TDSDE 36 END

36. The Demonic Sect is truly beyond saving!

It was the crisp season of autumn. The wheat fields were golden, and even the air seemed filled with the fragrance of ripened grain.

Along a muddy path barely wide enough for one person, a figure in indigo robes walked slowly, carrying a young man on his back—one nearly his own size.

Even from a distance, the muttering of one of them could be heard.

“You really—seriously now—why would you go after them in that situation? It was clearly a trap.”

Bai Yuanxiu couldn’t help grumbling as the scene from earlier played again in his head.

Not long ago, the Vermilion Bird Hall had received intel: somewhere out there, a local government office was secretly using tales of monsters and spirits as a pretense to conduct human sacrifices. The victims ranged from girls who had only just come of age to women who had already borne children—all subjected to horrific abuse.

The head of the Vermilion Bird Hall had shattered a table on the spot. If not for the Black Tortoise Hall Master dragging her back, she might’ve already stormed off on a killing spree.

It wasn’t that the Demonic Sect ignored such things, but the intel showed that the perpetrators were tied to the local authorities. The one leading the atrocities was also a skilled fighter, rumored to have once held a place on the martial world’s Mysterious Talents Rankings.

For the sake of caution, the informants had to pull back without learning much more.

The matter involved the county magistrate himself. Without sufficient information, rash action could bring trouble.

Bai Yuanxiu had no idea what the Sect leader was thinking, but by the time he found out, Xiao Qing was already on the road to that remote village.

There was no way Bai Yuanxiu could let things slide. He rushed over at full speed—and what greeted him was Xiao Qing in women’s clothes.

Bai Yuanxiu: …

“Pfft.”

Xiao Qing, teased, threw a punch at Bai Yuanxiu’s shoulder. Of course, he didn’t use inner energy—not even enough to bruise.

Their original plan was to gather intelligence before making a move, but while acting separately, Xiao Qing, playing bait, had been injected with something that left him paralyzed and unable to circulate even a drop of inner energy.

When Bai Yuanxiu arrived to see Xiao Qing pinned by the throat atop a sacrificial altar, his mind went blank. When he came to, he had already slaughtered everyone attacking him—except the leader, whose martial skills were a match.

That leader had recognized the man in indigo as the “Hero Bai” and was thrilled—righteous folk always played by the rules. If he surrendered and repented, surely he wouldn’t be killed on the spot.

He confessed everything in tears, kowtowed for mercy—and as expected, the hero agreed to spare his life.

He rejoiced.

Then took two steps.

And saw a sword thrust out from his own chest.

It was only then that he noticed—this sword was not the legendary silver, but a black as deep as night, as dark as the abyss.

“Hero Bai” was still smiling gently. Holding the blade, he calmly followed the man who crawled toward the doorway, raising and striking again and again.

By the time the man breathed his last, everything below his chest was a crimson skeleton.

The county magistrate, one of the masterminds, had been on-site that day. Bai Yuanxiu had originally intended to let the man live and hand him over to the authorities—but after hearing what the victims had to say, he casually ended him with a stroke.

Bai Yuanxiu wasn’t a doctor. He’d only slashed at the legs of the man who ambushed Xiao Qing, but that person had long been in poor health. By the time Bai Yuanxiu checked again, he had already died.

As for what came next, the Sect leader had already sent word via messenger hawk that the Demonic Sect would take care of everything.

Though the leader always acted lazy and aloof, the Demonic Sect had always been extremely reliable when it came to business. Just like that time someone had used a fake marriage to harm a young woman—back then, the Sect dumped all the culprits and evidence right at the magistrate’s doorstep. Those people had been rotting in their graves since last year.

So, after receiving that hawk, Bai Yuanxiu didn’t plan to stick around.

Xiao Qing’s inner energy was sealed. The Jade Bone Technique was cold and fierce—forcing energy into the meridians now would only cause damage. Bai Yuanxiu saw no need to risk it, so he planned to carry Xiao Qing back to the Sect for treatment.

On the way back, he blamed himself constantly for letting Xiao Qing fall into danger. He stayed silent the whole way, carrying the other man on his back.

Bai Yuanxiu was normally a chatterbox, laughing and playing all day without a serious bone in his body. Now, this sudden silence was jarring.

Xiao Qing lay slumped against his shoulder, lips pressed tightly together, lost in thought.

