Xilan was dressed in a water-blue dress. With a beaming smile, she said, "Thank you for the compliment, Your Excellency. This dress was a gift from the mermaids of the South Sea. It has the effect of clearing the mind and calming the nerves. Since I put it on, I've felt that not only has my state of mind improved, but my magic skills have also advanced."
Chongming nodded slightly. "The fluctuation of your magical power has indeed become stronger."
Xilan drew out the sword from her waist. "Your Excellency, if you don't mind, please give me some guidance!"
As she danced with the sword in the palace, it didn't look like she was really asking for guidance on magic skills at all. Instead, her eyes were full of affection. Every now and then, she would lock eyes with Chongming while her beautiful eyes fluttered. Strangely enough, Chongming was watching intently.
Seeing this scene, Yaohua couldn't help but feel extremely heart - broken.
At this moment, she suddenly felt a strange demonic aura erupting within her body. She quickly calmed her mind and found that there was actually a tiny demon seed lurking in her dantian.
Previously, when removing the heavenly demon seed from the Linglong Pagoda, this demon seed had directly burrowed into her body and disappeared. Now, sensing the strong jealous emotions within her, it secretly showed up.
Demonic aura could always amplify one's emotional perception, and the power of the demon seed was ten or even a hundred times stronger than that of the demonic aura. Although Yaohua had the true fire of the phoenix in her body to fight against the demonic aura at any time, she was completely helpless against this demon seed. She could only suffer in the throes of jealousy.
Faint mocking voices seemed to ring in her ears. "Jealous? Even if your master looks down on Xilan, Xilan can still openly come and seduce him. But what about you? In your master's eyes, you'll always just be a little apprentice."
"There's simply no possibility between you two. Once the master - apprentice relationship is established, if you were to fall in love, you'd be going against human ethics."
"Xilan is not as beautiful as you, nor does she have your status. Yet she can openly flirt with Chongming. But what about you?"
She closed her eyes, not wanting to be affected by these noisy emotions, but her anger still welled up bit by bit.
Why? Xilan had clearly been rejected by her master, yet she still had the audacity to come to the Canglan Palace?
Why? Even though her master didn't like it, he still allowed other women to come in again and again?
The voice in her ear mocked, "Neither of them is married. What right do you have to object? Unless... you're no longer his apprentice."
Yaohua closed her eyes and shook her head vigorously, but the voice became even clearer. "Become a heavenly demon—then you won't have to be restricted by any etiquette. You can bewitch Chongming and make him turn into a demon with you."
"I'll never let you succeed!" She couldn't help but shout at the demon seed in her heart. "You'll never be able to bewitch me!"
The heavenly demon seed jumped, and suddenly several cracks appeared on it. The shape of the cracks seemed like a strange smiling face. "Becoming a heavenly demon doesn't mean letting me succeed. It means letting yourself succeed. Demonic aura and spiritual bonds are just means of cultivation. If you and your master become heavenly demons together, you can also lead the heavenly demon tribe to do good deeds in the future~"
There seemed to be a strange magic in its voice as it chattered on. "Why be restricted by this damned etiquette? If it were truly just, why would it make you sacrifice yourself to suppress the heavenly demons? Why did the God - Lord break his promise? Have you forgotten? At the bottom of the Tianhe River, as a resentful spirit, you wandered for hundreds of years—all thanks to this etiquette."
"You know what happened in the secret realm?" Yaohua was shocked.
The heavenly demon seed cackled. "Accept me... The combination of the phoenix tribe and the heavenly demons is the most wonderful. Rule this world, overturn all the orders, and get everything you want—"
"Host, what are you standing here for?" The system asked curiously when Yaohua didn't say a word for a long time but her emotional fluctuations were extremely strong.
Yaohua suddenly woke up with a start. Cold sweat broke out on her back. So close! She had almost fallen into the illusion of the heavenly demon seed.
However, the bewitching demonic voice continued. And whenever she saw Xilan singing and dancing gracefully in front of Chongming, she felt unbearable. Her emotions fluctuated greatly, making it extremely easy for the demon seed to take advantage of her.
Therefore, she was very worried that she would lose control. She quickly staggered out of the Cangling Palace.
The world was vast, but who could help her out of this predicament?
She returned to her tribe, sat in meditation for a while, and recited the mind - clearing incantation dozens of times before she felt a bit better. After much thought, she paced to the dog kennel on the mountain.
In the dilapidated thatched cottage, Zhao Wu was cultivating. Sensing her arrival, he couldn't help but open his eyes. "You heartless little thing. You finally remembered to come and see me?"
Although his words were harsh, his tone was full of excitement.
Because Yaohua's arrival meant that she cared about him very much.
Yaohua rubbed her nose and stepped forward with her hands behind her back. "Come to think of it, there's something I forgot to ask. I've heard that the true fire of the phoenix can dispel all demonic auras, but the demon seeds of the heavenly demon tribe are said to be the bane of the true fire of the phoenix. Is this true?"
Zhao Wu nodded. "No one can break the demon seed, not even the phoenix tribe."
"How many such demon seeds are there? What do they look like?" Yaohua frowned. "If I encounter a heavenly demon in the future, do I need to be extra vigilant against this thing?"
"Demon seeds are extremely rare. There's probably only one in the tribe at the moment, and it probably won't be used against you. You can rest assured." Zhao Wu laughed.
Yaohua felt bitter in her heart. Right now, the only demon seed was on her body.
She thought for a while and said, "Even if the probability is low, we can't underestimate it. Is there any way to get rid of this demon seed?"
Zhao Wu shook his head. "I've never heard of a solution. Those who are infected with the demon seed have always had only one way out: to fall into becoming a heavenly demon."
"Can you think about it some more?" Yaohua frowned. "This is the only thing that can restrain our phoenix tribe."
Zhao Wu thought for a while longer. "There really isn't. However, the true fire of the phoenix can also suppress it to some extent."
After knowing that there was really no way to solve this problem, Yaohua was very disappointed. But she was also very glad that it wasn't Chongming who had been affected.
Zhao Wu asked again, "The matter of the demon seed is a secret. Ordinary people couldn't possibly know about it. How did you find out? Could it be that Zhao Yue has already targeted Chongming?"
"She's going to target my master?" Yaohua feigned surprise. "How do you know?"
"I guessed." Zhao Wu said casually. "But it doesn't really matter if you don't turn into heavenly demons. Anyway, you and I will end up in the same family sooner or later."
Yaohua sighed. "Let's talk about how to deal with Zhao Yue."
Zhao Wu said very straightforwardly, "I advise you to give up this idea! Because no one can shake Zhao Yue's position, let alone deal with her."
"What?" Yaohua was a bit surprised. "You didn't say that before."
Zhao Wu waved his hand. "I was convinced by you before. I was bewitched. Moreover, even if I didn't resist her, she would have gotten rid of me sooner or later, so I took action. But now..."