Versatile Mage

Vampires? Mo Fan had only seen them in novels or movies, and they were normally extraordinarily handsome, just like himself.

“Wait, did you just say they ambush women?” asked Mo Fan.

Huo Tuo nodded and said, “These vampires have their unique tastes. They don’t just attack all women, but choose their prey carefully. The prey is normally gorgeous in our eyes, yet different vampires have different fetishes. Some prefer those with long hair, some prefer virgins, and some like fair, tender skin.”

“Are you sure they only suck their blood?” asked Mo Fan, his brows raised.

“How would I know? I’ve only heard that the blood-sucking process takes quite a while, so they will normally find a remote place to enjoy themselves. As long as the sun has not risen, they can do whatever they want to the women with their fangs,” Huo Tuo said sternly.

“Assholes, who knew that such a bunch of jerks would exist in this world; how dare they not show any respect to me!” snapped Mo Fan.

As the guardian of young women who hid under the night curtains of the large city, Mo Fan would never tolerate the acts of these vampires! If he could not purge and exterminate them, it would be a disgrace to his title as a Magic City law enforcer!

When he saw that Mo Fan was rather intrigued, Huo Tuo added, “I need a fang, a vampire’s fang. I’m still waiting for someone to accept the quest I’ve submitted to the Hunter Union. They don’t believe that these creatures exist, but I’m confident that they are living here in the Magic City, and have already preyed on lots of women.”

“Wait, so, are these vampires humans or demon beasts?” asked Mo Fan.

Huo Tuo laughed and said, “Would it make any difference? Either humans or demon beasts, those who have done something intolerable shall be punished accordingly. Maybe their lineage is similar to humans, but their actions are no different from a demon beast.”

Mo Fan glanced at the old man in astonishment. He never thought the old man would say something worth pondering on.

The old man was right.

“Since no one is taking the quest, it must be ranked fairly high. I’ll get you the vampire’s fang, and you’ll not charge me the extra fees. I’m just a student, a povo,” said Mo Fan.

“Then two fangs,” Huo Tuo spread his fingers.

Mo Fan cursed furiously, “You’re more like a vampire…”

“Are you stupid or brainless; if you get your hands on a vampire, would he only have one fang!?” chided Huo Tuo.

Mo Fan kept his face blank. The old man was absolutely right about that…

“If even the hunters can’t find any clue about these creatures, you have to give me a lead. The Magic City is so huge, and so populated. Where do I even start from?” said Mo Fan.

“I can’t offer much, either. Once, I was taking the subway, but I missed the train, so I ended up waiting there for a very long time. I just happened to see a vampire feeding on his prey, but unfortunately, I couldn’t save her in time. She died due to excessive loss of blood by the time I got her to the hospital. However, the doctors diagnosed that she had died from a sudden heart attack, instead of excessive loss of blood. I told the Hunter Union and the Magic Association that she was attacked by a human-like creature, yet when they checked the surveillance, they didn’t even see the creature. They assumed that I imagined it.

“There might not be a creature like that in our country, but it’s real in the West. They have come here to feed, and I happened to stumble onto one while he was enjoying his prey. I’m not a righteous man, but I tried my best to save the girl, so I thought that would be the end of it, until I learned from an ancient Western manual that the fangs of these vampires are the perfect material…”

“So you’re saying that the only clue is the girl that died?” Mo Fan asked furiously.

Huo Tuo nodded and spoke, “Mm, the quest wouldn’t have such a huge bounty if it were any easier. I’ll give you the girl’s name, and you’re on your own. When you give me the fangs, I’ll give you the armor. Otherwise, you will pay me sixty million RMB, not a cent less.”

“I’ve got one more question.”

“Mm, go ahead.”

“You’re already an expert at sucking money, why did you have to take the subway instead of taking a cab?” said Mo Fan.

Huo Tuo fondled his beard and said, “You have no idea; it’s called being conservative.”

Mo Fan and Huo Tuo had a long discussion. Meanwhile, Li Junnan muttered, “I…I also have a question.”

Neither Mo Fan nor Huo Tuo gave him any attention. Li Junnan seemed utterly troubled.

He still could not understand; what good were snake scales without any snake mark?

——

Mo Fan counted the days; there were only seven days left until the second challenge week. If he was planning to wear the armor during that week, he had seven days to find the vampire, and smack his fangs out.

He definitely needed Lingling’s help for things like this. The quest’s rank was fairly high, since the fees for asking the old man to craft the armor alone were already twenty million RMB. Leaving the old man’s intention of increasing the price to three times the normal value aside, quests with a bounty of ten million and above were normally for Advanced Magicians, and most of them even needed a party of Advanced Magicians.

However, Huo Tuo could surely read Mo Fan’s cultivation. The fact that he was willing to let Mo Fan handle it implied that the vampire’s strength was not too crazy. The biggest problem now was knowing where to find a vampire. In such a populated area, unlike the Mother Scale Skin Phantom which would turn into a monster, Huo Tuo had mentioned that the vampires looked exactly like humans. It was impossible to identify them unless he stumbled onto one while they were feeding.

The Mother Scale Skin Phantom enjoyed drinking human blood, too, but it was difficult to tell how the two were related.

Either way, he should try and complete the quest as soon as possible. With the armor, his strength would improve rapidly, which would then allow him to challenge those with much higher ranks and secure more resources… no, that wasn’t right, how could a man like him allow the vampires to harm the innocent girls in the city?

It was all for the sake of justice!

—–

“Lingling, I’ve got us a job, a big one!” said Mo Fan.

“Where are you? I’ll be there right away!” Lingling’s tone was calm like always, which definitely did not belong to a girl her age. However, the fact that she arrived fairly quickly was a good indication that the little girl was extremely bored!

After Lingling arrived, Mo Fan brought the little loli along and headed to the household of the deceased girl whose death Huo Tuo had witnessed, to see if they could find any useful clues there.