Chapter 78: Tsk Tsk
“Squeak!”
The rat let out a final, agonizing cry, then breathed its last.
The Demon Lord, with a flick of her wrist, incinerated the rat’s corpse, reducing it to ashes. She sat in the courtyard, idly polishing her sword, her gaze restless, her thoughts drifting.
The usually bustling courtyard was unusually quiet. The cat, the dog, and the dragon were all gone. He Rong and Jwan Jwan were being dragged to their lessons by Fu Yuan.
Even An Ran and Zhu Chi, who had been frequent visitors, were absent. Everyone who had interfered with her time with Luo Nianshang had vanished. Unfortunately, Luo Nianshang herself had been busy lately, her whereabouts unknown.
The sound of a door creaking open interrupted her thoughts. She turned to see the face she had been longing for, and she rushed over, her heart pounding.
“Where are you going, Master?” she asked.
Luo Nianshang, unable to lie, replied, “To the Demon Realm.”
The Demon Lord, of course, wanted to go with her. She had convinced herself that interspecies relationships were the key to happiness, and she was worried that Luo Nianshang would be swept off her feet by some charming demon.
If that happened, she would explode.
“I’m coming too!” she exclaimed.
Luo Nianshang patted her head, her cold eyes softening slightly, then she said, “Stay here.”
The Demon Lord’s face fell. She was about to launch into a full-blown tantrum, but Luo Nianshang was firm. She used a spell, confining the Demon Lord to her room, setting up a barrier.
The Demon Lord pounded on the door, but Luo Nianshang ignored her, her voice calm and even as she said, “Focus on your cultivation. I’ll be back soon.”
Then, she mounted her sword, soaring into the sky.
The Demon Lord was furious. She was convinced that Luo Nianshang was hiding something.
But this was actually a good thing. Everyone would assume she was being punished, confined to her room. And the barrier was strong, difficult to break. No one would disturb her.
Of course, it was no obstacle for her. She would simply use this opportunity to escape.
She smiled, a mischievous glint in her eyes. She snapped her fingers, and pink smoke enveloped her. When it dissipated, she was no longer Hong Ying. She was Qiu Yingxi, the Demon Lord.
She stared at her reflection in the bronze mirror, admiring herself for a moment, then, remembering her mission, she vanished, transforming into a wisp of smoke.
Luo Nianshang, on her way to the Demon Realm, paused at the Land of Fallen Gods.
The vast expanse of colorful flowers, blooming eternally, was a breathtaking sight.
She had shared an intimate moment with the Demon Lord here, although it had been an illusion, a vivid and inescapable dream.
She hadn’t heard from the Demon Lord in a while. After the rebellion had ended, the Demon Lord had delegated all her responsibilities to her left envoy, vanishing from public view.
Luo Nianshang lingered for a while, lost in her thoughts, then continued her journey.
Not long after her departure, the Demon Lord arrived, her presence concealed. She spotted Luo Nianshang, then deliberately maintained a safe distance. She transformed, even masking her demonic aura, replacing it with a faint, almost undetectable aura.
She knew the flowers in this field were harmless, so she allowed herself to fall, her voice filled with feigned panic. “Help!”
Luo Nianshang, her attention caught, turned to see a small demon trapped in the sea of flowers.
It had white rabbit ears and crimson eyes, its gaze wide with fear. It spotted Luo Nianshang, its voice a desperate plea. “Immortal, please save me!”
Knowing the dangers of this field, Luo Nianshang didn’t descend. She summoned a white silk ribbon, wrapping it around the rabbit demon’s waist, then pulled it to safety.
This wasn’t what the Demon Lord had envisioned. She had imagined Luo Nianshang pulling her up, then she would seize the opportunity to hug Luo Nianshang, or at least share a ride on her sword.
Why was she being carried like a helpless chick?
Luo Nianshang, holding the Demon Lord by the back of her collar, her arm outstretched, maintaining a safe distance, didn’t release her until they were far from the flowers.
Although the scene hadn’t gone according to plan, the Demon Lord wasn’t discouraged. As a master of deception, she instantly conjured tears, her expression pitiful.
She turned to Luo Nianshang, her voice trembling. “Thank you, kind soul,” she said.
The wind blew, chilling her to the bone.
There was no “kind soul.” Luo Nianshang had already vanished, a small dot in the distance.
The Demon Lord stomped her foot, her frustration growing. She wanted to curse, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. She settled for ripping a nearby tree from the ground and tossing it aside.
Once her anger had subsided, she resumed her pursuit.
Luo Nianshang, oblivious to the stalker following her, was struggling. Her body was reacting strangely, and her usual cleansing mantras had no effect.
There was a spirit spring in the Demon Realm. She had experienced similar symptoms in her youth, and her masters had taken her there to bathe.
After a day of soaking in the spring, her symptoms would vanish.
She had assumed she would never experience those symptoms again, but as she aged, her heart had become less tranquil. She found herself dwelling on things, her thoughts often straying towards dangerous paths.
And such thoughts could lead to demonic influence.
She had no desire to become a demon, so she had decided to search for that spirit spring, though she hadn’t expected to find it. It had been millennia. But she had found it.
It was hidden within a dense forest, the towering trees blocking out the sunlight, creating a perpetual twilight. But it wasn’t completely dark. The spring water emitted a faint, ethereal glow.
She sat on a rock beside the spring, her hand dipping into the water. It was cool to the touch, and the moment she touched it, her anxieties seemed to lessen.
