ATAVID CH63

Wei Xun’s ascension ceremony was so simple it was almost sloppy.

There were no grand banquets, no assemblies of congratulatory officials, and not even many people in attendance.

In the Demon Realm, the replacement of the old with the new had always been about recognizing the strong; they had no use for cumbersome etiquette.

Jiang Qunyu didn’t have much of a sense of reality regarding the situation. He knew that one day Wei Xun would sit in that position, but he hadn’t expected it to happen so quickly.

However, thinking about it carefully, he felt it was quite normal. After all, Wei Xun had been mysteriously appearing and disappearing for the past few years, and he always returned covered in injuries, which looked incredibly painful. Jiang Qunyu was often worried that he would actually kill himself one day through his own recklessness.

Besides, there were benefits to Wei Xun becoming the Demon Lord.

For instance, Jiang Qunyu finally didn’t have to squeeze into that simple, shabby little courtyard anymore; he moved directly into the sleeping quarters next to the Demon Lord’s main palace.

The entire palace was constructed from dark black stone, and the pillars were carved with ferocious, coiling demonic patterns, radiating the cold solemnity unique to the Demon Realm. But when it came to the palace wing where he lived, Wei Xun had somehow issued orders, and it was unexpectedly decorated with many warm-toned furnishings.

The floor was covered with thick, plush carpets, and soothing incense burned in the four corners; the smoke was light and soft. The furnishings inside the hall were mostly plain white and light cyan, faintly resembling the purity of the old Lingxiao Sect.

Jiang Qunyu was very happy. He rolled around on the bed twice, then simply flopped down in high spirits, sprawled out comfortably for the whole day.

It wasn’t until Wei Xun returned that Jiang Qunyu crawled up from the bed to watch him.

Wei Xun stood outside the palace doors, followed by Xie Chuan. He tilted his head slightly, giving a few low instructions. Xie Chuan immediately bowed to acknowledge the order and turned to leave to handle the task.

Only then did Wei Xun turn and step into the hall.

The dark, majestic imperial robes accentuated the natural paleness of Wei Xun’s complexion, but there was a faint smile lingering in his brows and eyes, and the aura of hostility around him had faded significantly.

Jiang Qunyu muttered in a low voice, “What’s there to be so happy about?”

In the history books he used to read, those who became emperors or sat in positions of supreme power usually ended up having their personalities completely changed by power.

They became suspicious, tyrannical, and cold-blooded, with nothing left in their eyes but their domain and authority, willing to discard even the closest people around them, eventually becoming lonely, isolated figures.

In the later stages of the original plot, wasn’t it because Wei Xun wanted to flatten the cultivation world that he became obsessed with improving his cultivation by any means necessary?

Although Jiang Qunyu remained skeptical of that so-called original plot—judging by the previous two instances, its credibility was truly not high.

“Don’t you like spirit stones?” Wei Xun wasn’t angry; he just sat lazily by the table and tilted his head to look at him.

Jiang Qunyu nodded: “Doesn’t everyone like them?”

Wei Xun then said: “I have a lot, a lot of them now.”

Jiang Qunyu: “?”

What did he mean?

Was Wei Xun showing off?

He immediately pulled a wooden face, flopped back onto the bed, grabbed a pillow, and covered his face with it, plugging his ears while pretending he hadn’t heard anything.

Yet, he couldn’t help but think in his mind: Wei Xun was the Demon Lord now; the entire Demon Realm was his, and magic beads and spirit stones would naturally be piled up like mountains—perhaps even more than he had ever imagined.

Thinking of this, Jiang Qunyu grew secretly jealous and even began calculating the feasibility of possessing Wei Xun’s body.

Before he could finish his mental planning, a slender, jade-like hand reached out, took the pillow off his face, and asked indifferently: “Won’t you suffocate yourself like this?”

Jiang Qunyu curled his lips in a stiff, insincere smile.

Suffocating to death? That was nothing; his heart was about to explode from stifling frustration.

“…I’m just a soul-body; I can’t die,” Jiang Qunyu said crossly.

Wei Xun’s dark brown eyes paused. He remained silent for a long time before lethargically saying: “Do you want those spirit stones?”

Jiang Qunyu froze.

He couldn’t help but look at Wei Xun, wondering why this man was suddenly acting so kind for no reason.

The next instant, he saw Wei Xun’s lips curve into a wicked smile: “If you call me ‘Ah-Xiong’ (Big Brother), I’ll give them to you.”

“…” Jiang Qunyu cursed on the spot: “F***, are you sick in the head, you bastard!”

Wei Xun wasn’t discouraged, enticing him: “Do you really not want them?”

Jiang Qunyu got up, stood on the bed, glared down at Wei Xun, and refused without a second thought: “Don’t even think about it!”

