Wu Xingxue looked down and saw that his hands were drenched in blood.

On his way here to the Valley of Great Sorrow, he had been secretly circulating his internal force in case he needed it in an urgent situation. He worried that without his memories, he wouldn’t know how to fight and would make a fool out of himself. Unexpectedly, when real danger came, he didn’t even have to think.

He didn’t know how many years he had been the Devil Lord and how many beings he had killed in order to have all of these moves set into his muscle memory.

In fact, just before entering the valley, he was still curious about his relationship with Xiao Fuxuan.

Although Xiao Fuxuan was an immortal in charge of the Northern Frontiers and he was a devil imprisoned for twenty-five years, things between them might not be as terrible as he had previously thought.

But now, looking at his hands, he couldn’t think of any reason for their relationship not to be on terrible terms.

……

Wu Xingxue was silent for a moment, then turned to look at his two filial subordinates.

The yin being affectionately held One-arm’s face, kissing him to the point that he’d rather be dead. 1Dementor’s kiss vibes >:)

Ning Huaishan seemed to have only been defiled a few times, but his mouth was now pursed like an old lady’s. It was obvious to see that he was just itching to sew up that yin being’s mouth… or he would also be willing to sew up his own mouth.

Wu Xingxue walked over.

Seeing him, Ning Huaishan burst into tears, "City Lord, we were wrong. We just thought someone was pretending to be you, but we weren’t trying to overthrow you…"

Wu Xingxue nodded, "Oh, I know."

Ning Huaishan’s crying stopped abruptly, "?"

He even knew this?

Stammering, he swallowed his words back.

Since they had already made their reasons clear, Wu Xingxue decided to lift his robe and pick up the yin being by its neck.

The yin being’s mouth pursued as long as it could, but it could no longer reach One-arm anymore. One-arm could finally let out a breath. His face had turned incredibly green, his spirit was trembling, and a substantial portion of his life force had been drained.

"City Lord…" One-arm cried. Just as he was about to apologize and show his loyalty, he heard Wu Xingxue ask him, "I know his name is Ning Huaishan, but what about you? What’s your name?"

The sound of One-arm’s tearful beg got caught in his throat: “?”

With an astonished look, he said, "Wh… what?"

Wu Xingxue: "I asked you what your name is."

"Fang Chu… City Lord, my name is Fang Chu." One-arm had a face of shock and then hesitated for a moment before lowering his voice, "City Lord, you gave me this name."

"?"

Wu Xingxue didn’t expect that giving names was part of the responsibilities as the City Lord.

“You said that since I am a member of Zhaoye City already, I should no longer worry about the bygone matters of my previous days, so I might as well change my name. At that time, I was fighting with yin beings and ghosts for food, so I didn’t have a name to begin with. Then you gave me this name." One-arm said, oh wait, it’s Fang Chu now.

Wu Xingxue listened, showing no sign of remembering.

"City Lord, are you okay?"

Wu Xingxue stopped hiding the truth, "I’ve been locked up too long in the prison of the Northern Frontiers; I can’t remember anything from the past,"

"What???"

Fang Chu and Ning Huaishan looked at each other, finally understanding why they had the feeling that their City Lord was an impostor.

“So when we run into situations after this, if I ask, you just answer.” Wu Xingxue’s pitch-black eyes stared at those two. After finishing his instructions, he then added a sentence as he had suddenly remembered something, “Oh, right, remember to never, ever, lie to me—”

"Nonononono," the two shook their heads as if they were rattle drums, "We wouldn’t dare, we wouldn’t dare."

Wu Xingxue continued slowly, "Since I forget everything from the past, naturally, everything we have been through, all of our past experiences, and our previous sentiments are all gone from my knowledge as well. Let me ask, was I a cruel lord?"

Ning Huaishan: "……"

How the fuck were they supposed to answer this?

Wu Xingxue smiled, "The current me is even meaner now."

Ning Huaishan: "……"

The two subordinates looked towards that yin being with its mouth stubbornly extended, thinking that they’d learned this lesson.

He might not necessarily be mean, but he’s certainly despicable.

After he finished threatening them, Wu Xingxue let go of his hand and gave the yin being back its freedom. It instantly aimed its curved mouth for Ning Huaishan.

