The Demon Venerable Is Delicate and Charming (GL) Chapter 2

Li Lingjiang had met too many people. Her energy was far worse than before, and she could not remember at all who the young immortal before her was. Still, she could tell that the girl’s immortal power was weak, and she was injured. She was no threat to her.
Li Lingjiang lowered her eyes. She only felt tired.
“This is not a place where people from the Immortal Realm can stay. I also cannot remember whether I know you. Go.”
The young immortal grew anxious at once. She wiped the tears from her eyes and hurried to explain, “My name is Yin Wu. I ascended less than a hundred years ago. In the past, I was lucky enough to have my life saved by you, Demon Lord. A few days ago, I heard that the ruler of the Demon Realm had changed. After asking around, I learned you would be here, so I walked all the way from Nanlin to No-Return Mountain. I wanted to repay your kindness.”
Li Lingjiang still could not summon much spirit. She had saved many people in passing. To her, those had only been small matters. There had been people who wanted to repay her, but she had refused them all one by one. Now her fate was already set. Why waste time on a person who was about to die?
Only, Nanlin and No-Return Mountain were very far apart. Even if she used demonic power, it would take her a day to arrive. If this girl had walked…
She sighed softly. “It is not that I refuse to keep you. I simply do not need care. Saving you was unintentional. You do not need to give anything up for me.”
Hearing this, Yin Wu lowered her head in disappointment. She could no longer hold back her tears. They rolled out in large drops. She wiped them with her sleeve while choking out, “Demon Lord, I really will not cause trouble. I memorized most of the flowers, plants, birds, and beasts in the Demon Realm. I can cook, I can clean, and I can do many, many things. Please do not refuse me.”
“If I do not know how, I can learn. Whatever you ask me to do, I will do it. I am very obedient and very good. Please let me stay.”
Her hands slowly tightened. The little white dragon in her arms cried out with an “ow” and whimpered as it burrowed into her embrace.
The young immortal was beautiful. When she cried, her eyes turned red. Afraid Li Lingjiang would find her annoying, she deliberately controlled her volume and took small, careful breaths. Li Lingjiang leaned against the black dragon and spent a little effort lifting her eyes to look for her. She was very tired now and unwilling to keep persuading her. It was not as if she had never taken anyone in before.
In truth, demons were not strict about food, and she was not unable to accept food from the Immortal Realm. It would only mean feeding one more immortal and one more dragon. Once she left this world, this small connection would also scatter. If she sent Yin Wu away now, the girl might not find anywhere to stay.
“Forget it.” After a few seconds of silence, she turned and slowly walked inside. The pain in her abdomen made even her fingertips tremble. “Come in and wash.”
Yin Wu’s eyes lit up. For the moment, she even forgot to cry. She jogged over and asked in disbelief, “Demon Lord, are you willing to… keep me?”
She had thought she would have to beg for a long time.
Li Lingjiang answered with a breathy “Mm.” She stepped onto the stairs. Before she had gone two steps, she turned aside, bent at the waist, and began to cough. She loosely covered her mouth with her sleeve and lightly wiped away the fresh red at the corner of her lips. The black dragon was too large, so now it shrank again until it was about the same size as the white dragon in Yin Wu’s arms.
Sensing something was wrong, it flew anxiously around Li Lingjiang, whimpering low in its throat without stopping.
“Demon Lord, what is wrong?” Yin Wu rushed over in panic to support her, but Li Lingjiang brushed her away with a light sweep of her sleeve.
Li Lingjiang gave the black dragon a soothing look. She still could not straighten up.
“Do not mind it. The house is simple. Many things inside have not been prepared yet. If you are not used to living here, you do not need to tell me when you leave. If you are willing to stay, I will not interfere with you. But you also do not need to put too much thought on me.”
She knew very clearly what condition her body was in. After being king for more than a thousand years, even in defeat, she was unwilling to receive too many looks or too much pity. She had never liked dealing with people. Aside from necessary exchanges, if she thought about it, she truly had few friends.
Yin Wu was not foolish. She withdrew her hand sheepishly and answered obediently, “I understand, Demon Lord.”
She looked at Li Lingjiang with eager, anxious eyes, afraid everything would fall through if she was not careful. But this was Li Lingjiang. She straightened her body and walked upward step by step. Only on closer look could one see the unfocused haze in her black pupils.
The house on No-Return Mountain was a wooden cabin, but because it was reinforced with demonic power, it did not rot over the years. Li Lingjiang pushed open the door. A faint scent of incense drifted out. It was a rare calming incense of the demon clan, but it was harmful to other races. Shuang Zixing must have been here. A large bundle sat on the wooden table, and the bedding was still arranged the way she had prepared it before.
Li Lingjiang could not circulate demonic power. She walked over and pinched out the incense with her hand. Sparks fell on the gauze wrapped around her hand, yet she felt no pain at all. She breathed out and put it away without changing expression.
“There is a well in the back yard. The water is clean. Go wash yourself. If you have no clothes to change into, I have a few new sets here. You may take them and wear them.”
Li Lingjiang did not raise her head. Her breathing grew slower and slower, as if she were informing Yin Wu, or perhaps ordering her.
