The Moonlight illuminates the blood-soaked black jade!

»I was on the road for several thousand years. As Xiao Lian had wished, I learned. I learned a great deal about the world, about the beings that lived in it, and about balance. About the energies, Ying and Yan. I didn't interfere unless I thought it necessary.

I killed many, not only on the Daiyu Plain, but also later. It took me a while to understand what it meant that every life was equally valuable. Even today, take this Chen Qian fan, why is his life worth the same as yours, A'yue?« The demon ended his story with a question.

Ying yue still lay in his arms in the bed in the tea house. Although he had been bathed and had fresh clothes on, they hadn't left the room in days. Chen Qian fan had been Chen Chen lu's husband. Ying yue rubbed the bridge of his nose and thought for a moment before answering.

»Only as long as someone is alive can he regret his actions and repent,« he finally said. »If you had been killed for your actions back then, or if the goddess Xiao Lian had turned away from you because she would have considered you worthless. You could never have become who you are today, and I would never have met you,« he added more quietly.

»And we couldn't have gotten married, my goodness, what a gruesome thought,« Zhen yan laughed and hugged Ying yue even closer.

Ying yue didn't resist, he breathed in the scent of flowers and cedarwood, now a few things made more sense.

»Zhen yan, the splinter of the tortoise, did you destroy it?« he asked. Zhen yan sighed, and Ying yue felt his deep breath.

»No, I took it,« he confessed. ‚It's a part of me, it feels like you took one of my fingers,' he grumbled, alluding to the splinter that Ying yue had taken from the demonic bride.

»Don't complain, if it was like that, you should have noticed that the jade was removed from the plain and distributed,« Ying yue said coldly. Zhen yan laughed softly.

»You're right. In fact, it's more like they took something very personal from me and misused it. It makes me angry, but as long as you have a part of it, it's okay. I don't mind giving you all of me!« he breathed in his ear and kissed him.

First on Ying yue's ear tips, then it wandered over his face to his lips. It was a nice feeling, now that the young, usually so reserved swordsman didn't resist him so vehemently anymore. Zhen yan's heart leaped when Ying yue bent towards him and willingly opened his lips to welcome his tongue.

The kiss quickly became hot and intense, Ying yue could hardly suppress a moan and Zhen yan's hands glided along his body, caressing spots that aroused a dangerous desire and tension in him.

»Zhen yan, don't...« Ying yue protested weakly. Zhen yan rolled onto top of him, covered his neck and chest with kisses, while he gently pulled at his robe and exposed his upper body.

The demon's black hair tickled his chest. Ying yue wrapped one hand around the edge of the bed, and with the other he stroked Zhen yan's hair and face, looking into the dark green eyes, which had a slight reddish tinge. Zhen yan was leaning over him, grinning, when there was a loud knock at the door.

»Bai Gongzi?« a worried voice called. Ying yue froze. Zhen yan pushed him angrily back into the bed and held his hands in Ying yue's, to prevent him from doing anything rash, as the door swung open. Wang Bing wen stood thunderstruck at the door, looking for help. His eyes slid to Yian, who was standing next to him. He had placed his fan over the lower half of his face and was just hiding the other hand, with which he had opened the door, behind his back.

Ying yue stiffened, and since he didn't have his hands free, he pushed Zhen yan away and maneuvered him in a high arc behind the bed before he straightened his robes and stood up. His face was bright red, and Zhen yan's otherwise well-proportioned features had also turned a slight red. But for him, it was more the anger with which he regarded Yian than real shame.

»Wang Gongzi,« Ying yue cleared his throat. »Wang Gongzi, what are you doing here?« he asked more composedly, trying as calmly as possible to put on his robe without his trembling fingers tangling. Wang Bing wen, who had been standing indecisively in the doorway, entered the room and tried to act as if he hadn't seen anything, for Ying yue's sake.

»You've been holed up up here for quite a while...« he said, biting his tongue just in time before he could make a normally harmless remark. »After we escorted the inhabitants of Suzhou back to their home, we actually wanted to hold an emergency meeting with you,« he said.

»We had no idea that you were having such an important conversation,« Yian remarked pointedly, hiding his grin behind the fan he opened energetically. Bing wen put his head in his right hand and tried to ignore what Yian had said. Ying yue had sat down at the table in front of him and also ignored the fox's comment. Zhen yan stepped forward and glared openly at the red-haired man.

»Yes, and I don't appreciate being constantly interrupted,« he remarked venomously.

»Constantly? Then you must be doing something wrong, mustn't you? Perhaps you should choose your where more carefully. A place where you can't be constantly interrupted, honored Daiyuzhu,« Yian replied, watching Ying yue's reaction to the title he addressed. But Ying yue and Wang Bing wen were sitting opposite each other. They tried hard not to make eye contact and hid their white knuckles under the table. Yian was a little disappointed, apparently Ying yue had already known who the mysterious great demon was with whom he surrounded himself.

Of course, you would have to be blind not to have noticed. Unsatisfied, he turned away from Zhen yan; if he couldn't wreak havoc, his business here was settled. Bing wen cleared his throat, but this time Ying yue cut him off before he could address another request to him.

