The Demon Venerable Is Delicate and Charming (GL) Chapter 1

The sound of a sword piercing bone was swallowed by the buildings collapsing around them. Blood ran down the ribs of the umbrella and sank into the ground.
Li Lingjiang knelt on one knee. Her fingers clenched the Jade-Bone Umbrella, using it to keep herself upright. Her breath gathered between her knuckles. The demon ring on her middle finger, which had once shone with a red, auspicious glow, quietly cracked open with a thin line.
The demonic power left in her body was barely enough to keep her conscious.
When she raised her eyes, the vast demon palace had already been reduced to ruins. A pool of blood had gathered beneath her.
Li Lingjiang struggled to prop herself up. She bent halfway at the waist. The black robes on her body had long since been torn, hanging from her in a wretched state. Half the blade was buried in her left shoulder, blood dripping from it bead by bead. The beast ears on both sides of her head drooped weakly. More than half the meridians in her body had been shattered.
She lifted her eyelids with effort, wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, and her gaze was cold from end to end.
“I lost.”
With a soft click of her finger bones, Li Lingjiang took off the demon ring she had worn for almost two thousand years. It was the symbol of the ruler of the Demon Realm. Now, because of its former master, its light had faded.
At least it has a good place to go, she thought, feeling a faint sense of release.
Suppressing the demonic energy that had become a mess inside her, Li Lingjiang lifted her feet and walked toward Shuang Zixing, who was watching her in silence. She had only taken two steps when pain tore through her organs. She lowered her head and paused. A coppery sweetness slid from the corner of her mouth, and her body swayed, nearly falling to the ground.
Shuang Zixing moved by instinct to support her, but Li Lingjiang raised a hand and stopped him. Her voice was calm.
“No need.”
Even strands of her ink-black hair had turned pale. Her belted clothes made her figure look thin. Yet even in such a ruined state, Li Lingjiang still seemed quiet and distant, cool and detached, as if she treated everyone this way, even a good friend who had known her for many years.
Shuang Zixing’s hand tightened on the hilt of his sword. He looked at her with worry and said in a muffled voice, “My Lord.”
Li Lingjiang closed her eyes briefly, steadied herself, and continued forward. She placed the demon ring into Shuang Zixing’s hand. If she were not exhausted in both body and heart, she would have softened her tone and said a few more words with a smile.
“You should have been the king of the demon clan from the beginning.”
Shuang Zixing watched the former lord of the Demon Realm, a person who had once seemed untouched by wind or dust, standing beneath his sword. He had used only half his strength, yet her robes were stained with drops of blood and slowly gave off a frightening scent. Her carefully worn hair crown had long since fallen somewhere unknown.
Even brought to such a state, she remained proud.
Countless thoughts passed through his eyes.
From birth, Li Lingjiang had possessed power ordinary demons did not. At only four hundred years old, she had successfully taken up the great responsibility of ruling the Demon Realm. She handled matters fairly for the demon clan. Unlike most demons, she had not started any major conflict with the other races for thousands of years. She was a rare wise ruler among the Six Realms.
Because her ability was too strong, the demon clan had once worried that there would be no successor. Then Shuang Zixing was born. Demon descendants were already hard to conceive, let alone twins from the same mother. But he survived, and at birth he successfully drew away the demonic power of his other blood sibling. From the time he could remember, he had been silently accepted as the next ruler.
Shuang Zixing had thought this day would come much later. But an accident had happened. Several years ago, Li Lingjiang’s demonic power had begun to vanish for no clear reason. Many physicians examined her, but none could find the cause. In the end, she only dismissed everyone indifferently, left behind the words “such is fate,” and refused to let anyone inspect her condition again.
In these past few years, the loss had become even worse. The demon clan was filled with fear. Their king was only a little over two thousand years old this year, yet signs of decline had appeared so early. Still, no demon ever brought up the matter of succession.
Demons were violent by nature. Every transfer of power was a storm of blood. In the end, it was usually one life traded for another.
Only when Li Lingjiang herself proposed a match with him did it happen.
