41 Chapter 25

Qixue was a rabbit spirit who had cultivated for a hundred years to take human form. The first thing he did was enter the palace to repay a debt of gratitude. His benefactor was the current emperor, a young and frail ruler of exquisite beauty, yet a tyrant who had killed his brothers and father, cruel and merciless. Qixue knew the emperor was the major villain in a novel, an obstacle blocking the protagonist gong and shou from being together. In the future, they would pull him from the throne and execute him with extreme torture. Afterward, his corpse would be hung from the city gates, pelted with rotten vegetables by the common people. To save the emperor, Qixue decided to become a vicious demonic consort. He would wield the black hands, commit the wicked deeds, and tear apart the protagonist gong and shou! The demonic consort's first step: scheming his way to power. Late at night, Qixue lay beside the emperor's bed, hooking the emperor's little finger and entwining himself around it as he begged piteously for favor. The next day, Qixue was enfeoffed as the Noble Consort, basking in unparalleled favor. The cold-blooded and aloof young monarch plucked stars and snapped the moon, all just to coax a smile from him. The demonic consort's second step: tormenting the protagonist shou. The protagonist shou was the grandson of the Long Princess, a paragon of jade-like purity and autumn frost, renowned for his virtue. With the emperor lacking an heir, he was welcomed into the palace as Crown Prince. Qixue bullied him relentlessly, stepping on the Crown Prince's chest and forcing him to call him Mother Concubine. Later, the Crown Prince visited his chambers every night, kneeling to call him Mother Concubine as he blushed faintly and kissed his fingertips. The demonic consort's third step: winning over the emperor's lackey to control the military. The emperor's close friend, the Great General, commanded heavy troops and was flamboyant and unrestrained, wild and unbound. To ensure he never betrayed the emperor, Qixue frequently arranged meetings with him, telling him, "Both His Majesty and I love the General. We vow eternal loyalty to you." Later, the Great General pulled him into his embrace. A pair of peach-blossom eyes gazed at him with gentle ferocity as he murmured tenderly, "I will never betray A Xue. If A Xue betrays me, I will kill His Majesty." The demonic consort's fourth step: eliminating the protagonist gong. The protagonist gong was the aloof and transcendent immortal State Preceptor, his immortal arts stemming from an innate Dao body. Qixue knew exactly how to shatter that Dao body. That night, Qixue served the State Preceptor tea laced with special ingredients. He watched with his own eyes as the State Preceptor drank it, then led over a cow. Just as he smiled and prepared to leave, the State Preceptor seized his wrist. Qixue wept endlessly, his rabbit ears and tail even emerging. With his Dao body shattered, the State Preceptor's expression was inscrutable. In the end, he lowered his head and gently kissed away the tears on Qixue's face. ... Though he sacrificed himself in the process, everything went as Qixue planned. He had won over the Great General, separated the protagonist gong and shou, and allowed the emperor to rest easy. This calamitous demonic consort who had brought ruin to the nation should now "atone with his death"— That night, flames soared to the heavens, swallowing Qixue's figure in a sea of fire. He faked his death and escaped back to the mountains, living freely and happily as the Rabbit King. But unbeknownst to him, after his departure, the realm was dyed in blood, and the world became a purgatory. Until one day, birds scattered in fright, the earth quaked and mountains shook. Iron cavalry and heavy troops surrounded the mountain layer upon layer. Several blood-soaked figures locked Qixue firmly with a golden chain and imprisoned him deep in the palace. "A Xue, where do you think you're escaping to this time?"