After Switching Bodies with the Villainous Demon Lord - Chapter 6

Duan Ze held the person in his arms and flew directly back to his usual closed-door cultivation spot — Zeshuang Pavilion — riding his sword.

All the way, Xiao Wuchen was surprisingly well-behaved, completely silent. It wasn’t until Duan Ze got off the sword that he realized the little guy had already passed out from exhaustion.

His face looked terrible, and there were deep bite marks on his lips. It seemed the kid had been forcing himself to hold on for quite a while before finally fainting.

After fighting that twin-tailed bear, Xiao Wuchen’s white robes were stained with mud and blood, making it hard to tell what color they were originally. And because Duan Ze had carried him the whole way, a large patch of his own chest was also dirtied.

Purification technique could only be used by righteous cultivators. For demonic cultivators, it would damage their foundation.

Duan Ze had no other choice. He had to take Xiao Wuchen’s clothes off himself, clean him up, and then put him in the hot spring he usually used to recover during his weak phases, letting him regain his strength naturally.

After finishing up, Duan Ze picked up the storage ring he’d removed from the kid while undressing him. He scanned it with his divine sense, and found it didn’t reject him. After checking the contents of his own ring, he took out a ring that looked exactly the same and placed it back where he found Xiao Wuchen’s.

After putting his own ring back on, he finally felt at ease and happily went off to take a bath.

Not far away, the person lying in the hot spring slowly opened his eyes. His deep black pupils quietly followed Duan Ze’s departing back, full of scrutiny.

The Immortal Ascension Ceremony was something Duan Ze had agreed to attend as a guest of honor — he couldn’t just walk away halfway. Now that something unexpected had happened, he needed to come up with a long-term plan.

After bathing, Duan Ze changed into a fresh set of clothes from his storage ring, then went to check on the still-sleeping child in the hot spring. After confirming there were no strange rejection symptoms, he took out a piece of paper from his ring and left a note telling the other not to run around and to wait for his return.

When he looked up, the sky was already turning pale. Duan Ze crushed a teleportation talisman exclusive to Cangyu Sect and returned to his misty veil-covered seat.

The substitute talisman was still there, though it had clearly been tampered with.

He put the talisman away and spoke toward Li Qingyuan, who was sitting not far beyond the veil, using divine sense.

“Thanks for holding down the fort.”

Although the disciples who went to look for Duan Ze had already reported back, Li Qingyuan didn’t fully relax until he actually heard his Shizun but more respectable)",
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He quickly connected his divine sense to Duan Ze’s. “Shizun, where did you go? We had such a hard time finding you.”

As he responded, Li Qingyuan’s gaze flicked toward where Duan Ze was sitting. The misty veil was always protected by a barrier, and from the outside, the shadow inside never changed. But this time, just by looking, he suddenly felt a strange sense of dread — like something was hidden inside that made him extremely uncomfortable.

“Can’t say,” Duan Ze couldn’t be bothered to make up an excuse, so he simply refused to answer.

Li Qingyuan wasn’t surprised by the reply. His light-colored eyes flashed with a touch of helplessness. He withdrew his gaze and sighed lightly, not pressing further.

Getting his usually reclusive Shizun but more respectable)",
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The other sect leaders sitting nearby were already on edge. Hearing Li Qingyuan suddenly sigh out of nowhere made their nerves tighten even more.

Why sigh at a time like this? Hasn’t that Xie brat already won several rounds? Still not satisfied?

That kind of natural talent… even better than cultivators who ascended from the small worlds.

Once the staring faded, Duan Ze finally closed his eyes and examined his own body internally. He had never practiced demonic cultivation before, only knew that while there were some similarities between the two paths, they couldn’t be used interchangeably. If he wanted to fully utilize this body and unleash all his power, he’d have to learn the cultivation method of a demonic cultivator.

The problem was — he now realized that he and Xiao Wuchen had swapped bodies. Which meant… they might switch back.

But he had no idea when that would happen. If the switch occurred at some crucial moment, how was he supposed to handle it?

And then there was the issue of breaking character. Since taking over the Demon Lord’s body, he hadn’t been struck by lightning anymore. But if the Demon Lord in his body got struck by lightning, how would he explain that?

One question after another came flooding in, and just thinking about them made Duan Ze’s head ache.

While propping his chin and thinking about possible solutions, his expression suddenly tensed. He quickly sat up and put on a cold face — the next moment, Xie Qingyu’s voice came from outside the veil.

“Shifu.”

The other sect leaders sitting outside subtly changed expressions when they heard the term. So this guy wasn’t much older than them?

Soon, Duan Ze’s voice came from inside the veil.

“Come in.”

As the male lead of a standard “from misery to greatness” cultivation novel, Xie Qingyu had a tragic life from the start. Especially during the period when Duan Ze was reading several novels at once — comparing the main characters, Xie Qingyu definitely had it the worst. Luckily, Duan Ze didn’t arrive too late. He could still protect the boy a little, so he wouldn’t become too withdrawn and dark.

Xie Qingyu lifted the curtain and walked in. He wore moon-white disciple robes, with thick brows and big eyes. When he smiled, his eyes curved into crescents, and the corners of his lips were always lifted. He looked cheerful and soft, and his personality matched the vibe.

Seeing Duan Ze sitting safe and sound on the soft couch, Xie Qingyu’s gaze paused for a moment, then lifted into a gentle smile. “Disciple heard you rescued a child. Is there anything I can help with?”

Duan Ze felt a warmth in his chest, and waved his hand with a casual, yet comforting tone. “No need. Focus on cultivating and finishing the competition.”

