Thunderbolt Princess

In the Demon Realm, there is a legend.

It is said that in the cold palace of the Fox Clan's royal palace, there is a princess who looks so strange that even the demons find her to be a monster — the Thunderbolt Princess...

It was the season between spring and summer, the Demon Realm was in full bloom, and the colors were dazzling.

A fresh summer breeze passed through the cold palace, swirling colorful flower petals.

Strange?

The cold palace should be overgrown with weeds and desolate.

But here, there were rare flowers and exotic plants, each competing for beauty.

Among the intoxicating flowers, there was a crooked tree.

On the tree sat Ye Xilei. She had bright silver hair that shimmered with a light blue glow in the sunlight. Her delicate face, though beautiful, was hard to discern as either feminine or masculine. She wore a lake-blue gown that complemented her silver hair, adding a sense of purity.

As the summer breeze stirred, the skirt fluttered.

Why was the beautiful maiden on the tree heartbroken?

In her hand, she held a flower with many petals, similar to a purple chrysanthemum. This flower was called Xihua (Tide Flower), because it bloomed in the morning and closed in the evening, just like the tide. Ye Xilei was plucking its delicate purple petals, one by one.

"I am human..."

"I am not human..."

"I am a demon..."

"I am not a demon..."

"I am human..."

As the petals dwindled, she grew more anxious.

"I am not a demon..."

Finally, she plucked the last petal, trembling, then threw her head back and laughed loudly:

"Haha! Haha! I am a human —————"

"Poof ——— Gakakakaka..."

Her loud cry was met by mocking laughter from all around.

Parrots, magpies, crows, warblers, sparrows, pigeons, and many more — they stood on the eaves and branches, all mocking Ye Xilei with laughter.

This was not Ye Xilei's fault. It was because they were in the Demon Realm.

The Thirteenth Princess of the Fox King shouting that she was human in the Demon Realm was as absurd as a mortal shouting in public that they were the Jade Emperor.

Ye Xilei jumped off the crooked tree and glared at the mocking birds. Though no demon believed her, she still firmly believed she had once been human, because deep in her mind, there were always flashes of images — small bridges, flowing water, and the people of Wuzhen, like the ink wash paintings brought from the mortal realm to her father's study.

"Thirteenth Princess, have you been in the cold palace for too long, losing your mind?"

Two crows on the eaves spoke in human voices.

"Yes, I think she's gone mad."

"Mad, mad."

"She actually thinks she's human."

"Human, human."

"Ah, poor Thirteenth Princess, once fallen from grace, now living in the cold palace, all her hopes dashed and gone mad..."

"Gone mad, gone mad."

Ye Xilei suppressed her anger, hands on her hips, pointing at the birds with a smug smile. "Looks like I'll be having bird for dinner tonight." She turned her hand palm-up, and a burst of flame leapt from her palm.

"Not good! The Thunderbolt Princess is angry, run!"

"Run, run!"

"Flap, flap!"

The birds flapped their wings and flew away, leaving behind a pile of feathers falling from the sky like snow.

A single black crow's feather fluttered helplessly in the wind before landing on Ye Xilei's head.

A shiver ran up Ye Xilei's spine, her silver eyes shrinking. Oh no, today was going to be unlucky.

But was there anything more unlucky than her current situation? She had been trapped in the cold palace for nearly twenty years.

Ye Xilei was the Thirteenth Princess of the Fox King.

When a little fox princess is born, her fate is already decided. There are only three paths ahead.

First, become the Queen of the next Fox King. Luck: four stars. (The Fox Clan is a demon species that allows intermarriage among close relatives, maintaining a pure royal bloodline.)

Second, become the consort of one of the other demon kings. Luck: three stars. The Fox Clan is beautiful but weak, so they use marriage alliances to maintain peace with stronger demon clans and protect their small territory.

Third, become the Fox King. Luck: five stars. There have been a few female Fox Kings in history, but they are rare.

Of course, there is also the path to immortality.

But this path is harder than becoming a Fox King. Not only does one have to endure nine thousand nine hundred ninety-nine tribulations, but it also takes a thousand years to rid oneself of demonic energy. Not to mention, many have been struck down by Thunder Gods, suppressed by sorcerers, or eaten by other demons...

However, the elders of the Fox Clan always stroked their long eyebrows and said to Ye Xilei, "We have high hopes for you~~"

Because they believed Ye Xilei was destined to become an exceptional fox! Despite Ye Xilei never admitting she was a demon from the day she was born.

The day Ye Xilei was born, there was a strange phenomenon — thunder.

In the mortal realm, thunder is not unusual, but in the Demon Realm, it was special. Demons are all afraid of thunder. Therefore, the Demon Realm's King and the Jade Emperor of the Heavenly Realm signed a gentleman's agreement: "I will watch over my demons, and you will not let the Thunder God into my barrier. Otherwise, death without mercy!"

Although the Thunder God was a god, he was no match for the Demon Realm's King. From that day on, the Thunder God never entered the Demon Realm, and naturally, there were no thunderstorms in the Demon Realm.

But on that day, there was thunder.

