Chapter 149

Luo Hou suddenly reacted: "We’ll talk about this 'examining the public' thing later, how did I deceive him?!"

Nie Chen glanced at the injuries on his body and paused.

To be honest, it's truly unbelievable that the demon race could have such obvious and lasting scars. This shows just how severe Luo Hou’s injuries must have been, and his demonic power was likely used to heal his internal wounds first.

But the situation back then wasn't so simple.

He looked at Ke Xingzhou, who appeared curious as if listening to someone else’s story. After hesitating for a moment, he continued recounting the information he had gathered from Liancheng’s memory: "When Xingzhou returned to the sect, he did not receive the list you were supposed to deliver. Instead, he received news of the demon race invading the human world."

Honestly, Liancheng had been watching Ke Xingzhou’s interactions with Luo Hou, and had indeed formed some positive views about the demon race.

At first, even Liancheng didn’t believe that the demon race would suddenly attack the human world, but when the casualties from the attacked sects were laid before him, and the methods used were unmistakably those of the demon race...

Then, more and more sects were attacked by the demon race. When Ke Xingzhou went to provide aid, he even saw the demons slaughtering humans with his own eyes.

It was the real demon race, not the so-called rebels that Luo Hou had mentioned.

At this point, not even Liancheng, let alone Ke Xingzhou, could justify anyone in the demon race anymore. The so-called inside-outside cooperation plan was indefinitely put on hold, and everyone immediately threw themselves into the battle against the demon race.

After that, Luo Hou never appeared before Ke Xingzhou again, which seemed to confirm the claims of others—

All the trouble had been caused by the demon race.

There was no need to say more about what happened afterward; the war between gods and demons left all involved exhausted, and Ke Xingzhou didn’t have the energy to dwell on whether the demon race he had encountered back then was deceiving him or not. He was swept along by the tide of fate, leading to that decisive final arrow.

When he recalled this, Nie Chen’s heart jolted.

As Ke Xingzhou's personally crafted life weapon, Liancheng had witnessed and even participated in the moment Ke Xingzhou stood on the cliff and shot the final arrow at the demon race—

The bowstring was drawn, and the surrounding space trembled. A thunderous calamity that had been suppressed for nearly a hundred years quietly gathered. Ke Xingzhou, using his own body to channel the heavenly lightning, made no defense. He faced the pure spiritual power he had cultivated for hundreds of years, the body tempered by the thunderous tribulation, the innate divine bones coveted by countless people… even the accumulated merits from past lives.

At the cost of both body and soul perishing, he activated the sealing formation crafted by the four races—humans, ghosts, gods, and demons.

After that arrow, Ke Xingzhou ceased to exist in this world.

Everyone put in their utmost effort and managed to preserve only a few fragments of Ke Xingzhou’s soul. The plan had been to place them in a soul lamp to nourish them, but unexpectedly, the soul lamp kept in the sect disappeared without a trace.

Liancheng and the others indeed invested countless effort to finally piece together a new soul, barely managing to send him into reincarnation.

Nie Chen fell silent for a moment, and suddenly understood Liancheng’s possessiveness toward Ke Xingzhou.

But understanding was one thing, and this life’s Ke Xingzhou was no longer the same as the previous one. Nie Chen was just Nie Chen, no matter how much they shared memories, he would never become Liancheng.He would absolutely never let Ke Xingzhou go so easily.

Luo Hou saw that the human, who had caught the attention of this lifetime's Ke Xingzhou, suddenly lowered his head and grabbed Ke Xingzhou's hand, holding it tightly in his palm. Then he raised his head and looked at Ke Xingzhou deeply, as if afraid that the person might disappear.

Luo Hou: "......"

Is this targeting me?

Absolutely!!

Although the demon race doesn't have the concept of romantic relationships and wouldn't get jealous or angry over someone coming or going, as a poor demon who would get beaten even if he stood in front of Ke Xingzhou without clothes on, seeing the two of them being so intimate was very unpleasant.

