Chapter 283: His Inner Demons

The evil spirit was utterly powerless against Ah Bao’s suppression. He held his head and cried out in agony, “Stop hitting me! Even if you beat me to death, he won’t come back! Lingnan City turned out this way not because of me. It’s the commoners’ ignorance and their abandonment of the Plague God. It has nothing to do with me!”

He was the inner demon of the Plague God, thus carrying a trace of divine power.

It was the power of Liang Yan.

This was also the primary reason why the evil spirit managed to escape from Baiyun’s grasp back then.

“Take a good look at that statue. I and he share the same fate; if he is honored, I am honored, if he is harmed, I am harmed. Little princess, are you really willing to see that statue shattered again?” The evil spirit spoke with a sinister glee.

[The statue of Liang Yan really emitted malevolent energy.]

[Inner demon? Shared life and death?]

Ah Bao dropped the frying pan and stood in front of the offering table. “You, come out!”

The evil spirit sneered. “Little princess, what are you talking about? There’s no divine aura here anymore. Who do you think you’re speaking to?”

Ah Bao ignored the evil spirit and planned to deal with it later.

“If you don’t come out, I’ll be angry.” Ah Bao put her hands on her hips and huffed.

The statue suddenly emitted a trace of golden light.

Di Chenyu and the others were stunned and quickly knelt before the statue. It was a divine presence!

A tall figure in white, a phantom, appeared above the statue, looking down at everyone in the courtyard.

The moment the deity appeared, Di Chenyu and the others were knocked unconscious.

Only Ah Bao, with her head tilted back, stood straight and small.

However, although the figure’s eyes were open, there was no focus in them.

Ah Bao’s heart raced. “Ah Yan…”

“Big Brother.”

“Idiot!” Ah Bao scolded angrily. “How dare you…”

Liang Yan gently extended his hand and patted Ah Bao’s little head. “Master is safe, everything is worth it.”

He knew that the little girl probably already understood the full context of the situation.

“With the Yi Tong on the destined person, it can always see you. That’s its reason for existence.”

Ah Bao had nothing to say. If she hadn’t been reincarnated, if, as in the book’s plot, she had died in the Cold Palace, then the Yi Tong would have become one of the golden fingers of the female protagonist, Di Hongluan, who wielded immense power.

“Do you remember that dead thing?”

Liang Yan nodded. “I’m sorry. My lapse in judgment caused harm to all of Lingnan.”

“It has nothing to do with you. What did I teach you before?”

Back then, Liang Yan, before ascending, was severely injured and picked up by her. He had taught her for over three years.

“Big Brother said that benevolence is for benevolent people, and methods are for those with ulterior motives.”

“So?”

“I will eliminate my own inner demon.”

“How can you eliminate it now when you’re so weak and can’t even protect yourself?” Ah Bao pouted.

Two souls in one body, one rises as the other falls.

When Liang Yan was weak, the inner demon grew strong.

Now, the inner demon was about to devour Liang Yan, at which point it would control him.

The evil spirit nearby laughed wickedly. “Little princess, it’s not that I’m proud. It’s just that the world allows me to be this way. Look at those fragments. They are all from Liang Yan’s followers, shattered into pieces.”

Around the temple, there were indeed many fragments of Liang Yan’s statues.

All of them were tainted with malevolent energy.

“As long as someone enters the temple, I won’t disappear. Now, the entire Lingnan City has no one to worship Liang Yan. Without the nourishment of worship, and with the loss of the divine seal, his disappearance is only a matter of time.

“But I’m different. As long as someone enters here, even a casual insult can enhance my power.

“Little princess, you’re too young. You don’t understand the world’s harshness and filth.

“Today, you’ve experienced it all, haven’t you? You came from afar to manage the plague in Lingnan, but those commoners wanted to beat you to death with iron tongs.

“Such ignorant people, in such an unjust world. Why save them? Isn’t it better to let them fend for themselves?”

His words were passionate, and Liang Yan’s entire being was intertwined with golden light and malevolent energy.

Clearly, he was battling with his inner demons.

“Liang Yan, Liang Yan, you were once glorious, with many followers and immense merit, more than you could ever use. But you abandoned the path of immortality, forsook the divine seal, and are destined to be cursed by the world forever!”

“Get lost!” Ah Bao cursed, “I wanted Liang Yan to deal with you himself, but you’re here blabbering on and on. Truly giving yourself too much credit!”

The little girl casually threw a talisman, and the evil spirit’s other leg was broken.

He cried out in pain, but Ah Bao paid him no mind.

“Ah Yan, actually, I know you have grievances.”

If there were no grievances, there would be no inner demons.

The combination of inner demons and malevolent energy had created the current evil spirit.

“I’m resentful, truly resentful. You sacrificed your three souls and seven spirits for the realms, but who is there for you? Ah Bao, how can I not resent? Those people only care about themselves, selfish and narrow-minded. Why should you save them? Why you?”

Why couldn’t it be someone else?

Ah Bao should have lived her life leisurely and freely, enjoying her own path.

But, fate had to tear her apart. Why should the heavens be unjust, and why should she be sacrificed in the name of balance?

She was just a child, just a ‘person’ who wanted to live a peaceful life.

Every word Liang Yan spoke increased the malevolent energy around him.

The inner demon grew stronger.

“Back then, I made a deal with the evil spirit for this unjust cause. I abandoned the divine seal because it was worthless. What kind of celestial path is that? If it truly had any power, why should it require you to save it? So many deities—why should only you bear the burden!”

“Ah Yan.” Ah Bao’s childish voice cut through the tension, instantly soothing Liang Yan’s agitated heart.

At that moment, Liang Yan was deeply moved and tears of blood fell from his eyes. “Why don’t you resent? Why?”

“Didn’t I teach you? In this world, there are thousands of people, both good and bad, just like in the demon realm, not all demons are evil. The darkness you perceive is not all there is; there is also light that you haven’t seen.

“Ah Yan, don’t deny everything because of one thing.

“It’s not the four realms and six paths demanding my sacrifice; it’s my own choice. If I didn’t want it, no one could force me.

“When I entered the underworld, I met the kind-hearted old King of Hell, and the black-and-white impermanence who were like brothers to me. When I reincarnated into the human world, I had loving parents and siblings.

“We shouldn’t abandon our nature because of the bad people and lose ourselves. We should achieve our potential because of the good people. Ah Yan, look, there is true affection in the human world.”

Under the dark night sky, candles gradually lit up—one, two, until countless lights…

Baiyun ran in. “Little princess, many people learned that the emperor came to Lingnan and have come to offer blessings for the emperor and the little princess. They seek the protection of the Plague God…”

Liang Yan, in his ethereal form, stood above the temple, surrounded by countless people.

Some had pale faces and weak energy, but they still sincerely knelt before the temple, saying, “May the deity protect the emperor safely, may the deity protect the Tiansheng Dynasty…”

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