Eternal Love Within A Smile - Chapter 40
Chapter 40
Having devoured and refined the Fate-Defying Envoy, Demon Lord Langyin’s strength reached an even higher level.
Not daring to underestimate him, Ao Xiu hastily released Xu Manman, gathering his focus to manipulate the spell array.
“Break!”
Extremely swift to react, his very first move was not to attack Demon Lord Langyin directly, but to force Mingxiao to retract his magical manifestation.
The Wanxiang Compass abruptly vanished, returning the Shennong Temple to the illumination of daylight.
Though the afternoon sunlight was not scorching, it still felt like burning fire to Demon Lord Langyin.
Brows furrowing, his movements showed no hesitation whatsoever as he snatched Xu Manman back from Ao Xiu’s side, holding her tightly in his arms.
“Freeze!”
The moment Demon Lord Langyin caught Xu Manman, Ao Xiu froze the space and time around him, attempting to use the power of the Five Elements to crush and execute Demon Lord Langyin in the next instant.
Shielding Xu Manman in his arms, Demon Lord Langyin bore the full brunt of thunder, frost, snow, and blazing fire across his back.
In that frozen space and time, Xu Manman could only tilt her head up, gazing back into Demon Venerable Langyin’s deep eyes as they lured her step by step into falling for him.
—Langyin…
Whether a single moment or eternity, whether Immortal Lord or Demon Lord, the two words “Langyin” turned a thousand times in her heart, finally settling heavily within her soul.
The moment space and time returned to normal, blood trickled from the corner of Demon Lord Langyin’s lips. Yet, disregarding his own injuries, he shattered the golden chains binding Xu Manman.
Looking at Ao Xiu, Mingxiao frowned and said, “You were originally proficient in spell arrays, yet you feigned ignorance to deliberately fish for information about it.”
Li Ying said, “He also intentionally stoked everyone’s suspicion toward Mingxiao Fazun. If the spell array remained in Fazun’s control, it wouldn’t have been so easy for him to seize the array eye.”
The Demon Race was unsuited for spell arrays because their kind was generally low in intelligence. However, not all demons were like that; the intellect of Li Ying and Ao Xiu far surpassed ordinary beings, and Ao Xiu’s scheming was something few could ever hope to match.
Perhaps, just as Xu Manman had said, for an ordinary person with average talent to reach the supreme peak, they always had to rely on unorthodox means.
Except Xu Manman’s unorthodox methods still possessed principles and bottom lines, whereas Ao Xiu’s path was littered with dead bodies and rivers of blood.
Just as Demon Lord Langyin was about to set Xu Manman down to deal with Ao Xiu, Xu Manman held him tightly.
“Hold me tight,” Xu Manman whispered softly.
Demon Lord Langyin’s heart trembled. Looking down at her, he saw that she had closed her eyes, her raven-wing eyelashes shielding her eyes—looking pitiable and endearing, as if waiting for a lover’s tender kiss.
Yet in the next instant, her body went limp and slid downward.
Catching her soft waist just in time, Demon Lord Langyin cradled her carefully in his arms, watching helplessly as her divine soul left her physical body. Standing before him, her countenance was gentle and holy, looking like a descending goddess.
Xu Manman turned around to look at Ao Xiu, and a foreboding feeling instantly arose in Ao Xiu’s heart.
This was Xu Manman’s ultimate trump card. Had it not been a last resort, she wouldn’t have wanted to reveal it so soon.
Taking a deep breath, she formed hand seals with both hands, letting herself sink into that mysterious state of cultivation. At that moment, countless voices surged back to fill her divine aperture. She merged into this realm, becoming a part of this world, and becoming the god of this domain. Every grain of sand, every fallen leaf, and even every wispy breeze here became as clear as the lines on her palm. With a single thought, everything fell under her control.
