After Transmigrating into a Book as Cannon Fodder, I Pampered the Villain - Chapter 62

Chapter 62: Forgiveness

She feigned piteousness to soften Yu Yingxia’s heart.

With the Earth Fiend Sect Leader dead and the high-level combatants captured, the remaining members had no will to resist. Since the sect was relatively new and sparsely populated, Yan Huaixi left the cleanup tasks to her subordinates.

However, as Yan Huaixi and Yu Yingxia walked down from the sect’s main hall, they heard faint, muffled crying coming from beneath the earth. Thanks to their Sect Leader’s “ultimate move,” the entire Earth Fiend Sect looked as if it had suffered a catastrophic earthquake; the ground was fractured and collapsed, worst of all where the black dragons had burst through.

In the face of his own survival, the Sect Leader clearly hadn’t cared for the lives of others. If his own disciples fared this way, the kidnapped children fared far worse.

Yan Huaixi cleared away the debris from the cracked ground, eventually uncovering a deep entrance beneath the hall. It led to a dungeon-like space from which the crying emanated. This dungeon had been built with special materials, allowing it to withstand the chaos of the black dragons a stroke of luck in a sea of misfortune.

“There are children inside?” Yu Yingxia followed Yan Huaixi into the pitch-black dungeon.

Yan Huaixi lit an oil lamp hanging on the wall, and light finally spilled into the darkness. The cells were mostly empty, save for some movement at the far end. The crying stopped the moment they entered, but Yan Huaixi could still hear muffled sobbing, as if someone were covering a child’s mouth.

“It’s dark. Watch your step,” Yan Huaixi said, taking Yu Yingxia’s hand. The floor was uneven and pitted; it would be easy to twist an ankle.

Yu Yingxia murmured an acknowledgment and walked carefully beside her.

At the end of the dungeon, a group of small figures huddled in a corner, trembling violently. Yan Huaixi conjured a flame to illuminate the scene inside the cell.

“These children…” Yu Yingxia was too stunned for words. These were not ordinary human children; their bodies bore varying degrees of demonic traits black scales, tails, or transformed limbs.

“Are they half-demons?” Yu Yingxia thought of half-demons, but pure-blooded demons didn’t look like this.

“They are half-demons, but forced ones,” Yan Huaixi’s voice was cold. “Their souls are purely human, but the demon blood in their veins… looks like it came from those black dragons.”

“Forced transformation?” Yu Yingxia’s face paled. She possessed enough common sense to know that forcibly merging demon blood with a human body caused a violent rejection. Human bloodlines were rarely as tyrannical as demonic ones; usually, the demon blood would simply tear the human body apart. Even if they achieved a forced coexistence, the person would live in perpetual agony as the demon blood eroded them.

If adults could barely survive such pain, how could these children? These were just the survivors who knew how many others had already become bones in the dirt?

“What a beast! Dying like that was too good for him!” Even the good-tempered Yu Yingxia couldn’t help but curse.

Yan Huaixi opened the cell door. The children huddled closer together, watching her with terrified eyes. Every step Yan Huaixi took exerted immense psychological pressure on them. Having experienced similar horrors herself, Yan Huaixi understood their fear and stopped in the middle of the cell.

“The person who used you as experiments is dead. Did you hear the noise earlier? If you want to live, follow me. If not, stay here and wait for death,” Yan Huaixi said flatly.

The children remained motionless. The eldest child kept a hand over the mouth of the youngest, who had been the source of the crying. They were shaking, eyes darting. Yan Huaixi noticed one child glance toward the ceiling before quickly hiding their face.

Children, after all, lacked composure. Even though the one hiding above had tried their best, their limited cultivation made them impossible to miss.

A faint glint of light flashed from above the cage as an exceptionally sharp scale lunged toward Yan Huaixi’s throat.

In that split second, Yan Huaixi caught the black scale between her index and middle fingers. With a slight flick, the scale snapped in two. She grabbed the child’s hand, neutralizing their force and pinning them to the floor instantly. She hadn’t even used spiritual power.

Seeing this, the children in the corner sprang into action—the older ones looked ready to bite.

Yu Yingxia quickly painted a set of ropes in the air, binding the children back into their corner. Nothing had happened yet, and she absolutely couldn’t let them provoke Yan Huaixi!

The child pinned by Yan Huaixi struggled desperately. Her demonic transformation was the most advanced among them, and her strength the greatest, but she didn’t know how to wield her power likely because the Sect Leader feared losing control over them.

“If you keep using your power recklessly, you’ll be dead within the hour,” Yan Huaixi said, unmoving. The child’s struggling was negligible to her.

The child said nothing, but the killing intent in her eyes was startling. She wasn’t swayed by Yan Huaixi’s words; if anything, she had never planned to survive.

