Chapter 34: My myriad of demons will also go and rejoice with Hutian.
In the following days, Yan Jingyu began to avoid Liao Chen, either teaching… and bickering with the little demons, or crawling around in the Qiankun Pouch.
Liao Chen’s pile of garbage was finally sorted out by him. He put them together and prepared to slowly put marks on them when he had time. After all these spoiled pills were fed, he should no longer have to worry about the blood beast going berserk again.
But he still had to remind Liao Chen not to let it eat dirty things…
Thinking of Liao Chen, Yan Jingyu’s scalp suddenly tingled again.
He finally understood why Liao Chen, after suffering such a great humiliation, had not killed him immediately.
Because he wanted revenge!
It must be that the accumulated resentment between the two of them as arch-nemesis was too deep. He couldn’t bring himself to do it for a while. But recently, the way Liao Chen looked at him was clearly not right.
I must not give him a chance to turn the tables. If he really wants to use force, I’ll… I’ll scold him awake! I’ll just pretend I don’t remember anything!
There were indeed some pills in the Qiankun Pouch that could restrain the wood grain. The effect was good after Yan Jingyu ate them. Anyway, they were much more useful than those few Longevity Pills of Liao Chen’s.
‘Lian Feng’ picked up another bottle of pills from who knows where and appeared in front of him. This time, it was in a cloth bag. Yan Jingyu took it down and threw it away, saying, “This fellow Liao Chen really grew up scavenging.”
Besides the garbage pills, he had also sorted out some wood garbage, bamboo slip garbage, and even some small wooden sword garbage that he didn’t know where it had been stolen from.
‘Lian Feng’s’ attitude towards him had also changed greatly recently. After hearing this, it tapped its own sword tip.
Seeing that he had almost finished sorting today, Yan Jingyu was just about to go out directly when he suddenly heard a voice from outside: “My clan, according to the information given by the Demon Lord, has found out the category of the Zuoqiu family’s artifact.”
It was someone from the snake clan.
Yan Jingyu stood at the entrance of the Qiankun Pouch, listening quietly.
“The Zuoqiu family has a Past Mirror. This mirror is only known to some people who are close to the Zuoqiu family. They occasionally borrow it for interrogation or to verify someone’s identity.” The one speaking was Snake Ying. His voice was old and powerful, and carried a hint of smugness. “And one more thing, the Demon Lord said that the thunder-element Heavenly Soul may also be in the Zuoqiu family. My clan has indeed not found any trace of the Heavenly Soul or a holy-grade thunder-element artifact. But—!”
His voice was cadenced, as if he were giving some kind of acceptance speech. “Sect Master Zuoqiu himself has a thunder-element spiritual root. This Heavenly Soul, could it be that he is nurturing it in his spiritual abode and using it when he casts spells?”
Yan Jingyu’s pupils contracted slightly. He hung quietly in the Qiankun Pouch.
“My clan, my clan also has some news!” An Long squeezed in. “We’ve sorted out the history of the Zuoqiu clan’s rise…”
“I also know this!” Snake Ying swept him aside. “Before, only the Yan, Qin, Zeng, and Wu were the great families in Hutian…”
“But the Zuoqiu family only began to rise after the Yan family was annihilated!” An Long interjected again. “Demon Lord, I think he is the real culprit who harmed the Yan family back then!”
“That’s right, that’s right! We also found out that the stone at the gate of the Zuoqiu family is very similar to the one in Yaoguang Valley! Their pine trees also seem to have been dug up from Yaoguang Valley! This Zuoqiu family must be the real culprit who killed the entire Yan Clan!”
“I agree! I saw that the camellia in Ruan Qingwan’s courtyard is also very similar to the one in Immortal Aunt Du’s house! That Immortal Aunt Du, besides taming beasts, loved camellias the most. She must be learning from Immortal Aunt Du!”
“That’s right, she also raised a Ruan Qixi, who looks so much like Immortal Lord Dufang. Isn’t this directly playing the role of Immortal Lord Dufang’s mother? This woman is definitely not simple! She must have had a hand in what happened back then!”
“Let’s also annihilate their entire clan! Avenge Immortal Lord Dufang!”
“Annihilate them, annihilate them!!!”
