Once Wenren Li was certain that the person in his arms had fallen asleep, it became even harder for him to tear his gaze away from Chen Yixin’s face—and it was not merely Chen Yixin’s beauty that held his attention.
He held himself rigid and motionless, allowing Chen Yixin to rest against him until the medicinal effects of the spiritual spring had completely faded. Only then did he lift Chen Yixin into his arms, and the emotions that had suddenly surged within him vanished as they rose from the water.
On the way there, Wenren Li had carried Chen Yixin leisurely through half the Demon Palace. Now, however, he merely took a step and appeared directly inside the bedchamber with Chen Yixin still in his arms.
He changed Chen Yixin into comfortable sleeping robes, then followed his instructions and used Woven Cloud as a blanket for him. Only after confirming that Chen Yixin was sound asleep did Wenren Li leave the bedchamber. He needed to return to the medicine chamber and prepare several more things, for Chen Yixin’s injuries were far more severe than he had anticipated.
Outside the bedchamber, the sixteen Demon Guards led by Nan Ke remained on duty. They had originally served as Demon Guard officers at Wenren Li’s side, but before departing for Zhenhai in the Northern Territory, it had already been decided that they would become the personal Demon Guards of Chen Yixin, who was to become the Demon Palace’s Demon Consort.
Nan Ke was the Demon Guard Captain. Judging by the special treatment their Demon Lord showed Chen Yixin, the post he had once regarded as a promotion in name but a demotion in reality no longer seemed to be anything of the sort. Perhaps the Demon Palace truly was about to welcome another master.
Wenren Li paused briefly as he passed Nan Ke. “Tell Wu Fei to gather more Woven Cloud.”
The mass of Woven Cloud Chen Yixin was using now was quite large, but it would not be enough to furnish every place where Chen Yixin might need it.
“Yes.” Nan Ke accepted the order and departed, his earlier conclusion becoming even firmer. Their Demon Lord truly did treat Chen Yixin differently from everyone else.
Chen Yixin enjoyed a rare night of peaceful sleep. It felt as though he had once again found a place of exceptional beauty within Yuding Sect’s territory, where he could drink a jar of wine and sleep from sunrise until sunset, carefree and unfettered as an immortal.
He slowly opened his eyes. The deep-crimson décor bore some resemblance to the blood-red sunset at Yuding Sect. Remaining lazily reclined, he made another request. “I don’t like dark red. Can you change it to another color?”
Wenren Li helped Chen Yixin sit up again and nodded without asking why. Almost immediately, Nan Ke, who was stationed outside the bedchamber, received orders to replace the room’s furnishings.
Seeing Wenren Li nod, Chen Yixin smiled as well. This Demon Lord was even easier to deal with than he had expected. From yesterday until now, rather than merely making one demand after another, Chen Yixin had actually been testing the limits of the Likui Demon Lord’s tolerance.
Only after determining where those limits lay could he survive more comfortably in the Demon Palace.
“My surname is Chen, and my given name is Yixin. What are you called?”
Yixin—a heart filled with joy. That was the name he had borne in the mortal world. After reaching Foundation Establishment at sixteen, he had received a Daoist title. When he formed his Golden Core at forty-nine, the name Perfected Master Heartslayer had spread throughout the cultivation world.
What he was asking for now was the name of the man before him apart from the title “Likui Demon Lord”—the name he had used in the mortal world.
Perhaps he had one. Perhaps he did not.
At Chen Yixin’s question, Wenren Li’s eyes darkened slightly. Just when Chen Yixin thought he would not answer, he finally spoke.
“Wenren Li.”
With Li meaning “separation,” Wenren Li’s name seemed to suit a life filled with upheaval and partings. The thought suddenly occurred to Chen Yixin, but he immediately gave a self-mocking smile. What right did he have now to lament another person’s fate? Besides, Wenren Li was a Soul Transformation cultivator who had lived for an unknown number of years; he certainly had no need for Chen Yixin’s sympathy.
