What It's Like Being a Vampire

After implementing her “straight-ball” strategy, giving her medical history and detailed autobiographical accounts to Xiang Kun in exchange for candid information about his mutation, Xia Libing had gotten a wealth of data updating her existing notions of the world and varied phenomena, all within just over twenty hours.

The more information she gathered, the more readily she accepted the peculiarities that Xiang Kun continually displayed.

Or rather,certain peculiarities had already attracted her attention even before Xiang Kun gave his full disclosure, so the fact that he continued to reveal more about his mutations actually made it easier for her to comprehend and interpret these unusual attributes.

Especially the power of “Illusion Reality”, the ability to replicate creations from dreams in real life, which she had firsthandly experienced — according to Xiang Kun, this ability was something she had “developed” herself by utilizing the connection between the “Super-connected Objects” and “Emotion Infused Objects” Xiang Kun had given her.

In other words, as for Xiang Kun’s mutations, his “Super sensory system”, his various “Superpowers”, Xia Libing is not merely an observer or documenter, she herself is a part of all this, she exists within the system. Strictly speaking, she too possesses a degree of “Superpowers”.

While she is exploring why Xiang Kun mutated, and why he has these superpowers, she can concurrently seek ways to acquire more abilities for herself.

Not to mention, within just two days, she had already experienced two different emotions she had never felt in her entire life, courtesy of Xiang Kun— and this was exactly the goal she had been pursuing all this time.

Therefore, for Xia Libing at present, Xiang Kun is like a mine filled with all sorts of treasures, he is the “only subject” she wants and needs to research going forward.

From this angle, her objectives align completely with Xiang Kun’s.

After having a simple dinner, Xia Libing glanced at the notebook in which she’d been keeping all her records, and told Xiang Kun: “There are still so many tests we need to conduct, and I can’t do them without appropriate equipment. I was thinking about taking you to the hospital, but on second thought, that wouldn’t be appropriate either. Even with Auntie Three’s help, I don’t have the permission to use those machines alone. Moreover, even with my hospital’s equipment, we won’t have enough. The observation and research about your body should be ongoing. We need to have our own place and gear. I didn’t quite get why you did all those things in Tongshi Town before, but now, with the Internet breeding technology research center you’re planning to build in Chongyun Village as a private laboratory, it makes total sense, doesn’t it?”

After receiving confirmation from Xiang Kun, Xia Libing further inquired: “If we’re going with the plan you previously discussed with Director Liu, how are we going to come up with the money for the location renovation and equipment purchase? Are you planning on selling your house? As I recall, the last time you and Director Liu talked about the plans for Chongyun Village, it didn’t seem like he or Director Zhang would be providing the funds also, right?”

Xiang Kun explained: “The investment for “Youlong Restaurant” is relatively small, and the opportunity for profits is also quite high, so I didn’t mind other people becoming involved. But for the project in Chongyun Village, that was mainly for my own benefit, both in the short and long run, there will be no chance of making a profit. So, I didn’t want other people to invest in it. I was considering another project with less risk, a shorter cycle, and more profitability. If I can ascertain that it’s feasible, then I would borrow money from others, scale it up rapidly, and then take a part of its profit to invest in our own project in Chongyun Village.”

After hearing Xiang Kun’s plan, Xia Libing contemplated for a moment and suggested, “In that case, it will take some time to get the project started. I have some pocket money from my parents. We can use that as start-up capital for now. Buying some of the equipment could involve hefty amounts of paperwork and qualifications. Some parts require pre-ordering, which could take time as well. ”

Xiang Kun could tell that the chatty Old Xia had already considered the research base he was going to build in Chongyun Village as her own workplace.

Of course, she was right in thinking so.

But Xiang Kun still tactfully declined, “Right now, there’s nothing much in Chongyun Village, so there’s no rush to start. I’ll strive to set up a profitable project first to win everybody’s support. As you know, this is a money pit that demands continuous investment…” since he knew that all he was investing in was a private place specifically set up for his own use, he didn’t want to waste others’ money.

