Mi Lu was completely unable to follow Hulü Yan’s train of thought.

He stared blankly at Hulü Yan for a while, and it wasn’t until Hulü Yan moved aside to give him a clear path that Mi Lu finally realized what was happening.

Still a bit dazed, he said, “I never said I wanted to leave.”

“Didn’t you think about leaving?” Hulü Yan calmly reminded him, “Two months ago, someone came looking for you. At that time, you thought about leaving.”

Mi Lu remembered now.

That had indeed happened.

Back then, members of the Mi family had found him in the outskirts of the Capital City, and he had been on the verge of collapse from Hulü Yan repeatedly draining his spiritual energy. At that time, he had indeed been overwhelmed with the urge to leave Hulü Yan’s side.

But he didn’t leave.

Maybe it was because he didn’t want to bring trouble to the Mi family, maybe because he knew he couldn’t escape, or maybe because he still held onto a sliver of hope for Hulü Yan…

He no longer remembered exactly how he had felt back then.

Thinking back now, he felt a strange sense of relief.

After coming this far with Hulü Yan, after seeing Hulü Yan finally regain his voice earlier than expected, Mi Lu knew that there was no way he could leave now.

He remembered how, in the previous ten cycles, Hulü Yan had not only brutally killed Ming De Yi but had also wiped out the entire Medical Hall. Within just a few days, Hulü Yan had destroyed the once-renowned Medical Hall, leaving no one alive.

But in this cycle, things had changed significantly. Only Ming De Yi had fallen into Hulü Yan’s hands, and nothing else had happened yet.

Could it mean that Mi Lu’s efforts were starting to pay off?

Thinking this made Mi Lu feel a little hopeful. He told Hulü Yan, “I won’t leave.”

Hulü Yan seemed visibly surprised, as if he hadn’t expected such a firm answer from Mi Lu.

“My goal goes beyond this, so not only will I not leave, but I’ll stay with you,” Mi Lu said, but then he paused, sensing something was off.

After thinking for a moment, he added, “Of course, that’s if you need me.”

Hulü Yan remained silent for a long time before asking, “Why?”

“Why what?”

“Why me?” Hulü Yan seemed genuinely confused as he furrowed his brow slightly. His throat bobbed twice before he managed to finish his sentence. “Out of so many people, why did you choose me?”

Because you’re the main character.

Because everything in this world revolves around you.

Because—

Only you can end the cycle.

Mi Lu answered in his mind.

But, of course, he couldn’t say any of that. Instead, he quietly looked at Hulü Yan. When Hulü Yan started to get impatient, Mi Lu finally said, “Because I owe you.”

Upon hearing this, Hulü Yan’s furrowed brow slowly relaxed. Suddenly, he took two steps forward and grabbed Mi Lu’s hand.

“Then I’ll give you one last chance,” Hulü Yan said in a low voice. “If you want to leave, then go. If you walk away now, from this moment on, we’re even—neither of us owes the other anything.”

After a brief pause, he added, “This is your last chance. If you choose to stay now and later try to leave, even if I have to break your legs, I won’t let you take another step away from me.”

Hulü Yan’s voice was still raspy, but every word was clear and deliberate.

Mi Lu could tell that Hulü Yan wasn’t joking. He was certain that, if it came to it, Hulü Yan would really break his legs—something entirely within Hulü Yan’s capabilities.

Hulü Yan’s grip on his fingers tightened, and he said each word slowly and with emphasis, “Mi Lu, you better think carefully.”

The heavy scent of blood clinging to Hulü Yan was suffocating Mi Lu.

He closed his eyes and instinctively leaned back, but the next moment, Hulü Yan pulled him forward, causing him to collide with Hulü Yan’s chest.

Hulü Yan took the opportunity to place a hand on the back of Mi Lu’s neck, asking again, “Have you thought it through?”

This time, it was phrased as a question.

For some reason, despite Hulü Yan’s seemingly gentle demeanor, Mi Lu still felt a deep sense of fear.

If he chose to leave, would Hulü Yan really let him go?

Mi Lu didn’t know the answer, nor did he have the chance to find out. Tugging lightly on Hulü Yan’s clothes, he softly said, “I’ve thought it through. I’m not leaving.”

Hulü Yan trembled, his body going rigid like a block of wood.

Mi Lu continued, “I’ll stay with you.”

