Chapter 223 - 222: It’s Over, She Really Pulled It Off

Chang Qing’s appearance was timely. Li Jingxuan had only been locked in a stalemate with his Heart Demon for a moment before he forcefully suppressed it.

The Heart Demon was nothing more than a product of his distracting thoughts. It only sought to satisfy itself, giving no thought to the consequences of its actions.

As such, he could never allow the Heart Demon to control him.

Although he could temporarily suppress it, the Heart Demon would still emerge under certain circumstances, affecting him to some degree.

He had wanted to eradicate the Heart Demon more than once, but he had never found a way.

The only effective method now was to limit his contact with the person associated with the Heart Demon.

That was why he had restrained himself so forcefully, stopping himself from bringing her back.

Everything the Heart Demon had just said was, in his view, utter nonsense. He would never admit to it.

But the Heart Demon was right about one thing. In front of everyone, Chu Liangyu had produced so many Spirit Stones. Without his protection, she would certainly become a target for others.

Since he had decided to keep his distance from Chu Liangyu, he couldn’t personally go to protect her. After some thought, his gaze fell upon Chang Qing.

"Chang Qing, go and protect her. If anything comes up that you can’t handle, you may send a message to me."

Those targeting Chu Liangyu would not have low cultivation. Chang Qing’s Nascent Soul Stage cultivation could only handle them for so long. If they encountered someone with higher cultivation, Li Jingxuan would still need to intervene.

’However, I’ll try to appear as little as possible.’

’Even if I do, I won’t let her know my identity.’

"But Your Excellency, you need people here too. If I leave, who will help you?"

Chang Qing hesitated, reluctant to leave. In his eyes, that woman was the main culprit behind his master’s suffering. If she were left to fend for herself, no one would say a word.

Besides, he hadn’t been the Demon Lord for long, and the Demon Realm was currently in turmoil. The number of matters he needed to handle each day was immense.

Losing a trusted and capable assistant would only make things more difficult.

"Chang Qing, don’t make me say it a second time."

Chang Qing felt aggrieved, but he had no choice but to comply. "Yes, Your Excellency."

Seeing Li Jingxuan suppress his Heart Demon so quickly, a look of surprise flashed across Mu Jin’s face.

While neither of them was paying attention to her, Mu Jin concealed her form and vanished without a sound.

After Chang Qing left, Li Jingxuan planned to return to his own hall, but he stopped after taking a few steps.

He suddenly recalled Mu Jin’s odd behavior from just a moment ago and grew concerned. But when he looked for her, there was no trace of her left.

As if sensing something, Li Jingxuan unfurled his Divine Sense, which was at the Incarnation Stage. It enveloped the entire Demon Hall, yet he still couldn’t find any sign of Mu Jin.

"Your Excellency, Mu Jin’s body was discovered in the forbidden grounds."

Just then, a message arrived from one of Li Jingxuan’s subordinates. At these words, his probing Divine Sense paused over the forbidden grounds.

The forbidden grounds were the one place his Divine Sense couldn’t penetrate. It was no wonder he hadn’t been able to find her.

’But why would someone who was standing right in front of me just moments ago suddenly turn up dead in the forbidden grounds?’

"How long has she been dead?"

"The body is severely corroded by Demonic Qi. Our initial assessment is about six or seven days."

"I understand. You may leave."

’At this, a suspicion formed in Li Jingxuan’s mind. I’m afraid the Mu Jin I sent to care for Chu Liangyu on the very first day was not the real Mu Jin.’

’But who could be impersonating Mu Jin, and what is their motive?’

Li Jingxuan walked into Chu Liangyu’s room and examined the shattered medicine bowl on the floor.

Some medicinal liquid remained on the fragments. He picked one up and brought it closer to smell. The longer he inhaled the scent, the graver his expression became.

Though he was a Sword Cultivator, his own talent for Alchemy was also extremely high. It was impossible for him not to be able to distinguish the ingredients in a bowl of medicine and their effects.

The entire affair exuded an indescribable strangeness. Faintly, a sense of unease coiled around Li Jingxuan’s heart.

He didn’t know its source, but it made him exceptionally wary.

----

Meanwhile, Chu Liangyu sensed someone following her as soon as she left the Demon Hall.

However, she didn’t show the slightest hint of nervousness, nor did she have any intention of running away.

The Heavenly Dao huffed lightly and reminded her, "I’m not going to intervene in such a trivial matter. I suggest you hurry up and think of a solution."

Chu Liangyu, however, was focused on a message from Lou Sang on the Trading System. Not quite hearing what the Heavenly Dao said, she replied subconsciously, "Okay, I know."

The growth-accelerating herb she had asked Lou Sang to give to Xiong Jiaojiao had done its work. Her eight Beast Husbands had all consumed it, and after their Divine Souls were mended, they tried again and all successfully transformed into human form.

Seeing this news, Chu Liangyu felt half her worries lift, and a smile unconsciously graced her lips.

Seeing her like this, the Heavenly Dao felt its reminder had been wasted and became a little exasperated. "Why are you so strange? There are so many of them! With your current strength, aren’t you afraid of being captured?"

Chu Liangyu paused. This time, she heard what the Heavenly Dao said, but her expression remained unchanged.

Chu Liangyu knew the Heavenly Dao meant well. Seeing its anxiety, she soothed it, "This is all part of my plan. Just watch. You don’t need to worry about me."

"Who’s worried about you?" It huffed again. After saying this, it paused for a moment, then couldn’t help but ask curiously, "What do you mean, ’this is all part of your plan’?"

Chu Liangyu didn’t explain her answer, simply saying, "It wouldn’t be any fun if I told you."

The Heavenly Dao: ...

’Damn, she really knows how to play it cool.’

It wanted to know what Chu Liangyu’s plan was, but it was too embarrassed to ask again, so it had to shut up and watch how things unfolded.

Chu Liangyu’s current strength was only at the Golden Core Stage. She was originally at the Golden Core Late Stage, but since she started using Spirit Stones to cultivate, she was already showing signs of breaking through to the Golden Core Great Perfection realm.

Now, as she released her Divine Sense, she could naturally feel a few auras. However, these people’s cultivation was lower than hers; she couldn’t detect anyone stronger.

But that didn’t guarantee there wasn’t someone with higher cultivation among them. Their reluctance to make a move suggested they were wary of something.

Chu Liangyu thought for a moment and quickly formed a rough guess.

’Li Jingxuan probably wouldn’t follow me himself. So, the one stopping these people from acting must be a subordinate he sent.’

’Tsk... this won’t do. If they don’t make a move, the next part of my plan can’t proceed.’

After some thought, Chu Liangyu sent a message to Lou Sang to retrieve the Jade Spirit Grass.

A quarter of an hour after the other party received the message, a Jade Box appeared in Chu Liangyu’s hand.

This was the very box Chu Liangyu had given to Lou Sang, and lying inside was indeed the Jade Spirit Grass.

This was the herb Li Jingxuan needed to mend his Divine Soul. His subordinate would surely recognize it.

After asking the Heavenly Dao for the name of the subordinate following her, Chu Liangyu called out into the shadows, "Chang Qing, I know Master sent you to protect me."

"You can go back and tell him that we have nothing to do with each other from now on. I don’t need him to send anyone to protect me."

In the shadows, Chang Qing, who had concealed his aura, was utterly shocked. ’To think I was seen through by someone at the Golden Core Stage!’