But before its lips could touch him, Wu Xingxue also let go of the oppression he implanted on the two of them, and also released the belt that was tying them. "Put on your pants," he said.

Ning Huaishan moved around. After finding out that he could move again, he immediately pressed his hand against the yin being’s face and used the other hand to pull his pants up.

“Fucking one mouthful after another, having a good time, weren’t you!!! Smearing my face full of, blargh—” He simultaneously cursed while retching, working together with Fang Chu to kill that yin being who had been hugging and strangling them left and right.

They violently threw the yin being back onto the ground and fastened the belts of their pants. They rubbed their mouths hard, afraid that even a tiny bit of the yin being’s taste would remain.

Wu Xingxue didn’t watch them. Instead, he followed the sound of dripping water and found a small cold pool.

All of a sudden, he realized how bizarre this all was.

He was forthright and candid in front of these two subordinates who nearly killed him, not concealing anything and even telling them about his amnesia. So what was the need to hide his secrets from Xiao Fuxuan?

What did he have to hide?Doesn’t he already know that he is the original person?

It’s natural for devils to kill people, and what’s wrong with some blood on your hands? Why bother washing it?

It’s nothing but a waste of time.

Wu Xingxue stood by the cold pool expressionlessly.

After a moment, he squatted down, held his sleeves, and washed off the blood covering his hands. After he finished washing, he pressed his hands to his nose and sniffed them.

Not a shred of the heat that the handwarmer had lent him before remained. His internal force was already frigid to begin with, and just now he had just frozen an entire catacomb full of blood. At this moment, his fingertips were now cold as ice, though they no longer smelled like blood.

"City Lord." Ning Huaishan called out.

Wu Xingxue got up and moved towards them, subconsciously looking up.

That was where Ning Huaishan and Fang Chu pulled him down from. There should be a loose floorboard there that leads to the mountain temple above. But looking at it now, it seemed that the mountain walls were joined together seamlessly, revealing no signs of where the loose floorboard could be. Naturally, he couldn’t hear any noise from the people outside either.

Ning Huaishan saw him looking up and remembered that, as of now, he had lost his memory. He diligently explained: “City Lord, you might not remember, but what those dumb cultivation disciples said was incorrect – you can’t just go through the loose floorboard at any time. Fang Chu and I are the most familiar with the region of the Valley of Great Sorrow; this catacomb is supposed to be a secret chamber, and it only opens once every day and night. It’s been sealed with celestial power and makes an exception for no one. The people up there temporarily can’t come… down.”

As he spoke, he slowly closed his mouth.

Because Wu Xingxue was staring at him, and then he asked faintly, "Did I say someone was coming down?"

Ning Huaishan: "… No."

"Then why are you talking so much?"

"My apologies…" While Wu Xingxue wasn’t looking, Ning Huaishan slapped himself on the mouth.

Just as he was about to say in his head that he would never speak unnecessarily again, he suddenly heard his City Lord speak, "Before, me and Xiao Fuxuan…"

Ning Huaishan silently waited for the next half of the sentence, but after Wu Xingxue finished the name "Xiao Fuxuan", he didn’t continue. Perhaps he was deliberately trying to think of a description, or perhaps something else.

After a long time, Wu Xingxue seemed to have given up on his thinking. He turned his head and asked him, "How was our relationship?"

A question mark slowly appeared on top of Ning Huaishan’s head: "?"

Was it not obvious??? An immortal and a devil, what could the relationship possibly be like???

Ning Huaishan almost thought that he was being tested again. But this time, he didn’t try to be crafty. Remembering that his City Lord’s mood had always been hard to grasp, he answered honestly: “I don’t know.”

Wu Xingxue was stunned: "You don’t know? Weren’t you with me before?"

"I am. I’m with you most of the time."

"Then how come you don’t know?"

Ning Huaishan found this a bit difficult to answer, "City Lord, if I tell you, please, please don’t be angry."

Wu Xingxue did not promise to not be angry, "Go ahead."

Ning Huaishan: "……"

"It’s very hard to tell whom you like and whom you dislike. It’s really difficult for me to give you an exact answer," said Ning Huaishan.