The demon race has always done as they pleased, and as the Demon Lord, Luo Hou was no exception. Without a second thought, he interrupted their affectionate eye contact: "Can you two talk about your feelings after I leave?"

Even the demon race didn't dare to show affection in front of him!

Ke Xingzhou: "......"

Nie Chen: "......"

Luo Hou looked at them both separate, his expression finally softened a little, but he still didn’t believe Nie Chen’s words: "How is that possible? I already told you that I was gravely injured and asleep at that time. It was hard enough for me to even wake up, so how could I have given orders to attack the human world?"

Besides, when he woke up, Tianmo and the others reported the situation to him, saying that the human world had been bullying the demon race too much. They blamed everything on them, and brought a bunch of so-called righteous people to provoke them. That’s when the fighting started.

He knew his subordinates well. Although their education might be lacking, they wouldn’t dare to deceive him.

Moreover, for the demon race, who were free-spirited and loved liberty, war was both hard and exhausting, with no real benefits. So why would they fight?

Nie Chen and Ke Xingzhou exchanged a glance, both realizing something was off.

Nie Chen asked, "Didn’t you want to conquer the human world to obtain better resources for survival?"

Luo Hou looked at him as if he were an idiot: "The living conditions in the human world weren’t much better than ours a thousand years ago. We all lived in caves. What’s there to envy or fight for? Look at my palace; almost everything here is built from heavenly materials, earthly treasures, and the bones and blood of mighty beings from all races. Isn’t it more comfortable to cultivate here than in your human race’s spiritually depleted places?"

As he spoke, he intentionally glanced at Ke Xingzhou, eager to see the shocked expression on his face when he learned the truth.

Ke Xingzhou was indeed stunned: "What? The walls are really made of dead people?!"

Luo Hou: "......"

Nie Chen: "......"

Nie Chen also looked around. With Liancheng’s memories, even though he had never seen these so-called heavenly materials and earthly treasures, he could slowly distinguish and recognize them by comparing them to the memories.

Indeed, just as Luo Hou had said, almost nothing in the palace had a simple origin. Even if they were placed in the human world a thousand years ago, they would have caused a scramble among cultivators from various races.

And this was just the most remote and simple palace in the Demon King’s residence.

But if the demon race themselves didn’t think their living environment was poor, and were even quite satisfied, then how did the Demon-God War a thousand years ago start?

Luo Hou couldn’t understand.

According to Tianmo, the demon race had clearly been the ones who were bullied, mysteriously provoked. As free-spirited demons, and not weaker than anyone else, being provoked naturally meant they would fight back. That’s why he never thought there was anything wrong with his subordinates attacking the human world.

But now, listening to this human’s words, it seemed like the human race also thought they were the ones who had been wronged, and retaliated only when they couldn’t bear it anymore?For a demon race that has always indulged in pleasures and has never really used its brain much except for cultivation, and whose limited knowledge comes from the gifts of nature, this issue was truly too profound.

Luo Hou thought for a long time but couldn’t figure out where the mistake was. It was Ke Xingzhou who asked, “So the sects that were wiped out in the beginning, were they not done by your demon race?”

“Of course not!” Luo Hou answered firmly. “Neither were the ones before. By the way, who spread the rumor that our demon race could use soul lamps to turn people into puppets? Even if we had this ability, what happens after turning them into puppets? Do your human race have as much physical strength as Mo Luo, or cultivate faster than the demon race?”

Ke Xingzhou: “......”

Luo Hou continued, “Besides, we like to keep humans because we enjoy the fear they have towards us. Once they’re turned into puppets, there’s no emotional value left. Even the meat isn’t tasty anymore.”

Ke Xingzhou immediately became alert, slowly straightening his body.

The demon race really does eat humans!

However, Luo Hou’s words did make some sense.

