After Becoming the Villain’s Black Moonlight - Chapter 3

The fever lasted until the middle of the night, and during that time, Yin Huizhi fell into a hazy dream. He dreamed of his mother and his past. Shards of memory, both grotesque and chaotic, surged through his mind alongside the heat and pain ravaging his body. Then, something cold and piercing flowed into his dantian, soothing his agitated soul. The murky visions were dispelled, granting him a rare night of peaceful sleep.

When the System emerged from its scheduled hibernation, it was met with a scene that nearly moved it to tears. The pitiful young villain was covered by a large black robe. Although he still looked battered, his fever had broken. The loathed Great Demon King, dressed only in thin inner garments, crouched beside the youth. His fingertips rose as if he were about to touch the boy’s shoulder or perhaps his collar. The System remained silent, secretly guessing the man’s intent.

From an angle the System could not see, Xie Ling’s expression suddenly darkened. His fingertips shifted direction almost imperceptibly. He naturally caught the black robe that was about to slip from Yin Huizhi’s shoulder and tucked it inward. At the same time, he brushed a stray lock of hair behind the sleeping youth’s ear. His movements were gentle and meticulous.

“Are you awake?” Xie Ling spoke abruptly.

The System jumped, thinking its eavesdropping had been discovered. However, Xie Ling’s next sentence brought relief.

“Since you are awake, open your eyes,” Xie Ling said calmly.

Yin Huizhi’s tightly closed eyelashes trembled slightly. He slowly opened his eyes and met Xie Ling’s downward gaze. Recalling the gentle power he felt during his stupor, Yin Huizhi spoke in a still-hoarse voice: “Mr. Xie, thank you.”

Xie Ling raised an eyebrow as if he found the title interesting. He intentionally brought up the past: “Why are you not calling me ‘Thank You Young Master’ anymore?”

Yin Huizhi felt a slight blush of embarrassment. He usually spent his leisure time in the library and was well-read. Consequently, the moment he saw the emblem on Xie Ling’s clothes the previous night, he realized the man belonged to the Xie family. The forces in the cultivation world were complex but generally divided into two factions: the orthodox Daoist cultivators and their rivals, the Qianyin Ghost Domain, who practiced forbidden arts. The Xie family was one of the five Great Families of the Qianyin Ghost Domain.

After realizing this, he had struggled with internal conflict and suspicion. Combined with the exhaustion of fighting the demonic python all day, he had uttered that foolishly clever greeting.

“If he wanted to kill me, I would not have woken up,” Yin Huizhi thought to himself. This man did not seem to enjoy committing evil like typical demonic cultivators. In fact, his actions could even be considered righteous, at least for now.

Yin Huizhi composed himself and apologized to Xie Ling: “I apologize. I offended you yesterday.”

Xie Ling looked at him with a half-smile but did not respond. Yin Huizhi felt as if he were being seen through by those ink-black eyes. He forced himself to voice his lingering question: “I simply do not understand. The Qianyin Ghost Domain and the cultivation world have always been like water and fire. Why did you save me yesterday?”

Xie Ling seemed amused by his expression and chuckled: “Because I love collecting debts of gratitude.”

Yin Huizhi’s brow twitched. He asked solemnly: “What do you mean by that?”

Xie Ling smiled but remained silent, casually picking up a round stone to play with. Yin Huizhi pursed his lips. He had never expected this man to save him out of pure kindness, so being direct actually made him feel more at ease.

He asked bluntly: “Mr. Xie, you should tell me directly how you want me to repay you.”

“Anything at all?” Xie Ling countered.

Yin Huizhi felt an ominous sensation: “Tell me first.” If he were asked to violate his principles, harm his sect members, or endanger the cultivation world, it would be impossible.

Xie Ling seemed to know what he was thinking: “Rest assured, it is not a bad thing.”

Yin Huizhi remained skeptical. Xie Ling gestured for him to lean in, and he tilted his head toward him. In an extremely soft and cold voice, Xie Ling said: “I want you to help me kill someone.”

Yin Huizhi’s pupils constricted instantly. He clenched his hands, trying his best to hide his emotions while asking in a puzzled tone: “Who?”

The lips pressed near his ear opened again. Clearly and deliberately, he spoke a single name: Ji Huixue.

Yin Huizhi’s expression darkened immediately. He stood up to draw his sword, only to remember that his weapon had been lost in the previous battle. He glared at Xie Ling and said through gritted teeth: “I cannot obey that request!”

Xie Ling remained seated on the ground and shrugged: “You were the one who insisted on asking. Are all you righteous cultivators so quick to change your faces? One moment you are thanking and apologizing, and the next you want to fight for your life.”

Yin Huizhi was nearly moved to angry laughter. He said coldly: “Mr. Xie, the debt for saving my life is heavy, but since you know my name, you should know exactly who that person is to me!”

The casual smile on Xie Ling’s face suddenly faded. He lowered his head and slowly repeated: “Know who he is?” He seemed to be talking to himself. When he looked up again, all traces of a smile were gone. “What exactly is Ji Huixue to you?”

When he spoke, his dark eyes were like a bottomless abyss, filled with a strange emotion that Yin Huizhi could not understand. It felt like a dangerous storm.

Yin Huizhi’s heart jolted, but he quickly recovered and frowned: “Since you know about me, I do not believe you are ignorant of him. But I will tell you: he is my fellow senior brother. I will never harm him for any reason.”

His words were sharp and filled with hostility, but Xie Ling did not react strongly. He simply said: “Even at the cost of your own life?”

Yin Huizhi replied coldly: “Correct.”

“How brave,” Xie Ling clapped in feigned admiration. Suddenly, he threw the stone in his hand, and it landed right at the feet of a third person on the shore. “Then what about his life?”