“What’s wrong with your light footwork,” Xiao Qing suddenly complained, “It’s awful. You’re carrying one person and already moving this slow?”

The disdain in his tone was painfully clear. Bai Yuanxiu reflexively yelled, “Ah?! What do you mean ‘just one person’?! I’m carrying the most important thing in the world! Of course I have to be careful!”

The moment the words left his mouth, both fell silent.

Bai Yuanxiu blushed. Behind him, Xiao Qing’s face and neck turned crimson, as if he were about to overheat.

After a long pause, Bai Yuanxiu mumbled awkwardly, “Ahem… About what I just said… can we pretend you didn’t hear it?”

Xiao Qing’s lips curled up, though Bai Yuanxiu couldn’t see.

“Nope—” Xiao Qing mimicked Bai Yuanxiu’s usual drawl, “I heard it, so now it’s mine.”

Bai Yuanxiu clicked his tongue. He suddenly remembered how Xiao Qing had sulked for a whole afternoon just because he’d spoken to a wandering swordswoman a little too much. He muttered, “Tch, vinegar ghost. So petty.”

Xiao Qing leaned in and bit Bai Yuanxiu’s neck. “Like you’re any better!”

“Who was it that threw a tantrum and refused to eat unless someone coaxed him?” Xiao Qing went straight for the jugular. “Who squatted on the ground, poking holes in the dirt with a stick, saying he’d never talk to me again? Huh? Three-year-old.”

Bai Yuanxiu exploded. “Aaaah! Shut up already!”

And so, they argued and bickered the whole way back, right into the Azure Dragon Hall, mouths still going without pause.

Ye Nanxun, in the middle of applying needles and mixing medicine: …

So annoying.

Zhou Xiaoxiao, who had just joined the Demonic Sect and was quietly grinding herbs in the corner, stared at the scene before him, utterly bewildered.

Indeed, just like his ordinary background as an abandoned infant, he—a mere normal person—could never hope to understand the ways of martial experts.

The Demonic Sect really is hopeless!

Bai Yuanxiu and Xiao Qing had gotten into such a heated argument that, because Xiao Qing hadn’t fully recovered yet, the fight went on even longer than usual.

Ye Nanxun, completely fed up, slammed the stone pestle into the mortar. He had originally meant to yell at the two of them to get lost—but he was so annoyed and in such a hurry that his “Get Lost!” came out all wrong.

And so, the entire Yunhua Mountain echoed with a soul-shaking—

“Quack!!”

With a loud BOOM, the pool behind the mountain exploded into a towering spray of water from the force of inner energy. As the droplets fell, it looked as if rain had begun to fall beneath the golden-red setting sun.

The Demonic Sect disciples, hearing the noise, cried out in despair:
“They’re fighting again?!”

Their Sect master, sprawled on top of a giant tiger and burying his face in its fur, lifted his head and waved lazily at a disciple nearby.
“It’s fine, don’t worry about it.”

Deep in the rarely-trodden forests of Yunhua Mountain, two figures—one in black, one in white—raced between the trees, so fast they left only faint afterimages in the dusk.

“You liar!” Bai Yuanxiu was furious just remembering how flustered he’d been from Xiao Qing’s earlier teasing. His teeth itched with frustration. “So you did it on purpose!”

Xiao Qing let out a cold snort. Frosty mist curled around him from the icy aura he released, freezing a thin layer of frost over the branch beneath his feet.
“Look who’s talking. You pretended to be some hero just to get close to me!”

Words failed them—so they fought instead.

Half an hour later, Xiao Qing stood with his arms crossed, staring at the man in front of him.

“So, are we kissing or not?”

Before the fight, they’d been all lovey-dovey. Now that it was over, Bai Yuanxiu turned his head sharply away, refusing to look at Xiao Qing.

“No!”

Xiao Qing frowned.

Bai Yuanxiu instantly regretted how fast he’d blurted that out—Why’d I have to say “no” so fast?—but before he could do anything, he felt his collar yanked forward.

Before he could react, he felt a coolness press against his lips.

“If you won’t kiss me, forget it. I’ll do it myself.”

By the time Bai Yuanxiu came back to his senses, Xiao Qing was already standing a step away, looking at him with that frosty face and saying coldly,

“Coward.”

The taunt made Bai Yuanxiu’s blood boil. He grabbed Xiao Qing’s hand and dragged him toward the cabin.

“Oh, I’m a coward? You think I’m a joke?!”

