The Widowed Demonic Lord Remarried Again?! - Chapter 3

Unwittingly surrounded by so many people, and recalling the flirtatious remarks he had just casually thrown at Ye Tang, Ruan Yibai experienced a momentary system crash in his brain. He had seen plenty of big scenes in his life, but an awkward public spectacle of this magnitude was truly a first.

Lowering his gaze, Ye Tang looked down at the somewhat uneasy Ruan Yibai in his arms and let out a faint, inaudible smile at the corners of his lips.

Ruan Yibai wanted to hop down from the man’s embrace, but Ye Tang only clamped his arms tighter around him instead.

“As everyone can plainly see, my wife and I share a deep and loving bond, and at present, he cannot bear to be separated from me for even a single moment.” Looking down at the person in his arms, Ye Tang spoke in a clear, composed tone, delivering an absolute falsehood.

A colossal, monstrous falsehood!!

Having already cursed a full round inside his head, the corners of Ruan Yibai’s mouth twitched. He wanted to raise a specific finger to express something, but managed to hold back.

I can’t beat him; right now, I simply cannot beat him.

Forbearing for a moment brings inner peace; taking a step back brings Hallelujah.

Just wait until my spiritual power recovers—

“Celestial Lord, he is the supreme demonic overlord who commands the Three Scourges of Xuange! A heinous villain scorned by all immortals of the myriad paths and universally condemned as a public enemy that everyone wants dead! Back when he turned demonic, with his white hair and crimson eyes, a colossal mountain of bones served as his throne, and with a mere wave of his hand, living beings were plunged into desolation and misery. To forge three great weapons of mass destruction, how many souls of immortals and gods did he sacrifice and refine?! How… how can you possibly stay together with him?!”

“Indeed, Celestial Lord! What’s more, back then he wreaked havoc across the mortal realm and even even concealed his identity to become the favored consort of your imperial father, Emperor Xiao! After Emperor Xiao passed away, he shamelessly seduced your imperial elder brother at the state funeral, and rumor has it he has had murky, ambiguous love affairs with countless others as well. Such a dog-walking, fox-lewd, and utterly filthy creature, even with a peerless visage, is unworthy of becoming your wife, Celestial Lord!”

“That’s right! We will never acknowledge this demon as our Empress!”

“Do not ever follow in the footsteps of your imperial father and elder brother!”

“Celestial Lord, back then this demon was executed beneath your divine artifact Moon Shadow. Everyone assumed you brought his corpse back merely to seal his spiritual soul and prevent him from staging a comeback! Yet now you have gone to extravagant lengths, hosting a grand cosmic banquet to welcome him across the threshold, and even bringing him back to life?! As the supreme sovereign of Lanquetian standing at the pinnacle of glory, how can you so flagrantly defy heavenly principles and public justice? How do you plan to answer to the thousands of immortal cultivators in Lanquetian?!”

Everyone vied with one another to speak, each displaying an expression of righteous indignation, as though they were ready to shatter into pieces for the sake of supreme justice the very next second.

Hearing these words, Ruan Yibai felt as though he had been thrust right back into that final doomsday battle, standing precisely at the moment when he was impeached and subjugated by the myriad immortals.

To think that after so much time had passed, these fellows still lacked any fresh material in their speeches.

Boring. Truly boring.*

Yet, rather than rushing to dismount from Ye Tang’s embrace, he instead hooked his arms around the man’s neck, gently tracing a finger back and forth across Ye Tang’s neck with measured pressure.

Ye Tang remained silent.

Ruan Yibai didn’t expect Ye Tang to speak up on his behalf, of course. After all, they were mortal enemies to begin with. As for why Ye Tang had chosen to enter into a contract with him, after mulling it over, he could only arrive at one conclusion: the fellow simply wanted to humiliate him!

He had already entered and exited the Ye household three times. As the dignified Demonic Lord of the Nine Realms, he had shamelessly and absurdly married into the Ye family three times over, and the kicker was that he hadn’t even married the same person…

Wasn’t this humiliation enough?!

Tch, tch. Isn’t he currently setting up the exact conditions to let everyone mock and ridicule him?

