The Demon Lord spat out blood, and Xie Jin was stunned. Under his careful treatment, the Demon Lord's condition had clearly improved. Now that the medicinal ingredient had been found, why was he still spitting blood?
"My Lord Demon Lord!" Xie Jin cried out, putting down the medicine bowl and frantically checking. "My Lord Demon Lord, what's wrong?"
Jian Lin stood at the doorway, at a loss. If she guessed correctly, the Demon Lord had been angered to the point of spitting blood by her.
But it shouldn't be like this. She had returned to her original appearance and hidden her scent. To the Demon Lord, she was now just a stranger.
How could one spit blood from excitement upon seeing a stranger?
Unless, in the Demon Lord's eyes, she wasn't a stranger.
Jian Lin's heart skipped a beat. Although she didn't know what had happened, she was certain that the Demon Lord must have recognized her.
Being able to recognize her face meant that perhaps he had recovered his sealed memories.
Jian Lin had originally planned to use another identity to gain favor with the Demon Lord. It seemed that this plan would not work.
Her ears burned, and she felt ashamed. She turned to leave.
Unexpectedly, Hong Qu stopped her, pushed her into the inner room, and knelt, begging her, "Mountain God, you must be very powerful. Please save my master."
Xie Jin's head ached. He glared back at Hong Qu, then looked at Jian Lin with disbelief.
What mountain god? It was probably just a demon. How could she possibly save the Demon Lord? She was just wishful thinking!
Jian Lin was in a dilemma. With Hong Qu blocking her, she couldn't leave. Since that was the case, she might as well try to save the Demon Lord.
With that thought, she gritted her teeth, pulled Xie Jin away, supported the Demon Lord's shoulders, and leaned in, mouth to mouth, transferring some of her primordial spirit power to him.
With primordial spirit power, the dead could be resurrected, let alone mere injured individuals. The Demon Lord quickly recovered, opened his eyes, and stared blankly at Jian Lin.
Xie Jin exclaimed from the side, realizing he had underestimated her. With a breath of immortal energy, she had actually saved the Demon Lord. Could she really be a mountain god?
"Why did you come back to save me?" the Demon Lord said weakly. "This is an insult to me."
Jian Lin wiped the blood from his lips with a silk handkerchief and said guiltily, "I'm sorry, it's my fault."
"You must have already obtained everything you wanted," the Demon Lord said with cold eyes. "Don't bother me again. From now on, my life or death has nothing to do with you. You may leave."
Jian Lin suppressed her grief. She had indeed done something wicked. It was only natural that the Demon Lord did not want to see her.
She couldn't shamelessly stay by his side. "Alright, I'll leave."
Jian Lin readily agreed, lightly released the Demon Lord's shoulders, and turned to leave the small wooden house.
Xie Jin was confused. Did the Demon Lord's words mean that he was an old acquaintance of that mountain god?
Seeing Jian Lin leave, he looked as if he had something to say but couldn't. He didn't know what to say.
The Demon Lord closed his eyes and coughed painfully a few times. Xie Jin snapped back to reality, no longer thinking about who that person was. He quickly attended to the Demon Lord and served him the soup containing the medicinal ingredient.
With Jian Lin's immortal energy and the finest tonic, the Demon Lord stabilized considerably, and his complexion was no longer so pale.
Xie Jin breathed a sigh of relief and called Hong Qu out. The two of them whispered outside.
"Don't you think that mountain god is very strange?" Xie Jin asked.
Prompted by Xie Jin, Hong Qu also sensed something was amiss. "Now that you mention it, it is a bit strange. I didn't expect the Demon Lord to know any mountain gods."
"How are you so sure she's a mountain god?" Xie Jin retorted.
"We set up so many formations. No human or demon could have followed us so easily. So, she can only be a mountain god living here. This is her territory," Hong Qu explained logically.
Xie Jin was convinced by her explanation. Coupled with the fact that she had saved the Demon Lord, he gradually began to believe she was a mountain god and became even more curious about the Demon Lord's relationship with her.
Speaking of which, they had been fleeing and had arrived at this secluded mountain valley with a small wooden house according to the Demon Lord's instructions.
The small wooden house was built by the Demon Lord. He didn't know when it was built. If that was the case, perhaps the Demon Lord and this mountain god had a story they had to tell.
The more Xie Jin thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed. He never considered the mountain god and Jian Lin to be the same person.
After all, according to the Demon Lord, Jian Lin had stolen his Xingtian Sword, ascended to godhood, and was now enjoying herself in the divine realm.
Two more days passed, and the Demon Lord's condition improved greatly. Although he slept most of the day, sleeping was good; it was better than being tormented to death by pain.
The Demon Lord's health had improved significantly, and Xie Jin had the leisure to wander around. He asked Hong Qu where she had met the mountain god and decided to try his luck under that tree himself.
