Chapter 18

The Devil’s Chosen One was both shocked and furious. But at the same time, he was secretly relieved. Thank goodness I didn’t rush out just now. He couldn’t bear to look at his lover lying on the ground, but he had no intention of saving her either.

Husband and wife were originally birds of the same forest; when disaster struck, they flew apart. This was doubly true for villainous Devil Cultivators like them!

Farewell. If fate allows, I will return someday to pay my respects at your grave.

The Devil’s Chosen One lurked within the shadows, quietly turning around… and found a figure standing silently right behind him.

It was a beautiful, voluptuous woman. Her eyes held a strange, mesmerizing charm. Almost from the first contact, the Devil’s Chosen One nearly fell into their depths.

“Where do you think you’re going?” she asked softly. Her voice was slightly husky, like a small brush tickling one’s heart.

“Running away…” He answered, entranced.

“Oh? So you’re abandoning that woman of yours?”

“Don’t want her anymore… Can’t save her.”

“Sigh…” She sighed gently. “And here I thought the Poison Bee Couple were such faithful lovers. I guess it was nothing much after all. You know, I myself… I myself…”

Suddenly, her face twisted into a ferocious mask. Dark veins bulged on her face, and a violent purple light flared in her eyes. She reached out and placed a hand on his shoulder. Her exquisitely maintained, beautiful nails dug into the side of his face like small knives, leaving bloody scratches.

Her voice became a gnashing, hateful snarl, as if she had fallen into a devilish mania. “What I hate most in this world is faithless, treacherous dogs of men like you!”

The sting of pain snapped the Devil’s Chosen One back to his senses. He stared at the terrifying woman before him, whose Devil Qi was surging wildly, and stammered in terror, “You… You are the West Liang Demoness!”

She paused for a split second, then a strange, eerie smile curved her lips. “That’s right. It is this Palace.”

The Devil’s Chosen One was horrified. Just as he tried to flee, he realized that at some point, he had been bound tight as a mummy by a length of soft, silken ribbon.

And the night… was still very young.

Seven days passed quickly. During those seven days, Li Jiangying studied books and placated the Devil Venerable by day. By night, she played the role of the escaping supreme supplement pill. They made a full circuit around the Moon Shadow Devil Palace—east, south, west, north—and reeled in quite a few fat fish.

But after those seven days, when they went fishing again, no more fish were willing to take the bait. People weren’t all fools, after all. Being swept up in a rare opportunity initially was one thing, but now, as they watched the number of scouts lurking outside the Moon Shadow Devil Palace dwindle, and occasionally heard strange, unsettling sounds in the dead of night from afar… well, no one dared to make a move anymore.

The fish they had caught were all locked in the underground dungeons of the Moon Shadow Devil Palace. As the former number one palace of the Devil Domain, its cells could confine even experts at the Transformation Realm.

Cultivation in this world was divided into five major realms: Acquired, Innate, Transformation, and Immortal Stage. Each major realm was further divided into Early, Mid, Late, and Great Perfection stages. Advancing from the Innate Realm into the Transformation Realm was called ‘Entering Huajing.’ Advancing from the Transformation Realm into the Immortal Stage was called ‘Ascension.’ Yes, Ascension. Naturally, those in the Immortal Stage were considered immortals, deities.

Therefore, no Immortals existed on the True Martial Continent. The absolute peak of power was the Transformation Stage Great Perfection. Everyone dreamed of Ascension, but those who could even reach Transformation Stage Great Perfection were pitifully few.

The people locked in the dungeon were handed over to Liang Yiman for interrogation. She seemed to possess an interrogation method capable of ignoring the gap in cultivation levels. One by one, these prisoners’ Storage Bags and the locations where they had previously buried their treasures were all revealed.

Once, Li Jiangying was fortunate enough to be allowed to watch. She was utterly dumbstruck. The little madwoman, meanwhile, clung to her arm, showing not the slightest interest in watching Liang Yiman interrogate people.

