Chapter 74

It was as if they had returned to those early days.

Liu Shuang treated Yan Chaosheng as an ally, the best days they had.

A searing hug shattered all the silence he had maintained before.

The rain hadn’t stopped since evening, and Liu Shuang lay on a small couch, her eyes wide open under the glow of the pearl light.

She knew Yan Chaosheng wasn’t asleep either.

Before Yan Chaosheng’s army set off, the kiss on her forehead, and the current embrace, were no different from a porcupine covered in sharp quills, now revealing its soft belly in front of her.

But was all this real?

In her past life, when he was the Demon Lord, he was even more devoted than this—he even blocked the lightning for her.

She believed him, but ended up with a corpse without a full body, Canglan as a burial gift for his cruelty.

She thought about many things, planning carefully, step by step, including the letters she had written to her father, hoping that Chishui Chong would believe her this time.

And then there was Bai Zhuixu.

She was calculating how long she could nurture him before he had a chance of resurrection.

She thought of many things, even thinking about Shaoyou, the one without a spiritual vein.

What would happen to him now…?

Until Yan Chaosheng came to her bedside: “Can’t sleep here? Go to the bed.”

She raised her gaze to look at him and shook her head: “You’re injured.”

Yan Chaosheng bent down and picked her up: “It’s fine, it doesn’t hurt.”

She was surprised by his actions, afraid of touching his wound, and didn’t move.

Yan Chaosheng set her down and was about to leave when Liu Shuang gently tugged at his sleeve.

She said, “How about you sleep here too? The bed is so wide.”

After saying that, she moved back, giving him most of the space.

Yet her hand that was holding his sleeve didn’t let go.

Yan Chaosheng remained silent for a long while.

Reason told him this felt too much like a sweet plot, yet he still lay down fully dressed beside her, quietly watching her.

He wanted to know what she was really up to, how far she would go.

If he gave her everything, would she like him a bit more?

Yan Chaosheng: “Will you still leave?”

“This is uncertain,” she answered honestly.

“My father is worried about me, and I still have to go back to Kongsang to take a look.”

“Then I’ll take you there when the time comes.”

She cautiously glanced at him: “After what my father did to you, do you still hate Kongsang?”

Their relationship had broken down from the beginning, starting from the Demon Suppression Tower, when Chishui Chong had gone back on his word and tried to kill him.

Yan Chaosheng had once said that demons would always repay a grudge, no matter how small.

Yan Chaosheng said, “As long as you’re still here, I don’t hate them.”

This was the first time they spoke of this subject, and she couldn’t help but look at him: “You won’t harm Kongsang?”

“No,” he said.

Liu Shuang looked into his eyes, and to her surprise, he wasn’t lying.

Perhaps from the beginning, if someone had been able to soothe his hatred for Kongsang, the outcome would have been different.

At this moment, she strangely didn’t want to see his pitch-black eyes.

Turning her back, she softly said, “Go to sleep.”

The room was filled with the glowing pearl light and the faint fragrance of sandalwood.

She lay with her arm under her head.

Even without looking back, she knew he was watching her.

The spiritual medicine Liu Shuang brought had resolved the urgent crisis for the people in the Demon Palace.

Even the usually silent Fuheng couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Most of the demons were tough, but without medicine, their wounds were too severe, and it would have been hard to survive through this winter.

As a result, the demons in the Demon Palace were beginning to treat Liu Shuang with more respect.

At first, they had revered her out of respect for Yan Chaosheng, but now it wasn’t just that.

When Liu Shuang went out in the morning, she received a flower from a little demon girl.

“Here, it’s for you.”

The girl looked thin and gaunt, her cheeks almost sunken in, but her eyes shone with anticipation as she looked at Liu Shuang.

“Thank you for your medicine, you saved my father.”

Her small hands were so thin they seemed almost skeletal, with scars on her fingers, but the purple flower in her hand still glistened with dew.

Liu Shuang knew that for demons, purple was the most revered and auspicious color.

Looking into the girl’s eyes, despite all the hatred in her heart, she felt as though she had been gently nudged.

Liu Shuang took the flower with both hands: “Thank you, I really like it.”

The little girl smiled brightly at her.

“Your injury, how did it happen?”

The little girl followed her gaze to her bony arm and said in a fragile voice, “I was captured by a disciple from a immortal sect, to be used in making magic tools. I was too young. He didn’t kill me, just peeled off my nails for medicine. I’m a pangolin. My father says, when I grow up, I’ll be able to crawl through the toughest mountains.”

