He suddenly didn't know where to begin asking those questions.
“I just felt that your expression was a little strange before.” Fu Mingxu met his gaze, his eyes filled with a conflicted look. “I always felt that you were hiding many things from me.”
Actually, he didn't want Han Tao to tell him everything in detail; he just felt that beneath the information Han Tao had access to, there might be undercurrents that Han Tao would never be able to detect.
This feeling was unpleasant. Han Tao paused for a moment. His usually cold and hard face always softened when facing him, a softness that was easily noticeable to others.
"Mingxu, don't you have anything you can't tell me that you're hiding from me?" He looked at him intently.
Fu Mingxu's heart skipped a beat, and for a moment, it seemed as if the two of them were caught in a crisis of trust.
But once he was pulled into a warm and broad embrace, the crisis was quietly dissolved by the breath that rushed towards him.
"No matter what I haven't told you, or what you can't say," Han Tao said, cupping his face in her hands as she kissed his brows and eyes.
His voice was soft, yet extremely solemn, “But from beginning to end, my love for you has never changed, nor has it diminished; it has only grown stronger with the passage of time.”
He was a taciturn dragon, and all the most sincere words he uttered were used to express his love for the person in front of him.
A surge of sincere love can replace many words. Fu Mingxu recalled the things he found difficult to express and suddenly felt a greater understanding of why Han Tao had not explained them.
His jade-like earlobes were stained with a deep red, and intense and passionate emotions washed over his soul.
Fu Mingxu sighed softly, rested his chin on Han Tao's shoulder, and wrapped his arms around the other's neck.
"Han Tao, listen to me." His voice was muffled, but it carried an undeniable determination. "As long as you don't fall into demonic ways, you will always be my dragon."
Fu Ming thought that as long as his soul never fell into the demonic path, as long as he did not become a destructive god who was intolerable to heaven and earth, then everything before the time reversal would not happen.
That's enough; nothing else matters.
As the last word fell, unseen by him, Han Tao's golden pupils suddenly contracted, followed by an endless storm that subsided in an instant.
Han Tao finally confirmed one thing, but he felt no anger at all; all his emotions were transformed into the joy of regaining what he had lost.
He was incredibly grateful that night, when he thought it was a cruel twist of fate, a repetition of his past life, and that night when he was preparing to fall into the demonic path to seek revenge.
The gift of fate that was meant for him finally arrived in an incredible way.
"I promise you." His throat was dry as he forced out these words, as if they were a vow etched into his very soul.
The two did nothing but hold each other tightly.
...
Several major events have recently been discovered in the game "Demon Realm".
First, the former Demon Lord suddenly revealed that he had a biological daughter, and the Demon Prince who was about to succeed him returned from outside with serious injuries and eventually died.
As the only descendant of the previous Demon Lord, You Shu inherited the throne with the support of the royal family, even though other forces were not convinced.
After succeeding to the throne, You Shu did not rush to win over various forces. Instead, she shamelessly declared that she would cultivate demon spirits and restore the demon race to its former glory.
However, nurtured by demonic energy, the demons had long been accustomed to bloodshed and slaughter, and their nature had become brutal.
With the Heavenly Ladder severed, the beings of the Cangling Continent have no chance of ascension, let alone the demon race.
Moreover, if one were to cultivate using demonic energy as before, it would mean draining all the demonic energy from one's body, which is simply a pipe dream.
However, the new Demon Lord remained unmoved, not only sticking to his own ideas but also refusing the request to select a demon husband from various factions to give birth to a demon child as soon as possible.
The Great Demon General shook his head upon hearing this.
The conditions for opening the birthplace of demonic spirits are extremely harsh, and he completely regarded this new demon lord as a mere child who did not know the immensity of heaven and earth.
But soon, on a windy day with sandstorms raging, the new Demon Lord, who had been away for some time, returned in a flurry, holding several bloodstained scales in his hand. He boasted that he had captured a dragon, thus avenging the grudge from the war between the righteous and the demonic forces.
With You Shu constantly laying the groundwork, the Great Demon General couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement.
He rushed to the royal palace, but was turned away by the guards.
"Nonsense! I am the Great Demon General, and I should stay by the Demon Lord's side to assist him. How can you stop me?" Youhua's chest heaved violently with anger. It took her a long time to calm down. "Go and tell the Demon Lord that I have something important to discuss with him."
The guard looked at him suspiciously for a few moments, but considering his status, he eventually went to report the matter.
You Shu had already received the news, and she deliberately made the people outside the door wait a while before slowly walking out.
"Does the Great Demon General also want to send a demon husband over?" She raised an eyebrow, looking troubled. "If it's your recommendation, it's not impossible..."
Youhua's temple throbbed, and he waved his hand dismissively. "Don't give me that crap. Didn't you want to open the Demon Spirit's Birthplace? I have a way to open it. You just need to cooperate with me."
"Take me to see that dragon now."
As he was walking into the hall, a soft, boneless hand reached out and blocked his way.
You Shu revealed a big smile, "Since the Great Demon General and I have different paths, let's choose a day to meet at the birth point."
Youhua frowned deeply and said with dissatisfaction, "What does the Demon Lord mean by this? Do you know that if I stand here with you, your position as Demon Lord will be more secure and last longer?"
More stable and longer-lasting?
To be honest, You Shu wished she could go wander the world with Shen Ange right now and didn't want to stay for even a quarter of an hour longer.
Unfortunately, Youhua had no idea; he still thought he was sure to win.
“Really? But I don’t need you.” You Shu crossed her arms and looked at him. “Two days from now, I’ll be waiting for you at the birthing site with that dragon.”
"Of course, you don't have to come."
But she was certain he wouldn't go, for no other reason than that regaining the demonic spirit had always been Youhua's obsession.
