007 Killed Xie Diao’s Beloved.
Nan Yao didn’t think this was her fault.
Other villains in stories were always drenched in blood, eyes glowing red, mercilessly slaughtering. Their victims would kneel and beg: “I’ll give you any amount of money you want.” Then the villain would disdainfully swing their blade, cutting the person in half without a second thought, treating money like dirt and defying all laws.
But who could have known this Xie Diao would even cheat someone out of ten copper coins? He completely lacked the spirit of a proper villain.
Obviously, Nan Yao didn’t possess much of a Savior’s spirit either. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have tried to sneak away immediately after dropping those seven taels of gold, not even bothering to bring along her system Xiao Huang.
But her escape attempt failed.
The moment Nan Yao turned around, before she could take more than a few steps, a copper coin whizzed past her cheek and embedded itself with a crack into the pillar ahead. The coin was lodged so deeply that half a second later, countless cracks instantly spread across the pillar.
“Are you sure you want to leave?”
Xie Diao was still holding another copper coin between his fingers. He flicked it with his thumb, tossed it into the air, then caught it steadily. “You forgot the ten copper coins you asked for here.”
“Wah…”
Threatened, Nan Yao shamefully turned back. She obediently sat down in front of Xie Diao, watching him toss the coin. “I can explain.”
“Listen to your explanation? Sure.” Xie Diao was surprisingly agreeable. “But it’ll cost you.”
Nan Yao was gradually coming to accept this. “One tael of gold?”
Xie Diao: “Five taels.”
So Nan Yao took five taels of gold from her spiritual pouch and handed it over. “I’m going to start explaining now.”
Xie Diao accepted it. “Go ahead.”
The scene was utterly bizarre.
Xiao Huang, who had been closely observing the confrontation from the side, had a hundred thousand questions.
What kind of communication method were they using? Why, in such a dangerous atmosphere, could these two remain so calm and composed, even engaging in monetary transactions?
Nan Yao said: “Here’s the thing. This book is a matchmaking guide my mother compiled for me. You’re on the excluded page, so you’re safe.”
Xie Diao: “?”
“As for what I said earlier, there’s actually a good reason for it.”
“Such as?”
“I felt that using such malicious words to describe an outstanding young man like you was inappropriate. So to make everyone sympathize with you, I painfully sacrificed my own reputation to give you a compelling reason for your actions. This way, everyone will feel sorry for you and forget that you’re actually a big villain.” Nan Yao asked, “Doesn’t that make perfect sense?”
Xie Diao nodded, then reached for the hilt of the sword at his waist. “Tell me, how would you like to die?”
“Wait!” Nan Yao frantically grabbed his arm, deciding to go all out. “How about this? I’ll give you a thousand taels of gold.”
Xiao Huang thought Nan Yao had gone mad.
What nonsense was she spouting? How dare she speak to the Evil Seed in such a manner? And even if that wasn’t bad enough, she actually tried to bribe the Evil Seed with money. Did she have any idea who she was dealing with? This was Xie Diao – the same Xie Diao who in the original storyline single-handedly destroyed the human realm and crushed the skulls of her three uncles.
As he thought about it, Xiao Huang began considering the heavy responsibility of saving the world: Nan Yao’s current behavior was no different from seeking death. But if she died, who could he find to become the new Savior? Nan Yao’s mother was definitely not an option – she seemed even more unreliable than Nan Yao. The Demon King? No, no, that would definitely leak information. If all else failed, maybe the nine-headed serpent? It seemed to have quite the fighting spirit.
Before Xiao Huang could figure things out, Xie Diao spoke first: “Deal.”
“?”
How could this be?
Xiao Huang hadn’t processed it yet, watching helplessly as Nan Yao grabbed the spiritual pouch, shaking out a pile of gold with a clatter, then crouched on the ground to count. She patiently counted out one thousand taels and pushed them toward Xie Diao: “For you.”
