There are nights when the wolves are silent and only the moon howls

(George Carlin)

*****

Heihua Fanfiction

By Shenshen_88

Disclaimer :

Dao Mu Bi Ji belongs to Kennedy Xu

𝐀uthor does not make any profit from this work.

Place names and events in this story are fictional.

Night Walker

Rain pounded the dark side of town in Pellegrin, a suburb of Phoenix. Li Jiao stepped easily through an alley that was submerged in darkness. Just because he is a senior citizen, he knows the road map of the area by heart. Even in the thickest fog he could find his way home from here and was not afraid to get lost. There was no fog tonight, but the darkness and onslaught of rain were deceiving.

There was movement along Li Jiao's line of sight, and he flicked his head to the left. At first glance what appeared to be a large angel atop the towering roof of a nearby building.

It was not the shadow of a tree or an animal, but a man. His tall body clad in black clothes, at first glance no different from most people. He jumped down from the top of the building, the tips of his black hair dripping with rain. It slid down his face, which couldn't be seen clearly due to the lack of light.

Li Jiao's feet and hands were crawling with an odd chill. His body tensed. "Who is there?"

A tall black figure was standing at the end of the alley, several meters away from Li Jiao. The trapped middle-aged man could only step back step by step as a black figure slowly advanced. A warning alarm rang loudly within Li Jiao. Good grief! Maybe he's in danger!

His breath was rough under the pouring rain. Pulling on the hood of his raincoat, he turned and walked quickly, staggering in the dark, out of the alley and back onto the larger main street. It was deserted there without a single soul passing by. But at least, there is weak street lighting.

The mysterious man's mouth hinted at a smile. He was walking behind Li Jiao, like a damn stalker. He suddenly seemed to make an astonishing move. Just like the way he had come with a single motion gliding down from the roof, the black figure shot up, traveled through the air then landed in front of Li Jiao.

The male figure was younger than Li Jiao expected. Jolted backwards by the apparitions looming ahead, Li Jiao hissed, "Who are you?"

"One of the devil's breeds," he replied, chuckling hoarsely.

Li Jiao felt a sense of dread twisting the intestines in his stomach. "You're a babbling madman," again, he hissed through his teeth, too scared and anxious to make it sound like he was angry.

"Get out of my way!"

The black figure did not budge. Bursts of gold and red appeared in his eyes. It looked like a pair of fiery demon eyes. Li Jiao backed away further, panic struck, gripping it with his fingernails that grinded the last bit of courage he had left. She stared at the man through the thinning rain curtain, blinking and panting, trying to make sense of what was going on. His mind reeled like it was no longer under his control.

The figure came closer, closer, meeting their eyes. His ferocious red eyes exerted a strong hypnotic effect. "Listen carefully..." his voice was low and hoarse.

"I need something from you. I'm not leaving until I get it. Do you understand?"

Li Jiao gritted his teeth, shaking his head to express his resistance and disbelief. He had walked this street at night for years and never had bandits or street thugs harass pedestrians. He tried to spit on the figure, but it dripped down his chin, his tongue refusing to obey him.

The young man held Li Jiao's hand. Cold skin as if frozen. And the poor man is getting fixated.

"What do you want?"

Li Jiao ordered his throat to let out a tone of threat and defiance, but his throat constricted and he choked on his voice. His right knee buckled like it had been hit repeatedly, though the black figure didn't. He staggered forward into the death shadows.

"Blood ..." the young man whispered in his ear.

A second later, heat splashed onto Li Jiao's neck. It took all of his energy to clench his hands into two weak fists. He laughed at himself, but no humor. He didn't know how, but the man caused nausea and weakness inside her. It won't lift until he dies. He was unable to resist as his blood was sucked out, but he swore in his heart he would destroy the boy because of this humiliation.

"Your blood is not very sweet," said the figure in a venomous tone.

Li Jiao's entire body shook from the weight of anger and suffering.

"You ... cursed creature!"

"I told you didn't I?" the young man said with a smile, wiping the blood from the corners of his lips.

Li Jiao had a lot of indecent swear words on the tip of his tongue, but he swallowed them down. His next words were spoken with cold poison. "Damn vampire!"

His dark eyes lifted, meeting Li Jiao's. He grinned evilly. The pair of fangs that appeared on both sides of his mouth glistened eerily, ruthlessly sucking the blood of the poor man who fell victim again. Li Jiao struggled and screamed, feeling those sharp and cold fangs pierce his throat. The pain is terrible.

Gradually, he went numb, unable to move his legs to support the weight of his body. The figure then let go, until Li Jiao's dry body fell to the ground, his eyes blinking for the last time through the rain, looking up at the night sky, with a fang bite scar on his neck.

Vampires, demons, angels, whoever he turned around and darted away as fast as light, not looking back. The air resonated with the boy's low laughter. In the next second, lightning flashed, and the lightning flashed again. The rain that had thinned turned heavy in an instant, shrouding the city in an eerie chill and gloom.

*****

Xiao Hua woke up with a start. Sit up straight in bed and gasp for air. He gripped his blankets, and felt horror hit him for no apparent reason. For a moment, his mind was foggy. Confused and lost between dream and reality. He searched the room for the scary black figure he had seen in his dream. But there was no one but him. He touched his neck, there was no wound, only beads of cold sweat. His heart was still pounding. He wiped his face and the sides of his temples, and could feel his cool, wet hair.