Liu Shuang gently blew on her bruised fingers and smiled: “You’re really brave. Be sure to grow up well, and be as strong as you say.”

Her spiritual energy quietly soothed the little girl’s fingers, taking away the pain.

“With the mountain lord around, I will,” the girl said with firm conviction.

“My little brother will too. We won’t end up like our mother, who was captured and had her nails peeled off, her original form used in medicine.”

Liu Shuang lowered her gaze, softly replying, “Mm,” as she watched the little girl run off.

The girl was still young, and the hatred toward the immortals hadn’t seeped into her bones. She didn’t blame all immortal for her pain, and she had even gone to great lengths to pick the purple flower to give to Liu Shuang.

How many children of the demon race were like this? Yan Chaosheng’s kiss didn’t move her, but now, a trembling little flower from a demon child made Liu Shuang waver in her resolve.

If it weren’t for Yan Chaosheng, would these demon children, in the end, be burned to nothing like her own Canglan?

In this lifetime, nothing had happened… but if there were no Yan Chaosheng, would these children be skinned and dismembered, and would anyone be left to protect them?

Yan Chaosheng saw the flower in her hand and asked, “Did someone from the Demon Palace give this to you?”

Liu Shuang nodded.

She really liked this little flower, and Yan Chaosheng could tell.

She held it in her hand and never let go.

“This flower is called the Jiji flower. Its stem is edible, sweet in taste. The little demons often eat it like candy,” he said.

Liu Shuang, curious, asked, “Have you eaten it?”

“I ate it when I was young,” Yan Chaosheng replied.

“It was hard to find food back then. When we were starving, we ate anything. The Jiji flower was the best-tasting thing we could find, but it didn’t really fill us up.”

He rarely spoke openly about his past, so Liu Shuang simply asked a question she had been curious about for a long time: “What is your bloodline? Why don’t you have a true form?”

She knew Yan Chaosheng had snake blood, but there were many kinds of snakes, and in both their past and present lives, she had never seen him transform into his true form.

Yan Chaosheng paused and then looked up: “If you’re curious, you can come over and take a look yourself.”

He hadn’t wanted to answer this question, but said this because he was certain Liu Shuang wouldn’t come closer to him to examine his body.

Although the two of them had been sleeping in the same bed these past few days, she only occupied a small corner and slept very properly.

Yan Chaosheng didn’t remove his clothes, and as long as they both maintained their composure, this seemed to be nothing to be ashamed of.

But what Yan Chaosheng hadn’t expected was that a girl’s curiosity could sometimes be terrifyingly strong.

Liu Shuang really did walk over.

She blinked and said, “Didn’t you say I could have a look?”

He turned his eyes away, his body stiffened, and he quickly backtracked, “It’s not worth looking at.”

She seriously replied, “It’s okay.”

Yan Chaosheng found it hard to retract his words, especially under her eager gaze.

After hesitating for a long time, he rolled up his sleeve.

He stared at her, ready to pull his sleeve down the moment he saw any disgust in her eyes.

Yan Chaosheng vaguely remembered a year ago, when they were at the Lotus Platform by Nine Thoughts Pool, and he had been so badly injured.

Even though his body was covered in snake scales, he didn’t want her to see them.

His hand had been broken, but he still tried to cover his clothes.

At that time, he never imagined that one day, he would willingly show her the body he once found repulsive.

He had to admit, he was a little nervous.

Liu Shuang gently supported his arm, looking at it with curiosity.

Yan Chaosheng’s hidden bloodline must have been extraordinary, and she knew that Clear Essence Jade wouldn’t have made him this strong.

The strength of a demon often related to their own bloodline.

Her gaze didn’t show any disgust, nor did she force any false comfort.

Under her calm and appraising gaze, Yan Chaosheng slowly relaxed his tense body.

His black snake scales had faded, now a pale grayish-white, likely due to his injuries.

This grayish-white color looked rather dull.

It was much more presentable than before, though still not particularly beautiful.

Yan Chaosheng knew that if he ever fully grew and restored his true form, it would be a majestic silver body, similar to a dragon or a flood dragon.

At that time, his true form would no longer be unappealing, but rather quite imposing.

She reached out and poked it.

It was cold and the scales felt rigid, sharp with an attacking force, but because of their cold sharpness, they removed the dark and sticky nature inherent in his snake blood.

