11 – Fulfilling Others’ Desires: Human Flesh is Not Suitable for Grinding Fingernails.
The Defiled Realm bordered the Empty Desolation, both located in the Bone-Burial Wasteland at the northernmost edge of the demon realm. The accumulated skeletons from centuries of war had weathered away, forming a unique landscape.
The wilderness was windless, and at the farthest horizon, the rift between the Immortal Realm and the demon realm surged like an inverted waterfall. Above, the pure qi of the Immortal Realm condensed into a platinum mist, while below, billowing dark-purple demonic miasma continuously gnawed away at it—this was the location of the dual realm seal.
A plainly dressed girl stared blankly at the sight, her eyes betraying a mix of fear and longing, until she was abruptly yanked back by the young man beside her.
“Don’t look around carelessly.” Though the words were a warning, the breath he exhaled as he whispered them beside her ear was chillingly cold.
Liu Wuzhi tried to shake off the hand gripping her wrist, but the other’s fingernails only grew longer, digging deeper into her pulse point.
At the moment, the Demon Lord and she were disguised as down-and-out cultivators, having infiltrated the Defiled Realm. It was said that only by winning the championship in the beast-fighting arena could one obtain an entry pass to the Auction.
After crossing a hill, the crowd gradually gathered. Jagged bone rocks pierced the sky like the fangs of a giant beast. This place was not only an arena but also a black market hub where various factions secretly traded information.
“This way, please.” After verifying their identities, a demon servant with a three-petaled mouth grinned and guided them up a floating crimson staircase. Liu Wuzhi followed Baili Zheque step by step, still unable to resist looking around.
The circular stands were divided into nine tiers. The lowest level was filled with iron cages packed with low-level demonic creatures, their roars muffled into dull hums by the barrier. The fourth tier, where the two of them were seated, was neither too conspicuous nor too low, offering a clear view of the entire arena.
The audience was a motley crew, and snippets of conversation drifted into their ears: “Have you heard? It seems there’s a legacy of the former Demon Lord Baili Ming in the Desolate Ruins.”
“Really? If someone obtains that legacy, could it threaten the current Sovereign Lord?”
“It’s not impossible. But I’ve heard that opening the ruins requires the blood of the tomb’s owner—not something just anyone can aspire to.”
Baili Ming’s corpse had long been refined and fused by the current Demon Lord, Baili Zheque. Opening the seal would require the Demon Lord’s blood.
The contradiction lay in this: why would the Demon Lord ever bother to open the ruins and potentially destabilize his own rule?
The crowd sighed repeatedly and shifted to other topics.
While eavesdropping, Liu Wuzhi glanced at Baili Zheque—the Demon Lord himself was sitting in his seat, feigning sleep, utterly indifferent to the discussions.
At this moment, Baili Zheque wore plain robes, his long hair half-tied up, concealing his dragon features as he disguised himself as a young cultivator. Even his monocle had been replaced with a dark-framed one, making him look exceptionally refined, no less so than the senior disciple back at the Azure Mist Sect.
As if sensing the girl’s gaze, Baili Zheque kept his eyes closed but lightly hooked a finger. Liu Wuzhi’s body immediately spun several times on the spot, turning her back to him.
“…” Refined, my foot. He’s downright tyrannical.
Another half-hour passed, and the moonlight overhead turned crimson. Lanterns around the arena gradually lit up, their eerie blue flames exuding a chilling coldness.
As the chatter died down, the sound of shattering chains echoed from the arena. Thick, viscous blood seeped from the ground, turning the central fighting pit into a crimson swamp.
The gates opened, and three demon wolves sprang out simultaneously, their bodies dripping with corrosive fluid, their sharp claws scraping purple sparks from the ground.
Spectators in the back gasped: “Seventh-tier demonic creatures—Bone-Eroding Wolves! Why release such Fierce Beasts right from the start?”
“This Auction must have something truly rare. It’s worth risking your life for.” The person behind them spoke and was about to leap forward.
Liu Wuzhi watched as the Demon Lord rested and recuperated for quite a while without making a move, feeling puzzled. Meanwhile, someone below had already seized the opportunity. Spotting the familiar crane-feather cloak, she immediately leaned over the railing and called out excitedly, “Brother Yuan Lan!”
The Five Great Guardians had always addressed each other by their titles, so the crisp and clear “Brother Yuan Lan” instantly drew everyone’s attention. Even the magical wolves, which had yet to develop spiritual intelligence, lifted their heads toward the source of the voice.
