Chapter 29: The Demon’s Desperation and the Immortal’s Obsession

What is happening? He’s bored before even getting to ‘eat’ her?

Zhao Shuyun’s cheeks puffed out in annoyance.

It was utterly unfair; she had been made to lose all composure, yet the person responsible now acted as if nothing had transpired.

In truth, Su Qin was not to blame.

While his exterior remained calm, his mind was a tempest of disarray.

He was still a young, inexperienced man; how could he have encountered such a situation before!

If he were to let his thoughts run wild now, especially within an array that magnified emotions, he would surely explode.

Forget about escaping with Zhao Shuyun; if she could even break free from his Dragon Claw Hand (TL Note: A martial arts move, but here used humorously to imply a strong, possessive grip) for a single second, it would be an impressive feat.

Therefore, for now, he could only pretend that nothing had happened.

Yet the lingering taste in his mouth caused him to swallow constantly.

Zhao Shuyun, however, was oblivious to his inner turmoil.

Witnessing his indifferent reaction, she seethed inwardly, and the deep-seated insecurity within her caused her eyes to well up.

Her greatest fear was abandonment.

This fear and bitterness, amplified by the array, drove Zhao Shuyun to desperation, stripping her of any remaining composure.

“The cave was quite chilly just now,” she stammered, “and my stomach feels cold. Could you warm it for me…?”

Zhao Shuyun spoke hesitantly, wishing to warm her stomach with his fiery palm—this was almost the extent of what she could bring herself to do.

Su Qin remained silent, withdrawing his hand and turning his back to her.

Zhao Shuyun visibly froze, her vacant gaze fixed on her hands, which he had cruelly cast aside, before shifting to the demonic figure’s cold back.

Unbeknownst to her, Su Qin was on the verge of madness, even resorting to chanting Buddhist scriptures to regain his composure.

It was futile.

Su Qin’s heart grew increasingly agitated, his mind spiraling further into chaos.

Only after pulling out a piece of cloth from his pocket and sniffing it did he momentarily find a semblance of peace.

Zhao Shuyun gazed at the demonic figure, an inexplicable pang of sorrow striking her nose.

She felt as though she had reverted to that abandoned little girl, losing all sense of security in an instant.

Back then, if she had bravely stepped forward, the outcome might have been different, sparing her decades of suffering.

A fiery resolve ignited in Immortal Lingtai’s eyes.

She would stake everything on this!

***

Chanting Buddhist scriptures proving ineffective, Su Qin had barely begun reciting the opening lines of the ‘Memorial on Expeditions’ (TL Note: A famous historical Chinese political essay by Zhuge Liang), when suddenly, a weight settled on his back.

Zhao Shuyun was perched on his shoulders, her upper body bent forward, her pretty face flushed with a sickly obsession.

“What are you doing?!”

Su Qin was utterly shocked; he even suspected Zhao Shuyun intended to wring his neck.

“I want to… d-evour… you.”

Her pronunciation was clear and precise, causing the demonic figure’s mind to crash.

‘What kind of words are these? What does this even mean?’

‘A graceful, aloof immortal, threatening to ‘f*ck’ a lustful demon—is this even right?’

Immortal Lingtai, heedless of all consequences, wrapped her legs around Su Qin, clinging to him entirely.

“Mmph, mmph…”

Su Qin’s mouth was sealed.

Due to her frantic movements, Su Qin stumbled and fell, but not before instinctively protecting Zhao Shuyun.

This subtle action extinguished the last flicker of reason in Zhao Shuyun’s eyes.

“Never again, I beg you! Just a little rub!”

Su Qin continued to recite the Prime Minister’s (TL Note: Zhuge Liang) true words, attempting to use patriotic sentiments to regain his calm, but it was useless; the rationality in his eyes dwindled further.

‘No, I cannot lose my composure within such a perilous array.’

However, Zhao Shuyun clearly had no intention of stopping.

Su Qin sighed; he had no choice but to resort to force.

With a thought from the demonic figure, numerous spiritual wood vines, as thick as bowls, instantly sprouted around them, coiling around Zhao Shuyun layer after layer.

Only then did Su Qin lift Zhao Shuyun, traversing through layers of rock formations atop a symbiotic spiritual wood.

***

Bursting out of the ground, he clearly saw the state of the barrier: it was white, a misty white, and had not yet transformed into a water curtain.

‘It’s not too late,’ Su Qin breathed a sigh of relief.

Although the Immortal Slaying Array was formidable, it was not absolutely invincible.

Even the most powerful arrays or magical artifacts always left a path of survival, a ‘life gate.’

This was simple: even the grand masters who created these things could not guarantee that they would never be used against themselves.