“Wenren Li…” Chen Yixin murmured, repeating the name. He raised his eyes to meet Wenren Li’s gaze, then leaned forward and rested against Wenren Li’s shoulder once more.
Apart from this ruined body, he possessed nothing, and therefore had nothing left to fear. Using the Demon Lord as a cushion was becoming increasingly natural.
“That name sounds a little familiar…”
Wenren Li lowered his gaze. The person who had only just remarked that his name sounded familiar had already closed his eyes to rest again.
When Chen Yixin rested, that was all he did. He had no intention of thinking about why the name sounded familiar. He could set aside even such deep hatred in the blink of an eye, much less a chance encounter from a century ago that no longer stirred the slightest ripple in his heart.
Wenren Li’s hand shifted slightly downward from Chen Yixin’s shoulder. Before Chen Yixin could react, he was lifted into Wenren Li’s arms yet again. Could the Likui Demon Lord possibly have become addicted to carrying him?
Chen Yixin pressed his lips together and cracked his eyes open slightly, staring at Wenren Li’s profile.
Wenren Li sensed Chen Yixin’s gaze but did not stop walking. Carrying him out of the bedchamber, he passed through several corridors and doorways before finally entering another bedchamber decorated primarily in deep purple and black.
It was roughly the same size and built to the same specifications as the room Chen Yixin had occupied for the past day. However, compared to the luxurious yet warm furnishings there, this room was noticeably darker and more austere.
Wenren Li lowered his eyes, and his gaze met Chen Yixin’s just as Chen Yixin was withdrawing it. Only then did Wenren Li offer an explanation.
“You will stay here for the next few days.”
“Oh…” Chen Yixin replied softly. He had spent quite some time wondering why Wenren Li had carried him out of his bedchamber, only to discover that it was merely because he had asked for the room to be redecorated.
Wenren Li slowly placed Chen Yixin on a bed covered with Woven Cloud. After considering his words, he raised a hand and rather stiffly placed it on Chen Yixin’s hair. He stroked it once before withdrawing.
“You… don’t need to overthink it. I won’t let you die.”
Chen Yixin abruptly raised his eyes and met Wenren Li’s completely unreadable gaze. He paused slightly, then the corners of his lips lifted and he smiled again, while Wenren Li remained as cold and expressionless as ever.
“Wenren Li,” Chen Yixin called softly. Gripping Wenren Li’s arm, he slowly sat up. In truth, he had not yet reached the point where he required assistance with every aspect of daily life. When he refused to move, it was mostly because he could not be bothered.
But Wenren Li’s words made him want to sit up by himself.
Wenren Li did not reach out to assist him, but he controlled the Woven Cloud beneath Chen Yixin, allowing it to support him halfway. Chen Yixin therefore needed to expend almost no strength to sit up. Wenren Li watched him silently, waiting to hear what he had called him over to say.
Instead, after sitting up, Chen Yixin continued leaning closer. He did not stop until only the width of a finger remained between them.
Chen Yixin looked directly into Wenren Li’s eyes without the slightest fear. The faint smile on his lips disappeared, and his eyes narrowed slightly, revealing a trace of severity. All the cold sharpness of Perfected Master Heartslayer returned to him.
“What do you want from me?”
Life was a temptation he could not refuse. In exchange, he would inevitably have to give Wenren Li something. Whatever the price might be, he was willing to pay it for a chance to survive, but certain things were better clarified in advance.
Wenren Li held Chen Yixin’s gaze, but his eyes suddenly drifted toward Chen Yixin’s lightly pressed lips. As though something had occurred to him, he turned his chin slightly aside and looked away altogether.
Wenren Li’s sudden display of embarrassment immediately made Chen Yixin’s interrogation seem absurdly out of place, as though Chen Yixin had deliberately leaned so close because he intended to take liberties with the Likui Demon Lord.
Chen Yixin raised an eyebrow slightly. He considered himself someone who had seen through every variety of human nature, yet at this moment, he could not understand what Wenren Li was thinking. How could a mighty demonic cultivator at the Soul Transformation stage be unable to withstand the proximity of an ordinary mortal like him?
