Stepping in for the Heroine to Crush the Protagonist Group [Transmigration] - Chapter 12

Hu Li nodded, but before she could say much, the Lust Demon snapped his fingers, conjuring a female statue—or rather, a figurine—that was life-sized relative to the figure in the sketchbook.

He stood up, plucked a peony hairpin from the figurine’s head, and urgently asked, “Little brother, quickly tell me, where did you see this hairpin? This item belonged to my daughter. When I entered the Floating Life Pagoda, I was too rushed moving my things and dropped it.”

Hu Li’s gaze rested on the figurine, confirming that the Lust Demon was a textbook otaku (a dedicated hobbyist/fan).

“Big Brother Lust Demon, before we talk about the peony hairpin, tell me honestly: how did you end up in the Floating Life Pagoda? Was it really just because you were ‘lustful’?”

She didn’t understand how a shut-in artist could possibly have offended the Tianyan Sect. Furthermore, she realized the Lust Demon wasn’t lustful at all—he was just terribly naive.

The Lust Demon scratched his head awkwardly upon hearing her question. “I’m not lustful. As for the Tianyan Sect capturing me, that’s a long story.”

Hu Li cut him off. “Make it short.”

The Lust Demon spoke rapidly: “I drew the private affairs of the Tianyan Sect’s Sect Leader and several Elders, and I made a lot of spirit stones from it. They found me to be an eyesore, so they spread the rumor that I was lustful, and used that as a pretext to capture me and throw me into the Floating Life Pagoda.”

“Fortunately, all the various demons and spirits in the Tower loved my sketchbooks, and they actually designated the third floor just for me, so I could live here in peace.”

Hu Li remained silent, strongly wanting to say to the Lust Demon, “Are you sure it’s not because the other demons and evil cultivators were afraid you’d draw their private lives, too?!”

However, she didn’t have the heart to say it and instead confessed, “The other peony hairpin is in my possession.”

The Lust Demon was delighted. “Is that true?”

Hu Li nodded, instinctively reaching for her storage bag, but finding it empty. Thus, she had to say, “I can only give you that peony hairpin once you release us.”

The Lust Demon let out a disappointed “Ah,” then realized why Hu Li couldn’t give him the hairpin right now.

He immediately slammed his hand on the desk and waved to dispel the illusion.

His figurine was more important than losing face.

Hu Li looked at the suddenly shifting scenery and felt her body change. Surprised, she exclaimed, “Lust Demon, you’ve released us from the illusion?!”

The Lust Demon raised an eyebrow and smiled, reaching out for the peony hairpin.

But as the illusionary fog dispersed and he caught sight of Hu Li’s face, his breath instantly hitched. “You’re a woman?!”

Then, he looked behind Hu Li at the other three, who had also reverted to their original appearances, and his brows furrowed into a deep frown. “You’re all women?!”

Finally, he looked at the mute bride, Xie Qingyang. “Yikes! This one is a man!”

His entire world view had just collapsed.

Hu Li patted his shoulder and placed the peony hairpin into his hand, offering comfort. “Big Brother Lust Demon, try to look on the bright side.”

The Lust Demon tremulously took the hairpin, finding it very difficult to look on the bright side.

He had only been out of touch with the cultivation world for a mere year. Had the cultivation world become this terrifying?

Men wanted to be women, and women just wanted to be men’s fathers!

[Lust Demon: Doubtful about life JPG.]

[Lust Demon: The outside world is so scary, I need to be alone.]

[Lust Demon: One minute I’m calling her ‘brother,’ the next I suspect she wants to be my father.]

Hu Li looked at the book reviews and patted the Lust Demon even harder.

“Big Brother Lust Demon, don’t worry, I don’t want to be your father,” she assured him.

The Lust Demon’s expression changed. He took a step back and quickly said, “Ladies, I will send you off now.”

Unexpectedly, Gu Sheng restrained the hand he was preparing to use for the spell.

The Lust Demon looked at Gu Sheng in terror, remembering how he had pressured her and the others into working for him in the illusion. His whole body trembled like a sieve.

