When Destiny Brings the Demon

Engulfed in blood and fire, Sima Jiao could no longer hear the sounds of the outside world. He only felt the furry bundle on his chest stir slightly, assuming she must be frightened, so he pressed down gently with his hand.

He couldn't hear what she said, but from her, he sensed an emotion he'd never felt before—not exactly fear, but something tender and aching that brought a sliver of clarity to his mind, otherwise completely clouded by killing intent.

He stroked the soft little bundle, her warm body suddenly reminding him of the times he'd held her while resting. It had been so long since he'd slept; even with his eyes closed, he found no peace. But lying there with her in his arms, the world grew quieter, less clamorous. The little noises she often made didn't irritate him either.

He needed to soak in cold springs to suppress the spirit fire within him, so his body was perpetually cold. She was different. Even now, when the spirit fire inside him had grown so strong it burned his blood, making his body hotter than most, he still felt cold—a chill deep in his bones. She remained warm and soft.

At this moment, Sima Jiao suddenly didn't want her to die with him.

"Forget it," he said.

Liao Tingyan heard him. Sima Jiao's voice wasn't loud, and she didn't know what exactly he meant by "forget it." But she noticed him suddenly tearing open his already mangled arm, scattering blood. His blood had turned from red to gold-red, its scorching heat intensifying, igniting into great flames wherever it landed.

The fire surged once more, cutting off the heavily wounded cultivators of Gengcheng Immortal Manor.

"He's leaving! Stop him!" Shi Qianlv was the quickest to react, shouting almost the instant Sima Jiao moved.

Unfortunately, none of them could stop Sima Jiao.

Liao Tingyan felt Sima Jiao plummeting toward the ground like a burning flame falling from the sky. He crashed into the earth, demolishing a grand building with golden tiles and red walls. People hiding inside screamed in terror. Sima Jiao pushed himself up from the wreckage, ignoring the terrified onlookers, and immediately gathered his energy to leave.

He was still incredibly fast, streaking into the distance like the wind. Every drop of blood that fell to the ground quickly burst into flames. Liao Tingyan felt as though he himself would soon burn up entirely.

He was truly formidable—already injured, yet enduring for so long, as if impervious to pain. Liao Tingyan knew she could never manage the same. But she didn't understand his plan. Earlier, he had seemed ready to perish alongside his enemies, yet now he'd changed his mind.

The ancestor's thoughts were truly inscrutable.

Sima Jiao came to a stop, leaning against a tree trunk as he gasped for breath. He pinched the otter's tail, pulling her out and setting her aside. Behind them, the rustling in the woods signaled something approaching.

Liao Tingyan turned her head and saw the familiar black serpent slithering out of the trees toward them.

Without even looking, as if he already knew it was the serpent, Sima Jiao said to Liao Tingyan, "Go with this idiot."According to conventional wisdom, Liao Tingyan should have asked at this moment, "Then what about you?" But she didn't, because the answer was obvious. There were so many TV drama plots like this—one could easily find a hundred and eighty similar scenes. He was clearly planning to stay behind to draw fire while she and the big snake made their escape. After all, he genuinely looked like he didn't have long to live, and the sea of flames he left behind wouldn’t hold off those people forever.

A scene like "I'll hold them off, you go quickly" should probably have played out between the male and female leads. Liao Tingyan’s emotions were complicated, and for a moment, she didn’t move.

The dim-witted Black Snake had somehow made its way over, but its intelligence wasn’t online today either. Excited to see them, it slithered over, coiled around them once, and even raised its head—still carrying the blood-soaked otter—to flick its tongue against Sima Jiao’s hand. Then it hissed in pain as the scorching blood burned its mouth.

Sima Jiao gave it a light kick and muttered with world-weary disdain, "Get lost."

He sat beneath this ordinary tree, looking utterly withdrawn. The trunk where he had leaned bore scorch marks. Both the big snake and Liao Tingyan had some cultivation and had drunk his blood, so they weren’t too afraid of the heat radiating from him. Right now, the Black Snake was still coiled hesitantly around him, and Liao Tingyan hadn’t moved either.

Sima Jiao lifted his head to glance at them again. "I’m not even planning to kill you anymore. Can’t you even run away?"

Suddenly, Liao Tingyan felt a surge of heat through her body, followed by a heavy weight—she had transformed back into human form, seated atop the big snake’s head. She blinked in surprise, staring down at her ample chest, long legs, and flowing dress. "Didn’t you say three months?"

Sima Jiao: "I lied. It only lasts a few days. You’d revert once you really wanted to." Who knew she’d actually seemed quite satisfied with being an otter? The effect had lasted an extra half-day.

Liao Tingyan remembered this wasn’t the first time this ancestor had tricked her for fun. A surge of irritation rose in her, and for a moment, she had the impulse to take his pet and leave him here alone to die.

But in the end, she sighed.

She levitated Sima Jiao onto the Black Snake’s back and flew alongside it, giving its head a pat. "Brother, use your fastest speed and run forward. We need to escape."