The focus of this group of people quickly went off track. Yan Jingyu was a little helpless for a moment. In fact, he could vaguely hear that when Liao Chen said to investigate the Zuoqiu family, this group of people had already preconceived that the Zuoqiu family was a dead man walking. The later things about the trees and flowers… were just to make up the numbers.
He figured that this was how they had convicted other immortal sects in the past.
But Snake Ying’s words did have some truth to them…
“A bunch of fools.” These demonic cultivators mocked each other. A short figure slowly walked out. He leaned on a long staff, had two small mustaches, and his smile looked extremely treacherous and contemptuous. “What Past Mirror, what thunder spiritual root, none of it can convict the Zuoqiu family as much as the news from my rat clan.”
Liao Chen seemed to have long since become accustomed to their way of speaking and said, “Oh?”
“My rat clan has found out that that Ruan Qingwan has a Myriad Phenomena Pearl, about the size of an eyeball.” He stood proudly in front of a group of huge clansmen, his mustache rising with the corners of his mouth. “This Myriad Phenomena Pearl can allow the user to experience what will happen in the next three moments in advance. The last time Ruan Qixi was in front of the Demon Lord, it was because of this pearl that he barely escaped. This pearl has some side effects. If the user is to be killed within three moments, then he will also truly experience that death. But, compared to the three moments of foreknowledge, a feigned death once won’t hurt much, at most it’s just a scare, and some damage to the divine soul.”
The crowd looked at each other, clearly having no knowledge of this Myriad Phenomena Pearl.
“Past Mirror, Myriad Phenomena Pearl.” Snake Ying stepped forward again. “Back then, Immortal Lord Dufang could see the past with one eye and the future with the other. These two artifacts… could it be…”
He did not continue. Liao Chen’s face had already turned extremely cold.
At this moment, the Shadow Clan also slowly walked out. “Although my clan was unable to infiltrate the Zuoqiu family, we found out that the Du Fang Sword is about to change hands. It will be on Ruan Qixi’s coming-of-age ceremony. Qin Zhongyou will formally take him as a disciple on behalf of his friend in Yaoguang Valley and pass on the Du Fang Sword. From then on, Ruan Qixi will not only inherit the Du Fang Sword, but even Yaoguang Valley. Hmph, not to mention anything else, just this one point is enough for us to go and have a good time.”
“That’s right, that’s right!” Someone immediately said, “The scale of the coming-of-age ceremony that the Zuoqiu family has prepared for Ruan Qixi is even grander than Immortal Lord Dufang’s back then. And because he is going to pay respects to Immortal Lord Dufang, now the whole world is saying that he is the future little Lord Dufang, and everyone is rushing to go and join in the fun! Hutian is already overcrowded now!”
“Demon Lord, shall we go and have a good kill?”
“We have to think about how to make them lose face! At that time, the Demon Lord will directly tear open space, and we will all drill out together, hahahahaha… scare them to death!”
“Good!!! At that time, I will deal with Immortal Aunt Ling. You guys can divide the rest!”
“The Zeng family, leave them to me!”
Liao Chen basically didn’t need to speak. They had already started to think about causing a scene in Hutian in their minds, until someone spoke up: “Who will deal with Qin Zhongyou?”
The hall was silent. Everyone looked at the man above.
Liao Chen’s fingers slid back and forth over the patterns on the armrest. He did not say a single word.
Returning to the Suixing Hall, Yan Jingyu’s figure came out of the bag, his eyes slightly lowered, until Liao Chen spoke: “Are you going?”
Yan Jingyu was quiet for a moment. “If I go, will I cause trouble for you?”
Liao Chen was slightly stunned. “Why would it be causing trouble?”
“I, have no cultivation… When you guys start fighting, you’ll still have to look after me…”
Liao Chen reached out his hand to him. Yan Jingyu paused for a moment, placed his hand in his palm, and was directly pulled by him to the bedside, their four eyes meeting.
“If you go, then take a few artifacts from the Qiankun Pouch. It will definitely be no problem to protect yourself.” Liao Chen said, “What I’m worried about now is how to force the Zuoqiu family to take out the Myriad Phenomena Pearl…”
Yan Jingyu smiled. “Easy.”
As Yu Qiuye was painting, he suddenly felt something probe into the restriction. His heart tightened, and he abruptly turned his face. He saw a hand suddenly stretch out from behind the void. The next instant, he was already sitting on the floor of the inner hall of the Suixing Hall.
