The first time Wen Xiao noticed the presence of the other two demons nearby was when Zhi Ren lost her composure at Li Lun's provocations, which gave Siheng the opportunity to prove himself and deal with her as he pleased. Everyone knew that Siheng was in a dilemma while fighting her, which is why Yun Guang had suggested imprisoning her for a while, instead of killing her when they sealed her away.
So when the demons had finally decided to make their move, she warned the others that they were coming and just in time, because a dense cloud of electric purple poison sped towards them so quickly that none of them could avoid it.
Visibility instantly dropped to almost zero, as the fog was so thick that even if they all were standing close, they could not see anything around them. The air felt heavy with something unnatural, and breathing became slightly more difficult than usual. Their clothes began to be covered in tiny, shimmering violet particles that made them glitter even without sunlight, which was hidden by the dense fog. Even so, they could all sense each other's location without difficulty.
Driven by instinct, Wen Xiao extended her hand and clasped Sijing's, who stood beside her, just as the fog began to descend. At the same time, Zhu Yan held Yichen tightly, Ying Lei drew Bai Jiu nearer, Yun Guang entwined his fingers with Siheng's, and Li Lun wrapped his arms around Yixuan, who was already reaching out toward him. Amidst the suffocating poisonous mist, Siheng let out a faint cough. In response, Yun Guang tightened his grip on Siheng's hand, channeling energy through his meridians to strengthen their resistance against the toxin.
They were all in full alert, but Wen Xiao's eyes glowed golden, as she peered through the poisonous mist and saw the two demons she recognized from Zhu Yan's training approaching. Using their bond, she projected the demons approach into the minds of each member of her unit, so they will see them too.
The first one was Du Wu, who stood tall and striking, clad in black and purple. His jet-black hair framed a pair of vibrant violet eyes that seemed to shimmer with an otherworldly glow. He was the poison mist demon, but aside of looking mysterious, he didn't felt particularly impressive. The other figure was Yu She, taller than Du Wu and dressed in green, harmonizing with his striking green eyes and hair. Unlike his partner, Yu She exuded confidence, strength, and an air of danger. Known as the Jade King, he was a master of poison, even more lethal than Du Wu.
"Are they really lovers? They look so...", Ying Lei struggled to find the right words to describe them, as he wonder in their metal link.
"Mismatched? Different?", Bai Jiu finished for him, because that was the only thing that came to mind when he looked at them. One was incredibly strong, and the other possessed a lethal poisonous mist, but... well, there were ways to counteract it.
"Come on, they may be our opponents now, but their relationship has nothing to do with equality. When you fall in love, you fall in love, simple as that. Besides, Du Wu can defend himself well with his fighting skills if his poison fails, so don't underestimate him," Li Lun warned them, and Wen Xiao almost giggle.
"What was their story again? I think we have time, since all I see is them waiting for the poison to take effect on us...", Wen Xiao asked Li Lun, who sighed, and Yixuan smiled, taking over the conversation, knowing that Wen Xiao was just having some fun.
"Thousands of years ago, rumors circulated that those two had become lovers. They were always seen together, no matter where they traveled. The rumors said that one night, Yu She unleashed his fury on his territory, reducing it practically to ashes with his deadliest attack. Apparently, he discovered that Du Wu had unexpectedly fallen into a trap carefully laid by another demon, which ultimately led to Yu She's downfall. Now that we know the spell involved, we can be almost certain that Huan Jing, likely adopting Yu She's appearance, used their relationship to cast the spell on Du Wu's core, preventing him from resisting or escaping his control." Yixuan recounted as the two demons moved in circles around them, showing no immediate signs of taking action.
"Well, that explains why Yu She ended up under Huan Jing's control. He's not simply a snake demon, but a Naga, a king among serpents, undoubtedly powerful and very proud. Under normal circumstances, Yu She would never have submitted to Huan Jing's dominion. His strength far surpassed any fox magic, even that of a nine-tailed fox. However, with Du Wu under Huan Jing's control, Yu She likely had to make a difficult choice: sacrifice his freedom or the life of his lover. Surprisingly, Yu She yielded, swallowing his pride and becoming, against his will, Huan Jing's servant," Li Lun added, fixing his gaze on Yu She.
Back then, he didn't understand why Yu She had suddenly become so reckless, but now that he knew what love meant, he understood it better than he wanted to admit, because he too was reaching that point faster than he thought possible. Perhaps he already loved him, perhaps he had always loved him, even before Yixuan was born into the human world, and he simply hadn't realized it. The bond the gods had created between them was never dormant. It remained alive, most likely because Nuwa kept it that way, unlike the bond between Zhu Yan and Yichen, which hit them less intensely, as if they were only just beginning to embrace it.
