“And mine! This is pure gold!”
“My earring is great too! My earring is worth even more!”
With her bundle taken away, Song Yao could only stuff the items into her robes one by one. After looking them over, she still felt unsatisfied. “Is this all? Go back home and get some more. This little bit of affinity isn't enough.”
“It would be even better if you have any magical treasures or spatial pouches.”
The villagers suddenly came to their senses and dispersed like an ebbing tide. “Daoist master, wait for me! I'm going to get them!”
“You must wait for me!”
“My family has a really great treasure!”
...
Ming Ran and Cheng Yue heard the commotion and hurried over.
After the twin wraiths from earlier were slain by Second Senior Sister, not only did the demon realm fail to break, but it had also continued to expand. Everyone had been scattered by the mist, leaving only the two of them together.
Unsure of what was happening and feeling a bit panicked, they could only come over to investigate.
However, they never expected that the center of the villagers' gathering would be Song Yao.
Even less did they expect that while their side was in utter chaos, Song Yao was comfortably reclining on a soft daybed, her arms stuffed with gold, silver, and jewels, her hair adorned with gold, silver, and jade hairpins, leisurely swinging her crossed legs. “Is that it? That's all? You guys aren't being sincere enough.”
She looked exactly like a decadent young ruler.
Ming Ran: “...”
Cheng Yue: “...”
Was something not quite right here?
Weren't they here to hunt demons?
Why did it feel like they had come to commit highway robbery?
And...
Junior Sister Lin was always so quiet and indifferent. How could she look like such a rogue?
Song Yao spotted them through the crowd. With a wave of her hand, she swept all the items into a newly offered spatial pouch and stood up. “Alright, let's leave it at this for today. Let me discuss it with my senior sisters first.”
Three prey.
A greedy light burst from the villagers' eyes.
Ming Ran and Cheng Yue watched helplessly as Song Yao walked toward them under the watchful gaze of the crowd.
And then—
“Run! What are you standing there for?!”
Like a gust of wind, the youth's figure instantly zipped right between the two of them.
Cheng Yue and Ming Ran froze, only to see the villagers, who had just been scrambling to stuff things into Song Yao's arms, suddenly snap out of it. They whipped their heads around, their faces twisting grotesquely as they shrieked, “Catch them!!!”
All the villagers moved at once.
Those who had been limping, old, weak, sick, or disabled just moments ago now moved so fast they left afterimages, scrambling on all fours as they lunged toward them.
“What on earth are these things?!”
Ming Ran's voice went completely out of pitch. Cheng Yue reacted even faster, pulling Ming Ran along to flee while flicking a talisman from her sleeve. The talisman paper exploded into a wall of fire behind them.
The firelight illuminated the entire village path, as well as the figures pursuing them.
—Their shadows on the ground twisted, elongated, split, and grew slender, jointed limbs.
The wall of fire could not stop them.
The first to break through the fire wall was an old man.
His clothes had burned away, revealing a grayish-white carapace. His head still retained a human shape, but everything below his neck had completely transformed. Eight legs extended from beneath his ribs, scuttling rapidly across the ground.
As he crawled, he screamed, “Daoist master! Daoist master, don't leave! My son's leg isn't healed yet!!”
The screeching was ear-piercing. Ming Ran and Cheng Yue had never seen such a horrific sight, and their legs turned to jelly as they ran.
As they passed a narrow alley, a hand shot out and violently dragged them inside.
Ming Ran almost screamed out loud, but someone clamped a hand firmly over her mouth.
Song Yao pinned her against the wall. Beneath her long eyelashes, her eyes were cold to the extreme. She lowered her voice. “Shut up.”
Ming Ran dared not move again, even softening her breathing.
The hissing at the alley entrance grew denser. Something crawled past, its eight legs tapping against the dirt road with a steady clack-clack-clack, causing the ground to vibrate slightly.
A grayish-white jointed limb poked inside, stopping a mere half-inch from Song Yao's cheek before retracting.
