The Demon Lord is My Dark Moonlight [Transmigration Novel] - Chapter 7

“I have a deal I’d like to make with the City Lord.”

Shen Chigui stepped out and looked the City Lord in the eye. “It’s regarding the Secret Realm. I wonder if the City Lord is interested?”

The Secret Realm? How did this little girl know about that?

Setting down his tea, the City Lord smiled thinly. “Interesting. What kind of deal do you have in mind?”

“I want a slot,” Shen Chigui said calmly. “I know what the City Lord has been preparing for recently. I am willing to lend you a hand.”

“Oh?” The City Lord’s hand moved to the jade ring on his thumb, his gaze darkening. The news of the Secret Realm was a secret shared only among the Great Clans of Gu City. Who had leaked it to a child? Recalling how she had “won” the hunt, his expression shifted.

This girl was indeed bizarre; the way she had killed that man was far too strange for a nine-year-old.

“And why should I agree to a deal with you? I don’t believe I require your assistance.”

Though he didn’t say it explicitly, the subtext was clear: the City Lord didn’t think Shen Chigui could actually help him, despite her obvious oddity.

“I have been inside that Secret Realm before.”

Unfazed by his hesitation, Shen Chigui cut straight to the point. “I can bring things out from within.”

As a “veteran” who had been reborn more times than she could count, Shen Chigui knew that Secret Realm like the back of her hand. Her natal sword was born within its depths; the only reason she had initiated this “cooperation” was to retrieve her blade sooner.

While she would have had the chance to enter later regardless, Shen Chigui had no desire to play servant to some spoiled Young Mistress. She was afraid that if she lost her temper for a single second, she would end up killing the girl and causing unnecessary trouble.

“You…”

Nothing can be brought out of the Secret Realm. This was the consensus among everyone who had entered.

The Secret Realm within Gu City had appeared suddenly near the City Lord’s back garden about a month ago. At first, the City Lord was ecstatic, believing it to be a divine gift. But as more people entered and more data was gathered, he realized that no matter how many went in, they returned with nothing but stories.

It was a thousand-year-old realm! It contained countless treasures and secret manuals! Any single item from its depths would be enough to trigger a bloodbath in the outside world.

The massive fortune was right under his nose, yet completely out of reach. This feeling of impotence had been gnawing at the City Lord for weeks. Eventually, he had shared the secret with the clans closest to him, but even with their combined experts, they remained empty-handed. Frequent incursions had even led to the loss of several high-level masters to the beasts within, which was beginning to weaken his foundation.

He was currently nursing a massive headache over this very issue.

“I see…”

The City Lord’s gaze finally sharpened as he truly looked at the child before him. If she could solve the retrieval problem, all his troubles would vanish.

“I accept your terms. But before that… the contract.”

Having watched the exchange between the lead and the City Lord, Gu Jinli ultimately failed to escape her fate.

Under a watchful eye, she was forced to bite her finger and smear her blood onto the unfair Master-Servant contract. As the blinding light faded and the blood was absorbed, Gu Jinli felt an invisible shackle settle within her body. This peculiar sensation was a constant reminder: her life was now tethered to this piece of parchment.

The lead is so headstrong.

Gu Jinli watched coldly as Shen Chigui signed her own contract. As the author, she knew exactly why the girl was being so “compliant”—the lead could shatter this contract the moment her bloodline awakened.

It’s so unfair… we both know the plot, so why am I the only one who’s a regular human?

After hearing the conversation with the City Lord, Gu Jinli was 100% certain: this version of Shen Chigui was a “Reborn” character.

“Does Big Sister want to go to the Secret Realm with me?” Shen Chigui glanced back, noticing Gu Jinli’s resentful stare. “I can bring you along.”

The Secret Realm…

“No thanks.” Gu Jinli’s lip twitched as she looked away, her voice stiff. “I’m not going.”

