“I’m not blaming him.” Xiang Xian knew well that King Mu had lurked in Shenzhou Great Land for these years—his existence even predated the First Emperor. The identities of his Demon Person subordinates showed it too—”Mu” was extremely patient. After over a thousand years of lurking in the shadows, waiting for the perfect moment to strike suddenly—it was something no one could resist.
A plan meticulously prepared for over a thousand years left anyone no chance of victory.
“So he tried to salvage it,” Xiang Xian continued. “He first sought out Kunlun’s divine envoy Le Wan Shuang, your master.”
“Mm.” Xiao Kun fell silent. He had already told Xiang Xian about his own background, as it was of great importance.
Xiang Xian said: “To reclaim the Wheel of Fate, they had to defeat Mr. Liu first. He was exiled at the time. You said, did he—”
At this point, Xiang Xian suddenly realized something and fell silent.
Xiao Kun: “?”
Xiang Xian just gave Xiao Kun an awkward look. Xiao Kun didn’t understand at first but suddenly said after thinking: “I get it!”
Xiang Xian felt he had said the wrong thing, as it touched on Xiao Kun’s heritage. But Xiao Kun followed the thread and guessed Jing Pian Ge’s situation back then—the Demon Race had seized the Wheel of Fate and Great Si Ming Flute. As a Ghost Clan member, Jing Pian Ge was powerless against them. To escape the Great Si Ming Flute’s control, what could he do? Introduce power from another race, perhaps revitalize his body to restore his human form, or transform into a Half-Demon Body to battle Mr. Liu and the Demon King behind him.
Le Wan Shuang had tried a method for him, but it failed. She used a Jumang’s Leaf to transform Jing Pian Ge, but something went wrong in the process, yielding a result unlike what he wanted.
From that, he devised another way… he created Xiao Kun.
Before Xiao Kun fully pieced it together, Xiang Xian shifted angles: “To activate such a Super Magical Treasure must require immense Magical Power.”
“Yes!” Xiao Kun praised. “You’re an expert at wielding Magic Treasures. Spot on.”
Xiang Xian added: “The rewinding time is limited too. I don’t believe King Mu could turn it back a hundred or even a thousand years.”
This reminder made Xiao Kun reassess their dilemma.
“Forget centuries or millennia—even the twenty-odd years we’ve lived might be pushing it. Otherwise, ‘Mu’ would have rewound to our births and killed us early,” Xiao Kun said. “I’m certain of that, and so is my father. I am his arrangement to counter ‘Mu.'”
“Maybe only a few years back?” Xiang Xian said. “We must confirm two timelines next. First: the exact moment he activates the Wheel of Fate. Second: how much Magical Power it requires?”
Xiao Kun said: “Such a Magic Treasure drains all the user’s power. Even if he’s undergone Heavenly Demon Rebirth, it might not suffice… perhaps…”
They both thought of the same thing at once—Shuhu’s Prophecy!
Shuhu’s prophecy of the Heavenly Demon Rebirth was now only a year away! After another cycle of spring, summer, autumn, and winter, the new year would mark the prophesied deadline. They just didn’t know the precise moment.
Assuming the Heavenly Demon successfully reincarnated in a year, all the thick Baleful Qi in Shenzhou Great Land would be absorbed into its body, becoming part of its form—a power to change the world, and the perfect moment for casting.
“King Mu needs to manufacture death,” Xiao Kun finally pieced together the complex clues.
In the Kaifeng battle, King Mu sent Mr. Qin to recreate a Song Emperor, aiming to ignite a war across the Central Plains. Had they not stopped it, a Demon Person as Great Song ruler would march north, causing millions of deaths. With enough Baleful Qi gathered, he would complete the final step and reincarnate as the Heavenly Demon true body!
And Mr. Liu’s Ba Army now prepared for that slaughter feast.
Xiang Xian said: “Xiao Kun.”
Xiao Kun: “?”
Xiang Xian, having sorted it out, said excitedly: “I think Shuhu’s Prophecy can be changed!”
Xiao Kun didn’t follow, so Xiang Xian quickly explained: “I get it! King Mu’s original plan was to corrupt the Official Family. By his design, Great Song would fall at Shuhu’s prophesied time, but we accidentally foiled that!”
Xiao Kun suddenly understood. “That’s it. So he’s seeking other ways to kill.”
For some reason, hearing that Shuhu’s Prophecy could be altered filled Xiao Kun with complex feelings—it meant the third prophecy wasn’t absolute, more like a “prediction.”
But regardless, after so many emotional trials, their bond had changed.
Xiao Kun felt that with Xiang Xian back, he finally had someone to rely on. Many fog-shrouded key details were gradually unveiled.
Aside from being even more handsy than before, Xiao Kun was very grateful.
“Don’t squirm!” Xiao Kun said. “Can’t you talk properly without moving?”
Xiang Xian kept leaning back, forcing Xiao Kun to make space. Otherwise, with the horse’s motion, being pressed against him would lead to impropriety amid the jostling.
“This horse is too bony,” Xiang Xian said. “All bones—uncomfortable to ride.”
“Go back to yours.” Xiao Kun shooed Xiang Xian to the other horse.
At that moment, a bird call rang out. A Huang arrived with his flock, gliding high overhead.
“You’re heading back to Gumo?” A Huang said.
“What’s wrong?” Xiang Xian sensed trouble.
A Huang: “Gumo is full of their people now.”
“What?” Xiao Kun hadn’t caught on yet.
A Huang: “There’s Demonic Qi in the Royal Palace. I didn’t want to go in. The city’s people are all trapped. The enemies aren’t just Mr. Liu—there are two Demon Persons too. I couldn’t see clearly.”
