After bidding farewell to Zhaozhao, Su Yuan went alone to soak in the frigid abyss pool.
The limbs of his body were bound by the black iron shackles tempered by the Nantian Mingli Fire. Every time his sins flared up, he endured it like this.
However, as time went by, even the Nantian Mingli Fire, which was extremely effective against evil qi, was almost useless.
Soaked in the icy pool water, cold sweat broke out on Su Yuan's forehead. It seemed that... he had some vague memories of last night.
He had clung to Zhaozhao like a lewd drug addict, shamelessly sucking on her slender finger, like a pervert.
Those lascivious scenes flashed before his eyes. Zhaozhao was pressed in his arms, and his lips and tongue kissed her delicate skin, stifling her soft moans.
The remaining rationality in his memory stopped him from doing more outrageous things, but it didn't make much difference. He was still equally detestable.
For tens of thousands of years, he had lived a pure and ascetic life. Su Yuan never imagined that he would do such a thing to the innocent Zhaozhao when he lost control.
Overwhelming guilt and shame enveloped Su Yuan. He was plunged into endless self - reproach and remorse.
Zhaozhao was like a blank sheet of paper, knowing nothing about love. Her non - resistance last night was simply because of her kindness, all out of a desire to help him.
But what had he done to her?!
If one day in the future, she understood these things and had someone she liked, and then recalled these events, how would she view him?
Su Yuan couldn't help but wonder. Would she hate him? Would she resent him?
Anxiety and panic took over Su Yuan's emotions. However, more than these, he was enraged by the mere possibility of Zhaozhao having someone she liked.
It shouldn't be like this!
It wasn't!
Flames faintly emerged from the black iron shackles, tightening bit by bit. Su Yuan was almost suffocating.
He was on the verge of losing control.
Strands of black mist seeped out from his chest. Su Yuan's sins were flaring up again.
"What are you running away from?" A familiar voice rang out. Su Yuan looked up. In the black mist, it was him, or rather, his inner demon.
Those deeply affected by the sins of killing were most likely to magnify their inner desires during such vulnerable moments after enduring day - after - day torment.
The person in front of him was him and yet not him.
He was the most secret and disgraceful part of Su Yuan's heart, born from the obsession that Su Yuan himself had never dared to face.
"Admit it. You have desires for her, those selfish and despicable desires."
"She is so close to you and has no defenses against you, yet you have such thoughts about her. What are you going to do?"
What should I do? Yes, what should I do?
Su Yuan couldn't figure it out. His head was splitting with pain. But it shouldn't be like this...
"Stop struggling. Indulge yourself. Haven't you been suppressing yourself for thousands of years? Go! Seize her, possess her! What's the use of all these complicated emotions? It's all just the instinct of a beast. Whether you like her or not doesn't really matter, does it?"
"She knows nothing. As long as you use a little trick, she's yours for the taking. Go! What are you waiting for?!"
The inner demon whispered and tempted him. His rationality was on the verge of collapse. In a daze, he seemed to see that smiling face again.
"Hello, hubby. May I ask who you're looking for?"
"Su Yuan, give me a hug..."
"Su Yuan, Su Yuan, Su Yuan..."
"Heh..." Su Yuan let out a hoarse laugh. His eyes were as red as blood, but his mind had never been clearer. "Even if one day, as the Earth - Listening Beast said, it should be up to her to decide. No one should try to manipulate her. Not even myself!"
The black mist dispersed at his words, and the inner demon disappeared. As for Su Yuan, he completely lost his strength. Bound by the shackles, he gasped for breath.
Just before losing consciousness, the inner demon's words "selfish and despicable desires" lingered in Su Yuan's mind.
Su Yuan had been a dominant figure for tens of thousands of years, standing at the top of all the demons, on par with a divine lord. This was the first time he felt unworthy.
Zhaozhao was the moon in the sky, the star among the clouds; he was the monster in the abyss, the shadow on the ground.
Maybe the Earth - Listening Beast was wrong sometimes...
---
Nan Jia, who was guarding Su Yuan's residence, stared at Zhaozhao, who had slept until late afternoon, with a rather interesting expression. "Sweetheart, are you... okay?"
Zhaozhao was just shaking her head, looking for Su Yuan. Suddenly hearing Nan Jia's words, she was really taken aback.
"Huh? I'm fine."
Nan Jia had an expression that seemed to say "Don't be brave. I understand everything" and didn't care what Zhaozhao said at all. "Poor thing. Sister will take you to eat something delicious later."
What poor thing? Zhaozhao was utterly confused. Was she talking about herself?
But as a qualified foodie, upon hearing about delicious food, she didn't care about anything else. After learning that Su Yuan was okay, she carelessly followed Nan Jia away.
Halfway there, she suddenly remembered her newly acquired "little" spiritual pet. Following the clues left by Taotie, she returned to the apartment.
In the apartment, Taotie was burying itself in a soft nest, wailing loudly. Its appearance was a far cry from the image of a fierce beast it always boasted about.
Taotie's cries were so loud that it hurt the ears of everyone present. Seeing its pitiful look, Zhaozhao was shocked and covered her ears, asking, "What's wrong with you? Stop crying. Tell me."
"Waaaaa!" An ancient fierce beast was crying like a child. "It's all your fault. Now I've become the spiritual pet of a puny human. I've lost all my face in front of my brothers!"
Zhaozhao wanted to say that she hadn't done it on purpose, but for now, she had to comfort this fat fierce beast.
"Alright, alright. Don't be sad." Zhaozhao stroked Taotie's fur. "We haven't met your brothers yet. Don't be too sad. If this situation arises in the future, we'll disguise ourselves in advance. How about that?"
"Wait!" Nan Jia, who had been listening for a while, suddenly reacted. "Chu Ming is your fourth brother?"
Taotie stopped crying instantly and bared its teeth threateningly. "I'm warning you, little fox. Don't say a word."
It had been guarding in front of Yinglong's house. If it had been a second slower, it would have been caught by its brother.
"... Puhahaha!" Nan Jia laughed maniacally. "Chu Ming was right. You're really just a gluttonous fool—"
Seeing that Nan Jia was about to blurt out an unpleasant name, Zhaozhao twitched the corner of her eye and covered her mouth. "No! You're so cute! A little fierce beast who loves to eat is the cutest!"
...
After three seconds of silence in the air, Taotie took the opportunity to climb down the slope. "Really?"
"Yeah." Zhaozhao nodded vigorously. Please stop crying. Her ears hurt.
"Okay then. If someone is willing to bring me thirty Family Buckets, twenty plates of baked spaghetti, and ten cups of human milk tea when they come back, I can reluctantly stop being so sad."
"Okay!" At this moment, Zhaozhao, who didn't yet know the gravity of the situation, readily agreed, fearing that Taotie would go back on its word.
Nan Jia could only give her a sympathetic look. Poor girl, your "good fortune" is yet to come.