Yuan Lan parried a claw strike and also caught sight of the figure waving incessantly. However, according to the plan, they were supposed to operate separately—one in the open and one in the shadows, with no interaction.
This undercover agent must be deliberately exposing herself, right?
The one who disrupted the plan flashed him a bright, innocent smile, clenched her fist, and cheered, “Go for it!”
The night lanterns were icy cold, but her smile was radiantly warm. The Calamity-Darkness Guardian felt his ears burn at an inopportune moment, and he quickened the pace of his feather fan’s attacks, attempting to swiftly end the battle and escape this awkward spotlight.
With a light sweep of his black-and-red feather fan, he wove a crisscrossing web of light, trapping the Bone-Eroding Wolf and preventing it from advancing even an inch. Having subdued a seventh-tier demonic creature so effortlessly, the demon attendants wasted no time in releasing more magical beasts. Shadows of demons flickered, and roars filled the air.
At this level of chaotic combat, others no longer dared to intervene lightly.
With the Calamity-Darkness Guardian personally present, the crowd grew even more excited, speculating about the hidden treasures at the Auction. Their expressions grew inscrutable as they whispered among themselves. Amid the hushed murmurs, another clear and loud voice rang out: “Brother Yuan Lan is amazing!”
Yuan Lan had always been devoid of conscience—when he was human, he was cursed, and after falling into demonhood, he still couldn’t escape disdain. Yet, in her eyes, she didn’t see the “Calamity-Darkness Guardian,” only the person called “Brother Yuan Lan.”
Brother… Brother… What should I do? Others call me “lackey” or “running dog,” but she has always called me “Brother”…
I’m not afraid of you harboring ill intentions; I’m afraid of you having no malice at all.
The killing intent permeating the arena was offset by her exuberant, cheering enthusiasm. The feigning Demon Lord could no longer bear it and opened his eyes, pulling Liu Wuzhi back to his side from a distance. “Shut up.”
“Do you also want to cheer for Brother Yuan Lan?” Liu Wuzhi looked up, her eyes brimming with vitality. “Go ahead, don’t be shy.” With that, she gave the Demon Lord a light push.
Baili Zheque: “…?”
Interpersonal relationships in border regions had always been chaotic. Onlookers simply assumed the young man and woman were immature, teasing, “Since ancient times, beauties have loved heroes. It’s only natural for your woman to shift her affections.”
Another even boldly provoked, “If you’re not as skilled, don’t be jealous. If you have the ability, go down and compete with Lord Calamity-Darkness.”
In the arena, Yuan Lan felt his scalp tingle: No, he didn’t want that!
He swung his feather fan even faster, wanting only to finish off the magical beasts and retreat hastily, fearing that the Sovereign Lord might truly come down to send him to his demise.
A cold laugh was suppressed in his chest, something only Liu Wuzhi, pressed close to the Demon Lord, could sense. The hand restraining her movements seemed to caress her neck, but the sharp nails hidden in her hair had already dug into the skin of her throat.
He asked her, “Is sowing discord your goal?”
Speaking might cause her throat to vibrate and risk being cut, so Liu Wuzhi didn’t dare utter a sound. She could only express her confusion with her eyes.
This big Demon Lord really should trim his nails!
Baili Zheque assumed she was intimidated and continued his low threat: “If I wanted to kill him, it would be as easy as turning over my hand.”
People in this world flock to power and influence; candidates are as numerous as hairs on an ox. Whether the Five Great Guardians are discarded or turn traitor, they can be replaced at any time or cast aside at will.
Even if it meant killing all his trusted aides for the sake of one disloyal person, it wouldn’t matter.
Killing intent boiled up along with the unrestrained words. Just before the restrained demon energy erupted, the girl pinned against his chest suddenly spoke up: “Human flesh isn’t suitable for sharpening claws.”
Liu Wuzhi strained to tilt her head back, trying her best not to let him cut her: “You could find some tree bark or rocks, or like the Bone-Eroding Wolves, scrape them on the ground here.”
“If you don’t mind going far, you could even try practicing on the dual realm seal…”
The throat-slitting motion turned into a hand covering her mouth, and the suppressed killing intent in his chest transformed into pure rage.
She wasn’t frightened—she was genuinely considering where he could sharpen his claws.
Without a trace of pretense, completely sincere.
At this moment, Baili Zheque’s four-hundred-year grudge actually developed a crack—should he really continue this charade with this foolish spy?
Maybe he should just kill her.
Baili Xuanye would surely send another spy over anyway.