When facing men, Liang Yiman would seductively ensnare their souls. After they confessed everything they needed to, her expression would instantly flip. The useless ones were killed; the useful ones were kept. As for what use meant specifically, Li Jiangying didn’t know the details, because these men were taken by Liang Yiman to her own private territory.

When facing women, Liang Yiman was considerably more polite. After they confessed, they were squeezed dry and then released, escorted outside the palace. Anyone who tried to resist during this process was killed without mercy.

By now, Li Jiangying fully understood. No matter how beautiful or gentle they were, the people here were, at their core, Devil Cultivators. And the fortunate thing was, for the time being, they were on the same side.

Of course, all the above interrogations were cases Liang Yiman could handle.

The only one she couldn’t deal with was the Devil Cultivator named Black Flame. Liang Yiman told Li Jiangying, “This one’s a tough nut to crack. Not easy to handle.”

The dungeon could hold them thanks to its own structure, built five thousand years ago. Liang Yiman certainly didn’t dare casually open the cell door. In case Black Flame seized the chance to break out, she alone could not defeat him.

Black Flame was an expert at the Innate Great Perfection level. In a one-on-one fight, Liang Yiman definitely was no match.

After hearing her troubles, Li Jiangying pondered for a moment, then dragged Li Yueying over to help.

So what if they couldn’t beat him? No problem! Shut the door and release Li Yueying!

“Jiangying, what do you need me to do?”

In front of the cell door holding Black Flame, Li Jiangying wore a faint smile, caressing the Devil Venerable’s little head. “Do anything. Just get him to hand over the treasures and valuables on his person.”

“Why do we need those?” Li Yueying asked, confused.

Li Jiangying smiled. “For our future.”

And so, whether she understood or not, Li Yueying charged excitedly into the cell. Li Jiangying and Liang Yiman waited outside, guarding the door.

Moments later, a blood-curdling shriek echoed out from within the well-soundproofed cell door. Black Flame’s storage treasures were successfully obtained!

With this, a huge influx of funds poured into the Moon Shadow Devil Palace. However, all these Devil Stones, magical artifacts, and similar items… while they looked like a lot, once they calculated the expenses about to be paid out, very little would remain.

As for those magical artifacts, talismans, and pills, they picked some useful ones to keep and distribute among themselves. The rest would have to be taken to the Ghost Market later to be sold in exchange for Devil Stones.

The Moon Shadow Devil Palace did have its own treasury, but it required Li Yueying to personally open it. And her moments of lucidity were far too rare, so the opportunities to open the treasury were few. Moreover, simply surviving by selling off the treasury’s contents was the very definition of draining resources. Earning money from the outside was still much more satisfying.

Li Jiangying was fortunate enough to be allocated a fire-attribute magical artifact, a suit of Soft Armor. Unfortunate, however, was the fact that she had no Devil Qi to activate this Soft Armor. Wearing it only provided the most basic, inherent protective function of the artifact. She also received a short sword, which could be used for self-defense.

After putting on the soft armor and reckoning the time, it was about time to head out.

Cui Yu planned to take Li Jiangying directly to Fangping Town to see a doctor. Li Jiangying, however, thought it better to bring Li Yueying along too.

She explained, “I’ve considered it. Buying medicine and seeking medical treatment—both are inevitable sooner or later. Our main concern is the people watching outside. Allow me to ask you both: If Her Highness is absent, can the Moon Shadow Devil Palace withstand an external attack?”

Liang Yiman answered, “As long as no other Devil Venerable comes, the Palace Protection Grand Array can hold out for quite a while. Even if a Mid Transformation Stage expert attacks, as long as we have sufficient Devil Stones, we can hold them off.”

“In that case, why not have Her Highness and me personally go out? We buy the medicine and she takes it immediately. That way, we don’t have to worry about the medicine being stolen on the way back.”

In essence, Li Yueying’s presence was equivalent to a security guarantee. It was just that Cui Yu still had some reservations. “I’m only afraid that if Her Highness becomes willful, she’ll be hard to stop.” Her phrasing was tactful, but she was essentially worried Li Yueying might suddenly go crazy.