Hulü Yan didn’t respond.

Mi Lu added, “At least until we’ve found all of the organs you gave away.”

This finally prompted a reaction from Hulü Yan. His lips curled into a cold, half-smile that didn’t reach his eyes. The hand resting on Mi Lu’s neck gently squeezed the soft skin there, and he said, “Good. You said it.”

Mi Lu nodded. “I said it.”

Upon hearing this, the smile on Hulü Yan’s face deepened.

Hulü Yan was undeniably good-looking, but his long-standing lack of expression, combined with his missing eyes, made his smile a bit eerie. Though he was still handsome, his smile sent chills down one’s spine.

However, at that moment, Mi Lu could feel that Hulü Yan was genuinely happy.

There were still plenty of questions swirling in Mi Lu’s mind, but he knew this wasn’t the place to linger. Besides, they had already spent too much time here.

He quickly cast a cleansing spell on himself and Hulü Yan, then asked, “By the way, what about Ming De Yi?”

Hulü Yan answered calmly, “He’s dead.”

Mi Lu stammered, “T-then we’d better hurry and take care of the body.”

He was about to head into the room when Hulü Yan pulled him back.

Before Mi Lu could say anything, he noticed that Hulü Yan was revealing his other hand, which he had kept hidden behind him.

That hand was covered in blood, and even the sleeve was stained a striking shade of red.

Hulü Yan raised his hand before Mi Lu, palm open, revealing a dark blue bead resting in his grasp.

The bead looked similar to Wei Sheng’s Corpse Transformation Pearl but was slightly larger and more vividly colored. A faint mist swirled around the surface, obscuring the colors inside.

It was clear that this bead was a high-level magical tool, far more valuable than Wei Sheng’s Corpse Transformation Pearl.

“This is…” Mi Lu stared at the bead in shock, a realization quickly forming in his mind. “A Corpse Transformation Pearl?”

Hulü Yan nodded. “It’s Ming De Yi’s Corpse Transformation Pearl.”

Then he added, “I put Ming De Yi’s body inside.”

Mi Lu: “Huh?!”

Wait, did Hulü Yan really just figure out how to use someone else’s magical tool so quickly?

If Mi Lu remembered correctly, this was supposed to be Ming De Yi’s life-bound magical tool, wasn’t it?

And now Hulü Yan had not only taken it but stuffed Ming De Yi’s body inside too? How was Ming De Yi not furious enough to come back to life?!

Mi Lu was utterly shocked.

Hulü Yan was truly living up to his role as the protagonist of the novel—not only was his appearance beyond extraordinary, but even his actions were astonishing.

But there was something else Mi Lu hadn’t expected.

“How did you know that the Corpse Transformation Pearl could hold other things?” Mi Lu had seen Hulü Yan use Corpse Transformation Pearls before, but in all ten previous cycles, Hulü Yan had never put anything other than corpse puppets inside.

Mi Lu had assumed the pearl could only store those puppets.

Hulü Yan pressed his lips together and suddenly went silent.

Truthfully, Hulü Yan hadn’t known the Corpse Transformation Pearl could hold other things. The only reason he knew was because he had tried putting something inside.

And what he originally wanted to put inside wasn’t Ming De Yi.

It was—

The person standing in front of him now.

If Mi Lu had chosen to leave earlier, Hulü Yan wouldn’t have hesitated to trap him inside the pearl.

Mi Lu could choose to leave.

And Hulü Yan could choose not to let him.

But that wasn’t the outcome he wanted.

He wanted Mi Lu to willingly stay. That way, he could say what he needed to say next.

You see, I gave you a chance. You chose not to leave.

I didn’t force you.

It was your choice.

At that moment, Hulü Yan could almost hear his own heartbeat.

Steady and strong.

For the first time in his life, Hulü Yan realized something clearly—

He wasn’t unwanted after all.

In the end, Hulü Yan didn’t answer Mi Lu’s question. Instead, he put away the Corpse Transformation Pearl and, with an unusually light tone, said to Mi Lu, “Let’s go find someone.”

—

Ming Sui woke up in the Golden Phoenix Pavilion to find that the sun was already high in the sky. As soon as he sat up, a pair of soft, white hands wrapped around him from behind.

“My lord, up so early today?” The woman’s voice was soft and sleepy, and she mumbled, “Why not stay in bed a bit longer?”

