103 – Prologue Volume 3, that Day's Twilight Yellow

Dense twilight yellow penetrates the misty clouds

Deep twilight has enveloped the land and the woods, as if declaring that everything shall be destroyed.

In fact, destruction really happened.

Her world has collapsed. As if a broke roof tile, it fell on the ground and shattered.

Where the la.s.s is, there are corpses all over the place, and the place is dyed with ominous colors stemming from the blood flowing out of the corpses.

“Why… did this happen?”

The la.s.s murmured and made a targetless and meaningless complaint.

At the time of the calamity, she was powerless and even unable to respond. She could only sit paralyzed on the ground and watch, watch all her… family and friends turn into corpses and slowly lose body heat.

“Why… why couldn't I do anything…?”

Why am I so weak? The la.s.s bit her lower lip.

At that time, she was terrified.

This isn't surprising. Faced with such a sudden shadow of death, anyone would have a hard time reacting, only able to shrink into a corner and tremble.

However, once everything ended, the self-blame and guilt are unavoidable.

They will haunt the survivors until the day they die.

Pain can be shared. Those with the same experience can snuggle up to and support one another.

However, only the la.s.s was spared death.

She is special. Only she has a human-like form here, which enabled her to escape a calamity.

She isn't grateful for this.

If she wasn't “special”, could she have followed them?

If death really represents the end, then she would like to die in order not to experience this indescribable emotion, not to have to ask the Heavens “why” again and again.

But, she just… just…

“Hey, Senior Disciple Sister, there is a martial demon [1] here!”

A voice of surprise came from somewhere.

Why are they back? Because they aren't satisfied yet? The la.s.s moved her gaze stiffly.

Her gaze fell on aliens – aliens known as “humans”.

It's a boy and a girl.

They are young and full of life, probably not even 20 years old.

Even though the la.s.s looks childish, but they are even younger than her.

Because…

“Four tails… it's a Nine Lives Cat.”

The girl said with her eyes narrowed.

“Nine Lives Cat! Isn't that a rare martial demon!”

The boy's eyes lit up instantly when he heard that.

“Senior Disciple Sister, why don't…”

“Don't act recklessly… martial demons who cultivated human form should not be far from the Earth Realm, and most of them have strange innate abilities. If we really come to blows, I may not be able to escape unscathed.”

The girl reached out with a spear stained with blood to stop the restless boy and warned.

The la.s.s is special.

She isn't human.

Whether it is the pair of cat ears on her head, or the four tails slumped on the ground, it all points to the fact that the la.s.s is a martial demon – a martial demon with the body of a young girl.

“But…”

The boy muttered rather unhappily.

“No buts, have you forgotten about the Spirit Moon Valley?”

“It's that martial demon nest again…”

The boy twisted his mouth and voiced his discontent.

“How would they know what is happening so far away? Even the prestigious Senior Beiming isn't clairvoyant! What is there to fear?”

“Better to be safe than sorry.” With a spear in hand, the girl advised her Junior Disciple Brother earnestly, “You must know that no secret can be kept forever.”

“Senior Disciple Sister, are'r you being too cowardly?”

“Cowardly? You haven't seen a Grandmaster before!”

The tone of the girl with the spear contains apprehension, fear, and yearning.

The Grandmaster Realm is the supreme realm that every martial pract.i.tioner yearns for.

The la.s.s has heard of Beiming Youyu, she knows that she is the only Grandmaster martial demon.

But if she's so powerful, then why did she abandon her people? Why didn't she protect us? The la.s.s wants to ask this, but Beiming Youyu is far away. She didn't appear despite her people being murdered one after another.

“Huh, don't we also have Senior Qi Guiyuan!”

“You're really…”

The girl with a spear in hand shook her head helplessly.

Watching them chat, the la.s.s wants to ask them, “How can you still be so nonchalant?”

“Huh? Senior Disciple Sister, why is that martial demon looking at us with such eyes?”

There is a vacant look in those eyes.

“You haven't figured out the situation yet? Judging from her appearance, she should have just recently cultivated human form… Her parents may have died here.”

“Parents? Those cats and dogs?”

The boy sneered, and then slapped his forehead.

“I forgot that no matter how much they look like humans, martial demons are still beasts. Dear me, the parents of a beast are beasts, as well.”

“… don't insult us!”

The martial demon la.s.s grasped the weeds on the ground, and her tails moved around, angry.

“Did I hear right? A beast said something human-like…”

The boy adopted an expression of disgust.

“How disgusting.”

Martial demons are clearly beasts, but they can cultivate human form. Humans are disgusted by this. They feel like their uniqueness has been infringed.

Kill him! A murderous voice echoed in the martial demon la.s.s's mind in an instant.

Apparently having noticed her change, the girl with a spear frowned and warned: “Stop it, you've already provoked her.”

“Isn't that fine?!”

The boy pulled out a short and a long spears from behind his back. With a spear in each hand, he a.s.sumed a stance, an eager look on his face.

“I haven't dealt with a martial demon in the Earth Realm yet!”

“You're really…”

The girl with a spear in hand sighed.

… I hate humans.

They take everything away from you. They are bloodthirsty, and reportedly they don't even spare their own kind.

Barbaric, despicable, cruel, greedy, and self-righteous.

This is how the Nine Lives Cat sees humans – unsightly existences.

“… Hateful.”

The martial demon la.s.s voiced her hostility.

Hateful hateful hateful hateful hateful hateful hateful hateful hateful hateful hateful hateful hateful hateful hateful hateful hateful hateful hateful despicable despicable despicable despicable despicable despicable despicable…

Dark emotions filled her thoughts.

Therefore…

She exposed her sharp teeth and nails and rushed towards the humans fiercely.