Yin Huizhi’s lips tightened into a thin line. He clenched his fists, and after a long silence, he looked away: “I have done my best.”

Because he had done his best, his conscience was clear. He would not trade one person’s life for another. Xie Ling stared at him for a few seconds before suddenly laughing.

“Truly, you have done your best,” Xie Ling said. He reached out playfully to hook Yin Huizhi’s chin. “What is wrong? Are you angry? I was only joking with you.”

The cold touch of his finger against his chin reminded Yin Huizhi of certain scenes underwater. He frowned deeper: “Are you ill?”

Xie Ling withdrew his hand and said with a smile: “Perhaps.”

Yin Huizhi was speechless. He began to agree with the rumors in various books that suggested most demonic cultivators were mentally unstable. Xie Ling yawned and said: “You think too highly of me. I am just a lowly guest official of the Xie family with no influence. To kill your Golden Core stage eldest senior brother, I would probably need another lifetime of cultivation.”

Yin Huizhi remained expressionless as if he were deaf to the explanation. Xie Ling rested his chin on his hand and turned his face: “I just happened to be wandering around while on a mission and ran into a doomed fellow like you. It felt inappropriate to watch you die without helping.”

Yin Huizhi finally looked at him, trying to discern if he was telling the truth. Xie Ling allowed the scrutiny. Honestly, his current body was very deceptive. His appearance was somewhere between a teenager and a young man, looking only a few years older than Yin Huizhi. When he smiled, he was undeniably handsome.

However, Yin Huizhi did not trust him immediately. He asked stiffly: “How can you prove it?”

Xie Ling laughed again. Just as Yin Huizhi thought the man was mocking his persistence, his hand was suddenly grabbed and pressed against Xie Ling’s chest. The cultivation methods of demonic practitioners were strange. Their power was stored in the heart rather than the dantian.

“Check for yourself and you will know.”

No cultivator would willingly expose their vital power source to a stranger, let alone a demonic one. Reason told Yin Huizhi this was inappropriate, but Xie Ling’s smiling eyes possessed a bewitching power. Before he realized it, his spiritual energy had already slipped into the other man’s chest.

He was shocked. Xie Ling was only at the Middle Stage of Foundation Building.

Yin Huizhi looked at him in disbelief: “You are only at the Middle Stage of Foundation Building?”

Xie Ling raised an eyebrow: “Fellow Daoist, do I need to remind you that speaking like that is very impolite?”

Yin Huizhi realized his mistake and awkwardly withdrew his hand: “I did not mean it that way. I just saw how easily you drove away that demonic beast, so I thought…” He trailed off, realizing that further explanation would only make things worse.

Xie Ling focused on a different word: “Easily?”

Yin Huizhi followed his gaze downward and saw the unhealed wound beneath the hole in his shoulder. He fell silent. Xie Ling snorted and closed his eyes, appearing as if he no longer wished to speak.

After a long silence, Yin Huizhi said softly: “I apologize. I truly did not mean it that way.”

Xie Ling turned his head back to stare at him, his expression clearly asking: “Then what did you mean?”

Yin Huizhi understood but did not want to continue the confusing topic. He said decisively: “I owe you a life. If you encounter difficulties in the future, you may ask for my help at any time, provided your request does not violate morality or justice.”

Xie Ling did not comment on the talk of justice. He simply repeated with a cold smile: “In the future?”

Yin Huizhi felt a headache coming on as soon as he heard that familiar questioning tone. He felt a bit guilty, as the phrase “in the future” sounded like a flimsy excuse to brush someone off. He thought for a moment and then walked to Xie Ling’s side to inspect the wound on his shoulder.

The python’s bite had nearly torn off a piece of flesh. Although it was no longer bleeding, it was far from healed. “How about you wait for me here? Once I return my junior brother to safety, I will bring you some medicinal balm,” Yin Huizhi suggested seriously.

Xie Ling replied: “Oh? Are you trying to take this chance to get rid of me?”

“I am not,” Yin Huizhi said, enduring the remark. “Our group carries pills and medicine personally refined by the elders of Ningwu Peak. I will get some for you. This wound will leave a scar if you use ordinary medicine.”

Xie Ling remained silent, looking at him with that strange expression again. Yin Huizhi waited quietly for a response. Finally, Xie Ling turned away, brushed the dust off his hands, and said: “Fine. Go and return quickly.”

Yin Huizhi felt relieved. He gave a short affirmation, picked up his unconscious junior brother, and prepared to leave. He took two steps, checked the surroundings with his spiritual sense, and turned back: “Stay safe. This place is not far from the dark pond.”

The demonic python was heavily injured and unlikely to return, but the possibility still existed. The figure in black reached out to pluck a blade of grass, twirling it between his fingers without looking back. Yin Huizhi pursed his lips and limped away with his junior brother on his back.

The situation was developing more beautifully than the System had expected. Despite several heart-stopping conversations and the lack of updates regarding the villain’s statistics, the System was very happy.

The System could not help but chime in: “Mr. Xie, it seems you really intend to complete the mission properly.”

Xie Ling responded in his mind with a coldness that was completely different from his outward persona: “Perhaps.”

The System was so pleased it practically wanted to worship him. “Is there anything you would like me to do?”

Xie Ling thought for a moment: “Yes.”

“What is it!” the System asked excitedly.

Xie Ling narrowed his eyes and stared coldly at a point in the void: “First, you are not allowed to interfere with any decision I make. Second, you must obey my orders. Third, do not disturb me unless I call for you. If you cannot do these things, you can collapse along with this world.”

The System was stunned.

“Furthermore,” Xie Ling added with a menacing aura, “I do not like this body. Do not let me hear you call me Mr. Xie again.”