Moonlight faded slowly from the apartment window.
For a long time, Mo Chen remained standing near the sofa, watching Lin Yue sleep beneath the soft silver glow.
Her breathing was steady.
Peaceful.
Unaware that beyond these quiet walls, the world had already begun moving because of her.
He turned away at last and walked back into the bedroom.
For the first time in a thousand years, the Night Sovereign lay down not in a battlefield, nor beneath a cursed seal—
But in a small rented apartment filled with mismatched furniture and scattered notebooks.
Strange.
Yet he did not dislike it.
Supernatural Humans Association — Research Division
Far across the city, inside a hidden underground complex, bright white lights illuminated a laboratory filled with advanced equipment.
The extracted blood sample from the Blood Moon Ruins rested inside a reinforced glass container.
Captain Liang Feng stood beside the central research table.
Across from him was the Association's top biological analyst—
Dr. Su Yanqing.
Young.
Brilliant.
And famously difficult to impress.
She adjusted her glasses and stared at the blood sample projected onto a digital screen.
Her brows slowly tightened.
"This is… unusual."
Liang Feng crossed his arms.
"Explain."
She enlarged the microscopic structure.
"It does not match any known human genetic sequence."
He remained silent.
"It does not match vampire lineage either."
A pause.
She looked up at him.
"This is the first time I have seen blood like this."
Liang Feng's voice lowered.
"Can you identify the owner?"
"Not immediately."
She turned back to the screen.
"There are human markers. But something else overlays them. As if the blood carries… resonance."
"Resonance?"
"With something ancient."
She exhaled slowly.
"Give me two days."
Liang Feng nodded.
"Find the girl."
She tilted her head slightly.
"You already know it's a girl?"
"The seal was triggered recently. The town records show a university research team visited that site yesterday."
He placed a file on the table.
Lin Yue. Age 21. Jiangnan University.
Su Yanqing studied the photo quietly.
"…She doesn't look dangerous."
"That's what makes it dangerous."
Liang Feng turned to leave.
"And where is he?" Su Yanqing asked softly.
Liang Feng's eyes darkened.
"I've already called someone."
A Rooftop Somewhere in the City
A young man stood silently among broken vampire corpses.
Blood stained the concrete beneath his boots.
His eyes were bright blue.
Cold.
Focused.
A phone vibrated in his hand.
He answered without emotion.
"Yes."
A pause.
"The Night Sovereign?"
His expression shifted slightly.
"…Understood."
He ended the call.
Blue eyes lifted toward the skyline.
"If he has awakened," he murmured quietly, "then the hunt begins again."
His name was Shen Wuyan.
One of the youngest elite fighters within the Supernatural Association.
And perhaps the only one capable of facing what had returned.
Morning — Lin Yue's Apartment
Lin Yue's phone rang loudly.
She groaned and reached blindly for it.
"Hello…"
"LIN YUE!" a panicked voice shouted.
It was Chen Xinyi.
"Where are you?! Presentation starts in an hour!"
Lin Yue's eyes flew open.
She checked the time.
Her soul left her body.
"I overslept."
"You WHAT?!"
She shot upright from the sofa.
Her laptop slid slightly.
Her memory returned instantly.
Mo Chen.
The seal.
The blood.
She quickly glanced toward the bedroom.
The door was half open.
He was still asleep.
Peaceful.
Annoyingly handsome.
She stared for two seconds.
Then muttered softly,
"Sleep well, mysterious troublemaker."
There was no time to think further.
She rushed to the wardrobe, grabbed clothes, and sprinted into the bathroom.
Ten chaotic minutes later—
She emerged dressed, hair barely managed.
She grabbed her laptop and bag.
On impulse, she scribbled a quick note and placed it on the bedside table.
I have class. Don't break anything. Money on the table. Buy food. Buy clothes. Don't scare people. – Lin Yue
She added a small angry face at the end.
Then she ran out the door.
Jiangnan University
Her friends were pacing nervously outside the presentation hall.
Gu Yichen checked his watch repeatedly.
"We're first. If we mess this up—"
"Relax," Zhao Lian said weakly. "She'll come."
Lin Yue appeared from the hallway, breathing heavily.
"I'm here!"
Everyone sighed in relief.
"You finished the report?" Chen Xinyi asked quickly.
Lin Yue hesitated.
"I… about that—"
But they had already opened the laptop.
The presentation file loaded.
Slides appeared.
Detailed.
Organized.
Professional.
The first slide:
"The Blood Moon Seal — Historical Reconstruction of a Thousand-Year Ritual"
Lin Yue froze.
Her heart skipped.
She had only written half.
But this—
This was complete.
Not only complete.
Brilliant.
Ancient formation diagrams.
Historical cross-references.
Descriptions of Celestial Wardens and Crimson Court conflicts.
Even speculative analysis of the Night Sovereign's sealing mechanism.
Her friends stared at her in awe.
"Lin Yue… this is incredible."
"Where did you find all this information?"
"You didn't share this research!"
She stepped closer, eyes scanning the screen.
He did this.
While I was sleeping.
A slow smile formed on her lips.
"He's dangerous," she murmured under her breath.
"But… not heartless."
"Lin Yue?" Zhao Lian blinked.
"Oh— nothing!"
She straightened.
"Let's present."
Meanwhile — Lin Yue's Apartment
Mo Chen opened his eyes slowly.
Morning sunlight filtered through the curtains.
He sensed her absence immediately.
The apartment felt… quieter.
He noticed the note on the bedside table.
He picked it up and read it calmly.
A faint, almost invisible smile touched his lips.
"Do not break anything," he murmured.
He snapped his fingers lightly.
The paper ignited in a controlled flame and turned to ash without damaging the table.
He changed back into his original black attire with a subtle pulse of energy.
Money rested neatly on the table.
He picked it up.
Modern currency.
Strange symbols.
Interesting.
He stepped outside the apartment building.
For the first time—
The Night Sovereign walked freely in the modern city.
Cars moved past.
Screens flashed advertisements.
People walked without fear.
None of them knew who walked among them.
But far away—
Inside the Supernatural Association headquarters—
A monitor flickered.
Su Yanqing frowned.
"The blood sample just reacted."
Liang Feng turned sharply.
"Reaction?"
"It's as if… the source moved."
Across the city—
Shen Wuyan stood silently atop a tall building.
His blue eyes scanned the streets below.
And in the moving crowd—
He sensed something ancient.
Something powerful.
Something awakening.
Mo Chen paused mid-step.
His crimson eyes lifted slowly.
For the briefest second—
Blue and red met across distance neither could measure.
Two forces.
Drawn inevitably toward collision.
Back at the university, Lin Yue finished her presentation to thunderous applause.
Her friends celebrated.
But her thoughts drifted elsewhere.
He helped me.
Without asking for anything.
Without claiming credit.
Her heart warmed slightly.
Yet she didn't know—
While she stood in the safety of academia—
A hunter with blue eyes had already begun searching.
And this time—
The Night Sovereign would not remain hidden.
End of Chapter 8...