Chapter 24#

The Magnificent Great Demon, the Ba Snake#

Two flowers bloom on different branches, each telling its own tale.

On one side, Lu Heng was fully absorbed in cultivation when the tip of his tail suddenly felt a searing heat. He opened his eyes and discovered that his tail had accidentally brushed against the prayer beads Shi Kong had left behind. Why had the prayer beads suddenly grown so hot? Lu Heng recalled that Shi Kong had once told him these beads were his life-bound dharma treasure, connected to his very mind and spirit.

Could something have happened to Shi Kong?

Lu Heng was frantic with worry. He hastily transformed into human form, snatched up the prayer beads, and followed Shi Kong’s scent. Before long, he arrived outside the small courtyard of Princess Linyang, but no matter what, he couldn’t find an entrance. This had to be the technique of an illusion array — unless someone inside broke the formation and came out, forcing it from the outside would likely cause harm to those within the illusion.

Just as Lu Heng was at his wit’s end, the prayer beads in his hand suddenly erupted with a beam of light that enveloped him. The next moment, Lu Heng’s vision swam. By the time his sight cleared again, he was already standing inside the courtyard.

Ignoring the people lying on the courtyard floor, Lu Heng charged straight toward Princess Linyang’s chamber. He shoved the door open in a frenzy and burst into the inner room, only to witness a rather unsettling sight. Shi Kong sat cross-legged in the center of the room, while Princess Linyang stood beside the bed, thinly clad, her hands resting on the lapels of her inner garment as if about to continue further.

Lu Heng was dumbfounded.

Shouldn’t I say something about not looking at what is indecent, then shut the door and leave?… No! Shi Kong is a monk — how could he break the precept against lust! Lu Heng felt quite sour in his heart. He convinced himself with an excuse, then charged straight forward.

In his haste, he made a mistake — these ancient clothes were so long and cumbersome — and Lu Heng tripped on his own hem, plunging headfirst right onto Shi Kong.

Only then did Lu Heng sense that something was wrong. Shi Kong’s body was burning hot, a faint flush colored his jade-like cheeks, and his breathing was noticeably faster than usual. Add to that the fact that Princess Linyang had been standing frozen in one pose for quite some time — and Lu Heng, who had grown up in modern society watching his fair share of melodramatic dramas, could hardly fail to recognize the situation. This was obviously the classic “drugging” trope that appeared with maddening frequency in every soap opera ever made!

Lu Heng sprang to his feet. First, he dragged the quilt from the bed and wrapped Princess Linyang up tightly in it. Then he seized Shi Kong’s wrist and channeled a wisp of demonic energy into him to inspect his condition.

Lu Heng, whose understanding of cultivation was superficial at best, didn’t actually know that rashly pumping spiritual energy into someone of higher cultivation was extremely dangerous. A cultivator’s spiritual power circulated in its own natural cycle. When foreign spiritual energy entered, unless it was carefully controlled, the body would automatically counterattack it. For a half-baked amateur like Lu Heng, that would be more than enough trouble for him.

To his surprise, Lu Heng’s demonic energy entered Shi Kong’s meridians smoothly, encountering no obstruction whatsoever, let alone any counterattack. After circulating it through one full cycle, Lu Heng realized that Shi Kong’s condition was actually described in the demon clan inheritance he had acquired.

The innate demonic art of the Green-Trailing Fox Clan — Enthrallment. Enthrallment was not some crude magic that merely inflamed a person’s physical desires like inferior drugs. It was said that those afflicted by Enthrallment could not separate themselves, body or mind, from the caster. Their body would crave endlessly, and their psyche would submit, willing to live or die for the caster, begging only for their favor.

Lu Heng couldn’t help but glance at Shi Kong. His expression was composed as usual — apart from the flush on his cheeks, he looked no different from normal. Truly worthy of being a monk; his willpower was extraordinary. Lu Heng sighed with admiration.