If he follows up by staging a public contract-breaking ceremony right on the spot—I’ll truly become the number one laughingstock and supreme joke of the Three Realms!

Trash Ye Tang, utterly despicable!

A moment later.

The usually elegant, composed, and effortlessly poised Yaoquang Celestial Lord suddenly infused his voice with bone-chilling murder:

“If any of you wish to prevent A-Ruan and me from being together, you are welcome to step forward and try.”

The moment his voice fell, a sickle-shaped blade radiating the brilliant splendor of a silver moon instantly tilted and materialized by his side. Its edge resembled the sharp fangs of a slender moon, accompanied by a terrifying, soul-chilling hum of an artifact spirit, orbiting in a waning-moon stance around both Ye Tang and Ruan Yibai.

The divine artifact Moon Shadow was breathtakingly magnificent.

It outlined Ye Tang’s physique, making him appear all the more sharp, upright, and striking—like a piece of flawless jade within the moon, radiant and glowing with brilliant light.

Ruan Yibai swallowed hard.

That is way too handsome!

[System (nodding):] [The Celestial Lord is indeed handsome to a fa—]

The divine artifact Moon Shadow! The divine artifact Moon Shadow itself!

An supreme supreme treasure that countless cultivators spent their entire lives dreaming of!

How on earth did it end up falling into the hands of a scumbag like Ye Tang?

Don’t divine artifacts suffer from temporary blindness too?

[System (collapsing):] [I thought you were drooling over the Celestial Lord’s body, but it turns out you’re drooling over his divine artifact! Host, you are squandering heavenly treasures, ahhhhh!]

Ruan Yibai was still indulging in a wave of emotional lament and regret, entirely forgetting that he was being fiercely targeted and bombarded by the immortals of Lanquetian. At that very moment, he was still dangling off Ye Tang, swaying back and forth with zero intention of climbing down.

Meanwhile, the crowd had first been awed into silence by Ye Tang’s murderous tone—shocked that the usually serene and graceful Yaoquang Celestial Lord would actually go to such lengths to shield this demon—before instantly recoiling in terror the second they caught sight of the divine artifact Moon Shadow’s radiance, scrambling backward in panic.

Glancing at those people trembling in panic, Ruan Yibai felt a surge of internal irritation: Though for the fellow to phrase it like that, it’s way too easy for outsiders to misunderstand that the two of us are actually entangled in that kind of relationship.

[System (rolling its eyes):] [You were questioning just a second ago whether the Celestial Lord meant to humiliate you publicly! Besides, when… when have you two not been entangled in that kind of relationship?]

Ruan Yibai: My foot!

[System:] [Just two days ago, you were sweating profusely while hugging the Celestial Lord’s neck and begging him to go slower.]

Ruan Yibai: …Do you believe I’ll shatter my own meridians right now? I die, and your system dies with me!

[System:] [Oh my, host, your threats are truly one-of-a-kind!]

While Ruan Yibai was hiding inside Ye Tang’s embrace and arguing with the system, over on the other side, an immortal lord clad in azure-blue white-velvet immortal robes descended straight from the heavens, materializing before the crowd in a flash. With a flick of his palm and a burst of brilliant light, a folding fan-shaped immortal artifact with rippling autumn-water clarity materialized in his hand.

The Heavenly Monarch of Disillusionment—Murong Yan.

The moment they caught sight of the folding fan in his hand, everyone froze for a fraction of a second.

This fan was named East Wind’s Malice, Murong Yan’s natal weapon.

Though not a divine artifact, it was nonetheless a top-tier immortal artifact, having blazed with dazzling brilliance during the doomsday battle and annihilated countless enemies. Therefore, upon seeing him, though the crowd didn’t feel the soul-crushing terror inspired by the divine artifact Moon Shadow, they still harbored a healthy dose of awe and apprehension.

Licking his stance on Ye Tang, Ruan Yibai glanced sideways at the person blocking their path, then blinked at the immortal artifact in the latter’s hand, internally scoffing: Flashy and pretentious, the weapon matches its owner.

