Chapter 24: Demon Lord Yan Wangxing

Under the cover of the dense foliage, Chu Sang followed Qin Xixue at a safe distance, careful not to be seen.

Fortunately, cultivators had keen senses. Even at this distance, she could see a tall, muscular man in black stepping out from the shadows of the forest to embrace Qin Xixue. The two spoke intimately, looking like a pair of heavenly lovers.

Although his back was turned, Chu Sang could tell that the man was a tall and muscular adult, not the male lead, Mo Qingchen.

Wow, Qin Xixue was indeed a femme fatale, already getting the male lead to wear a green hat so quickly.

But who was this man?

Chu Sang held her breath and continued to eavesdrop, even using an amplification talismanl to enhance her hearing.

“Little beauty, your medicinal pill really worked, and my injuries are all healed,” the man said, his voice dripping with flirtation as he wrapped his arms around Qin Xixue’s slender waist. “I came all the way here to thank you, and I didn’t even get a reward?”

This man’s voice was so sly and flirtatious, just like a rogue.

Qin Xixue’s face flushed, and she gently pushed the man’s chest, her eyes sparkling with shyness. “You shouldn’t be like this, we’ve only just met…”

“No worries; the more we get to know each other, the closer we become,” he teased, lifting her chin with a smirk, his intentions clear as he squeezed her soft waist.

Tsk, this guy was a bit too oily.

Chu Sang thought to herself.

Just as the man was about to kiss Qin Xixue, she quickly pushed him away and took a step back, her face flushing. “I…I need to go, my senior brother will come looking for me if I don’t return soon!”

“You should leave too, this place is full of cultivators, and if they discover you…”

“So what if they do?” The man laughed arrogantly, oozing confidence. “Those ants—I could crush them with just a flick of my fingers.”

“……”

After exchanging a few more reluctant goodbyes, Qin Xixue stood on tiptoe and pecked the man lightly on the cheek, like a dragonfly skimming water, before hurriedly lifting her skirt and leaving.

‘Wow, as expected of the soft and captivating female lead—she’s got the art of playing hard to get down to perfection. Giving a little sweetness before pulling away to keep them on the hook, any male would be entranced.’

“Tsk, she’s quite the seductress. I must have her,” the man murmured, chuckling as he rubbed his face. Leaning against a tree with his arms crossed, he watched her leave, already eagerly anticipating his next encounter with Qin Xixue.

Chu Sang raised an eyebrow, sensing that this man was not an ordinary cultivator. His tone and behavior seemed more like…a demonic or ghost cultivator?

She recalled the original story and wondered if this was the start of the “Overbearing Demon Lord Falls in Love” plotline.

But no, at this point in the story, Yan Wangxing had not yet become the Demon Lord, but was still one of the Seven Great Demon Kings.

In the original story, Yan Wangxing was a ruthless and cunning man who had committed many atrocities. He had once been severely injured by the united forces of the eight great immortal sects and fell off a cliff, only to be saved by the female lead by chance.

Perhaps due to her saving him, or her Mary Sue aura, combined with his own obsession with beauty, Yan Wangxing fell for Qin Xixue at first sight, leading to a lengthy, intense love story spanning millions of words—a true feast for fans of cliché romance.

The sudden outbreak of a demonic beast horde in the central continent seemed unlikely to be unrelated to him.

In the following days, as if to confirm Chu Sang’s suspicions, more and more beasts in the forest became demonized. Rumors also spread of demon beasts attacking towns and harming citizens in the surrounding ten or so villages.

More and more cultivators joined the battle against the demonic beasts.

The most eye-catching among them were Chu Sang and her two senior brothers. Why? Because their approach to slaying demon beasts was… excessively aggressive.

Others fought demon beasts to escape death, seek survival amidst danger, uphold justice, and protect the people.

Chu Sang’s trio hunted demon beasts with a different mindset: ten thousand spirit stones for a head, a thousand for a demon core. They even stripped the hides, horns, meat, and bones to sell. If one wasn’t enough, they’d clear out the entire nest!

The demon beasts, upon seeing these three grim reapers, would tremble and veer away, turning to attack other cultivators instead.

“Second Brother, Seventh Brother, how many demonic beasts have you killed?” Chu Sang asked, sitting amidst a mountain of corpses.

Tantai Ming replied, “Twenty-one.”

Ling Yu added, “Fifty.”

Chu Sang was not satisfied. “I have eighteen. We’re still short of a hundred.”

Ling Yu and Tantai Ming exchanged a look.

Wasn’t this already a lot?

“Slaying them one by one is too troublesome. Isn’t there a way to lure them all in and kill them in one go?” Chu Sang asked.

