The Demon Lord Is Carrying My Child - Chapter 24

Zhuang Yi, knowing she was in the wrong this time, coughed uncomfortably and introduced the newcomer to Ji Shutao: “This is the Right Elder, Qian Feng.”

Then she looked at Qian Feng. Qian Feng’s hair was disheveled, looking every bit the traveler who had rushed a long way in great haste. Zhuang Yi asked, “Why are you here?”

Qian Feng spread her face into a bright smile. “If I hadn’t come, I wouldn’t have known how many things you dared to hide from me.”

The more brilliantly Qian Feng smiled, the greater her anger was. Zhuang Yi, well aware of this, was about to speak in her own defense, but Qian Feng had already started counting on her fingers.

“First, the Sovereign’s Consort has lost her memory, and you have a little cub. Second, you climbed North Star Mountain alone while pregnant. Third, you are clearly injured to such an extent, yet you actually didn’t intend to notify me.”

Her tone sharpened significantly toward the end.

Zhuang Yi felt even more guilty. “I could have handled it by myself.”

“If it weren’t for that lunatic Xi Xiao and the cub in your belly, I might actually believe those words,” Qian Feng said, staring straight at Zhuang Yi. “Don’t always think you can handle everything alone. Even if you can, please share a little with us. Don’t make us feel utterly useless.”

Just as Zhuang Yi wanted to retort, her hand was caught by Ji Shutao. She turned her head toward Ji Shutao, her eyes asking what was wrong.

“Zhuang Yi, sometimes when there are clearly two of you, but you always think about handling everything alone, it hurts the other person.”

The reason Ji Shutao was being so serious was that she wanted Zhuang Yi to know that not everything required only one person. What Qian Feng had just said was exactly what she wanted to tell Zhuang Yi.

Zhuang Yi was always accustomed to carrying everything on her own shoulders. Before, she wouldn’t make a sound; now, even if she did, she only said she was fine.

Ji Shutao didn’t need that kind of Zhuang Yi. She wanted them to face everything together. What she wanted was to fight side-by-side, definitely not for Zhuang Yi to face all dangers alone.

Though she was weak now and needed Zhuang Yi’s protection, she believed that in time, she too would be able to protect Zhuang Yi. True affection was never about one-sided sacrifice, but about mutual fulfillment and becoming better people together.

Thus, the feelings of those who constantly shouted about how much they had sacrificed for another rarely lasted long.

But Zhuang Yi didn’t shout; she said nothing, and Ji Shutao’s heart ached for her. While her heart ached for Zhuang Yi, Ji Shutao herself felt a deep pain as well.

The child who cries gets the candy. Ji Shutao had a piece of candy, and she was only willing to give it to Zhuang Yi.

Ji Shutao poured out all these words in one breath. Finally, she asked Zhuang Yi, “Do you understand? Do you understand my heart? You can tell me everything. You aren’t indestructible. I am your lover, the person who can bear everything of yours. I don’t want you to blindly charge forward alone. I promise you, I will definitely become a stronger person.”

Zhuang Yi turned her head away, tears swirling in her eyes. Only after a moment did she say, “I understand. I’m sorry.”

“You haven’t let me down, but you’ve let yourself down.” Ji Shutao squeezed Zhuang Yi’s hand. “You have already done right by me; you must also do right by yourself. Can you do that?”

Zhuang Yi could see her own reflection in Ji Shutao’s eyes. Ji Shutao’s words echoed in her ears: You have already done right by me; you must also do right by yourself.

She gripped Ji Shutao’s hand in return, letting the tears slide down her face. “I can.”

Having listened to the whole exchange, Qian Feng felt very gratified. She truly was someone worthy of the title “Sovereign’s Consort.”

“This time, if I hadn’t returned to the Demon Realm on a whim, I wouldn’t have known how long you’d keep me in the dark. Zi Yue is the same clearly someone I trained, yet her heart is always with you.”

Zi Yue was Qian Feng’s personal disciple. Later, when Zhuang Yi took the throne, Qian Feng had ordered Zi Yue to stay by Zhuang Yi’s side to look after her daily life.

