Chapter 121: What Youluo Desires

In that brief moment of daze, I was dragged a great distance away—so far that the white, light-like exit was no longer visible.

When I opened my eyes again, I saw the familiar ceiling. Turning my head, I was met with Wangchuan’s somewhat stern face. How did I get back?!

I looked around to confirm that I was indeed at home, then immediately shook off his hand and began patting and slapping his arm. "You bastard! You didn't even explain things clearly! You scared me to death; I almost thought I wouldn't be able to come back. I was kissed by someone, do you even know that, you smelly jerk!"

I ranted incoherently, but noticed the corners of Wangchuan's mouth curling upward. Instead of getting angry at my assault, he pulled me into an embrace. "He didn't kiss you; he only kissed the Glazed Bead."

"To hell with the Glazed Bead! It was me! I was the one who felt it! I was the one who was terrified!"

Hearing this, Wangchuan furrowed his brows. Only then did I snap back to reality. "What is going on! Tell me right now!"

"Oh..." Wangchuan began to explain everything.

The general situation was this: the moment I put on the Glazed Bead that day, my entire being underwent a metamorphosis. Because the bead given by Han Mingxuan contained elements of spatial and soul transference, I had been detached from my physical body and entered the vessel created by the bead—which was that pig. Under the ethereal nature of my soul and the protection of the bead, outsiders couldn't tell what it was; they could only see me.

In effect, Wangchuan had left my physical body at home and sent my soul out, carrying the pig with it. That pig would generate intense light and heat; once everything was ready and my soul departed, it would become a "pig bomb." That was the massive explosion I had witnessed.

The explosion was unlike a typical nuclear blast. If it had occurred in the mortal realm, it wouldn't have been a major issue—at most, it would have injured a few people and collapsed a few buildings. But this happened in the Underworld. The Underworld is a dark place, and the light carried within the pig would indirectly harm those souls who feared scorching radiance. While it wouldn't necessarily kill them, they would be injured and temporarily unable to reincarnate.

If it were just one or two souls, it would be trivial, but if the numbers were high enough—if more died than were reincarnated—that would be interesting. For the subordinates of the Third Nether King to suffer such a calamity, it would likely keep him busy for a while. Not to mention, being blasted while "naked" meant he wouldn't be able to save face at all. That was why Wangchuan said this was a "coincidence"—it was as if the trap had been tailor-made for him.

Wangchuan had known about this since the moment Han Mingxuan gave it to him, knowing that no one else could wear it and penetrate the Underworld. He knew that if one wanted to catch the tiger cub, one had to enter the tiger's den—and if we were to enter, it had to be me.

At the time, Wangchuan had decided to put it away, thinking that since they had already turned hostility into friendship, there was no need to use such a thing. Though he knew Han Mingxuan's original intent, he hadn't told me, offering only a simple reason: Han Mingxuan also didn't get along with the Underworld.

Han Mingxuan’s status wasn't actually very high. Wangchuan explained that he was half-demon and half-spirit, born to parents who were half-demonic beast and half-spirit beast. He had a brother—not by blood, but close nonetheless—named Bai Shaowei, the Demon Lord of the Demon Realm. Bai Shaowei was born beautiful and cherished his skin and figure more than any beauty; he was known as the most vain Demon Lord in the Demon Realm. Of course, he wasn't the most beautiful, just the vainest. If one had to say he was the "most" anything, it would be that his skin was the best—like a peeled egg. Because that guy was a Heavenly Spirit Snake King, also possessing a mix of demon and spirit, Han Mingxuan’s treasures were mostly scavenged from him.

However, Han Mingxuan was born leaning more toward a Spirit Wolf with little demonic blood, so he spent his early years in the Spirit Realm, otherwise he couldn't have absorbed enough spiritual energy to grow. But as time passed, because he still carried demon blood, the Spirit Realm didn't truly accept him; some small spirit beasts would tremble at the scent of his demonic aura.

Han Mingxuan drifted into the human world, passing the time by eating the occasional demon or ghost for nourishment. He drifted like that for many years, even building a successful career in the human world as a "hidden" boss, changing his name and identity every few decades to keep living.

