Chapter 29: "I Swear by the Cangshan Eagle God--

The man’s tall, slender figure blocked all the sunlight. His black wings were covered in scars, with hardly a single unmarred spot.

In his half-Beast Form, his gaze was even sharper, yet it held infinite tenderness as he looked at Yu Zhizhi.

Yu Zhizhi knew he had saved her. Her nose tingled, and tears fell, one by one.

"Dracula..." she sobbed softly.

"Don’t cry. It doesn’t hurt."

"SOB SOB—"

It was as if Yu Zhizhi’s tears would never stop. "I thought you had already left..."

"I’m sorry." Dracula wiped her tears.

But the more he wiped, the more they fell. He leaned down and gently pulled the young woman into his arms.

Dracula had once thought it was all a sham.

All just the little female’s lies.

But he regretted it.

’I should have trusted her more—’

"Follow this path straight ahead, and you’ll see a stream. There’s a small log cabin next to it; it’s a supply station in the mountains. Wait there. The Guard Team will find you soon."

Yu Zhizhi stared blankly and turned her head.

A small, winding path snaked through the deep jungle.

"Aren’t we going together?" She clutched the man’s clothes, straining to look up at him. Dracula was so tall in his half-Beast Form that her neck was starting to ache.

"No." He gazed down at the little female who only came up to his abdomen, gently stroking her soft hair. "Varolan’s Iron Cavalry has already surrounded this mountain. It will be dangerous for you to be with me."

"But, the eagle egg—"

"Don’t worry. Our child is already in the safest place."

Hearing this, Yu Zhizhi felt a small wave of relief.

’Dracula really did follow my scent to find me.’

’Then, the eagle egg has most likely been taken out of the K family’s territory.’

But—

The thought of Dracula’s predicament made Yu Zhizhi’s heart ache inexplicably.

"They’ve come to capture you..." she murmured.

Dracula gave a slight smile. "I’m not that easy to catch."

Yu Zhizhi’s eyes were rimmed with red.

The Cangshan Empire had a bloody feud with the other Three Great Empires. With his identity as a descendant of the Eagle Clan exposed, if Dracula were caught, death would be certain.

’And yet, he still came to save me...’

’In front of everyone, he spread the wings that symbolized his identity.’

"Take me with you, let’s go together..." Yu Zhizhi’s voice choked with sobs.

Dracula was already heavily injured, and she was terrified for him.

The little female’s tears were for him. At this moment, Dracula couldn’t ask for anything more.

He quietly wiped the little rabbit’s tears.

He retracted his sharp nails, afraid of hurting her.

"Take me with you..." Yu Zhizhi leaned against his chest, crying uncontrollably.

"If I bring you along, it will be hard for me to fight with my full concentration. I’m sorry, I can’t take you with me," Dracula said softly.

Yu Zhizhi’s eyelashes were clumped together with tears. She lifted her head, her chin resting against his abdomen, and looked up at the giant, half-beast eagle. Her lips trembled, and the tears flowed uncontrollably, like a faucet that couldn’t be turned off.

"Go to that log cabin and return with the Guard Team." One of Dracula’s large hands cupped her left cheek. "—Wait for my good news."

’I can’t take her with me.’

’The Imperial Iron Cavalry has already surrounded this area. If she stays by my side, she’ll be killed.’

’This trip to the Imperial City, I’ve killed everyone I wanted to kill and done everything I needed to do. I should have left the city immediately and flown back to Cang Mountain, but I don’t regret how things have turned out.’

’I was the one who doubted her, and I was the one who wanted to save her—’

’This has nothing to do with anyone else.’

Dracula was willing to bear all the consequences.

He wasn’t afraid of death. He was just filled with regret, so much regret...

...that he couldn’t take her home.

Yu Zhizhi knew that if he brought her along, he would have to divide his attention to protect her.

"...I’ll listen to you. I’ll go to the log cabin and wait for the Guard Team’s rescue." She wiped the tear stains from the corners of her eyes with her fingers.

’This isn’t the time to cry.’

’Every second Dracula lingers is another second of danger.’

The man before her half-knelt, bringing his gaze level with hers. "Help me put on my mask one more time."

Yu Zhizhi took the golden half-mask. With him kneeling, she could easily put it on for him, smoothing it down inch by inch.

"If I can break through this time, I swear I will return for you one day." Dracula’s expression was solemn. "I swear by the Cangshan Eagle God, in this life, I will never fail you."

From the moment he saw the eagle egg, Yu Zhizhi had become, in his heart, the only wife he would ever have.

He would never waver again.

Gazing at the little female’s shimmering, watery eyes and her nose and cheeks, red from crying, his heart melted like a pool of spring water. His black wings gently closed around them, and he embraced her in a kiss amid the dappled shadows of the mountain forest.

—It was a farewell kiss.

Unlike before, it wasn’t filled with aggression. This time, it was exceptionally delicate and full of tenderness.

"Go on." He released his wings, stood up, and watched the little female’s face with a smile.

Yu Zhizhi nodded lightly.

She took two steps back. The hem of her light-orange formal gown was slightly torn. Following the etiquette of the Beast World Planet, she performed a farewell ceremony to him.

Dracula’s smile was gentle. He placed one hand across his chest and bowed in return.

He watched the little female’s slender back as she gradually disappeared into the distance.

Dracula took out the white lace hairband he had kept hidden against his chest. The soft hairband lay in his wide palm.

Flames lit up the sky all around.

He knew the Imperial Iron Cavalry was closing in.

Dracula wrapped the soft, white hairband layer by layer around his left wrist.

It still carried the little female’s scent.

He lowered his head, biting the edge of the hairband with his teeth and using his other hand to tie it securely, binding it tightly to his wrist.

If he lived, the little female’s lace hairband would be his good luck charm.

If he died, this would be his most beloved burial good.

From the moment Dracula chose to turn back for Yu Zhizhi, he had already prepared himself to face death.

He had known since he was three years old that he was born to restore his empire.

Everything he did was for the Cangshan Empire to return to its peak, to once again become the sky-sovereign of the Beast World Planet.

But this time, Dracula didn’t want to think about the responsibility on his shoulders, nor the glory buried beneath the snows of Cang Mountain.

Facing the thundering hooves of the Imperial Iron Cavalry that shook the dark forest behind him, he lightly kissed the hairband on his wrist.

"I would give my life for my wife..."

His final moment of tenderness was buried in the mountains, hidden in the wind.

When the giant black wings behind him spread open, the eyes beneath his mask turned incomparably cold and murderous. The vast Imperial Iron Cavalry saw the half-beast eagle soar into the sky, his cloak fluttering wildly, making him look just like the legendary Black-winged Demon King of old.

...

Yu Zhizhi walked along the winding mountain path. Her shoes weren’t suitable for climbing, so she took them off and tossed them into the grass.

She held up her dress and walked slowly in her bare feet.

’There was only one thought in her mind—find the log cabin and wait for the good news of Dracula’s escape!’

But the path was much longer than she had imagined. On another side of the mountain, a Beastman spotted the young woman’s whereabouts.

Lowering his spyglass, the Beastman servant beside the magnificent carriage bowed and said, "Duke, it’s Ms. Zhi Zhi of the Rabbit Clan."

"Oh?" a man’s deep, somber voice came from within the carriage.

A long, slender pipe carved with blue lotuses lifted the carriage curtain.

"Go and invite her over."