincing in pain, Yang Dongqing hurriedly shoved Jasmine away. When he got a clear look at her face, all the color drained from his own.

"Jasmine, your teeth... What is..." Before he could finish, Jasmine brought her limbs together and kicked off the mattress. She launched through the air like a rabid dog leaping at its prey, snapping viciously at his throat.

Yang Dongqing was panicked, but he was still a Bronze Tier 2 transcendent. He quickly caught her and pinned her to the bed.

Jasmine thrashed violently, feral hisses tearing from her throat. Fresh blood stained her delicate lips a brilliant crimson. "Blood! Give me blood!"

"Jasmine! Calm down! What's wrong with you? It's me! Yang Dongqing!" he shouted frantically, his eyes full of desperation and heartache.

Perhaps hearing the name Yang Dongqing brought her reason back. The feral bloodlust in Jasmine's eyes slowly receded, replaced by a momentary daze. Then she saw the bloody puncture wounds on Yang Dongqing's neck. Her pupils shrank to pinpricks, and she utterly broke down.

"Did... did I do this?" she stammered, her voice a mix of heartache and guilt.

"Jasmine, what exactly happened to you?!"

Jasmine shuddered violently. "Tie me up! Hurry, tie me up! I... I can't control myself. Please, hurry! I don't want to be a bloodsucking monster!"

"What bloodsucking monster? This... Jasmine! Jasmine!" Yang Dongqing cried out in shock, because Jasmine had suddenly passed out.

"She's fine. I just put her to sleep." Su Mu pushed up his Tinted Glasses, concealing the crystalline blue light fading from his eyes.

"By the way, you should find some iron chains and lock her up for now. My hypnosis will soon be broken by her bloodthirsty instincts."

With that, Su Mu headed downstairs without looking back.

A long time later, Yang Dongqing came downstairs with a conflicted expression. He stopped in front of Su Mu and asked in a low, heavy voice, "What exactly happened to Jasmine?"

Su Mu hid nothing, plainly recounting how Murong Yun had abducted Jasmine.

Upon hearing the entire story, Yang Dongqing's face twisted like a demon's. Veins bulged on his face, and his killing intent was nearly uncontainable. "Murong Yun!! I'm going to kill him!"

He surged to his feet, the fury in his heart shattering what little reason he had left.

Sitting on the sofa, Su Mu said flatly, "He is a Silver Stage 2 transcendent. What are you?"

Yang Dongqing didn't break stride, entirely unmoved.

"Have you considered Jasmine after you die?"

Yang Dongqing paused. His chest heaved violently as he stood rooted to the spot for a long time, finally regaining a sliver of calm.

"Is there any way to turn a member of the Blood Clan back into a human?"

Su Mu shook his head. "As far as I know, no. But this isn't the time to worry about that. Right now, your priority is getting Jasmine some blood. If she stays starved for too long, she'll lose her mind. As for dealing with Murong Yun, that's simple enough. I happen to have a plan in mind..."

"I will kill him with my own hands!" Yang Dongqing glared fiercely, his fists clenched tight. He ground his teeth together, his furious voice ringing out with the resolve of an oath.

Su Mu nodded. To him, Murong Yun was nothing but a minor character. His real focus was the Gold powerhouse hiding behind Murong Yun: Xueyuan.

Thanks to Xueyuan's appearance, his plan was now even more complete and brilliant.

Su Mu took his leave shortly after. Given Yang Dongqing and Jasmine's current state, they were indeed in no shape for company.

He returned to the Bronze Coffin to seek out Nangong Mengli and ask for intelligence on the Blood Clan.

"The Blood Moon Empire is composed of the Blood Clan and humans. Over there, the Blood Clan act as nobles, while humans are like livestock, bled daily by the Blood Clan. This model has lasted for hundreds of years, and the citizens of the Blood Moon Empire are already used to it. The nation even has specific laws to protect humans, decreeing that the Blood Clan cannot attack humans at will and must instead pay to purchase blood."

With Nangong Mengli's narration, the general operational system of the Blood Moon Empire slowly took shape in Su Mu's mind. He felt no surprise.