Great Demon - Chapter 83 Part 1

Shangxi City was still sinking, as if it had become an island with no place to anchor, descending beneath the clouds before drifting aimlessly.

The demons and devils could not hear their conversation, but they could guess it was certainly related to the changes in Shangxi City.

Changying pondered for a moment, then flipped her hand to retrieve the mustard seed that contained a corner of Shenhua Mountain. The mustard seed felt weightless in her grasp, yet no matter how fierce the surrounding winds were, they could not shake it in the slightest.

She cupped her left hand over the mustard seed as if pulling at something, and, with sheer force, drew out two strands of silver thread from within it.

The threads were long and fine, resembling Zhuyou’s silver hair.

But unfortunately, they were not. A closer look would reveal that the silver sheen was a result of spellcraft. These strands were also not as soft and neatly arranged as hair; rather, they seemed to be something that had been compressed together.

Changying gathered the two silver threads into a bundle and tossed them toward Zhuyou, speaking indifferently: “You were fond of twirling my hair—twirl this instead.”

Zhuyou still had a delicate strand of black hair wrapped around her finger. At these words, even her fingertips stiffened. Back in the mustard seed, she had thought that indulging in her physical desires did not count as straying from the path, and at the time, she had not felt even a trace of embarrassment. But now, she hurriedly retracted her hand into her sleeve, the corners of her eyes tinged with red, as if flustered.

When the silver threads were swept toward her by spiritual energy, she initially had no intention of catching them. However, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed something strange about them, forcing her to raise her hand and grasp them. The moment she did, she felt it clearly.

The two silver threads wriggled as if they were silver snakes, moving erratically without any discernible pattern. Only when she held them firmly did she perceive the surging devilish energy within.

These were not ordinary silver threads at all—Changying had pulled the hun soul from the Crystal of Law and condensed it into strands.

Changying said, “This is not some keepsake I’ve left you. There’s no need to think of it day and night.”

Zhuyou swiftly hid the two silver threads within her sleeve, unable to grasp their true meaning.

“If this remained in my hands, it would truly seem like I was interfering with you, obstructing you. Whatever you wish to do, go and do it.” Changying’s golden eyes lowered slightly. “After all, you will have to reclaim it sooner or later.”

Zhuyou lowered her gaze and let out a soft chuckle. This dragon had once gone to great lengths to stop her from gathering all three hun soul, yet now, she was honoring her wishes and returning two of them.

Her fingers twitched, and the hand half-hidden in her sleeve slowly emerged. Holding onto the black strand of hair, she spoke with a thunderous heartbeat, “If I lose my po soul, will I forget the past?”

“I will guide you to remember,” Changying replied calmly.

Zhuyou’s eyes lifted sharply. Though her posture remained relaxed and languid, her gaze was piercing. “Three thousand years ago, was it also you?” The one who led me into reincarnation.

“It was me,” Changying said, as if she could read her thoughts.

Zhuyou nodded. “I understand. You may go.”

“Then I will take my leave,” Changying said indifferently as she retrieved the mustard seed.

Zhuyou did not respond, only inclining her head slightly.

The black-haired, dark-robed Divine Venerable of the Nine Heavens then rose into the air, her figure blending into the boundless darkness of the sky, vanishing in an instant.

Silence fell.

Zhuyou sat alone against the wind, her gaze lowered, as if deep in thought. After a long moment, she tucked the strand of hair in her hand back into her sleeve, then retrieved the eloquent devil hun soul of Guanshang.

The hun soul wriggled in her palm, but unfortunately, it was bound by restrictions. Even if it wished to speak, it could not utter a single word, as if it had no mouth.

Zhuyou raised her hand and brushed over it, removing the restrictions, then said coolly, “Didn’t you want your three hun soul to reunite? Then go.”

She had originally given the Crystal of Law and the physical body to Changying, intending to wait until she overcame the tribulation of her missing po soul before allowing Guanshang’s three hun soul to reunite. But fate had yet to bring that tribulation, and Changying had deliberately extracted what was inside the Crystal of Law and returned it to her—was that not a clear message, telling her not to delay any longer?

“As expected of the ancient Vermillion Phoenix—true to your word.” Guanshang let out a sinister laugh. As the two hun soul that Jingyi had later supplemented had been removed, his voice returned to normal, no longer speaking in the eerie harmony of a man and a woman together.

Zhuyou had not expected that a dignified Devil Lord would be so adept at flattery. No matter how she thought about it, it felt absurd.

Her gaze darkened in contemplation. Since the day she left the mortal desert, Hanzhu had disappeared without a trace. That green-feathered peafowl was probably still lingering in the Mortal Realm.

This time, she had transformed into a phoenix and split Shangxi City apart. It wouldn’t be long before the demons and devils spread the news far and wide. When that happened, Hanzhu should be able to find her—unless her head was buried in the sand so deep that she couldn’t even locate Shangxi City.

“But I wonder…” Guanshang spoke slowly, his voice hoarse. “Where are my remaining two hun soul now?”

“Your other two hun soul are also in my hands,” Zhuyou replied flatly.