Although the location was secluded, it was still outdoors. She set up barriers and a concealment spell.
She carefully inspected her work, satisfied.
She doubted anyone else could breach her defenses, except for perhaps Bai Jingxue and the Demon Lord.
Bai Jingxue possessed exceptional talent, and the Demon Lord was a master of such techniques.
But neither of them would come here.
She relaxed, removing the few hairpins adorning her hair, placing them on the rock beside her.
Then, she began to undress. She usually dressed modestly, each button carefully fastened.
She removed her outer robe, then the rest of her clothes, her movements graceful. Once she was naked, she stepped into the spring, closing her eyes, her mind calming.
But soaking in a spirit spring took time, and unlike meditation, it didn’t require her full attention. She opened her eyes.
She glanced around, then, confident in her defenses, she retrieved a book from her spatial ring and began to read.
The Demon Lord, staring at the layers of barriers surrounding the spring, chuckled.
She was still disguised as a rabbit demon, but it wasn’t a convenient form. She decided to revert to her true appearance.
These barriers were complex, but she could break through them. However, she had to be careful. She didn’t want to startle Luo Nianshang. A single sword strike could be fatal.
She carefully dismantled the barriers, her curiosity growing with each layer she removed. What was Luo Nianshang doing?
If she was cultivating, this wasn’t a safe location. She must be hiding something.
The barriers weakened, and she created a small opening, just large enough for her to pass through. The final layer shattered, and she entered the clearing.
Then, she saw it.
Luo Nianshang was bathing!
She had come all this way just for a bath?
She couldn’t think straight. She could only see Luo Nianshang’s back and shoulders, but the way the water droplets glistened on her skin, illuminated by the ethereal glow of the spring water… it was a breathtaking sight.
Luo Nianshang, sensing someone’s presence, quickly hid her book, turning, her voice sharp. “Who’s there?”
She froze, her eyes widening as she recognized the Demon Lord.
She had just been thinking that only the Demon Lord and Bai Jingxue could breach her defenses. She hadn’t expected the Demon Lord to actually appear.
Seeing the Demon Lord staring at her, her gaze intense, she instinctively covered her chest with her hands, her cheeks burning with embarrassment and anger. She was about to attack, but the moment she circulated her spiritual energy, something went wrong.
The Demon Lord, sensing the imminent threat, summoned her poison pearl.
But instead of attacking, she simply stared at Luo Nianshang.
Something was wrong. Luo Nianshang seemed to be incapacitated. Otherwise, she would have attacked.
This realization sparked a mischievous thought, but she quickly dismissed it.
Taking advantage of Luo Nianshang’s vulnerability was tempting, but she was more concerned about Luo Nianshang’s well-being.
She clutched the poison pearl. Everyone knew it was a deadly weapon, but few knew it could also heal.
She approached Luo Nianshang, her steps slow and deliberate.
Luo Nianshang, her anger simmering, her voice strained, warned, “Stop!”
The Demon Lord, finding her frustrated yet helpless demeanor adorable, couldn’t resist teasing her. She raised the poison pearl, her lips curving into a mischievous smile. “Never thought I’d see the day when the mighty Sword Saint would be at my mercy,” she purred.
Luo Nianshang, her face burning, wanted to scream, but seeing the poison pearl, she suddenly remembered something. She calmed herself.
The Demon Lord, seeing her regain her composure, assumed she was simply trying to appear strong. It made her even more adorable.
She reached the edge of the spring, tilting Luo Nianshang’s chin up, her gaze lingering on her face. “Do you remember our dream, Sword Saint?” she asked, her voice soft.
Luo Nianshang’s eyes darted away, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment.
The Demon Lord raised the poison pearl, her smile seductive. “This is reality now,” she purred, “but it’s all the same to me. This might hurt a bit, so bear with me.”
The pearl spun, releasing a white mist, but Luo Nianshang didn’t react as she had expected.
Luo Nianshang’s gaze turned cold, and the Demon Lord suddenly felt a sense of unease.
“Still,” Luo Nianshang said, her voice a whisper.
The pearl froze, and the Demon Lord, her connection to her weapon severed, also froze.
Luo Nianshang hadn’t expected to immobilize the Demon Lord herself, but it was a welcome surprise.
The sword-shaped mark in the Demon Lord’s sea of consciousness pulsed, and she suddenly remembered something crucial.
Her smile vanished. She stared at Luo Nianshang, whose eyes were now filled with a murderous intent, and said, her voice laced with a nervous laughter, “What if I said I was just teasing you? That I was actually trying to heal you? Would you believe me?”
Luo Nianshang didn’t answer. She clutched her head, her eyes widening as red, spiderweb-like patterns spread across her face.
A voice echoed in her mind, its tone insistent, its words laced with a venomous hatred. “She keeps defying you! Teach her a lesson she’ll never forget!”
The Demon Lord, noticing Luo Nianshang’s distress, her fear forgotten, asked, “What’s wrong?”
Luo Nianshang, under the influence of that voice, her movements swift and decisive, pulled the Demon Lord into the spring.
The Demon Lord, caught off guard, spluttered, then Luo Nianshang pinned her against the edge of the spring, her lips crashing against the Demon Lord’s.
The Demon Lord’s mind went blank. She couldn’t think.
Luo Nianshang bit her lip.
She struggled, but Luo Nianshang simply whispered, “Still.”
“Still your head!” the Demon Lord thought. “Are you a dog?!”
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