Blood Warlock: Succubus Partner in the Apocalypse

Shangguan Bing Xue watched the situation unfolding in front of her and subconsciously released the air she was holding in her chest in the form of a sigh of relief.

Although she believed she had found where the problem was, Shangguan Bing Xue wasn't really 100% sure either. While she was an even higher genius than Bai Zemin when it came to comprehending the energy called mana even though her Mana was ironically lower than his at the beginning of the apocalypse, Shangguan Bing Xue was just like Bai Zemin when it came to hatching mutant ant eggs; she didn't have the slightest clue about it!

She just didn't want Bai Zemin to go in search of Lilith for everything, Shangguan Bing Xue wanted to show him that they could fix their own problems without relying on an unknown existence that didn't even belong to the same world as them and whose goals were mysterious and unknown.

Fortunately, she succeeded.

"Bing Xue, you really saved me this time." Bai Zemin sighed and suddenly felt his legs felt weak.

Shangguan Bing Xue took a step forward and easily held him by the arm while looking at him with amused eyes, "I wonder what all existences you killed and that Fourth Order asura emperor who could only watch you leave under his nose helplessly would think if they saw you in such a pitiful condition despite not being on any battlefield."

Bai Zemin was not embarrassed at all and as he straightened up with her help, he said with a snort, "This is also a battlefield, the battlefield of a father fighting for his child's life!"

Shangguan Bing Xue almost burst out laughing when she heard his words, but after thinking a bit about her past and all the hardships her father went through in order to raise her alone, she felt it was not a matter to laugh about.

Bai Zemin, who had actually only said those words to lighten his own still nervous mood a bit, was a bit surprised when he saw Shangguan Bing Xue's serious expression.

"... I guess you're right. Taking care of a small child is also a battlefield in itself."

But Bai Zemin was also smart, he was quick to realize what was going through the head of the young woman next to him. After all, Bai Zemin was aware of Shangguan Bing Xue's past.

In an attempt to change the subject a bit, he looked at the metallic gray egg in his hands and said in astonishment, "Still, I must say that this little dude sure devours mana like crazy. I've already lost over 100 Mana points but it's still eating nonstop."

Shangguan Bing Xue paused to think for a moment before suggesting, "What do you say about going to my place?"

"Go to your house?" Bai Zemin looked at her in confusion.

"My house is only two streets away from here while yours is more than 20 kilometers from here." Shangguan Bing Xue explained calmly, and while pointing at the surroundings with her eyes, she indicated her purpose: "We can go to my house and there you will be more comfortable to provide mana to the little life inside the egg. I don't think it would be convenient to stay here if the future ant queen is born today."

Bai Zemin followed Shangguan Bing Xue's eyes and finally understood what she meant.

In fact, there were some people in the privileged area who were watching curiously and murmuring while looking at the strange glowing egg that clearly belonged to some kind of mutant monster. Bai Zemin even listened as a 6 or 7 year old boy asked his mother to buy him one of those eggs so that he could raise his own dragon and become a dragon rider in the future.

"Alright, let's go to your house." Bai Zemin nodded without much thought.

Although he didn't mind these people seeing the egg, it would be something completely different when the little life inside it hatched. Bai Zemin did not know what kind of appearance his daughter would have when she hatched from the egg, however, what he did know was that she would probably have various ant-like characteristics; perhaps antennae, bulging eyes, scythes near the mouth, insect legs, etc.

Whatever the ant characteristics were, these survivors living in the privileged area would definitely be scared to death and within hours the entire base would learn that a person had brought a mutant creature into the establishment. This could cause several problems that while they could be solved with a few days of effort, Bai Zemin preferred to avoid them if they could be avoided.

Bai Zemin and Shangguan Bing Xue looked at these people with cold expressions before releasing just a hint of killing intent, causing the faces of those closest to them to turn pale and subconsciously take a couple of steps back before lowering their heads without daring to look any more.

It wasn't that they wanted to intimidate the weak, both he and she weren't bored enough to waste time like this nor were they immature children after all the hardships they had been through. It was just that this was the only way to show everyone that the two of them were powerful soul evolvers, which would also imply that they had certain privileges that the normal privileged survivors did not.

Only then would these people not start spreading false rumors.

After walking for two or three minutes in silence, Shangguan Bing Xue led Bai Zemin to her house and once he entered she looked around cautiously before locking the door.

Bai Zemin had already been to Shangguan Bing Xue's house once in the past, it was when he finally started moving again after a week of peace and quiet with his then newly reunited family. It was also when he first learned that she had already broken to the Second Order and even at such a high level.

This house was perhaps a bit larger than the house belonging to Bai Zemin's family but also considerably more luxurious; it was the house that Wu Keqian and Sun Ling had arranged for her. In fact, if not for Shangguan Bing Xue rejecting several oversized houses that had been offered to her she would be living in a more spacious place.

"Bing Xue, why did you decide to stay in this house instead of a more luxurious one?" Bai Zemin asked when she entered the living room.