You Shu was certain that he would not give up this opportunity.
After speaking, Youhua carefully examined her, feeling that perhaps the other demons had made a mistake in their judgment of this "lucky" new demon lord.
But he didn't think You Shu would resort to any other tricks.
More likely, the new Demon Lord's show of force is just like her silent resistance to choosing a demon husband from various forces.
Youhua didn't think much of it. Compared to Youshu's unexpected indifference, dealing with the demon spirit's matter was more important.
"Alright, then we'll await the Demon Lord's arrival." He gave You Shu a deep look, clearly not believing she posed any threat to him.
Each demon lord has a powerful demon general by his side, whose strength is second only to the demon lord.
In other words, the stronger the Demon Lord is, the stronger the Demon General will be.
Although the former Demon Lord was defeated by Han Tao, his strength had actually surpassed that of most people on the Cangling Continent. Otherwise, the stalemate in the war between the righteous and the demonic forces would not have lasted so long before Han Tao made his move.
After Youhua walked past, Youshu realized that she had unknowingly broken out in a cold sweat.
Many demons saw the former Great Demon General go to the palace and then return. He neither answered nor denied the questions asked by others.
By sheer chance, many demons automatically confirmed this fact in their minds.
In the past two days, news of the demons capturing a dragon has spread rapidly throughout the Demon Realm. If the Demon Realm were not so far from the human realm, the news would probably have already become common knowledge.
After this incident, quite a few people thought the new Demon Lord was not bad.
You Shu didn't care about what others were saying, and the two days passed in a flash. On the morning of the last day, she took the two of them to the place where the demon spirits were born.
To prevent the Great Demon General from noticing anything amiss, You Shu only brought Si Yang and Fu Mingxu in disguise.
Fu Mingxu unconsciously rubbed the gold bracelet on his wrist while observing her movements.
What he didn't expect was that the birthplace of the demon spirits was located right beneath the demon royal palace.
“This is what I gleaned from my brother’s memories.” You Shu held up the luminous pearl and led the two down the dark and narrow passage. “I’ve explored it twice before, and apart from not being able to go in, there was no danger.”
By the light of the luminous pearl, Fu Mingxu could see marks of axes and swords on both sides of the passageway. If it weren't for You Shu leading the way, they would have had a very difficult time finding the birthplace of the demon spirit.
The further you go in, the fewer traces of human excavation you see. By the time you reach the halfway point, the traces disappear completely, replaced by large murals.
Did the demons initially have a great interest in carving murals when they were excavating the tunnel, but eventually lost patience and just haphazardly chopped it open with knives and axes?
"Was this mural carved by your demon race?" He pondered, looking at the slightly elegant lines and the clothing so different from that of the demon race. "Could this be the demon race's aesthetic of the past?"
To be honest, the difference is quite large.
Seeing him looking at it so intently, You Shu assumed he was interested in the murals and explained as she walked, "No, these are part of the passageway itself."
She craned her neck and looked around, then turned back and took two steps before stopping at a spot. "Look," she said, "this is the first gate leading to the birthplace."
Fu Mingxu turned around and realized that she was standing in the place separated from the murals and the marks of chisels and axes.
Perhaps because they arrived early, they hadn't found any trace of the Great Demon General along the way. You Shu was used to these murals and, seeing that the two of them were looking at them with great interest, she didn't urge them on.
"Since this is the birthplace of demons, could the people in these murals have been demons in the past?" Fu Mingxu asked Si Yang Xianjun in a low voice.
Si Yang's gaze lingered on a figure in the mural with colorful feathers adorning their hair, and he shook his head: "That's not necessarily true."
"Let's see."
After saying that, the three of them continued walking down the passageway.
More and more people appeared in the murals, all of them with colorful feathers in their hair and wearing extremely flowing robes with wide sleeves. Many of the people in the murals held circular objects in front of their chests.
At first, they were standing, but later in one place they were all kneeling.
Fu Mingxu leaned closer and saw a human-bodied, snake-headed figure standing directly above the kneeling crowd, eyes closed, as if accepting the worship of the crowd.
“In the earliest records of the demon race, this is the creator of the first demon spirit.” You Shu’s tone was exceptionally respectful as she bowed to the figure in the mural. “Legend has it that the demon spirit fell from the creator’s palm and automatically split upon hearing the inner call of the demon cultivator.”
"And all the demon spirits that followed were born and split off from the first generation of demon spirits."
As Fu Mingxu gazed at the mural in front of him, You Shu's explanation gradually penetrated his eardrums, causing his originally clear thoughts to become chaotic and complicated.
What was in front of him was clearly the totem of the Wu tribe!
"Si..." Before he could speak, he heard a series of heavy footsteps.
You Shu's expression changed, and she quickly gave him a wink.
Fu Mingxu immediately shut his mouth, swallowing his doubts and the last word at the same time.
“It seems the Demon Lord likes this kind of thing.” Youhua’s gaze swept across his face, her tone meaningful. “He’s even reluctant to leave this place for a moment.”
The gold bracelet on his wrist tightened slightly, and Fu Mingxu quietly squeezed it before loosening it a little.
Fu Mingxu and Si Yang both chose to remain silent.
Si Yang subtly observed the Great Demon General, noticing a vague sense of familiarity in his handsome face. However, he spent most of his time at the Tianyan Sect, and the only people he encountered besides a few disciples of the sect were Qi Muyuan.
For a moment, I really couldn't figure out where this sense of familiarity came from.
You Shu had already come up with an excuse, so she wasn't afraid of what he said. Her smile didn't reach her eyes. "I'm afraid that if I leave for too long, the two of them will die mysteriously in the palace. Who will I ask for help then?"
The two exchanged a glance, and Youhua suddenly smiled, praising, "The Demon Lord is indeed cautious."