»Wang Gongzi, with all due respect, it is time for me to return home. If you have any further requests, please send them officially to the Bai clan and I will take care of them as soon as my father gives me the necessary instructions,« he said soberly. He hadn't returned to the Bai family estate for over three months and, according to the rumors that were circulating, she wouldn't have reached it. He urgently needed to clarify some things. Wang Bing wen nodded, he had expected that.

»Indeed, the flood of requests for help is not abating, Bai Gongzi,« he sighed. »I will also make my way back to the main residence of the Wang family. Battle plans and troops must be set up. If the new demons overrun us, it is only a matter of time before the old ones hiding among us join them. Once crowds of refugees start moving, civil wars and uprisings are inevitable,« he explained. Ying yue nodded in agreement.

That was true, the situation was tense. After the eternal conflict in the Fubai senlin, many fighters and magicians were not yet fully capable of fighting again. If the Yao now overran the cities and the people sought refuge, they would face closed gates sooner than later. A few dozen could perhaps be accommodated, but hundreds or even thousands of panicked, frightened people would be almost impossible to control.

Ying yue clenched his fingers into the fabric of his robe, he glanced at Zhen yan, who had sat down on the bed disinterestedly and glared angrily at Yian. He still didn't know how much Wang Bing wen could be trusted, but he had been seized by a new kind of self-confidence; he wanted to try, he wanted to trust. How light the world could be when you had someone you could rely on. When there was someone there when you reached out. He took the jade splinter out of his robe.

Zhen yan narrowed his eyes briefly when Yian and Bing wen stared at it, but quickly relaxed again. Ying yue laid the splinter on the table in front of him. It wasn't big, maybe ten or fifteen centimeters long and two to three centimeters thick.

»This is one of the jade shards. I took it from the bride,« he explained. ‚The shard has been polished, it's not just a shapeless fragment. Someone went to the trouble of refining the jade and reshaping it to their liking,' he shared his thoughts aloud. »We also found a similar, but much bigger splinter at the source in the corrupted forest. However, Zhen yan destroyed this one.«

»Do you think that the demon hosts have such a splinter?« Bing wen asked and swallowed. Before Ying yue could answer, Zhen yan spoke first.

»No,« he replied firmly. ‚This jade from the Daiyu Plains cannot be used by just anyone. The first monster was a divine beast that had been corrupted, the second a demoness that seemed to have been created for the purpose. Normal demons would crumble to dust and ashes if they touched such a splinter,' he said, casting a spiteful glance at Yian.

»Why don't you ask your fox if he would touch the piece voluntarily?« he added. Bing wen's head shot up to Yian. The fox turned very pale and shook his head energetically.

»It's quite possible that someone has also removed the seal with the jade and can control the demons with a tool made from the jade.« Everyone stared at the black splinter. Wang Bing wen shifted uneasily on his seat, it was clear what he wanted to say, but he also knew that it was not his place to make this request. He looked to Ying yue for help.

The young man's feelings were difficult to describe. In addition to a certain pride and warmth, there was also rejection; he didn't want to use Zhen yan, he didn't want to ask him to do things that he knew he would only do for him.

On the other hand, it wasn't a request, like him taking over the cooking or washing the rice, even that the great demon would do with a smile on his lips, as long as Ying yue asked him to. His heart contracted painfully and at the same time filled with a pleasant warmth. For the first time, he realized not only what Zhen Yan would do for him, but also what he was willing to do for the demon.

The thought made him shudder, but at the same time, a freedom was within reach that he would never have thought possible. He crossed his arms over his chest. In the past, there would have been no question that he would do everything in his power to help and save the people to whom he had sworn an oath of allegiance. Even if it meant his own death, he had seen it as his duty and honor to fight against evil as a cultist.

But now good and evil were no longer clearly recognizable. Black and white had now given way to warm, colorful hues, and he was no longer interested in risking his own life, which now meant so much to someone else. And as Zhen yan had already said, he could lock them up in his residence on Wushan and keep all the problems out. He took a deep breath; of course he wouldn't leave the world to its own devices, and Zhen yan had also learned one thing first and foremost: how important it was to protect this beautiful, diverse habitat.

»If we want to make it on the plains, we first have to find a way into the Gao clan!« he finally said. Wang Bing wen looked at him, visibly relieved. In a short time, he, Ying yue had gone from being a reliable fighter to an irreplaceable trump card, not least because of Zhen yan, of that he was aware. His gaze slid from Bing wen to Yian. It wasn't just the trump card they shared, but also another secret that brought them closer together. »Leave this to me. I'll find a way into the Gao clan. Sort out your family matters,« Bing wen finally replied, feeling reassured.

»Rejoice, Yian. Your life debt may soon be paid off faster than expected. I plan to personally take care of one or two requests,« Bing wen announced as he left the room again. Yian frowned. It was written all over his face that he knew how strong Bing wen was. Ying yue himself was still convinced that he could measure up to Zhen yan, not if the great demon wanted to, certainly. But in a fair and honest fight, the two would surely be evenly matched. The eldest son of the Wang clan wouldn't give up the ghost so easily. When the two had disappeared again, Zhen yan slid off the bed next to Ying yue.

»Where were we?« he asked cheekily. Ying yue stood up.

»While packing, we've wasted enough time, we should leave,« he said and didn't pay any attention to Zhen yan's offended expression.

It was beyond him how he could ignore all the things around him every time and make a move on him, even at the most inconvenient moments.