‘Always leave a thread of possibility, for one might meet again in the future.’ (TL Note: A common Chinese idiom, ‘做事留一线，日后好相见,’ meaning to avoid burning bridges.)

Cultivators who blindly threw ‘turtle punches’ (TL Note: A term for wild, unskilled punches) and cut off all retreat would almost always suffer defeat by their own hand.

Thus, it appeared the key to escaping the Immortal Slaying Array was to maintain one’s mental clarity and depart before the water curtain fully manifested.

Su Qin ascended into the air.

All the rogue cultivators on the scene had perished, including one Golden Core (TL Note: A stage of cultivation) rogue cultivator who had met their end here.

In the center of the valley, Qi He and Gao Pei were locked in a fierce, inseparable battle.

One had unleashed the Clear River Treasure Sword, while the other commanded a few bone soldiers, simultaneously setting up formations on the spot, their hands moving so rapidly they seemed to spark.

“You dog thief, watch as I take your head!”

“Hmph! I swear to refine you into a bone soldier, then use you to slaughter the Azure Mystic Sect!”

Who would remember that their initial goal had merely been to eliminate Su Qin?

Now, not only had all the disciples they led perished, but both men had also sustained considerable injuries.

They no longer resembled the serene and composed Golden Core True Immortals; their attacks were increasingly vicious, and their words grew fouler with each exchange.

Under the array’s amplification, both men were completely overwhelmed by their emotions—this was a no-holds-barred, all-out struggle.

The two old men were so engrossed in their fight that Su Qin’s few leaps to the edge of the valley went largely unnoticed.

“Why haven’t you left yet?”

Su Qin frowned.

Gu Yuhe remained due to his command, but why was the phantom thief Bai Jiaojiao still lingering here?

Given the girl’s usual nature—first to charge for treasure, first to retreat from danger—she should have vanished long ago.

“Hmph!”

The young girl let out a cold snort, though her face was inexplicably flushed, and she kept stealing glances at Su Qin’s stern countenance from the corner of her eye.

“This young lady doesn’t need a demon like you telling her what to do! You’re truly detestable!”

“Heh, heh.

Then please be careful yourself, and whatever you do, don’t foolishly enter this array.”

Su Qin had no spare energy to concern himself with her.

Stepping onto the cliff edge, he set down Zhao Shuyun, who was bound like a twisted rope.

“Ohoho~”

That sound was… something else entirely.

Yet, after that soft moan, Zhao Shuyun once again became listless.

She had gone to such lengths, yet the demonic figure still wouldn’t ‘eat’ her.

Now, she was questioning whether she lacked charm.

‘Who could understand? To be abandoned moments after acknowledging a husband.’

Frustration, grievance, and the fear of being abandoned with nowhere to go—the light had vanished from her eyes.

“What’s wrong with her?”

Bai Jiaojiao’s expression faltered.

It was her first time witnessing a woman so utterly lost, and her curiosity was tinged with a hint of fear.

This ‘bitter almond scent’ (TL Note: A figurative expression for a dangerous or intriguing situation) immediately piqued Su Qin’s interest.

‘Are you scared?’

Su Qin blinked, instantly devising a way to frighten her.

“Tiger girl, aren’t you the phantom thief of the Southern Reaches? Don’t you even know what happened to her?”

Bai Jiaojiao pouted.

Su Qin stepped forward and flipped Immortal Lingtai over; the look in her eyes was enough to inspire an entire ancient-style tragic romance.

“She just wouldn’t listen, insisting on entering the Immortal Slaying Array.

Now, she’s fallen victim to its trap: if she doesn’t engage in ‘male-female intimacy’ (TL Note: A euphemism for sexual intercourse) within half an hour, she will burn to death from overwhelming desire.”

“M-male-female intimacy? Burn to death?!”

Bai Jiaojiao’s eyes widened.

She wasn’t entirely ignorant of matters between men and women, but this particular predicament still astonished her.

Due to subjective interference from a certain individual, Bai Jiaojiao believed that having children only required sleeping together for one night, and that ‘male-female intimacy’ would only lead one to hell.

Her expression towards the array involuntarily grew more fearful, and the idea of leaving had already begun to sprout in her heart.

“Girl, you still don’t know my reputation, do you? Nor do you understand my methods.”

Su Qin placed his hand on Zhao Shuyun’s waist.

She instantly let out a delicate moan, her body trembling violently, her pretty face displaying an expression that was either agony or sheer ecstasy.

‘This demon, if he wants to ‘eat’ her, then do it.

If not, then stop.

Why does he keep toying with her!’

‘The mental manipulation of this Immortal Slaying Array is truly formidable; even outside the array, she hasn’t shaken off its influence.’

Su Qin inwardly felt a chill of fear, but now, it was time to scare the child.

“Aren’t you curious what I’ll do after I’ve captured her?”