Great Demon - Chapter 98 Part 2

Outside Qiaomu Manor, Zhuyou and Changying stood facing each other. Zhuyou glared at her for a long moment before finally saying, “I thought you’d be staying put in the Nine Heavens.”

“Haven’t you gone to the Demon Realm?” Changying’s expression remained unreadable, though her tone carried a hint of confusion.

Zhuyou narrowed her eyes. “Weren’t you supposed to be reorganizing the Nine Heavens? And yet you’re already down here? Are you sure you’re taking your role as Divine Venerable seriously?”

“This is not the time for drastic measures.” Changying frowned, looking as though she had been wrongfully accused.

Zhuyou’s gaze darkened as she looked up at the Qiaomu Manor plaque. “I did go to the Demon Realm. I even met with Demon King Yueyin. Do you know what I said to her?”

Changying remained silent.

“If I’m not mistaken, that Demon King has, at most, six months left to live. She has been unable to break through for a long time now, and if this continues, her only fate is complete annihilation.” Zhuyou spoke leisurely. “I told her to pledge allegiance to Guanshang, but to her credit, she didn’t agree right away.”

“You want to use the Demon Realm’s submission to lure Guanshang out?” Changying’s voice remained calm. “Guanshang isn’t that easy to deceive.”

Zhuyou let out a soft laugh. “Yueyin isn’t so easy to persuade either. Otherwise, why would the Demon Realm have remained secluded for so long? She has her own considerations, but I don’t believe she truly isn’t afraid of death. She clearly still wants to live.”

“Why must you drag her into such a predicament?” Changying asked.

Zhuyou lifted her gaze, staring at the dragon whose expression remained indifferent. “Even if I didn’t bring it up, Guanshang would seek her out sooner or later. Her spiritual consciousness is weak now, and her mind is fragile—it’s all too easy for devil creatures to deceive her. Since that’s the case, why not let me be the one to bring it up? At least this way, she’ll have time to consider it properly.”

“How considerate of you,” Changying suddenly changed her tone.

“Weren’t you just subtly accusing me of not being considerate enough?” Zhuyou narrowed her eyes slightly.

Changying pressed her lips together and, after a moment, clumsily said, “That’s not what I meant.”

Hearing her awkward denial, Zhuyou let out a soft chuckle. “Speaking of which, I brought you something nice.”

At these words, Changying suddenly recalled the parasol tree she had dug up from Mount Danxue. She replied instead, “I also prepared something for you.”

Zhuyou truly had no idea what this dragon had prepared, but without hesitation, she retrieved an entire chest filled with gold, silver, and jade from her storage space. The heavy wooden box landed with a loud thud, and from the sound alone, one could tell that its contents were not light.

“What is this?” Changying frowned.

Zhuyou lifted her chin slightly, motioning for her to open it.

Changying hooked a finger, and the long lock securing the box fell away on its own. With a wisp of spiritual energy, the lid was lifted.

The moment the wooden chest was opened, its contents gleamed brilliantly under the celestial light spilling from the sky. It shone so brightly, it was as if a thousand lanterns had been stacked together in an instant, causing Zhuyou to squint slightly.

The jade was of the finest quality, the colored glass was the best of its kind, and even the gold and silver were all solid ingots, round and exquisite in appearance.

This chest of treasure looked as if it had been dug straight out of the Dragon Palace. An ordinary mortal might never see such wealth in their entire lifetime.

Having stayed for some time in the devil’s domain’s Grand Hall before, Changying was well aware of how frugal this Vermillion Phoenix was in her daily life. After seeing the contents of this chest, she found herself speechless for a long while, almost convinced that her eyes were deceiving her.

“Where did this come from?” she finally asked in a steady voice.

“Huoshu brought it over. I’m just offering the dragon flowers from someone else’s garden. You don’t like it?” Zhuyou raised an eyebrow, but seeing no sign of joy on Changying’s face, she thought to herself, This dragon has all seven po souls intact, doesn’t she? Why does she always look so displeased, as if she doesn’t know what happiness is?

Changying’s lips barely curved upward, and though no trace of joy could be found in her eyes, she still answered in a measured tone, “I like it.”

Zhuyou lifted her chin. “I figured you would. What dragon wouldn’t like such worldly riches?”

For a moment, Changying didn’t know how to refute that. She couldn’t very well say outright that she disliked worldly possessions. And if she were to be asked what she did like, she might rack her brain and still only come up with a single name.

Without another word, she took out her storage space and quietly stored away the weighty chest of treasures.

“What did you prepare for me?” Zhuyou asked.

Changying’s cold eyes lifted abruptly, but instead of taking something out, she placed her hand on Zhuyou’s wrist. “I’ll take you to see it.”

Zhuyou had spent quite some time trying to guess but hadn’t come to any conclusions. Before she could ask further, the fingers resting on her wrist suddenly tightened, and in the next instant, she was pulled into the storage space.

This storage space was the one she had originally given to Changying.

She had seen this snowy, frozen landscape several times before. No matter the season outside—spring, summer, or early autumn—within this space, it was always frigid.

A corner of Shenhua Mountain stood isolated from the world. No matter the time, it remained covered in white snow, the sky above eternally shrouded in heavy gray clouds, with not a hint of sunlight to be found.

Yet now, this landscape was not entirely white.

Amidst the ice and snow, a lake had been carved out. The lake was filled with the faintly glowing waters of the Liqueur Spring, and within it stood a tree—strong, lush, and vibrant.

A parasol tree.