“Sister…” Yu Yingxia called out worriedly. These children’s target was surely the Earth Fiend Sect; it was just a misunderstanding that they had arrived. Their state was fragile, and she hoped Yan Huaixi would be gentle.

Yan Huaixi didn’t say much, only telling Yu Yingxia she knew what she was doing. She understood this child’s heart because she had once been exactly the same. The child was full of wariness and wouldn’t trust them easily, but if they weren’t taken out now, they truly would die here.

“Even if you stall me and let them escape, they will die without someone to help them control the power in their bodies. Especially that little one she probably won’t live past tonight if she leaves like this.” Yan Huaixi pointed to the smallest child huddling in the middle. She sensed a connection between that child and the one under her hand.

The little “beast” finally stopped struggling. Her pupils narrowed into slits as she stared at Yan Huaixi. Only now did she reveal the helplessness of her age.

“Follow me and there is a path to life. It’s clear they listen to you. You choose: life or death.” Yan Huaixi didn’t coax her or soften her tone; she placed the choice directly in the child’s hands.

The child watched Yan Huaixi with suspicion and internal struggle. She had seen many types of evil in this place—those with evil faces and evil hearts, and those with kind faces but evil hearts. She dared not trust this stranger easily.

But just then, the smallest child in the back began to cough violently, spitting out liquid. The child held by Yan Huaixi smelled the scent of blood in the air. Realizing Yan Huaixi wasn’t exaggerating, she panicked and grabbed the only lifeline available.

“Save… save… sis…” The child’s voice was raspy and broken; the demonic transformation had clearly affected her throat.

“Then lead them out with us.” Yan Huaixi let go. The child slipped away like a loach, diving into the group to hold the smallest one.

Once the children were out in the sunlight, Yu Yingxia saw the true extent of their injuries. Beyond the demonic parts, they were covered in various wounds. The one who had attacked Yan Huaixi was the most battered, yet she hadn’t made a sound even when pinned to the ground.

As Yu Yingxia helped the medical cultivators treat the children and give them medicine, Yan Huaixi stood by her side. She wanted to help, but her presence in the dungeon seemed to have terrified them; every time she reached out, she nearly scared them to tears. Eventually, she stood to the side with a huff, yet even her standing there caused more muffled sobbing.

“I didn’t do anything. These children are just too timid.” Seeing Yu Yingxia’s look, Yan Huaixi immediately adopted an air of innocent grievance.

Yu Yingxia let out a helpless smile. Yan Huaixi wasn’t doing anything now, but that ferocious display in the dungeon would probably stay with those kids for a lifetime.

Still… this was the villain boss’s awkward way of showing care. Usually, Yan Huaixi’s methods were far more aggressive. Since she had gone this far, she deserved a compliment.

“I know Sister meant well. To get them out for treatment quickly, you had to play the ‘bad guy.’ It’s a shame you have to bear more bad rumors for it.” Yu Yingxia’s soft words were incredibly comforting, even framing Yan Huaixi’s behavior in a heroic light. The “cat” beside her felt her “tail” nearly curl with pride.

“Cough, I have enough bad rumors as it is. One more doesn’t matter,” Yan Huaixi said, not at all humble.

Yu Yingxia couldn’t help but chuckle. Since her back was turned, Yan Huaixi couldn’t see it, but the little girl in front of her watched with wide, watery eyes.

Yu Yingxia quickly pulled a piece of homemade malt candy from her storage bag, popped it into the girl’s mouth, and gave her a “shh” sign. The sweetness instantly captured the girl’s focus; in that dark hole, she had long forgotten what candy tasted like. The sugary sensation made her forget what she was going to say.

Nearby, the child who had been coughing blood was stabilized by the medics and sat weakly in her older sister’s lap. Seeing the candy given to the other girl, her eyes lit up with a faint spark.

Yu Yingxia’s heart melted at the sight. She pulled out another piece of candy, but the elder sister the most wary one blocked her. Someone had once fed her poisoned candy to test her resistance; she hadn’t touched sweets since.

Yan Huaixi reached out, took the candy from Yu Yingxia, and popped it into her own mouth. The sweetness made her eyes crinkle. If they don’t want it, even better. The candy Yingxia makes is barely enough for me anyway.

Yu Yingxia gave her a reproachful look how could she openly steal candy from a child? But then again, this was Yan Huaixi.

The child who lost her candy teared up and began to cry. Her sister tried frantically to soothe her, but with little success.

Yu Yingxia took out another piece of candy and broke it in half, putting one half in her own mouth. “See? Nothing else is in it.”