[System:] [Natal weapons are categorized into mortal-grade, extraordinary-grade, immortal-grade, ultra-immortal-grade, divine artifacts, and sacred artifacts. Ordinary mortal-grade weapons can already be considered precious treasures in the mortal realm; for an ordinary cultivator to acquire an extraordinary-grade or immortal-grade weapon is already no small feat… East Wind’s Malice is at least an ultra-immortal-grade artifact, and its master Murong Yan holds a prominent position in Lanquetian, widely praised as Lanquetian’s intellectual strategist. For you to dismiss it like that… isn’t your standards just a tiny bit too astronomically high?]

The corners of Ruan Yibai’s lips curled upward into a smile, though he kept his thoughts to himself.

Slowly waving his East Wind’s Malice fan, Murong Yan half-casually smoothed things over: “Why has everyone gathered all over the place here? Ah… could it be you’re all thinking of crashing our Celestial Lord’s bridal chamber? Well… it’s already been three days; if you ask me, you’re a bit late to the party.”

“What bridal chamber crashing? Murong Heavenly Monarch, take a careful look! This is a heavenly anomaly, the demonic overlord’s resurrection! If we don’t eradicate him right now, he’ll surely become a grave disaster in the future!”

“That’s right, exactly! Everyone still remembers what happened back then clearly; this demon deserves a thousand deaths!”

“Indeed, Heavenly Monarch Murong, your Five Peaks of God Mountain must not shield this demon! Smashing him into smithereens before he fully awakens is the absolute best strategy. I refuse to believe he can piece himself back together and crawl back if he’s beaten into a pile of minced meat!”

“Executing the demonic overlord is an act of supreme justice!”

Murong Yan snapped his folding fan shut, offering reassurance: “Naturally, no one dares forget the events of the past. But with our Celestial Lord present, what is there for any of you to be afraid of?”

“But—but the Celestial Lord is actually marrying this demon! How can this be allowed?!”

“That’s right, he could marry anyone else, but this demon is an absolute exception!”

Murong Yan chuckled, looking at the righteous and indignant crowd: “If you ask me, their marriage is a wonderful thing! Just think, what better way to keep him under strict restraint than binding them as Dao companions, staying side by side every single moment without separating?”

“This…”

What kind of bizarre, twisted angle is this?! Everyone was instantly stunned into complete speechlessness by Murong Yan’s logic!

“Otherwise, if we let the Demonic Lord run loose, is there anyone among you who believes you can keep him in check?” He used his folding fan to point rudely at various individuals. “Is it you, you, or you?”

Those pointed at stammered awkwardly; some lowered their heads, some waved their hands frantically, and others retreated so nervously they nearly tripped over their own feet.

Just how terrifying Ruan Yibai was in his triple-sword master state—anyone who had witnessed the doomsday battle back then still remembered it vividly, breaking into cold sweats and chills at the mere recollection.

Tapping his folding fan against his palm, Murong Yan adopted an even more resolute tone: “See? To subdue the Demonic Lord, we still have to rely on our Celestial Lord! And now our Celestial Lord has directly taken Ruan Yibai under his own wing, keeping watch and guarding him day and night without a moment’s rest. Look at how tightly they’re holding hands right now! At the end of the day, isn’t it all for the stability of the Three Realms and the peace of the myriad immortals? Since he has already put his body on the line to act so personally for everyone’s sake, what else are you dissatisfied with?”

The crowd: “……”

The reasoning sounded logical, yet somehow it felt deeply wrong everywhere?

[System:] [Heavenly Monarch Murong’s mouth… truly holds a special kind of talent.]

A moment later, someone finally recovered their senses and shouted aloud: “Murong Heavenly Monarch speaks heresy! Killing this demon is infinitely faster and more direct than marrying him! How can we tolerate him sleeping soundly beside him day after day?!”

Murong Yan pointed his fan at the loudmouth: “You—yes, you right there, the immortal friend who just spoke up, step forward.”

“…What for?”

Murong Yan smiled. “I notice your face is unfamiliar; you must have arrived only recently, since you haven’t even seen what the Sword Demon Bai Ye looks like, have you?”

The newcomer puffed out his chest, wearing a righteous expression. “Does what this demon looks like even matter? I only know he is the most inhuman, monstrously evil villain in the Three Realms, and it is our duty to eradicate him!”

