Thriving after the Moon Falls (I Can’t Possibly Take Pity On A Demon) - Chapter 48

The demons gathered together, chattering noisily.

After all, they were all great demons who had lived for ten thousand years. Someone said, “This Black Snake’s true form looks somewhat familiar.”

But they couldn’t recall who it resembled.

“Regardless of who it resembles, disturbing Lord Night Demon Luo is a death sentence.”

Ye Li suddenly said, “You really have been imprisoned to the point of uselessness. Even him, you don’t recognize? If they don’t know, what about you, Meng Ji? Don’t you recognize him either?”

The female demon’s lips trembled, her eyes wide open, shaking for a long time without uttering a word.

Ye Li sneered, “He borrowed your womb to gestate for a hundred years. You should be quite familiar with him.”

Upon hearing this, the demons exclaimed in disbelief, “Is it His Highness?”

This news was like boiling a dead sea. None of the demons had expected to live to see the day when they would encounter the descendant of an ancient emperor.

“This is bad. His Highness’s dharma body has not yet fully formed. He shouldn’t appear in the Demon Suppressing Tower. Now that the immortal guards have discovered him, we must assist him.”

The great demons all agreed. They were trapped here, but Yan Chaosheng could not be. They immediately prepared to use all their might to stop the immortal guards.

Ye Li said, “Do not act recklessly. What you need is a king, not a waste who cannot awaken his bloodline.”

“Ye Li, how dare you disrespect His Highness!”

Ye Li laughed, “Disrespect? No, in the Eight Wilderness, no one respects the descendants of Xiangliu more than I do. But his bloodline has not awakened; he is not yet the true his highness. Whether his dharma body is fully formed or not, if he fears the immortal guards in the Demon Suppressing Tower, then he cannot wait for the day of transformation and cannot shoulder the responsibilities of the Xiangliu clan and the demon clan. Dying today would be no loss.”

Ye Li licked his lips, “Don’t worry. When he becomes cold-blooded, cruel, and warlike, that will be the day the demon clan welcomes its true dawn.”

Meng Ji murmured, “Can we wait until that day?”

Ye Li closed his eyes and said calmly, “Isn’t it almost here?”

On His Highness’s true form, there was now only hatred and anger.

Yan Chaosheng, seeing the immortal guards about to catch up, felt a surge of killing intent.

The true form of a demon has all the inherent flaws of demonkind, including a love for battle, bloodlust, arrogance, and conceit. In fact, Yan Chaosheng had been outside the tower for nearly a month.

Many things had happened that Liu shuang did not know about.

After Liu shuang left the Kongsang, Yan Chaosheng had already sensed something was amiss.

Liu shuang’s attitude seemed not to be one of deep love for him.

Yan Chaosheng’s heart sank continuously, but before he could set out to find Liu shuang, Kongsang had already assigned him a mission, personally ordered by Chishui Chong—

To exterminate demons in a human town.

When he received the token, Yan Chaosheng’s expression was calm.

The immortal messenger who handed him the token sneered at him. Assigning a demon to slaughter his own kind was a task given to Yan Chaosheng, which seemed like a mockery.

“Do you refuse?”

Yan Chaosheng said, “This disciple will definitely complete the mission.”

There was no refusal. The path to immortality required sacrifices. From the moment he agreed with the little wolf demon’s words and embarked on the path of immortality, he had already abandoned many things.

He understood that demons in the Eight Wilderness had no dignity. He didn’t need that either. Along the way, his companions had died one by one. He had long realized that only by abandoning his identity and becoming an immortal could he truly stand firm.

If integrating with them and becoming a qualified immortal required him to exterminate demons, he would do it. He would even be more decisive than anyone else.

The immortal messenger, seeing the calmness in his eyes, glanced at him a few more times, then said indifferently, “Set out the day after tomorrow.”