In the eyes of the onlookers, they saw only that dazzling, goddess-like phantom floating in midair. A gentle breeze lifted her dark hair, bowing at her feet to await her command. Only those with deep cultivation and steadfast hearts could barely resist the temptation to prostrate and worship her devoutly.
To control such a massive spell array, one had to occupy the array eye; but to destroy it, there were countless ways. In Xu Manman’s consciousness, she clearly felt the path of every single rune in the array. Under her deliberate driving, the runes twisted and altered, losing their original function.
Ao Xiu discovered to his horror that the spell array had changed, and he had lost control over it.
The cages trapping everyone vanished at the exact same moment. Deprived of the spell array’s control, how could Ao Xiu possibly match the rest of the group?
Tuntun took the lead in charging at Ao Xiu, with Mingxiao and the others following closely behind. Unable to hold out for even a few rounds, Ao Xiu was defeated and captured without resistance.
From beginning to end, Demon Lord Langyin didn’t glance over there even once, simply holding Xu Manman’s physical body tightly while staring unblinkingly at her divine soul.
Having experimented many times during her previous cultivation, Xu Manman knew she could manipulate spell arrays this way. However, actually operating such a massive array consumed far more of her divine soul than expected. Once the array modification was complete, she lost consciousness. This time, without waiting for Demon Lord Langyin to act, her divine soul returned to her physical body on its own, sinking into her divine aperture.
However, she did not wake up, falling into a deep slumber instead.
Ning Xi ran over hastily.
Looking at Xu Manman’s pale face, she asked anxiously, “What happened to Master?”
Demon Lord Langyin did not answer. Scooping Xu Manman up in his arms, he walked straight out of the Shennong Temple.
It was as if everything behind him had nothing to do with him.
Xu Manman’s consciousness drifted in a sea of stars. Those distant, twinkling flickers seemed to sense the summons of some force, coming from thousands of miles away and coalescing from tiny dots into a dazzling stream of light that gently merged into her divine soul.
In her dream, she heard the whispers of this realm and the inner voices of all living beings in the world. Walking through the vast mortal realm, she let her pure, stainless body become tainted by karma, feeling sorrow for others’ sorrow and joy for others’ joy.
I am all living beings.
As this thought crossed her dazed mind, everything before her suddenly became crystal clear.
She saw battlefields littered with corpses, vultures gnawing on decaying flesh, jackdaws uttering shrill cries, and soundless wails echoing across the wilderness.
She saw ruined villages with crumbling walls, where withered elders and filthy, unkempt children waited numbly with hollow eyes for family members who would never return.
She saw chaotic, disorderly streets where emaciated, ragged children cried helplessly as they were sold into endless hell.
She saw extravagant mansions with carved beams and painted rafters, where lavish nobles stepped on the backs of servants whose rough, calloused hands trembled uncontrollably on the ground.
She walked through this mortal world, yet she could not simply walk past with her eyes closed.
Countless voices called out to her in the dark night. So she lit a torch and walked into that night without looking back.
The clamor of the mortal world, accompanied by vast and majestic power, surged into her body to become a part of her. Her illusory divine soul solidified once more, a spark burning in her heart that radiated dazzling light from the inside out, as if filling the missing piece she had always lacked.
Lifted by the power of all living beings, she flew higher and higher, her heart filled with something heavy yet scalding hot.
—Who am I?
—Where do I come from?
—Where am I going?
“Manman…”
“Manman…”
A familiar voice called her from behind. Jolting violently, she turned back, trying hard to see the person’s face, but could only make out a tall, slender silhouette.
That was…
The name was in her heart and on her lips, yet she couldn’t call it out.
His voice grew clearer and his figure closer as he reached his hand out to her.
“Manman…”
Instinctively reaching out, Xu Manman took his hand, their fingers intertwining. From his warm palm, she felt a steady, firm strength.
“Immortal Lord…”
Still unable to break free from her half-dreaming state, listening to Immortal Lord Langyin’s voice sounding both distant and close, her mind was flooded with too many voices that seemed to pull her toward another world. Only Langyin’s voice allowed her to find her way back.
