No one knew how dangerous it was for a half-demon to disperse their powers, because no half-demon would willingly do so. When captured by cultivators, half-demons were usually killed outright, as it wasn’t worth the effort to carefully disperse their powers without causing death – a task that required great precision.
After dispersing her powers, Mu Xuanling fell into a high fever. Her body alternated between feeling like ice and fire, her heartbeat fluctuated erratically, and she even began vomiting blood. Despite Xie Xuechen’s utmost efforts in dispersing her powers, he couldn’t control the physical deterioration that followed. All he could do was stay by her bedside, continuously transferring spiritual energy to her and searching for that rampaging qi within her body. That qi was incredibly domineering, unlike anything Xie Xuechen had encountered before. It seemed like demonic energy, yet far stronger than usual. However, when it encountered Xie Xuechen’s spiritual energy, it became surprisingly docile, softly following his guidance to return to its proper place in her meridians.
Xie Xuechen focused all his attention on controlling his spiritual energy, only resting briefly when completely exhausted. Yet Mu Xuanling’s condition remained unstable, forcing him to stay alert and continue caring for her. Mu Xuanling remained unconscious, eventually stabilizing somewhat but then beginning to mumble in her delirium. Her lips moved slightly, producing intermittent, indistinct syllables that even Xie Xuechen’s keen hearing couldn’t decipher. Worried she might be trying to express discomfort, he leaned close to her lips to listen, only to hear her murmuring what sounded like “Brother…”
Did she have a brother?
Xie Xuechen was puzzled, but before he could think it through, he saw Mu Xuanling’s eyes open slightly, unfocused.
“Lingling?” Xie Xuechen called out.
Mu Xuanling, either seeing him or some illusion, parted her sickly red lips and softly called out, “Big brother, hug me…”
Xie Xuechen was stunned.
Mu Xuanling’s slender, soft arms had already encircled his neck, her hands resting weakly on his shoulders. He couldn’t bring himself to push her away, especially when she trembled and said, “I’m cold.”
After a moment’s hesitation, Xie Xuechen embraced her. His hand, separated only by thin cloth, rested on her back as he channeled spiritual energy into her acupoints, circulating it throughout her body. Mu Xuanling nestled obediently in his arms, her head resting in the crook of his neck, her gentle breath brushing against his Adam’s apple as she unconsciously murmured, “Big brother, don’t go…”
Xie Xuechen wondered who she was mistaking him for.
She always called him Xie Xuechen, never “big brother.” This “big brother” she spoke of… could it be someone who resembled him?
Perhaps her feelings for him were meant for that “big brother.”
Xie Xuechen forced himself to ignore the slight unease in his heart and focused on channeling his spiritual energy.
In Mu Xuanling’s short twenty years in this life, she had few happy days. Counting carefully, there was only one truly joyful day. Yet the happiness of that single day was enough to sustain her through seven years of darkness and unbearable pain in the demon realm.
In her darkest moments, she would replay that day over and over, savoring it like a plum kept in her mouth for seven years, desperately trying to extract a hint of sweetness.
Her first taste of sweetness came when her big brother bought her a candied haw stick.
When she was very young, she saw other children eating them, looking so happy. Watching from afar, she only knew that the fruit inside was called hawthorn. She searched the mountains until she finally found a hawthorn tree, excitedly plucking a fruit and putting it in her mouth, only to spit it out with a grimace.
It was sour and astringent, not good at all.
Hearing this, her big brother couldn’t help but smile, though there seemed to be a hint of sadness in his expression. He bought all the candied haw sticks, watching her devour them as he patted her back, saying—
“Lingling, slow down.”
“How do you know my name is Zero-zero?” She raised her ankle with the spirit-locking ring, which had long since grown into her flesh, but the number “00” was still visible.
Big brother crouched down in front of her, lifting her pant leg to reveal her thin calf and the crisscrossing new and old injuries on it. She tried to withdraw her foot in embarrassment, afraid he would see the ugly scars, but he gently held her barefoot in his palm.
He took out a medicine jar from his storage bag and carefully applied the ointment to her wounds. The medicine was very valuable, as her pain immediately subsided and the wounds began to visibly heal as soon as it was applied.
“Big brother, this medicine is too precious. Don’t use it on me. My wounds will heal in a few days anyway, and even if they heal now, I’ll just get hurt again in a few days,” she said softly, biting her lip.
Big brother kept his head lowered, and though she couldn’t see his expression, she somehow felt that he was hurting her.
It was a strange feeling—to think that someone would care about her pain.
If she got hurt every day, would someone care about her every day?
Big brother gently ruffled her hair, saying softly, “Lingling, as long as I’m by your side, I won’t let you get hurt.”
She pretended to be annoyed to hide her blushing cheeks: “You messed up my hair!”
Though it had never been neat to begin with. She was clumsy and often had to do a lot of hard work, so her hair was always simply tied into two messy buns.
Big brother undid her messy buns and gently combed through her unruly long hair with a brush.
“I’ll comb your hair for you. Sit still,” he said, standing behind her.
She sat obediently, the sour-sweet candied haw in her mouth, feeling happier than she had ever been since birth.
She smelled a fragrance coming from behind her, clean and elegant, reminding her of snow in the twelfth lunar month and plum blossoms in the snow.
“Big brother, what’s your name?” she asked curiously.
The person behind her suddenly paused but didn’t answer for a long time.
Her heart slowly sank, and suddenly the candied haw didn’t taste sweet anymore, just sour and astringent—he didn’t want to tell her his name, was he afraid she would cling to him?
She didn’t want to leave Mingyue Manor that much. She was a half-demon; she would be a demon slave anywhere she went. She remembered many years ago, a handsome and gentle young master said he would take her away. She had felt a glimmer of hope then, but in the end, he didn’t keep his promise. She wasn’t that disappointed though, because it was a perfectly normal thing. She was just a demon slave, after all. Who would truly care about her? The fact that he had listened to her talk kindly was already rare enough.
She lowered her head listlessly, the sourness on her tongue spreading to her heart.
Suddenly, a pair of arms embraced her from behind. His head rested against her thin, weak back, his voice seeming to transmit through her bones and flesh, resonating dully in her chest.
“Lingling, you must take care of yourself.”
Mu Xuanling struggled to open her eyes. She smelled the scent that made her feel nostalgic and safe, burying herself deeper into that embrace.
A warm energy circulated through her body, gently enveloping her, soothing away the pain and heat.
“Big brother, you must take care of yourself too…”
Everyone knew that after Xie Xuechen carried Mu Xuanling into the room, he didn’t leave for three days and nights. Some people were already quietly speculating: would Yongxue City have a new mistress of half-demon blood?
For the dignified Immortal Alliance Leader to be so infatuated with a half-demon would be utterly disgraceful if word got out.
Even the unconventional He Xianwo would feel that the Immortal Alliance Leader’s entanglement with the former Demon Realm Holy Maiden would damage the morale of the Immortal Alliance.
Xie Xuechen, although he hadn’t left his room, received all the news from outside. An important message came from Liangjieshi Mountain—the demon race suddenly recalled all half-demons and demon soldiers, closing all portals. It was unknown what had happened in the demon realm.
Xie Xuechen walked out of his room and reconvened the council in the Hall of Righteousness.