Chapter 74: My Empire

A sudden chill ran down Yun Jiao’s spine. She rubbed the goosebumps on her arm before raising the marriage contract in her hand again and said calmly, “Your Majesty, please take this marriage contract back.”

The Demon King blinked in confusion. “Why?”

“Perhaps what I said earlier made you misunderstand, but I truly never intended to marry you.” Yun Jiao spoke frankly, her tone firm. “Marriage should be about mutual affection. You and I have only met twice. There are no feelings between us—jumping straight to marriage is entirely inappropriate.”

The Demon King didn’t seem bothered. He looked at her again, then coughed lightly, turning his head aside as if to conceal his embarrassment. “It’s fine. I… am very satisfied with you.”

But I’m not satisfied with you! And why the hell was he blushing?!

“Your Majesty,” Yun Jiao took a deep breath. Clearly, polite refusal wasn’t getting through. “Let me be honest with you—I don’t like you. That’s why I don’t want to marry you.”

“What?” The Demon King froze, disbelief flashing across his face. She wasn’t the one who demanded to be queen? How could she suddenly reject him? An inexplicable emptiness filled his chest. “Why not? If you marry me, you’ll be the queen of the entire demon realm!”

“I don’t need that!” Yun Jiao replied firmly. “I’m twenty-eight years old, not some naive little girl who’s never seen the world. I’ve had countless people pursue me.”

As a woman who had breezed through every level of education from elementary school to a PhD, she had no shortage of suitors. “But no matter what they offered me—money, wealth, status, or power—I never accepted, because I believe that anything worth having, I can earn myself. I don’t need anyone’s charity. If one day I choose to marry, it’ll be because I like that person. For no other reason.”

She took a steadying breath and met the Demon King’s now slightly crestfallen gaze. “So, Your Majesty, I don’t need the title of queen. Many people have promised me great things—you’re not the first, and you won’t be the last.”

“But I’m the most sincere one!” the Demon King exclaimed, growing flustered.

“No,” Yun Jiao blurted out before she could stop herself. “You’re the oldest one!”

“……”

Old.

Old.

Old.

Did this little human doctor just call him old?!

○|￣|_

The Demon King felt an invisible blade stab straight through his chest—it was icy cold. All the warmth and excitement he’d felt while writing that marriage contract instantly vanished, like a bucket of cold water poured over a fire.

He wasn’t that old! He’d only cultivated for less than three thousand years! In demon terms, that was prime age! The female demons in his realm practically worshiped him!

He subconsciously touched his face. Was it his looks? His current form was shapeshifted anyway—he could always change it!

He looked at Yun Jiao again. Her expression was deadly serious—exactly like when she’d first asked for “the most precious reward.”

Could it be… that he’d completely misunderstood her? Was this all just a delusion on his part?

No, impossible! As the Demon King, he refused to believe he lacked charm!

“I see now,” he said solemnly. “Little Yun must think I haven’t shown enough sincerity!”

“No, Your Maj—”

“Perfect! There’s something I’ve been meaning to show you anyway.” Before Yun Jiao could finish, the Demon King suddenly stepped forward and grabbed her hand. “Come with me!”

“Wait!” Yun Jiao instinctively tried to pull back, but before she could react, her surroundings blurred. Wind roared in her ears, and in the next instant, she found herself standing atop a towering mountain peak shrouded in mist.

Startled, she looked down—and saw the Demon King’s palace below, tiny as a jewelry box. Her knees nearly gave out. So high! Too high! Her stomach dropped.

Oh no, she thought nervously. He wouldn’t throw me off this cliff in anger, would he?

Cautiously, she stepped back a little. For the first time, she regretted not listening to her old master. He’d said no good ever came from treating beasts. She should’ve just stewed the fox when she had the chance—would’ve saved her all this trouble.

“Little Yun,” the Demon King said gravely, looking at her with burning seriousness. “You’re human, so perhaps you don’t understand. My wolf clan is loyal to a single mate for life. A wife is one with her husband. And the queen of the wolf clan is considered equal to me. In other words, if you marry me, you will become the second king of the demon realm.”

He lifted his chin proudly, his voice carrying the full weight of a ruler’s dominance. “The entire demon realm will be yours. Every demon will be your subject.”

He gestured toward the vast lands below—the endless mountains piercing the clouds, the winding rivers glimmering under sunlight, the boundless earth stretching beyond the horizon. His eyes gleamed with pride as he declared, “Everything your eyes behold will belong to you—”

BOOM!

Before he could finish, blinding beams of white light suddenly tore through the sky like a barrage of celestial cannons, raining down furiously upon the land. The deafening explosions shook heaven and earth.

In the blink of an eye, everything the Demon King had just pointed to—his mountains, rivers, and lands—was obliterated, shredded into nothingness. The once-grand kingdom was reduced to scorched ruin.

The ground quaked violently, the air filled with the roar of collapsing earth. Beyond the royal city, nothing remained but blackened wasteland.

The Demon King: “……”

Yun Jiao: “……”

So… the great empire he just offered me… seems to be gone?

(⊙_⊙)

Before either could process what happened, the very sky split apart. A massive rift spread across the heavens as if something was tearing open the world itself. Blinding white light burst through the crack, illuminating the demon realm like a second sun.

The assembled demons below shielded their eyes from the searing brilliance, but a moment later, a crushing aura descended upon them. The pressure was suffocating—so immense that even the Demon King staggered, his face turning pale. His legs trembled, and he felt an overwhelming urge to kneel.

Then, a cold voice echoed through the heavens. It wasn’t loud, yet it resounded across every corner of the demon realm.

“Wretched beast, where have you hidden my little disciple?”

The oppressive power intensified. Countless demons felt their cores cracking under the pressure.

Yun Jiao, however, picked up on the subtext hidden beneath those words—

—I missed two meals because of you!

Yun Jiao: “……”

Why did that sound… oddly familiar?

“Who dares trespass into the demon realm?!” the Demon King roared, finally recovering his wits. His fury blazed as he shot into the sky. “How dare you—AH!”

THUD!

Before he could even see who it was, a colossal force struck him down from above. He was swatted out of the air like a fly, crashing into the royal city with a thunderous boom—buried three feet deep in the ground.

Instant defeat.

The demons: “……”

Yun Jiao: “……”

…Well.

Guess her shift was officially over.

(End of Chapter)