Xie Diao: “You may leave.”
Finally, Nan Yao escaped the tiger’s jaws. She let out a long sigh, cupped her hands toward Xie Diao in a salute, then walked over to Xiao Huang, lifted it by the scruff of its neck, and turned to leave.
Xiao Huang: This makes no sense.
Halfway there, Nan Yao realized something was wrong.
Wait—her mission was to slay the Evil Seed. Wouldn’t leaving just like this render all her previous efforts futile?
So Nan Yao turned back to Xie Diao’s side, pondered for a long while, and felt that directly asking “How much would it cost for me to kill you?” would be far too impolite. Thus, she decided to find an excuse to stay by his side and plan this matter carefully.
But what excuse could she use? This was truly difficult.
The next second, Nan Yao had an idea: “Well, you know I’m out here seeking marriage prospects, but as a delicate young girl, traveling alone in the martial world is too unsafe. Before I find a suitable partner, why don’t we team up together?”
Xiao Huang fell silent.
Your excuse makes absolutely no sense.
Xie Diao obviously thought so too: “Fifty taels of gold per day.”
Nan Yao: “Sure thing.”
Thus, the mission to save the world made significant progress. Relaxed, Nan Yao felt cheerful, and feeling cheerful made her need to use the restroom. So she politely informed Xie Diao, then under his slightly disdainful gaze, went downstairs and began searching for the outhouse.
Xiao Huang still hadn’t recovered from this drastic turn of events.
Nan Yao wiped her cold sweat and sighed: “That was close. Saving the world is really not easy.”
Xiao Huang: “You damned rich second-generation.”
*
Xie Diao looked at the gold piled all over the floor, casually picked up an ingot, toyed with it in his hand for a moment, then tossed it back onto the ground carelessly. With a wave of his hand, the heaps of gold instantly vanished without a trace.
Most of the pursuers who had filled the floor earlier had fled during that brief period. Xie Diao couldn’t be bothered to care—having taken the money, he truly let them go, showing surprisingly strong morals in this regard.
He turned and glanced at the messy table, slightly displeased, his brows furrowing.
Qi Guyuan immediately understood, darting out from a small corner to begin ordering dishes.
He had thought that as the crown prince, having witnessed countless storms and encountered all sorts of people, he had long mastered the art of reading people and situations. But only after meeting Xie Diao did he realize there were still people he couldn’t comprehend.
Xie Diao was strange—he truly was a violent person.
Qi Guyuan had seen him kill. It seemed he killed without any reason, merely for his own amusement, or perhaps just because he wanted some object in someone’s hand, so he casually killed them to take it.
But after playing with it for a while and finding it boring, he would brazenly discard it.
With Xie Diao, money could indeed solve any problem. But though he demanded money, he didn’t seem to love it at all. He treated these gold and silver pieces like some kind of treasure he had to collect, yet no one ever saw him spend money on anything.
Why was that?
Qi Guyuan didn’t understand, and neither did Xie Diao.
At that very moment, a commotion erupted outside the building. A blood-soaked man stumbled upstairs and collapsed on the floor, gasping in agony: “It’s… it’s terrible… the imperial city has sent…”
Before he could finish speaking, he drew his last breath.
Qi Guyuan sensed something amiss and immediately rose to look out the window.
People.
They were everywhere.
People stood atop the city walls, perched on rooftops, and crowded the streets and alleys.
They… were sent by the Imperial Uncle.
Among them were Devilfolk from the Demon Realm, Demon Beasts from the demonic territories, and Cultivators whose power levels were indiscernible. Such individuals were plentiful across the three realms—as long as the reward was sufficient, they would serve anyone.
It seemed the Imperial Uncle had truly spared no expense to secure the throne completely.
“Your Highness the Crown Prince, we know the man beside you possesses unfathomable strength. Therefore, we have no intention of confronting you with weapons.”