Tantai Ming and Ling Yu looked at each other, shocked by her suggestion.

Most cultivators silently prayed for the beasts not to swarm, yet their little junior sister was actually considering how to wipe them out en masse?

I’ve got it!” Chu Sang snapped her fingers.

“What brilliant idea have you come up with this time?” Tantai Ming leaned in, intrigued by his junior sister’s always quirky thinking.

“Spring is here; it’s a great season,” Chu Sang said, pushing his head away as she stood up, dusting off her clothes. Her eyes sparkled as she turned to Ling Yu. “Senior Brother, go capture a few female demon beasts. Make sure to get one of each kind!”

“Right now is their breeding season. Capturing a female will attract a whole pack of males. By then, we can prepare traps in advance and wait for them to walk right into it!”

Even someone as gentle and composed as Ling Yu nearly lost his composure.

Chu Sang, oblivious to the strange looks from the two men beside her, pulled several large iron chains from her spatial pouch. “These are beast-binding chains that can adjust to the size of the demonic beasts and suppress their ferocity. Second Brother, you take these and lure the beasts here.”

“Got it.” Ling Yu nodded, taking the chains and leaving with his sword in hand.”

Chu Sang turned to Tangtai Ming. “Seventh Brother, you stay and help me set up the trap.”

Tantai Ming used his spiritual power to dig a massive pit, tens of meters deep, a display of sheer brute force that left the surrounding cultivators in shock.

Chu Sang tossed a handful of thorn seeds into the pit. These seeds, once touched, would instantly grow into thick vines, coiling around any living creature like giant pythons, making escape nearly impossible.

Concerned it might not be enough, she stuck hundreds of strengthening talismans around. Even a demon beast at the Golden Core stage would struggle to get out of this trap.

Still not satisfied, she added a few hundred more talismans—burning and explosive ones.

Now, anything that fell in wouldn’t stand a chance of crawling back out alive!

“Boom—”

Moments later, the ground shook violently. In the distance, a large swath of trees toppled over. A massive horde of demon beasts, as dense as a swarm of locusts, charged frantically towards the southwest, numbering at least a hundred!

What on earth was happening?

As the saying goes, two tigers cannot coexist on one mountain. Demon beasts, known for their ferocity, aggression, and strong territorial instincts, typically acted alone. What could have driven such a large group to converge and run in the same direction?

Nearly half the cultivators in the demon beast forest were alarmed by the commotion, assuming something major was happening, and flew over on their swords to investigate.

Upon arriving, they saw the horde of demon beasts chasing a mid-stage Golden Core cultivator clad in white.

The crowd sighed in admiration. What kind of grudge or feud could have provoked such wrath from over a hundred demon beasts?

Everyone thought this cultivator was doomed, yet halfway through the chase, the demon beasts vanished.

They had all fallen into the pit.

Almost instantly—

An earth-shattering explosion echoed from below, and the furious roars of the beasts were silenced.

Dead… from the explosion?

“Damn—What just happened? What was that? I don’t understand!”

“I was here earlier this morning, and there wasn’t a huge pit like this! Who dug it?”

“Someone must have prepared this trap in advance to lure the beasts into it…”

“Who on earth is this genius?”

The cultivators watching were all stunned by this unprecedented maneuver.

“Ahem.”

As the dust settled, three figures emerged from behind a tree, covering their mouths and noses. Without saying a word, they started collecting the spoils into their spatial bags.

A cultivator in the crowd cried out, “Not them again!”

Of course, it was Chu Sang and her two Senior brothers.

Many cultivators had already witnessed their methods, especially the red-clad girl in the center, who was downright terrifying!

“Over a hundred demonic beast heads—those would convert to a full ten million spirit stones! Grabbing a few here and there would still be a considerable fortune,” someone muttered, their eyes green with envy.

Driven by greed, they rushed forward, sword in hand, to kill and seize the treasure before anyone could stop them.

The result, as expected, was brutal.

Their fate served as a warning to others, stifling any further greedy thoughts.

After filling their bags, Chu Sang clapped her hands and was about to call her senior brothers to leave the dangerous area when—

Another violent tremor shook the ground. Cracks spread beneath their feet like a spider’s web. This tremor was far stronger than before, so much so that even Chu Sang and Tantai Ming almost lost their balance. Thankfully, Ling Yu managed to steady them, preventing a face-first fall into the earth.

A deep, thunderous roar resounded through the sky.

“It’s you three despicable human cultivators who slaughtered my children and grandchildren. Prepare to die!”

A colossal figure blotted out the sun, its full form impossible to see.

It was a demonic beast at the Nascent Soul stage!

