Leah’s mother’s strength was superior to Leah’s. If she took action, the situation would not be optimistic.
A bad premonition rose in Lin Shu’s heart.
Leah’s mother leapt gracefully from the carriage and stood at the very front of the Tepes ranks. She smiled and raised her hand, her fingertips reaching toward the manor’s protective barrier.
‘This is bad.’
“Stop her!” Lin Shu cried out in a hurry.
“Concentrate your attacks!” the lead guard shouted, pointing his sword forward. The dolls adjusted the direction of their bows.
Countless arrows and dense sword qi shot straight toward Leah’s mother. She did not panic. She quickly raised her other hand, and a crimson black hole suddenly appeared in the center of her palm. The arrows and sword qi plunged into it, every means of attack swallowed by the black hole.
At the same time, Leah’s mother pressed her palm against the surface of the barrier. She looked back and said to Leah dotingly, “Mama will teach you how to catch the little bird you want.”
A dull red light glowed from her palm.
Cracks appeared where she touched the barrier, extending upward like a spiderweb, growing more and more numerous.
*Crack!*
In the next second, the entire barrier shattered completely, turning into red points of light that drifted over the manor. The defense was entirely dismantled.
“Take them down!” all the Tepes warriors roared, rushing toward the gate with swords drawn.
the Drago guards moved to meet them one after another. Blades clashed, and the sound of metal colliding echoed continuously.
One Drago guard held his sword up to block an attack and turned to roar, “Go and send word to the Patriarch, quickly!!”
No sooner had he spoken than the guard was run through the chest and fell instantly.
Lin Shu retreated a few steps, scanning the battlefield.
‘Stay calm, stay calm. Deal with the front-line warriors first.’
She crouched halfway, her palms pressed to the ground. She stared intently at the clashing Tepes warriors.
About twenty vampire warriors… she could take them!
Gathering her strength, Lin Shu channeled her will. Dense rose vines burst through the soil of the manor’s lawn, coiling around the ankles of the Tepes warriors. The moment the vines wrapped around them, the warriors were collectively frozen in place by the hard crowd control.
“What on earth is this?!”
“I can’t move!!”
They cried out in panic.
The dolls swarmed forward, drawing their swords to cleave at their heads. Blood sprayed onto the manor’s lawn, and the Tepes warriors charging at the very front all fell in an instant.
Lin Shu stood up, panting. Fortunately, she had stabilized the situation for now.
“Move!” Leah was about to rush forward.
But her mother immediately grabbed her and shook her head.
Lin Shu looked up at them. ‘Why did she stop Leah? Is she going to attack again?’
“The Drago family seems to like roses very much. Are flowers that important to you?” Leah’s mother revealed a smile.
Leah’s mother bowed her head and muttered an unintelligible incantation. She took out a red stone and crushed it into powder. She extended her index finger and flicked her fingertip. A cluster of orange-yellow light points appeared above her finger.
Smiling, she tossed the light points casually, like throwing a ball. The light points were like falling stars, quickly drawing a parabola in the air before landing in a corner of the manor.
*Boom!!*
The moment the light points hit the ground, a raging fire ignited.
Lin Shu’s heart constricted suddenly. The place where the fire started was the garden.
A guard ran toward the castle, shouting, “Arrange people to put out the fire, quickly! Quickly!”
The flames greedily devoured the rose bushes. Countless flowers curled and turned charred black in the sea of fire. The air, already filled with the smell of blood, was instantly mixed with a thick, burnt odor.
“The flowers…” Lin Shu murmured.
Lin Shu gazed at the sea of fire. Those were the flowers Sepha liked, and the roses she and Sepha had personally planted not long ago. Now, everything was going to be gone.
The castle’s maidservants rushed out, working intensely to put out the fire. More dolls sensed the threat and arrived from the castle to join the battlefield. The manor fell into a state of chaos, with various frantic shouts intertwining like a scene from hell.
The lead guard roared at them, “The Dragos will not let you get away with this!!”
Leah said disdainfully, “The Drago family has only just begun to recover. Don’t think that just because you changed Patriarchs, your strength has become that great.”
Leah’s mother looked at her with admiration, the corners of her mouth curling with satisfaction. “You’re right. Come, let’s catch one to bully a bit.”
She hooked her finger, and the shadow beneath her feet suddenly stood up, flying forward at high speed. The dark shadow grabbed one of the Drago guards and dragged him toward her.
Leah’s mother dragged the Drago guard to her feet and looked down. “Oh? A half-vampire. Your self-healing ability isn’t that great, is it?”
Without a word, she manipulated the dark shadow to form a sharp blade and thrust it downward.
*Puchi!* The blade stabbed deeply into the guard’s abdomen.
“Aaagh!!” The guard screamed, his body curling in pain. He reflexively tried to grab the dark shadow, but it was in vain.
“I have a great idea. How about I cut you into pieces and let you heal slowly?” Leah’s mother’s smile was exceptionally sinister.
She raised the dark shadow blade high, preparing to bring it down.
“Stop!” Lin Shu rushed forward in anger, releasing a vine that wrapped around the guard and quickly pulled him back.
She placed the wounded guard behind the line, moving him away from the source of the threat. The half-vampire guard’s face was pale, and his body was working hard to repair the slash in his abdomen.
Lin Shu turned her head sharply, glaring at Leah’s mother with fury.
‘Unforgivable. Unforgivable!’
This behavior was a complete trampling of the Drago family’s dignity.
“You’re quite fast.” Leah’s mother arched an eyebrow. “Though you could save him this time, how many can you save?”
As she spoke, her shadow expanded instantly, splitting into dozens of dark shadow tentacles.
“Enough, Mother.” Leah caught the fire in Lin Shu’s eyes and hurried to persuade her mother to stop.
“Fine, I’ll listen to you.” Leah’s mother sighed, as if she hadn’t had her fill.
She turned her gaze to Lin Shu. “Human, everything the Drago family is suffering today is because of you.”
“If you had just followed my daughter obediently, they wouldn’t have had to get hurt at all.”
“Now the garden is burned, and they have endured so much pain, all because you selfishly wanted to stay.”
Lin Shu stepped forward a few paces, her expression somber.
“Miss Lin Shu!” The lead guard rushed forward and grabbed Lin Shu’s arm. “Don’t listen to them. This isn’t your fault.”
Lin Shu stopped and pried the guard’s hand away. “I can’t let her be so arrogant anymore.”
The strongest combatant on the field was Leah’s mother. She had been acting superior, looking down on the Drago family. If she could be defeated… if she could be made to taste failure as well…
The move she had used just now wasn’t entirely a vampire ability; it seemed to be magic.
After the vines advanced, they could absorb the target’s mana. Could she use this new skill to limit her performance?
Lin Shu turned her head and said to the lead guard, “Leah’s mother is very strong. If you fight her, you definitely won’t win.”
Since their goal was her, standing out voluntarily could distract them.
“I’ll go try. If I can take the opportunity to suppress her, there might be a chance.”
“If I can’t — ” Lin Shu took a deep breath and said, “At least the Drago family can’t be treated like this anymore.”