Since the things the demon race did didn’t benefit them much, and they felt they were the ones being provoked, then who exactly started the Demon-God War a thousand years ago?

These questions were difficult to answer at the moment. Luo Hou couldn’t figure it out, so he decided to stop thinking about it. With a swish, he stood up: “I’ll go ask Yun Mo for clarification.”

After saying that, he left in a hurry, even more suddenly than when he arrived.

Ke Xingzhou stared blankly at the spot where Luo Hou had been, his mind still dwelling on the idea that if the demon race wasn’t the one that caused the trouble, then who could have started the Demon-God War a thousand years ago.

Suddenly, he felt warmth on his back as Nie Chen wrapped his arms around him, his lips gently touching his ear.

Ke Xingzhou felt a slight itch and shrank his neck. “What are you doing?”

Nie Chen’s kiss was light and unpredictable, his breath unstable as he gazed at Ke Xingzhou’s face. In his gray-green eyes, complicated emotions surged.

“Shall we continue?”

“Continue what?” Ke Xingzhou was a bit confused.

Nie Chen chuckled softly, tugging at the already opened collar of Ke Xingzhou’s shirt with intent: “Didn’t you just now want to take a bath with me?”

Ke Xingzhou suddenly remembered what had happened earlier, his ears turning red. “I thought...”

“Thought what?”

Ke Xingzhou didn’t answer.

After a moment, he spoke, though he changed the subject: “You still haven’t told me, when did you learn all of this?”

Nie Chen fell silent for a moment, as if he gently sighed.

He turned Ke Xingzhou around, deeply looking into his eyes, but in the end, he actively pulled back, slightly closing his eyes and resting his forehead against Ke Xingzhou’s: “Zhou Zhou... I’m really scared.”

This was probably the first time in Nie Chen’s over twenty years of life that he admitted his fear.

His tone was a bit lost, his fingers trembling as he held Ke Xingzhou’s face: “What if one day I’m not me anymore, what will happen to us? I’ve been thinking about this question recently, but I can’t find an answer.”

When facing Liancheng, Nie Chen could speak decisively and trust that Ke Xingzhou understood him deeply, but emotionally, Nie Chen always couldn’t help but ask himself: Is it really true?Would Ke Xingzhou really be willing to reconcile with him and try to be together again?

Liancheng had said many things that were true, such as how they had already broken up, and that Nie Chen was Liancheng—he was merely a part of Liancheng's soul separated from his spiritual body.

He and Liancheng were of the same root, more closely aligned than even twin brothers, they were "the same person," and even their memories were shared.

This meant that the moments that were solely his with Ke Xingzhou had always been shared by a third party.

If Liancheng was willing, he might be able to perfectly play the role of "Nie Chen" and, over a long period of time, subtly erase "Nie Chen's" image in Ke Xingzhou's heart and replace it with his own.

Nie Chen sometimes felt that, after relying on each other for over a decade, even without talking about love, Ke Xingzhou could never fail to recognize him.

But because of this variable, which was Ke Xingzhou, he instinctively felt panic.

This panic had started when he realized that the strange information suddenly appearing in his mind did not belong to him. It hadn’t dissipated even now, and in fact, had grown more intense, almost swallowing him whole.

Without a clear answer from Ke Xingzhou, he might live in this fear forever, until it drove him mad.

Or, he might be replaced by Liancheng.

Nie Chen knelt beside Ke Xingzhou, pressing his forehead to Ke Xingzhou’s palm, like a devout believer confessing and praying to their god, gently speaking of the connections between himself, Ke Xingzhou, and Liancheng.

Ke Xingzhou remained unexpectedly calm.

He couldn’t even explain why, after all, he had always been lazy about thinking, and he didn’t want to overthink many things.

Perhaps it was because Nie Chen had suddenly been disappearing frequently, and Liancheng always appeared whenever Nie Chen wasn’t around, which made him suspicious. Or maybe it was that bow, which clearly belonged to Liancheng, and even Duan Changsheng had said that it was invaluable, yet somehow, it was highly compatible with him and Nie Chen.

