CHAPTER 35

Never Deceive a Devil

LUO FAN

When we stepped out of the carriage, several men were waiting for us in the courtyard. The alchemist had expected us to return. I was then certain that he just did not make a mistake. He had intentionally given me the wrong elixir.

“I apologize for the deception,” he immediately confessed. “But some things are beyond my control.”

Beyond his control? Is he trying to imply that someone is behind this?

Ruan Yanjun smirked. “I have no time to waste with trash like you. Either you give me the elixir or I’ll kill everyone around here and hang your corpse naked on your front door for your neighbors to see.”

The alchemist did not budge. “I’m sorry, but my laboratory is the most important to me. I’ll protect it with my life.”

From the words he’d said, I figured that my initial suspicion was correct. “Who has threatened you?” I asked.

“Priest Luo, the answer you seek is the death of me.”

I was stupefied. It meant if he revealed the person, he would die as a result.

As I pondered about the list of possible culprits, Ma Huan ordered his men to attack. Around twelve of them charged forward at once.

Ruan Yanjun kept me behind him as he single-handedly took care of his opponents. I did not have to fear for my life. I knew that with the most powerful cultivator right in front of me, no one could get an opportunity to even lay a finger on me.

Totally blind, I could only hear grunts of men who kept dropping on the ground, until I heard Ma Huan gasp. Ruan Yanjun had probably given him a fatal blow.

“If you kill me,” Ma Huan said in a strangled voice. I could imagine Ruan Yanjun’s hand around the alchemist’s neck, ready to break it. “I won’t give you the antidote and your lover will never see again.”

There was silence. I knew that Ruan Yanjun was contemplating killing the alchemist but was worried about my condition.

“Lin Si,” Ruan Yanjun called for the coachman. “Take Priest Luo back in the carriage. It seems we’ll be staying here for a while.”

A man approached from behind me and gently held my arm. “Priest Luo, this way.”

I came along as Lin Si escorted me back into the carriage.

Alone, I sat on the couch. I listened as Ruan Yanjun threatened Ma Huan with spine-chilling words that only a ruthless demon could utter until the alchemist finally gave in.

A few minutes later, Ruan Yanjun entered the carriage and sat beside me. “Take this in,” he said in a very gentle voice, opposite the hostile way he had spoken with Ma Huan.

I held the pill in between my fingers. This time, I was hesitant to take it in.

“It’s safe,” he said before I could ask.

“How did you know?”

“I don’t, but I have my ways to find out.”

Knowing the devil he was, I no longer wanted to find out what wicked trick he had pulled this time.

Without asking further questions, I swallowed the pill. Ruan Yanjun needed me for a purpose that he was yet to reveal, so I was certain he would not give me something that would hurt me, especially after what had happened to me before this.

“Do you feel anything?” he asked.

I shook my head. “Nothing so far.”

He sighed. “It might take a while for the pill to take effect. Stay right here. Let me take care of the matters at hand.”

I nodded.

Of course, he would. There was nothing that Ruan Yanjun could not take care of. In the end, he always got what he wanted. So I need not worry about anything.

I stayed in the carriage for half an hour, until light began to diffuse into the darkness. Some moments later, I could see silhouettes once again.

Before this, I had always wished to get my vision back, but after totally losing my sight for the last few hours, I realized that this was better than having no sight at all.

Delighted, I stepped out of the carriage and looked for Ruan Yanjun. Aside from the coachman, the front yard was empty.

“Lin Si,” I called while I approached him.

“Priest Luo, are your eyes better now?”

“They are. Where’s Lord Ruan?”

Before he could answer, a shadow emerged from the door. I immediately recognized his frame. He had probably heard my voice and came out to check on me.

“It looks like our little priest has gotten better.” Ruan Yanjun approached me, and then he held my chin and tilted my head up so I would look at his face. “Can you see me now?”

“Just as good as before, not any better.”

He sighed. “Fine enough, but I’m not yet through dealing with this small rat problem. Go back in the carriage and rest. I’ll bring you the elixir in a short while.”

Without waiting for my response, he returned inside the house. I was curious to find out how the negotiation was going, so I followed after him.