"The fact that they are lovers actually benefits us. This situation gives us a clear advantage. If Yu She only agreed to serve Huan Jing because of his control over Du Wu, then freeing Du Wu could turn the tables. Given Yu She's well-known pride, being freed from Huan Jing's control would give him the revenge he's craved for most of his life." Zhu Yan pointed out and if their assumptions were correct, which he believed they were, they might have another pair of allies in that world. But even if they were wrong, it was worth a try.
"I agree, so as soon as I have a chance to get close to Du Wu, I'll break his core spell," Yun Guang offered, but Zhu Yan had other ideas.
"No. For this to work, you have to get them both at the same time. The last two implosions prove that Huan Jing has some way of knowing what they're doing, and since you've already freed Zhi Ren from his control, he could kill Yu She in the same instant you free Du Wu. To Huan Jing, Yu She is more useful for his purposes than Du Wu. Not only that, if he loses control of Yu She's lover, he'll be forced to kill him before he can retaliate." That made sense, and Yun Guang grinned mischievously for the first time in a long time.
"Zhu Yan, do you remember when you were a little ape trying to use spells against me?" Yun Guang asked, turning to look at him, since he too could use a kind of Truth Eye.
"Oh come on, Yun Guang, don't bring up old grudges now..." Zhu Yan said with feigned innocence, which made Yichen roll his eyes, though he smiled.
"Do that for me now. Cast as many spells at me as you can—well, everyone who can use spells, join in the fun, including you too, Li Lun..."
"Wait, what are you going to do, you crazy old spirit?" Li Lun asked, staring at him, while Yixuan held him tighter.
"Have a little fun with two demons, of course. This will bring them together faster, since Yu She will do everything he can to protect his lover, and I assure you I'm much faster than the two of them. Stay inside the barrier, I'll handle this. Didi, you clear this ridiculous glittering poison first, so not overwhelm Wen Xiao's insight." Yun Guang made the request to his new little brother, and Yichen burst out laughing, which attracted the attention of Yu She and Du Wu.
Du Wu was stunned to hear the young demon's laughter, when his insides should have been rotting. Yu She, however, merely sighed, for this wasn't the first time Du Wu's poison had likely been neutralized. After all, this strange group of demons were Li Lun's companions, and he was well-acquainted with the workings of Du Wu's poison, so he wasn't surprised that it didn't affect them.
In fact, it was what he expected, because he was fed up with Huan Jing, not only for forcing him into servitude, but for stealing a large portion of his cultivation, preventing him from becoming a great demon, even though he should have attained that status centuries ago. It was thanks to the cultivation he stole that he became a nine-tailed fox and was able to ensnare so many others to do his bidding. But now it was time to end it.
Yichen released a wave of cold energy in all directions that dispelled the poison, giving them a clear view of Du Wu and Yu She, without Wen Xiao having to project their images into the humans' minds.
"Have fun now, Ge. We'll support you from here," Yichen said with a smile, and after Yun Guang winked at Siheng, he disappeared in an instant with a movement almost impossible to follow, as if he were a divine weapon in motion.
He went after Du Wu first, taking him by surprise with his incredible speed, and Du Wu barely had time to dodge. Yu She moved to try and keep Yun Guang at bay with his own attacks, but Zhu Yan cast a wordless spell against them, which Yu She had to block, cursing under his breath.
Yun Guang smiled as he launched multiple needle-shaped attacks at Du Wu, while Yu She tried to drive Yun Guang away by sending hundreds of lethal snakes in his way, but this time, Li Lun blocked them with his vines, and then Yichen tried to get some others with his newfound fire manipulation to burn them.
"Xiao Zhuo Ge, your aim is a little off," Bai Jiu teased, seeing him miss a few times, and Yichen smiled mischievously.
"Sorry, sorry, Didi, I'll do better, but you can all try to get them too." Yichen suggested, while continuing to throw fire to the remaining snakes that headed their way. Ying Lei took out some of his talismans, folded them until they were the size of eggs, and offered them to the others to throw as well. The talismans were charged with his divine energy, so if they hit the snakes or the demon, they would burst into flames.
This marked the beginning of an unforeseen upheaval that Yu She couldn't help but find insulting. He wasn't too bothered by the people inside the reddish barrier playing with his snakes, but the man in blue was mocking both him and Du Wu so openly that it was infuriating. If he had been at his full strength and didn't need to be freed, he would have gotten serious and annihilated them for their audacity in making fun of them.
"Li Lun! I thought you were honorable! You bastard! Tell your man to leave Du Wu alone!" Yu She shouted, and Li Lun chuckle at him.
"What can I say? He wants to play, and you are the ones who started it. You chose to come to my territory. Why are you complaining now?" Li Lun asked as Yun Guang glared at Yu She.