Zhuyou was stunned. It had been so long since she last saw a parasol tree.

This tree was full and imposing, its dense canopy nearly blocking out the sky. It shouldn’t have been able to survive in this frozen land, yet it thrived, its roots seemingly protected by spiritual energy.

Changying said nothing, merely releasing her grip on Zhuyou’s wrist, her golden eyes flashing.

Zhuyou walked toward the tree, her emotions surging like a tide, as if she were meeting an old friend. She couldn’t help but rise into the air, landing lightly on an outstretched branch. Running her hand along the bark, she tilted her head up, as if searching for a sliver of light through the dense leaves.

But this corner of the world was always shrouded in darkness, and being sealed within a storage space, there was no sunlight to be found.

Lowering her gaze, she slowly sat down, her legs dangling off the branch. After a long while, she gave them a gentle swing.

Perhaps she had forgotten to undo the spell on her hair, as her long locks still cascaded down like a river of black silk—just as they had three thousand years ago.

Zhuyou lowered her eyes and smiled before beckoning Changying over with a curled finger. “How did you get this?”

Changying stepped onto the wind, rising to sit beside her, her expression as calm as still water. “I asked Yunshuo for it.”

“How did you ask? Zhuyou thought to herself—surely this dragon wouldn’t claim to have taken it for her.

Changying turned her head to look at her. “I said, the Obsidian Dragon also wanted to see what it feels like to roost in a parasol tree.”

Zhuyou processed the words carefully before letting out a quiet scoff. “You’re making jokes now?”

“You taught me,” Changying replied, golden eyes lifting.

Zhuyou’s hand, resting on the tree bark, subtly tensed. She felt that this dragon’s words were becoming increasingly peculiar. Was this really something she had taught?

When Changying had first hatched, she had indeed taught her a few things, intentionally or otherwise. But later, once this dragon had awakened her spiritual form, she shouldn’t still be under her influence.

Pressing her lips together, Zhuyou recalled the dragon’s insatiable curiosity and felt a bit awkward. “I certainly never taught you useless things like this.”

“If it can be put to use, it is not useless,” Changying said with utmost seriousness.

Zhuyou narrowed her eyes slightly. She couldn’t tell what thoughts lay beneath Changying’s calm and indifferent expression. After a moment of silence, she asked, “What else did Yunshuo say?”

Changying shook her head. “He only knows about the shackles. Beyond that, Hua Lingjun didn’t have the chance to reveal anything else.”

“That Hua Lingjun sure left at just the right moment, as if he had planned it precisely to avoid us,” Zhuyou said slowly.

Changying nodded. She had anticipated obstacles in coming down to the Mortal Realm to find Hua Lingjun, but she hadn’t expected that he would leave of his own accord.

“If no one in the manor knows where he went, then searching for him will be like finding a needle in the ocean,” Zhuyou said in a detached tone.

Changying frowned deeply. “He is barely ten years old in this lifetime. He likely hasn’t gone far.”

“And how exactly do you intend to make him remember what happened in the Nine Heavens? Are you planning to throw him into the Reincarnation Pool?” Zhuyou’s gaze sharpened. “He is in a mortal body now. Bringing him up to the Nine Heavens would shorten his lifespan.”

“There’s no need to take him to the Nine Heavens. I will find another way,” Changying replied, lowering her eyes to look at the lake beneath the tree. She thought to herself—so this is what it feels like to sit in a parasol tree.

If she were to take her true form, wouldn’t she coil around the entire tree?

Zhuyou remained silent for a while, thinking this dragon was too reckless. “You shouldn’t have left the Nine Heavens so rashly.”

“I left a strand of divine consciousness there. Both the Nine Heavens and Shangxi City remain under my watch. There’s no need for concern,” Changying said calmly.

“You aren’t afraid of exhausting yourself?” Zhuyou’s voice held a hint of mockery, though laced with a faint chill.

“I am not,” Changying answered, her expression unchanged, as if she were stating something trivial. “I am as eternal as the heavens.”

Zhuyou paused for a moment. Though they had regained their spiritual forms and reentered the Ultimate stage, if they were disturbed by forces beyond this world’s Heavenly Dao, their hun soul and po soul could still scatter.

“Immortal and undying, aligned with the will of the heavens.” Changying fixed her gaze on her. “Isn’t that the name you gave me?”

Zhuyou snapped out of her daze and let out a quiet chuckle.

Yes. In the past, they had no names. Only in this life, returning to the Lower Realm, did they avoid ending up as nameless beings like they had been thousands of years ago, known only by epithets like Slayer God.

Changying leaped down from the tree. As her feet touched the lake’s surface, ripples spread outward in gentle waves. Standing on the snowy shore, she looked up at the parasol tree and said meaningfully, “Its roots seem to be quite firmly planted.”

Zhuyou wasn’t concerned. She thought that a parasol tree from Mount Danxue would naturally be well-rooted—otherwise, how could it bear the weight of a phoenix? If it were like ordinary trees in the human world, it would snap after just a little torment.

Changying studied the tree, deep in thought.

“It’s time to go,” Zhuyou mused. By now, Huoshu should be making her way out of the manor.

Changying clasped her hands at her sides, and the world before her seemed to be draped in ink. In the next blink, they were already outside the manor.

Something was burrowing through the soil beneath their feet. The dirt shifted, and a completely snow-white Huoshu emerged. In an instant, she transformed into her human form, lowering her gaze with deep reverence.

“Your Grace, I have searched the entire manor.”