I found him standing in front of Ma Huan who was bound on a chair. With his keen senses, I was sure he had noticed me, but he did not say anything and continued interrogating the alchemist.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

“Give me the elixir, and you better give me the correct one this time or I will not be very forgiving again.”

“If I gave you the elixir, you’ll kill me.”

Ruan Yanjun smirked. “Aren’t Daoists supposed to see and think only in a positive light? How come you know exactly what this devil is planning to do? Unless your mind is tainted with evil, as well.”

“I’m not like you. I did this not of my own freewill.”

“Is that so, or you just want another duel with me hoping you can break through the seventh level?”

I was surprised that Ruan Yanjun thought that way. When Ma Huan did not respond, I suspected that Ruan Yanjun must have guessed it correctly.

Ruan Yanjun clicked his tongue. “I give you some advice, Daoist Priest. Never ever deceive a demon… or you will pay with your life.”

“It’s a risk that cultivators do to achieve new heights.”

“Since you are willing to risk your life for your ambition, what about the life of another person?” Ruan Yanjun turned in my direction. “Bring him in.”

At first, I thought he was directing the order to me and I had no idea what he meant. Until the coachman entered the door holding a child in his hand.

Ma Huan gasped in surprise. “He’s just a child.”

“Just a child?” Ruan Yanjun grabbed the boy and held his face up. “He does look like you.”

The alchemist froze.

Ruan Yanjun smirked. “Do you think I don’t know about your little secret? You’ve impregnated a woman and abandoned her in pursuit of your grand ambition, and when she died, you pretended to adopt your own son and made him your disciple. Am I correct?”

“Sect Leader Ruan,” the alchemist growled. “How could you say those things right in front of an innocent child?”

“Oh, this child doesn’t know?” Ruan Yanjun pretended to have made a mistake and looked at the boy. “How old are you?”

“S-seven.”

“Hmm, then perhaps you understood what I said, right?”

The boy nodded.

“Tell me what you understood then.”

“That he is my real father.”

“Correct,” Ruan Yanjun smiled mischievously. “You’re a very smart boy, so unlike your foolish father.”

“Lord Ruan.” I approached him and took the boy from him. “Don’t frighten the child.”

The child immediately held on to my thighs, trembling in fear.

“A-Fan, didn’t you see? I just wanted him to know the truth. Everyone deserves to know their origin. That’s the same reason why we are traveling together.”

I was confused, but I decided to ignore it.

Ruan Yanjun turned to Ma Huan. “Are you going to give me the elixir… or should I take your child instead? He has a good foundation. I can make him my disciple and turn him into an unscrupulous demon like me. I can implant a dark core into him right now, right before your eyes.”

“Don’t,” the alchemist grunted.

“Then stop wasting my time!” Ruan Yanjun was losing his patience.

“Let him go and I’ll give you the elixir.”

“You give me the elixir and I will let him go.”

“Since you both don’t trust each other,” I said as I moved back with the boy. “I’ll hold the child. Give Lord Ruan the elixir and I will leave this child unharmed.”

Ruan Yanjun smirked. “You heard what my lover said.”

I glared at Ruan Yanjun. “Lord Ruan, do not utter such a despicable joke or they’d spread it around like a fact.”

“It has been going around already. Haven’t you heard that he called you my lover earlier? Even if you’re going to deny it, will they believe it? No. So leave it be. If spreading rumors is that satisfying to them, then let them have their fill.”

I sighed.

Ma Huan called for his assistant who nervously approached with a small wooden box in hand. He handed the box to Ruan Yanjun.

Ruan Yanjun opened the box and inspected its contents, but I knew that he was uncertain. “How long until it takes effect?”

“Your lover’s body is weak so it might take days.”

“Be more precise.”

“Maybe a week.”

“Then I’ll be borrowing your child for a week. I’ll return him to you the moment I see a result. If I don’t, forget about seeing your child again.”

“That was not the deal.”

“Deceiving me was not part of our deal either. You only have yourself to blame for destroying my trust.” Ruan Yanjun turned to me. “Darling, take our child back to the carriage. I’ll be right over.”

“Lord Ruan,” I uttered, afraid of what he had in mind.

“Is my A-Fan questioning my decision once again?”

“Alright, but don’t kill him.”

He chuckled. “As you wish. Now, go.”