The leader of the group, a trusted aide of the Imperial Uncle, declared in a booming voice: “Instead, we propose a trade. Do you see these commoners in the city? Every incense stick’s time, we will execute fifty of them. This will continue until Your Highness agrees to return with us.”
“Despicable!” Qi Guyuan clenched his fists.
The leader laughed heartily, raising his hand with a ruthless glare. “To demonstrate our sincerity to the Crown Prince—men! Begin!”
No sooner had he spoken than dozens drew their swords, seized the tightly restrained commoners, and slit their throats with cold efficiency. These men didn’t even blink, treating human lives as worthless as weeds.
Piercing cries and screams filled the air as people knelt begging for mercy, but it was futile. Nameless City descended into chaos, dark clouds looming over the streets, casting shadows everywhere.
“Stop!” Qi Guyuan’s eyes turned bloodshot. He turned to Xie Diao, “Brother Xie!”
Xie Diao yawned. “Why hasn’t the food been served yet?”
“… ” Why does this scene feel somewhat familiar.
But Qi Guyuan had no time to dwell on it. He grabbed Xie Diao’s arm urgently. “Brother Xie, I beg you, save the people of this city.”
As if annoyed by the clamor outside, Xie Diao rubbed his ears without even looking up. He leaned against the window, lazily glanced outside, then turned back. “Then let’s save a cook. Otherwise, there’ll be no one to prepare the meal.”
“Brother Xie!” Qi Guyuan gritted his teeth. “I implore you to act! For every citizen of this city you save, I will pay you a hundred taels of gold.”
Before he could finish, the leader burst into laughter. “Is that so? What a pity, Your Highness. By imperial decree, as long as Xie Diao remains uninvolved, no matter how much gold you offer, we will double it.”
Qi Guyuan’s face paled, and he glanced anxiously at Xie Diao.
Xie Diao let out a soft hiss, propped himself up from the table, and stood. “This is troublesome.”
With that, he turned decisively and walked back into the room, seemingly intent on washing his hands of the matter.
Qi Guyuan’s heart sank as if plunged into an ice cellar.
This was bad.
Apart from money, he had no means to persuade Xie Diao to help him.
Could it be… that today was the day he would meet his end?
Seeing this, the leader laughed arrogantly. “Your Highness, are you actually counting on him to save these commoners? This death-row convict who barely resembles a human—how can you still naively hope for any compassion from him?”
Xie Diao’s footsteps halted.
He tilted his head slightly, making it difficult to discern the expression on his face. His voice was calm, yet carried a chilling undertone: “Who did you say doesn’t resemble a human?”
The leader opened his mouth, still searching for words, when in the blink of an eye, Xie Diao was already standing before him.
So fast.
“You—” The leader’s voice was abruptly cut off.
Xie Diao’s left hand pierced through his heart, blood splattering onto the faces of the nearby guards. The guards were horrified, only then realizing they should intervene, but before they could move, they felt a violent tremor in their chests.
To their shock, countless spiderweb-like patterns appeared on their bodies. It felt as though a fire was burning inside them, as if the blood flowing through their veins had turned scalding hot.
Blood blossoms erupted all around. In almost an instant, hundreds of city-slayers exploded into gory fragments.
Xie Diao gripped the leader’s heart, pulling it out inch by inch. Staring into his eyes, he asked word by word: “Tell me, who doesn’t resemble a human?”
The leader’s mouth gaped, but no sound emerged. His eyes widened as he watched his own heart being torn out. The spiritual power within his body sustained him, preventing immediate death.
So he watched as Xie Diao crushed the heart in his palm, right before his eyes, sending countless droplets of blood flying.
Xie Diao lowered his gaze, standing motionless for a long moment before slowly turning around.
Murderous intent energy drifted from the corpses, continuously flowing into Xie Diao’s body. He raised his hand to rest on the sword at his waist, but didn’t immediately draw it.