A silver dragon descended, and Ye Xilei was born from the belly of the Fox King's most beloved concubine, Xuanji. This was how Ye Xilei got the nickname "Thunderbolt Princess."

The Fox King was terrified, for not only was there thunder, but her body was also mostly human. Apart from the silver, furry fox ears and the large silver fox tail, everything else about her resembled a human!

A beautiful and adorable little face, big sparkling eyes, a delicate nose, and rosy, upturned lips. Her plump body and little hands and feet clearly belonged to a human.

When a fox clan gives birth to a half-human, it's as terrifying as when a human gives birth to a half-demon.

Ye Xilei became the first ever demon to be regarded as a monster by her own kind.

But the elders of the Fox Clan clearly adored her. While other little foxes need a hundred years to cultivate into a human form, Ye Xilei had it from the moment she was born — truly a gifted being!

Thus, Ye Xilei became the Fox King's most beloved princess.

But why was she now in the cold palace? And why was she forgotten by all the other foxes? That was because of her mother: Xuanji.

Xuanji was the most beautiful woman in the Fox Clan and had been kept in the royal palace, protected from other demon kings. However, she had left the Demon Realm before.

Beautiful women are often free-spirited. She called it a journey of cultivation, and the loving Fox King allowed her to visit the human world. What happened to her there and where she went after no one knew.

When she returned, she became the Fox King's most beloved concubine, and months later, she gave birth to Ye Xilei.

Ye Xilei inherited all the beauty of the Fox King and Xuanji but also had traits they didn't: silver hair and silver eyes. However, the Fox King never suspected she was not his daughter, as silver foxes existed in the Fox Clan's bloodline. There had been legends that silver foxes were the most beautiful of all foxes. Therefore, the Fox King was proud to have given birth to a silver fox.

In fact, Ye Xilei was stunningly beautiful. She was elegant yet charming, seductive yet innocent, and had the bravery and boldness of a man, making it hard to tell her gender.

By the time Ye Xilei reached the age of sixteen, her appearance had taken on the form of a human girl, and the Fox King kept her hidden in the palace, fearing that other demon kings would choose her and subject her to hardship.

It was at that time that Ye Xilei's fate changed forever — her stunningly beautiful mother passed away.

Xuanji died of a sudden heart disease, which was a common fatal disease in the Fox Clan. (Suspected to be genetic.)

That day, as Xuanji lay weak in the Fox King's arms, she said, "My king... there is something... I have hidden from you... for one hundred sixty years... It's... It's..."

"My beloved! My beloved! Don't speak... Rest well..." The Fox King gazed sorrowfully at his beloved, choking on his words.

Xuanji's body twitched, and she regained consciousness before continuing: "It's... little Lei... little Lei... is not your daughter..."

Immediately, the Fox King was stunned, his handsome face contorting with anguish.

After Xuanji passed away, Ye Xilei was thrown into the cold palace by the Fox King. It has been twenty years since then...

After Ye Xilei was abandoned, no one from the Fox Clan came to visit her.

She had been kept hidden by the Fox King before, and her siblings hadn't even transformed. They were all still little foxes, even her older brother, the brilliant Night Lan, still had white fox ears and soft white fur on the backs of his hands.

Ye Xilei was born later but was the most mature. It was as if she had inherited a hundred years' worth of memories, though they were faint, memories of humans. Yet, she was not clear about them.

Not long after her birth, she spoke, which frightened everyone. She was kept close to her mother, and the Fox King forbade her from running around so as not to frighten others.

Thus, aside from the Fox King's many concubines and a few younger siblings, only Night Lan had truly seen her.

After Ye Xilei was cast into the cold palace, she no longer learned magic from the elders. That could be considered dropping out of school, for she was... human, right? This was the Fox King's guess.

The family shame was to be hidden, so only Ye Xilei knew the real reason she was cast into the cold palace. The rest of the Fox Clan and demons all believed it was because she went mad, claiming to be human, which led the Fox King to imprison her in the cold palace.

As the days passed, the birds brought Ye Xilei fruit each day. At first, there were people who brought her meals, but gradually the food supply stopped. It seemed that she had truly been forgotten by the Fox Clan.

Ye Xilei didn't mind. She believed that self-pity was useless, and seeking revenge was unjustified. Could she blame her handsome Fox King father for everything? But what was her mother's fault?

In Ye Xilei's memories, her mother loved the Fox King dearly. Yet, she always sat alone by the window, and at those times, Ye Xilei could see a special smile on her mother's lips, a smile filled with faint satisfaction, nostalgia, and happiness.

Now, Ye Xilei thought, that smile was likely from her mother reminiscing about the good times with that man.

But who was that handsome man who could make her mother fall in love with him?

What puzzled Ye Xilei most was that after her beautiful mother confessed on her deathbed, she didn't say who Ye Xilei's father was. So who was she really?

If that man was human, and her mother was a demon, then she was a human-demon hybrid... Ye Xilei didn't want her father to be human, because her faint memories told her that human-demon hybrids were not considered good.

If that man was a god, and her mother was a demon, then she would be a god-demon hybrid... But would a god fall for her mother? The gods were too proud to look at anyone outside their race.

If that man was a demon, and her mother was a demon, then she would be a demon... This seemed the most plausible.