He has gone out with Wu Xingxue many times before and done many things together. Logically, he should know Wu Xingxue very well, yet he still said that it was hard to tell. This was because Wu Xingxue was too good at deceiving.

When going out, Wu Xingxue would sometimes change his appearance, none of them similar. But the foundation was there, so however he changed it, it was never ugly.

He only had to pull his casually tied hair up into a white jade hairpiece, and then he would turn into the type of handsome young man that girls adored. He looked graceful and elegant, like someone who knew how to be bored, how to laugh, and how to tease.

Sometimes, even Ning Huaishan’s heart would be moved, feeling that his City Lord was really how he appeared.

Thankfully, he had a clear mind and knew that those were all deceptions.

So what if you chatted and laughed with him today? You’ll be dead either way in a few days.

He had followed Wu Xingxue to many, many places and had also seen many, many people die from his hand. Every time they met a new person, he still couldn’t predict whether Wu Xingxue was going to kill them or keep them alive.

He has also met Xiao Fuxuan before, although only a few times.

According to the way of heaven, during those years that Xiao Fuxuan was guarding the Northern Frontiers, he shouldn’t have frequently come to the mortal realm. But unfortunately, every time he came, he would run into Wu Xingxue. What a small world it is!

What could the outcome be for a devil facing the immortal responsible for heavenly punishment? Certainly not good.

Ning Huaishan could never forget Wu Xingxue’s expression as he looked at Xiao Fuxuan from afar: it was a weariness that not even a change of appearance could hide.

Wu Xingxue would always tell Ning Huaishan to return to Zhaoye City in advance, so he wasn’t actually clear as to what happened between them. But what he did know for certain was that every time Wu Xingxue returned, his mood would always be even worse.

Every time this happened, he and Fang Chu would always stay as far away from Wu Xingxue as possible, just in case they got hurt for no reason. As time passed, they started to take the name “Xiao Fuxuan” and his term "Celestial Immortal” as well as being taboo words. They wouldn’t use these words if they could avoid them.

Ning Huaishan had long felt like his City Lord, and Xiao Fuxuan, well, as devils flourished, the Immortal Capital put increasing pressure on them. Eventually, the two would meet their devastating end.

So back then, when Wu Xingxue slaughtered his way to the Immortal Capital, he didn’t find it strange at all. He had tried to guess the City Lord’s future actions many times; this was the only time he had guessed correctly.

Ning Huaishan thought about those twenty-five years of imprisonment and said to Wu Xingxue, “I think that you and the Celestial Immortal should’ve known each other for a long time by now, and you two have some history together. Otherwise, you two wouldn’t be like this. There ought to be a strong grudge between you two, an enmity…”2Enmity: “The state or feeling of being actively opposed or hostile to someone or something” From Google. Basically saying how WXX and XFX were like sworn enemies lol

Ah, enmity…

Wu Xingxue thought.

Relying on the fact that his City Lord’s puppet wasn’t here—he couldn’t see him and so he didn’t feel guilty—Ning Huaishan guessed without any apprehension, not afraid at all.

He thought that either way, this catacomb wouldn’t be open for another whole day and night. By the time it opens, the City Lord probably won’t remember this matter anymore.

Fang Chu, who was investigating the cave, suddenly let out a shout, "Fuck! What the hell is this?!"Just as Ning Huaishan turned to look, he suddenly heard a loud explosion coming from above.

He shrank back, startled. When he lifted his head upwards again, he saw a beam of familiar golden light. The golden light violently thrusts inside the catacomb, forcefully breaking the celestial power that had sealed the catacomb.

Although there was no wind, the flames of the oil lamps inside the cavern quivered wildly.

They abruptly shot up dozens of meters, like they were going to burn down the entire catacomb, and then in the split second that they shot up, they suddenly all went out.

Silence. Then, a deafening crash.

With a boom, the entire catacomb roof that served as support for the mountain temple collapsed from hundreds of meters above.

Smoke and dust were flying everywhere, and even the imposing divine statue in the middle of the catacomb cracked under the stress.

Ning Huaishan vigorously coughed a few times, trying to look through the smoke to see who had come.

It was Xiao Fuxuan and the others.

Fuck me.

