What It's Like Being a Vampire

Xiang Kun found the basic blueprint of this apartment complex online, locating the underground parking area where the Q7 was parked, which was near the elevators of buildings 8, 9, 16, and 17.

During the meal, the person in charge of the catering mentioned that the apartment arranged for “Miss Chen” was perfect for river views, especially during sunrise and sunset.

Among the four buildings, those that are “perfect” for unobstructed river views are set above the 8th floor of buildings 8 and 16.

After examining the rental and for-sale listings for these apartments over the past three months, Xiang Kun found out that two units had been rented.

Upon comparison, Xiang Kun was leaning towards apartment 1203 of building 16 as Mijoe’s dwellings.

Of course, this has to be confirmed, if it’s not, he will just switch. After all, he has the whole night to figure it out.

Xiang Kun managed to avoid the surveillance cameras within the complex, making his way to the bottom of building 16.

Naturally, he wouldn’t walk directly in through the main gate as an access card would be needed to get into the basement, where surveillance was present.

Scanning the surroundings for a while, with multiple cognitive models in his head, he walked to one side of building 16.

He studied the structure of the building, turning back to check the windows and balconies of the nearby residences that could overlook this location. Once he had confirmed that no one was focusing on him, Xiang Kun sprinted with great force, pounding the ground as he ran a few steps. He kicked off the wall, catapulting himself to the edge of the second-floor corridor. Using that to propel himself further, he managed to get to the outer edge of the third-floor corridor. He flipped up onto the corridor with swift and effortless movements.

One window on the third-floor corridor was half-open. Rather than vaulting in immediately, Xiang Kun switched his vision mode to scan the interior. Unfortunately, while there was no one in the corridor, there was a surveillance camera. Should he go in, he would likely be within its line of sight.

However, after figuring out the camera angle, Xiang Kun made a swift scan. Finding the blind spot in the corridor, he swiftly moved along the narrow platform below the window just like a gecko.

Unfortunately, the window at the end of the third-floor corridor was locked, so he continued upwards, using the strength in his arms, he bounced up like a jumping spider.

Having conquered various rugged cliffs and mountain walls, climbing a building was now child’s play for Xiang Kun. Like doing a radio calisthenics routine, his attention was mostly focused on his surroundings, wary of being spotted by residents in the vicinity.

If only he could use his “Electric Mastery Flight” ability at will; however, it was far too conspicuous.

Luckily, it was late now. The side of the building Xiang Kun chose was not lit by any streetlights. His black clothes and black knitted hat would hardly be noticed even if someone glanced in his direction.

Xiang Kun didn’t dare linger on the exterior walls of the building for too long. He climbed swiftly upward, finally finding an unlocked window at the end of the ninth-floor corridor, seamlessly maneuvering his way into the building.

Moving quickly against the wall, he entered the stairwell. After confirming that there were no cameras in the staircase, he proceeded upwards.

By the twelfth floor, Xiang Kun sniffed the air carefully, detecting a faint scent similar to what he smelled around the Q7 and in the “Baogui Restaurant”. It likely belonged to Mijoe and “Assistant High”.

He could almost confirm that his previous deduction was correct: Mijoe resided on this floor, most probably in apartment 1203.

Xiang Kun pressed his body against the wall and his ear to the surface, focusing his attention on his hearing. He began to listen to the sounds on the entire floor.

Eliminating one noise after another, Xiang Kun finally zeroed in on a sound source—the recurring clicks of a mouse and the occasional tap of a keyboard.

According to the apartment layout he found online and the mental blueprint he built, Xiang Kun knew this sound was coming from the direction of apartment 1203.

Basing on the apartment layout, the source of the noise was in the master bedroom of unit 1203, overlooking the unobstructed river view from the balcony.

Naturally, he couldn’t deduce what she was doing just by blindly listening to the keystrokes.

Xiang Kun took out his phone and sent his current location to Alice.

After discovering that Alice’s ability to gather information from the internet exceeded his expectations and that she had the advantages of data transfer and security on the internet, Xiang Kun started communicating with her through his phone whenever he went out, letting her assist with networked operations.