Shangguan Bing Xue did not answer right away and instead put some water to heat in the kettle before walking to the opposite seat where Bai Zemin was sitting. She looked him in the face and calmly replied, "An overly large house would look too lonely for just one person."

As he continued to feed the egg with his mana, Bai Zemin looked into her eyes for a few seconds before sighing, "You know, Bing Xue? Sometimes I can't help but wonder what kind of person you'd be if that piece of trash of a father that life gave you had been a bit more of a man and more responsible."

"Who knows... But, I'm not complaining." Shangguan Bing Xue shook her head, and while looking at him with glittering eyes, she smiled slightly, "A certain someone once told me during our first night hunt in a mutant forest that hating those who did us wrong would also be hating ourselves. After all, those people who surely helped most to forge our personalities and made us what we are today."

Bai Zemin's mouth opened slightly, remembering that the same night that he and Shangguan Bing Xue finally became friends after having been fighting together back to back for a while he had told her that he didn't hate the girl who hurt him so much in the past, because it was thanks to her that he was what he was today.

However, Bai Zemin also managed to grasp something else from Shangguan Bing Xue's words.

"That means you...."

Shangguan Bing Xue pulled a lock of hair behind her right ear with a graceful movement and replied to Bai Zemin's unfinished words, "I can't say I don't hate that man, I'm not that good of a person let alone a saint. However, if he understands what is convenient for him and obediently surrenders after we beat him up... then I will allow him to live."

Bai Zemin's eyes flashed with a bit of relief but also with various complicated emotions.

He didn't want Shangguan Bing Xue to kill her father, because while she might hate him to the bone today, her feelings might change as the years went by. Maybe she would hate the man named Xuanyuan Wentian for a hundred years, maybe it would be for 500 years... Maybe even for a thousand years!

However, if Bai Zemin achieved his goal or perhaps Shangguan Bing Xue herself achieved it on her own, then they would live eternally; eternal beings who will not be corrupted or corroded by time.

Eternity was too lengthy, too much time... In an eternity, the feelings of people could change over the years, and Bai Zemin did not want a person as important to him as was the woman sitting on the couch five feet away to live an eternity of bitterness due to actions of her younger self.

Now, however, a new problem had been born....

"Bing Xue, you know it won't be easy to force Xuanyuan Wentian into surrender, don't you?" Bai Zemin remarked with a serious expression. Seeing her nod calmly, he nodded back and continued, "Xuanyuan Wentian is a man who was in the highest position in all of China for too long, and even in the entire world of the past there was no one who dared to disrespect him considering his position and power. In this new world, he is very likely to be a powerful soul evolver even if he cannot manage to compare to the two of us, not to mention the fact that he must possess a great deal of military might and even a few million survivors under his control."

Actually, Bai Zemin also suspected that the person who had managed to acquire a nuclear facility was Xuanyuan Wentian himself. Although it was only a suspicion and he could not confirm it for sure, Bai Zemin had always had good instincts for danger so he was quite confident in this suspicion of him.

But he did not tell Shangguan Bing Xue as it would not only be meaningless but would add more weight to her conscience. She had just made such an important decision that she needed time to relax a bit, Bai Zemin did not want to be a cause of pressure for her.

"... Bai Zemin, even the most talented general of all can only show his talent if he possesses an army to lead." Shangguan Bing Xue pointed out. Her eyes flashed with a glint of coldness that even chilled Bai Zemin's blood as she said in a low voice, "And the strongest swordsmen need their hands to wield their swords or else they will be nothing but useless."

"You..."

"I said I'll let him live.... But I never said I will let him go easily." Shangguan Bing Xue stood up and walked to the kettle which announced that the water was boiling with a loud whistling sound.

As he looked at her elegant and slender back, her calm but full of coldness voice sounded inside the silent room:

"That man, Xuanyuan Wentian, always loved swordsmanship and as my mother told me he trained with the sword from a very young age. That's why I also practiced with the sword, because I wanted to beat him in every aspect of life. I am aware that in the past I was being obsessed and that such a thing would never happen, but things are different now."

Bai Zemin was silent, and after Shangguan Bing Xue returned with two cups of tea brimming with the scent of lemon, he said in a calm and composed voice, "So, you want to cut off his arms so that he can never touch a sword again in his entire life?"

Shangguan Bing Xue put down one of the cups in front of him before returning to her seat. She took a sip before nodding slightly, "Yeah.... I want him to never be able to touch a sword ever again in his life. He loves swordplay as much as he loves his life.... Then I'll take away what he loves most. and if he can't live with it then it's up to him whether he chooses to live or not."

Forget about taking away the arms of a person who loved the swords and swordsmanship as much as he loved his own life, cutting off the arms of a soul evolver in this world where dangers lurked in every corner was not much different from cutting off the wings of a bird!

However, Bai Zemin was fine with the decision she had made. At least, if Xuanyuan Wentian died it would not be under her daughter's sword.

Bai Zemin and Shangguan Bing Xue discussed various matters and began to go over important details that needed to receive some adjustments. There were only 2 days left before the expedition to the south would officially begin and in fact, while the two of them were meeting here, there were 400 soul evolvers who were preparing to march south in less than 48 hours!