He looked left and right, then looked at Liao Chen with trepidation, and also at the calm-looking Yan Jingyu beside him. “Demon Lord, Immortal Lord… I wonder, what has Qiuye done wrong?”
As he spoke, his messy hair was already neatly tied up on his head, and the clothes on his body also quickly became clean.
Yan Jingyu smiled, but before he could speak—
Yu Qiuye was suddenly lifted up, and a crimson and black demonic energy instantly wrapped around his neck. He immediately began to struggle, his face as if it were being burned by a raging fire, and began to show signs of turning to ash. “Demon, Demon Lord, Demon Lord, may I ask what Qiuye has done wrong…”
“That day, when Yin Shi asked you if Ruan Qixi was your handiwork, how did you answer?”
“…Yes, yes, it was my handiwork!” Yu Qiuye cried out miserably, his soul directly pierced by the demonic energy. He looked ferocious. “Immortal Lord, Immortal Lord, save me! I’ll tell you everything, everything!!”
Yan Jingyu tugged at his sleeve.
Liao Chen suppressed his anger and slowly withdrew his hand. Yu Qiuye fell to the ground. He kept patting his whole body, as if there were still sparks burning on him. Liao Chen was already very impatient. “Do you think I have no choice but to use you?”
“No!” Yu Qiuye quickly stopped. “Yes, back then, after Immortal Lord Dufang’s entire clan was annihilated, I did indeed meet a woman. She asked me to draw a soul for a baby… I, I had just entered the bone-painting realm not long ago at that time. How could I possibly draw a soul!”
“That woman said…”
“The art of painting has been lost for many years. You have comprehended this art by a strange combination of circumstances and are now the only bone-painting master in the world. I can only rely on you to realize this wish.”
At that time, Yu Qiuye looked at the baby’s soul with a strange expression. “Why should I help you?”
“Because you also long to draw souls.” The woman gently waved her hand, and more souls overflowed from her sleeve. “I have found many souls similar to his. If you can draw them, I will send them to be reincarnated. These children, they died miserably… they are all lonely ghosts. For every one you draw, I will send one to be reincarnated. It can also be considered a meritorious deed.”
“Meritorious deed?” Yu Qiuye flicked his messy hair and sneered. “I am the Mad Doctor of the Demon Realm. What do I need meritorious deeds for?”
“Although you are of the Demon Realm, you entered the Dao through medicine after all. Even if you temporarily switched to the art of painting, saving the dying and healing the wounded is also your Dao heart. Or, can you bear to watch them, just like this… die?”
Her slender fingers moved, and the souls immediately burst into tears, crying and making a scene, as if they were enduring some great torture.
Yu Qiuye did not fall for it at all. “I see that your spiritual energy seems to be of the immortal sects. If you are not afraid of severing your immortal root, you can kill them if you want.”
He was about to turn and leave without looking back, but the woman suddenly said, “Don’t you want to draw a Yan Jingyu?!”
This sentence made Yu Qiuye stop in his tracks. He said with a tremor, “That woman was so mysterious. If she had said from the beginning that she wanted to draw Yan Jingyu, I would have definitely agreed directly…”
“Why on earth did she want to draw a me?” Yan Jingyu couldn’t help but speak. He felt as if he had really been dead for too long and could no longer see this world clearly. Yu Qiuye glanced at him secretly. “I don’t know why either. It’s just that sometimes, it sounds like she is quite obsessed with the Immortal Lord…”
“Madwoman.” Liao Chen’s voice was deep. He leaned in slightly, his voice cold. “And you? Why are you so obsessed with drawing Yan Jingyu?”
“This, this in the immortal sects now, which academy doesn’t have a portrait of the Immortal Lord hanging? It’s not just me who loves to draw…” Yu Qiuye cowered. Yan Jingyu had no choice but to pull Liao Chen again. “Was Ruan Qixi the result of you practicing for a hundred years?”
Yu Qiuye nodded.
“Good.” Yan Jingyu said, “On March fifteenth, on his coming-of-age ceremony, you will stand up and tell everything. First, use public opinion to put the Zuoqiu family on a pedestal. This way, it will be easier for us to force him to take out the Myriad Phenomena Pearl.”