“Yes, Shifu.” Xie Qingyu cupped his fists toward him. Just as he was about to leave, he hesitated, glancing back at Duan Ze a few times before asking somewhat nervously, “They say the child Shifu brought back will be my future Xiao Shidi. Is that true?”

Duan Ze was stunned. Xiao Wuchen, becoming my disciple? The fact that they hadn’t fought yet was already thanks to his excellent cover-up.

Unconsciously tilting his head, he asked, “Where’d you hear that?”

“After I finished my match, the surrounding Shizhi were all saying it.” Xie Qingyu didn’t hide anything.

Duan Ze fell silent for a moment. He guessed the disciples had misunderstood because of the way he treated Xiao Wuchen — just like back when he came out of seclusion and personally picked up the male lead from the outer sect. People probably connected the dots and assumed he was taking on another disciple.

He looked at Xie Qingyu and gave a clear reply. “I don’t plan on taking more disciples.”

“I see.” Xie Qingyu nodded thoughtfully, then let out a small “ah,” and took out a palm-sized jade carved with a green lotus from his ring. He held it out. “Right, Shifu. I found this little trinket in the mortal world. If you don’t mind, please accept it.”

The boy’s eyes were sincere and eager, like a newborn lamb — innocent and harmless. Duan Ze couldn’t help but soften a little. Even though they’d grown a bit distant due to his long seclusion, whenever Xie Qingyu went out for training, he always brought back small things for him.

He reached out and took it. “Thank you.”

The jade was flat and smooth. As he took it, his fingertips brushed against Xie Qingyu’s palm — he didn’t think much of it, but Xie Qingyu jerked back like he’d been burned. If Duan Ze hadn’t grabbed it quickly, the jade probably would’ve smashed on the ground.

“What’s wrong?”

Xie Qingyu gave an awkward smile and shook his head vigorously. “Nothing. I’ll go back to the competition now.”

With that, he left the veil.

Duan Ze did think the kid was acting a little odd, but didn’t dwell on it. He looked down at the jade in his hand. It was warm to the touch, with very little spiritual power inside, but the craftsmanship was exquisite. In the human world, it would be considered top-tier.

He was quite pleased with it, and completely missed the way Xie Qingyu’s smile faded after leaving the veil. The hand hidden in his sleeve rubbed at his palm repeatedly, while his eyes darkened.

⸻

Three days passed quickly. During that time, Duan Ze returned the disciple’s sword and made a few trips back to Zeshuang Pavilion. Each time, Xiao Wuchen was still unconscious — which, honestly, saved him a lot of trouble.

Under everyone’s watchful gaze, Duan Ze gave a short speech and handed out prizes to the top three of the competition. With that, the Immortal Ascension Ceremony officially ended.

As expected, the one who took the top spot was the rising star of the cultivation world — Xie Qingyu. From this day forward, his name would be known across the entire realm.

“Shifu.” Xie Qingyu took the high-grade magical artifact handed to him by Duan Ze, and bowed to his cold and aloof master standing before him.

The corners of Duan Ze’s lips lifted almost imperceptibly. He patted the boy’s shoulder. “Not bad.”

Then, he took out a sword manual from his ring and handed it over. “I might be in seclusion for a while. Practice this in the meantime.”

“Understood.” Xie Qingyu looked a bit downcast, but still nodded obediently.

He quickly glanced at his shifu’s calm expression, thinking he looks exactly the same as I remember.

That look on the boy’s face made Duan Ze feel a bit guilty. He had accepted Xie Qingyu as a disciple ahead of Li Qingyuan, but hadn’t really taught him much — such a waste of talent.

So he pulled out a few more sword manuals and a bunch of high-level pills. “I’ll try not to stay in seclusion too long.”

Xie Qingyu’s eyes darkened slightly when he saw the pills. He paused, then took them with slightly trembling fingers, forcing a bit of cheer into his voice. “Thank you, Shifu.”

The second and third place winners, standing nearby, couldn’t help but feel envious seeing Duan Ze giving out sword manuals and pills like they were free samples.

Even if Duan Ze didn’t spend much time personally teaching Xie Qingyu, just being his disciple meant no one in the cultivation world would dare bully him. And anything Duan Ze gave him was the kind of treasure people fought over outside.

“Mm.” Duan Ze nodded warmly, gave a few instructions to Li Qingyuan about looking after his shidi, then hurried back to Zeshuang Pavilion using a teleportation talisman.

When he arrived, the sky was already bright. He used a disguise talisman to change back into his usual appearance.

After soaking for this long, Xiao Wuchen should’ve woken up. If, in his child form, he hadn’t figured out who he’d swapped with, then once he recovered and returned to his adult body, one look in the mirror would make it obvious.

Time-wise, he should still be able to talk with Xiao Wuchen and make a plan.

He walked toward the hot spring as usual, but there was no sign of the person inside.

A bad feeling rose in Duan Ze’s chest.

Just as he was wondering what to do, a cold flash of light shot at him. He dodged just in time, narrowly avoiding a sword brimming with murderous intent.

Turning toward where the sword had come from, he saw the missing Demon Lord — now back in adult form — standing there, eyes dark and fierce, lips tightly pressed together. He wore a loosely draped white robe, most of his chest exposed, his wet black hair clinging to his back. His chest heaved with rage.

When his eyes landed on Duan Ze’s face, Xiao Wuchen narrowed his phoenix eyes and hissed through clenched teeth, “Who the hell are you?”

“I—” Duan Ze instinctively looked up.

Before he could even speak, a long-gathered bolt of lightning came crashing down from the sky.