“Alright, then.” Wei Xun looked a bit disappointed.

Jiang Qunyu said he wouldn’t call him that, so he wouldn’t. He would rather have nothing than listen to Wei Xun showing off triumphantly about how many spirit stones and magic crystals he had.

Wei Xun, that bastard.

Seeing that he was truly unmoved, Wei Xun had to give up the idea.

That night, Wei Xun rested on the couch.

Jiang Qunyu closed his eyes and lay on the bed, feigning sleep, forcing himself to act the part for half an hour. Seeing that Wei Xun was quiet and well-behaved, he finally breathed a sigh of relief and drifted off into a deep sleep.

In his semi-conscious state, a cold yet low voice drifted gently into his ears.

The youth sounded like he was talking to himself, or perhaps asking him: “Jiang Qunyu, if I reconstruct your body…”

“Jiang Qunyu, if you had a body, would you leave me?”

“Jiang Qunyu…”

Stop reciting, stop calling—it was making his head ache.

Jiang Qunyu was feeling extremely groggy, thinking he was just dreaming, and wanted to dismiss the voice quickly, so he slurred a perfunctory response: “I won’t.”

The whispering by his ear indeed went silent.

Replacing it was a very soft, very satisfied sigh.

The hall was dim. On the bed, one figure held the translucent soul-body tightly, burying his face deeply into the crook of the other’s neck.

Moonlight spilled through the window lattice, outlining a scene that was both eerie and quiet.

He held the person in his arms, his voice so low it almost melted into the night, enunciating every word with a sinister tone: “…You promised me.”

Jiang Qunyu felt that he had truly achieved the saying, “When one person gains the Tao, their chickens and dogs ascend to heaven.”

Wei Xun had finally recovered his conscience; he had sent dozens of boxes of spirit stones into his bedroom, filling the corners to the brim.

Before going to sleep at night, he would place his storage bag under his pillow.

However, the palace maids and servants outside the hall found it strange.

As Jiang Qunyu lay in the tree basking in the moonlight, he heard a maid whispering to another, gossiping: “Don’t you think it’s strange? Why does the Lord always send spirit stones and jewelry to that empty sleeping hall? There’s clearly no one living inside.”

The other maid looked left and right, saw no one, picked a Ghost Shadow Flower, tucked it into the other’s hair, and giggled in praise: “This looks good.”

The first maid pulled the flower off, feeling embarrassed and annoyed, and said crossly: “I’m talking to you about serious business!”

The other maid then said: “I don’t know, but the Lord must have his reasons for doing so. It’s much better than the previous Demon Lord anyway; he isn’t bloodthirsty or tyrannical, and at least he won’t grab a few demons to feed those beasts at the drop of a hat like the last one.”

“That’s true.” The first maid nodded, getting excited again. “And the Lord is so generous. I heard he’s going to build a ‘Jade Capital Tower,’ and those who go to work there can receive one hundred magic beads every day.”

“I heard that too. Such a good thing, I don’t know if it will be our turn.”

As the two talked, they walked further away, their voices gradually dissipating into the wind.

The youth lying in the tree sat up, his two legs swinging gently in mid-air.

One hand propped up the tree trunk while the other plucked at the leaves in front of him, slowly throwing them downward, watching them spin as they drifted to the ground.

Jade Capital Tower, Jiang Qunyu frowned—was there such a tower in the original plot?

He also didn’t know what Wei Xun was building that tower for.

Day after day, other than meditating and cultivating, he either lay around reading scripts or occasionally chatted a few words with Wen Xingyao via the sound-transmission jade. If he was truly bored, he would go join in the excitement on the “Three Realms Rumor” forum, picking places where people were arguing fiercely and catching cultivators or demons to debate with just to kill time.

Wei Xun was truly busy and was often not in Cloud Palace City.

Whether it was going out to conquer territory or dealing with beast tide riots at the borders, he was always rushing away with Xie Chuan’s party, returning with new wounds each time.

Over time, he gradually became the good Demon Lord in the mouths of the demonic people—a leader who was decisive in killing but protected the Demon Realm.

In early 37th year of Xiping, the Jade Capital Tower was completed.

The entire building rose from the mountainside, stabbing straight into the clouds, with layered eaves and overlapping corners hidden among the drifting clouds. At a glance, it did not look like something from the Demon Realm.

The entrance to the tower was made of white jade steps, winding upward level by level. The stone was warm and polished, reflecting the sky and glowing with a faint luster. Stepping on it felt cool and delicate, with not a trace of the cold, rough texture common in the Demon Realm.

The pillars were carved with intertwining cloud patterns, the railings were inlaid with black jade, and luminous pearls hung from the roof, flowing with light day and night. Seen from a distance, it looked like an immortal palace falling into the heart of the Demon Realm, appearing both luxurious and isolated.

