Touch… the tail?
Sang Ying stared blankly at the youth in the mirror, his deep black eyes meeting hers, calm and composed, yet she flinched away as if scalded.
“No, I don’t.” Her tone came out cold and stiff.
It wasn’t that she truly didn’t want to, it was that she couldn’t get past that hurdle in her heart.
Losing herself in that kiss earlier had already left her ashamed enough. She didn’t want any more entanglement with Xie Lingyu like this, even if it was only an illusion.
Although she didn’t fully understand it, letting someone touch your true demon form clearly wasn’t an ordinary gesture, it required real intimacy.
The youth behind her said nothing, staying perfectly quiet. Sang Ying didn’t bother wondering what he might be thinking, not sparing him another glance.
After all, as far as she was concerned, this was only an illusion, and what he’d just said was merely the illusion reflecting back her own deep-seated desires.
Counting the time, it should be about right by now.
Sang Ying lowered her eyes. “Xie Lingyu, I want to go back to Minghua Mountain.”
The person behind her fell silent for a few breaths. “Alright.”
It had already been three years since she’d last been back. Sang Ying had no idea what Minghua Mountain looked like now in reality, but the Minghua Mountain before her hadn’t changed a bit from her memory, looking up, she could see cranes circling the clouds above Green Lamp Peak, distant and otherworldly.
Sang Ying stepped off the sword light and suddenly felt her chest churn, coughing several times.
Her body was far too weak, her cultivation too low. Although Wei Li hadn’t meant her any harm, the demonic qi that had leaked out during their encounter had still injured her.
She’d slapped a talisman on herself to force her spirit to hold steady long enough to enter the illusion, but it was starting to fail now, and the roiling energy in her blood was becoming impossible to suppress.
She looked toward Xie Lingyu.
The youth had already withdrawn his tail and horns, returned to his usual appearance, refined, cool, and quiet by nature.
The him in her memories was exactly like this, always silently trailing behind her, following her orders, serving as her little errand boy.
She pressed her pale lips together and, indulging her whims just as she always used to, spoke up: “Xie Lingyu, carry me on your back.”
The youth said nothing, naturally walking up to crouch before her.
Sang Ying leaned forward, wrapping her arms around his neck, resting against his back.
The youth’s back was just as warm in memory, broad and sturdy. Sang Ying let out a soft, warm breath, carefully resting her small face against his shoulder.
She thought to herself, she really was terrible, bullying someone for so long that he couldn’t even manage to be with the person he loved.
The youth slowly carried her up the mountain, one step at a time up the stone stairs.
The evening breeze drifted far and wide. Sang Ying, resting against his shoulder, felt drowsiness creeping over her in a haze. Her breathing grew light and shallow, murmured words scattering into the wind.
“Xie Lingyu… you’re so heavy.”
The moonlight was quiet, the world utterly still.
After a long while, the young man lowered his lashes. “Junior sister is very light.”
As if, without holding tight enough, she might simply vanish on the wind in the blink of an eye.
When they reached the mountain gate at the peak, Xie Lingyu stopped walking. Before he could even wake the girl, the one on his back had already begun to stir, patting his shoulder to signal she wanted down.
The girl covered her mouth, coughing lightly a few times, climbed two stone steps, and stood behind the vivid red mountain gate, straightening her robes before turning to face him.
Her eyes were bright and clear, like the moon on the horizon, her brows curved slightly like a little fox’s, carrying a lively, playful smile.
The same scene, the same place—Xie Lingyu suddenly recalled that day, years ago.
He’d only just been accepted as a disciple, and upon learning she’d gone from her intended little errand boy to her little senior brother instead, she’d been so annoyed she’d wanted to tease him, deliberately hiding his sword.
He’d known exactly what she was thinking, known exactly where the sword was hidden, yet he’d still gone along with her wishes, searching the entire mountain, missing both lunch and dinner at the food stalls, not returning until deep into the night.
The girl had been leaning against the mountain gate, half-asleep, but the moment she saw him return, she perked right up, pulling out a fragrant roasted goose from her robes, looking mischievous and pleased with herself.