“I-Immort—Immortal, I know I was wrong. I—”

Before he could finish begging for mercy, Gu Sheng released the restraint spell, then tossed a bag of spirit stones to him. “Cash on the barrel, exchange complete.”

The Lust Demon came to his senses, remembered Gu Sheng’s offer to buy all his Hand-Irons in the illusion, and was overjoyed. “Yes! Yes, ma’am!”

He removed all the Hand-Irons from his sleeve, placed them into a storage bag, and handed it to Gu Sheng. But just as Gu Sheng was about to take it, he pulled one out and gave it to Hu Li. “Little—”

He paused, smoothing out his knotted tongue, and continued, “Little Sister, this is an exchange of gifts. This one is for you.”

Hu Li accepted it, a massive grin spreading across her face. “Big Brother Lust Demon, thank you so much!”

In this cultivation world, she finally had a ‘cell phone’ too!

The Lust Demon replied, “It’s nothing,” and then conveniently added Hu Li as a friend.

Gu Sheng didn’t say much to the ghost and the demon. She turned and distributed a Hand-Iron to Shang Miaoyun and Min Xiuhe as well.

The method for using the Hand-Iron was very unique. The Lust Demon noticed Hu Li was inexplicably quick to catch on, so he didn’t teach her much, turning instead to add Gu Sheng and the other two as friends, then carefully explaining the usage method to them.

After teaching them the technique, the Lust Demon clapped his hands together, preparing to tunnel underground to count his money.

However, Hu Li stopped him again. “Big Brother Lust Demon, I forgot to ask. Do you still have a copy of that best-selling sketchbook that got you thrown into the Floating Life Pagoda?”

She was absolutely dying of curiosity about that book.

The Lust Demon hadn’t expected Hu Li to have such good taste. Smiling, he pulled one from his robe and tucked it into Hu Li’s hand. “I don’t have many left. Look at it, and cherish it.”

Hu Li nodded, lowering her gaze to the book. The title, The Two or Three Things That Must Be Said About the Tianyan Sect, seemed normal enough. She turned a page and saw the table of contents:

[Shock! A certain three-worded female demon is the Sect Leader’s lover!]

[Shock! On the Lantern Festival, the Sect Leader and a certain three-worded female demon met secretly late at night!]

[Shock! A certain three-worded female demon angrily dumped the Sect Leader! He pleaded desperately, but was still dumped!]

Hu Li sucked in a cold breath and said to the Lust Demon, “You are truly wasted as an artist.”

The Lust Demon smiled smugly and prepared to leave once more, but this time, no one stopped him. He paused on his own.

“Little Sister, I feel a deep connection with you, so I’ll give you a kind warning: since you’re a demon, you should stay put in the Floating Life Pagoda. Don’t go running around with these death-wishers. The one on the next floor isn’t like the ones above. They aren’t easy to fool.”

Hu Li heard this and wanted to reply that she also wished for the peaceful, home-delivery life of the Floating Life Pagoda, but just as she opened her mouth, a sophisticated, commanding female voice suddenly rang in their ears: “Lust Demon, do you wish to die or not live?”

The Lust Demon’s scalp tingled. He managed to utter, “Big Brother has to run! Little Sister, fend for yourself!” before rapidly tunneling into the ground.

At the same moment, the stone bricks beneath their feet cracked, and beams of silver light shone through.

Xie Qingyang and He Shiqing, who had been lying in the center, were startled awake by the blinding light. They exchanged a look, quickly averted their eyes, and then asked Gu Sheng in unison, “What’s going on?”

Gu Sheng looked down, giving them a faint glance without responding.

He Shiqing stood up, annoyance in his eyes, and was about to snap at Gu Sheng, when the stone bricks beneath his feet instantly crumbled into dust. He and Xie Qingyang plummeted into the next layer with a jolt.

Hu Li peered over the edge of the third floor, able to clearly see the situation below.

Amidst the silver light, the outline of an illusion array was faintly visible. Looking closely, a woman stood at the eye of the array. She was dressed in a white gown, the skirt fluttering as blades of light darted around.

