The Possessive Villain Is Too Clingy [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 58

Ruan Ning reacted swiftly, extending a finger to unleash demonic energy toward the vine of the demonic flower.

However, the flower had been steeped in demonic aura for years, rendering her attack utterly ineffective.

Ye Zhixia wasted no time, she swung her sword directly at the vine.

With a single strike, the vine coiled around her ankle was severed. The detached part immediately loosened and fell to the ground, while the remaining stump retracted back toward the demonic flower.

The flower recoiled in pain, its other vines shrinking back toward its stem. Then, the bloom at its apex let out a deafening roar toward the sky.

Ye Zhixia shielded Ruan Ning behind her. “Stay back. Your demonic energy is suppressed by its dark power, you can’t fight it.”

She then bellowed at the demonic flower, “Listen! We mean no harm! But if you insist on attacking, I won’t hesitate to retaliate!”

Gripping her sword horizontally with both hands, her eyes burned with determination as she locked onto the flower, ready to act at any moment.

Unrelenting, the demonic flower lashed out again, sending more vines toward the two.

Ye Zhixia’s eyes flashed. With a metallic clang, her sword moved like a whirlwind, deflecting strikes left and right as she seized the chance to slice through several vines.

The flower suffered even greater damage this time. Its entire stem abruptly shrank in height, and the retreating vines visibly thinned.

“Aaaah!” the flower at the top shrieked. “It hurts! It hurts! Help me!”

From behind a tree, an elderly woman in black peeked out. Trembling at the flower’s cries, she shuffled forward to stand before it, facing Ye Zhixia and Ruan Ning.

Timidly, she pleaded, “Y-young warriors, could you spare this little demon flower? She was just playing around.”

Ruan Ning frowned. “Attacking humans is just ‘playing’? Is taking lives a game to you?”

The old woman frantically waved her hands. “No, no! She just wanted to touch you, the child was only curious!”

Ruan Ning and Ye Zhixia exchanged glances, recalling the earlier encounter. Indeed, aside from coiling its vines around them, the flower hadn’t shown any outright aggression.

The demonic flower then transformed into human form, tears instantly welling up.

“Waaah!” A middle-aged woman in purple robes stood where the flower had been, sobbing loudly.

Ye Zhixia sheathed her sword and relaxed her stance.

A faint black mist lingered among the trees, the demonic aura here was so dense it tinted the very air.

“Sister!” the purple-clad woman wailed, throwing herself into the old woman’s arms.

Holding her close, the old woman sighed and said to Ye Zhixia and Ruan Ning, “You two should leave this place as soon as possible…”

With that, she turned to leave, still embracing the purple-robed woman.

“Wait!” Ye Zhixia darted forward, blocking their path.

“We came here today to investigate the disappearances of young people in this area. Someone is using the Forest of Ten Thousand Realms for evil. Do you know anything about it?”

The old woman studied Ye Zhixia carefully before replying, “Sister, your cultivation isn’t strong enough. This matter is beyond you.”

Ye Zhixia blinked at the address perhaps a slip of the tongue but chose to ignore it.

“Elder, lives are at stake. We have to intervene!”

The old woman pouted, visibly displeased. “Who are you calling ‘elder’? Hmph!”

The woman in purple had stopped crying by now and was sniffling as she spoke to the old woman, “Sister, they seem quite capable. Maybe we should let them try. So many have already died, what difference would two more make?”

The old woman patted the purple-clad woman’s back gently. “Don’t cry,” she said.

She then glanced at Ye Zhixia, lifting her chin slightly. “Fine. If you’re so eager to throw your lives away, I won’t stop you.”

Hearing this, many of the surrounding plants quickly transformed into human forms.

Before long, a crowd of middle-aged and elderly men and women had gathered around. The old woman sat cross-legged on the ground, and the others followed suit, settling around her.

She began recounting the tale of the Boundless Forest in a measured tone. “Twenty years ago, a fire turned the Boundless Forest into a barren wasteland. And we are the new plants that grew from this land.”

Ye Zhixia felt something was off but merely furrowed her brows without speaking.

The old woman continued with the origins of the Boundless Forest.

Twenty years ago, the wildfire had burned all the plants to ashes. The vegetation now found in the Boundless Forest had only sprouted within the last decade.

From time to time, a circular black hole about two feet in diameter would appear in the forest. It had no fixed location, manifesting randomly throughout the Boundless Forest.

Each time this hole appeared, vast amounts of demonic energy would surge forth. Over the years, the plants affected by this energy began mutating into demonic forms. Within two or three years, some could even freely shapeshift into human appearances.

At first, these shape-shifting plants lived carefree lives, reveling in their newfound freedom within the forest.

To them, cultivating for centuries to become spirits or being nourished by demonic energy to become demons made little difference.

But five years ago, everything changed when a group of black-robed cultivators arrived.

At this point, the demonic flower now the woman in purple interjected angrily, “Those black-robed cultivators brought villagers from the south and forced us to feed on their life force. We couldn’t fight back, so we had no choice but to obey.”

“The life force would be converted into demonic energy within us, but we needed time to fully absorb it. Those cultivators forced us to transfer the energy to them before we could make it our own.”