“Silly Xie Lingyu, hungry, aren’t you? Call me boss and I’ll think about letting you have some~”
The night on Green Lamp Peak was utterly silent.
Xie Lingyu looked up at the girl before him.
The imposing crimson mountain gate stood between them, the girl’s brows curved, her eyes reflecting the moonlight, simply watching him quietly.
After a long while, she finally spoke softly.
“Senior brother.”
Xie Lingyu froze. Since the day they’d met, she had always called him by name directly, never once had she called him senior brother.
A faint unease welled up in his chest, even a touch of panic, and this premonition left him unable to stay composed.
He instinctively raised a hand, wanting to catch hold of her.
Just as his fingertips were about to touch her, a faint cracking sound rang out, and in an instant the girl before him shattered like a mirror’s surface, the surrounding mountains and clouds collapsing and scattering right along with her.
Leaving the Water Moon Mirror Flower’s illusion, the first thing Sang Ying saw was Wei Li pacing back and forth in a panic nearby.
“It’s not, why is my father here of all times, shouldn’t he be off fishing with someone right now, this is bad…”
Sang Ying calmly shook her glass mirror. “I called him.”
Wei Li: “?”
For dealing with a rebellious child like this, calling in the parents was naturally the best solution.
In the book’s original plot, the Devil Sovereign had shown up too, though not quite this early. By the time he’d arrived, Xie Lingyu had already beaten Wei Li nearly to death.
His father, the Devil Sovereign, doted heavily on his son, and had held a grudge against Xie Lingyu ever since, causing him no end of trouble afterward.
The youth’s eyes went wide with an expression of pure betrayal. “I helped you out so much, and you actually turned traitor on me, ow!”
His head was struck with a heavy blow. Wei Li yelped in pain, clutching his head and crouching down.
“You little brat’s really gotten some nerve, running off to cause trouble the one time I take my eyes off you.”
Behind him, a man who had somehow appeared inside the Water Moon Mirror Flower without anyone noticing scolded Wei Li for a moment, then turned to Sang Ying with a warm, gentle smile, showing off a full, textbook-perfect set of teeth.
“Little girl, my foolish son here has caused you trouble.”
This Devil Sovereign, at least, seemed to be a reasonable sort.
The reputation of demon cultivators, whether in the cultivation world or the demon realm, was notoriously rotten, known far and wide for their vicious minds and ruthless methods, chased off wherever they went like rats in the street.
But rumor had it this particular Devil Sovereign rarely went out of his way to provoke anyone, it was always other demon cultivators showing up eager to fight and steal his throne. Judging by what Wei Li had just said, his hobby was apparently fishing? Quite the refined taste.
To keep things from escalating further, Sang Ying had used her connections to find a demon cultivator on duty at the Devil Palace and had him relay word of the situation to the Devil Sovereign.
In short: calling in the parents.
“Little girl, my avatar can’t linger here too long, or it’ll draw the attention of those old demons. I can’t stay. I’ll take my useless son and leave now.”
The man handed her a black jade token. “I’ll remember this favor today. If you ever run into trouble, feel free to come find me in the demon realm!”
Sang Ying understood, if the Devil Sovereign himself appeared in the demon realm proper, it would surely cause an uproar.
The Devil Sovereign acted swiftly, taking control of the Water Moon Mirror Flower, releasing everyone trapped within, and leaving with Wei Li in an instant, without a trace of his presence lingering behind.
The Immortal Alliance forces stationed outside hadn’t even noticed when he’d slipped into the encirclement, by the time they realized, he’d already taken his son and gone.
The area around her stirred with noise as the Immortal Alliance members saw the Water Moon Mirror Flower dissolve and everyone released.
“Junior sister!”
Sang Ying opened her eyes, and after a moment to adjust, followed the voice to see Xiao Lingzhou running toward her from a distance, sweat beading at his temples, his expression tense.
“Junior sister, are you alright?”
Sang Ying held back the blood rising in her throat, trying to sound as light as possible. She shook her head gently. “I’m fine.”