"Don't blame Li Lun for the fact that you've become a mere shadow of your former self. If you want this to end, step forward and protect your lover for real, or perhaps you have already given up on him, in which case, I could keep him for myself." Yun Guang, poised to strike Du Wu, knowing that up to this point, Du Wu had only managed to fend off his relentless assaults without landing a single blow in return.
"Hey, don't even think about it!" Siheng protested pointing at him, as Yun Guang smiled and Yu She frantically lunged to stop Yun, gathering much of his remaining internal energy he still have, and attack him with his most powerful technique.
"Get your filthy hands off him!" Yu She shouted as he launched his attack, this time intending to inflict real harm, placing himself between Du Wu and Yun Guang.
However, Yun Guang deflected the attack towards the sky, where it exploded like a green star above their heads, sending a shockwave that rippled through the trees for miles around. At the same time, Yun Guang sent a wave of energy towards the two demons, which knocked them to the ground and neutralized the shockwave energy from Yu She's attack. As Yu She fell right on top of Du Wu, he took the opportunity to strike them both with his nullifying energy, which caused the forest to glow like a second sun.
Du Wu and Yu She felt the spell controlling them no longer draining their energy, and noticed how the demonic energy around them began to be stored in their cores. They felt their meridians filling and expanding after so many centuries of feeling an endless void. Great strength and immense relief returned to them, so much so that Yu She even laughed, finally feeling free, and turned to kiss the demon lying beneath him—the one who had caused him so much pain and, at the same time, so much happiness.
For an instant, as the spell broke, Wen Xiao saw Huan Jing scream in rage, before the image vanished and she saw the three remaining demons, the Black Calamity, Xing Hong, the Scarlet and Shan Chen, the Mountain Dust, begin to hastily retreat towards their Master.
"Come on, you can kiss all you want later," Yun Guang interrupted the two demons. Startled, Yu She let go of Du Wu and looked at the hand the man in blue offered him to help him up.
"Excuse the little prank, but if I hadn't brought you two so close together, my plan might have failed, and I would only have been able to save one of you. Besides, I couldn't let your attack damage Li Lun's forest," Yun Guang apologized, and Yu She stared at him.
"Who the hell are you?" he asked Yun Guang, feeling for a moment that he should somehow recognize this man, who was now clearly not a demon.
"Me? Just a sword spirit from ancient times..." he answered, his words trailing off as they struggled to recall the last mention of a sword spirit clad in blue... Wait—blue! Could it be possible? Bing Yi? The dragon god, BING YI!!
"You... you're Yun Guang?! That's impossible! Bing Yi is dead!" Du Wu shouted, pointing at him in panic.
"Even if one Master dies, there's always another, isn't there, Didi?" Yun Guang remarked, not wanting to reveal the fact that Bing Yi was still alive, nodding towards Yichen, who responded with a broad grin, met by a snort from Zhu Yan.
"Now come and show Huan Jing that you're no longer under his control," Yun Guang urged Yu She. This time, Yu She grasped Yun Guang's hand, rising to his feet and assisting his partner to do the same.
"Why did you help us? Not just us, but Zhi Ren too. You know who I really am, don't you? I could betray you at any moment."
"Of course, you can turn your back on the one who saved you. After all, you're a tainted demon. Yet, at one time, you were the only Naga among the demons. A king who was about to reach the fifth evolution of his core to become a great demon before you were trapped. Are you still the same, Yu She? Back then, you had so much pride, what happened to that?" And of course he had to bring pride into play and even Du Wu sighed as he knew what was going to happen next.
"Get back!" Wen Xiao alerted the group, not because she saw a sneak attack from Yu She, but because he was going to transform into his true form. The one he haven't used in ages and he ached to taste that power again.
They retreated to a safer location, and Zhu Yan kept Yichen close, while Yun Guang returned to Siheng, who ignored him, while looking too cute, making him laugh. Then, with a wild cry that quickly transformed into a bloodcurdling shriek, Yu She assumed his gigantic Naga form, hundreds of meters tall, as green lightning streaked across the landscape. Yu She, who originally had nine heads, had his power reduced to only seven long, powerful, and imposing heads after being controlled.
The seven heads let out a dragon-like roar that shook the earth, and even the rocks began to partially levitate, as if gravity had ceased to exist. The previous clear sky started to become stormy and flashed of lighting came down as in answer to his new reborn. This was Yu She's declaration of war against Huan Jing, and they were certain that he had heard it loud and clear.
AN: Ah, they had a bit of fun, but now the demons are a lot more stronger. Will they fight back or they will truce into taking down a common enemy? 🤷Yun Guang, you were too much. 😂😂 Thanks for reading and until next time, please take care.