Quite a few individuals who had never laid eyes on Ruan Yibai chimed in upon hearing this, wishing nothing more than to grind the legendary demonic overlord beneath their feet to achieve a legendary name in history!

“Therefore, I plan to let you experience what it means not to impose upon others what you yourself do not desire.” Murong Yan beckoned with a hand. “Come, come, come, step out here.”

Though the nominated fellow stepped forward, he had no idea what Murong Yan was actually planning to do.

“I’m giving you a chance right now—summon your weapon and kill him.”

Murong Yan smoothly shoved the newcomer forward, causing the newly arrived young immortal lord to stumble unsteadily right up before Ye Tang and Ruan Yibai.

Ruan Yibai, who had been huddled inside Ye Tang’s embrace the entire time, finally turned his head to casually scan the newcomer.

With just a single glance, the newcomer’s pupils instantly dilated, his face flushing crimson as his mind went completely blank. Forget summoning his weapon; his hands were shaking so badly he didn’t even know where to put them.

Ruan Yibai looked at the fellow with an amused expression.

The newly arrived young immortal lord’s throat twitched nervously, his gaze locked onto Ruan Yibai in Ye Tang’s arms as if he had been hexed.

Some people possessed a beauty like a sharp blade, capable of carving out a person’s soul in an instant, making them willingly surrender beneath their feet after a single glance;

While other people possessed a beauty like water, silently moisturizing everything and quietly rippling the softest part of a beholder’s heart…

Yet Ruan Yibai’s beauty resembled a blade fashioned from water—appearing soft, alluring, and enchanting on the surface, while instantly crushing the hardest things in the world!

Just a single look was enough to make the newcomer throw away his armor, surrender unconditionally, and wish with every fiber of his being that the beautiful creature would let his gaze linger on him for just half a second longer. If Murong Yan hadn’t reached out quickly to grab him, the young immortal lord would have dropped straight to his knees right in front of Ruan Yibai!

“Well? Still want to kill him?”

“……Kill?” The young immortal lord’s eyes were glazed over, his voice turning dopey and infatuated. “Such a beauty… why kill him?”

Murong Yan flicked open his folding fan and fanned himself a few times, thinking to himself that here was yet another person who fell head over heels at a single glance.

This was precisely what had happened back then at Emperor Xiao’s state funeral: Ruan Yibai, veiling his face in black gauze, had truly tempted the entire world into drooling with desire, compounded by the reputation of the newly minted, alluring, and provocative “widow” circulating through the streets he had genuinely driven every single suspicious, dark-minded scoundrel in the Three Realms half-mad with craving!

However, it wasn’t strictly true that everyone was purely after his looks. While the mortal realm remained oblivious, Lanquetian and the Nine Realms understood perfectly well: Demonic Lord Ruan Yibai was the sole sword demon in the entire Three Realms who possessed the innate ability to forge divine artifacts!

For this reason alone, the number of people who wanted to get their hands on him was immeasurable, not to mention his world-renowned visage!

“That’s right. As the saying goes, Heaven loves life; since we cultivate the Dao of Immortality, we should harbor the awareness and responsibility to transform all living beings. The Heavenly Way is magnanimous, and the Three Realms are flourishing. Whether one chooses to become an immortal, fall into demonic cultivation, or remain an innocent mortal, it is the fundamental freedom of one’s own body, and we have no right to object. Just a second ago, you were all shouting about killing and executing, making Lanquetian look utterly devoid of human warmth.”

The dazed young immortal lord replied obediently, “Murong Heavenly Monarch speaks wisely; the Heavenly Way is magnanimous and should not be generalized.”

[System:] [Oh ho, host, your attributes are comparable to Daji! The young immortal lord who was wishing you dead and shouting about tearing you to pieces the very last second has turned into a little fanboy kneeling at your feet the next second. At this rate, you could probably order him to turn against that whole mob for your sake right now.]

Ruan Yibai tilted his head, leaning against Ye Tang while the corners of his lips curved upward: Small scene.