“Don’t overthink it,” Wenren Li said, returning his gaze and once again repeating what he had already told Chen Yixin. He certainly had designs of his own on Chen Yixin, but they were nothing like the ulterior motives Chen Yixin suspected.
From the moment Wenren Li met Chen Yixin until now, he had yet to find the proper manner or tone in which to speak to him. He did, however, know that the method he used with his subordinates would certainly not work.
As a result, Wenren Li, who was already a man of few words, became even more silent whenever he faced Chen Yixin.
But at this moment, remaining silent was clearly inappropriate. After a moment of hesitation, Wenren Li slowly raised his hand and stroked Chen Yixin’s hair again, yet the words he spoke remained the same. “Don’t overthink it.”
In almost any other context, the words would have sounded dismissive and heartless. Spoken by Wenren Li now, however, they somehow carried a warmth that soothed the heart.
No matter how guarded Chen Yixin was, he could no longer maintain it. He rolled his eyes with impeccable elegance.
The moment his wariness faded, his knees weakened as well. Wenren Li instinctively wrapped an arm around him, and Chen Yixin fell directly into his embrace.
Wenren Li’s chest was extremely hard, nowhere near as comfortable as Woven Cloud. Chen Yixin parted his lips, intending to complain, but although the words had already reached his tongue, he ultimately did not voice them.
Two grown men were holding each other, and both Chen Yixin and Wenren Li were stiff. Yet after sensing Wenren Li’s tension, Chen Yixin gradually relaxed instead. He gave a wry smile and once more dismissed what he considered the most absurd possibility.
“I have nothing now, so there is nothing I can use to repay you. But you don’t need to worry. I’ll remember what I owe you.”
Wenren Li’s hand was already resting on Chen Yixin’s back. He patted him lightly, then remained silent for another moment before finally replying. “Alright.”
If he did not answer, Chen Yixin would never feel reassured. And this time, Wenren Li would not give Chen Yixin another opportunity to forget him.
Hearing his answer, the tension between Chen Yixin’s brows eased, and his smile grew even brighter. He remained a pleasure to look at, but this smile was somewhat different from the faint smile that so often lingered on his lips whenever he was awake.
Not daring to trouble a mighty demonic cultivator at the Soul Transformation stage by asking him to adjust his hold, Chen Yixin cheerfully shifted himself into a more comfortable position.
He did not fear Wenren Li wanting something from him. What he feared was Wenren Li wanting nothing at all. The Heavenly Dao saw all, and debts of gratitude were the hardest debts to owe. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, what he owed Wenren Li would be his life, and that was an exceptionally difficult debt to repay.
“By the way, I wanted to tell you this yesterday. You don’t need to look after me personally. You can simply have A-Da and the others come in…”
Wenren Li was a Soul Transformation cultivator as well as the lord of the Demon Palace. Having him personally attend to Chen Yixin’s daily needs was an absurd waste of his abilities. Chen Yixin firmly believed this, but beneath Wenren Li’s steadily cooling gaze, his voice grew quieter and quieter.
“Fine… they’re busy.”
Apparently, Wenren Li was the only idle person in the entire Demon Palace. Besides, when Chen Yixin asked Nan Ke and the others to come in, he did not intend for them to serve him personally. He merely wanted them to use talismans and spells according to his instructions to make things more convenient for him.
“They are responsible for protecting you. I am responsible for treating you.”
Wenren Li stared at the faintly guilty-looking Chen Yixin and solemnly confirmed the arrangement for him once more. “I’m not busy.”
“Fine. You’re clearly the idlest person in the entire palace.”
The corners of Chen Yixin’s lips curved upward, though even he did not understand what he found so amusing.
One thing, however, was certain: the mighty demonic cultivator at the Soul Transformation stage before him was unlike every other Soul Transformation cultivator Chen Yixin had ever known.
Wenren Li could roughly understand why Chen Yixin was smiling, but when it came to personally caring for him, there was absolutely no possibility that Wenren Li would entrust the task to anyone else.