Chapter 97.2: Overbearing Bright Palace

Qi Yuan knew nothing of the turmoil in the royal palace. At that moment, he had entered the game world again, his face bright with joy.

With his soul now in the late stage Foundation Establishment realm, he no longer required Ning Tao's external pull. Regardless, instead of venturing out, he first returned to the underground palace beneath Skyheart Palace.

Not far away, Ning Tao opened her eyes. "You're awake?”

The half of her face, not hidden by her black veil, was as stunning as a plum blossom in snow. Her gaze, however, lingered warily on the crimson Demonic Egg bound by eighteen chains.

The egg has transformed into a mass of blood-red flesh, as though something unspeakably powerful was gestating within. It pulsed like a living heart, radiating dreadful energy.

"Ning Tao, can I ask you something?" Qi Yuan asked.

Her phoenix eyes shimmered playfully, albeit the way he called her clearly annoyed her. "Of course, my husband.”

The black gown clung to her graceful figure. Her waist was slender enough to grasp, and her bare legs were faintly visible beneath the thin gauze. She was pale and flawless, almost mesmerizing.

"Who is the greatest villain in this world?" Qi Yuan asked. He wanted to know who the final boss was.

Ning Tao laughed softly. "You jest, my husband. If you seek villains, we the thirteen Northern Demons are irredeemable enough."

A trace of bitter irony glinted in her eyes.

Qi Yuan paused. "Can I see the other half of your face?"

a flicker of panic crossed Ning Tao's eyes, though her lips still curved in a teasing smile. "Better not, my husband. I'd only frighten you."

The other half of her face bore a single character, "demon[1]." The mark, which the world found hideous and accursed, was branded into her flesh. When it first appeared, even her own mother had tried to stab her in her sleep.

Ning Tao had escaped, but the attack left a scar near the loathsome mark. From that day onward, everyone she met had called her a monster and hunted her without end.

It was during one of those desperate flights that she had met Qi Yuan. From then on, she wore a veil. Even when she removed it, she would not look at the face she despised. There was no way she'd let Qi Yuan see it.

"Other than the Thirteen Demons, are there any other major villains?" Qi Yuan asked.

In his view, little Ning Tao couldn't really count as a final boss. Even if the Skyheart Palace was a dominant power in the Flowing Wind World, it was still far from being the strongest.

"

Where

are the villains?" Ning Tao said with a soft, amused smile. "To cultivators of the South, everyone from the North is a villain. To those from the North, everyone from the South is a villain."

There was another line she didn't say aloud. To both Southerners and Northerners alike, the demons were the true villains, hated even more deeply than the demon spawns.

"Is that so?"

Qi Yuan didn't care much and said no more.

"Husband, since you're finally awake, when will you break out of your shell and come watch the vast night sky with me?" Ning Tao asked, gazing intently at him.

"No." Qi Yuan couldn't be bothered. He wanted to play his game. Watching the stars? How could that compare to the thrill of killing, killing, and more killing?

Ning Tao didn't seem disappointed. "Then be good, husband. Your little wife is off to earn us some money."

Draping a sheer veil over herself again, she put on shoes and left the underground palace. As the Palace Master, she had plenty of matters to attend to.

When she stepped into the grand hall, she lifted her head toward the night sky. The heavens were pitch black, as though ink had been poured across the world. She sat upon her jade throne, gazing at the decree before her, her expression thoughtful.

"Blood Demon, peerless... a great calamity, perhaps?"

Then, she smiled faintly. Wasn't she herself a demoness, also a peerless calamity?

Seeing her smile, the nearby maid trembled uncontrollably. Ning Tao glanced at her, a flicker of complicated emotion flashing through her eyes.

All these people had claimed they'd gladly die for her. And yet, they trembled in fear at her slightest glance and smile..

A demoness...

***

In the underground palace.

Qi Yuan's gaze fell upon the Demonic Egg. "This lump of flesh and blood is really strange."

Every time he looked at that mass of flesh, it gave him a different answer and name.

[The Heavens Crave Blood — Desire at Its Peak]

Last time, it had been Primordial Chaos Blood.

"This has got to be some kind of treasure," he muttered.

He guessed that because his divine soul had taken up residence in it abnormally. The thing itself had undergone a mutation, constantly shifting in shape.

What if I let my Soul Blood parasitize it?

The thought flashed across his mind, but he quickly dismissed it. Before he figured out what that lump of flesh truly was, he wouldn't waste his Soul Blood on it yet.

He had to become stronger as soon as possible!

"Shame I can't take it with me. Otherwise, I could study it every day."

Well then, time to leave this place and enter game mode.

At that thought, he switched into the game state. Countless scenes flooded into his mind.

He saw a towering city, thirty feet high. Countless human cultivators and soldiers stood guard upon its walls. Hordes of demons surged below the city. There were tens of thousands of them, dense as the tide, crashing against the walls like a black sea.

Arrows rained down like storms, piercing into the masses below. However, they might as well be trying to douse a fire with a cup of water. Grotesque demons clambered up the walls, and the battle turned into brutal close combat. Armored soldiers wielding spears and swords charged fearlessly into the fray.

The battle raged for three days. Blood dyed the city walls red until even the stones themselves turned pitch black.

1. 妖 ☜