“Bring it on!”

“Really!”

The boy shouted and took the lead, and his Senior Disciple Sister followed.

Lights flickered, and the residual true qi swept the fallen leaves and dust.

Shortly after they clashed, the martial demon la.s.s was already covered in several wounds.

The cooperation between the boy and the girl is flawless, making the fight nearly one-sided. Their spearmans.h.i.+p is quite crafty; they're always slas.h.i.+ng or stabbing from unexpected places. On the other hand, although the la.s.s has reached the Earth Realm, but as she has virtually no martial arts skill to speak off, she can only react by instinct.

Although the la.s.s didn't lose immediately, but the wounds on her body kept piling up, sapping her strength.

The battle started abruptly and ended quickly.

The martial demon la.s.s was defeated in less than ten rounds.

“Earth Realm? What a joke.”

The boy stepped on the la.s.s's neck and looked down at her with disdain, and the tip of the short spear in his hand stopped in front of her eyes.

… Why am I so weak? Faced with the threat of death, the la.s.s can only ask this question in her mind.

If I had power…

However, the la.s.s doesn't. She has cultivation base, but not martial arts skill.

“Don't bother.”

As the girl with the spear warned the martial demon to stop any resistance, she shook her head and sighed pityingly.

Hypocrisy – the la.s.s's eyes conveyed the la.s.s's sentiment.

The boy raised his short spear and sentenced the la.s.s to death.

The spear tip fell, and the la.s.s closed her eyes subconsciously.

“… Stop!”

A red voice sounded.

The crisp voice seems to cut off the noise of the world, making time dilate and the world tremble.

“Who are you?”

The la.s.s just opened her eyes and immediately saw the spear tip that stopped right before her eyes.

Who saved me? Struggling, she slowly moved her gaze.

Not far away, an angry little girl with puffed up cheecks and hands on the waist is looking this way.

She seems to be only 5 or 6 years old, but there is beauty in her childish face that can't be concealed. In time, she must become a mesmerizing beauty.

Next to the little girl stands a girl in green. Her eyes are limpid like autumn water and her face is exquisite, and a faint gentle aura permeates her.

“They're from Merak Temple, the Young Temple Master and a genius whose surname seems to be Luo…”

The girl with a spear in hand said this rather apprehensively.

“Merak Temple!”

The boy exclaimed, as if he heard something inconceivable.

“Which sect are you from?! You're not allowed to kill humanoid martial demons in Martial Realm Trial by Fire, this is a rule set by the Five Great Sects!”

The little girl said with a straight face.

“This martial demon attacked first!”

“You've already wounded her as is, is there a need to kill her?”

The girl in green frowned and revealed Earth Realm aura.

“You…”

The boy wanted to say something, but was stopped by his Senior Disciple Sister.

“That's enough. We can't afford to offend Merak Temple…”

Then, the girl with a spear turned and clasped her hands.

“We didn't mean to kill this martial demon. We were just defending ourselves.”

“Huh, then why don't you have the one next to you put his dirty foot away?”

“Remove your foot.”

“But…”

“I said to remove your foot, didn't you hear me?” The girl with a spear frowned and uttered solemnly: “You won't even listen to your Senior Disciple Sister?”

Despite looking unwilling, the boy did as he was told and released the martial demon la.s.s.

“If there's nothing else, then we will take our leave.”

The girl with a spear clasped her hands and peered at the little girl.

The little girl snorted, not agreeing nor disagreeing. Instead, the girl in green next to her nodded gently and said: “You can go.”

As if being pardoned, the girl with a spear dragged the sullen-looking boy away.

Bearing the pain coming from all over her body, the martial demon la.s.s started to climb onto her feet silently.

“Are you okay?”

The little girl in red approached in a hurry.

The martial demon la.s.s glanced at her, not saying a word.

“Sorry, it looks like I came a bit late.”

The little girl in red said in frustration, as if she did something wrong.

Why are you apologizing? The martial demon la.s.s gazed at the pet.i.te figure in front of her with a puzzled look in her eyes.

Then, the little girl looked around, saw the unbearable gory scene, bit her lower lip, and said.

“That's excessive!”

At the same time, the girl in green squatted down beside the martial demon la.s.s, picked up her wrist gently, and checked her pulse briefly, and then inspected her body.

“It's nothing serious, just some superficial wounds.”

“That's good then!”

The little girl clapped her hands happily, and then a.s.sumed an inquisitive expression.

“Senior Disciple Sister Luo, can we take her back with us? She looks so pitiful…”

“This…” The girl in green revealed an awkward expression: “I'm afraid it's inconvenient… Our Merak Temple has no precedent for taking in humanoid martial demons. You'll have to ask the Temple Master…”

“Ask father?!”

In a flash, the little girl had a fearful look on her face.

Then as if she remembered something, she glanced at the martial demon la.s.s, troubled.

Why do humans pity me? The martial demon la.s.s is agitated.

Humans are all ugly creatures. She does not need pity from them.

“I'm fine.”

She braced herself and got up and left in an unstable pace.

“Where are you going!”

The little girl's voice came from behind, and the person herself jogged up to her.

The martial demon la.s.s walked into the dark forest without a word.

“Really, you are going there!”

The little girl stopped in front of the forest and shouted repeatedly.

The la.s.s didn't respond, she doesn't need human pity.

The encounter with the little girl didn't brought the martial demon la.s.s any salvation, but at least she didn't get caught in the quagmire of hatred.

… That was already 10 years ago.

Since that day – after that disaster, the martial demon la.s.s has been seeking strength.

It is not for revenge, but to protect her loved ones.

… She doesn't wanted such a tragedy to happen again.

[1] – martial beast was changer to martial demon