With downcast eyes and stray hairs obscuring his face, his expression remained hidden, leaving only the mysteriously upturned corner of his lips visible.
Human.
To become human.
Xie Diao, born from the crevices of hell, wandered aimlessly.
What should he do?
Where should he go?
He didn’t understand. No one had taught him.
“Where do you come from, human?” a voice asked him.
Xie Diao learned then that he was human, that he should become human.
Humans wear clothes. Humans eat food. Humans sleep. Humans have parents and family. Humans need money.
Just like he was now.
He had done quite well. He had completely become human, and not… an Evil Seed.
But there were always blind fools who failed to recognize him. Xie Diao found this troubling, but it didn’t matter – as long as he killed them, the problem would be solved.
The scene was horrifying.
In mere moments, countless throats were slit by a powerful surge of spiritual energy. Xie Diao stood among the corpses, each death seemingly making him stronger.
“St-stop!” the imperial commander stammered fearfully. “You monster! Don’t think we’re afraid of you! We have the Death Spirit General from the Demon Realm, the Sky-Piercing Tiger from the demon territory, and the Hopeless Immortal from the Immortal Realm stationed here! Take one more step and they’ll tear you to pieces!”
Xie Diao slightly raised his eyes but didn’t halt his steps, his gaze calmly sweeping over the three mentioned individuals.
The three: …Don’t say our names! We’re just here to earn some honest money!
A deadly battle was imminent.
Just then, Nan Yao and Xiao Huang returned from the restroom, bickering as they walked.
“You almost dropped me into the latrine! Almost!” Xiao Huang waved his claws dramatically.
“Don’t be so petty. I told you the lighting was bad. Can’t you be more understanding?” Nan Yao sighed in resignation.
Then, the two of them bickered all the way, stepping over piles of corpses, dodging the panicked imperial army, and then tripping over someone’s head.
A gray-robed assassin who had just escaped from the inn shouted from among the troops, “General! This girl is that lunatic’s sweetheart!”
“?”
Nan Yao felt like someone was pointing at her.
She finally stopped.
What’s going on?
Which lunatic?
Whose sweetheart?
Before Nan Yao could ask, she was wrapped head to toe in restraining chains and unfortunately captured.
Then, she heard a cold voice from above her head: “Xie Diao, if you don’t stop now, I’ll kill your sweetheart with one strike.”
Nan Yao: …Didn’t we settle this for a thousand coins? Who’s stirring up old gossip again!
Furious, she raised her head, ready to teach someone a lesson, but when she looked up, she saw many familiar faces.
The Death Spirit General from the Demon Realm.
She knew this guy. When she stayed overnight in the Demon Realm as a child, Ye Yin had ordered him to peel oranges for her, but because the oranges he peeled were too sour, he was fired.
The Sky-Piercing Tiger from the Demon Realm.
The Demon King had once given it to Nan Yao to raise as a kitten, but because it ate way too much, Nan Yao returned it. It escaped midway and went missing.
The Hopeless Immortal from the Immortal Realm.
He once told Nan Yao bedtime stories in the Immortal Realm, but Nan Yao didn’t fall asleep—he dozed off first. When the Celestial Venerable found out, he punished him by making him copy bedtime stories twenty times. In rebellion, the Hopeless Immortal ran away from home.
What a coincidence.
Why is everyone here?
“General, be careful. Don’t be fooled by this girl’s delicate appearance—her strength is extraordinary.”
The general said arrogantly, “What nonsense! How much trouble can a little girl cause? We have three powerful experts here. Even if we can’t hurt Xie Diao, can’t we kill one little girl?”
Nan Yao: “True.”
The orange-peeling laborer, the housecat, the unlucky storyteller immortal: “…”
Author’s note:
Got back too late yesterday, so I went to sleep first. I’ll revise this chapter carefully after waking up in the afternoon.
Nan Yao stole 100 red packets from Xie Diao and will randomly give them to commenters.