Inner Demons

Ying Jueran didn't know who the "Order-Holding Elder" and "Lady Sanhua" were, but he knew that the two demons in front of him right now were more trustworthy and safer than the group of Taoist priests outside the city.

He was a martial artist in the mundane world, and he had lived an ordinary, mundane life as a child. He had also heard stories of how terrifying and vicious demons were. But now, at this very moment, he didn't even know when he had started... to walk alongside demons!

With this thought, he woke Yu Meng and the others, and briefly explained what had just happened—let's leave that aside for now. As for the group, each with their own worries, as they followed the rat spirit and the rabbit spirit to meet the "Order-Holding Elder" and "Lady Sanhua," Ying Jueran remained constantly uneasy.

The rabbit spirit looked like a youth, and his temperament was surprisingly boyish. Earlier, his face had blushed when he spoke, but he quickly became familiar and turned into a chatterbox. He had been the first to interact with Ying Jueran, so he felt particularly close to him. Outsiders saw Ying Jueran as a dangerous character, with his black clothes, Black Saber, and perpetually cold expression.

However, for one thing, the rabbit spirit wasn't very worldly, and for another, what did a demon have to fear from a martial artist of the mundane world?

So he pestered Ying Jueran and talked to him.

Ying Jueran was preoccupied and didn't want to pay him any mind. But the rabbit spirit babbled on and on about many things—for example, how his Junior Sister Qiao Jiaxin had only come through because she sensed the aura of a fellow disciple in the forest after taking human form. He also talked about how he and his Senior Brother had gone through great hardships to escape to this place after the Taoist priests arrived in Weicheng, and how they had met their own Order-Holding Elder and Lady Sanhua.

As he spoke, Ying Jueran listened.

Curiosity and novelty were certainly present—who wouldn't be curious after truly seeing demons and monsters? And walking through the forest was tedious and boring, so he gradually began to speak to the rabbit spirit as well. The rat spirit walking ahead didn't stop him from talking to the rabbit spirit. He only glanced back and continued on his way, seemingly listening as well. Ying Jueran knew that perhaps the Senior Brother was also trying to gauge his background.

First, he asked where Qiao Jiaxin had gone. He was told that she was injured and had been taken into his Senior Brother's sleeve.

Next, he asked where the group was heading, but the rabbit spirit mumbled evasively, indicating that their hiding place needed to be kept secret.

Then he asked if Li Yunxin was present. The rabbit spirit looked distressed and said that their King had fought a certain Taoist priest until the world turned dark that day, and then had vanished without a trace.

He also said that after the Taoist priests arrived in Weicheng, they conducted a large-scale search for demons and monsters in the vicinity. Once found, they were all captured and killed, regardless of whether they were wicked troublemakers or kind, virtuous beings. Ying Jueran then remembered the demons he had seen outside Weicheng, which were being used to draw formation arrays—they were probably the ones the rabbit spirit was talking about.

The rabbit spirit also said that because of this, many "divine positions" for Land Gods, Mountain Gods, Water Gods... all sorts of minor deities in the vicinity of Weicheng had become vacant. Ying Jueran was secretly amazed to hear this, and he realized that all those so-called deities were actually demons at work. So, the stories he had heard before—of demons eating and harming people, and of Mountain Gods and Water Gods performing virtuous deeds—wasn't it all just one side of the story?

At this point, the rabbit spirit sounded a bit indignant. He said that with those positions for worship becoming vacant, the ignorant populace didn't know and continued to worship and pray. But what were they worshipping? Just lifeless clay statues. He said they should go and occupy those divine positions to manifest their power—now the Divine Dragon Cult was gone, and all its followers were dead. The Taoist priests were also proclaiming in the city that the Divine Dragon Cult was an evil sect, so anyone who spoke words like "Immortal blessings forever, longevity equal to Heaven" would be reported. Since they couldn't get the power of incense and vows here, they should rightfully go there to receive the incense from those ignorant people.

The rat spirit walking ahead turned his head and glared at his Junior Brother, saying, "If you go do those things right now, aren't you just courting death? Besides, the King isn't here; if you act recklessly and mess up the King's plans, you'll be in for a rough time!"

The rabbit spirit seemed very afraid of his Senior Brother, so he shrank his neck and fell silent.

Ying Jueran couldn't help but ask—since your King has been unheard of for so long, aren't you afraid he might have died?!

As soon as he said this, both the rat spirit and the rabbit spirit simultaneously twisted their necks to look at him.