The older child hesitated before finally taking the candy. She waited until Yu Yingxia wasn’t looking, crumbled a bit to taste it herself, and only after confirming no reaction did she feed it to her sister.

Yu Yingxia distributed candy to all the children before returning to Yan Huaixi’s side. She noticed Yan Huaixi staring at the two sisters with a look of heavy, somber emotion.

“Sister?” Yu Yingxia whispered.

“Hmm?” Yan Huaixi withdrew her gaze.

“You’ve been watching them… is there something special about those two?” Yu Yingxia sensed Yan Huaixi’s mood had dipped.

“Nothing. I just think that child is very wary,” Yan Huaixi said.

“After everything they’ve been through, it’s normal. Don’t bully them, Sister.” Yu Yingxia noticed the older sister peek over, only to nearly jump out of her skin when Yan Huaixi flashed a sudden, cold smirk. Yu Yingxia could tell it was just a mischievous impulse; there was no malice in it.

“Who told her to treat me like a villain?” Yan Huaixi snorted.

Looking through Yan Huaixi’s eyes at those two sisters, a thought suddenly struck Yu Yingxia. Was Yan Huaixi seeing her own past in those children?

As this realization dawned, Yu Yingxia knew Yan Huaixi’s past was likely far more tragic than theirs.

“However, I was luckier than her,” Yan Huaixi said, offering an answer that contradicted Yu Yingxia’s thoughts.

“At least before I entered the Long Life Sect, I hid my sister in a safe place. If I had brought A-Wu with me, I might have struggled just as much as she is, unable to win a path to life for my sister.”

Yan Huaixi’s sudden vulnerability made Yu Yingxia’s heart ache with a sour, stifling sadness. She took Yan Huaixi’s hand, unsure of how to comfort her with words.

“A long time ago, I didn’t dare touch candy given by others either. Do you know why?” In Yan Huaixi’s seemingly casual gaze, Yu Yingxia read the bitterness of her past. She instinctively tightened her grip.

“Was someone… poisoning it?”

“You guessed right. The first candy I ate after entering the Long Life Sect was given to me by the previous Sect Master. I experienced seven days and nights of pain worse than death. I used to love sweets, but for a long time, I was repulsed by the taste of candy. It wasn’t until I killed the previous Sect Master that the feeling finally began to fade.”

Yan Huaixi displayed a perfect mix of sorrow and strength. Yu Yingxia’s protective instincts flared; she immediately pulled the entire bag of candy from her storage bag and stuffed it into Yan Huaixi’s hands.

Yan Huaixi had been eyeing that bag for a while. Having succeeded, she quietly transferred it into her own storage bag.

“The previous Sect Master was a lunatic!” Yu Yingxia fumed. It was good that Yan Huaixi had killed the person herself, but Yu Yingxia still felt like digging up the person’s grave just to vent!

“If it were just that, it would be fine. It was just a bit of pain.”

Just a bit of pain? Yu Yingxia knew from the original story that Yan Huaixi had suffered under the previous master, but the brief text hadn’t detailed the horror. Now, these few flat sentences allowed her to glimpse the tip of the iceberg of those dark years.

“Because I was as stubborn as that little girl when I was young, I survived several rounds of medicine trials and became the only successful ‘medicine man’ in the previous master’s hands. After that, poison couldn’t kill me, and I provoked him often.”

“Those captured before me were all dead. Later, the master captured a few more. We huddled together for warmth in the medicine caves just like those children and the master couldn’t stand that.”

“So, he observed us in secret. He chose the one among us with the weakest will and whispered to them that if they killed me, they could walk out alive.” Yan Huaixi sneered. “They were so naive they actually believed his lies. From then on, the people I sat and laughed with might stab me at any moment. I couldn’t even sleep soundly, or someone would crawl over to slit my throat.”

“Gradually, I stopped trusting anyone.”

Yu Yingxia’s eyes welled with tears. Driven by emotion, she instinctively reached out and pulled the grieving woman into a hug. In such a situation, who could trust the person beside them?

Yu Yingxia finally understood why Yan Huaixi was so hypersensitive to betrayal. There was too much blood and trauma behind it. It was all the previous master’s fault! If not for him, Yan Huaixi might have been a bright, if slightly haughty, girl.

“Sometimes I still wake up from dreams of my childhood, wondering if there are traitors around me. Even small things make me suspicious or cause me to overreact. Yingxia, I promise I will never let that happen to you.” Her tone was unusually fragile and weak. Combined with her tragic past, Yu Yingxia’s heart truly softened.

“Yingxia, don’t be afraid of me.”

Yu Yingxia buried her face in Yan Huaixi’s shoulder. No one could see the expression in her eyes, but a moment later, she whispered a soft “Mhm” in her arms.

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