She had lost a great deal of weight. Many of her close-fitting clothes now looked too large. She had to tighten the belt to make sure they did not fall off, but they still looked loose and empty.
Yin Wu seemed about the same size as she had been before, perhaps even a little taller. The clothes should fit her well enough.
There were only two rooms in the wooden cabin. One was for rest, and the other was for bathing and cooking. Most previous Demon Venerables had already stopped eating by this stage, so the kitchen had rarely been used. Still, Li Lingjiang had prepared quite a lot of food.
Li Lingjiang walked to the side and took a wooden basin and towel. At some point, the black dragon had gone outside. When it came puffing back, it carried half a bucket of water in its mouth and poured it skillfully into the basin. After setting the bucket down, it stood on the table and looked up at her with a well-behaved posture.
Yin Wu was still sniffling softly. She shuffled forward only a tiny step, biting her lip as she stood far away and stared at Li Lingjiang.
Li Lingjiang unwrapped a small part of the bandage on the fingers of her right hand. Her eyes darkened slightly as she put her fingers into the water. In only a moment, the clear basin turned red. Unsteady, she braced herself against the table and pulled her hand back out with an indescribable feeling. Her fingertips no longer looked like their original shape. It was as if the skin had been carved away, and blood kept seeping out.
Yin Wu’s heart ached at the sight. The tears she had just stopped began falling again beyond her control. In a soft, timid voice, she called her, “Demon Lord.”
“Does it hurt?”
Hurt…
Li Lingjiang shook her head calmly and wrapped the bandage again with practiced motions. This was the demon clan’s punishment. She had soaked in a pool that cut like a thousand knives. The terrible pain had made her faint several times. She had been hung on an iron frame for a very long time and had endured the pain of drills boring into bone while still alive. Later, she could barely remember it herself. She only knew that after it ended, Shuang Zixing hurriedly carried her to a demon physician. Her feverish mind had been muddled. Once she woke, no matter what anyone said, she refused to stay any longer.
Her memory of that time was already blurred. She did not remember whether it hurt. Special gauze was wrapped around her whole body to stop the bleeding. Once it was removed, the wounds would return to their original state. Even so, she still felt uncomfortable.
Li Lingjiang walked to the bed and collapsed onto it. Casually, she said, “Make whatever you want to eat yourself. I am very tired. If there is nothing important, do not call me. If you are sleepy, there is a small wooden couch over there. You can sleep on it.”
Yin Wu sniffed. Her voice had gone rather hoarse. She answered “Mm” and turned to leave.
Li Lingjiang suddenly remembered something. She called her back in a breathy voice and forced herself to sit up. Leaning against the wall, her pale face made her look as if she might disappear in the next instant. She coughed dryly a few times.
“Bring me that little dragon of yours. Let me look at it.”
“All right.”
Yin Wu quickly walked over and carefully placed the little white dragon beside Li Lingjiang. She held her hands behind her back and looked at Li Lingjiang with pure eyes, appearing as obedient as could be.
Both of the little white dragon’s hind legs were badly injured. Even walking was a problem. It could only crawl shakily toward Li Lingjiang, wanting to lean against her. Little Black immediately became unhappy and bared its teeth at it, anxiously scrambling onto the bed while making muffled noises.
Li Lingjiang soothed it by touching the black dragon’s head. “Little Black.”
Yin Wu’s eyes widened slightly. Her tone rose as she said softly, “My dragon is called Little White!”
“I picked it up. It was very small then. Because it had been abandoned, I brought it back with me. Originally, it was carrying me here by air, but I did not expect an accident on the way. We fought with some other people, and it was injured protecting me. If only I were stronger.”
As the young immortal spoke, she grew downcast.
Li Lingjiang felt she was indeed still a child of around a hundred years, simple in thought. She did not pay much attention and did not have the energy to do so. After checking the injury, she tilted her head weakly.
“Do you know Dragonwhisker Grass from the Demon Realm? No-Return Mountain has it. You can use that. If it does not heal quickly, nourish it with immortal power.”
Li Lingjiang did not want to say more. Her complexion had gained a faint flush, and her eyes gradually clouded over. She seemed so tired that she fell asleep in a daze. She did not guard against Yin Wu much, or perhaps she simply did not care. She lay down openly in front of her.
Yin Wu lowered her head and looked at her. The smile on her face did not fade, but the meaning in her eyes slowly changed. She studied Li Lingjiang. Li Lingjiang had always been known as a “cold beauty.” Her looks were indeed good. On a closer look, one could see a black mole hanging below her left earlobe. Even the hair at her temples had turned pale. Her nature did not resemble a demon’s either. She was far more open and honorable than those people of the righteous path. The Demon Venerable who had once been proud and solitary had grown much too thin. When asleep, she seemed a little easier to approach.
Beside them, Little Black was crouching, trying to attack Little White. Yin Wu lifted her eyes lightly and swept a glance over it. Her eyes clearly held a smile, yet the black dragon’s pupils shrank into slits. It grew so wary that the sharp spikes on its back rose. It opened its mouth and bared its teeth at Yin Wu, backing away while staring at her.
