The Villainous Demon Lord’s Handbook for Success: Rebirth - Chapter 17

“Ning Fuyi! Yiyi!” Several screams drifted down from above. It seemed Liu Wenzhu and Rong Jin wanted to chase after her, only to be yanked back by Elder Yuanming with two vines as he roared, “Have you lost your minds!”

The commotion overhead was soon replaced by the whistling of the wind. Ning Fuyi tried to open her eyes to assess the situation, but the powerful airflow buffeted her body relentlessly, blurring her vision. She was forced to summon her immortal power just to shield her eyes.

This was by no means a normal rate of descent. Ning Fuyi knew in her heart that the Ghost’s Eyes acted like a giant suction cup, desperately trying to pull anything nearby into its depths. Turbid air rose and fell around her, enveloping her like a cyclone and stripping her of nearly all her strength. Unable to struggle, Ning Fuyi could only curl her body as tightly as possible, like a tattered leaf caught in a whirlwind, trying to minimize her injuries.

From time to time, jagged stones grazed her arms and face, leaving deep, knife-like bloody gashes. Ning Fuyi couldn’t even open her mouth; she could only close her eyes and curse inwardly, resigning herself to fate.

She had finally gained a second life—was she really going to die in these Ghost’s Eyes for no rhyme or reason?

Fortunately, the fall was brief. After plummeting into the rift valley that nearly spanned all of Tongchuan, the surrounding light dimmed abruptly. Her eyes, unable to adapt to such a change, went momentarily black.

Sensing the airflow weakening, Ning Fuyi instinctively made a hand gesture in front of her chest. Immortal power condensed into water droplets, wrapping around her vital points. Though weak, it served as a buffer.

The massive sound of water crashing against the ground rang out, and simultaneously, the sensation of falling ceased. Ning Fuyi felt as if a giant boulder had struck her chest and lungs; her heart was shaken to the point of numbness. She let out a muffled groan as she rolled out of the shattered water orb, tumbling several times on the ground before coming to a stop.

For a full fifteen minutes, Ning Fuyi remained in a state of unbearable dizziness. She gritted her teeth and remained curled on the spot for a long time before the scenery before her eyes slowly became clear.

I kept my life, Ning Fuyi thought painfully. Fortunately, she was now the Ning Fuyi who had already lived for a thousand years. Had she been the naive girl of her previous life, she would have died of fright halfway down.

It was also fortunate that the Water-element heart incantations Chu Qingqiu had forced her to memorize came in handy. In that moment of crisis, she had actually remembered them; otherwise, no matter how much luck she had, she would have met her end here today.

The surroundings were quiet, so quiet that only the whistling wind remained. Ning Fuyi circulated her power and lay there a while longer until the dull pain in her chest from the impact eased. Then, she slowly rose and cast a spell to dry the moisture on her body.

Her eyes had already adjusted to the gloom. The bottom of the valley wasn’t entirely devoid of light, but it was much darker than the world above.

The valley floor was not much different from what she had imagined. The ground was a chaotic mess, piled high with various skeletons; some were dry and weathered, while others were fresh, emitting a nauseating stench of rot.

If one looked closely, they could even see human body parts.

Aside from these bones, there wasn’t a trace of a living thing, not even a blade of grass. There were only rocks, large and small, coated with a strange fluorescence as if covered by large swarms of fireflies, creating a sharp contrast with the surrounding corpses.

Ning Fuyi blinked, carefully steadying herself as she looked up. This rift was truly strange; the valley floor was barren, yet the mouth of the valley was overgrown with layered, cobweb-like vines that completely blocked the sky.

Climbing out is impossible. I’ll have to treat a dead horse as if it were alive and try flying, Ning Fuyi thought.

She silently recited the heart incantations she had memorized. Water vapor appeared around her, slowly condensing into a solid water sword. However, just as she was about to step onto it to perform the sword-flight technique, the water sword seemed to be dispersed; it exploded with a thud, drenching Ning Fuyi in spray.

Ning Fuyi quickly pulled her sleeves to cover her face, sensing trouble. The Ghost’s Eyes seemed capable of weakening a cultivator’s spells. In that very instant, she could clearly feel the immortal power draining from her body.

What was she to do?

As the saying goes, one wave follows another. Just as she was losing her composure, a rustling sound suddenly erupted from behind a rock beside her, as if some living thing were crawling toward her. This movement was incredibly abrupt in the empty valley. Even Ning Fuyi broke into a cold sweat. She gathered what little immortal power remained in her right hand and squinted at the source of the sound.

Ning Fuyi’s heart nearly leaped out of her throat. She held her breath, watching as the thing behind the rock got closer and closer, and finally…

A furry little head popped out.

Wait! Ning Fuyi was stunned. She immediately withdrew her ready immortal power, staring in shock at the dusty little white dog wagging its fluffy black-and-white tail.

“Ping’an?” Ning Fuyi’s voice changed with surprise. She looked around, then limped over to the barking puppy and reached out to pick it up by the scruff of its neck.

Dark, round eyes, dusty marshmallow-like fur, and a tail wagging like a fire wheel—who else could it be but Ping’an?