"Mountain God, are you there? Come out and chat," Xie Jin called out from under the tree.
Jian Lin was not actually there. Hearing Xie Jin's call, she flashed and appeared, landing in front of him.
"Are you looking for me? Is something wrong with the Demon Lord?" Jian Lin asked with concern.
"No, the Demon Lord is doing quite well," Xie Jin said with a gossip-filled expression, asking curiously, "As for you, you seem to care a lot about our Demon Lord."
Jian Lin realized that Xie Jin, this fellow, had not recognized her and was trying to pry, thinking she had some unspeakable relationship with the Demon Lord.
"Yes, I care about him a lot," Jian Lin said with a smile. "If anything happens to him, you must come and find me. I will definitely help him."
Hearing her say this, Xie Jin became even more certain that his guess was correct. He gradually let down his guard and chatted with Jian Lin, wanting to know about her past with the Demon Lord.
Jian Lin was unaware of his little scheme and did not fall for it. Instead, she began to inquire about the Demon Lord.
Xie Jin wanted to elicit information, so he couldn't refuse too obviously and had to tell Jian Lin.
From how they suffered misfortune, to breaking through the encirclement and escaping, they had been living in fear and hardship all the way.
Jian Lin learned from his words that the Grand Steward had died saving the Demon Lord. They had been separated from the Sword Immortal, and she didn't know where he was now or if he was well.
As they spoke, they inevitably brought up the culprit.
Xie Jin said hatefully, "Thinking about it now, that woman might have betrayed our Demon Lord long ago. She's from the Guanlan Sect, and she might have been a spy, colluding with the immortal sects to take our Demon Lord's life. Alas, it's our fault for misjudging her. I used to consider her a friend, but now I only feel disgusted. Humph!"
Jian Lin was verbally abused and felt incredibly sad. She also considered Xie Jin a good friend and truly wished to gain his forgiveness.
After chatting with Xie Jin that day, Jian Lin left the valley and went out to search for the immortal sword.
Soon, she found the Sword Immortal. To her surprise, Tao Niang was unharmed and had been by the Sword Immortal's side all along.
The Sword Immortal wandered among the warring immortal sects, healing and saving people, asking for no fame or reward. He had only one request for the disciples he saved: to cultivate diligently, uphold justice, and be good people.
Jian Lin understood the Sword Immortal's actions. He had been in seclusion for many years, and his worldview had been shattered by the Guanlan Sect. What he was doing now was simply to save himself.
After confirming that the Sword Immortal was fine, Jian Lin returned to the valley.
The Demon Lord's injuries had mostly healed, and he could go out for a walk. It was the warm spring and summer season, and the valley was filled with various small flowers, resembling a fairyland, making it a good place for recuperation.
The Demon Lord would go out for a stroll every day, sitting on the hillside, gazing at the boundless wildflowers in a daze.
He would sit there for half the day, with no expression, looking very bored, his back appearing lonely and pathetic.
Jian Lin hid in the woods and watched him, her heart aching.
The Xingtian Sword was like a backbone to the Demon Lord, integrated into his blood, supporting his sea of consciousness. Losing the Xingtian Sword meant losing everything.
He was once such a powerful and unrestrained figure. Now, having lost the Xingtian Sword, although his life was saved, he was essentially crippled. Such a drastic change must be very difficult for him.
Even if his body was fine, his mind would surely suffer.
Not long after, the dry rations they brought were depleted. The Demon Lord was now a mortal and needed to eat to maintain his strength. Xie Jin left alone to buy food.
Hong Qu was left to take care of the Demon Lord. Unfortunately, she didn't know how to cook. Every day, after returning from hunting, the Demon Lord had to prepare the food himself.
From then on, he seemed to have developed an interest in food. Besides processing small animals, he also started cultivating land and growing vegetables, busy with a hoe modified from a dagger around the house every day.
Jian Lin dared not approach. Every day, she would go out for a walk to ensure that the wars between the immortal sects were within a controllable range and did not harm the human world.
After returning, she would watch the Demon Lord cultivate his land and grow vegetables.
Half a month passed in the blink of an eye. One day, Hong Qu went out hunting and accidentally ventured deep into the forest. While chasing a rabbit, she encountered a thousand-year-old python.
The python had lived in the forest for hundreds of years and showed signs of becoming a spirit. Hong Qu, influenced by the Demon Lord, was already weakened. As soon as the python bit her hind leg, it coiled around her, tightly binding her.
The constricting force of the python was not to be underestimated. Hong Qu couldn't break free for a moment and was on the verge of suffocating.
Jian Lin sensed her danger and immediately descended from the sky, rescuing her from the python's embrace.
However, she did not harm the python. If it had caught Hong Qu today and killed her, absorbing her demon core, its cultivation could have advanced by leaps and bounds in a single day.
