Nangong Jingtang didn’t answer Ye Yu’s question right away. Instead, she turned her gaze outward. The peaceful sight of the Peacock Clan filled her with calm.
As the saying went, those with different paths cannot plot together. Since the Sanctuary showed no sentiment, she would never return.
As for the human-faced spider Shang Jinleng—he had slaughtered a hundred of her clanspeople. His seal would never be broken. Having just exorcised her inner demon, her strength had not yet fully returned. In a few days, she would make him vanish without a trace.
Ye Yu nodded in agreement.
“That’s good,” he said.
Nangong Jingtang hesitated for a moment, then continued, “For now, stay here. Once I’ve made up my mind, you’ll be the first to know my answer.”
“That sounds best.”
Ye Yu disliked dragging things out. He understood Nangong Jingtang’s current state—just awakened, she needed time to sort through her memories and adjust. He could afford to wait—for only so long. He didn’t want to become a “stone waiting for his beloved,” hesitating at every turn.
Suddenly, a crucial question came to him. He called after Nangong Jingtang as she was about to leave. With earnest intensity, he asked, “By the way, I forgot to ask—what do you think of the word ‘justice’?”
“Hmm?”
For a moment, Nangong Jingtang’s expression grew very complicated.
Half an hour later, she departed, and Ye Yu’s face bore no hint of triumph. To be honest, he had hoped that now she was fully lucid, he might guide her toward righteousness. A Demon King–level monster like her could surely yield him many Justice Points—if only the system would allow it. After all, he had already earned three thousand Justice Points from her once before. Who knew if such “point farming” could pass?
But the attempt failed. Together with her restored memories, Nangong Jingtang knew Ye Yu was a monster who enjoyed spreading the Way of Justice. She politely played along, declaring that justice was good and that she might one day become a righteous monster herself. Yet the system remained silent. Ye Yu had no choice but to abandon the idea.
Meanwhile, two cat demons in white robes arrived at the heart of Beast City. This was where the Futiān Rebirth Drum had once been stored. After Nangong Jingtang’s revival, the drum had vanished, and its protective barrier shattered. Ever since the Hornbill Clan’s chieftain, Chen Mingzi, fell, Beast City had descended into chaos, all tribes warring indiscriminately, their memories of events thirty thousand years ago long forgotten.
The two cat demons exchanged a glance. “This should be the spot,” one said. From the residual demon power fluctuations, it matched. “Let’s get to work—no more dawdling.”
They were both Sanctum Envoys: Zhuo Yi and Zhuo Kong. Their mission was to break Shang Jinleng’s seal. With a single-handed mudra, Zhuo Yi summoned an invisible barrier, enveloping a ten-meter radius in complete concealment. From outside, one could see nothing, neither their figures nor any demon aura. This barrier was called the Seal of the Six Perceptions.
Zhuo Kong stood by, his hands weaving constantly before slamming them into the ground. Instantly, multicolored demon glyphs radiated outward.
Zhuo Yi narrowed his eyes. “This looks troublesome.”
Zhuo Kong sneered, “That’s obvious. Thirty thousand years ago, Nangong Jingtang was celebrated as the fastest demon to reach Demon King Realm. Had she not met Shang Jinleng, she would’ve become the Sanctuary’s youngest elder within five hundred years. A seal crafted for such a being—of course it’s stubborn.”
Zhuo Yi scoffed, “You gush about her, yet she still lost to Jinleng! In my view, that old spider’s the real threat.”
Zhuo Kong shook his head. “You know nothing. Let’s do the work. I suspect we’ve underestimated this seal. Even after thirty thousand years, it holds strong. I reckon we’ll be at it for days.”
Zhuo Yi frowned and sighed.
Three days later...
Within the Peacock Clan’s territory, Nangong Jingtang had fully recovered her prime strength. The weakness after purging her inner demon had vanished. Now she finally had time to carefully consider her feelings for Ye Yu. In fact, when the Manox Clan awakened, her memories had already fused. She deeply understood that she liked Ye Yu. But this new experience left the once–single-born queen flustered. As before, she needed to distinguish between dependence and genuine affection. She refused to act rashly without clarity.
Three days passed. Ye Yu’s presence remained ever-present in her thoughts, and her longing grew stronger. Nangong [N O V E L I G H T] Jingtang realized this was love—not immature dependence.
Resolved, she prepared to confront her feelings instead of fleeing. Yet as she was about to depart, she paused. Was it too abrupt to go confess directly?
Her eyes fell on the small basket in the corner. Memories flooded back—that heart-knot she had painstakingly woven as a call for shared sentiment, working days without sleep so that when Ye Yu returned, he would see her affection. Unfortunately, before he came back, her inner demon had taken over, and she fled, never giving him the knot.
Why not seize this chance to deliver it? Then she could explain Peacock Clan customs and honor her original intent.
With that thought, Nangong Jingtang lifted the basket and strode toward Ye Yu’s location.