Soon, muffled, broken sounds drifted from the room. Eventually, another voice joined in—choked with tears.

“Uuuu… Ah Qing… Ah Qing…”

Xiao Qing, so exhausted he could barely lift his arms, leaned in and kissed Bai Yuanxiu’s cheek, sighing in resignation.

“What are you crying for? I haven’t even cried yet.”

Red-eyed and sniffling, Bai Yuanxiu whimpered,

“Alright… I’ll try harder, then…”

“Wait, wait! Wai—”

But Bai Yuanxiu had waited for years. He wasn’t waiting anymore.

⸻

The afternoon sun was warm and bright. A figure ran toward the east side of Yunhua Mountain, shouting the moment he spotted a tall, broad figure:

“Pineapple Sect Master!”

The next second, he felt a tight grip at the back of his neck.

The Demonic Sect master, like a big cat grabbing a kitten by the scruff, hauled Bai Yuanxiu up by the back of his collar. He wore an eerily friendly smile.

“What did you just call me?”

Bai Yuanxiu broke out in goosebumps and forced a laugh.
“S-Sect Master.”

The towering man stared at him a little longer before finally letting go.

“So? What do you want?”

Fixing his collar, Bai Yuanxiu suddenly looked a little sheepish.

“I wanted to talk to you about something.”

⸻

Half a day after Bai Yuanxiu left, the Sect master was drinking when a few disjointed memories suddenly popped into his mind. But it had been too long—he’d forgotten most of it. He furrowed his brow, trying to recall, but it was no use.

“What was it again…” He looked down at the giant tiger lying by his feet, confused.
“Why does what I just agreed to sound so familiar?”

The tiger twitched its ears, yawned, and stretched before laying its head on the Sect master’s lap and falling asleep again.

The Sect master glanced at the snoring tiger, then up at the sky.

“Forget it. I’ll sleep too.”

⸻

Two months later, halfway up Yunhua Mountain, Bai Yuanxiu and Xiao Qing stared at each other, stunned by the sight of their identical wedding processions approaching from opposite directions.

Several sect leaders who’d watched the whole thing nearly died laughing. Listening to their wild cackles, Bai Yuanxiu felt like he was about to go insane.

So that’s why everyone looked so experienced with the preparations! They already did it once!

Bai Yuanxiu whipped his head around and screamed at the man sitting atop the tiger:
“Sect Master! Why didn’t you tell me?!”

Finally remembering the entire incident, the Sect master replied sincerely,

“Sorry. I forgot.”

Bai Yuanxiu was expressionless.

This Sect… really is beyond saving, isn’t it?

It was the crisp season of autumn, the wheat fields gleaming golden under the sun, filling the air with the subtle fragrance of ripening grain.

On a narrow muddy path through the fields, barely wide enough for one person, a figure in indigo robes was making his way forward slowly. On his back, he carried another young man, nearly the same height as himself.

Even from a distance, one could hear one of them muttering, “Seriously, you really shouldn’t have gone after them in that situation. It was obviously a trap.”

Bai Yuanxiu couldn’t stop grumbling every time he thought about what had just happened.

Not long ago, the Vermilion Bird Hall had received intelligence that a local magistrate, under the guise of some supernatural ritual, was secretly orchestrating human sacrifices in a village. The victims ranged from girls who had just come of age to women who had already borne children—none were spared.

The Hall Master of Vermilion Bird had smashed a table the moment she heard about it. Had the Black Tortoise Hall Master not been wandering around nearby and pulled her back, that righteous woman would have charged in to unleash her wrath.

It wasn’t that the Demonic Sect ignored such matters—on the contrary, the report suggested that the perpetrators had connections with the authorities, and the ringleader was a skilled martial artist, someone who had once made a name for himself in the martial world.

To avoid unnecessary risks, the informants had no choice but to retreat before they could gather more details.

Since the matter involved a county magistrate, and information was still lacking, it was best not to act rashly.

No one knew what the Sect Leader was thinking, but by the time Bai Yuanxiu heard about it, Xiao Qing was already on the road to that village.

Bai Yuanxiu couldn’t sit still and do nothing. He rushed over on horseback, only to find Xiao Qing already disguised as a woman.

Bai Yuanxiu: ……

“Pfft.”

As Bai Yuanxiu laughed, Xiao Qing smacked him with a fist—not using internal energy, so it didn’t even leave a bruise.