“Why are you here? Did you fall down with me too?” Ning Fuyi was suddenly overwhelmed with confusion. She quickly gave him a thorough check; aside from being a filthy dog once again, there were no new injuries.

It seemed that when she fell, Ping’an had followed her down.

But falling from such a height, how could Ping’an be completely unharmed?

While she was pondering, the puppy let out two barks and stretched its neck to lick Ning Fuyi’s face, snapping her back to reality.

Regardless of the reason, the lack of injury was a good thing. The most important thing now was to find a way out. Ning Fuyi supported Ping’an’s bottom, and once he was settled comfortably against her shoulder with a whimper, she gritted her teeth and dragged her bruised leg, walking cautiously forward into the field of bones.

Staying in place was not an option. She was alone, unsupported, and lacked immortal power; if night fell, there would be no chance of getting out.

The valley floor flickered with fluorescence, but it failed to illuminate the path ahead. Ning Fuyi occasionally tripped over protruding bones or rocks, the pain making her break into cold sweats.

“Ning Fuyi, oh Ning Fuyi, look at what the dignified God-Slaying Demon has been reduced to,” Ning Fuyi muttered, wiping the dust from her face as she kicked away the skull of some poor soul.

Just then, Ping’an let out a soft whine on her shoulder. Ning Fuyi was about to turn her head to check on him when she suddenly felt a surge of baleful aura. She swiveled agilely, watching a large red tongue flash past her face, lingering for a moment in mid-air like a slow-motion film before retracting with a whoosh.

This gave Ning Fuyi a fright.

She turned to look and saw a four-legged lizard clinging to the dark cliffside, its color perfectly matching the rock. Its body was covered in stone-like lumps; had it not exposed its position, she never would have noticed it, even walking right against the wall.

Fortunately, this lizard wasn’t very large—not much taller than Ning Fuyi—and its baleful aura was weak, marking it as a low-level demonic beast. Ning Fuyi let out a small sigh of relief. With a glance, a plan formed in her mind.

Having failed its attack, the lizard’s color suddenly shifted. No longer blending with the wall, it returned to its original slimy flesh color. It turned its head, its two small eyes fixing straight on Ning Fuyi. Ning Fuyi broke out in goosebumps and curled her lip in disgust.

Before anyone could react, the wind rose, and the lizard suddenly leaped into the air. Its tongue traced a line in the air too fast for the naked eye to follow, charging toward Ning Fuyi’s face.

The next instant, the tip of the tongue flew out like a sword, landing with a splat on a rock like mud, as dark green blood flowed from the base.

Ning Fuyi stood perfectly still, holding a small knife she had just materialized, and smirked victoriously at the lizard.

In that moment, the lizard’s small eyes seemed to widen. Although it couldn’t form expressions, Ning Fuyi could see the indignation in its heart. Sure enough, the lizard, which had been clinging to the cliff, suddenly swung its limbs and turned into a blur, swimming toward Ning Fuyi in an attempt to die along with the person who had cut its tongue.

And this was exactly what Ning Fuyi was waiting for. Her smile vanished, replaced by her usual ferocity. She sent what little immortal power she had left toward the ceiling while simultaneously pushing off the ground with her toes, leaping backward.

A deafening boom rang out as a rock several meters wide fell from above, splashing countless bits of dust, flesh, and blood as it struck the ground.

Ning Fuyi landed lightly. She touched her nose and was about to move forward to inspect the scene when her eyes suddenly lifted in alert. She held her breath and turned around, her heart skipping a beat as if it had been tossed into mid-air.

Something had appeared behind her without her noticing. The thing’s appearance was almost indistinguishable; its entire body was wreathed in billowing black mist, with only a pair of hollow eyes staring silently at Ning Fuyi from within the darkness.

The scene was so frightening that even Ning Fuyi nearly let out a scream. She quickly furrowed her brows and backed away, trying not to provoke the massive creature.

However, she forgot she wasn’t the only living thing present. Before she could react, a sharp, terrified whimper came from Ping’an on her shoulder. The sound immediately stimulated the demonic creature; it suddenly leaped into the air, opening its blood-red maw to swallow Ning Fuyi whole.

If I live another life, I must poison Ping’an to silence him, Ning Fuyi thought fiercely as she faced the overwhelming stench.

This demonic creature was incredibly powerful, and she had no more immortal power to use. As its fangs loomed before her, she simply closed her eyes and held her breath, waiting for death.

The baleful aura scorched the skin on her cheeks. In a flash, the pain ceased abruptly. A current of heat surged from within her, and white feathers of light spread out like fine gauze, blocking the incoming aura.

Ning Fuyi opened her eyes in surprise. As the piercing white light penetrated her irises, a warm, sweet fragrance suddenly enveloped her from behind. A pair of arms pulled her back, and she couldn’t help but retreat, turning around and falling into a warm embrace as her eyes closed.

Those arms held her very tightly. For some reason, Ning Fuyi felt an unmaskable fear coming from the other person.

Another beast’s roar thundered in her ears, sounding as if it came from the heavens, instilling a strange sense of awe. Above her head, she heard a familiar, cold voice.

“Bai Lin, finish it.”

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