“My Lord.” Shuang Zixing’s gaze moved over her once. He drew in a heavy breath. “You did not need to do this. Perhaps if we thought of another way, there would still be a turn for the better…”
“My demonic power can no longer support the Demon Realm’s barrier. Even if there is a way, it is too late.”
Li Lingjiang’s voice was the same as ever. She looked at Shuang Zixing calmly, like a pool of dead water that could not be stirred into even half a ripple. There was not the slightest trace of regret or resentment.
Shuang Zixing sighed softly. He feared he would never be able to do everything exactly as she had.
“According to old custom, if you survive the punishment, you can lay down your burden smoothly. The former lord must then be exiled to No-Return Mountain.”
Shuang Zixing could not keep her. Li Lingjiang’s name was too famous. She was respected throughout the Six Realms. Even with only one breath left, she would be a serious threat. One mountain could not hold two tigers. With a demon of such status still alive, it would be very hard for anyone to feel at ease.
Li Lingjiang accepted it rather well. She turned back and looked at the place where she had stayed for so long, then nodded silently.
“Actually, I made arrangements there long ago. No-Return Mountain is not a bad place.”
No-Return Mountain lay on the border of the Demon Realm. Though it was close to the Immortal Realm, resentment there ran deep. Everywhere were the bodies of demons whose bones had not yet gone cold. Several Demon Venerables had breathed their last there. Even they were usually unwilling to go near it, and over time it had become a disguised mass grave.
He simply had not expected Li Lingjiang to have prepared it already, as if she had long foreseen the present situation.
Shuang Zixing’s gaze tightened. He took a deep breath and suddenly said, “It would not be impossible to choose another place.”
“Another place…” Li Lingjiang gently circulated her breath. The pain all through her body made her cough softly despite herself. Blood rose again at the corner of her mouth. She did not care much and only lifted her sleeve to wipe it away. “There are many demons there. If I am buried there, I will not be ashamed of myself.”
Li Lingjiang looked at him quietly. Seeing the light in the new lord’s eyes that he could not quite hide, she said, “After this farewell, I am afraid we will never meet again. I failed to teach you much. I only hope you can shoulder this responsibility yourself and keep our clan alive generation after generation.”
Shuang Zixing choked on his words and looked at her with complicated eyes.
She said it without emotion, yet his heart tightened for an instant. He was only one thousand years old this year. Many matters had been explained to him carefully by Li Lingjiang. He had thought about taking the throne, but he should have received it only after he could handle everything with ease. He had not expected the shield that protected him to crack so early. His wings were not yet full, but he still had to spread them with all his might and hold up so many lives.
Li Lingjiang had always been able to do anything. She had always handled everything with ease. He had never imagined that this burden would be so heavy. Shuang Zixing’s heart suddenly became chaotic with panic.
The demon ring between his finger bones grew burning hot.
Li Lingjiang continued, “Your way of doing things is different from mine. You do not need to accommodate my rules. If you wish to change them, abolish them as you please. From now on…”
Shuang Zixing’s expression tensed. He listened nervously for what came next, tilting his ear with complete focus.
“Do not look for me again.” Li Lingjiang’s request was very simple. She paused slightly. “And there is no need to keep me in your thoughts.”
Shuang Zixing stared at her in a daze. Li Lingjiang did not want medicine. She did not want anything at all. She only wanted to leave alone and not be disturbed.
He looked at the person who had always been cold, quiet, and powerful. Now she could not stop coughing blood, fragile and weak like something that would break at a touch. Fear rose in him, and he did not dare step forward to support her.
Li Lingjiang swallowed down a mouthful of nauseating, coppery blood and took two steps forward. Dizziness washed over her vision, and she nearly stumbled to the ground. Shuang Zixing carefully supported her, but she gently pushed him away.
The unshakable pillar in his memory could no longer protect them all. At that moment, he finally understood that they had truly lost her.
Li Lingjiang became tired after only a few steps. She stopped to catch her breath, dragging her blood-soaked robes slowly across the floor. The distance from the depths of the palace to the gate should have taken only a moment, but for her, it was exhausting.
