The Scarlet Demon was inwardly shaken.
No, it was impossible. Setting aside the fact that the Demon Sovereign had been dead for so many years and by all accounts, had died a gruesome death with no remains left behind even if she were alive, given her temperament, she would have never tolerated the chaos the Demon Realm had fallen into. She would have stepped out to seize control long ago.
Moreover, she certainly wouldn’t be wandering the cultivation world so brazenly with her true face exposed.
Looking closer, Wen Chiyue did differ slightly from the Demon Sovereign. Her features were more youthful, though there was a hint of wickedness in her expression, it was overshadowed by a certain worldly innocence.
Hiss. A sudden thought surfaced in the Scarlet Demon’s mind.
Could it be… that Wen Chiyue is the Demon Sovereign’s illegitimate daughter?
The resemblance was there, along with the distinct red eyes of the demon race and the ability to control demonic energy, otherwise, that giant wolf-dog wouldn’t have fallen so easily to her blade. Considering the long years it takes for a demon child to grow and the timing of the Sovereign’s death, the more he thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.
The only mystery was how she ended up running with the righteous path.
While Jiang Xiechen looked like a mere rogue cultivator, her aura of righteousness and her abnormal familiarity with demons painted a clear picture of her past in the Scarlet Demon’s mind, a girl whose family was destroyed by demons, who was fortunately taken in by a sect to cultivate for revenge, only to suffer poor luck, losing both her sight and her cultivation.
With a history like that, she would harbor nothing but bone-deep hatred for the demon race.
Watching Wen Chiyue stand steadily atop the giant wolf-dog’s corpse, throwing a wink at Jiang Xiechen before glaring viciously back at him, the Scarlet Demon suddenly burst into wild laughter.
Startled, Wen Chiyue took two steps back.
Her retreat was purposeful, in a few strides, she was back at Jiang Xiechen’s side, eyeing the Scarlet Demon with suspicion, wondering if he had another trick up his sleeve. When she realized he was doing nothing but laughing, she frowned in annoyance. “Are you a psychopath? What’s so funny?”
“I’m just curious,” the Scarlet Demon laughed. “Do you even know your own heritage?”
He was convinced now. There was only one reason Wen Chiyue and Jiang Xiechen were together: Wen Chiyue didn’t know where she came from.
How pathetic. The once invincible Demon Sovereign who unified the realms had died, unable to protect even her own child, who was now mingling with the righteous “dogs.”
The Scarlet Demon continued, “Do you know that your…”
Mother was the Demon Sovereign?
The demon race lived by the rule of might, gender mattered little, but the natural differences between men and women weren’t easily overcome. Most Sovereigns had been male. The previous Demon Sovereign was a rare exception, a woman. Before her reign, no one believed in her, yet she carved a path through a sea of blood to take the throne.
A pity she died anyway.
The Scarlet Demon spoke slowly, trying to bait Wen Chiyue’s curiosity, but she seemed entirely indifferent. Her only focus was leaning in to whisper to Jiang Xiechen!
Enraged, the Scarlet Demon roared, “Don’t you want to know your origins?”
Bellowed at, Wen Chiyue looked confused, her red eyes filled with a “clear sort of stupidity.” She replied, “I do know.”
“You… you know?” The Scarlet Demon was stunned.
“Not only do I know, but Master knows too,” Wen Chiyue said.
The Scarlet Demon was completely baffled. That shouldn’t be right.
As his mind raced, he glimpsed a faint light out of the corner of his eye. By the time he noticed it, the light was already piercing toward him. He tried to retreat in a panic, but it was too late.
The strike was precise. Even though the swordsman knew the sneak attack had been detected, there was no hesitation. The move calmly cut off all paths of retreat. Left with no choice, the Scarlet Demon hurriedly shifted his body, using his arm to block the blade.
But he had underestimated Jiang Xiechen.
He heard a faint, crisp chuckle, followed immediately by a sharp pain in his chest. Slowly, he looked down.
He saw Jiang Xiechen’s hair fluttering from the momentum of her swift withdrawal, her black locks were like fine silk, smooth and delicate under the bright sun. Only then did her hair succumb to gravity and fall back into place.
By the time the Scarlet Demon regained his senses, Jiang Xiechen had already sheathed the Frost Autumn Sword with a soft clack. She stood as straight as a tree that would never be bowed, her skin as pale as frost, looking translucent in the sunlight. She appeared entirely emotionless.
Only Wen Chiyue saw the faint curl of a smile on Jiang Xiechen’s lips. It was clear her master was in a good mood.
“Wow!” Wen Chiyue exclaimed. “Master, how did you do that move?”
One moment the Frost Autumn Sword was at Wen Chiyue’s waist, the next, it was back in Jiang Xiechen’s hand. Even as the sword spirit of the blade, Wen Chiyue hadn’t been able to react in time. She mimicked Jiang Xiechen’s movements a few times, then confidently reached for Jiang Xiechen’s waist to try and draw the sword herself.
Jiang Xiechen stepped aside.
Failing her “theft,” Wen Chiyue lowered her head in dejection but quickly bounced back, saying with genuine feeling, “Master really is amazing!”