Yin Wu’s tone was still like before. She picked the white dragon up in her arms and called with a bright smile, “Little Black?”
At the sound, Little Black’s dragon body trembled for no clear reason. An invisible pressure prickled against its back. With a whoosh, it drilled into the crook of Li Lingjiang’s arm and buried its head tightly.
Yin Wu laughed softly at the sight. She made no other move and turned to leave.
Little Black carefully raised its head: Ying…
Li Lingjiang dreamed again.
She clearly knew she was in a dream. She sat in a pool of bone-piercing icy water. Her fingers had frozen until they were numb. She could not sit up and had no strength. She could only feel the two extremes of her whole body burning with fever while her limbs were ice cold.
An unnatural flush appeared on her face. She covered her lower abdomen with difficulty. The twisting pain of her shattered organs made fine sweat seep from her forehead. Li Lingjiang’s eyes gradually blurred. She moved her legs with difficulty, hoping she could wake faster. The pain felt too real. If she stayed much longer, it would be bad if she sank into it.
Clink.
The crisp sound of iron chains pulled a thin thread of clarity back into Li Lingjiang’s mind. She looked toward the sound. Heavy iron chains had been locked around her ankles. The moment she moved, they made an ear-piercing noise. She frowned. Before she could do anything, she suddenly sensed danger.
In the next instant, a huge force yanked her backward, forcing her whole body under the water.
Li Lingjiang struggled. A large amount of water flooded into her mouth and nose, and crushing suffocation rushed over her. She fought in pain. Her vision kept blurring. The shallow water became a bottomless sea. The chains around her ankles slowly locked around her whole body. The feeling of restraint seemed to press from her spine into her nerves.
She blinked. A huge blaze suddenly appeared before her eyes, rolling across the surface of the sea toward her like madness. In the blur, she even saw a figure, but she could not see it clearly. Li Lingjiang drew in tiny, broken breaths. Her awareness drifted in and out. Suddenly she felt a trace of warmth at her fingertips. She turned her head in confusion and felt it spread little by little through her whole body.
“Demon Lord! Demon Lord!”
“What is wrong?”
Yin Wu’s voice seemed to come from far away, sounding again and again in Li Lingjiang’s mind. She opened her eyes sharply. Her chest rose and fell heavily, but her mind had not fully cleared. Her head felt very heavy, and her whole body was soft and weak. The clothes on her back were soaked with cold sweat, sticking wetly to her gauze.
Li Lingjiang turned her head. The candles in the room had already been lit. In the dim yellow light, she saw Yin Wu half kneeling on the floor, anxiously checking her condition while wiping her tears and wrapping the gauze around Li Lingjiang’s hand.
“What are you doing-”
Before she could finish, a coppery sweetness rose in her throat. A sharp pain came from somewhere in her body, as if it wanted to split her down the middle. Li Lingjiang reacted quickly and leaned forward. Beyond her control, she vomited a large mouthful of blood. She covered her mouth with her sleeve and muffled all her coughing. The dull sound echoed through the not very large room.
Yin Wu had not avoided it in time. Specks of blood splattered across her face. Her heart ached, and she wanted to help Li Lingjiang sit up, but she was refused again.
“I am fine.” Li Lingjiang braced herself on the bed and sat up. Perhaps because of the light, she kept feeling that Yin Wu’s lips looked a little red.
“Demon Lord.” Yin Wu called to her in an aggrieved voice, but she obediently did not move. “I finished bathing and made food, but I could not wake you. You slept until now, and you are still feverish, with cold sweat all over. I could only try brewing one dose of the medicine you brought. Then I found that you were trapped in a nightmare, and you had struggled the bandage on your hand open.”
Li Lingjiang raised her hand. She remembered that Yin Wu had indeed been rewrapping it at first. Her eyelashes trembled. She pulled out a faint smile, her voice quiet.
“You worked hard.”
Her gaze rested on Yin Wu. She found that this set of clothes was one she had worn before. Of course, telling Yin Wu to take it off was impossible. In any case, it was only an outer robe, so there was no real issue. It just felt a little strange.
Li Lingjiang began coughing dryly again. She forced it down, and her voice became much rougher.
“Go out.”
Yin Wu misunderstood. She lifted her head in shock, even forgetting to cry. Sadly, she asked, “Demon Lord, are you driving me away? Next time I will not touch you without permission again.”
“That is not what I mean.” Li Lingjiang touched her forehead and realized she was still feverish. With difficulty, she said, “I mean I need to change clothes. Go out.”
“Oh… so that is what you meant.” Yin Wu’s mood improved quickly. At once, her eyes curved with a smile. The young immortal immediately stood and wiped her tears. “If Demon Lord needs me, just call.”
She walked out quickly without looking back, leaving Li Lingjiang sitting dazed on the bed.
Yin Wu closed the door. For a moment, where was the pitiful look she had worn just now? Her fingertips rubbed together. Li Lingjiang’s blood still stained them. She did not care much as she wiped it across her lips and shook out her hand.
A Demon Venerable had actually fallen to such a state.
She gave a low laugh. Playfulness appeared in her eyes as she murmured, “How interesting.”