That Boy Isn't Human

They say there are ghosts in Xiling, shaped like people, with red eyes and fangs. They hide by day and come out at night to feed on human blood. Eat them, and you will live longer.

As an atheist, Qing Yu never believed in any of this.

Until that day, when the vampire pinned him hard against the wall in a cramped elevator. Fog swirled around them, obscuring almost everything, but not those eyes glowing red.

Before he could react, the vampire sank its teeth into him.

From then on, a bite mark appeared on his right shoulder.

Commonly known as a mate mark.

To get rid of it, Qing Yu bravely set off with the vampire twins for the unfamiliar land of Xiling, hoping to find an antidote. But who could have guessed that from the start they would run into a nightmare beast? After striking down its core with a single sword stroke, he fell into an illusion.

The red candles go out before the mountain god's shrine, and a red-clad bride is mourned by wailing ghosts.

Everything feels especially eerie.

Summoning his courage, Qing Yu joins forces with the vampire.

“Let me introduce myself properly. I'm Wenren Zhao. Wenren is my compound surname, and Zhao is my given name. I'm Wenren Yue's younger twin brother.”

“Welcome to the world of illusions, insignificant… human.”

…

Wenren Zhao VS Qing Yu

A seemingly pure, wolfish gong who's actually a schemer VS a seemingly frail shou who's actually sharp-witted

Early on:

Wenren Zhao: “I can't stand noisy, disobedient humans. No vampire would want to discuss such a pointless matter with a human.”

Later on:

Wenren Zhao: “Qing Yu, I'll only listen to you. Whatever you say goes. No one would dare contradict you, and neither would I.”

…

A story of salvation and regret, with plenty of melodrama but no tired clichés.