Yet just this smile of his sent another wave of dizzying infatuation washing over the young immortal lord. As the fellow swallowed hard and instinctively stepped forward to get a closer look at the beauty, a fierce, bone-chilling gaze locked onto him instantly, scaring him into breaking out in a cold, heavy sweat!

It it’s the Yaoquang Celestial Lord!

Didn’t the rumors say the Yaoquang Celestial Lord shone like a pristine moon, bathing the world in grace? And that though powerful, he was also incomparably gentle, which was why he was deeply loved and respected by the world? Ah, this, this, this the rumors must have gotten something wrong somewhere! The Celestial Lord’s gaze was already lethal enough to kill!

Help! I… I can’t move!

The cultivators standing further back had no clue what was happening; they only knew the young immortal lord had turned completely petrified the moment he reached the Yaoquang Celestial Lord, assuming he had been awe-struck into silence by the Celestial Lord’s formidable power, and thus howled from afar: “What lack of human warmth? What’s the point of reasoning with a giant demon! Hey, demon, if you have the guts, climb down from the Celestial Lord and stop hiding behind his protection like a coward!”

“Exactly! Sword Demon Bai Ye, you used to be the overlord of the Nine Realms; how have you degenerated to such a pathetic state that you have to rely on seducing the Yaoquang Celestial Lord to save your skin? Do you—do you even remember what relation he is to you? Have you no shame?!”

“As a male consort personally conferred by Emperor Xiao, when Emperor Xiao passed away, marrying the succeeding fierce Emperor as his Empress was already defying the laws of heaven! Now that the fierce Emperor has gone missing, though a couple of centuries have passed, you remain his imperial consort in name, and yet you shamelessly seduced his own younger brother!”

“That’s right, you’re still in a brother-in-law relationship; how can you possibly enter into a contract?!”

“Celestial Lord, do not be deceived by this evildoer! Emperor Xiao and the fierce Emperor are both cautionary tales!

Listening to the howling of those distant immortal cultivators, Ruan Yibai let out a cold laugh, his inner rebel streak instantly awakening. He gently stroked Ye Tang’s chin, sliding his finger downward along the man’s flawless jawline, and deliberately murmured in a sugary, sweet, yet aggrieved tone: “Little Uncle, they’re saying I seduced you…”

Hiss,

What a sudden, stifling wave of ambiguous tension!

The cultivators standing nearby all flushed red; many instinctively raised their sleeves to shield their eyes in a hypocritical display of non-visitation of impropriety.

Ye Tang tightened his grip slightly around Ruan Yibai, gazing down at him with a look of quiet appraisal: “And?”

Ruan Yibai wrapped his other arm around Ye Tang’s neck, leaned right into the man’s ear, and purred ambiguously: “Explaining is futile; why not just make it a reality?”

Ye Tang could actually feel his earlobe being playfully nibbled and teased like a mischievous little cat!

Following that, gasps of absolute disbelief erupted one after another among the crowd below!

Ruan Yibai continued with an air of seductive provocation: “These people are so utterly annoying. How about Little Uncle takes me back to our room to play something new?”

Another wave of synchronized gasps echoed through the audience!

This demon actually dared to openly speak of such unmentionable deeds in broad daylight… in front of everyone…

Under the bright sun and broad daylight, did this fellow possess even a shred of moral baseline?!

[System:] [Ho… host, don’t play with fire and burn yourself…]

Ruan Yibai was full of confidence: Relax, don’t I know this fellow Ye Tang inside and out? In public, he’s always strictly law-abiding, adheres to purity precepts, acts overly self-righteous, and is stubbornly, excessively self-restrained!

Even if you gave him eight hundred extra guts, he’d never dare commit any over-the-line actions in public.

The next second, he found himself bound hand and foot and tossed onto a somewhat familiar couch!

Reaching up to loosen his collar, Ye Tang looked dazzlingly handsome, shining with the brilliant aura of a descending deity, as he asked with complete, utter seriousness: “Very well, then what does my sister-in-law wish to play?”

Ruan Yibai: ?

Wait a minute, what is wrong with this picture?!

Why isn’t this scumbag playing by the rules?!

[System:] [Ooh la la, host, looks like you’re really playing with fire and burning yourself now.]