A Demon's Path Chapter 101

The young lady dressed in green was fresh in her teens. If only she wasn't so ugly, she'd possess the kind of natural charm a young lady should have. However, no matter how he looked at her, Ling Xiao just couldn't find a single redeeming feature on her face. Her eyebrows were poorly kept. She had triangular shaped eyes, a flat nose, wide lips, and a receding hairline. If someone saw her at night, she might really scare them into a heart attack.

Of all things, the only redeeming quality of this woman was her exceptionally pleasant voice. It was so beautiful Ling Xiao mistakenly took her for a beauty. If the heavens would give him another chance, he'd say, "You should stay a peacock, lest you scare anyone else away."

"You're Ling Xiao, right?" asked the young lady with her beautiful voice. It sounded like the chimes of a silver bell. "I heard you stole my father's Soul Returning Grass. Can you give it back to me?"

If you were half as pretty as Tang Yingying, I'd give it back to you in a heartbeat. But with how you look? You should be happy I'm not asking for another blade as a gift! Ling Xiao fiercely thought. But he said, "I told you already! I didn't steal it!" An innocent look surfaced on his face. "Why are you guys so persistent in accusing us of stealing it?" He strongly emphasised the word stealing. It was clear as day he was admonishing her, We didn't steal it. We really didn't! It's obvious we fought for it!

"You said you could give me a lead a moment ago." The young lady frowned. It made her all the uglier, aggravating the contents of Ling Xiao's stomach and making it hard for him not to vomit it out.

Ling Xiao let out a fake laugh. "I only said maybe, not definitely. I seemed to have recalled something, but I forgot it already. Sorry!" He pulled Li Yuanchong in an attempt to slip away. But Li Yuanchong didn't give way. Instead, he suddenly said, "We have the Soul Returning Grass."

The young lady's complexion changed a little before she revealed a conspicuous smile. "What changed? Did you suddenly grow a conscience? I don't think I pressured you with my strength, after all."

Li Yuanchong shot Ling Xiao a disdainful glance. "I just can't bear to watch you deceive this clueless young lady."

Ling Xiao got angry. He really couldn't comprehend which part of this ugly young lady Li Yuanchong fancied.

Li Yuanchong turned his attention back to the young lady and said, "I'm bringing the Soul Returning Grass back with me to save a good brother of mine. Please forgive me, but I can't give it back to you. However, I can promise you one thing within my power. If you quote a price, I will agree to compensate you with the corresponding amount."

The young lady drew back the corners of her large mouth into a smile. She almost frightened Ling Xiao to the point his seven souls flew out of his body. "If I want you to marry me, would you say 'yes, I do'?" She looked at Li Yuanchong with a smile.

Li Yuanchong thought about it for a moment before he seriously replied, "Alright. Tell me your name. When I turn 18, I'll come to Myriad Bamboo Peak and ask for your hand in marriage. My grandfather forbids people in the family from marrying too early."

Ling Xiao's head doubled in size. To save his friend, he's even sacrificing his sex life! Is he thinking of stopping sexual intercourse once he gets married? Yeah, that must be so!

The young lady in green chuckled. "Don't you find me ugly?"

Li Yuanchong looked into the young lady's eyes. "Your voice is very pleasant to the ears. Even if I can only listen to your voice for the rest of my life, I'm willing to marry you."

Ling Xiao felt his head spin as though lightning struck him. Oh no, he's done for. The ways of this world…

The young lady in green turned around. A ball of green light flashed past and her appearance changed yet again. "My name is Zhao Danyao. I'm Zhao Tian's youngest daughter of Myriad Bamboo Peak. Treat this Soul Returning Grass as my dowry. Remember your promise and marry me when you turn 18. Hehe."

It was all too much for Ling Xiao. He was completely dumbstruck. When Zhao Danyao transformed this time, she turned from an ugly duckling into an outstanding beauty. She was a dazzling beauty who could even compare to Tang Yingying. He just couldn't understand it. Her older brother Zhao Kai was nothing special to look at, and Ling Xiao was sure her father, Zhao Tian wasn't that handsome either. So, why was she the only one who was so beautiful?! "I might've been cuckolded…" he comforted himself. With a long and despairing sigh, he looked at this beauty becoming betrothed to Li Yuanchong. It was all he could do, besides scolding himself for his poor judgement.

Li Yuanchong cupped his fists at Zhao Danyao. "I'm in a hurry, so I hope Maiden Zhao can make an exception."