Before departure, Mi Chu came to visit him, “Is there anything I can help you with on this mission? Liu shuang asked me to take good care of you. You’ve been here for several days, and I feel ashamed that I haven’t done anything for you. Please accept this soft armor; it might protect you.”

Her eyes were gentle, filled with concern. Yan Chaosheng looked up at her.

Logically, someone who had lacked care and love since childhood would be very sensitive to kindness from others. Most people, when shown a little kindness, would be deeply grateful.

Yan Chaosheng had once been no exception.

He had once craved love and attention more than most pitiful people.

However, life had forced him to see many things clearly.

He remembered the first time someone showed him kindness was a female demon in his childhood. The female demon said she had lost her child and, seeing Yan Chaosheng’s beauty and cuteness, wanted to be his mother.

The little demon snake had no mother. Everything he desired, when spoken by the female demon, made him easily extend his small hand to her.

On the way home with the female demon, the little demon snake fantasized countless times about a life with a home, no longer needing to sleep in the open, and how he would protect his mother when he grew up.

Later, the female demon died in the pot meant to cook him. The little demon snake, pale and cold, realized that the first person to show him kindness had done so because she saw his weakness and wanted to eat him.

Another time, it was a female demon in the mountains when Yan Chaosheng was just beginning to understand love.

But that kindness, before the seed of love and goodwill in the young boy could sprout, lasted less than three days. They were attracted to his appearance, wanting a fleeting romance.

As he grew older, Yan Chaosheng also encountered a wandering immortal who taught him many things.

The wandering immortal helped Yan Chaosheng escape from the pursuit of Taoists, took him back to his cave, and treated his wounds. Yan Chaosheng once regarded him as his master, only to later discover that the wandering immortal had a son whose eyes had been blinded by a plot and needed a pair of eyes that could suppress poison. Fearing the consequences of killing an immortal, he chose a demon.

The wandering immortal, with some ability, saw that Yan Chaosheng’s demon eyes were slightly different from other demons and set his sights on him.

He indeed succeeded, plunging a dagger into Yan Chaosheng’s eyes.

However, despite exhausting all his efforts, the wandering immortal could not remove Yan Chaosheng’s eyes. Yan Chaosheng’s black pupils turned silver, blood flowing from his eyes as he stared at the wandering immortal, not shedding a single tear.

After so many years, Yan Chaosheng still seemed to remember the pain of the dagger piercing his eyes.

Now, Mi Chu’s gift of soft armor was another act of kindness. Yan Chaosheng paused, then smiled and accepted it, “Thank you, Immortal Mi Chu.”

He lowered his eyes, cold inside, pondering Mi Chu’s intentions. What did this Mi Chu want from him?

Yan Chaosheng couldn’t help but think of another person, the little immortal who had pushed him into Mi Chu’s palace, making him grind his teeth in hatred these past few days.

Mi Chu’s act of giving a gift only fueled his anger.

Was this what Chishui Liushuang wanted? Did she really not care at all if he developed feelings for Mi Chu?

Yan Chaosheng wanted to go to the Demon Suppressing Tower to ask for clarity, but the token on his body reminded him that this was his first mission. He had to complete it excellently before he could go find her.

He followed three immortal elders to a small town in the human world.

Yan Chaosheng surveyed the area but found no trace of demonic energy. The town was sparsely populated.

He reported his findings to the group, but the elders impatiently said, “We already told you it’s a great demon causing trouble. If it were so easily discovered, we wouldn’t need to be here. Just a brat, do your job.”

Yan Chaosheng respectfully replied, “Yes.”

The elders had him set up a formation outside the town, which he did. By the time the formation was complete, it was a full moon night in the human world.

“Tonight is the time to close the net.”

Yan Chaosheng, sensing something, slowly clenched his fists.

One of the elders pointed his sword at him, “We came here to capture you, you wretch. We don’t know why you came to Kongsang, but Kongsang will not tolerate those with sinister intentions.”

