Lu Ziqian held the Fixed Mirror Spirit tightly as he plunged into the black mist. He looked around and immediately headed toward where Elder Shang had fallen. Only thick black fog remained, along with Li Luoqi's unconscious body.
"Respected Demon Sovereign, this humble scholar thanks you for your support. From this day forth, the demon soldiers of the Western Sea will never forget you."
Lu Ziqian sighed softly.
Just as he grabbed hold of Li Luoqi's body, violent gales suddenly erupted within the Demon Abyss. Yin winds howled, their chill biting to the bone.
"What is going on?"
He had never seen such a scene. The Demon Abyss was scarcely mentioned in ancient records, and its true secrets were held only by Demon Sovereigns of past generations.
"Could Master be in danger? This demonic energy comes from ancient great fiends, said to devour men whole. Master entered the Demon Abyss unprepared… will she even be able to escape alive?"
Lu Ziqian's heart clenched. Carrying Li Luoqi in one hand and gripping the Fixed Mirror Spirit in the other, he sprinted forward.
"This demonic aura… it is the ancient fiend's qi that has slumbered beneath the Demon Abyss for tens of thousands of years!"
A wisp of black mist slipped into Li Luoqi's nostrils. His bloodline was stirred by the pure demonic qi, and when his eyes snapped open to the sea of black fog, ecstasy flooded his gaze.
"It must be the ancient great fiend protecting me! If I absorb this qi, I will be able to kill Yao Ranran and avenge Qiao Qiao!"
Lu Ziqian had not run far when Li Luoqi's harsh, crazed voice rang out.
Somehow breaking free, Li Luoqi fell to the ground, laughing maniacally.
"Yao Ranran, just you wait! With this demonic qi, no one will ever defeat me!"
Lu Ziqian's expression darkened. "Not good. The Demon Sovereign wants to use this qi to re-cultivate Divine Transformation!"
He leapt forward in urgency, vowing not to let Li Luoqi succeed.
Suddenly, the heavens turned clear.
Lu Ziqian clearly saw his reflection within Li Luoqi's pupils and froze.
"What… what is happening? Where is all the demonic qi?!"
Li Luoqi frantically clawed at the empty void around him. The call of demonic qi was gone.
Lu Ziqian turned his head in astonishment.
Around Yao Ranran, torrents of demonic qi surged skyward before plunging into her body through every pore. Even the qi Li Luoqi had just absorbed was drawn cleanly from him into her grasp.
Li Luoqi's body instantly withered, like a man at the end of his years. Stiffly, he turned his head.
"You… you… you monster!!!"
Lu Ziqian blinked at him.
"To be called a monster by a Demon Sovereign… in all the world, that honor belongs only to my Master. I wonder, would Master be pleased with such praise?"
Snow-white lotus petals descended from above. Both Li Luoqi and Lu Ziqian tilted their heads back, as though watching the season's first snowfall settle upon their hearts.
To one, it brought joy. To the other, abject terror.
"Monster! Monster!"
Li Luoqi's shriveled body trembled. He tried to flee the lotus snowfall, tried to seize back the stolen demonic qi. But when the soft petals touched his skin, long-buried memories resurfaced in his mind. A woman's graceful smile. A guardian's vanished body. The tragedies of Gu Ling Mountain…
Li Luoqi's hand shook. "So… all this time, you have been deceiving me!"
How laughable. He had thought himself cunning, holding Yao Ranran in his palm. In all the world, he believed only Shen Yuefu could rival him.
Yet the woman before him, outwardly serene and unworldly, had toyed with them both. Even Pei Xianqiao, whom he favored most, had fallen by her hand.
"Yao Ranran! Who in the world are you?!"
He roared.
Lu Ziqian flicked his brush, drawing a rope of ink that sealed around Li Luoqi's throat.
"My apologies, Demon Sovereign, but Master is on the verge of breaking through. I cannot allow you to disturb her advancement."
Li Luoqi gave a muffled roar. His body was bound tightly like a zongzi, and he could only glare furiously at Lu Ziqian.
Lu Ziqian frowned lightly. "Does the Demon Sovereign wish to know my Master's true identity?"
Li Luoqi continued to glare, his eyes unyielding.
"If so, blink your eyes." Lu Ziqian added helpfully.
Li Luoqi's eyes twitched, and he blinked once.
Lu Ziqian smiled warmly. "Master's identity is actually quite simple. If the Demon Sovereign were not already helpless before her, I would never dare to reveal this secret."
Li Luoqi's pupils shrank as he stared fixedly.
Looking toward Yao Ranran, Lu Ziqian's expression softened with admiration. "My Master's true identity is that of a Fairy from the Nine Heavens. She heard of the suffering in the lower realms and descended specially to save the world."
Li Luoqi: …?
If I believe such drivel, am I the fool, or is he?
Lu Ziqian lapsed into nostalgia, murmuring, "When Rong-yé first told me this, I thought it was just a beautiful lie."
Li Luoqi: To be honest, no one would believe it!
"Until one day, Master returned to Gu Ling Mountain and sent me to the demon realm to slaughter all within that abyss. Only then did I realize her power surpassed this world itself."
"So it was you who wiped out the demon generals I stationed there!"
Rage flared in Li Luoqi's eyes.
But Lu Ziqian, lost in recollection, did not notice.
"I had entered the abyss prepared to die, but each time, Master secretly helped me slay the demons who discovered my identity. Ah, and even one of your right guardians… he saw me send a message to Master. I thought I was doomed, but the next day word came that he had suddenly died in his cave dwelling.
That was when I understood!
Master was protecting me all along. She foresaw everything. Knowing I could not hide my identity well, she silently removed the obstacles on my path."
"You monsters! You're not human!"
Li Luoqi screamed inwardly.
No wonder his demon caverns had grown desolate, his forces dwindling!
"So yes, Master truly is a Fairy. Even Village Chief Jiang said so when he first met her. But this is a secret I have never told anyone else… Until today, when the Demon Sovereign is about to enter prison, I thought it harmless to share it with you."
Lu Ziqian gave a relaxed smile.
At last, the secret he had held so long was spoken.
Li Luoqi stared at him in disbelief. That's it?
How had such a gullible scholar ever infiltrated his abyss? …No, it must be Yao Ranran.
Yes. He was right. This was all Yao Ranran's design!
What Fairy from the Nine Heavens, what savior of the world—she was nothing but a monster, a monster!