As various vampires speculated about You Rong, a server brought over four men. They were all exceptionally handsome, appearing to be in their early twenties.
The four approached Lin Qinghe, placed their fists over their chests, bowed slightly, and greeted Lin Qinghe and the others in unison:
"Progenitor, First Elder, Second Elder, Third Elder."
Lin Qinghe nodded, discreetly appraising the four men. Drawing on the original body's memories, Lin Qinghe immediately identified them.
From left to right, they were the patriarch of the Chu family, Chu Tianhao; the patriarch of the Gu family, Gu Ye; the patriarch of the Nangong family, Nangong Jie; and the last unfamiliar face, who must be Ouyang Yue, the nephew of Ouyang Feng and newly appointed patriarch of the Ouyang family.
Chu Tianhao wore a gentlemanly smile and said, "Progenitor, you haven't been out for a long time. It's a rare honor to see you at today's banquet."
Lin Qinghe lowered his gaze to You Rong and replied indifferently, "It has indeed been a while since I've been out. I've been confined to the castle all day, so many vampires no longer take my words seriously. So, I had to come out and see who thinks they've lived too long!"
Lin Qinghe's casual words, spoken at a moderate volume, were clearly heard by all the vampires at the banquet. Immediately, more than half of them changed their expressions.
Over the past ten thousand years, the vampires had grown increasingly powerful. The werewolves, who were once their equal, had gradually fallen behind. Coupled with Lin Qinghe's previous hands-off attitude, many vampires no longer strictly adhered to the initial covenants, secretly preying on humans and werewolves.
Lin Qinghe's current statement clearly indicated her stance. Any vampire who dared to violate the covenants in the future would likely be dealt with by the Senate before they could even be hunted by werewolf trackers.
Chu Tianhao's expression flickered slightly before quickly recovering. He maintained a gentle smile, yet remained respectful, saying, "Progenitor, please rest assured. Your intentions... I believe no vampire would dare to defy them. If anyone in our Chu family were to become a traitor, I would deal with them myself, without needing the Senate's intervention!"
Following Chu Tianhao's declaration, the other three patriarchs also voiced their agreement. Lin Qinghe nodded with satisfaction and smiled.
Her purpose for attending the vampire banquet today had been achieved.
As Mu Shaoqing and the others gathered around Lin Qinghe, You Rong put down the half-eaten cake, looked around, and then at Lin Qinghe for a moment before hesitantly walking towards the back.
Before he had taken two steps, Lin Qinghe grabbed the collar of his clothes and asked, "Where are you going?"
You Rong stopped and, seeing Mu Shaoqing and the others staring at him, he uncomfortably blurted out, "The restroom!"
Lin Qinghe put on an expression of understanding. "I'll accompany you."
The entire hotel was filled with vampires. If he, a little wolf cub, dared to walk alone, was he brave or just foolish?
As Lin Qinghe was about to leave, holding You Rong's hand, Chu Tianhao interjected, "Progenitor, perhaps... it would be better to let someone else take this young master to the restroom. Shall we go upstairs and continue discussing the matters at hand? Regarding the news from the east, we don't know if it's true or false, but it's spreading like wildfire among our kind, causing considerable unease..."
Lin Qinghe appeared hesitant.
Chu Tianhao and the others had mentioned that an aberrant vampire had appeared in the east, specifically devouring vampires to enhance its own abilities. Yet, despite extensive investigation, no clues had been found.
Seeing this, You Rong uncomfortably shook off Lin Qinghe's hand and said with a stern face, "I don't need you to accompany me! I can go myself!"
With that, You Rong turned and walked towards the back.
He was a grown man and didn't need someone to accompany him to the restroom! Especially in front of those vampires, their gazes made him uncomfortable!
Lin Qinghe watched You Rong's retreating back, guessing the young man's thoughts. She sighed helplessly and said to Zhang Yi, "Follow him. Make sure nothing happens to him, and then bring him up to find me."
"Yes, Progenitor," Zhang Yi replied and quickly followed You Rong.
Once they had disappeared from sight, Chu Tianhao stepped aside and gestured, "Progenitor, shall we go upstairs now?"
Lin Qinghe responded with an "Mm," and walked towards the elevators, heading to a quiet place upstairs with the patriarchs of the four great families and the three elders of the Vampire Senate for a discussion.
Meanwhile.
You Rong, knowing Zhang Yi was following him, frowned but ignored him, successfully finding the restroom by following the hotel signs.
Before entering the restroom, Zhang Yi called out from behind You Rong, "Young master, I'll wait for you outside."
You Rong ignored him and entered the restroom without a word.
Inside a restroom stall, You Rong's youthful face no longer bore a cold, stern expression; a look of confusion appeared.
In just a few days, his parents and siblings were dead, and he was an orphan. Not only that, but he was forced to stay with the Progenitor of the vampires, their sworn enemy, and now he was attending a banquet full of vampires... Sudan Novel Network.
He didn't know when Lin Qinghe would devour him?
Having personally witnessed his family perish at the hands of vampires, he should have hated them to the bone, and especially Lin Qinghe, the Progenitor of the vampires. Yet... Lin Qinghe's perpetually smiling face flashed in You Rong's mind.
He didn't seem to hate her as much as he expected.
The more You Rong thought about it, the more bewildered he became, until the stall door was violently kicked open with a loud bang. He snapped out of his daze.
"Do you smell that! It's definitely the scent of a werewolf. This smell... it's not much worse than human! There must be a werewolf in here! Hurry! Drag him out so we can taste it!"
"Yes! Exactly... it must be a werewolf, I smell it too, hurry and drag him out!"
You Rong's heart pounded in panic, and he instinctively braced himself against the stall door. But his strength was no match for vampires. With a slight shove from outside, the stall door was kicked open, shattering into two halves. You Rong was sent flying and slammed heavily against the wall. The sharp splinters of the door even cut his neck, drawing a trickle of blood.
The smell of blood permeated the air, and the two vampires who had kicked open the door had their pupils instantly turn red, staring at You Rong with greedy eyes.
"It really is a werewolf. How dare he come to the Imperial Hotel! Isn't this like delivering himself to us as food!"
Another vampire licked his lips. "Precisely! Let's taste this werewolf's fresh blood today too!"
Seeing this, You Rong gritted his teeth and violently collided with the two vampires, knocking them aside before they could react. Without a word, he bolted for the exit.
Unfortunately, You Rong had only run a couple of steps before a vampire grabbed the back of his collar and violently flung him against the wall. You Rong grunted from the impact, collapsing on the ground in pain, unable to get up.
This fall had broken at least several of You Rong's ribs.