She knew her own writing better than anyone; that place was a deathtrap. In the original plot, to give the young lead a power boost for her “OP journey,” Gu Jinli had designed a cliché Secret Realm as an EXP pack. Not only were the treasures incredibly rich, but she had added a special rule: no one but the lead could take anything out.

In the original timeline, Shen Chigui only reached the realm a year later because she was stuck being a maid. But the public opening was only three days away—coinciding with the Young Mistress’s birthday.

Because he couldn’t crack the “no retrieval” rule, the City Lord would eventually announce the realm’s existence to the public, inviting all the powerhouses of Gu City to explore it. He even offered high bounties for anything brought out, going so far as to move the entire Manor to a new location to make the site accessible.

At age nine, the “original” lead was too weak to touch such “public treasures” and could only endure the abuse of the Young Mistress. It took a year of suffering before she found a chance to sneak in and claim her sword.

Of course, Gu Jinli had skimmed over that suffering in her book. It was a power fantasy, after all; the early grievances were just “face-slapping” fuel. But for a regular human like Gu Jinli, a realm full of trials and monsters was a place she’d rather avoid.

“Don’t you want to know what’s inside?” Shen Chigui’s eyes flickered. “Don’t you want to stay by my side?”

“Not at all.”

Gu Jinli ignored her and followed the Steward’s arrangements. Perhaps because the lead had derailed the plot, the City Lord was no longer interested in hand-picking maids for his daughter. Gu Jinli didn’t know where she was being sent, but she was too annoyed to deal with the lead.

“This way, Miss.”

The only one receiving special treatment was Shen Chigui, whom the Steward personally escorted. The City Lord had already left.

“Steward,” Shen Chigui said, watching Gu Jinli walk away without looking back. “I heard the Young Mistress is in need of a maid.”

“Indeed, she is.” The Steward caught her drift instantly. “The Master is waiting in the study. Please, follow me.”

I was assigned to be the Young Mistress’s maid?

When she was led into the courtyard, Gu Jinli was stunned. This was the lead’s plotline! Why was she walking it? Had the guide taken a wrong turn?

As she stood outside the room waiting for instructions, a series of crashes and shattering porcelain echoed from within. Seconds later, a beautiful woman in a crimson dress stormed out. A cold, black whip was coiled at her waist.

“What kind of trash did they send me this time?!”

Nangong Jinyao’s eyes landed on Gu Jinli, and her brows knitted in disgust. “You’re telling me this thing survived my father’s hunting grounds? What can a scrawny brat like this even do?!”

Without warning, she uncoiled the whip and lashed out.

CRACK!

The supple whip struck like a serrated blade. Gu Jinli lost her footing and collapsed onto the ground. The area where she had been hit felt as though it had been sliced open by something jagged; blood began to seep through her clothes immediately.

This was the horror of the Bone Whip. Nangong Jinyao’s weapon was crafted from the tongue of a Second-Rank exotic beast, lined with hard barbs. Every strike was like a monster scraping the meat off a bone.

“…”

So, the lead’s suffering is just being handed to me now, is it?

Gu Jinli regretted her world-building for the thousandth time. A normal person truly couldn’t survive here.

“At least you’re smart enough not to scream.”

Seeing that Gu Jinli hadn’t made a sound, the Young Mistress found her slightly more tolerable. She had whipped many servants, but none had been this compliant. Nangong Jinyao tilted her chin up and sneered, “Tell me, what is your name? And how on earth did you win?!”

“…Gu Jinli.”

Clutching her stinging wound, Gu Jinli lowered her head. She knew the girl’s temper; being submissive made things easier. She wasn’t Shen Chigui; she didn’t have a tempered body. A few more lashes and she’d be dead.

But then again… if the lead was a “rebellious daughter,” then what did that make her? A victim? Why should every minor character get to bully her? She was their “Mother,” for heaven’s sake!

Gu Jinli suddenly realized that being a doormat would only make the other girl more arrogant.

“I only survived because my companion protected me,” Gu Jinli said, her voice low and submissive. “She is very strong. She said she would protect me forever.”