It was then that Ying Jueran realized... he was talking to demons. And his words seemed to have been tactless. Because one demon was leading the way in front, and the other was walking beside him. After hearing his words, the rat spirit's head in front had twisted a full one hundred and eighty degrees; his body was still walking normally, but his face had moved to his back—staring intently at him.

The rabbit spirit's face also turned ninety degrees, but his body didn't lean at all—he was also staring at him.

Ying Jueran thought the pair of demons were about to get angry, and he was both shocked and frightened. But he was a martial artist of the martial world after all, and he showed no sign of it on his face, only gripping his saber hilt tighter—

Next, he heard both demons simultaneously show a secretive smile on their faces. It was as if an experienced veteran of the martial world had heard an inexperienced junior say something foolish; they chuckled, "Aiya, young man, your understanding, you still need to learn a thing or two."

Ying Jueran didn't know what they meant. But the tone was strange, and the two demons spoke almost in unison... perhaps it was a catchphrase learned from someone. Maybe from that Li Yunxin.

The rabbit spirit continued, "What kind of person is our King? Do you know what he was like when he first came to Weicheng, and what he was like two months later? Now that he's vanished without a trace, anyone with a little common sense would know—"

The rat spirit interjected solemnly, his voice steady and beyond doubt, "The King is once again playing a very large game of chess. All we have to do is follow his commands."

After saying this, they turned back around and continued to walk. It was as if everything they had said before could be considered casual chat, but this one point was beyond question by anyone.

Ying Jueran quietly sighed to himself and turned his head to look at Yu Meng, Wusu, and Lili behind him. The master and his two maids, along with the others, had been more severely poisoned. They were dispirited at the moment, only barely able to keep up with the group, and they didn't even have the energy to speak. The two girls had originally been holding their small swords, glaring fiercely, afraid that someone would harm their young master. But now, they were too listless to even hold their swords—they were almost dragging them, hanging from their hands. The sword blades scraped against the branches and weeds, making a clinking sound.

Ying Jueran didn't know if they had taken to heart what he and the two demons had just said. But since they had been talking for so long and had become somewhat familiar, he asked the question he most wanted to ask.

The question that had been hidden in his heart.

"If I think about what just happened... it should have been your Junior Sister Qiao Jiaxin who was looking for you. She accidentally stumbled into that colored spider's lair along the way and was captured," Ying Jueran said casually—it sounded like he was trying to ease the awkward atmosphere from before. "Then we followed to chase her, and as a result, we were also drugged by the colored spider, is that right?"

"That's right," the rabbit spirit said, "She was in that area to begin with, and her cultivation wasn't very high. What we cultivate is the Celestial Heart Orthodox Law passed down by the King; how could that fiend compare to us? Junior Sister Jiaxin is also newly enlightened. If she had taken some time to consolidate her realm before going, she could have turned that fiend's lair upside down."

Ying Jueran quietly let out a breath in his heart and continued to ask, "Well, since it was an accidental stumble, those demons shouldn't have known my name, logically speaking. Do you know of any methods that could have made me reveal my name?"

The rabbit spirit blinked, "There are many ways to make people tell the truth. Hanging them up and giving them a good beating will also make them tell the truth. As for magical spells, I don't know them, but my Senior Brother knows one. As for that fiend, hey, she doesn't cultivate Daoist Arts, so how could she know any special skills? She has some innate abilities and just used them to bewitch you. What you saw was what you already desired in your heart—she then made changes based on that. As for making you say something... if you didn't say it, then you didn't say it."

Ying Jueran fell silent after hearing his explanation.

But he clearly remembered that shortly after he saw the stone stele, the old man who claimed to be the Land God walked out of the forest and welcomed him. He knew right away that something was unusual and gripped his saber hilt tightly.

But later, a woman pecked him on the back of his neck, and he was drugged—taken into the Yuan-Zhu Kingdom.

So... it was while he was still conscious that the old man had called him "Young Master Ying."

How did that old man know his surname?

Ordinary people rarely encounter being "drugged by a demon." Even if they did, like him today—one must know that those demons possess supernatural powers that ordinary people cannot comprehend. Many things that cannot be explained are simply dismissed as supernatural power—if one can witness a divine and wondrous kingdom out of nowhere, why dwell on "illogical" details?

But the reason Ying Jueran persisted was that the impression the old man left on him was truly too deep.

The rabbit spirit said perhaps he was poisoned by the spider venom and hallucinated, thus fabricating a non-existent old man. But in his Yuan-Zhu Kingdom, this old man was a key figure who ran through the entire event from beginning to end; how could he have been fabricated?

