Thriving after the Moon Falls (I Can’t Possibly Take Pity On A Demon) - Chapter 96
Chapter 96
Yan Chaosheng let out a short, almost desolate laugh.
He would have preferred Liu Shuang to glare at him, to fight with him, to vent her hatred and disgust.
He knew all too well how battered she had been when she came into this world, and he understood the bitterness and sorrow she carried in her heart.
She had been hurt so badly that she learned to defend herself with thorns, stabbing even the young Yan Chaosheng with wounds of his own.
She trusted no one.
Her heart was as hard as ice.
In the eyes of a cunning and cold-blooded demon lord, that was a good thing.
If she never loved anyone, she would never again be hurt like she was in the past.
But what he didn’t expect… was that the version of himself he could never become,the boy from the past would be like a stubborn seed growing on a cliff’s edge, breaking open the closed and wounded heart of Liu Shuang.
That boy made her timid now, awkward to the extreme, and yet she still offered him a soft, solemn apology.
So after all these years, no matter how much she had changed, she was still the same immortal grass who had once come to him with clear, unclouded eyes.
Yan Chaosheng’s heart felt as if it were being crushed.
The pain was suffocating.
He could no longer deny it—he was jealous.
So jealous it was killing him.
His little immortal grass didn’t love him anymore.
She had fallen for the boy from seven hundred years ago.
The apology she had just made wasn’t even meant for him.
It was for that boy.
She felt sorry for him.
All these years, Yan Chaosheng had buried his overwhelming regret and pain so deep he could hardly admit they existed.
Now, in a single moment, they surged up and drowned him.
The thing he had run from had been so casually exposed by her.
Like a beast baring its fangs, it opened its jaws wide to devour him whole.
That hollow laugh of his echoed through the palace hall.
Although it was Liu Shuang who had taken the first step toward breaking the stalemate, it was Yan Chaosheng who looked more devastated.
People were just like that.
Yan Chaosheng had clearly been using Liu Shuang’s guilt toward his younger self, but now that he had actually learned the truth of her feelings, his uncontrollable jealousy turned into a trap—one that had now caught and wounded him instead.
A voice sounded from outside:
“Your Majesty, there is an urgent matter requiring your presence in the main hall.”
And in the next moment, Liu Shuang felt the weight on her lift and Yan Chaosheng had vanished.
From start to finish, she had never managed to see his expression clearly.
She sighed, but deep down, she felt a strange sense of relief.
She pulled the brocade quilt over herself and buried into its softness.
Do your best and let fate decide.
She had never expected Yan Chaosheng to forgive her so easily.
But now that the first step was taken, she knew what she had to do next.
In truth, ever since she and Shaoyou agreed to the fake marriage, she had already started to distinguish between the future demon lord and the boy in front of her.
It was only because things had changed too suddenly afterward that the situation became what it was now.
Su Lun twirled his folding fan and raised a brow when he saw Yan Chaosheng walk out with a dark expression.
“The Demon Lord seems displeased?”
Yan Chaosheng curved his lips slightly and lifted his eyes.
“Su Lun, stop acting clever.”
Su Lun rubbed his nose.
He wasn’t trying to act clever, he really was naturally sharp.
Three days ago, an immortal maiden underwent her tribulation in the palace.
The Demon Lord shielded her from every thunder strike, then returned to the most sinister corner of the ghost realm to recover in seclusion for three days.
And just today, as soon as his injuries healed, the Demon Lord came looking for Su Lun, asking him to appear at the right moment outside the palace hall and call him away.
It really wasn’t that hard to guess what had happened.
His Majesty the Demon Lord would never truly harm Liu Shuang and he just needed to put on a show.
But it couldn’t go on without an exit plan, and that’s exactly why Su Lun had been brought in.
But even though he hadn’t arrived a moment late, he could still see that the Demon Lord wasn’t pleased.
The expression on Yan Chaosheng’s face as he exited the hall was so dark, it was as if he had come home to find his wife cheating on him.
Of course, Su Lun didn’t dare say that out loud and he only allowed himself a quiet laugh in his heart.
“But in truth, I did come to call on the Demon Lord for a reason. Your Majesty, there is a matter you should hear for yourself in the front hall.”
Yan Chaosheng followed Su Lun over.
Zhan Xueyang and Fu Heng were already there, waiting with a group of demon generals.
Fu Heng stepped forward and said, “Your Majesty, outside the gate of the Ghost Realm, the Immortal General Bai Yuxiao from Kongsang is demanding we release their young miss.”