Aside from Gu Jinli, no one in existence understood this book better.

The Young Mistress before her was merely a bit-part character, a disposable foil meant to drive the plot forward. For the sake of narrative logic, Gu Jinli had given her a specific psychological profile: she was a daughter who refused to be inferior to men, obsessed with becoming an absolute powerhouse so she could eventually overthrow her own father.

Because of this ambition, Nangong Jinyao worked harder than anyone and utterly loathed those who relied on tricks, opportunism, or “protection.”

In the original plot, the young lead had accidentally triggered every single one of those pet peeves, leading to her systematic torment. This was why Gu Jinli chose her words so carefully. By claiming Shen Chigui was “strong” and “protecting” her, she played right into the Young Mistress’s desire for a challenge—or her desire to see such a “protector” fail.

As expected.

“Protected forever? By her?”

Nangong Jinyao sneered and turned to her attendant. “Go and drag that brat here. I want to see for myself exactly how much ‘skill’ she has.”

“As you command.”

A dark shadow flickered in the trees as a hidden guard sped out of the courtyard.

“As for you…”

Having dealt with that, the Young Mistress turned back and lashed out again. “You still dare to play mind games with me?! Weakness is the original sin!”

CRACK!

“…”

Gu Jinli was knocked to the ground again, her face turning ghastly pale from the pain. Yet, despite the agony, she felt a twisted sense of satisfaction. The lead was coming.

Why should she be the only one suffering? This was Shen Chigui’s destiny; it was only right to return it to the rightful owner. Gu Jinli had realized that her being dragged into this mess was likely tied to the lead’s “rebirth.”

If there’s misery to be had, we’re sharing it, she thought. A family should stay together, after all.

“Is what this child says truly the truth?”

Inside the study, the City Lord faced Shen Chigui, seeking confirmation once more. Seeing her unwavering confidence, the City Lord, left with no other options, chose to trust her for now.

“Three days from now is my daughter Jinyao’s birthday. I will publicly announce the entrance to the Secret Realm then.”

He stroked his beard, his eyes fixed on her. “I can arrange for you to join the exploration team. But I have one condition: you must retrieve the treasures within during this excursion. Otherwise, I will crush your Soul Contract.”

Once a Master-Servant contract is signed, your life is no longer your own. If the master dies or chooses to destroy the contract, the slave dies with them. It was the ultimate form of control.

“Deal.”

Shen Chigui nodded expressionlessly. She didn’t care for the threat. If it weren’t for her current body being so weak and her desire to avoid unnecessary complications, she wouldn’t have needed such a roundabout method. Once she was inside that realm, she would be the one in control.

As she followed the Steward out of the study, the agreement was finalized. Because of her “special status,” the City Lord had ordered her to be kept in a separate, private courtyard under guard.

However, the moment they left the main area, they were intercepted by a hulking servant who had been waiting for some time.

“Our Young Mistress wants to see you.”

The man reached out to grab her before even finishing his sentence. Such a rude, sudden demand caught even the Steward off guard. But recognizing the man as one of Nangong Jinyao’s guards, the Steward’s expression became conflicted.

“This person is the City Lord’s guest! You cannot take her!”

He couldn’t just let her be dragged away after the Master’s explicit orders. He blocked the servant’s path. “I already sent a maid to the Young Mistress this afternoon. Is she not satisfied?”

“Cut the chatter!”

The servant was in a hurry to complete his task. “If you’re so worried, come with us!”

He grabbed both the Steward and Shen Chigui by their sleeves and activated a Teleportation Scroll.

Whirr—!

The next second, the three of them vanished in a flash of light.

On the other side of the Manor, Gu Jinli had just used a tree trunk to haul her battered body off the ground. Suddenly, the air shimmered, and three people appeared in the courtyard. One of them was the female lead.

“Heh.”

You’re finally here. Gu Jinli’s lips curled into a faint, painful smirk.

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