Jian Lin's rescue of Hong Qu had interrupted its opportunity. After much thought, Jian Lin reached out and stroked its forehead, compensating it with some cultivation.
"Cultivate well. In another ten years, you will surely be able to form a golden core," Jian Lin said softly to the python.
The python, enlightened, returned to its cave to continue cultivating.
Jian Lin, with Hong Qu, returned her to the Demon Lord's side at the fastest speed. During the journey, she helped detoxify her and treated her external injuries. As long as she rested for a period, she would be mostly fine.
Jian Lin delivered Hong Qu to the doorstep, knocked on the door, and then hid in a tree to watch.
She saw the Demon Lord open the door. He was only stunned for a moment before squatting down, picking up the red fox, and returning to the small wooden house.
The door closed again. Jian Lin stared at the door knocker, lost in thought. Compared to Hong Qu's injuries, she was more worried about what the Demon Lord would eat next. If she sent him food, would he accept it?
After much deliberation, Jian Lin decided to send some food. Whether he threw it away was his business; whether she sent it was hers.
Without hesitation, she acted immediately, traveling a thousand miles to buy a portion of osmanthus cake and placing it at the door of the small wooden house.
Later that evening, the Demon Lord came out to fetch water. He saw the food box and froze for a long time. Finally, he slowly bent down, picked it up, and returned inside.
Seeing this, Jian Lin's heart bloomed with joy. Eating her food meant he didn't hate her as much.
From that day on, Jian Lin persisted, going to various places and sending the Demon Lord delicious food in various ways. He received them all without refusal.
After seven or eight days, when Hong Qu had recovered and went out hunting again, Jian Lin stopped sending food, lest she be a nuisance.
That day, she sat in a tree, closed her eyes, and released her divine sense to patrol the various realms. She discovered that the demon realm had recently been in turmoil.
Since the death of the Demon Emperor, there had been no leader, and the demons ran wild, killing each other without purpose.
It would have been one thing if the demons had a goal, such as vying for the next Demon Emperor or aiming to ascend to godhood, but they had none of that.
The demons were simply killing each other out of boredom, a pure waste of resources. Jian Lin found it headache-inducing, wondering if she should visit the demon realm in the near future and find a leading demon with a goal to properly sort out the demon realm.
This matter was not as simple as peaceful warfare. If she left, it would be for a very long time. What about the Demon Lord then?
Just as she was agonizing over this, the Demon Lord actually walked out of the small wooden house and headed straight into the woods.
He stood at the edge and said clearly, "Come out. I want to see you."
Jian Lin remained motionless, unsure if the Demon Lord was speaking to someone.
"I'm talking to you, the one who sent me osmanthus cake. I know you can hear me. Come out." The Demon Lord spoke again.
This time, Jian Lin knew he was calling her.
She took a deep breath, prepared herself, jumped down from the tree, and stood before the Demon Lord, scratching her ear awkwardly. "You called me?"
"Yes, I called you," the Demon Lord said, lowering his gaze to her. He paused, then slowly said, "I have something to ask of you."
She couldn't possibly accept such a request.
Jian Lin looked up, surprise flashing in her eyes, and dared not agree.
Although she was a god, she could not arbitrarily interfere with the fate of others, or it would lead to chaos in the world.
However, since the Demon Lord had asked for a favor, she couldn't refuse.
Jian Lin was in a dilemma. She cautiously asked, "What do you want me to do?"
The Demon Lord saw her difficulty and immediately explained, "It's not a difficult matter. You know, Hong Qu's strength is gradually weakening due to my influence. Before long, she may no longer be able to transform into human form. I want to ask you to sever our contract. You can do this, can't you?"
Indeed, she could. This was not a major issue and did not change anyone's destiny. Jian Lin agreed, "I can help you."
"I have another condition. Do not tell Hong Qu about this. You will dissolve the contract alone," the Demon Lord added.
Jian Lin understood immediately. Hong Qu was loyal and devoted to her master. She would not agree to sever the contract with the Demon Lord. It indeed had to be done secretly.
However, Jian Lin did not quite agree with the Demon Lord's approach. "You should tell her. You cannot make decisions for her."
The Demon Lord did not even raise his eyelids and said impatiently, "If you're not helping, then forget it."
With that, he turned to leave.
Jian Lin became anxious and chased after him, saying, "Oh, don't be in a hurry. Listen to me. Hong Qu is following you now, and her strength is indeed declining, but she is happy. If the contract is severed, her strength will recover, and she might be sad. We must respect her choice."
The Demon Lord suddenly stopped, turned back, and glared at Jian Lin, saying coldly, "So, no one cares if I'm happy or not, is that it?"
Jian Lin choked, dared not speak, and silently lowered her head.
"I only want one sentence from you: will you help or not?" the Demon Lord issued an ultimatum.