As Yan Chaosheng walked down the long corridor, the jealousy weighing on his chest finally began to ease.
He sat at the head of the hall and chuckled.
“Oh? Since when did we capture someone from the Immortal Clan?”
The people below bowed their heads, cursing silently at his shamelessness and blatant lies.
That day at Buzhou Mountain, Kunlun and the Heavenly Clan had clashed.
Feng Fuming won a sweeping victory, Jimo Shaoyou was taken prisoner, and Liu Shuang had been carried off by a demonic bird and all of it witnessed by countless soldiers.
It was no surprise that Bai Yuxiao had figured things out and come here to the Ghost Realm demanding his people back.
Zhan Xueyang said with amusement, “That brat said, if we don’t release him, then when the yin energy reaches its peak in seven days and the Ghost Gate fully opens, he’ll personally charge into the Ghost Realm to demand an explanation from the Demon Lord.”
Yan Chaosheng responded carelessly, “Let him. When the time comes, just don’t kill them…throw them out and be done with it.”
Fu Heng answered, “Understood.”
He couldn’t help thinking: The Bai brothers of the Bai Clan. Bai Yuxiao’s elder brother had once heroically sacrificed himself for the Taichu Mirror, his soul nearly becoming part of the artifact. And now this second young master had disobeyed the orders of Kongsang’s realm lord, bringing his private troops here to the Ghost Realm in search of someone. You could at least say he was loyal and affectionate.
Yan Chaosheng asked, “What’s the situation in Kunlun?”
“They’re still at a stalemate. The matter of the spiritual veins is no small issue. If Kunlun truly hands them over, they’ll fall entirely under Feng Fuming’s control. Apart from Kongsang, all of the Eight Wilderness will be in his hands. My Lord, are we truly going to stay out of this?”
“The Immortal Clan’s civil war—what does that have to do with the Demon Clan or the Ghost Realm?” Yan Chaosheng said coldly.
The man who had spoken immediately fell silent.
Many of those present felt the same confusion, but only one had dared voice it.
Before Yan Chaosheng returned, the Demon Clan had suffered terribly under Feng Fuming.
They had hoped Yan Chaosheng would lead them to reclaim their pride and just as he had three years ago.
But instead, he focused solely on securing the Ghost Realm and left everything else alone, watching from the sidelines.
How much longer could Kongsang hold out? If all the immortal clans of the Eight Wilderness fell under Feng Fuming’s control, would the Demon Clan even have a chance to fight back?
These concerns lingered in many minds, though out of trust in Yan Chaosheng, no one spoke them aloud.
Once the crowd dispersed, Zhan Xueyang lingered behind.
He had intended to leave with the others but now hesitated.
“A few days ago, I passed by the Ruthlessness Hall and overheard a woman speaking. She said her name was Meng Ji.”
Yan Chaosheng glanced at him, his smile not reaching his eyes.
“What are you trying to say?”
Zhan Xueyang met his gaze and looked a little uneasy.
He cleared his throat.
“Of course, I follow the Demon Lord’s lead. But… she spoke with such sincerity. She said you had forgotten your old grudge and were now lost in the gentle trap spun by some Immortal Clan woman, unwilling to pursue revenge anymore.”
“She also said… she said…” Zhan Xueyang’s voice grew smaller and smaller.
The more he said it, the more absurd it seemed.
“She said she was your mother.”
Yan Chaosheng said nothing, idly tapping a finger on the armrest of his throne.
Zhan Xueyang’s heart skipped a beat.
Could the Demon Lord’s silence mean that crazy woman was telling the truth?
“But I also want to ask…does my lord still intend to take Huiling’s heart?”
“You don’t trust me?”
Zhan Xueyang furrowed his brows and shook his head.
Yan Chaosheng said calmly, “Then this matter is not for you to concern yourself with. I will handle it myself.”
Zhan Xueyang bowed his head and walked away dispirited.
Weighed down with thoughts, he didn’t get far from the sleeping chambers before he overheard some demon soldiers gossiping about the tribulation thunder from a few days ago.
They grumbled angrily, “Everyone says immortal tribulations are deadly, so how did it fail to strike that Chishui Liushuang to death?”
Another added, “If the lightning didn’t kill her, the Demon Lord will torture her to death eventually.”
Someone else whispered, “Weren’t you the one who prepared her food today? I’m telling you, add a little…”
The moment Liu Shuang’s name came up, their eyes filled with nothing but contempt.