The handsome young man got out of bed, walked over to the curved bedroom window at the top, opened the curtains so he could see the night sky which had begun to stop his crying. He didn't know how long it had stopped raining, one thing was certain, it must be very cold out there because he could see a thick layer of smog covering the tops of the buildings and towers.

Phoenix. Mauritius. Old town. A trail of freedom, and a center for ancient arts and culture. Xiao Hua came to this city six months ago, following the passion for ancient art objects and artifacts, which have been the lifeblood and passion of his family's business for generations. A country far away at the southwestern tip of the Indian Ocean, foreign, but holds a lot of mysterious charms for him. Initially, Xiao Hua felt his world drifting away, and he wondered why he had come and settled in Phoenix. But when he visited the city's largest anthropology and antiquities museum and interviewed for a curator position, he felt his calling had been fulfilled. His current residence is one of the best apartments in town. Rose Hill, has twenty floors, one of the hundreds of years old French heritage buildings and has undergone many renovations and changes although not completely erasing the traces of the past. Xiao Hua liked to enjoy views from up high, so he chose the ninth floor, not too low, not too high, where he could gaze at the life that was inching lazily far below.

It was night before dawn, and life on the streets down there was quiet. The bad weather made people lie limp in the cold in their homes. Some of the vehicles that are still crawling may be leftovers from the echoes of the night life which almost ends when dawn begins to approach. Xiao Hua wasn't sure he could sleep anymore. For a moment, his body shivered erratically by the coldness that ambushed and the anxiety that was increasingly gripping.

Hours later the sun peeked out from behind the scattering clouds. The light was still warm and soft in the morning just before eight. Xiao Hua fixed his tie and looked at the horizon through the window, then took a deep breath. After emptying a cup of coffee, it's time to go to work. His face in the mirror looked even paler than yesterday. The peach shirt and white suit strengthened his pale aura. Inevitably, he was hit by a wave of fatigue, lack of sleep, and disordered eating patterns. But he must always be ready to go through the routine.

Cellphones and personal belongings and important documents have been tidied into his briefcase. Xiao Hua took a bag and opened the door of his apartment unit. He didn't have any close friends in this residence, or was just a neighbor making small talk. He wants, but does not have the opportunity and free time to make friends. So, the only friend he had were at work. He was just about to take a step when suddenly he heard the sound of a door opening behind him.

Xiao Hua immediately sensed that he was no longer alone. He slowly turned around, at the same time, someone was looking at him intently and carved a faint smile on his handsome face.

It's a foreigner. Xiao Hua frowned. The man emerged from a door at the end of the hall, from unit 97, adjacent to his unit. In other words, the man who just showed up was his neighbour. Xiao Hua had never researched what the other unit's residents were like and he didn't really care this time either. Showing his characteristic flat and indifferent attitude, Xiao Hua only nodded faintly, without a smile or even a greeting, then turned around again and walked away.

"Go to work?" The voice was firm, heavy and possessed an unshakable aura.

Okay, so the neighbor started greeting him. Xiao Hua turned his head again, this time only half of his body.

"Hmmm."

"Where do you work?"

Inevitably, Xiao Hua actually observed the man. He was a handsome man, tall and well-built, with a black tint attached to him. Black hair that parted naturally at the sides and fell gracefully framing his face. Black jeans, black shirt and jacket, and sunglasses. His lips were thin, smiling faintly at him. Instinctively, Xiao Hua smiled back.

"Anthropology museum. Curator," he answered briefly.

"Oh, pretty cool."

"Thank You." Xiao Hua was not impressed.

The man walked towards him, looking like he had no other purpose. He didn't look like someone who would go to work.

"I'm your new neighbour. Uhm, actually I've been renting unit 97 for a week ago. But it was only today that I was able to move in." He started to speak, watching Xiao Hua through the lens of his sunglasses.

"Oh, I see."

Casually, the man extended his hand.

"I am Hei Yanjing." He introduced himself.

Xiao Hua took his hand and shook it. Confident, without tenderness, and his smile is quite stiff. However, just as the man in black was observing her, Xiao Hua did the same through his cold eyes.

"Xie Yuchen," he replied.

When their handshakes broke, he nodded once more at his new neighbour, turned and continued walking with the grace of a handsome man handcrafted by the artistic gods.

"So," the man named Hei Yanjing spoke again, "we are friends now?"

Xiao Hua did not answer. Almost too lazy to make friends or neighbors. But at a glance and first impressions that were hard to resist, he recognized the man in black had a different aura, and was quite mysterious. Out of politeness, Xiao Hua turned his head and looked at the man one more time.

"See you this afternoon," Hei Yanjing said softly, a suspicious smile on her face. And with a few words and a relaxed yet deadly expression, Xiao Hua felt as if a pair of hands were squeezing his heart. Not wanting to be disturbed by anyone and any pleasantries, he hastened his pace, entering the elevator to reach the ground floor where the occupants had parked their vehicles. It wasn't even ten minutes when the black Mercedes sedan he was driving slid down a busy highway. From behind the car window, Xiao Hua stared at the clouds. Yellowish white was gilded by the sun, and a bright blue sky curved above it. This morning was too beautiful to be thrilled, he thought as the memory drifted to his new neighbor.

[𝐓bc]

***Mauritian Moonrise***
B

y Shenshen_88