The verification method still relied on his phone’s fingerprint, face, and later, voice recognition. Strictly speaking, security was not absolutely reliable, but it was sufficient for the time being since no one knew about Alice’s existence. More importantly, Alice had a stronger “sensory ability” online, just as he did in reality. She could detect issues and threats ahead of time and sever the traceable data instantly. She was like a fledgling bird, developing her wings and claws, ready to be set free for a while.

Xiang Kun knew that Mijoe was a formidable hacker, adept at exploiting various methods to dig up all kinds of information online. She had strong technical abilities, a wealth of experience, and a wide range of tools at her disposal. Invading her computer would certainly not be easy. But that challenge was only relative to ordinary users.

The power and mystique of hackers online were rooted in their anonymity and the obfuscation that protected them. They remained cloaked in shadows, relying on an arsenal of tools and exploiting various BUGs. Their power lay in their strategies and accumulated knowledge.

But right now, Xiang Kun and Alice were the ones in the shadows, with Mijoe being the unsuspecting prey.

If they knew the physical location, could they obtain the network IP and the specific terminal connected to the internet via this IP? Of course, they could. If they were the internet service provider, it could be done with a mere few clicks. Under these circumstances, even if the target was using this particular internet line, it would be difficult to disguise anything.

While ordinary users do not have this level of access, Xiang Kun didn’t need to go to such lengths, nor did he need to employ any sophisticated operations. Because he was right there, and Alice had control of his phone and could directly scan the surrounding wireless networks signals through it.

If Mijoe’s network was broadcasting wireless signals, that would be the best-case scenario. Even if her residence didn’t have an active wireless router and was connected using a wire, Alice could still hack in through the other wireless signals in the building. The domestic wireless signals in the vicinity, whose broadband cables might all be connected to the same switch, would just serve as stepping stones once one of them was compromised.

Of course, if Mijoe’s computer connected to the internet via a network card, this method wouldn’t work.

Just as he was contemplating, a woman’s voice echoed from the direction he had pinpointed. He immediately pressed himself and his ear back to the wall—anyone seeing this would likely be scared to death, thinking that a madman was imitating a gecko.

“Yes, I had a preliminary visit to the four labs today. Deputy Director Xiao was very dedicated and provided a detailed introduction.”

Mijoe wasn’t speaking to “Assistant High”, who also lived in unit 1203, but on the phone. Her voice differed slightly from the one in the memory segments of Guo Tianxiang that Xiang Kun had obtained. She seemed more composed now.

Based on her tone, voice, and conversation, Xiang Kun inferred that she was speaking to someone in a higher position and someone she respected.

Xiang Kun suspected that it might be Lu Cheng’an, the boss of Divine Technology.

Regrettably, there were too many barriers, making it hard for Xiang Kun to hear the voice on the other side. If only Mijoe could use the speakerphone.

Alternatively, once Xiang Kun found more ways to decode the information perceived in the “Super Sensory State”, there would be less limitations. Within the scope of perception, all feedback information could be accessed directly without any loss.

“Yes, I briefly reviewed the research. I will observe the experiment procedure tomorrow, but Deputy Director Xiao warned me not to hold hopes because there is a 99.9% chance of failure.”

“I heard from Deputy Director Xiao that the person in charge of these labs is Dr. Fang. I have looked up her information; she is indeed an impressive scientist. It’s just a shame that she is currently on a business trip with her team. I’m not sure if I can meet her before I leave.”

“Is that so? That’s good. There are a lot of things that I wanted to ask her about. As you know, I am a novice in this field and have merely been cramming.”

Although he couldn’t hear the voice on the other end clearly, Xiang Kun could still deduce much information from Mijoe’s words.

The “Dr. Fang” mentioned by Mijoe was likely Fang Pingfang, whom Alice identified as possibly being Zhou Rui’s supervisor.

If that were the case, it would mean that there was another researcher, Zhou Rui’s boss, Fang Pingfang, from Divine Technology who entered the Qinling Uninhabited Area.

In the master bedroom of 1203, Mijoe’s voice continued:

“Mr. Liang, I am actually a little confused. Why are they synthesizing these compounds? What does it have to do with the matter I am researching? When I chatted with Deputy Director Xiao and the other researchers in the lab today, it seemed that they didn’t know why they were doing these experiments or what the purpose was.”