The celestial powers sealing this catacomb were this easy to break???

Just as this thought had emerged, he felt that someone had given him a soft kick from behind. One-arm Fang Chu was also kicked over in a similar manner.

The two staggered forward a few steps and happened to end up on the pile of yin beings’ corpses.

Thus, when Yi Wusheng and the others landed inside the catacomb, what they saw was this scene—greenish-white corpses covered the entire floor, their heads separated from their bodies, and blood flowed in rivers.

And Ning Huaishan and Fang Chu stood on top of the mountain of corpses, showing cold expressions on their faces and their hands covered in blood.

Those few disciples were still young, and their faces turned pale on the spot.

Those few commoners were in an even worse state.

Even Yi Wusheng was slightly shocked by this scene. Holding onto his paper, he said hoarsely, “You guys… you two… did you two kill all of them?”

Ning Huaishan: "……"

Fang Chu: "……"

They finally understood why they were kicked over, as they responded dryly, "Uh-huh."

And Wu Xingxue, the person who had really fought just now, was way far away from them, standing alone diagonally behind the divine statue. His two hands were spotlessly clean, and he was comfortably holding the handwarmer that he had picked up off the ground not long before.

He thought: finally, there’s a time when other people are wrongly blamed while I watch the show. However, he saw that Xiao Fuxuan didn’t even look at the “other people,”. His gaze was piercing toward him through the flying smoke and dust.

After a moment of silence, Xiao Fuxuan walked over.

After his movement, the others finally stopped being frozen in place. Yi Wusheng and the others followed him down from the top of the collapsed ceiling, passed through the mountain of corpses, and gathered over.

"Didn’t the legends say that this was a huge catacomb? Why is there a divine statue being worshiped here?" The cultivation disciples noticed the giant divine statue and lifted their heads to look.

"Hey… do you think that our martial siblings came to the Valley of Great Sorrow many times yet still couldn’t find the missing ordained people? Could it be because they never came down to this underground catacomb?"

"Don’t know, perhaps. Let us search."

……

Wu Xingxue listened to their discussion and also lifted his head to look at the divine statue, which he had glossed over before.

In fact, he didn’t recognize divine statues at all. He couldn’t identify them even after seeing them. All he was aware of was the fact that neither this nor the Celestial Immortal were the Mingwu Hua Xin that the Hua Sect worshiped.

Just as he was about to take a better look at the statue’s face, he suddenly felt a tall figure appear beside him.

Xiao Fuxuan had come over to stand beside him. He was also looking up at the statue.

Then, his deep voice sounded, "Why are those yin beings here?"

Wu Xingxue turned his head slightly to glance at him.

If he honestly explained that they were brought here by Ning Huaishan to kill him, then it wouldn’t make sense to say that Ning Huaishan was the one who killed all these yin beings. Therefore, Wu Xingxue withdrew his line of sight and replied, “I don’t know, they were here when I entered. Maybe they were sealed in here before.”

Xiao Fuxuan pursed his lips and didn’t respond.

After a while, he asked again, "Those two helped you kill them?"

Wu Xingxue acted normally as he held the handwarmer with his hands and gave an "mm" as a reply.

Just now, he has circulated his extremely frigid internal force. The handwarmer wouldn’t be able to warm him for now, and instead, was slowly being cooled off by him.

Welp, that doesn’t matter, as long as he can’t tell. Wu Xingxue thought in his head.

But after a while, he saw Xiao Fuxuan glance at his handwarmer and lifted his hand.

The next second, Xiao Fuxuan’s hand touched his handwarmer.

Wu Xingxue immediately froze.

Xiao Fuxuan’s hand was very large, but his palm was quite thin. In addition, even though frost had clearly covered his entire body in the coffin before, at this moment, he was really warm.

After he held it for a while, he lowered his head and said, "It’s cold like ice."

Wu Xingxue suddenly remembered what Ning Huaishan described before – there’s enmity between you two.

He wasn’t sure what enmity was like…

But he was certain it wasn’t supposed to be like this.1Dementor’s kiss vibes >:)2Enmity: “The state or feeling of being actively opposed or hostile to someone or something” From Google. Basically saying how WXX and XFX were like sworn enemies lol