What exactly was Yan Chaosheng?

Seeing her touch him, Yan Chaosheng looked up and asked, “You don’t hate it?”

She replied seriously, “It looks pretty impressive. It’s like protective armor.”

She knew that for demons, strong and hard armor was the hope of survival.

Yan Chaosheng’s eyes glinted with a faint smile: “Mm.”

He said, “Once my injuries heal, I can cover the scales, and it will be no different from human skin.”

So, it wouldn’t always look so unattractive.

For some reason, she understood him.

Perhaps because of the sandalwood incense filling the room, she didn’t feel awkward looking at his arm, but now, with the shared bed and closeness, she felt strangely self-conscious.

She hurriedly lowered his sleeve.

She looked at it but couldn’t discern anything particularly special, let alone differentiate Yan Chaosheng’s true form or bloodline with her naked eye.

He pursed his lips and didn’t say anything.

The next day, Yan Chaosheng brought out a purple fruit from somewhere: “This is for you. Try it if you want.”

He used to give her spiritual treasures or magic tools, and perhaps because she liked the Jiji flower yesterday, today he gave her a small spiritual fruit.

Liu Shuang took a bite.

It was very sweet.

Seeing her eat it without hesitation, Yan Chaosheng didn’t react further.

His demeanor was calm, just like when the little demon girl had given her the flower.

Because of his calmness, Liu Shuang didn’t think much of it.

At this time, fruits were rare in the human world, let alone spiritual fruits in the demon mountains where the palaces were being trimmed.

Liu Shuang had no idea where he had picked this spiritual fruit from, as the Demon Palace didn’t have any spiritual fruit trees.

From then on, a small purple fruit appeared every day, and Liu Shuang ate it like a spiritual fruit, until one day, Cong Xia came to deliver medicine and saw her biting into the half-eaten fruit in her hand.

Her eyes turned red with jealousy: “The mountain lord gave you this?!”

Her tone made it sound like Liu Shuang was eating her heart and liver.

Liu Shuang asked, “What is this?”

Chong Xia snapped, “You don’t even know what it is, and you’re eating it? Spit it out!”

The more Chong Xia raged, the more curious Liu Shuang became about the fruit’s origin.

“Is it a very powerful spiritual fruit?”

“Spiritual fruit? This is a Demon’s Oath Fruit!” Chong Xia was furious.

The Demon’s Oath Fruit, when eaten, doesn’t increase spiritual energy; it’s just sweet and refreshing.

However, such a fruit is used by demons to flatter their partners.

By binding one’s heart’s blood with the fruit tree, the fruit that it bears, when given to someone, signifies loyalty to that person.

If one were to betray them someday, it would be only fitting to suffer the consequences, as severe as having one’s intestines torn apart.

It is equivalent to a vow of chastity.

Such spiritual fruits are typically used by high-ranking demons to bind female demons, preventing them from engaging in relationships outside of the pact, thus preserving their own authority.

Yan Chaosheng had actually given her this fruit to eat.

After realizing this, Liu Shuang almost choked on the fruit.

She couldn’t swallow or spit it out.

Yan Chaosheng… Why did he give her this? What was he hoping to gain from her? Was it really love?

Demons are often wild and free-spirited, not to mention the immortal who care little about such things.

However, he had silently given her a vow of loyalty—something she never expected.

The sweet fruit, in an instant, lost all its flavor.

As she remembered how happily she had eaten quite a few of them these past days, she could almost see Yan Chaosheng’s gaze from then.

Liu Shuang stared at the fruit in her hand, her expression barely holding back.

Cong Xia was furious and said, “You… what kind of look is that?!”

It was no wonder Cong Xia looked like the sky was about to fall.

Yan Chaosheng had even given Liu Shuang the Oath Fruit.

After this, forget about marrying Yan Chaosheng, even a fleeting moment of affection would be impossible for Cong Xia.

The Oath Fruit was meant to bind oneself—who would really give such a thing to someone else as a treat?

How much of it had Liu Shuang eaten?

If Yan Chaosheng betrayed her, the backlash he would face in the future would be all the more severe.

Liu Shuang silently counted in her mind—great, even spitting it out now wouldn’t help.

She had been eating one fruit a day, treating them as spiritual fruits, and it had been half a month already.

Yan Chaosheng had been so calm, giving her one every day.

She knew that mature demons had mating seasons, but did Yan Chaosheng not fear death?