The Demon Lord is My Dark Moonlight [Transmigration Novel] - Chapter 22

In the blink of an eye, half a month had passed in the illusion. Since meeting the lead on the first day, Gu Jinli hadn’t seen her again for quite some time. Their schedules seemed to be perfectly mismatched; when she and Jinyao were up the mountain foraging, Shen Chigui would return to the hut.

When Gu Jinli and the others returned to the hut later that afternoon, Shen Chigui was already gone again. This meant that despite being here for half a month, Gu Jinli hadn’t found a single moment to “catch up” with the female lead since that first day.

This evening, however, as Gu Jinli returned with her bamboo basket, she was surprised to find the lead present. She was sitting in the most spacious part of the hut, surrounded by a circle of children who were all chattering away in hushed, urgent tones.

“Seventh Sister, is it true? Did you really see it?”

“Xiao Qi, you can’t just say things like that… hasn’t our village already…”

“Xiao Qi…”

Because of the distance and the crowd, Gu Jinli couldn’t hear the specifics. But seeing the serious, tense expressions on the children’s faces, she knew something had happened.

Could it be related to the ‘anomaly’ she mentioned?

Curiosity piqued, Gu Jinli put down her basket and tried to inch closer to eavesdrop. Unfortunately, there were too many kids, and her current body was far too frail. Forget squeezing to the front—she could barely hold her own against the jostling.

“Hey! Don’t shove!”

“Who’s pushing?!”

A few minutes later, in a weird twist of crowd dynamics, Gu Jinli was shoved from the back and propelled right toward the center.

—Thud!

Losing her footing, she tumbled forward, falling directly toward Shen Chigui.

“!”

Who pushed me?!

“?!“

Shit! Is Shen Chigui cursed?!

A split second before she could land on the girl, an unceremonious foot shot out and kicked her away. Gu Jinli, who had never dealt with such raw hostility, was stunned. She looked down at the large footprint on her stomach and then glared at the culprit, pointing a finger but unable to get a word out.

“Y-y-you… y-y-you…!”

Is she toxic?! She had just accidentally fallen… she barely would have touched her! To kick her like that without holding back an ounce of strength—was she trying to kill her? Her abdomen was throbbing with a sharp, cramping pain, and Gu Jinli’s face turned ghostly white.

“What kind of filth thinks it can crawl onto me?”

Shen Chigui swept a glance over her as if looking at a piece of disgusting pond scum. She brushed off non-existent dust from her clothes and said condescendingly, “Shameless.”

Shameless? Me?!

Gu Jinli pointed at the girl, then at herself, her breathing becoming heavy. Her temper finally “exploded.” Back outside the illusion, she had endured being bullied and used by this brat because she was the “lead” and because Gu Jinli couldn’t win a fight.

But now? Inside an illusion where identities were swapped and everyone was just a regular human? There was no reason to keep taking this!

This was a golden opportunity. She couldn’t beat her out there, but surely she could win here! Gu Jinli rolled up her sleeves and lunged at Shen Chigui like a greased lightning bolt. If she didn’t show this brat some color today, her last name wasn’t Gu!

Shameless, am I?

I’ll show you what “shameless” really looks like!

“!”

Shen Chigui hadn’t expected the person she’d just kicked to pounce on her. She instinctively tried to back away, but the hut was too crowded. No matter how agile she was, she couldn’t maneuver in such a tight space.

A few seconds later, Gu Jinli caught her.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

A flash of coldness flickered in Shen Chigui’s eyes. Even though she was caught, she wasn’t afraid. She had confidence in her skills; in Pear Blossom Village, she had offended many, yet no one had ever gotten the better of her.

She was going to make this person realize that some things are not to be touched. Those who do, pay a price.

As she was thinking this, Gu Jinli’s hands shot out and grabbed her collar. With a loud RRRIP, Shen Chigui watched in shock as her outer tunic was yanked open. Then, with a forceful pull, Gu Jinli dragged her forward so hard that Shen Chigui nearly fell into her arms.

Heh.

As expected of the lead… this neck is actually… quite nice.

Even as a little wretch, her skin is still so supple.

“…”

Gu Jinli had no idea how much her actions had rattled Shen Chigui. She simply hauled the girl close and, looking at the exposed skin of the neck she’d just bared, opened her mouth and bit down hard.

“Hiss~”

What kind of bizarre fighting style is this? Shen Chigui, who felt she’d been fighting her “whole life,” had never had her clothes ripped open like this. Now, with a set of teeth sunk into her neck, she winced from the sharp pain.

But for some reason, she wasn’t actually angry.

“Is this all the skill you have?”

Gu Jinli’s messy, bird-nest hair was tickling her chin. Since they were roughly the same height, Shen Chigui only had to tilt her head to meet Gu Jinli’s ferocious eyes.

Suddenly, she let out a scoffing laugh.

“You don’t even know how to bite properly. What else can you do?”

Shen Chigui could feel it. The person before her looked fierce, but her teeth hadn’t even broken the skin. In this state, she was no different from a village puppy. Actually… a puppy would be more threatening. At least a puppy knows how to bark.

“Y-y-you!!!”

Even without her memories, this brat knew exactly how to push her buttons. Gu Jinli’s eyes widened, and she let go of the neck, her nose practically twitching with rage.

I don’t know how to bite?! Her eyes turned bloodshot with fury. In a moment of pure, unthinking madness, Gu Jinli lunged forward and bit Shen Chigui right on the lips.

“Sh-sh-sh… shut up!”

Shut your mouth! You and your dead lips!

She was like a frantic little dog biting at anything in reach—a form of rebellion that was, frankly, more adorable than intimidating.

This time, not only did Shen Chigui’s eyes bulge in shock, but the surrounding children let out a collective, incredulous gasp.

“Oh my god! Did you see that?!”

“The stutterer kissed Xiao Qi!”

“How scandalous…”

The uproar was loud enough to nearly take the roof off.

******

Nangong Jinyao returned a bit later than usual. Every day, after foraging with the children, she would carry her basket into the village. Today was no different; she had hoped to trade some wild fruit for a bit of grain.

But the moment she entered the village, she felt a heavy, suffocating atmosphere. Many elders were sitting silently at their doorsteps. The village only felt like this once a year—during the year-end sacrifices.

But it was only mid-year. Why was this happening again?

“Er-ya, you’re here!”

Seeing Nangong Jinyao, the Village Chief waved her over.

“Grandpa Chief.” Stifling her unease, she ran over. “Did you want me? What… what is everyone doing?”

“Er-ya, the village has decided to hold another sacrifice.” The Chief rubbed his wrinkled hands, which looked like old tree bark. He sighed, his eyes clouded and dull as he looked at her. “It hasn’t rained in three months. The fields are barren. No one can hold out much longer. We’ve decided to sacrifice again to pray for rain…”

“You lot aren’t originally from Pear Blossom Village, but you’re still a part of us.”

“Grandpa Chief!” Jinyao understood where this was going the moment he spoke. She interrupted him, her voice trembling. “For last year’s sacrifice, the offering came from our hut.”

This time, she would not let another one of her “siblings” be used as a sacrifice.

“And what of it?” The Chief’s dull eyes shifted. As if he had expected this, he spoke without surprise. “Er-ya, you only need to give us the stutterer.”

“She’s always been a burden, hasn’t she?”

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