Ke Xingzhou always felt like he had known all of this for a long time, so he wasn’t surprised.

When Nie Chen finished his explanation, he lowered his head and gently rubbed his cheek against Nie Chen: “He is him, and you are you. What does the previous life have to do with me in this life?”

“Is that so? I also said the same thing to Liancheng.” Nie Chen smiled, but if Ke Xingzhou could see his face, he would realize that the smile didn’t reach his eyes.

His gaze was absent as he looked at the ground. The high-grade spirit stones paved the floor, reflecting the faint light of the soul lamp beside him, scattering in his gray-green eyes. His gaze shifted, slowly focusing on the soul lamp.

A question rose in Nie Chen’s heart—

“What if you also have memories of your past life?”

Ke Xingzhou paused.

His silence made Nie Chen feel uneasy. Nie Chen couldn’t help but raise his head to look at him, but suddenly his neck was wrapped in an embrace. Ke Xingzhou took the initiative to hold him, pressing against him and rubbing his lips.

“The me from the previous life could even be friends with the demon race. Do you think I’d be the kind of person who follows the rules?” Ke Xingzhou tilted his head, looking at the soul lamp with him. “If I died, then I died. If it were me, since I decided to die for the people, I would never regret it.”

He paused here, his ear turning red.

“—And I wouldn’t regret falling in love with you.”

When Nie Chen heard this, the tangled, chaotic thoughts that had troubled him for so long suddenly vanished. He saw Ke Xingzhou turn to look at him, his ears flushed, yet he smiled with his eyes curved, as though trying to hide his discomfort at saying something so direct.

His mind became heated, and he leaned down to kiss Ke Xingzhou.

Ke Xingzhou instinctively moved to dodge, worried about when Luo Hou might suddenly appear again, but Nie Chen forcefully controlled his waist, pressing him against himself.The searing heat suddenly ignited the air, and Ke Xingzhou couldn't help but feel slightly out of breath.

Forget it, he thought, gradually succumbing to Nie Chen's skillful kisses, reluctantly wrapping his arms around Nie Chen's neck to prevent himself from slipping.

The temperature in the bath gradually rose, and as the steam swirled, Ke Xingzhou couldn't help but let out a soft groan, breathing rapidly for a couple of breaths.

Just then—

"Master! Junior Brother! I'm here to save you!!"

A large door suddenly appeared in midair above the bath, and Zhu Chu's head popped out from the dark crack in the space, crying with snot and tears as he shouted and rushed into the Demon Realm.

And then, he immediately stepped into the water.

Zhu Chu: "?"

A hot spring? Are the Demon Realm captives living this well?

In his confusion, he looked up and saw his Master and Junior Brother, immediately bursting into tears of joy. "Master, Junior Brother! I finally found you—wait, hold on. What are you two doing?"

Zhu Chu scanned his Master and Junior Brother's positions.

By the large bath, neither of them had their clothes properly on, and Master was sitting in Junior Brother's lap, with his arms around his neck, his face flushed, and his eyes glistening with moisture.

And Junior Brother's hand...

His gaze landed on the hem of Master's clothes when Junior Brother's familiar cold voice came from nearby: "Leave."

"Okay!"

Zhu Chu reflexively turned to leave, thinking to himself, as expected, it’s still that Junior Brother. With this attitude, he clearly hasn't been drugged—

Wait, hold on.

If they haven’t been drugged, how are they like this?!

Zhu Chu quickly turned back around, only to find Ke Xingzhou burying his face in Nie Chen's neck, nearly melting from the heat, while Junior Brother had already torn down the curtains in the hall, wrapping them up in layers.

After giving him a glare, Junior Brother lowered his head and lovingly kissed Master's ear.

Zhu Chu: "Huh?????"