Xiao Lingzhou’s gaze swept over her face, and seeing her whole and intact, the anxious knot in his chest finally loosened somewhat.
He opened his arms to pull her into an embrace. Sang Ying blinked, but didn’t dodge away.
Second Brother had probably suffered plenty in his own illusion, he’d come out looking deathly pale, and she had no idea what he’d gone through inside. A hug to comfort him seemed harmless enough.
Just as she thought this, her wrist suddenly turned cold, caught by a hand and pulled backward, her body falling into a cool embrace instead.
The scent of white sandalwood, a scent she knew all too well.
She looked up and saw, reflected in Xiao Lingzhou’s eyes, the youth’s face, his gaze thick with menace.
Sang Ying froze, turning around to look at him, the youth’s expression was as calm as ever.
…Had she imagined it?
Xie Lingyu spoke flatly. “When did second senior brother return? Not even a word of greeting?”
The words carried an accusatory edge, implying that Xiao Lingzhou had brought her along without a word to anyone, landing her in such a dangerous situation.
Xiao Lingzhou pressed his lips together. For once, the ever-eloquent talker had nothing to say.
“This isn’t entirely second senior brother’s fault. I insisted on following him myself. I’m sorry for the trouble this caused, little senior brother.”
Sang Ying’s tone was gentle as she shifted the wrist still held in his grip. “Little senior brother, let go of me for now.”
Xiao Lingzhou froze at that form of address, lifting his eyes sharply to look at the girl.
They’d known each other since childhood, he understood her nature through and through. Of her three senior brothers, she alone had always refused to call Xie Lingyu “senior brother”, outwardly it looked like bullying, but in truth, the more she liked someone, the more awkward and contrary she became.
So did that mean…?
Once Sang Ying finished speaking, the hand around her wrist not only failed to loosen, it tightened instead.
Sang Ying looked at him, puzzled. “Little senior brother?”
The youth’s dark pupils met her eyes, some unreadable emotion lingering there for a few seconds.
“Junior sister was just exposed to demonic qi. There may be lasting damage, she needs to be examined. I’ll take her back to the—”
“I’ll examine her, mother of my child!”
A tall figure suddenly appeared before them—Fu Yi, the North Wilderness Demon King, his rugged face leaning in close to Sang Ying, his ears tinged red. “Don’t worry, leave it to me, mother of my child. It’s just a bit of demonic qi, I guarantee I’ll clear it right out of you…”
Sang Ying, holding back the roiling energy in her body, raised a hand and slapped him square across the face, shoving him away.
“I appreciate the thought. And also, the child in your belly is not mine, or rather, whether that child even exists at all is still up in the air.”
“What junior sister Sang says is correct.”
Xu Baishen walked over, his tone gentle. “If I recall correctly, fellow cultivator Fu once mentioned he’s a rabbit demon, and male rabbit demons are known to experience phantom pregnancy symptoms. Fellow cultivator Fu should really examine himself more carefully, to avoid any mistake.”
He turned to Sang Ying. “Junior sister Sang, the Immortal Alliance brought physician cultivators along. Let them treat your injuries.”
Fu Yi protested. “Just because your Immortal Alliance has physicians doesn’t mean the demon realm has no demon healers of our own!”
Xu Baishen remained gentle. “Demons and humans have different spiritual meridian structures. Naturally, a cultivation world physician would be better suited to…”
Blood churned in her chest, a ringing filling her ears.
Before the argument could finish, in full view of everyone, the girl clutched her chest without warning and coughed up blood, her body immediately going limp and collapsing.
Hazy and half-conscious, her body unbearably cold, Sang Ying, drifting in and out of sleep, felt as though she were being fed something warm, faintly sweet.
Something warm wrapped around her, and slowly her body began to warm as well.
Something wiped at her hand, a damp cloth passing again and again between her fingers. Mildly annoyed, she tried to pull her hand back, only to have it caught firmly in place.
Faintly, indistinctly, she heard a very low voice, unclear, cold and heavy, sending a chill down her spine.
“If I… locked her away, would that make it better?”