Zhao Danyao lightly leaped up and turned into a beautiful rainbow-coloured bird before flying back in the direction of Myriad Bamboo Peak. "Stupid boy. I'll be 16 in exactly a year from now. If you want to marry me, there'll be a competition of strength then. Come and fight for my hand in marriage."

"Yes, I will. You can bet on it." Li Yuanchong nodded. With his face still as calm as ever, he pulled Ling Xiao who looked like a blockhead away.

Ling Xiao was still reeling in shock. The ways of this world, oh the ways of this world. Could it really be changing?

Li Yuanchong really did give Ling Xiao a terrible scare. He had a secret he'd never told Ling Xiao. Li Yuanchong had first met Zhao Danyao when Li Xuanyi sent Li Yuanzhi to the Netherworldly Mansion to receive tutelage. This was eight years ago. At the time, he was only seven years old, but tiny Zhao Danyao was already extremely adorable. She was extremely lively too. Other people disliked him because he was wooden and slow of speech. But Zhao Danyao didn't hate this tiny playmate of hers. She took him everywhere and played with him, telling him stories all day long.

Ever since that day, Li Yuanchong was deeply enchanted with her voice. Even though there were slight changes to it, he still recognised Zhao Danyao when he heard her voice today. The conversation they had just now was nothing more than Li Yuanchong confirming whether she was who he thought she was.

On the other hand, Zhao Danyao was vexed because her father wanted to have a competition to fight for her hand in marriage. When she heard she had to recover the Soul Recovering Grass and that the thief was Li Yuanchong, she was reminded of that boy with the extremely sour face from her childhood. A thought crossed her mind. So, she rushed over from Myriad Bamboo Peak and intercepted them midway. Fortunately, he didn't disappoint her. Although his face was still as sour as ever, at least he was an honest man unlike that despicable Ling Xiao. In that split second, Zhao Danyao made the biggest decision in her life. She invited Li Yuanchong to participate in the fight for her hand in marriage!

Even though neither of the two explicitly conveyed their intentions, there was no need for words between them. They had a connection that transcended words. Perhaps this was what Ling Xiao felt most puzzled about. Why does Maiden Danyao fancy Li Yuanchong, and not me? He carried his bewilderment in him as he rushed after Li Yuanchong with all his might.

Finally, the duo arrived at the Sunken Wind Valley. Li Yuanchong didn't even give Ling Xiao time to catch his breath. He pulled him along as they charged into Zheng Hao's room.

Yue Mingming and Yang Chao were waiting for them by Zheng Hao's bedside. Li Yuanchong didn't say a word. He pounded the blade of Soul Returning Grass into liquid form before pouring it into Zheng Hao's mouth.

"Why hasn't he woken up yet?" After waiting for an hour, Li Yuanchong's eyes turned red. "Ling Xiao, what's going on?"

Ling Xiao inspected Zheng Hao's body with his mental strength. A strange look appeared on his face. "Something's wrong. Everything's normal with him. Logically speaking, he should've woken up by now. That's strange. There's something in his brain… Where did this dense ball of dark qi come from? Aaahhhhhh!"

The ball of dark qi seemed to be aware someone had entered its domain. It commenced its ruthless retaliation against Ling Xiao right away. Buuuuzzzz! Something seemed to pound his brain. His face turned deathly pale as he spat out a large mouthful of blood.

Li Yuanchong, Yue Mingming, and Yang Chao moved quickly to support Ling Xiao. They asked in a concerned tone, "What's wrong?"

Ling Xiao wiped the blood from his mouth, a ferocious glint in his eyes. "Someone used their demonic Spiritual Wisdom soulforce to bury a ball of dark qi in Zheng Hao's Spiritual Wisdom Soul when we weren't around! Who? Just who in the world did this?"

Li Yuanchong, Yue Mingming, and Yang Chao's expressions changed when they heard Ling Xiao mention the existence of a Demonic Soul Master. "A Demonic Soul Master broke into the Sunken Wind Valley? How is that possible?"

Ling Xiao's complexion took a slight turn for the better after taking a pill and circulating his soulforce. "I don't know either. I only want to ask you guys something. Other than the two of you, did anyone else come in here during the few days we were gone?"

Yue Mingming and Yang Chao exchanged glances before they simultaneously shook their heads. They hadn't seen anyone else enter this room.

Li Yuanchong suddenly spoke up, "Ling Xiao, it might not necessarily be someone else who buried that dark qi in his Spiritual Wisdom Soul."

Ling Xiao became alert after Li Yuanchong called his attention to this matter. "Are you saying that Zheng Hao's own Spiritual Wisdom Soul created it?"

Chapter end