Leo knew very well that the punishment for traitors among vampires was extremely harsh. Rupert had indeed betrayed his family by revealing the secret of King Solomon’s treasure to a human.
“As long as you can lead me to the treasure, you can follow me. I will protect you and share a portion of the treasure with you,” Leo said after some thought.
Rupert’s gloomy mood brightened instantly, and he said joyfully, “Thank you, sir.”
“Now take me to the elder of House Rupert. Also, to avoid complications, it’s best if your family thinks you’re dead. Understand?”
“Yes, sir,” Rupert replied, then extended his right index finger towards the night sky.
A beam of blood-red light shot from Rupert’s finger into the sky, exploding into a red L-shaped symbol.
Rupert explained, “Sir, this is the distress signal of House Lessane. If you destroy this place, my family members will surely think I’m dead when they arrive.”
Leo nodded and asked, “How far is the target location, and how do we get there?”
“It’s a bit of a distance. Can you fly?” Rupert asked respectfully.
“Of course,” Leo summoned the Divine Dragon Sword.
Feeling the powerful sword energy emanating from the Divine Dragon Sword, Rupert couldn’t help but feel a tinge of fear. He was also secretly relieved that he hadn’t opposed Leo earlier; otherwise, he would have been obliterated.
Rupert grabbed a corner of his black cloak and spun around, transforming into a black bat.
The bat let out a sharp screech and flew into the sky.
Leo activated a Spirit Fire Talisman and flew into the sky on his sword.
The ground where Leo and Rupert had stood soon turned into a sea of fire.
The night grew darker.
There was no moon or stars.
In the western suburbs of Las Vegas, the vast desert stretched as far as the eye could see.
In the sky, Leo and Rupert flew swiftly westward.
After flying for a while, Rupert began to descend.
Soon, they landed in a forest, and Rupert returned to his human form.
Leo scanned the area and saw that it was a vast forest.
It was clear that creating such an oasis in the middle of the desert must have cost a fortune.
Leo lowered his voice and asked, “Is the target here?”
“Yes, there’s a manor in the middle of the forest. To this day, no one knows who the real owner is, and it has no name. Because the forest looks like the letter X from above, it’s called the X Manor,” Rupert replied respectfully.
“Where is the manor in the forest, and what kind of defenses does it have?”
“The manor is in the center of the forest. The exact defenses are unclear, but they are likely very strict. There may also be Espers in the manor,” Rupert replied.
Leo sneered, “Espers or not, we’ll break through even if it’s a dragon’s lair or tiger’s den. Lead the way!”
Rupert hurriedly led the way.
They moved quickly through the forest for seven or eight minutes before a large medieval-style castle appeared before them.
“Is this the castle in X Manor?” Leo could tell that this castle had been around for hundreds of years.
It seemed that this castle might have existed even before the United States was founded.
“Yes, sir,” Rupert replied respectfully.
“Let’s sneak in and try not to trigger any alarms,” Leo said, narrowing his eyes.
“Yes, sir,” Rupert nodded and bowed. Then, with a flash of black light, he transformed into a small bat and flew towards the high walls of the castle.
Leo released his spiritual sense and leaped to the base of the wall. With a jump, he glided into the castle like a bird.
The castle was eerily quiet. There was no one in sight, and no sound could be heard. It seemed as if everything had fallen into a deep slumber.
Only Leo knew that this silence was deceptive. Through his spiritual sense, he could clearly detect advanced surveillance and alarm devices working in every inconspicuous corner.
However, these advanced devices were of little use to Leo.
A few minutes later, Leo and Rupert crossed the empty courtyard and entered the core building of the castle.
Inside, one couldn’t help but feel a sense of history. Everywhere one looked, there were precious antiques.
If he didn’t know what he was doing, Leo might have thought he had traveled back to the Middle Ages.
They walked down a corridor. At the end of it hung a black robe with a scepter embedded on its right side.
Leo casually took down the robe and put it on, covering his head with its hood.
Then he continued following Rupert.
From a distance, they looked like a black ghost following a black bat-quite eerie.
Soon, Rupert led Leo to the center of the castle.
Before them stood an archway with an ancient iron door in its center.
There was no one outside the iron door. Rupert flew to its right side and let out two strange low calls.
Leo noticed a bronze sculpture of a crouching lion on the right side of the iron door. The lion’s mouth was open, holding a dark sphere just big enough to grasp with one hand.
Following Rupert’s instructions, Leo walked up to the lion, reached into its mouth, and gently turned the sphere.
Immediately, there was a soft “clicking” sound as the iron door split open from both sides, revealing a passageway behind it.
Rupert flew in first. Leo didn’t hesitate and followed him inside.
Once they were in, the iron door closed automatically behind them.
Then, lights along the top of the passageway lit up one by one, illuminating it as bright as day.
Rupert continued flying deeper into the passageway while Leo quickened his pace.
The passageway was quite long; after walking briskly for four or five minutes, they still hadn’t reached its end.
The bat ahead flashed with black light as Rupert transformed back into human form before Leo.
“What’s wrong?” Leo asked as he stopped.
“I sense someone ahead; it should be one of the castle guards,” Rupert whispered back.
Leo extended his spiritual sense forward and indeed found two guards standing at an upcoming corner. They were guarding an old wooden door.
“Take them out,” Leo ordered.