All of a sudden, she understood what the heart-anchor her master spoke of truly was.
It was her origin, and also her destination.
Smiling at him, her lively eyes were slightly dazed with a sweet, sleepy dependence as if just waking from a dream. She called out softly once more.
“Immortal Lord…”
The scene before her was as ethereal as flowers in a mirror or the moon in water, yet it gradually became clear. She saw a dark-purple robe and a familiar, stern face with tightly knitted brows. The moment she opened her eyes, the worry in his dark eyes vanished in a flash, turning into a faint smile.
She heard his thin lips part slightly as he said with a curling smile in a low voice.
“Xu Manman, you’ve finally woken up.”
Hearing those words, Xu Manman froze instantly and snapped wide awake, sitting up abruptly on the bed. Silent scenes flashed through her mind, with only Tuntun’s words echoing clearly like thunder—Manman, what is your name now…
Tuntun’s words were more powerful than her fists, single-handedly striking Xu Manman senseless. Black spots danced before her eyes, and she couldn’t recover for a long time.
“I am not Xu Manman…” she croaked with a raspy voice, making a desperate last-ditch effort.
“Oh?” Demon Lord Langyin looked at her with a half-smile.
“Are you going to swear another Inner Demon Blood Oath? Saying that you are the person Xu Manman loves most, and also the person who loves Xu Manman most? Those words weren’t wrong though—who could love Xu Manman more than Xu Manman herself?”
Xu Manman’s heart twitched, almost leaving her unable to breathe. Her mind was a chaotic mess, not knowing how to explain her past actions. Her original plan had been to find her original remains, find a way to return to her original body, and then discard the identity of “Xu Yanyue.” What Xu Yanyue did and said had nothing to do with her, Xu Manman! But before this plan could be executed, Tuntun had exposed her identity in a single sentence, letting everyone know that Xu Yanyue was Xu Manman.
She, Xu Manman—the only female Daozun in the Daoist Alliance for three thousand years, clear and noble, upright and dignified—had now lost all her reputation and face…
Demon Lord Langyin raised a hand to stroke Xu Manman’s flushed face, his fingertips playfully rubbing the corner of her lips.
Resting his nose against hers, he let out a low chuckle and said, “Why is your face so red, and what are you afraid of? Even if you are Xu Manman, do you think I would eat you?”
Xu Manman shrank back involuntarily, retreating against the wall with nowhere else to go. Guilt-ridden and short of breath, her eyes flickered, not daring to meet Demon Lord Langyin’s aggressive gaze. Though it was the exact same face, the Immortal Lord was usually distant and cold, never possessing such an intimidating look. The unshielded aggressiveness gave her an overwhelming sense of pressure.
Feeling her throat bone-dry and her heart beating wildly, Xu Manman stammered, “Aren’t you… the Immortal Lord’s inner demon? Why…”
“I never claimed to be an inner demon. Does a weak demon creature like that even deserve to be compared with me?”
Demon Lord Langyin sneered in disdain. Tickling Xu Manman’s chin with his finger like playing with a cat, he said lazily, “It’s just that since you guessed that way, I simply played along.”
Xu Manman instantly felt a lump in her throat—she had been outsmarted by her own cleverness, placing too much trust in her own judgment!
“If you aren’t an inner demon, then what are you?” she asked in a trembling voice.
“Why could you come out during the day? What did you do to Immortal Lord Langyin?”
Carrying a meaningful smile, Demon Lord Langyin said slowly, “Have you still not figured it out? He and I have been the exact same person from the very beginning.”
Xu Manman’s head buzzed loudly, her eyes momentarily losing focus.
“The… same person?”
