How to Handle a Sickly Yandere Demon God - Chapter 26

Xiao Hei stood atop a high branch, his gaze fixed intently on the barrier not far away. Fang Zhiming crouched nearby, cautiously observing this formidable figure.

If he hadn’t intervened earlier, this mad dog would have already shattered the barrier by force. Fang Zhiming had nearly worn out his lips trying to persuade him to hold back.

Watching Xiao Hei’s grim expression and furrowed brow, Fang Zhiming grew increasingly uneasy. Yet, no matter how he tried to pry for information, Xiao Hei remained tight-lipped.

Fang Zhiming glanced at the setting sun and tried to reassure himself: Just wait a little longer. For the sake of evidence, this barrier must be opened from the inside. Senior Sister is at the Nascent Soul stage, just one step away from breaking through to the Divine Transformation realm. She can definitely do it.

But his anxiety persisted. After turning it over in his mind repeatedly, he finally took out a voice-transmission talisman.

Zhou Qing completely ignored Xu Xingxing’s question and began speaking on his own:

“Xu Yi and I studied under the same master. I was rigid in temperament but diligent in my cultivation. He, on the other hand, was exceptionally gifted but naturally carefree. I am over a hundred years older than him, and I practiced diligently every day without fail, while he spent his time admiring flowers and the moon. Yet, he still managed to reach the Nascent Soul stage before me.”

As if reminiscing about the past, a faint smile touched his eyes. “But even so, I never envied him.”

“Later, when the Demon God descended and brought chaos to the world, he finally focused and began cultivating seriously. With his extraordinary talent, he reached the Divine Transformation stage in less than five years. At that time, the demon tribe invaded, and I acted as his protector. But the demons, empowered by the Demon God’s teachings, had grown immensely strong. That night, thunder roared, and blood and rain filled the air. Two senior brothers fell, and in that battle, my legs were severed, rendering me useless.”

Zhou Qing’s eyes flickered with emotion. “Xu Yi was consumed with guilt. He ventured deep into the demon realm and personally slew the demon that had crippled me. After that, to protect me, he never allowed me on the battlefield again. He even worried I’d grow bored and brought me books from the library every day.”

He paused, then said, “If things had stayed like that, it wouldn’t have been so bad.”

“But,” his tone suddenly tightened, “the demon tribe was unstoppable. Kunlun suffered defeat after defeat. Our sect leader and masters fell one after another. Xu Yi was covered in old wounds layered with new ones every day. Even your mother nearly died at the hands of a demon. And I? I could only lie in bed, reading trivial entertainments. How could I possibly laugh?”

“Heh,” Zhou Qing let out a strange, hollow laugh, his eyes lifeless. “I borrowed the body of a mortal seeking refuge on the mountain and absorbed the cultivation of my dying comrades. In a single night, I reached the Divine Transformation stage, a level I hadn’t achieved in a century of arduous training.”

“I deceived everyone, but I couldn’t deceive your father. Yet, he didn’t expose me. He simply cut ties with me. I performed many meritorious deeds, thinking I could make amends, but on the very day Xu Yi became sect leader, he expelled me from the sect.”

Abruptly, he fell silent. The room was steeped in a long, heavy quiet. After a long while, he opened his mouth again but said nothing more.

Xu Xingxing was a person of deep empathy, perhaps that was why even the smallest matters could bring tears to her eyes. Zhou Qing’s emotional fluctuations were not extreme; likely, he had anticipated such an outcome when he made his choice. Perhaps he knew he was wrong but could no longer turn back. She seemed to feel the weight of his profound sorrow, and her recently dried eyes grew slightly moist again.

“Do you hate my father?” she asked.

Zhou Qing glanced at her and chuckled softly. “Your father was a good man. I have never regretted protecting him that day, even if it had cost me my life, I would have spared no sacrifice. Though he later expelled me, I never held it against him.”

“It was simply a matter of differing paths. As long as one lives well, that is enough,” he said.

Xu Xingxing looked at the unconscious Lin Yue on the ground and tried to persuade him to turn back from his misguided ways. “You spent centuries on Kunlun Mountain. You should know the punishment for those who stray onto the evil path. Yet my father did not kill you; he let you leave the mountain. I believe he must have thought the same, he wanted you to live well.”

“I know,”

Zhou Qing curled his lips faintly. “After the Demon God was vanquished, I intended to guard my master’s grave. But fate had other plans. I had barely a few days of peace before I heard the prophecy from the Tianji Pavilion again.”

“The savior of the world? The Demon God has already been destroyed. Why would they prophesy a so-called savior now?”

Zhou Qing’s fist suddenly clenched. “That means true peace has not yet come to this world. How could I afford to slack off?”

“Xing’er, as the prophesied savior, you must understand the weight of your responsibilities. How can you shy away from the hardships of cultivation? As long as you can transcend the tribulations and ascend to immortality, why fuss over the methods?”

Xu Xingxing felt her chest tighten as he circled back to this topic again.

Truly a logical loop.

“Uncle Master,”

Xu Xingxing tried to appeal to his conscience. “You know this is wrong, so why are you so stubborn? The Tianji Pavilion never specified when I would save the world. What if it happens only after I achieve immortality?”

“How can we gamble the fate of all living beings on a mere ‘what if’?”

“All living beings?” Xu Xingxing laughed mockingly, her tone turning sharp. “How dare you speak of all living beings? Aren’t the twelve lives taken every day part of all living beings? Aren’t these ten cultivators lying here part of all living beings? Isn’t Zhou Qing himself part of all living beings?”

“Those who seek to achieve great things must be willing to sacrifice even their closest kin. For the sake of billions in this world, what do a few lives matter?”