Yet, Xia Libing seemed to have seen through his thinking and said directly, “Anyway, I don’t entirely use the money. It’s just sitting there in the card, being of no use. If you feel awkwardly about spending the money at my expense, then you just pay me back when you earn it later. Or I could directly do preliminary planning, prepare a procurement directory, arrange contacts with manufacturers or distributors, which shouldn’t cost much. I can cover it for now and give you a detailed bill later. Regarding the specific location and infrastructure plan of Chongyun Village, I can provide some suggestions as well. Do you already have formed plans? If not, I will start seeking someone to prepare one, and then we can discuss it together.”

The non-stop chatty Old Xia made Xiang Kun felt a little unable to cope. Having been “unemployed” for over half a year, all of a sudden he had the feeling of being back at the company, working with colleagues from different departments to solve project problems.

Old Xia was demonstrating an enthusiasm and proactiveness that Xiang Kun had rarely seen since he met her, perhaps even surpassing his own. It was as if this was entirely her own business.

Xiang Kun couldn’t help but ask curiously, “Old Xia, how much ‘pocket money’ do you have?” He knew very well that the equipment Old Xia wanted wouldn’t be a simple set that could be bought for a few tens of thousands.

Xia Libing answered, “I had a look this morning, and the balance in my card is over 7.664 million.”

Xiang Kun immediately exclaimed, “Pocket money?”

He’d always known Old Xia was wealthy. She never cared about living expenses, yet she was a genuine “rich second generation”. But he never expected that her simple pocket money was over a 7 million?

Xia Libing continued, “My parents send me money from time to time. As I don’t spend a lot, I keep most of it in my account. If this isn’t enough, I can use it as a reason to invest in your new project and apply for a loan from my parents. They shouldn’t refuse. This should cover the initial investment.”

Xiang Kun blinked, feeling that Old Xia had really got the ball rolling. He realized he would have to step up his game.

After taking control of establishing Xiang Kun’s “secret base” in Chongyun Village, Xia Libing flipped through her notebook and continued, “Also, based on your previous descriptions, two important conditions can be observed and recorded without new equipment – your blood-drinking and sleep states. According to your calculations, your next Blood-drinking Period is estimated to be between 10 and 12 in the morning on the 28th. Are you planning to go back to your old house for it?”

Xiang Kun gave a nod, “Yes, I have some things to handle back there, and while we can use your excuse here in Citong, not contacting my family for over 25 hours could still raise some questions. I have booked a flight for tomorrow night and I will probably be there for about a week.”

Xia Libing said, “I will go back with you.”

Xiang Kun wasn’t surprised at her decision, he only asked, “What about your work here?”

“I will finish handing over my duties and take a leave. There won’t be any issues,” Xia Libing confidently confirmed.

In her current circumstances, she could theoretically quit her job at the Third Hospital. However, doing so would attract unwanted attention from her uncles, aunts, and parents abroad. So, until she found a suitable reason, it was best to not make drastic changes. Also, Xiang Kun was interested in the patient calling himself a “vampire” in the Third Hospital. He believed there was a possible link between the patient and mutant creatures, hence her staying at the hospital could be useful.

Following that, Xia Libing shared her understanding and speculation of Xiang Kun’s abilities, listing them out numerically. One by one. In the end, she concluded by saying: “Although you currently appear to be no different from an average person, at the level of internal physiological structure or even cellular and molecular level, you might already not be of the same species as humans.”

Then, based on the peculiarities of Xiang Kun, Xia Libing provided her set of training recommendations, again listing them out one by one.

Afterward, she discussed investigating the motives and details of “Divine Technology”, and the reasons for the mutations of Guo Tianxiang, the Giant Owl, and the mutated spider. She didn’t provide any specific execution steps, as Xiang Kun hadn’t explained these things in much detail and Xia Libing also lacked sufficient information. Hence, it was more of a joint discussion.

Finally, they went over the itinerary for their return trip to their former city. From the moment they’d land, buying rabbits for food, to drinking blood, sleeping, then going together to inspect the place where Xiang Kun used to stay and organise what he experienced over the days of his mutation, they discussed everything in detail.

Unconsciously, it was already past midnight.