When Radu and his party charged into the basement’s location, having crossed the chaotic battlefield, a man leaned against the entrance doorframe, chewing gum. He looked at the newcomers and sneered, "You’ve come! Seeing the person inside won’t be that easy—I am the second barrier!"

"Zheng Jia Ru!" Depeo, relying on the image from the intelligence report, accurately called out the man’s name. Up to now, he also sensed something was amiss. Despite the surprise attack on the vast Yirong Pavilion, only Xia Yu and Zheng Jia Ru appeared to block them. The intelligence had described these two as the main force defending the place, but there were no other personnel assisting them. Was everything going too smoothly?

Though doubts lingered in his mind, there was no turning back after they had drawn their bows. Since they had already taken action, they must rescue the person, determined in his decision. Depeo stood in front of Radu and muttered, "Rescuing your brother is paramount. Quickly go inside—I will hold him off with my men!"

Upon hearing this, Radu did not hesitate. He glanced at Zheng Jia Ru, nodded, and with a flicker of his body, dashed toward the basement entrance with a few trusted followers. Zheng Jia Ru attempted to intercept but was blocked by Depeo and his team. Seeing the situation, Zheng Jia Ru did not pursue fiercely, allowing Radu and the others to slip past him, while he faced off with Depeo and his team. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Things seemed to proceed unusually smoothly. Inside the basement, contrary to his expectations, there was no ambush—no other obstacles as they crossed the narrow passageway. Soon, they found the rescue target at the end of the secret chamber in the basement.

"Cai Peishen?" As Radu entered the room, the pungent stench made him frown. When he saw the dazed and weak person chained to the wall, he was unsure if this was his brother, who had undergone transformation.

The once Vlad II, Vlad Cepesh, now Moira, upon hearing someone call her by her original name, struggled to lift her head and glance around, her lifeless eyes scanning in confusion, unable to identify the caller. Then, she lowered her head, falling back into a semi-conscious state.

"My lord, it is indeed her!" One of Radu’s subordinates stepped forward, pinched Moira’s chin, and forcibly lifted her head. After carefully verifying, he reported to Radu, who was standing far away covering his nose.

"He’s my brother! At least he was, so show some respect!" Before coming, Radu had thought of countless mocking words, but upon seeing his brother in such a pitiful state, no words emerged. Though their relationship was far from cordial, to the point of hostility, they were nevertheless brothers. In their childhood, Cepesh had given the proper brotherly affection.

"These lowly, uncivilized savages! What have they done to you? My heavens! To have tortured you to such an extent!" As two subordinates dismantled the instruments of torture and brought the person in front of him, a wave of sorrow and anger uncontrollably surged within Radu, and he growled, "I don’t care if you are still my brother Cepesh, or now Moira, but you are always a member of the Vlad Clan! Don’t worry! For what they did to you, I will make them pay tenfold! This is the creed of our Vlad Clan! Pei Yan who brought you to this state, he and his family will pay the price for it! I promise! My brother! We will eliminate him, his family! Let the world know the price of angering our family!"

Upon hearing these words, the semi-conscious body suddenly quivered, then forced her murky eyes open and tried to raise her head, struggling to show a hint of a reassuring but bitter smile to Radu, murmuring, "Thank you!"

"Cepesh?" Hearing this, Radu paused, looking at the person in front of him with confusion and questioning.

"My lord! She has fainted again! It’s dangerous to linger here. I think we should heed Mr. Depeo’s advice and retreat quickly." The subordinate, lifting Moira’s body back into unconsciousness, said urgently.

"Alright, retreat!" Although doubts lingered within his mind, Radu attributed it to his brother’s temporary confusion due to the torture. He replied offhandedly and then ordered his men to break out.

Boom! After a violent explosion, the structure above the basement was blasted inside out. As Radu leapt out, he surveyed the surroundings, discovering the entire Yirong Pavilion was embroiled in chaos. To his surprise, even though his team and the Blood Race, totaling over seventy people, only two people in the courtyard managed to hold them off, unable to be subdued.

While once more shocked by the two’s combat prowess, Radu understood that since the person was rescued, there was no need for further battle. Pointing at the person being supported behind him, he shouted, "Depeo! Prepare to retreat!"

Depeo, constantly monitoring the activity towards the basement, noticed this development early on. Upon seeing Cepesh rescued, he nodded in satisfaction. Regardless, the mission’s goal was half achieved, and now all that remained was how to retreat safely.

"Hey! After causing such a ruckus at someone else’s place, you think you can just leave? Don’t underestimate our Investigation Office!" Zheng Jia Ru spat the gum from his mouth onto the face of a Blood Race attempting to ambush him. With a powerful force, the gum—intentionally shaped into a sharp cone with his teeth—was propelled like a bullet, unexpectedly piercing the attacker’s eye socket. The attacker shrieked, covering his bleeding eye and retreating.

As these words finished, one could hear the sound of something slicing through the air. Around the Yirong Pavilion, a large number of personnel emerged continuously from nearby residential areas, supposedly empty or belonging to other sects, leaping into the air and sealing off the entire Yirong Pavilion from the outside.

"It should be like this. I knew things wouldn’t be this simple." Seeing the blocked retreat, Depeo’s previously restless heart instead calmed. Such a level of defense was in line with guarding a powerful Blood Race individual.

Depeo remained calm for two reasons. First, although it seemed like their numbers had increased, after his initial observation, the core was still centered around Zheng and Xia, and although many had appeared, most were at sixth or seventh-tier strength.

This result aligned closely with his prediction. The Investigation Office had a portion stationed at the headquarters and Secret Prison, others needed to stay at the arena to ensure Pei Yan’s safety, leaving only this number of personnel to be dispatched.

The second reason was his confidence in his own rescue team’s strength. For this mission, the Blood Race deployed three Grand Duke-level or ninth-tier ability users, including himself, alongside thirty Marquis-level eighth-tier Blood Race members. The Blood Blade’s personnel mirrored Depeo’s, both levels similar.

Individually, such manpower might not match two Children of Origin. However, combined, they should be able to stall them at the very least—more so with the secret weapon gifted by the old Patriarch within him!