Unaware that his killing intent had flared up again, Liu Wuzhi looked toward the arena and suddenly cried out anxiously: “Brother Yuan Lan, be careful!”
The trapped two-headed demon lizard shattered the light net, its dark green venom transforming into countless black needles that shot forth. Yuan Lan had no time to defend himself; the needles he failed to dodge traveled along his meridians, corroding holes into his wounds.
Seeing his trusted subordinate injured, the Demon Lord showed no reaction: “After all, he’s just a civil official.”
If not for the Soul-Snatching Fan he had bestowed upon him, Yuan Lan might not even have been able to handle three Bone-Eroding Wolves.
The spy who had nearly been declared dead was still struggling: “I need to help Brother Yuan Lan treat his wounds.”
“He won’t die.”
“But it’ll hurt.”
In her view, pain seemed like the greatest calamity.
Yet the Demon Lord had long grown accustomed to that ever-present pain.
He didn’t release his grip, so Liu Wuzhi naturally couldn’t break free, only attempting to reason with him: “Don’t worry, I won’t expose you.”
The Demon Lord still didn’t let go.
Watching someone get injured right before her eyes while her instinct to help was forcibly suppressed, little Lingzhi grew quite unhappy.
It was all this selfish, overbearing Demon Lord’s fault!
The emotion of dislike, like mud pellets fired by a child, was thrust before his eyes without concealment, utterly harmless. Instead of anger, Baili Zheque laughed.
At this distance, as a spy, she should seize the opportunity to directly stab his heart—what use was disliking him? Just like along this journey, he had given her countless chances to send secret messages, yet this woman only knew how to stare blankly, taking no action at all.
What deeper schemes did she and Baili Xuanye still have?
“In the beast-fighting arena, one only enters, never leaves,” the Demon Lord lowered his head, his breath carrying the weight of death.
Liu Wuzhi only understood the literal meaning: “Then I’ll go in.”
Since one can’t come out, then go in. Her thinking was simplistically unbelievable.
Dare to enter a dead end?
During his silence, the restraining force loosened slightly. Seizing the opportunity, Liu Wuzhi immediately shook off the Demon Lord and ran against the path back into the arena.
The surrounding spectators watching the excitement continued their wild gossip: “Ho, abandoning her partner to brave danger alone—she really fell in love with Calamity-Darkness Guardian at first sight.”
“Don’t be sad, foolish lad,” the bold ones even tried to comfort the cold-faced Demon Lord. “Lord Jie Hui was just momentarily careless. Once he turns the situation around, you should step aside and let love prevail.”
Before the words finished, they were sent flying by an invisible pressure, vomiting blood and collapsing to the ground.
Baili Zheque tossed an Amethyst crystal in his hand, smiling cruelly and delightedly: “Let death prevail?”
In truth, Calamity-Darkness Guardian had already lost this round.
Yuan Lan erected a barrier to defend himself, gradually noticing the abnormality of his wounds, and glared at the girl rushing over: “Was it you?”
Disrupting the Sovereign Lord’s plans, scheming against him.
Liu Wuzhi misunderstood once again, pulling out an item from her robe: “Yes, this is a temporary universal medicine I made. There are only three pills.”
The ingredients were sourced from leftovers during the dungeon interrogations.
Seizing the moment the patient opened his mouth, she directly shoved the pill inside: “It’s coated in sugar.”
Yuan Lan, holding up the barrier, dared not move recklessly. The sweet yet bitter pill entered his mouth, and the pain actually eased considerably… Could there be any side effects? Sovereign Lord, save me!
Affected by his injuries, he couldn’t hold on much longer. Various demonic creatures, including the two-headed demon lizard, had already closed in around him, yet the Demon Lord remained unmoving, standing high above.
Yuan Lan was drenched in sweat.
With this situation, could it be that the Sovereign Lord truly intended for them to die together?
Dying alongside a woman favored by the Demon Lord would undoubtedly tarnish his heroic reputation.
The girl who had disrupted the plan was still distracting him from the side: “Does it hurt a lot?”
The medicine’s effects were limited, and as he channeled his energy, the pain in his meridians was unbearable. Yuan Lan glanced sideways, about to mock her, only to realize Liu Wuzhi’s gaze wasn’t fixed on him at all.
She was staring at the two-headed demon lizard desperately ramming against the barrier, asking with concern and care: “You’re in a lot of pain too, aren’t you?”
Yuan Lan: ?
The onlookers: ?
Wait, so the pain you’re concerned about isn’t limited by species?
Author’s Note:
Zhizhi: Treating every (single) injured patient I see.