Zhan Xueyang touched the handle of his axe, feeling a weight settle in his chest.
Suddenly, he remembered that girl from three years ago—the one whose immortal body was breaking apart. She had hugged his sand puppet, quiet and sweet, showing no trace of despair.
She had even addressed him respectfully as ‘Sir.’
Zhan Xueyang had been trapped in You Mountain and thought he would never make it out alive.
After eight thousand years of resentment and fury, it had eventually driven him to what he had done.
That matter had haunted him for a long time.
Now that he was finally free of You Mountain, he couldn’t hold it in any longer.
He had never done anything so disgraceful in his life.
With a heavy sigh, he turned and made his way toward the palace where Liu Shuang was imprisoned.
The palace maids recognized him and didn’t stop him.
Liu Shuang had already woken.
The Ghost Realm was cold, and she wore a heavy cloak.
A long iron chain extended from her to the table.
She was playing chess by herself, holding a black stone.
The cloak wrapped around her whole body, making her small face appear even paler.
Though her injuries had only just healed, she still looked weak and unwell.
When she saw Zhan Xueyang, she paused for a moment before recognizing him. “Sir?”
Zhan Xueyang felt guilty the moment he saw her.
In all his years as a physician, he had truly harmed only two people.
One was now seated in the main palace, his soul nothing more than a drifting shadow.
The other was standing before him, imprisoned by that very man.
The fates of both were tied directly to the actions of him and Su Lun, what one could call a shared “achievement.”
Su Lun perhaps carried no burden in his heart, but Zhan Xueyang couldn’t help feeling remorse, especially now that his obsession had been broken and You Mountain had been destroyed.
He knew that she would likely have to endure the agony of heart-piercing pain in the days to come, while the burden of duty and fate on Yan Chaosheng’s shoulders was heavier than anyone could imagine.
Zhan Xueyang couldn’t help but feel pity for the both of them.
One loved so deeply yet never spoke of it, gritting his teeth and carrying it all alone.
The other had done nothing truly wrong, yet was forced to suffer the pain of having her heart torn apart.
“This place is heavy with yin energy. The cloak won’t help much. I’ll have someone send you a few pure-yang talismans. Wearing them might make it more bearable.”
Liu Shuang nodded with a gentle smile.
She hadn’t expected to meet someone familiar here.
“Thank you, sir. Please, have a seat. Unfortunately, I’m a prisoner now and have nothing to offer. I hope you don’t mind.”
Zhan Xueyang sat across from her.
“You don’t seem surprised that I’m one of the Demon Lord’s people.”
Liu Shuang smiled faintly.
“Not really. I actually thought you hated him.”
She remembered how, back then, he had gone to such great lengths to make sure she received the gem from the sand puppet, just to make her suspect Yan Chaosheng.
But the more Liu Shuang thought about it, the less it made sense.
If he were truly Yan Chaosheng’s enemy, he wouldn’t have such a close friendship with Su Lun.
Lord Su Lun was sharp and clever—he wouldn’t misjudge someone’s character so easily.
“That time… at You Mountain, when I was preparing your medicine, I needed a sample of dragon’s blood,” Zhan Xueyang began.
The more he spoke of it, the more embarrassed he felt.
He had never confessed something this shameful before.
“Back then, you sensed it too…that the blood had traces of Jimo Shaoyou’s energy.”
Liu Shuang nodded.
“I actually had two samples. One was the dragon blood that Jimo Shaoyou had risked his life to obtain. The other…” Zhan Xueyang paused, “…was the one brought to me at dawn by the Demon Lord; his own blood. I’m sorry. I misled you on purpose, made you think it was from Jimo Shaoyou. I only did it so he would sever his feelings for you and I could have a chance to escape You Mountain.”
Liu Shuang was stunned.
Zhan Xueyang forced himself to continue, “The day the Demon Lord left, he asked me to tell you that the blood was from Jimo Shaoyou. It was my decision to twist his words and mislead you.”
He sighed and gave a bitter smile.
“The Demon Lord… even now, I can tell…he still can’t bring himself to hurt you. He has his reasons, though you two now stand on opposite sides.”
The black chess stone in her hand slipped and fell.
She could faintly picture how Yan Chaosheng must have felt that day—offering his own blood for her.
Yet at the time, she had only thought him despicable.
After a long silence, Liu Shuang lowered her eyes and gave a soft smile.
“Good… I’m glad.”
Good thing they had spoken honestly today.
Otherwise, that boy’s heart would’ve been aching unfairly all this time.
