“Spirit Opening Tribulation?”
Yin Luan had never heard this name before.
“Demons face nine tribulations,” She Mei said, noticing her interest and elaborating further. “Shape Transformation Tribulation, Spirit Opening Tribulation, Unforeseen Tribulation, Vajra Tribulation… After surviving the first one, no matter how much you delay, the second will inevitably descend. Pass it, and you live; fail, and you die.”
“This… isn’t that too tragic?”
The Little Snake Demon exclaimed in surprise.
“It is rather tragic,” She Mei replied with a wry smile. “Once you set foot on the path of shape transformation into human form, it means you can no longer coast through life in peace. You must constantly rack your brains and exhaust every means to survive. That’s one of the greatest differences between demon cultivators and human cultivators.”
Human cultivators faced all sorts of bottlenecks, and at profound realms, all sorts of dangers.
But that was only if they kept pushing for higher realms. Once they reached a certain point and realized their potential was spent, they could simply stop and live out the rest of their days in happiness.
Demons had no such luxury.
Even as they enjoyed happy lives, the tribulations marched inexorably toward them. Fail to prepare, and they’d end up with body and soul annihilated.
“This is also a form of punishment from the Heavenly Path,” She Mei continued. “Demons possess lifespans far exceeding those of humans. Though their births are difficult and their numbers few, the advantage of time remains undeniable. To preserve the balance of the world, these tribulations arise.”
“Big Snake Snake, you sure know how to look on the bright side…”
Yin Luan said admiringly.
“What choice is there if you don’t?” She Mei replied. “The tribulations come whether you like it or not. All we can do is strive with all our might to survive.”
“Sigh…”
Little Snake couldn’t help letting out a sigh.
By that logic, she’d have to face her own tribulations someday too. How depressing was that?
“If it’s this kind of trouble, you could’ve just told us straight up,” Yin Luan said. “We’re all good people—we’d definitely help you out.”
“Really?” She Mei mused. “But from everything I’ve seen and heard since waking up, demons aren’t exactly welcome in the Great Zhou Kingdom. If I’d approached you directly, wouldn’t you have reported me to the Demon Subduing Division?”
“Of course not… Well, at least I wouldn’t!”
Yin Luan had been about to make a firm promise, but then she thought of Xiao Luo and Lily’s timid natures. Who knew—they might blab everything just to save their own skins…
“It’s truly bizarre,” She Mei said with a slight frown. “The Eastern Wastelands enjoyed centuries of stability, yet in the span of mere decades, everything changed so drastically. Demons’ status plummeted to the point where everyone shouts to kill them on sight.”
“What was it like before?”
The Little Snake Demon asked, trying to fish for more details.
“It wasn’t complete harmony,” the Great Demon recalled after a moment. “But people and demons could generally coexist. The Eastern Wastelands were never truly peaceful—ghosts, devils, evil spirits, and the like popped up constantly, while the number of cultivators was far too few to handle them all. Demons would sometimes step in to deal with those threats.”
“Demons taking care of evil spirits?”
Yin Luan asked curiously.
“Nothing surprising about that,” She Mei said. “Most demons prefer a stable living environment, just like humans. Of course, you can’t rule out the occasional bad apples among them—just like with humans, there are good and bad.”
The human population of the Eastern Wastelands had lacked the power to suppress evil spirits, so demons earned some recognition.
But once the Demon Subduing Division appeared, backed by the Great Zhou Kingdom’s humans, they gained the ability to protect themselves—and suddenly, demons were lumped in with the “evil” ones.
There had to be some connection there; otherwise, it made no sense…
Unfortunately, She Mei hadn’t lived through the whole affair, so she didn’t know the details.
As the two conversed, Yin Luan didn’t reveal her own identity, but she picked up plenty of knowledge about snakes.
For instance, among all demons, snakes were one of the types that struggled most with full shape transformation—especially into complete human form. The reason was simple: they had no legs.
Moreover, the difficulty of shape transformation was directly proportional to the strength gained afterward. Snakes that transformed into beautiful women were typically far more powerful than the average Great Demon.
As for talents, abilities, and habits, different snake species developed distinct traits after becoming demons.
“The idea that snakes are lustful by nature is a misconception,” the Snake Demon explained leisurely. “In the earliest legends, our kind usually appeared in positive roles. It’s just that our appearance bears some resemblance to dragons, and the folk tales about dragons being lustful and chaotic dragged us down by association.”
“Then why do you go around licking people at random?”
“It’s how snakes show friendliness… Aren’t you the same?”
The two conversed to their hearts’ content. Meanwhile, over on Ren Tan’s side, several young maidens gradually stirred and woke up one by one.
Yin Luan recounted to her companions everything the Great Demon had told her. With that, tensions between the two sides eased somewhat.
“Senior sought us out to help with your tribulation?” The Eldest Young Lady nodded thoughtfully as she mulled it over. “To be honest, I don’t harbor much prejudice against demons… Ahhh! Your tongue—put that snake tongue away!”
If Ren Tan truly hated demons, she never would have spared Xiao Luo and Lily. Deep down, she had always questioned the teachings propagated by the Demon Subduing Division.
Demons clearly possessed wisdom on par with humans. How could anyone so readily condemn an entire race as evil?
“The tribulation, huh.” Xiao Luo scratched her head. “I haven’t learned much about that yet. My second one is probably still a long way off.”
“My promise stands,” She Mei said with a faint smile. “Should I successfully pass this tribulation, I will make amends for my prior offenses.”
“Mm…”
Ren Tan fell silent for a moment before speaking up.
“May I ask you something, Senior?”
“I know what you’re wondering,” the beautiful matron replied, narrowing her eyes with a calm tone. “Whether I’m a good demon or a wicked one, right? That’s not a question I can answer lightly. I’ve lived many years, and yes, my hands bear some human blood. But I can assure you of two things: first, my conscience is clear, and second, I pose no threat to the world.”
“Hiss… Mm.”
Yin Luan sniffed the air and gave a slight nod.
There was no scent of deceit on her.
“Very well,” the Little Snake Demon said. “We’re willing to help, but one thing needs to be crystal clear from the start: we won’t stake our lives on a demon we’ve only just met. If things get truly dangerous, we’ll hightail it without a second thought.”
“Should the tribulation claim me, that will simply be my fate,” She Mei agreed. “I admire your forthright natures. Back in the Long River Mountains, you dared battle all those foes for the sake of an Immortal—you must be trustworthy indeed.”
“You bet!” Yin Luan puffed out her chest at the praise, beaming with pride. “If we aren’t reliable, who is?”
She turned to her companions.
“No objections from you all?”
“As long as it doesn’t involve any real risks…” “As long as you don’t swipe our things…” “Then we’re good with everything…”
“It’s settled, then,” Yin Luan told She Mei. “I want to see for myself just how fearsome this so-called Spirit Opening Tribulation truly is!”