After a night of indulgence, Ming Sui was exhausted, and his head pounded painfully. He raised a hand to rub his temples and asked with his eyes closed, “What time is it?”

The woman behind him glanced outside uncertainly. “Around noon, I think.”

“Noon?!” Ming Sui’s eyes flew open, and he immediately scrambled out of bed. “Damn it, I’m late!”

The woman, who had been leaning against him, flopped back onto the bed and, feeling both wronged and helpless, slipped under the covers again. She shot a sideways glance at him and muttered, “Off to see that demon cultivator again?”

The cold air made Ming Sui shiver, but he didn’t care. He quickly threw on his clothes and, while fussing with his hair in front of the mirror, snapped impatiently, “Stop prying into my business.”

The woman pouted, but said nothing more.

After Ming Sui rushed out the door, she lay on her back for a while before letting out a long sigh.

In this large Jiu Yao County, eight out of ten men were infatuated with the Flower of the Demon Realm, Lady Wan. As for the remaining two, they simply weren’t interested in women.

Even the proud young master of the Medical Hall, Ming Sui, had fallen head over heels for Lady Wan at first sight.

Every day, Ming Sui would go on and on about how he would marry no one but Lady Wan. Once a notorious playboy, he now followed her around like a lovesick puppy.

But unfortunately—

Lady Wan was a proud woman, and after being showered with admiration for so long, how could ordinary men possibly catch her eye?

Even with Ming Sui’s prestigious status as the young master of the Medical Hall, to Lady Wan, he was still just “nothing special.”

The woman sighed again, her curiosity piqued.

What kind of man would be worthy of someone like Lady Wan? Surely, he must be someone truly extraordinary.

Meanwhile, after leaving the Golden Phoenix Pavilion, Ming Sui rushed to the Thousands Serpents Pit outside Jiu Yao County.

The place was called the Thousands Serpents Pit, not because it was filled with thousands of snakes.

It was a small forest, not very large, but the trees were so dense they blocked out the sky, and the area was filled with miasma and swamps. Ordinary cultivators who entered the forest were likely to lose their lives, and as for regular townsfolk, stepping inside was almost certain death.

What claimed the lives of both cultivators and civilians wasn’t just the miasma or the swamps, but the illusions created by the thick concentration of miasma.

Almost everyone who entered and experienced these illusions would see countless snakes.

That’s where the Thousands Serpents Pit got its name.

As for why Ming Sui was in such a hurry to get there, well, that’s a long story.

The Demon Realm was different from the righteous sects and noble families who prided themselves on their principles.

The righteous sects had their “Four Sects, Two Schools, and Four Families,” which referred to the four major sects, two schools, and four great families that formed the core of the righteous factions. They wielded significant influence over the cultivation world.

The Demon Realm, on the other hand, had no such central structure. It was a scattered mess, with countless sects operating independently. Some sects even allied with the righteous factions for profit, doing their bidding. The Medical Hall was one such sect.

That’s why the Medical Hall was located in the Demon Realm—it naturally belonged there.

Because the Demon Realm was so fragmented, conflicts between sects were commonplace. Disputes arose every three days, and major clashes happened every five.

And ever since the Flower of the Demon Realm, Lady Wan, arrived in Jiu Yao County half a year ago, those conflicts had only escalated. Previously, it was all about fighting for territory, magical tools, and women. Now, everyone was fighting over Lady Wan.

And how were they fighting for her?

Well, Lady Wan had made her intentions clear.

On the day when the forest was covered in snow, whoever could make it through the forest and reach her first would have one of their requests granted by her.

Any request.

Lady Wan hadn’t left herself a way out because she knew that while traversing the forest in summer was already difficult, once heavy snow fell, sealing the forest, what awaited inside was beyond imagination.

The person who could reach her through the winter forest would definitely be someone worthy of her.

But passing through the forest in winter was a near-impossible feat. If one didn’t die, they’d still be stripped of their skin.

Everyone said Lady Wan was so tired of being pestered by her suitors that she had no choice but to come up with this idea to scare them off. But what no one knew was—

Deep down, Lady Wan was actually looking forward to the arrival of that person, the one who was truly worthy of her.

Author’s Note:

I originally wanted to write a scene where the protagonist shows off, but after counting the remaining plot points, I realized it’s still a ways off, so I’ll leave it here for now.