On March fifteenth, the snow in Hutian had already melted, and the leaves of the trees had sprouted tender buds. The courtyard was full of life.
When Ling Dannan woke up early in the morning, she found that the space beside her was already empty. She reached out to touch it, and it was cold. He had clearly been up for a long time.
She flicked her long hair and walked out of the inner room. She saw at a glance the man with his eyes wrapped in white gauze and immediately smiled. “A-Chen.”
Ruan Qingchen’s face was pale. Hearing her voice, he only then raised his hand to put away the hexagram on the table, his movements a little flustered. “Mm.”
“Today is Xiao Xi’s birthday, and also the day of the inheritance of Jingyu’s mantle. It has been a long time since Hutian was so lively.” She released her divine sense and looked at the bustling Hutian City, unable to help but laugh. “It has been over a hundred and thirty years, yet there are still so many people who remember him. Wherever he is, it is always crowded with people, a magnificent scene.”
She stood for a while, her gaze reminiscent. After a long while, she let out a barely perceptible sigh. As she turned to walk over, she finally noticed that something was wrong with her husband. “A-Chen, what’s wrong with you? Your face is so pale…”
“Nothing.” Ruan Qingchen dodged her hand, then took her hand in his. “Dan Nan, I’m not feeling well today. Can you, stay at home with me?”
“Where are you not feeling well?” Ling Dannan said quickly, “I’ll immediately summon an immortal physician to examine you.”
“Don’t go…” Ruan Qingchen pulled her again. After a long moment, he said, “I’m just too tired. Let’s go a little later.”
Ling Dannan touched his forehead, then sat back down. “Have you been sitting for too long? It’s still a little cold recently. You should wear more…”
Ling Dannan suddenly saw the copper coin that had fallen out of his sleeve and was slightly stunned. “You cast the morning hexagram. Could it be that something will happen today?”
“I don’t know…” Ruan Qingchen’s lips were chapped. He held Ling Dannan’s hand, his knuckles also slightly white. “I feel that, Hutian, something big is about to happen.”
Suixing Hall, Yan Jingyu also got up early in the morning. He glanced at the gradually melting snow in the Demon Palace, leaned against the window to catch the falling water from the eaves, his expression calm.
A shadow fell from behind. Yan Jingyu said, “How are your injuries?”
“More than enough to kill Qin Zhongyou.”
Yan Jingyu looked at him helplessly. Liao Chen flicked his robes and sat down beside him. “Are you afraid?”
Yan Jingyu shook his head, then looked outside again. “It’s just that my heart is a little empty.”
“Don’t be empty.” Liao Chen directly pulled him up. “Tidy up. We’re getting ready to leave.”
Yan Jingyu had never seen so many people in the Demonic Domain. When he followed Liao Chen and ascended to the high tower of the palace city, the ice and snow of the Demonic Domain had still not melted. But on the black earth covered with ice and snow, an endless crowd had already gathered.
Some of them had stooped bodies and held sharp forks; some were as illusory as phantoms, their faces covered with thin veils; some were pale all over and huge in size; some were androgynous, eager to try; and there were also various demon races, of all shapes and sizes…
This was the myriad of demon armies of the Demonic Domain.
“The five major tribes have assembled.” This group of people, although they always argued endlessly over other matters and undermined each other, were exceptionally united in their resistance against the immortal sects. “We are just waiting for the Demon Lord’s order, and we can go straight to Hutian.”
A sound of wind came from behind. Mo Ting and Yu Qiuye came on their swords, but two figures beside them were faster. One was snow-white all over, with nine tails spread out, and also had prominent fangs and ferocious giant claws. The nine-tails landed beside Liao Chen first, but the ferocious beast Taotie landed steadily beside Yan Jingyu.
He turned his head to look. The Taotie poked his face with its wet nose.
Mo Ting and Yu Qiuye landed at the same time and slowly came behind the two of them.
The sky was covered by the gathered demonic energy into a gray-black mass. Liao Chen looked up slightly, gazing at the bustling and festive Hutian City in the Heaven-Scrutinizing Mirror.
“Good.” He spoke. “Today, my myriad of demons will also go and rejoice with Hutian.”
Yan Jingyu’s waist was hooked by him, and he leaped directly into a spatial crack.
Behind him, the Nine-Tails and Taotie leaped up.
The myriad of demons were ready to set off.