If even the sword spirit couldn’t do it, but Jiang Xiechen could, it meant she and the Frost Autumn Sword had truly achieved a state of “heart and mind as one” surpassing even the connection between a spirit and its vessel.
Wen Chiyue burned the move into her memory, planning to secretly practice it later. Next time, she would definitely dazzle her master.
Pointing at the Scarlet Demon, Wen Chiyue asked with disgust, “So, what do we do with this demon?”
The Scarlet Demon’s clothes were soaked through with blood, the red fabric darkening until it looked ready to drip. Despite being covered in blood and pointed at, he actually managed to laugh. Blood leaked from the corners of his mouth, but he didn’t care, letting it flow as he glared at Wen Chiyue. “I never thought… that one day, a Demon…”
The child of the Sovereign, acting as a pawn for the righteous.
However, before he could finish, Wen Chiyue looked up. In her red pupils, he saw the reflection of his own pathetic state. Suddenly, the Scarlet Demon found that the words he wanted to say simply wouldn’t come out.
Simultaneously, the blood that had begun to settle started to boil and rise in temperature. If this continued, the heat in his veins would burn him from the inside out.
This was a warning. It was the suppression of a high-ranking demon over a lower one, the absolute authority of bloodline.
If Wen Chiyue truly knows nothing of her past, how can she use this power? Is she infiltrating the righteous path on purpose?
But that’s too strange. If someone were training the Sovereign’s child, the Demon Realm couldn’t possibly be this uninformed.
For a moment, the Scarlet Demon even wondered if Wen Chiyue was the Sovereign herself. But he dismissed the thought as absurd, if it were the Sovereign, the pressure would be far heavier. If the Sovereign were truly displeased with him, he would have turned to ash the moment the thought crossed her mind.
So, not the Sovereign’s child? That made more sense. Demons were driven by desire, lust, greed, ambition. Yet the Sovereign had reigned for years without ever taking a lover. In that regard, she was as ascetic as a monk, which was why she had always seemed out of place among demons and why many harbored resentment toward her.
The Scarlet Demon’s mind was a mess. He wasn’t much of a thinker to begin with if he were, he wouldn’t have been kicked out of the Demon Domain. Now, he felt as though an invisible hand were squeezing his heart, making it impossible to breathe.
He suddenly reached out and shook his bell again. As blood began to drain from his body, the crushing weight of the bloodline suppression eased slightly. He spat through gritted teeth, “You think… demons… are that easy to kill?”
A blood mist exploded, the light masking his silhouette.
Unfortunately, Jiang Xiechen was blind and couldn’t see any of it.
Wen Chiyue fanned the flames from the side. “Master, he’s looking down on you! He’s discriminating against your eyes!”
Jiang Xiechen glanced toward her.
Wen Chiyue obediently put her hands over her mouth in an ‘X’ shape. But if Wen Chiyue were truly that obedient, she wouldn’t be Wen Chiyue, at least when it came to her chatter.
“Are we just going to let him escape?” she whispered, her voice tinged with a mix of dissatisfaction and subtle testing.
“Yes,” Jiang Xiechen replied.
“But that’s a demon!” Wen Chiyue said solemnly. “Shouldn’t we wipe them out? Strike while he’s down!”
“No need.” Jiang Xiechen had expected this. She said coldly, “He can’t be killed.”
A sword with no cultivation infused into it couldn’t kill a demon. But given the unique nature of the Frost Autumn Sword, the Scarlet Demon would at least suffer a heavy blow that would keep him sidelined for months.
She carefully felt the patterns on the Frost Autumn Sword at her waist, she knew every groove by heart. She prided herself on knowing the sword perfectly, yet when it came to Wen Chiyue… she felt helpless.
Jiang Xiechen’s voice was thin and light. “One day, I will kill them all.”
It was as light as a feather, a casual promise that the wind could barely carry, yet it struck Wen Chiyue’s heart like a heavy bell. Her head felt heavy and muffled, a feeling she couldn’t quite name. It felt as if she were hiding something very important.
But she hadn’t hidden anything. She couldn’t hide anything from Master anyway…
Feeling a bit wronged, Wen Chiyue could only let out an “Ah.”
After a moment, she rubbed her face and perked up. “I’ll stay with you, Master! We’ll kill every one we see. Let me do it next time; my cultivation isn’t sealed, I’ll leave them with nothing!”
Jiang Xiechen gave a small, soft laugh.
Miffed, Wen Chiyue circled around to stand in front of Jiang Xiechen. “Master, don’t you believe me?”
Jiang Xiechen asked, “What trick did you use on the Scarlet Demon?”
“Huh?”
“His injuries weren’t enough to stop him from speaking, yet he cut off abruptly. There was clearly an external force silencing him.”
Since Wen Chiyue’s birth, she had never heard her master say so many words in one breath. But now, she desperately wished her master would go back to being quiet.
Jiang Xiechen, obviously unable to see Wen Chiyue’s expression, continued slowly, “There is only one method I know of that can suppress a demon like him without any physical movement.”
Jiang Xiechen dropped the hammer: “Bloodline suppression.”
She asked, “Are you a demon too?”