Yet all she felt was a joy she had not known for a long time.
Shuang Zixing watched in panic as she walked past him. He carefully wanted to tug at Li Lingjiang’s robe, but when the soft cloth touched his fingertips, he stopped. It was as if he woke all at once. Then the fingers gripping his sword hilt turned white.
“…My Lord.”
Li Lingjiang gave a soft “Mm.” She was the same as before, always answering when called. She braced a hand against the great doors of the demon palace and leaned against them as if all strength had left her body. She coughed out clotted blood, and a rare smile appeared in her eyes.
The crimson sunset lit up a vast stretch of sky over the Demon Realm. Its slanting light fell over every inch of demon land like wildfire burning across the plains. Everywhere her eyes could reach was full of life. The barrier protected them steadily and safely.
From far away came several sudden bird cries. From the divine valley hidden beneath dense trees, dozens of demon birds with red light shining from their bodies flew out. They were as dazzling as the color of the demon ring. They spread their wings and circled high in the sky, their cries lasting for a long time. This announced the birth of a new demon lord.
Li Lingjiang forced out a small smile. Her voice was so faint it was almost inaudible as she made her final request.
“Let me take my black dragon with me as well.”
*
Thick, dark fog spread from the borderlands around No-Return Mountain. Li Lingjiang lay on the dragon’s back with her eyes closed, resting. After enduring the punishment, her fever had not gone down. She had been unconscious for more than half a month before she managed to keep a breath and linger on. Compared with before, however, this body was far more broken and weak.
The black dragon slowed and landed steadily on the ground. It breathed out, blowing away some of the fog that blocked the view, then lowered itself until its belly pressed close to the earth so Li Lingjiang could get down.
Li Lingjiang pushed herself up. These days, she was always sleepy. Her body felt soft and powerless, and the demonic energy inside her had almost vanished completely.
She did not know when she would die.
Whether it was a day or an hour made no difference to her. Li Lingjiang climbed down from the dragon’s back and touched the soft ridge of its spine.
“Be good.”
The enormous black dragon raised its head and let out a low roar. Then its body slowly shrank until it was the same size as Li Lingjiang. It lightly rested its head behind her to keep her from falling.
She had raised this dragon since she took the throne. Once a demon dragon acknowledged a master, it was for life. Li Lingjiang thought it over and still asked to bring it with her, so it would not be too lonely.
She calmly looked around. Nothing was very clear. She could barely make out the place ahead where she was supposed to live. It was even gloomier here than when she had come before.
Li Lingjiang was wrapped all over in special gauze. The beast ears on either side of her head hung weakly. In her arms she held the medicine Shuang Zixing had forced on her. Her originally lovely face was now pale and vacant. She coughed lightly twice, then stumbled forward a few steps when her body could not hold up. The demonic energy on all sides rushed wildly toward her, trying to invade her body. It scraped at her like flesh being torn apart.
No-Return Mountain had no snow and no rain, but the temperature was extremely low. Even without wind, it chilled the spine.
She steadied herself and lowered her eyes.
“This is one way to keep company with my predecessors.”
Li Lingjiang actually felt much more relaxed. She gathered her collar and stepped inward. She had only crossed half a step when the vigilance built over long years made her sense something wrong.
There was another breath here.
Behind her, the black dragon gave a deep, muffled growl. It shifted half its body in front of Li Lingjiang, opened its mouth, and stared ahead with dark eyes, ready to tear the intruder apart in the next instant.
“Who is inside?”
Li Lingjiang did not panic. She had nothing left for anyone to seek, so she asked casually.
A little while later, from within the layered fog, she heard dragging footsteps. Then there appeared a young immortal woman holding an injured white dragon. She was not very old, and her cultivation was not high. Dust stained both her body and face. When she confirmed that the person before her was Li Lingjiang, her eyes lit up. Then her eyes reddened, tears hanging there without quite falling.
“Demon Lord, I finally waited until you came!”