Yan Chaosheng hoarsely said, “This disciple only wanted to seek immortality, to follow the path of the immortals. I have never harbored any ill intentions towards Kongsang.”

“Those not of our kind must have different hearts. If you were as honest as you claim, why would you hide and seal your bloodline? Even the realm lord cannot discern what kind of demon you are. How dare you say you harbor no ill intentions!”

But since birth, he didn’t even know his own bloodline and had never been able to manifest his true form. This wasn’t his fault.

“No need to waste words on him. Just kill him.”

That night, amidst the clashing of swords and the flashing of blades, Yan Chaosheng, though his cultivation had recovered and his power had greatly increased, was no match for the three elders. The demon-slaying formation lit up beneath his feet.

Trapped in the formation, he looked up at these hypocritical immortals and for the first time realized the absurdity of his years of struggle.

Was this the group he had sought, for whom he had endured humiliation and knelt in supplication?

Yan Chaosheng’s eyes grew colder, filled with hatred.

Just before he was about to die under their formation, his bones shifted, and then, in their eyes, he saw his own form.

He, or rather, it, its body suddenly grew taller.

A giant snake, tens of feet tall, rose from the ground, looking down at them.

In such a critical moment, to survive, he had forcibly manifested his true form for the first time. The elders looked at him in shock, “What kind of demon is this? We’ve never seen it before.”

The demon body was savage, breaking through the formation. He opened his mouth, filled with hatred, his eyes cold, with only one thought in mind: kill them!

The elders were terrified by his desperate fighting style. But just as Yan Chaosheng was about to bite off an elder’s neck, he thought of something, his eyes showing restraint and a hint of hatred. He suddenly released his grip and fled towards the human town.

The demon body was extremely fast, leaving the three elders behind, looking at each other in confusion.

Yan Chaosheng didn’t know why he had come to the Demon Suppressing Tower.

His body was covered in blood from the forced manifestation of his true form, even his eyes were bloodshot.

He knew he couldn’t kill; once he killed, he would be like when he killed several Taoists as a child, rejected by the Eight Wilderness.

Even if they tried to kill him first.

He looked up at the Demon Suppressing Tower, the overwhelming demonic energy inside was something he could sense from afar. Yan Chaosheng’s heart was filled with hatred, not only towards Kongsang for rejecting him but also towards her.

He wasn’t stupid. He had walked through countless stages of human life. Although he hadn’t experienced it himself, he had seen many deeply loving couples and the coldness of the world.

When Liu shuang pushed him towards Mi Chu, he had already understood many things.

Chishui Chong’s attempt to kill him was the final trigger. He wanted to ask if Kongsang’s intent to kill him also had her approval.

If they had never accepted him, why had they done so much for him?

Was she like the others he had encountered on his journey, wanting something from him? But with his lowly status, what could she possibly gain from him? Was she following Chishui Chong’s orders to test his origins and bloodline?

He transformed into a human youth, sitting coldly not far away, letting the anger surge within him.

He didn’t want to admit that beneath the overwhelming hatred, there was still a young, not yet fully grown, shallow sense of unwillingness and grievance.

It occasionally rained outside the Demon Suppressing Tower.

He knew it was a place where great demons were imprisoned; they couldn’t get out, and he dared not enter.

Days passed, and he knew that she couldn’t see what he had been through these days, nor could she hear his feelings.

That day at the Nine Thought Pond, when he took her hand and asked her to dig out his core, seemed like a joke now.

If she didn’t love him, why had she treated him like this? Wouldn’t it have been better to treat him like Bai Yuxiao from the start?

His wounds hadn’t healed, but he hadn’t left either.

Yan Chaosheng couldn’t explain what he was waiting for. Perhaps he was waiting for the day she would come out, so he could transform and strangle her.

He had been deceived many times, but the deepest wound, the one he was most unwilling to admit, was this one. The female demon who wanted to eat him was pushed into the furnace by him; the wandering immortal who wanted to gouge out his eyes was killed by him.