The two had originally planned to investigate thoroughly before making a move. But while they were acting separately, Xiao Qing, serving as bait, got stabbed with a poisoned needle. His limbs went weak, and he couldn’t muster a single trace of internal energy.

When Bai Yuanxiu saw Xiao Qing being pinned by the throat against the sacrificial altar, his mind went completely blank. By the time he came back to his senses, all of their attackers were dead, save for one—the ringleader with decent martial arts.

That man, recognizing the blue-clad “Bai Clan Hero,” rejoiced inwardly. After all, those from the righteous path always followed rules—if one surrendered and repented, they wouldn’t be killed on the spot.

He confessed to everything, sobbing and kowtowing, begging for mercy. And indeed, the “Bai Clan Hero” said he would spare him.

The man was delighted—until he turned and took just two steps before a sword burst through his chest.

Only then did he realize—the sword was not silver like the rumors claimed, but pitch-black like the abyss.

The “Bai Clan Hero” was still smiling gently. He gripped the sword and followed behind the crawling man, lifting it, plunging it again and again.

By the time the man drew his last breath, all that was left from the chest down was a bloody skeleton.

Coincidentally, the county magistrate involved was also there that day. Bai Yuanxiu had initially planned to leave him alive and hand him over to the authorities. But after hearing what the surviving victims had to say, he simply killed the man on the spot.

Bai Yuanxiu didn’t know much about medicine. He had only chopped the legs of the one who ambushed Xiao Qing, but the man was already in poor health and died before Bai Yuanxiu could check on him again.

As for the aftermath, the Sect Leader had already sent word via a trained hawk that the Demonic Sect would take over from there.

Though the Sect Leader always looked laid-back, the Demonic Sect had always been reliable when it came to dealing with matters. For instance, there had once been a case where women were persecuted under the pretense of arranged marriages. The Sect had thrown all involved parties and evidence straight into the local magistrate’s office. Those people had long since joined the dead by the previous year.

So, once he got the hawk’s message, Bai Yuanxiu didn’t plan to stay any longer.

With Xiao Qing’s internal energy sealed and his cultivation method being extremely yin-based, it would only injure him if forced open. Bai Yuanxiu saw no need to rush it and decided to take him back to the Sect first.

On the way back, Bai Yuanxiu was plagued with guilt over putting Xiao Qing in danger. He said nothing, just silently carried him the entire way.

Bai Yuanxiu was usually talkative, always grinning and joking around. His sudden silence made it impossible to get used to.

Xiao Qing lay slumped on his shoulder, lips tightly pressed, lost in thought.

“What’s with your qinggong?” Xiao Qing suddenly complained, “You’re so slow, just carrying one person.”

The disdain in his voice was painfully obvious. Bai Yuanxiu instinctively let out a loud “Huh?!” and snapped back, “What do you mean ‘just one person’? I’m carrying the most important thing in the world! Of course I need to be careful!”

As soon as he said that, both of them fell silent.

Bai Yuanxiu’s face turned red, and behind him, Xiao Qing’s neck and ears flushed so hard they seemed about to smoke.

After a long pause, Bai Yuanxiu mumbled awkwardly, “Ahem, just now—can we pretend you didn’t hear that?”

Xiao Qing’s lips curved into a smile, though Bai Yuanxiu couldn’t see it.

“Nope—” Xiao Qing mimicked Bai Yuanxiu’s usual drawl, “You said it, now it’s mine.”

Bai Yuanxiu clicked his tongue. He thought of how he’d talked a little too long with a female swordswoman earlier, and how Xiao Qing had sulked and mocked him for the rest of the afternoon. He muttered, “Hmph, jealous little ghost. Petty.”

Xiao Qing bit his neck. “You’re not any better!”

“Who was it that threw a fit and refused to eat, huh? Sat on the ground poking holes with a twig, saying he’d never speak to me again? Hah, three-year-old child.”

Bai Yuanxiu flew into a flustered rage. “Ahhhh shut up!”

And so the two bickered all the way back to Qinglong Hall, not quieting down for a second.

Ye Nanxun, who was trying to prepare medicine: ……

So annoying.

In a corner, Zhou Xiaoxiao, a new recruit of the Demonic Sect, quietly ground herbs while staring at the scene before him, utterly baffled.

Sure enough, just like his plain, abandoned-orphan background, he—just a regular person—would never understand how experts thought or acted.