Vampires were a superior race with exceptional innate talents. Unlike humans, who needed to study and fight hard to gain strength, vampires could naturally grow stronger over their long lifespans.
Any vampire who had lived for over a century would inevitably become an intermediate-level professional, whereas humans needed both relentless effort and decent talent to achieve the same.
Li De already had a clear goal for the development of the vampires.
He would use the protagonists of the world—humans—to aid the vampires.
But now, there was one urgent matter he had to address.
Stockpiling food.
Although vampires also needed food like bread and milk, the amount required was minimal, more akin to humans snacking for pleasure rather than necessity.
The ancient castle did not store much wheat or flour, not even enough to feed two hundred people for a month.
Once the residential area was cleared, Li De planned to personally lead the vampires to the war zone between the Nolan Empire and the Beastmen Empire.
There, they would find a large number of civilians displaced by the war.
These were the people the ancient castle needed.
To ensure the smooth progress of his plans, Li De had to go to Green City to purchase a sufficient amount of food to avoid the predicament of the incoming humans having nothing to eat.
The long, harsh winter was not suitable for growing food.
The vampires had a history of two hundred years, and over the years, they had accumulated a considerable fortune.
After leaving the hall, Li De returned to his manor.
He accessed the memories of the Vampire Progenitor and, guided by those memories, made his way to the master bedroom on the third floor.
"The Vampire Progenitor really hid his money well," Li De chuckled, shaking his head as he looked at the wardrobe made of Blueheart Maplewood.
Opening the wardrobe door, he found it completely empty, with no trace of gold Pucks or treasures.
Li De closed his eyes and extended his mental energy, sensing a magic array hidden within the wardrobe's inner layer.
With a mental nudge, the wardrobe creaked.
A stone door engraved with dozens of alchemical traps appeared before Li De.
Still with his eyes closed, Li De continued to extend his mental energy over the stone door.
Click.
The alchemical traps on the stone door dimmed, and only then did Li De open his eyes. Recalling the Vampire Progenitor's memories to ensure there were no hidden traps, he pushed open the secret door and entered the hidden chamber.
Inside the dimly lit room, faint magical lights emitted a soft glow.
As Li De stepped in, his eyes were dazzled by the brilliance on the floor.
A sea of golden light.
Ten oak chests were filled to the brim with gleaming gold Pucks.
This was the wealth accumulated by the vampires over two hundred years.
Seeing this, Li De's heartbeat quickened.
According to his memories, each oak chest contained 2,000 gold Pucks.
A vast fortune.
He stepped forward, grabbed a handful of gold Pucks, and felt the cool, metallic touch in his palm. His heartbeat refused to calm down.
This was a fortune that could drive people mad.
Even a two-hundred-year-old baronial family in Green City might not possess such wealth.
"The vampires may not excel in other areas, but their desire to hoard wealth rivals that of greedy dragons," Li De muttered, shaking his head.
He slightly opened his fingers, letting the gold Pucks slip through and fall back into the oak chest, producing a crisp, tinkling sound.
Wealth only becomes valuable when it is spent. Otherwise, it is just a pile of metal.
For ordinary nobles, hoarding wealth might be the best way to guard against unknown risks. But for a force like the vampires, it seemed shortsighted.
Aside from the ten oak chests of gold Pucks, the room also contained over a hundred precious gold and gemstone items.
Ruby-encrusted necklaces, pure gold sculptures, pearl jewelry—luxurious items filled the room, their value likely no less than the ten chests of gold Pucks.
The Vampire Progenitor's two centuries of accumulation were indeed impressive.
But how to transport it was a headache. Each oak chest filled with gold Pucks weighed over a hundred pounds.
As the Vampire Progenitor, a figure of such high status, carrying a large chest out in front of his subordinates would be undignified.
Opening his attribute panel, one skill caught his eye.