When the wind swept over the jade steps, even the sound became lighter and clearer.

Jiang Qunyu stood under the tower and looked up for a long time, but still couldn’t figure out why Wei Xun had gone to such great lengths to build such a tower.

Still, it was quite comfortable to live in.

Wei Xun told him: “We will live here from now on.”

“Oh,” Jiang Qunyu said, “That works, I’m not picky.”

Wei Xun said: “It’s safer here.”

Jiang Qunyu was shocked: “After becoming the Demon Lord, why have you become so afraid of death?”

Wei Xun didn’t speak. His gaze fell quietly upon him, seemingly amused by his words.

He turned his head away, his long lashes drooping slightly, and said indifferently: “Mm, I’m afraid of death.”

Therefore, if there truly were immortals in the Jade Capital Tower, they should protect Jiang Qunyu well.

If not, that was also fine.

Even to the highest heaven or the deepest hell, he would always protect him.

In the winter of the 41st year of Xiping, the sacred object of the Unxu Sect—one of the three major immortal sects—the Nine-Heaven Immortal Lotus, was stolen.

As soon as the news spread, the posts on the sound-transmission jade exploded. The cultivation world and the Demon Realm were arguing in an uproar.

Someone said in a panic: “The Nine-Heaven Immortal Lotus is the foundation of the Unxu Sect’s survival; if even this can be stolen, the cultivation world is likely to fall into chaos!”

Someone gnashed their teeth: “It must be those demons in the Demon Realm! That Wei Guanlan has only just sat firmly in the position of Demon Lord and already dares to provoke the Immortal Sects—it is simply lawless!”

There were also cultivators filled with fear: “The Immortal Lotus has been stolen, spiritual energy is unbalanced; I fear the heavens are about to descend with divine punishment!”

…

Amidst the comments like a tidal wave, someone sarcastically added a line: “Losing it isn’t something to be embarrassed about; anyway, this Nine-Heaven Immortal Lotus was originally snatched by the Unxu Sect from somewhere else.”

But this comment had only floated up for a moment before it was thoroughly drowned by dense, angry voices, speculation, and panic, not even causing a splash.

Jiang Qunyu only felt it was laughable; he didn’t think Wei Xun had done it.

He even felt a bit of injustice for Wei Xun—the cultivation world really was capable of pinning every blame on the Demon Realm.

He was thinking this, but that very night, he was proven wrong.

When Wei Xun returned, his face was as pale as paper, and he had added several deep-to-the-bone wounds to his body. As soon as he entered the Jade Capital Tower, he fainted. But even in his coma, his right hand was still gripping something tightly, refusing to let go no matter what.

Xie Chuan tried several times but failed to pry it open, and finally, feeling very reassured, he threw his master in the Jade Capital Tower and turned away directly.

Jiang Qunyu squatted beside Wei Xun, staring at the Nine-Heaven Immortal Lotus in his hand with a complex expression.

He reached out to take it, assuming Wei Xun wouldn’t give it to him, and said casually: “Wei Xun, let go.”

To his surprise, Wei Xun truly let go.

Jiang Qunyu: “…”

He held the Nine-Heaven Immortal Lotus, turning it over and over for a long time, but couldn’t see what was so special about this thing.

He didn’t know why a demon lord—who was still hanging on the cultivation world’s bounty list—would suddenly go crazy and insist on breaking into the Unxu Sect to snatch such an object.

Later, when Wei Xun woke up, Jiang Qunyu asked him: “So, why do you need such a broken lotus flower?”

Wei Xun thought about it seriously for a moment and said in a flat tone: “Raising it makes it look nice.”

Jiang Qunyu was silent for a while and couldn’t help but scold him: “For the sake of ‘looking nice,’ you’ve almost tortured yourself to death?”

He had started to doubt whether Wei Xun could even survive until the Great War of Righteousness and Evil written in the original book.

However, in the end, the Nine-Heaven Immortal Lotus was kept in the Jade Capital Tower by Jiang Qunyu.

This flower was incredibly delicate and required changing the spirit spring water every single day.

Sometimes when Jiang Qunyu woke up early, he could see Wei Xun changing the water for that broken lotus flower.

He thought with a wooden face: Perhaps Wei Xun really does think this lotus flower looks nice.

__

Author’s Notes:

Wei Xun’s Little Notebook: My wife is so slow/clueless.

Progress 2/5

Currently obtained: Chaos Stone and Nine-Heaven Immortal Lotus.

Distance from seeing my wife: Still missing the Spirit Deer’s heart blood, Heart of the Divine Tree, and Kunlun Soul-Separating Jade.

Looking forward to meeting my wife…