“Didn’t Nian Yi ever tell you? My true body was formed from the Primordial Chaos Qi of the God-Demon Battlefield. The divine qi, demonic qi, and chaos qi merged into three primordial energies to create the only Thousand-Leaf Wood Hibiscus in the world. It’s just that divine qi suppresses demonic qi. After leaving Mount Liangjie, I could only suppress my demonic qi during the day and hide it in my sea of consciousness, regaining my full power only at night.”
Xu Manman was completely stunned. Opening her lips slightly, she stammered,”So from the very beginning, you… the Immortal Lord knew every single thing I did…”
“Mm.”
Demon Lord Langyin nodded with a half-smile.
“What, you had the courage to do those things to me, but lacked the courage to let the Immortal Lord know? What difference is there between us? You ought to understand one thing: the one before you right now is the true, complete Langyin.”
The things she did to the Demon Lorde were an offense; but if placed on the Immortal Lord, they were outright desecration!
The Immortal Lord had known about her actions from start to finish, yet he endured time and again…
She had sycophantically and shamelessly called him “brother”…
She had bitten his neck…
She had forcibly kissed his lips…
Xu Manman’s face flushed bright red instantly.
Sapping strength from goodness-knows-where, she shoved Demon Lord Langyin away, scrambling to roll off the bed while babbling incoherently.
“I just remembered I have urgent business! Let’s stay in touch through dream-transmissions!”
However, the moment she tried to get off the bed, her body went limp, tumbling uncontrollably toward the floor. A long arm reached out from behind to catch her waist, scooping her into his arms and pinning her back down onto the soft bedding.
Demon Lord Langyin hovered over her, one hand supporting himself beside her ear, while the other raised her chin, forcing her to face him.
“Xu Manman, do you have a guilty conscience? Trying to run?” Demon Lord Langyin leaned down against her lips.
“Without settling our accounts, I won’t let you leave!”
“H-how do we settle it…” Xu Manman asked weakly.
Wiggling her body uneasily, she tried to break free from his restraint, but it was in vain. Instead, it brought their bodies closer together, allowing her to clearly feel the warmth and firmness of his body.
Demon Lord Langyin’s breathing deepened, dark desire surging in his deep black eyes. No longer suppressing his desire, he leaned down and kissed Xu Manman’s soft lips.
Xu Manman’s pupils shrank as she forgot to struggle; by the time she reacted, her mouth was already filled with Langyin’s breath.
He licked and sucked her lips, greedily invading her breath, entwining with her wet, soft tongue in deep affection.
All her resistance dissolved into delicate whimpers and rapid pants.
Xu Manman was kissed until her entire body turned soft. Her lower back was supported by one of Demon Lord Langyin’s hands, his scalding palm pressed firmly against the graceful curves of her body, forcing her waist to lift and press even closer against him.
Leaning against her slightly swollen lips, he said raspsily, “This is the account for the time underwater.”
Dazedly raising her eyes to look at him, she saw the immortal’s usually pale, thin lips stained rouge at some point.
Deep desire churned within his cold eyes, the corners of which were tinged with a vivid red flush.
He fell into demonhood, yet made her heart flutter…
“And the night at the medicine room…” Rubbing her lips, he placed one hand on her cheek and pinched her chin.
Recalling that night, Xu Manman remembered she had slapped him twice!
Her breath hitched as she closed her eyes, her eyelashes fluttering lightly as she willingly yet tremblingly waited for him to slap her back.
Instead, a light laugh came from above. In the next moment, warm, scalding lips fell upon the delicate, sensitive side of her neck.
Half of Xu Manman’s body turned weak, her face turning red enough to bleed. She bit her lower lip to force herself not to make embarrassing sounds.
Forced to tilt her slender neck back, she allowed his lips and tongue to wander along the side of her neck, waiting for him to take a bite. The skin kissed by his lips secretly flushed a moist peach-pink. Pausing briefly at the spot where her pulse throbbed, he deepened the pressure of his suction, then gently bit her as if in revenge.