Her voice sounded a little apprehensive and hesitant, as if she was unsure whether it was appropriate for her to say these words.

Xiang Kun picked up on a few keywords:

“Mr. Liang”—this was who Mijoe was speaking to. He might not be Lu Cheng’an but he certainly held a high position in Divine Technology. Mijoe came here on his recommendation. What was the name of that previously paralyzed son of Lu Cheng’an?;

“synthesizing compounds”—one of the experiment directions in the lab here. Considering Zhou Rui and Fang Pingfang’s specialities, they could roughly guess a few things;

“what I’m currently researching”—is this related to Guo Tianxiang and vampires? Mr. Liang of Divine Technology “recruited” Mijoe to investigate this matter, but why her and not the others at Divine Technology?

Moreover, Mijoe’s words implied that the researchers at Divine Technology in QiCheng City seemed unaware of the existence of vampires and transformative creatures?

When he recalled the conversation he accidentally overheard outside the small town hotel before entering the Qinling Uninhabited Area, those two field workers also seemed to have no idea why they needed to retrieve the boar remains.

It appeared that the people behind Divine Technology were secretly conducting research and even the secret department’s researchers weren’t fully informed. What were they afraid of?

“Actually, I feel that it is pointless for me to be looking into this here, I’d rather continue to investigate Guo Tianxiang. Do you remember what I mentioned last time, that I went to that city with him to meet another blood…um… blood-eating creature? I think his disappearance is related to that blood-eating creature.”

“Can’t find the original IP? That’s rather common. I tried it when I first started and he used many proxy servers. He is very cautious. That blood-eating creature is extremely, extremely, extremely cunning. Please remind those investigating to be careful. I suspect that Guo Tianxiang might have been killed by that blood-eating creature. Otherwise, there’s no reason why he hasn’t shown up yet. These blood-eating creatures seem to regard their own kind as prey, so gross! Guo Tianxiang was ecstatic when he found out that the person I contacted on Zhihu was also a blood-eating creature.”

Xiang Kun frowned at that, “extremely, extremely, extremely cunning”? Was it necessary to emphasize it three times? Who was cunning first? Who stole their account and posted bait?

In the memory fragments of Guo Tianxiang that Xiang Kun had obtained, Mijoe showed an obsession and admiration towards vampires and the Blood Clan, and desired to become one of them. She was excited to be the first to possess Guo Tianxiang, a respected “noble of the Blood Clan”. So why have “vampires” now become “blood-eating creatures”, and even “extremely disgusting”?

Obviously, whether it was “blood-eating creatures”, or the attitudes towards vampires and Guo Tianxiang, all were influenced by that “Mr. Liang”.

Moreover, Xiang Kun could judge from Mijoe’s tone and attitudes that she genuinely accepted this internally, and had not submitted due to pressure.

What was the reason for this then?

As for the other piece of information, “Mr. Liang” was still investigating him and so far had not found anything useful. This was also expected.

When he first contacted Mijoe’s “Kasumi of August” online, he made adequate preparations. It would only have been possible to find him through the internet at that time. After such a long time, it was nearly impossible to trace him. Even if they did, they would only trace him to the coffee shop he piggybacked WIFI from. The actual place where he got online was in a dumpling restaurant next door, which had no surveillance.

However, he had to remain on guard. It was one thing to worry about a thief stealing, but quite another to worry about a thief coveting. Between a vampire that thought of women all day and a large corporation’s secret department that specialized in various forms of black-tech and brimming with manpower, the threat of the latter was evidently greater because there were many variables that he didn’t account for.

Inside 1203, the conversation between Mijoe and Mr. Liang had come to an end. She would stay in QiCheng City for about one month. However, not only did Xiang Kun not understand why, Mijoe herself didn’t seem to have a clear idea of what she was supposed to do here, or what Mr. Liang’s objective was.

1203 gradually became quiet, only the steady breathing of Mijoe and Assistant High could be heard. They had both fallen asleep.

Xiang Kun contemplated for a while, then continued to ascend the stairway, heading to the rooftop.