Damn it, they had accidentally angered the ancient monster hiding deep within. Chu Sang hastily pulled out over a dozen speed talismans. “Second Senior Brother, Seventh Senior Brother, run!”

A giant tail burst from the ground and coiled tightly around her waist, dragging her downward.

“Little Junior Sister!”

Tantai Ming’s face changed, and he immediately rushed forward.

Ling Yu stopped him. “If you go, you’ll die. Leave, Little Junior Sister is fine with me.”

Chu Sang felt herself being dragged by a massive force. The opponent’s strength was overwhelming, making any strategy laughable in the face of such raw power. She couldn’t resist at all.

The ground split open into a vast chasm, and just as she was pulled into the abyss, the gap rapidly closed like the jaws of a beast.

In the last moment before the crevice sealed, another figure followed her down.

Was it Second Senior Brother?

A split second before Chu Sang hit the ground, Ling Yu flipped in midair and landed beneath her, allowing her to fall onto him, using his body as a cushion.

“…Little Junior Sister, are you hurt?” Ling Yu asked softly.

Chu Sang shook her head and quickly got up. “Second Senior Brother, are you alright?”

She wasn’t badly injured, but her senior brother didn’t look so good.

Ling Yu coughed lightly, his face pale. He pressed a hand to his chest as he rose, finding they had fallen into a deep underground gorge—clearly the lair of the demonic beast.

The stench of rot and decay filled the air as the demonic beast finally revealed its full form, causing Chu Sang’s eyes to widen. A Nascent Soul stage beast not only had extremely high intelligence but also the ability to partially transform.

The creature’s upper body had taken on a humanoid form, while its lower half remained the brownish tail of a dragon-like creature.

“An Earth Dragon, able to meld with the earth and launch ambushes from within it,” Ling Yu frowned. “I never expected a Nascent Soul Earth Dragon to be hiding here in the demon beast forest.”

“An Earth Dragon?” Chu Sang had read about them in the bestiary.

Earth Dragons weren’t naturally talented, and evolving from a snake into a Dragon was no small feat. It was clear this one had taken shortcuts.

“You’ve allied with the demon race and consumed the essence and flesh of many cultivators to reach this level,” Ling Yu’s voice grew cold as he gripped his long blade tightly.

“Hahaha, demon race or cultivators, what’s the difference? All of you are selfish creatures! The more cultivators I eat, the stronger I’ll become!”

The Earth Dragon’s grotesque mouth stretched unnaturally wide as it flicked its long tongue and stared at Ling Yu. “The aura on you… It’s extraordinary. You’re a rare Golden Core cultivator.”

“Digging out your core and tasting it would be quite the delicacy!”

Its massive tail merged into the ground and shot out from behind Ling Yu to launch a sneak attack.

Ling Yu had been prepared for this. Sensing the sudden shift in energy, he spun around and slashed with his saber.

When the icy saber struck the dragon’s tail, it was as if it had hit solid iron. The sound of metal clashing rang out.

“Ugh…” Ling Yu’s arm went numb, losing much of its strength.

Chu Sang quickly threw several explosive talismans at the dragon. Though they didn’t cause significant damage, they succeeded in diverting its attention.

Seizing the opportunity, Ling Yu channeled spiritual energy into his arm and delivered a fierce slash, carving a deep gash into the earth dragon’s tough hide.

“Argh! Damn human cultivators! You’ll all die!”

Enraged, the earth dragon’s attacks grew more violent.

Though Ling Yu was a Saber cultivator, he moved with remarkable agility, dodging and weaving with ease. With Chu Sang’s help, he managed to inflict several more wounds on the creature, even coming close to blinding one of its eyes.

However, the disparity in their cultivation levels was too great. Ling Yu’s injuries were becoming more severe, with blood seeping from his torn robes and his grip on his Saber faltering.

His breathing was labored, and exhaustion was setting in.

As the earth dragon launched another sneak attack from behind, and with Ling Yu too drained to dodge, its tail was about to pierce through his chest when a fiery sword strike from Chu Sang shattered the tail.

Exasperated and fatigued from the relentless assault, the earth dragon finally realised that the human boy it had underestimated was its biggest obstacle.

Since it couldn’t deal with the Golden Core cultivator, it would eliminate the weaker girl first. “A mere Foundation Establishment cultivator dares to hinder me? Annoying insect, I’ll eat you first!”

The gap between the Foundation Establishment and Nascent Soul stage was insurmountable. No matter how hard she fought, there was no escaping its grasp.

In a moment of life and death, a slender figure leapt in front of Chu Sang. His long blue hair band unraveled, and his flowing black hair cascaded like ink over his face, slowly turning white as though dusted with winter’s frost.