Li De Kachar
Race: Vampire (Progenitor)
Level: Mage lv10 (123/5000), Warrior lv5 (Level cap reached)
Mana: 652/652
Innate Talents: Vampire Progenitor (Unique), Bloodline Shackles (Restricted), Mana Affinity (Extreme)
Racial Skills: Bat Transformation, Blood Drain Recovery, Superhuman Physique (Passive)
Spells: Tier 1 Spells: Small Fireball, Lightning Bolt, Puppetry, Mage Hand, Magic Shield, Waterfall
Tier 2 Spells: Detection, Large Fireball, Thunderstorm, Greater Puppetry, Mana Surge, Haste, Enhancement, Charm
Tier 3 Spells: Teleport, Void Walk, Explosive Fireball
One Tier 1 spell particularly interested him—Mage Hand.
Mage Hand was often the first spell a mage apprentice learned, not only because it was simple, with only thirty magic nodes, but also because many magical experiments carried unpredictable dangers. In such cases, Mage Hand was a mage's most reliable companion.
Mage Hand: Use mana to conjure an invisible giant hand.
This spell could replace the mage in performing dangerous experiments, and of course, it could also be used to move chests.
Selecting the nearest oak chest, Li De began to channel his mental energy, feeding mana into the spell model.
Mage Hand, a Tier 1 spell with thirty magic nodes, was one of the simplest spells to cast.
Li De had not cast many spells, but he was quite confident.
Focusing his mind, he guided the mana through the spell model's pathways.
As he continued to input mana, the magic nodes of Mage Hand began to glow with a blue light.
Whoosh~
When the final magic node was activated, a translucent giant hand, three times the size of a normal person's hand, appeared in the chamber, radiating strong magical energy.
The spell was a success. Li De laughed heartily.
Every time he cast a spell, it filled him with excitement.
He could clearly sense how to control the Mage Hand before him—a strange yet fascinating feeling, as if his mental energy had taken physical form. Using it felt no different from using his own limbs.
Glancing at his mana pool, he saw it had decreased from 652 to 642. Mage Hand required 10 mana to cast.
After that, it would only cost 2 mana per Sun-hour to maintain—a very practical spell.
Thud~
With a thought, the hundred-pound oak chest was lifted by the giant Mage Hand.
Li De smiled with satisfaction. The more he used magic, the more he felt its mystery and allure.
No wonder the previous Vampire Progenitor had been so obsessed with magic.
If not for the upcoming farming plan, he would have loved to return to the mage tower and delve deeper into the mysteries of magic.
Leaving the remaining gold and gems untouched, 2,000 gold Pucks were more than enough.
With his hands behind his back, Li De walked out of the chamber, the Mage Hand carrying the oak chest floating behind him.
"Good day, Progenitor."
The guard at the door bowed with one hand over his chest.
Li De nodded. "Good day. Go and fetch Dylon for me."
"Yes, please wait a moment."
Li De watched as the vampire transformed into a bat and flew away before turning back into the room.
It was early October, and the cold winter was still far off. The fireplace in the room was unlit, and the stone walls were adorned with vibrant oil paintings.
Entering the room, Li De looked at the closed oak chest on the carpet, feeling somewhat conflicted.
If only he could take this chest of gold Pucks back to the real world, he wouldn't have to worry about money. Unfortunately, only his soul could travel between worlds. If his body could also—no, wait.
Even if his body could travel, it might not be a good thing. This world was too dangerous, and no one could guarantee absolute safety.
Soul travel at least allowed him to return if he encountered an insurmountable danger, ensuring he wouldn't be truly killed.
Thinking this, Li De felt much better.
The art of self-comfort truly was a universal truth.
Before long, a knock on the door interrupted his thoughts.
"Father."
The door opened, revealing a fully armored, handsome warrior.
Dylon Kachar, a second-generation vampire.
The only warrior among the seven second-generation vampires, with a level of 9 and a secondary class as an assassin at lv4.
Dylon was also the vampire in charge of managing the Whispering Bats.
Whispering Bats were a unique magical beast of the vampires, with levels exceeding 5 and formidable strength.
An adult Whispering Bat could have a wingspan of up to twelve blades, with combat prowess rivaling that of a vampire of the same level.
The ancient castle currently housed over four hundred Whispering Bats.
Li De couldn't possibly transport a chest of gold Pucks back to Green City alone using Mage Hand. It would be time-consuming, laborious, and frankly, a bit ridiculous.
The vampires typically used Whispering Bats to transport goods and as troops during wartime, making them versatile magical beasts.
"Arrange two Whispering Bats for me. I'll need them tonight."