The feud with the Underworld likely stemmed from Han Mingxuan’s habit of snacking on their little ghosts and demons. Although Han Mingxuan was at fault initially, the Underworld didn't use conventional means but instead resorted to a sneak attack, targeting Han Mingxuan’s Spirit Wolf core. It wasn't hard to guess who wanted that, and the incident intensified the conflict between the two sides. Thus, for many years, Han Mingxuan had held a grudge against the Underworld.

I stared, wide-eyed and dumbfounded. "Han Mingxuan said you live in seclusion and don't even know him, so how do you know all of this so thoroughly?"

"I have ten thousand cats, and I also had a feud with the Underworld in the past. I naturally recognize their enemies."

"Enemy..." I carefully savored the word. "Are you saying you also had a feud with the Underworld?"

"I believe so." Wangchuan nodded. "Otherwise, Youluo wouldn't have tried to make a move on you, coming back time and again to act so brazenly."

He "believed" so? I didn't understand. Had this guy made so many enemies that he couldn't even remember them all?!

"Then you..." I suddenly felt a wave of fear, so intense I began to tremble. "Do you know how to fight?"

Wangchuan looked at me for a long time before smiling and answering as gently as he could. "Perhaps."

"Promise me, don't fight."

Whether it was a lack of trust in Wangchuan or something else, I always felt that although Wangchuan was a fierce beast and carried a menacing aura, the rumors were true: he was a trapped beast. Even though he could leave, his power was nowhere near half of what it had been ten thousand years ago. I didn't know what that "half" signified, but I knew that they dared to bully Wangchuan precisely because of it.

Wangchuan was exercising restraint because he didn't want to waste energy on unnecessary trouble. Now that the Underworld had been blown up, Youluo would likely be occupied for a while. It would be best if he were forever afraid of us and never returned.

Otherwise, if it came down to a physical fight, while Wangchuan had a few spirit beasts and demonic beasts under his command, most of them were just humans turned into kittens. I didn't know how to calculate the combat capabilities of fierce beasts or immortal beasts, but I knew it was highly likely that Wangchuan would have to face the Underworld alone.

I didn't dare let him put himself in danger, so I could only grip his hand tightly, refusing to let go.

"What Youluo wants should be something of mine, not you. You were likely just his justification for a legitimate invasion. Repeatedly tearing open rifts, losing so many evil ghosts, and now this explosion—it will certainly attract the attention of the other Nether Kings. He probably won't come back for a year or so. If he comes to his senses over time, then it will be a happy ending for all."

"What does he want?"

Wangchuan stroked my cheek and then reached for my ear. "Where did he kiss you?"

I was startled and swatted his hand away! "What does he want!"

Wangchuan looked at me for a long time before offering a faint smile again. "You're right. A kiss on the soul is still a kiss. It seems I've lost out big time."

"You did lose out! The physical body is just an external shell; even if I turned into a pig, it was still me!"

My temper flared. I put my hands on my hips, seemingly forgetting the previous fear, and continued to lash out at Wangchuan, harping on the topic.

"Yes, even if you were a little pig, you were still loved." Pinching my cheek, he didn't wait for me to retort before he scooped me up. "So, let's take a bath!"

"Damn it, put me down!" I struggled. "If your soul gets kissed, can a bath wash it off?!"

After struggling for a long time, I was still pressed into the bathtub. I gasped for air in panic before grabbing onto him to steady myself. Still furious, I bit down hard on his arm! This time, I used more strength than ever, trying to compensate for the feeling of being scared nearly to death just moments ago!

When I finally let go, I was shocked to find a deep set of teeth marks on his arm! I wiped away the saliva in a panic. "I, I, I..." I didn't know how to explain it! He never used to get marks when I bit him!

Wangchuan pulled me into his arms. "Now we're even."

I froze. Had he not defended himself? Had he just let me bite him? Regret and anger mixed within me, and I lashed out again, throwing a tantrum until I was pinned down.

The water rose over my neck. He pressed against me, seemingly eager to assert his dominance. Yet, in this strange situation, I caught a peculiar scent. I sniffed carefully and realized—it was a cat? A female one?!

"Why do you smell like another female?!"