Now that he knew what technique was at play, the solution was simple enough for Lu Heng. He opened his mouth and expelled his demon core — that brilliantly glowing golden orb — and held it near Shi Kong’s nose and mouth. Then he channeled his power, and a wisp of red mist was quickly drawn out. Once the red mist was absorbed into the demon core, its light swirled briefly before returning to normal.

Shi Kong opened his eyes, his complexion already restored. “Foolish. How can such evil things be dealt with so carelessly.”

Lu Heng swallowed the demon core in one gulp and said with a grin, “It’s fine — the Ba Snake clan fears no poison in all the world.”

Shi Kong seized Lu Heng’s wrist. After a careful inspection, he found nothing amiss and finally relaxed.

The two of them then turned their attention to Princess Linyang, who had been standing off to the side. The princess, who had been treated by both of them as if she were nothing more than a wooden post, was so furious she was practically steaming. She had always been the center of attention — how could she bear such cold disregard? Especially when one of them was the very man she had set her heart on.

“How could Princess Linyang possibly know the demonic art of the Green-Trailing Fox Clan? Could that Green-Trailing Demon Fox have actually helped her bewitch others? That doesn’t make sense.” Lu Heng simply couldn’t figure it out.

“I did not see any demon fox earlier.”

Lu Heng noticed that when they mentioned the Green-Trailing Demon Fox, Princess Linyang’s gaze involuntarily darted toward the bookshelf in the corner. Lu Heng thought for a moment, then walked toward the bookshelf, and saw an anxious expression cross Princess Linyang’s face.

Lu Heng grew ever more certain that the bookshelf concealed some secret. Shi Kong stepped forward as well. After the two of them moved the bookshelf aside, they discovered a concealed low door.

Behind the low door lay a deep, narrow staircase that spiraled downward. Shi Kong turned and set a barrier formation around the room before descending into the hidden chamber alongside Lu Heng.

The stairs wound ever downward, clearly showing their considerable age. This Prince Gong’s Estate was not newly built — it had been passed down, renovated, and used by successive generations of princes on this land. The hidden chamber had most likely been used during its original construction to handle matters unsuitable for the world to know, among the elite noble houses. Only, why its entrance was located in Princess Linyang’s private chamber, no one could say.

The contents of the hidden chamber were far beyond anything Shi Kong or Lu Heng had anticipated. From the ceiling of the chamber hung several iron chains, every link covered in arcane runes that were clearly no ordinary metalwork. And in the center of the chamber lay a massive white fox, with iron chains piercing through all four of its limbs.

Hearing voices, the white fox twitched its ears and opened its eyes. Its pair of eyes were like emeralds — clear, crystalline, and vividly green. Upon seeing those emerald eyes, Lu Heng knew this must be the Green-Trailing Demon Fox.

“Are you the Green-Trailing Fox who escaped from the Demon-Locking Pagoda?” Lu Heng asked.

The white fox opened its mouth, but only a beastly snarl came out. Lu Heng found this strange. Even demon clansfolk who had taken human form, even if they reverted to their original shapes, could still speak in human tongue. Yet this white fox seemed incapable of opening its mouth. The only explanation was that its demon core had been taken.

Recalling the spell Princess Linyang had cast earlier, Lu Heng found it almost unbelievable. A great demon who had cultivated for a thousand years — to have its demon core taken by a mortal? It was simply unheard of.

The Green-Trailing Demon Fox eyed the two of them warily, arching its back and baring its teeth with a low growl, sending the iron chains clanking. The moment it moved, the runes on the chains immediately surged with light, and the Green-Trailing Demon Fox was slammed flat to the ground, unable to move.

“Remove the aura-concealing technique on your body.”

Lu Heng heard Shi Kong’s voice transmitted to his mind. Though he didn’t know the reason, he obediently withdrew the technique. The moment the concealment was lifted, the Green-Trailing Fox lifted its gaze and looked straight at Lu Heng.