The old woman stroked the purple-clad woman’s head sympathetically. “Poor little Silver Lotus,” she murmured.

After hearing their account, Ye Zhixia frowned in confusion. “Logically, you’ve only existed for twenty years at most. Why do you all look so aged?”

The old woman’s expression twisted with grief and anger. “Consuming life force and expelling demonic energy drains our lifespan. Supplying those cultivators with energy was harming ourselves!”

The surrounding demonic plants nodded in agreement.

Realization dawned on Ye Zhixia this was why the old woman had called her “sister” earlier and had been upset when addressed as “old woman.”

“So, you’re no more than twenty years old…” Ye Zhixia’s eyes filled with pity.

Meanwhile, Ruan Ning had been silent for a long time, seemingly deep in thought.

Noticing this, Ye Zhixia turned to her, waiting for her to speak.

Finally, Ruan Ning voiced her question. “Those people from the southern village, why are they saturated with demonic energy? Did you transfer it to them?”

The woman in purple nodded. “Yes. To cover their tracks, the black-robed cultivators made us share some demonic energy with the villagers’ corpses. Once the corpses absorbed the energy, they revived quickly, appearing no different from ordinary people. Except…”

“Except what?” Ye Zhixia and Ruan Ning asked in unison.

The woman in purple scratched her head. “From what I’ve observed, those resurrected villagers never seem to leave the village again, as if they’re trapped there by something.”

The elderly-looking demon plant took over the narrative:

Logically, children’s life force is the purest, but there’s always risk involved. One villager who absorbed a child’s life force actually shrank in size and turned into a child himself.

From this, the black-robed figures concluded that absorbing the life force of young people not only enhanced their cultivation but could even maintain youthfulness. That’s why they started abducting large numbers of young people from outside the village a year ago.

The demon plants’ absorption and transformation became more frequent, causing them to age rapidly in lifespan and appearance, resulting in their current state.

After hearing her account, Ye Zhixia and Ruan Ning already had suspicions about the identities of these black-robed cultivators.

Song Shiqi had inadvertently revealed that he carried demonic energy within him those cultivators were likely all his people.

The villagers of Danyun Village had been turned into compliant corpses, surviving by absorbing the life force of abducted young people, becoming Song Shiqi’s accomplices.

“We’ll deal with the villagers first, then report to the imperial court and major sects. We’ll definitely see justice done for you.”

Among those sitting nearby, someone suddenly raised their hand and spoke up: “Before you two heroes leave, could you take a look at that rosebush that fell from the sky next door?”

Ruan Ning tilted her head in confusion. “Fell from the sky?”

A group of middle-aged men and women nodded vigorously like pecking chicks.

Ye Zhixia pushed herself up from the ground with one hand, then pulled Ruan Ning up as well. “Let’s go take a look with you.”

Led by the demon plants, the two made their way through the forest to a clearing of tender green grass ahead.

The color of this grassy area contrasted sharply with the darker vegetation of the forest, though the blades of grass were only a few inches tall, as if newly sprouted.

At the center of the green space stood a rosebush, its branches adorned with vividly blooming pink flowers that immediately caught their eyes.

The petals transitioned from light at the base to deep at the tips, their edges slightly curled inward bold yet subtly restrained.

The entire rosebush stood about half a person’s height, its emerald leaves cradling the blossoms in perfect harmony and beauty.

It stood motionless in the middle of the clearing, utterly still.

The demon plants accompanied the pair as they approached the rosebush.

Ruan Ning examined the rose’s aura, then exclaimed in surprise, “I’ve never encountered energy like this within a plant! It resembles spiritual energy but is far more refined!”

Hearing this, Ye Zhixia took in the scene that stood out so starkly from the rest of Wan Jie Forest and replied, “Not only has it remained uncorrupted by demonic energy, but in its plant form, it’s been able to radiate its internal energy, creating this pure land. Could this rosebush have come from the immortal realm?”

Ruan Ning raised her hand, attempting to awaken the rosebush with her demonic energy.

Ye Zhixia reached out to stop her, fearing that the rose’s internal energy might clash with Ruan Ning’s demonic power and harm her.

But Ruan Ning acted too quickly her palm was already outstretched, her demonic energy reaching the rosebush’s crown.

Only when Ruan Ning showed no signs of discomfort did the worry fade from Ye Zhixia’s expression.

Before long, a faint golden light shimmered around the rosebush. Ruan Ning withdrew her hands and quietly observed the transformation before her.

As the golden glow gradually brightened, the rosebush transformed into a slender, ethereal woman.

Her hair was tied up in a simple bun at her ears, adorned with a few delicate pink flowers amidst the thick, raven-black locks. She wore a flowing, pale pink gown with wide sleeves and a crossed collar, reminiscent of an immortal’s robe.

The woman still radiated a golden glow, but the demonic plants around her suddenly shrieked, “It burns! It burns!”

Ye Zhixia and Ruan Ning turned to the middle-aged men and women beside them, their eyes brimming with tears.

“Not good, the scent of the roses is scorching the demonic plants!” Ye Zhixia shouted urgently. “All of you, retreat into the forest!”

At his command, the demonic plants hastily withdrew into the dark woods, though they still craned their necks curiously to peer at the scene.

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