After an unknown amount of time, the sounds finally faded into the distance.
Song Yao released her grip and smiled at the drenched, sweating Ming Ran and Cheng Yue. “Scared?”
Her tone was lazy, completely unlike someone who had just survived a life-or-death pursuit.
Ming Ran opened her mouth, her voice slightly hoarse. “W-What on earth is going on? Aren't they... aren't they the villagers?”
Cheng Yue furrowed her brows and spoke first. “So they are the actual demons of this demon realm?”
Song Yao: “Yes.”
“No wonder the demon realm hasn't been broken.”
Cheng Yue glanced outside. “What do we do now? Should we find a way to get out and call for backup first?”
Ming Ran had recovered by now and shook her head. “No, if we don't kill the demons, we won't be able to find the exit unless they willingly open it for us.”
After she finished speaking, she snapped out of it and glared at Song Yao. “It's all your fault! Did you make them angry?!”
Song Yao curled her lips in resignation. “Little sister, you're blaming even this on me?”
She took her sword from behind her back, cradled it in her arms, and walked out without looking back. “Fine, it's all my fault. You two stay here and don't wander off.”
Ming Ran looked at her retreating figure, her cheeks inexplicably growing warm.
Little sister?
Isn't she a year younger than me?
How dare she take advantage of me like this.
Ming Ran gripped her longsword tightly, stamped her foot, and gave chase. “I'm not waiting around here. Don't even think about taking all the credit for yourself!”
Before her voice could fade, she had already dashed after her.
Left with no choice, Cheng Yue followed closely behind them.
Just as they reached the mouth of the alley, a scream pierced the heavy air of the demon realm, carrying a strong scent of blood with it.
Song Yao paused in her tracks.
Oh no.
She had originally thought she could draw all the villagers away by herself to skip the plot, but the appearance of Ming Ran and Cheng Yue had completely disrupted her plan.
Since the demons couldn't find her, they would definitely head toward Zhu Zhao.
Her fingers gripped the hilt of her sword. Before Ming Ran could react, she tapped her toes and took off on her flying sword.
Left behind, Ming Ran and Cheng Yue exchanged bewildered glances. “Wait, how is she able to fly on a sword in a demon realm?”
This demon realm suppressed spiritual energy, making flying on a sword extremely difficult.
Among them, who else besides Second Senior Sister could manage to fly?
Cheng Yue frowned. “Never mind that, let's follow her and check it out.”
...
In the center of the village, several disciples lay collapsed on the ground.
Around them lay the scattered corpses of spider demons, their severed limbs still twitching slightly.
Zhu Zhao leaned heavily on her sword to support herself. Her black martial attire was stained with a subtle, dark crimson. Her sleeve was completely shredded, and a bone-deep wound was still oozing blackened blood.
She gasped heavily, and in the next instant, she collapsed backward, falling into a pool of blood.
The male disciple who had caused the trouble scrambled over on all fours, tears mixing with dirt as they ran down his face. “Second Senior Sister, are you alright?! I didn't mean to! I was caught in their illusion, and I don't know how I ended up walking in. If you hadn't blocked it for me, you wouldn't have been hurt...”
Zhu Zhao's face was flushed with an unnatural redness, and every breath she took brought a searing, sharp pain.
She struggled to sit up, gritting her teeth as she shoved the disciple away, her gaze sharp. “What are you crying for? If you're not dead, get up and find a way to break the realm!”
Before she could finish her sentence, a black toxin spread along her arm, leaving terrifying marks on her neck.
Her body swayed, the sword slipping completely from her grasp as she leaned backward once more.
“Second Senior Sister!”
Jiang Jin rushed over, reaching out to steadily support her shoulders before scooping her up in his arms. His voice was cold and heavy. “Second Senior Sister, don't worry. The demons have been wiped out. I'll take you inside to rest first and find a way to neutralize the poison!”
Rate on N.U.