Then, Lu Heng felt the demon fox’s consciousness touch his mind: “You are of the demon clan. Which clan do you come from?”

Lu Heng looked at Shi Kong with a questioning gaze. Seeing Shi Kong give him a slight nod, he felt at ease and continued the exchange with the fox: “The Ba Snake clan. My name is Zheng.”

“Min,” the fox also offered its name. The demon clan had always been a relatively close-knit people, rarely harming their own kind. Once names were exchanged, it was essentially the forging of a pact of mutual trust.

“How did you come to such a state?” Lu Heng asked.

Min was silent for a long time before finally letting out a sigh: “This is a long story.”

Then, Lu Heng saw a memory unfurl in his mind.

Min was a rather unconventional member of the demon clan. Unlike most great demons who hid in remote mountains where spiritual energy was abundant to cultivate, Min preferred to live among the mortal world. He liked to travel far and wide; wherever he found a place that caught his fancy, he would settle for a time — perhaps a few years, perhaps several decades.

Linjiang City was one such place that had won his favor. Min loved wine, and he could also brew it. He opened a wine shop in Linjiang City and watched the myriad spectacles of human life — joys and sorrows, meetings and partings. Before long, his wine shop became famous. But what was even more famous than the shop was its owner. The fox clan had always been renowned for their beauty in human form, and Min was a standout even among his own kind. At the annual Flower God Festival every year, the painted pleasure boat belonging to Min’s wine shop would be heaped with flowers tossed by the young noble ladies.

Min lived in Linjiang City for a very long stretch of time. He had planned to stay until he had lived out the full span of a mortal’s life, and then find the next interesting place to settle.

Until the year Linjiang City became Prince Gong’s fiefdom. It was also the year Min encountered his tribulation — Princess Linyang. For a great demon like Min who had cultivated for a thousand years, having met countless people and witnessed countless events, an ordinary mortal woman like Princess Linyang — even if she possessed a few charms — should have been no different from the faceless masses in his eyes.

But Princess Linyang was different. Min recognized this familiar soul at first glance. It had been a very long time ago. Back then, Min had been a small demon who had not yet learned to take human form. After his daily cultivation, what he liked doing most was hiding behind a tree by the river, watching the villagers from the nearby hamlet come to draw water, wash clothes, and play.

One time, shortly after surviving his heavenly tribulation, Min carelessly got his leg caught in a hunter’s trap. Utterly weakened, he had no strength left to move. Later, a village girl rescued him. She hid Min in a nearby cave, gathered herbs for him every day to treat his wounds, and nursed him with care until he fully recovered.

After that, Min accompanied the girl as she grew up, right until the girl became a young maiden. In the year she reached her coming-of-age, Min achieved his transformation. The two of them then pledged themselves to a hundred years of devotion. After transforming, Min returned to his clan’s territory to receive his inheritance. But he never expected that when he returned, his beloved had already suffered the greatest cruelty the mortal world could inflict.

The young maiden was spotted at the market by the magistrate’s only son, who wanted to take her as a concubine. The maiden, who already had someone she loved, refused with all her might. The story that followed played out as it always did in the tales — the young rake used the lives of the maiden’s family as a threat, and the maiden was forced into a small palanquin and carried into the magistrate’s residence. The difference from the stories was that her lover never arrived in time to save her. The fierce-hearted maiden hanged herself from a ceiling beam that very night, and the enraged magistrate’s son had her body burned to ash. Min, who rushed back, never even got to see his lover’s body.

Consumed by fury and grief, Min nearly fell into demonic corruption and went on a killing spree, and only his clansmen, who arrived in time, managed to drag him back to their territory. By the time he regained his sanity, the trace of his lover’s soul had long since vanished, and he had no way to find her reincarnation. Min had been living in the mortal world all along, and it wasn’t as though he had never harbored the hope that, one day, heaven might show him favor and allow him to meet his lover’s reincarnation once more.