Hesitantly, I took the boy away. In the carriage, I tried to pacify him. The boy did not even resist, as if he wanted to come along willingly.

“What’s your name?” I asked.

“Lin Qiu.”

“My name is Fan.”

“Fan? You only have one name?”

I nodded. “Because I have no family.”

Hearing that, he fell quiet.

For a seven-year-old child, I thought he was quite strong, but eventually, he broke down.

He started sobbing on my lap. “Is he really my father?”

I stroked his hair. “Are you not happy?”

“I don’t know. My mother said that my father had died before I was born. If he were indeed my father, why did he abandon me and my mother?”

“He has his reasons.”

“My mother died because we had no money to buy medicines. If he really cares about us, why did he not help us when we needed him most?”

My heart was filled with compassion. Now, I understood the boy’s predicament. This would be difficult for him to accept after his father had abandoned him and his mother in a terrible condition.

While the boy was still sobbing incessantly on my lap, Ruan Yanjun returned. He settled down and glared at the child between us.

“I can’t stand crying children,” he said and poked at Lin Qiu’s acupoint.

The boy immediately fell into slumber.

I was about to utter an objection, but then I realized that it was probably best for the child to sleep and calm down.

“How do you feel?” Ruan Yanjun asked.

I did not answer and looked away. He probably noticed that I did not want to interact with him.

“Are you still upset about that lover thing?”

“If you find that amusing, I don’t. I’ve already been ruined, why do you have to obliterate what little is left of my dignity?”

“Does it look like I am amused by it? Referring to you as my lover is quite offensive. I’d rather have them call you my partner.”

My face and ears turned hot I wanted to punch him straight in the face.

“I’m joking,” he said when he noticed my reaction. “Why do you always take things so seriously?”

“Lord Ruan, if you don’t want people seeing us in such a way, then stop misleading them. In the first place, you’ve started this scandal yourself by acting inappropriately in public.”

He laughed deeply. “I’ll try to act appropriately from now on, however, there seems to be a discrepancy on what you deem appropriate from my own discernment.”

“I’m sure you know which is appropriate from not, even if you don’t believe it.”

He sighed. “Now, I don’t wonder why you only have a former prostitute for a friend. You are one very boring person.”

“I don’t see you having any friends either.”

“It’s because I prefer not to have one. Many try, even the emperors try their hardest, but I always draw a line. As for you, I don’t even see anyone trying to befriend you, except maybe from that cousin of yours who’s showing a dangerous level of obsession towards you.”

Obsession? I have not seen anyone so obsessed with teasing a person of the same sex, for whatever wicked intention he has, more than this demon.

“Can I see the elixir?” I asked to change the subject.

“I’ll give it to you once I confirm its authenticity. I don’t want to risk you taking in another poison… Or shall I say… a destructive drug. I forgot that light cultivators don’t consider anything refined by light energy as poison.”

I did not try to argue. Until now, he still took offense over mere terminology.

“How will you confirm?”

“There’s someone I know who lives near the border. We will have to take a small detour, but it won’t cause us any significant delay.”

“You know a lot of people.”

“Of course, Wun Empire is also my territory.”

I could not argue. I had forgotten that he was the one who had appointed the former emperor of Wun, so he definitely had a lot of connections around.

The power of this man was beyond me. Both as a cultivator and as a political person, he was almost invincible.

“And there’s another reason why we have to take a detour,” he continued.

“Why?”

“The alchemist just told me that there’s an ambush waiting for us along the way. It’s not that I cannot handle them, but their location is uncertain I’d rather not risk Lin Si’s life.”

“He confessed because his son is with us?” I guessed.

He smirked. “It seems that his initial claim was real after all. Someone has indeed threatened him, and since he failed to kill you, they might dispose of him, so I ordered him to seek refuge in Laozhong District, the domain of the Eternal Damnation Sect in Wun Empire.”

“You chose to still save his life?” I was surprised that the devil had the heart to protect the life of a person who had just deceived him.

“It’s only temporary,” he replied. “Until I make certain that the elixir he had given is the authentic one.”

I was mistaken. I forgot that this man had no heart, but he was wise and intelligent. He would not dispose of any person that could still be of use to him. He referred to these people as his assets.