Only she…

She hadn’t even said what she wanted, and he had already taken her hand to touch the most precious core of a demon.

Yan Chaosheng thought of Bi Xun. He had once mocked Bi Xun, thinking Bi Xun was a disgrace to the demon race. Only now did he realize that he was no different from Bi Xun.

If he didn’t cut off this inexplicable affection, he would end up like Bi Xun—he would die.

He waited fiercely for nearly a month, and finally, one morning, he saw her walk to the base of the tower. However, the girl did not leave the tower; she formed hand seals and picked the most beautiful flower that bloomed at dawn.

Yan Chaosheng looked up. At the top of the Demon Suppressing Tower, he sensed danger.

His silver pupils flickered.

His heart felt heavy and oppressive. A cold voice inside him said that her father wanted to kill him. Since he didn’t need to act, and she was in danger, why bother?

Yan Chaosheng lowered his eyes, his fingers tightening.

His silver pupils looked towards the thirty-second floor, where a faint red mist enveloped the area. The sense of foreboding in his heart grew stronger.

Unable to bear it any longer, he transformed into his true form and rushed into the Demon Suppressing Tower. At that moment, Yan Chaosheng told himself that he was going to get an answer.

He couldn’t let her deceive him and then die so easily.

Now, Yan Chaosheng had successfully snatched Liu shuang. His snake eyes, like huge lanterns, looked back at the girl he had coiled around, the tail around her waist tightening.

She was left with only a belly band, and worse, she was poisoned by a love flower, unaware of fear or disgust, unable to see the cold gaze of the Black Snake, only knowing that his snake body was cool and comfortable, so she hugged his tail.

Her body was delicate, and under his massive form, a flick of his tail could strangle her.

To exact revenge.

As he had said before, demons were like this. Her father wanted to kill him, and she had deceived him. He should take revenge on her.

The girl, unaware of the coldness in his eyes, unconsciously relied on him.

The blood under his scales stained her clothes.

As the immortal guards approached, Yan Chaosheng’s eyes grew colder. Frustrated, he threw her down.

She fell to the ground, her misty eyes looking at him. The belly band, barely hanging on, slipped halfway off from the struggle.

A scene of boundless spring.

The Black Snake’s pupils contracted, wishing he could devour her.

The pursuers arrived, and the Black Snake’s body flashed with light. The colorful feathers originally meant to contain Qingluan now enveloped them.

Inside the realm of the feathers, there was only a half-dead egg, a massive Black Snake, and a half-naked girl.

Yan Chaosheng coldly looked at her. Poisoned by the love flower, she only felt heat.

Whenever she tried to get close to him, he would flick her away with his tail. Unconsciously, his seemingly harsh actions left no mark on her.

Finally, the delirious girl could only cling to the egg for relief.

The demon bird egg had grown considerably, almost as big as her.

Yan Chaosheng grew even angrier.

He coiled his tail around her and pressed her down firmly.

“Hot…” she murmured.

Malice surged within him. He shrank his body, the demon’s inherent cruelty and capriciousness making him not even want to take human form as he closed in on her.

His tail slipped under her belly band, his silver eyes gleaming as he coiled around her inch by inch.

Deceiving him, daring to deceive him, deceiving him to the point of wanting to dig out his core!

Even now, he was fixated on an answer, “Explain yourself, and I might turn back into human form.”

She could no longer hear him clearly, her misty eyes glistening with tears, breathing heavily. Never had she looked more like a femme fatale.

With just one glance, he couldn’t tell if she was mad or if he was.

He coldly laughed, “Close your eyes, or else, Chishui Liushuang, do you want to be the first immortal to die from coupling with a demon?”

The belly band lay beside the demon egg as his menacing voice closed in on her. The demon’s nature no longer concealed, he maliciously said, “Depending on my mood, I might spare your life.”