Is that the Illusion Demon? So beautiful. Hu Li couldn’t help but sigh with emotion. The next second, she locked eyes with the Illusion Demon, who had looked up.

They were pure silver pupils, like a frozen alpine lake—icy and bone-chilling.

Hu Li’s mind swayed. She felt as if she were lost in a vast, snowy plain, and everything before her began to blur.

[Host!] The system, having just disabled its shield, immediately sensed the anomaly in Hu Li’s Sea of Consciousness. It shouted, pulling Hu Li back from the void. 

[Host, wake up! Don’t let Xue Qingshu bewitch your mind!]

Xue Qingshu? Hu Li vigorously shook her head and quickly backed against the stone wall behind her, not daring to peek down again.

In the original novel, Xue Qingshu had only appeared twice. The first time was in the Floating Life Pagoda, where she tried to bewitch Xie Qingyang and murder the entering disciples, but was wounded by Gu Sheng. The second time was during the final battle, where she took advantage of the chaos in the Tianyan Sect, killed an entire peak of disciples, and escaped the Floating Life Pagoda.

In both instances in the original novel, Xue Qingshu appeared as a tool or a background figure, yet every word written about her highlighted her cruelty and bloodlust.

Hu Li had just been entranced by her, and now she dared not provoke her again.

Across from her, Gu Sheng and the other two were more foresightful. They were all sitting cross-legged, glued to the stone wall, none of them leaning over to look. Instead, they all had their heads raised, eyes focused on the ceiling above.

Seeing this, Hu Li followed their gaze and realized that the jade ceiling above was reflective, perfectly mirroring the situation below.

In the array, Xie Qingyang stood in front of Xue Qingshu, his back to Hu Li. The Fateful Sword in his tightly clasped hand was raised high, resting against He Shiqing’s throat.

He Shiqing’s face was chalk-white. His usual cool, composed demeanor had vanished, replaced only by a look of twisted terror and lips that trembled incessantly from fear.

He seemed to be saying something. Hu Li squinted, trying to read his lips, and could only intermittently make out: “Don’t kill me,” “I beg you,” “There are still others above,” and “I’ll lure them out for you.”

Hu Li pursed her lips, cursing him as shameless, and lowered her head, refusing to look at him anymore.

She thought the Illusion Demon might as well kill him now with one slash, saving Gu Sheng from being harmed by him later.

But He Shiqing was the Male Secondary Lead, the author’s second son. In the original novel, even after her own demise, He Shiqing had remained untouched.

Thus, Hu Li didn’t hold much hope that the Illusion Demon would be able to kill He Shiqing.

Yet, just as she was about to look up at the jade ceiling again, a splash of warm liquid suddenly landed on her face.

Hu Li’s eyes widened abruptly, her trembling pupils instantly shrinking to tiny points.

She hesitated for a moment, then raised a hand to touch her face, wiping off the liquid before lowering her eyes for a closer look.

It was blood. Hu Li’s breath hitched. She immediately looked up at the jade ceiling.

In the illusion array, Xie Qingyang held his sword high. Blood flowed slowly down the grooves of the blade, staining the wide, white sleeve embroidered with auspicious clouds and cranes.

As for the owner of the blood, he had broken free of the array’s control. He was frantically clutching his neck, but blood still squeezed relentlessly through his fingers, staining the front of his robe. The white cloud on it instantly turned crimson.

His life force quickly dissipated.

Before He Shiqing could be terrified any longer, he collapsed onto the jade bricks before him, eyes wide, and died.

[Holy cow, the Male Secondary Lead just died?!]

[So sudden.]

[His soul is still around. He definitely has a resurrection card later.]

Xue Qingshu watched everything with cold indifference. Then, as Xie Qingyang came to his senses, she manipulated him to cleave at He Shiqing’s soul with the sword, ensuring that after a final wail, He Shiqing was completely erased from existence.

[Alright, the Male Secondary Lead is genuinely offline now.]

[He’s totally, completely dead.]

[How did the Male Secondary Lead offend the Illusion Demon?]

[I remember the only person the Male Secondary Lead offended in the original novel was the Female Lead.]

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