Li Jiangying smiled, stroking Li Yueying’s snakey head affectionately. “Is Yueying well-behaved?”

Li Yueying narrowed her eyes and nuzzled her hand, responding crisply, “Yes!”

Liang Yiman and Cui Yu exchanged a knowing smile. Both understood perfectly what the other was thinking: before Li Jiangying’s arrival, peacefully staying by the Her Highness’s side was something they’d hardly dared even dream of.

Liang Yiman said, “Miss Jiangying, please be extremely careful. This time, let Cui Yu accompany Her Highness and the young miss. I shall wait here at the palace for your return.”

Cui Yu’s injuries had healed during this period. She could lead the way and handle introductions. Meanwhile, Li Jiangying was a control valve and Li Yueying was a flood. The combination of the three was the most appropriate. The others had to remain behind to guard the palace, after all, the Moon Shadow Devil Palace only had so few people left.

There was no time to delay. After assignments were distributed, Li Jiangying stood up, ready to depart. “Her Highness shouldn’t show her face too easily, lest any hidden watchers realize our defenses are lacking. Let’s find a way to disguise her appearance.”

Cui Yu had come prepared, pulling out a mask and handing it to Li Jiangying. Li Jiangying, in turn, clamped it onto Li Yueying’s face without further ado. This mask, once worn, would naturally transform the wearer’s appearance into that of a stranger. Unfortunately, there was only one.

Li Yueying whined a couple of times, allowing Li Jiangying to do as she pleased. But when she turned to leave, she accidentally caught a glimpse of herself in a mirror and actually gave herself a fright.

Instantly enraged, she whipped her head around, looking left and right. She searched for a long time but couldn’t find the stranger she had seen in the mirror standing next to Jiangying, hugging her arm. Li Yueying, torn by impotent fury, clung tightly to Jiangying’s arm and hissed and bared her teeth furiously at the stranger in the mirror.

The result? She saw that shameless creature also cling tightly to Jiangying’s arm and hiss in fury right back!

“Too detestable!!!” Li Yueying was so mad her eyes turned red. In her anger, she decided to use both her arms and legs, scrambling to climb entirely onto Jiangying’s body. Thereupon, the shameless stranger in the mirror also clung to Jiangying…

“What are you doing?” Li Jiangying, nearly knocked off balance by the little madwoman scrambling over her, had to brace herself against a pillar to steady herself. Following the little madwoman’s furious gaze, Li Jiangying didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Stop looking. That’s you.”

Li Yueying was devastated. “Jiangying is mine!”

“Alright, alright, yours.” Li Jiangying reached up and pinched her chin, turning her face away from the mirror. “Good girl. As long as you don’t look, she doesn’t exist.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

“Jiangying is so good,” Li Yueying mumbled, rubbing her cheek against Li Jiangying’s head.

Li Jiangying, still bracing against the pillar, patiently asked after a moment, “When are you actually going to get off me?”

That very night, the moles buried near the Moon Shadow Devil Palace once again witnessed the charade of the Descendant of the Divine Phoenix fleeing for her life and crying for help.

Heh heh, think we’ll fall for it again? Not a chance! We are no longer the Devil’s Chosen Ones of the past. We have evolved! Now, we are the Devil·Niuhuru·Chosen! [T/N: Niuhuru is a Chinese internet meme referencing the show Empresses in the Palace, used to describe a character who returns darker, tougher, and more vengeful.]

They sneered, watching the Descendant of the Divine Phoenix and Cui Yu, one fleeing, the other chasing. They coldly observed from the sidelines, waiting to see them reveal expressions of disappointment and turn back towards the Moon Shadow Devil Palace.

They waited, and waited. The Descendant of the Divine Phoenix and Cui Yu in their line of sight grew farther and farther away. Gradually… they vanished.

A moment later, a fierce gust of wind suddenly swept past. Vaguely, indistinctly, it seemed like a blurry silhouette had chased after them. But… what about the promised act?

Devil·Niuhuru·Chosen: This is an insult to Devils everywhere!