“Ngh…”
Xu Manman couldn’t hold it back after all, a soft whimper escaping her mouth. Arching her body involuntarily, her slender back stretched like a drawn bow as she actively leaned into his embrace.
Demon Lord Langyin pulled her tightly into his arms, wishing he could rub her directly into his own body.
Burying his head against the side of her neck, his hot breath teased her sensitive earlobe as his raspy voice sounded beside her ear.
“Manman… how could I bear to hit you?”
Those soft words acted like a needle, pricking Xu Manman’s heart. A bitter ache spread across her chest, leaving her without the strength to resist.
Turning her head, she bumped straight into Demon Lord Langyin’s deep eyes.
“Are you truly the Immortal Lord?” Xu Manman’s voice was slightly raspy, laced with an inexplicable sweetness.
“Then why did I never see you at the Siyi Sect? The Immortal Lord sealed you away whenever night fell.”
Demon Lord Langyin bit her earlobe with playful resentment, saying in a raspy voice.
“Why do you think I suppressed my demonic qi and didn’t come out at night for three hundred years? Demonic qi is pure desire and hostility; if I didn’t seal myself while still conscious, I feared I wouldn’t be able to control myself at night and might hurt you in an impulse!”
Xu Manman’s heart shrank, the bitter ache in her heart outweighing the slight sting on her earlobe.
She realized with a shock.
“So that night at the medicine room, you didn’t suffer from qi deviation—I saw the complete Langyin… You thought I was dead, so you stopped sealing yourself…”
Yet she had been kept in the dark for three hundred years, never imagining this connection at all, naturally assuming he was Immortal Lord Langyin’s inner demon and focusing entirely on eliminating it…
Demon Lord Langyin nodded gently, turning his head to reveal the petal on the right side of his neck, complaining.
“You even bit me and sucked my blood.”
Looking at the purple petal, Xu Manman felt her face burn.
“I-I didn’t do it on purpose… Fine, I did it on purpose, I just hadn’t figured things out.”
“Heh…”
Demon Lord Langyin let out a low laugh.
“Since you know this is my natal flower, changing colors three times a day—no matter how its color changes, whether light white or deep red, I am still me. How is it that when it turned purple, you took me for another person?”
“I was confused and failed to recognize your true self…” Xu Manman lowered her eyes in shame, feeling her face burning intensely with nowhere to hide.
“Immortal Lord…”
“Hmm?” Demon Lord Langyin’s brow furrowed slightly as he lowered his voice beside her ear, half-coaxing and half-deceiving.
“Call me brother.”
Xu Manman’s heart pounded like a drum, feeling short of breath.
The word “brother” she had blurted out to beg for mercy back then sounded so ambiguous and romantic coming from his mouth now, carrying a whole different flavor…
Clearing her throat twice, Xu Manman turned her face away to reveal her bright red earlobe, unable to utter those two words.
Only after a long silence did she call out softly, “Langyin…”
Though Demon Venerable Langyin wasn’t completely satisfied, he reluctantly accepted it.
“Langyin… I’m sorry… I failed to recognize you earlier and did those things to you…”
Xu Manman glanced guiltily at the side of his neck, remembering how she had mistreated his flower form. ”
You must have wanted to kill me back then, enduring it all just to resurrect me.”
Feeling guilty in her heart, Xu Manman spoke in a low tone.
She thought Langyin would take the opportunity to retaliate, but to her surprise, he let out a low laugh and said slowly, “Manman, in truth, I never thought of resurrecting you.”
Xu Manman was shocked, snapping her head up to look at him.
“Because I knew that you weren’t dead.”
Langyin looked down at her, tracing her gorgeous features with his thumb as he said with a smile.
“Had I not known it was you, anyone else who desecrated me like that would have long been torn into pieces to serve as fertilizer for my flowers.”
Xu Manman went completely numb, her voice sounding raspy as she asked, “You… when did you recognize me?”