He still remembered the old man's words in the military formation—

"These people of Yuan-Zhu Kingdom suffer the pain of invasion by the Tufeng Kingdom, yet they don't think about how to drive them out; instead, they resign themselves to fate. Now, they've been attacked right at their gates and only then think about rising up in resistance—alas, it's a mess. They can't even tell friend from foe, so they've simply set up a target for themselves. Truly ridiculous and pitiful."

This passage sounded like it was about the Yuan-Zhu Kingdom. But it wasn't entirely about the Yuan-Zhu Kingdom. It seemed to have another meaning, but he couldn't grasp it.

It was like a shadow, firmly entwined in Ying Jueran's thoughts. It made it impossible for him to concentrate on anything, and no matter what he thought of, he would always be reminded of this passage... like a maggot on the bone.

He began to understand that this matter was unusual. None of the others had seen the old man in their dream, only him. None of the others had their surname called out; they were merely drugged as soon as they stepped onto the grass, and the scenes that followed were like fleeting glimpses. Only he remembered clearly and was favored by the colored spider queen.

Ying Jueran then fell silent and simply hurried on his way.

The rabbit spirit chattered on to himself for a while and then also felt bored. But he was a demon who had only taken human form a few months ago. Although he was quite articulate, he lacked the cleverness and wariness of humans. He merely thought Ying Jueran was tired and stopped bothering him. He went to pester his Senior Brother in front, and the two of them mumbled indistinctly to each other.

Soon, they arrived at their destination.

The midday had passed, and the sun was not very strong. The light in the forest was even dimmer. In the distance, Ying Jueran saw a whole expanse of mist appear in the jungle ahead, swirling around every branch and leaf.

The rat spirit and the rabbit spirit stopped, turned around, and said solemnly, "We have arrived."

The group stopped and listened quietly. The rabbit spirit was in no hurry. He looked over the people and said, "You rescued our Junior Sister Jiaxin, and that must have angered those Taoist priests in the city. Those Taoist priests are not good people; they are powerful and petty. They must be tracking you closely right now. And you are all mortals with no ability to defend yourselves. So, in this forest..."

He looked at Ying Jueran: "Only this place can accommodate you. Some despicable Taoist priests have come here a few times before, but they were stupid and clumsy; once they entered this mist, they couldn't find anyone or any path, and had to retreat the way they came. Now, if you enter this mist, you will be able to see our Sect's Order-Holding Elder and Lady Sanhua. It's just that... though it's safe inside, you must be prepared—it will be difficult to get out anytime soon. Even for the Order-Holding Elder and Lady Sanhua to walk out would be extremely hard."

Ying Jueran, the only one among the group who was still relatively clear-headed, thought for a moment, and his expression changed slightly: "Do you mean to say that your Order-Holding Elder and Lady Sanhua are actually trapped in this mist by someone else? That they can't get out themselves?"

The rabbit spirit blinked and looked at his Senior Brother.

The rat spirit smiled faintly: "You could put it that way. However, if you are unwilling to go, you will have to sleep in the forest. You are not Yin Spirit demon cultivators like us; you will eventually get sick or suffer hardship. If someone were to fall ill, do you have anyone who can treat them?"

Ying Jueran had already made up his mind not to enter the mist.

He was a martial artist of the martial world after all, and quite famous. Although he was worried about his own safety, despite the danger in the forest, he still had a chance to fight. If all else failed, he could try to escape. But entering this mist was like trapping himself to be slaughtered at will; that would be a terrible idea.

He cupped his hands and said earnestly, "Thank you for the kind offer."

He then pointed behind him: "When traveling in the martial world, one must always consider such things. That's why I have someone among my people who is skilled in medicine and carries remedies with them. If there is genuine sickness, I can't guarantee a miracle cure, but it will certainly be better than an ordinary physician."

But as soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly realized he seemed to have made a mistake—because the rat spirit and the rabbit spirit exchanged a glance, and their eyes suddenly changed.

Ying Jueran frowned, feeling something was wrong. Just as he was about to retreat, he heard a strangely alluring voice from within the mist—

"Oh? A physician! Oh dear, hehehe, wonderful, wonderful! Throw him in, throw him in! Bring him in to treat the old man's old darling, bring him in to treat her!"

Ying Jueran found the voice slightly familiar. But before he could think about it, the rat spirit chuckled, "Then that's absolutely perfect!"

With that, he waved his large sleeve, and a gust of demonic wind rose all around—

Ying Jueran and his dozens of companions were all swept into the mist and vanished! (To be continued.)

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