Though the Black Snake wasn’t the brightest and had ordinary bloodline origins, it had been raised by Sima Jiao for centuries and had mutated as a result. It was tougher than the average demonic cultivator and incredibly fast—streaking like lightning. Liao Tingyan focused and flew beside it, thinking that all the rest she’d gotten lately, conserving her energy, had been for this very moment of speed and adrenaline.

Sima Jiao looked slightly surprised. He hadn’t expected Liao Tingyan to do this.

"You’re taking me with you to escape?" Sima Jiao’s tone was odd.

Liao Tingyan: "Yeah."

Sima Jiao: "Do you have a death wish?"

Liao Tingyan: "Not really, no."

Sima Jiao: "Taking me along is basically asking for death. You can’t possibly be that stupid, can you?"

Liao Tingyan sighed inwardly. "It’s not stupidity. You saved me—I owe you this much."

"Could you at least show some will to live and tell us where we should run to for safety?""Nowhere is safe." Sima Jiao lay sprawled on the snake's back, his tone casual. "Since you won't leave, when they catch up and kill you, I'll just kill them afterward to avenge you. Simple as that."

Oh, how perfectly logical of you. Liao Tingyan realized there was no point arguing with a madman.

If she were alone, she might have given up struggling in the face of death. But with Sima Jiao here, she had to try harder. They raced through towering mountains, the Black Snake slithering along the ground while Liao Tingyan flew to avoid burdening it. Sima Jiao had been silent for a while, and when she glanced at him, she noticed his eyes were closed, his chest no longer rising and falling.

Had he died?

Just as she hesitated whether to stop and check on him, a sudden brightness filled her vision. They burst out of the forest into a clearing where a serene lake lay before them. A small wooden cabin stood by the shore, and on a boat nearby sat a figure wearing a bamboo hat, fishing. The scene was tranquil and relaxed, the lake's shimmering hues soft and hazy, instilling an involuntary sense of peace.

Liao Tingyan: Ah, we've intruded into someone else's territory.

The angler didn't turn around, but his voice carried clearly to her: "Since fate has brought you here, there's no need to rush away."

Liao Tingyan was abruptly pulled back. Sima Jiao, who had been lying half-dead on the snake moments ago, now stood in front of her, glaring warily and with disgust at the faintly colored figure.

Liao Tingyan: ...Does this ancestor have some kind of survival instinct that skyrockets in the face of danger, instantly reviving him? Wasn't he on the verge of death? How is he standing now?

She couldn't help but suspect Sima Jiao was deceiving her again—maybe he couldn't die at all.

"Child, it seems you still remember me," the angler turned around, his face adorned with a kindly, grandfatherly smile that felt like a warm spring breeze.

But Sima Jiao's reaction was far from friendly. His expression darkened. "So it is you."

Liao Tingyan: Who?

The bamboo hat was removed, revealing a bald head. Liao Tingyan took in the gray monastic robes and the string of prayer beads around his wrist—a monk.

She recalled the gossip she'd heard before: when Sima Jiao was very young and caused trouble, the previous sect leader had invited an eminent monk from the Upper Cloud Buddhist Temple to educate him, even bestowing upon him the Taoist name 'Cizang.' Could this be that very monk?

In the world of cultivation, people's ages were even harder to discern than Sima Jiao's moods. This venerable monk looked so youthful and fresh-faced, yet the moment he removed his hat, it felt like being bathed in divine radiance.

The monk glanced at Liao Tingyan and gave her a benevolent smile, as if he had heard every thought running through her mind.

Wait, do all of you people have mind-reading cheats?

Sima Jiao stared directly at the monk, his killing intent thickening. "Are you here to kill me or save me?"

The monk replied, "Either is possible. But before that, I must answer one question."

"Oh?" Flames flickered to life beneath Sima Jiao's feet.

The monk shook his head slightly, unperturbed by the threat. "However, this question is not for you to answer."

His eyes shifted from black to amber. Liao Tingyan felt a sudden daze as those eyes locked onto her, and her mind went blank. When she abruptly regained clarity, she saw Sima Jiao collapsed on the ground and the Black Snake coiled nearby, fast asleep. Both taken down in an instant.Liao Tingyan: "Amazing, Great Monk! You're incredible!"

"It seems he's truly gravely injured if he can be subdued to this extent," the Great Monk remarked with a sigh, then smiled at Liao Tingyan and stepped forward to drag Sima Jiao. "Please come with me. There’s still something I need your help with."

Liao Tingyan followed him to the small wooden cabin, watching as the Great Monk placed Sima Jiao on the only wooden bed inside. The bed looked unused, covered only with a pitiful layer of straw.

"Please, have a seat. Drink some water."

Liao Tingyan sat down and drank.

The Great Monk sat beside her, kindly like a grandfather, and asked gently, "You’re a demon cultivator from the Demon Realm, aren’t you?"

Liao Tingyan covered her mouth to stop herself from spitting out the water she had just drunk.

"???"

"Me? I’m a demon cultivator???"

Great Monk: "...You look very surprised?"