Zhou Qing replied, “That mortal whose body I borrowed was already struggling to survive, yet he bullied the weak and abused his power. What use is such a person alive? It’s better to lend his body to me, to aid in eradicating demons, upholding righteousness, and protecting all living beings.”

“Since you’ve clearly done wrong, don’t hide behind the name of ‘all living beings’!”

Xu Xingxing’s intensity did not waver. “A few lives mean nothing? How can you say that? Zhou Wu Xia committed countless atrocities, yet you abetted him. Rong Jun and those women were utterly innocent, yet you showed no remorse. You even skinned the Nine Nether Serpent alive. If I didn’t know you came from Kunlun, I’d think you were born in the demon realm!”

“Zhou Wu Xia’s life serves a purpose. If that serpent hadn’t recklessly released Shen Rongjun’s soul, I wouldn’t have punished it so severely,”

Zhou Qing frowned at her. “Speaking of the serpent, I recall hearing that you’ve switched to Yue Baiyin’s Beast Taming Sect and even formed a contract with a spirit beast without permission. Treating cultivation as a joke, when will you ever transcend your tribulations? Fortunately, I’ve brought you back today. Since your father can’t discipline you, let your uncle take charge.”

“Uncle my ass!” Xu Xingxing wanted to curse further but found herself unable to speak, damn it, he’d silenced her again!

“Xing’er, endure it. It will only last an hour, though it might be a bit painful.”

Screw you and your bullshit lines!

Zhou Qing’s body suddenly levitated into the air. With his eyes closed and chanting incantations, the ten people on the ground rose one by one, hovering five meters away from Xu Xingxing. Their heads faced her, their bodies splayed outward like flower petals.

Almost simultaneously, a brilliant golden light erupted within the room, casting a blood-red magical array onto the stone walls and ceiling. Though seemingly chaotic at first, the patterns converged in an orderly fashion above her head.

She didn’t recognize what it was, but she guessed its purpose!

Zhou Qing intended to transfer the cultivation bases of these individuals to her!

But what would happen to those who lost their cultivation?

Xu Xingxing watched Lin Yue, her heart aching with anxiety, and struggled desperately. Sensing her resistance, Zhou Qing pointed a finger at her and said softly:

“Freeze.”

She could no longer move.

A deep crimson glow slowly swelled and expanded, as if alive, creeping over the feet of those around her. Like snakes, the bloody patterns slithered upward along their legs.

What to do? What to do?

She felt like crying again. Why was she so cowardly? She had thought everything was foolproof, yet it was utterly useless. She had believed herself strong, but she was still nothing more than a helpless lamb waiting for slaughter. She had assumed she could protect others, yet she still needed someone else to shield her.

Xu Xingxing recalled Lin Yue’s short, urgent cry of “Senior Sister.” Watching as the blood-vessel-like talismans completely covered Lin Yue’s legs, she panicked to the extreme, biting her tongue so hard that it bled.

Blood instantly filled her mouth, trickling from the corner of her lips.

For the first time, she felt such intense self-loathing!

Why was she so weak?

Her eyes reddened with bloodshot veins, but she was utterly powerless, unable even to cry out. She could only watch helplessly as the crimson talismans shrouded Lin Yue’s face.

Suddenly, a dull thud echoed from outside, shaking the entire room. Xu Xingxing’s pupils contracted sharply.

It was Xiao Hei!

“Do not lose focus,” Zhou Qing said without opening his eyes. “This barrier will hold for an hour.”

Xu Xingxing suddenly recalled the moment she formed a contract with Xiao Hei.

She swallowed the blood in her mouth, closed her eyes, and cleared her mind, calling out repeatedly in her heart:

Xiao Hei, can you hear me?
Xiao Hei, can you hear me?
Xiao Hei, please hear me. I need you. I really need you…

The perimeter of the Zhou residence was already a sea of flames, illuminating the darkening sky. Xiao Hei stood atop a withered branch, bathed in fire, his expression sinister, like a demon clawing his way out of hell.

“You’re insane!” Fang Zhiming, seeing the flames were beyond control, flew to rescue the people in the Zhou residence. Qin Feng glanced at the barrier engulfed in raging fire, frowned slightly, and without a word, followed to help.

At that moment, Xiao Hei’s eyes were blood-red, seeing nothing else. His vision was filled with an overwhelming crimson that made his heart race with panic.

His chest ached unbearably, fear, despair, grief. At first, he could distinguish these as her emotions, but gradually, he could no longer tell them apart.

What had happened to her?

What had she seen that terrified her so? What had she encountered that made her so desperate? Even when she was frightened by the female ghost, he hadn’t felt such intense emotions. Now, this overwhelming tide of feelings threatened to drown him.

Was someone harming her?

He suddenly remembered those eyes from last night, feigning anger as she pinched his cheek and warned him to feel sorrow when she was hurt.

What was sorrow?

He thought he understood now.

It was the helplessness of a blank mind, the reckless urge to retaliate, and the suffocating emptiness in his chest.

Xiao Hei…

He shuddered violently. What was that?

…A voice?

Xiao Hei…

Was it her? Her voice?

Everything before his eyes was dyed in shades of red, and the air was filled with cries of anguish all around.

Yet his world fell into sudden silence. Through the layers of flames, he saw that small figure suspended in the air by iron chains.

Xiao Hei, I need you, I need you so much…

Xiao Hei, please hear me, please feel me, please… care about me…

Do you care about me? Xiao Hei…

You promised me…

The voice grew louder and louder, and his heart beat faster and faster. Finally, he realized that her voice was coming from deep within his heart.

A voice transmitted across a thousand miles.

It was a technique he had once disdained, but now it became his lifeline. Clutching tightly to that faint voice, he stared at the frail, helpless figure as if engraving it into his heart. Though he tried to steady his inner voice, it still carried a slight tremor:

“Don’t be afraid. I heard you.”