Now that Zhuang Yi had left, all affairs of the Demon Realm were being handled by Zi Yue. Zi Yue had once been hailed as the fastest blade in the Demon Realm; even though Qian Feng was her master, Zi Yue had long surpassed her.

The student had outshone the master, and Qian Feng was very proud. With Zhuang Yi choosing her to maintain order in the Demon Realm, few dared to act out of turn. Zi Yue’s blade spoke much louder than she did.

“How is the Demon Realm?” Zhuang Yi asked.

She used to exchange letters with Zi Yue frequently, but now that she was like an ordinary person, Zi Yue’s messages could no longer find her, and she had been cut off from news.

“The situation isn’t good. Recently, the righteous path has been restless, and Xi Xiao has been eyeing your position. Those who support him are also quite unsettled. But at least Zi Yue can keep them down. However, there is one thing: of the Eighteen Volumes of Forbidden Books, one volume is missing.”

The Eighteen Volumes of Forbidden Books were kept in the Forbidden Grounds. The Forbidden Grounds were full of traps; any demon capable of entering was generally no ordinary demon. High cultivation combined with an impure heart would lead to endless trouble.

“Is it the volume that records the Art of Life Souls?”

“You know? Didn’t Zi Yue say she couldn’t contact you?”

“I heard a few days ago that someone wanted to use living souls for a sacrifice to the heavens, so I guessed. But if even Zi Yue couldn’t reach me, how did you find me?”

“I have my ways. I could find you even at the ends of the earth.”

Zhuang Yi sighed helplessly. “Alright then.”

“I have already instructed Zi Yue to investigate with all her might. Have you already clashed with Xi Xiao?”

“He has set ambushes everywhere, wanting to kill me.”

“He went mad long ago. Who knows when this madness will ever end.”

Although Qian Feng spoke harshly, she had always hoped Xi Xiao could return to normal. But could Xi Xiao truly ever recover?

“I’ve discussed it with Zi Yue. From now on, I will stay by your side and keep in touch with her so she can be at ease.”

Now that Qian Feng had arrived, she couldn’t be driven away. If Zhuang Yi had Qian Feng by her side now, things would be much safer.

Zhuang Yi nodded. “Fine.”

That night, while Ji Shutao was arranging Zhuang Yi’s hair, she asked, “Did you choose the Left and Right Elders yourself?”

Zhuang Yi was fiddling with the hair hanging over her chest. Hearing this, she looked back at Ji Shutao. “No. Why do you ask so suddenly?”

“It’s just that earlier, although Qian Feng kept calling Xi Xiao a lunatic, there seemed to be a different meaning behind it.” Ji Shutao placed the removed hairpin into a box. She couldn’t quite describe what that meaning was, but it certainly wasn’t complete loathing.

“If it involves any secrets, then never mind.” Ji Shutao’s curiosity had always been strong, but she knew when to be curious and to what extent.

“It’s not a secret. The Left and Right Elders have existed for a long time. They have assisted every Demon Sovereign.”

“I seem to have read about it in a book concerning the Demon Realm…” Ji Shutao murmured.

Zhuang Yi stared at Ji Shutao with interest. “Why on earth were you reading books about the Demon Realm?”

“I just wanted to understand you a little bit more.” Ji Shutao leaned her head on Zhuang Yi’s shoulder. With just a slight turn, she could kiss Zhuang Yi.

These past few days, she had probably spent all her time thinking about kissing.

Zhuang Yi gathered the hair from both sides and tossed it behind her back, teasingly tickling Ji Shutao’s face. Dissatisfied, Ji Shutao twitched her nose, opened her mouth, and gave her a playful “bite.”

Zhuang Yi had no way to deal with her; if Ji Shutao bit her, she couldn’t exactly bite back.

“Let’s sleep. We have to set out tomorrow.”

Zhuang Yi tried to push her away, but Ji Shutao pulled her into her arms and sighed, “This is how the life of lovers should be.”

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