“Your Grace is truly far-sighted, to have already recovered them in advance,” Guanshang chuckled before continuing, “But even if the three hun soul reunite, that alone is not enough. They must enter the body and be stabilized within the spiritual platform.”

“I will allow your hun soul to return to your spiritual platform, but I have one more question.” Zhuyou pinched the devil hun soul in her hand and asked,

“What question?” Guanshang inquired.

“This Endless Abyss does indeed conceal one from the Heavenly Dao, but… how did you manage to evade the celestial beings and be reborn into the Phoenix Clan?” Zhuyou asked slowly.

Her eyes showed no sign of anger—on the contrary, she was remarkably calm, as if this matter had nothing to do with her. She brought it up lightly, as though speaking of trivial matters.

Guanshang sneered, “Naturally, I also borrowed the power of the Endless Abyss.”

Zhuyou narrowed her eyes slightly. “I was unaware that the Endless Abyss had such capabilities. How did you do it?”

“I only have one hun soul at present, and my memories are incomplete. Once my three hun soul reunite and enter my body, restoring the spiritual threads in my sea of consciousness, I will be able to tell you the intricacies of it,” Guanshang spoke unhurriedly, as if plotting something.

Zhuyou inclined her head slightly. “Three hun soul reunite? That can be arranged.”

Guanshang added, “But I do not know where my physical body is now. If a new body must be forged, that will take some time.”

Zhuyou’s fingers, resting lightly on her knee, tapped once as she silently acknowledged that Guanshang’s words were not false. Without the complete hun soul, his memories were fragmented. Without a physical body, his sea of consciousness had yet to form. Even if she wanted to forcefully probe his mind, she would not be able to access it.

She had gone to great lengths to bring Guanshang back to life, all for the purpose of unraveling his spiritual threads, laying them out before her one by one. Even if this entanglement with karmic debts would bring a divine tribulation upon her, if she could endure the trial of heavenly thunder and fire that could bring her to the brink of death when she broke through again—what was a mere bolt of lightning compared to that?

Unexpectedly, before her spiritual form could fully recover, she had already set foot in the Endless Abyss. And within it, she had taken yet another step toward the extreme.

Zhuyou pondered for a moment, tilting her head slightly as she cast a sidelong glance at the mist-like devil hun soul in her hand. “Your body is in my possession as well.”

In truth, it was not.

“Then I must trouble you, Your Grace,” Guanshang replied, his tone courteous and sincere.

Zhuyou fixed her gaze on him and nodded. “Indeed, I must be troubled. You carry the weight of karmic debts, and now that I am aiding you, those debts fall upon me. Quite the clever scheme—you’ve managed to include even the Nine Heavens in your calculations.”

“Shameful—it was merely a small trick,” Guanshang said with a laugh.

The word “shameful” carried no real weight, as if the suffering she had endured in her reincarnation had become nothing more than insignificant passing dust.

Zhuyou propped her chin up and let out a soft scoff before feigning a cooperative demeanor. “If this tribulation falls upon me, how will you repay me?”

Guanshang’s voice was laden with meaning as he replied, “Naturally, I will reveal to you all the secrets of the Endless Abyss, regardless of which realm your heart inclines toward…”

“Naturally, my heart inclines toward myself.” Zhuyou blinked once, her gaze calm and devoid of any ripples.

Guanshang let out a low chuckle, his voice deep and resonant. “Then I must ask Your Grace to follow me into the Endless Abyss.”

“Go and open the gate,” Zhuyou instructed. She had no fear that this devil hun soul would flee at this moment. If Guanshang truly intended to reunite his three hun soul, he would have to return to her regardless.

No matter how much this devil schemed, he would never have guessed that his physical body was currently in Changying’s hands.

That body had originally been in Luo Qing’s possession. During the great conflict a hundred years ago, Luo Qing had entered the Heart-Questioning Rock, ordering his subordinates to carry the coffin out while he followed closely behind, guarding it with utmost vigilance.

First Lord Xuanjing was nowhere to be found, and Jing Kexin was unreliable. Luo Qing had searched for a long time before finally finding her.

Unfortunately, when he did, she was still severely weakened. For several days, she remained in seclusion, refusing to meet anyone. Only after a minor breakthrough in her cultivation did she finally instruct Hanzhu to bring the long-waiting Luo Qing before her.

At first, Luo Qing did not ask her to return and take charge of the affairs of the devil’s domain; he merely wished for her to safeguard the Devil Lord’s coffin, as it was not truly secure in his hands.

This happened to align with her own intentions. She took Guanshang’s body into her keeping—if she were to find the remaining hun soul, she would no longer need to go searching for the body. In hindsight, she was fortunate not to have refused outright back then, or else that body would still be in Luo Qing’s hands.

“I’ll go at once,” Guanshang said with a hoarse laugh.

Beneath the ink-dark sky, just as Zhuyou unfolded her palm, the devil hun soul trapped within plunged downward like an arrow cloaked in billowing black smoke, heading straight for where the demons and devils had gathered.

Zhuyou’s gaze darkened. Entering the Endless Abyss surely required the method of a living hun soul sacrifice—this much was likely true.