Cang Jiumin knelt in front of all the senior members of the major sects of the immortal world, chained to the Devil Subduing Pillar at Devil Subduing Peak in Xiaoyao Sect.
I was worried… that my identity as a devil fetus will be revealed.
He could hear the disciples murmur around him, while the sect leaders look at him with varied expressions.
His master trusted in him, and believed that the truth will reveal itself, and justice prevail. But Sect Leader Cen pressed on him the injustice of his son, Cen Mi's death, as well as the mortals who were both killed and hurt by the Devil God's attendants, Si Ying and Jing Mie. Backed by the scene that was revealed by Cen Mi's Shadow Pearl, how was he supposed to deny it?
How was he supposed to reveal the truth that he is, indeed, the devil fetus?
The lightning struck the Devil Subduing Pillar, sending the electric shocks through the chains into Cang Jiumin's body. He gritted his teeth in pain.
I have stayed long enough in the immortal sects to understand the Devil God that you are worried about.
Master Zhaoyao and Chief Qu stood in front of him to defend him from Sect Leader Cen's wrath, but when the Lord of Evil, Di Mian, arrived, even their defense of him wasn't enough.
"I came here today to stop the Devil God from being reborn," Di Mian said, looking menacingly at him, "and bringing disaster upon us all." He smirked at him. "Young fellow, your identity as the devil fetus cannot be hidden anymore."
"I am not…" Cang Jiumin's protests were drowned in the rising voices among the disciples.
"I'll prove it all to you!" Di Mian released a torrent of energy that sought out the God-slaying Crossbow that resided in him.
Sect Leader Cen detected it too. "He has the God-slaying Crossbow in him!" he declared. "He is the devil fetus!"
"So what?" Cang Jiumin cried out defiantly. "Whatever my destiny is, I still have a choice to be righteous or evil." He raised his head and glared at Di Mian. "I… will never be the Devil God!"
Di Mian simply sneered. "Is that so?"
I have heard the prophecies from my brothers.
Di Mian then revealed the fate that the Devil God created for his devil fetus. Every word echoed in Cang Jiumin's head, taking on the dark voice that had always accompanied him since birth.
He shall kill his mother at birth. He shall grow up in an imperial palace, but will be weak and bullied around.
He will rise to the top, but when he is riding high on happiness and thinks that he has everything he would ever want, he shall once again fall to the bottom, and face betrayal and resentment.
He shall join an immortal sect, feel the warmth from his master and fellow disciples, but will eventually find that it was all an illusion. He will kill his master and become the Devil God.
"No…" Cang Jiumin whispered weakly, staring blankly at the people in front of him.
Suffering will be his reality. He will lose everything, and experience all kinds of mortal suffering.
What choice had he taken, when everything in his life has already been predestined? Cang Jiumin closed his eyes. How exactly has he taken his fate in hand?
Tantai Jin, can't you feel it?
Cang Jiumin opened his eyes at the dark voice in his head..
Suspicion… fear… hatred… disappointment. You can see it clearly in their eyes.
No…
Do you know why I've let you live so long, grow a love thread, and survive to join the immortal sect?
No…
It was to let you experience all of this, to accumulate anger, resentment, fear, and loathing into yourself to gather strength for my advent.
No…
Look at these people. Do you think they care for you? Do you think they will let you go with whatever you say to them?
No…
Red devilish energy gathered at Cang Jiumin's hands. The lightning around the Devil Subduing Peak gathered in frequency and strength.
For them, you will always be the devil fetus they have all feared and wanted to kill.
Cang Jiumin broke the chains that held his hands and stood up, devilish energy strengthening him. The sect leaders threw up a barrier to contain the devil energy that was released from his body. The devil mark appeared on his forehead, and he raised his hand to go against the sect leaders' power.
You may have chosen the righteous path, but none of that made a difference.
"Kill him!" the disciples cried out.
You were born evil.
"Jiumin!"
Cang Jiumin blinked, and a sense of clarity came over him when he heard his master call his name.
"I believe in you! Focus! Don't be enticed by evil!"
Master…
Beyond the devil energy and the immortal barrier, the white robes of his master shone through. His master's steady gaze at him broke the devil's hold on him, and the devil energy pouring out of him faltered. Sensing his weakness, the sect leaders that remained broke through his barrier and chained him directly on the Devil Subduing Column.
Why are you still holding out? No matter what you do, you can't escape your fate.
Li Susu…
A tear slid down Cang Jiumin's face. He remembered how Li Susu flew in and protected him from the evil energy that Si Ying and Jing Mie were infusing into his body, but got caught up in it as well. He remembered how she fell unconscious from the amount of evil energy that accumulated into her body. He remembered when he caught her from the fall, and tried to infuse healing energy into her, only to find out that she had the evil bone inside her all along, that it wasn't destroyed during the lightning punishment they went through 500 years ago, and that the evil energy that he had carried all his life was now in her pure, dirtless body.
Is this how I repay her for everything she had done for me? Li Susu doesn't deserve to have the evil bone in her, and yet it was, in exchange for the divine essence she had embedded in him. If she hadn't done that… If she had only killed him with the Soul-Slaying Nails, she wouldn't have…
I should have died long before.
Just kill me here.
Cang Jiumin didn't realize he said it out loud, until he saw the tears in his master's eyes. Just go ahead and kill me.
But the Lord of Evil won't have it. "This devil fetus is cunning," Di Mian said. "If we kill him, we'll only be releasing the Devil God from his mortal shell. The best thing is we first take out the God-Slaying Crossbow and the evil bone from him, before we can decide on killing him."
Cang Jiumin let them.
"Can Junior Brother survive the sect leaders' power?" he heard one of his sect brothers say worriedly.
It hurts, brother.
Cang Jiumin screamed in pain as the sect leaders extracted from him the God-Slaying Crossbow. It held on to him, almost tearing through his very soul, reluctant to part with its master who had finally learned how to make use of it. But the sect leaders' powers finally wrenched it from him, and sealed it with the power of the three most powerful cultivators in the immortal realm.
Then they came for the evil bone, which they thought is still in him.
Just kill me now, Cang Jiumin's mind screamed as he was blasted with the sect leaders' magic. The pain was too much… too much…
"It's Goddess Yuling!" "Lady Li!" "Li Susu!"
In the haze of Cang Jiumin's pain, he heard the disciples call out Li Susu's name. The power bearing down on him made it difficult for him to look up, but suddenly the pressure was lifted from him, and the scent of acacia flowers replaced the pain.
"Li Susu…" Cang Jiumin looked up, and saw Li Susu holding off the sect leaders' power. He felt relief flood his heart at the sight of her, standing up in front of him. You're all right… you're safe…
Li Susu dispersed the sect leaders' magic. The effort was clearly too much for her, and she spit out blood. Nevertheless, she turned to him, and seeing the pain that he had gone through, raised her hand and infused healing energy into him, amidst the protests of Sect Leader Cen.
"Li Susu, are you an accomplice to this devil fetus?" Sect Leader Cen vehemently accused Li Susu.
Li Susu remained standing in front of Cang Jiumin, holding his gaze, as she declared, "My dear sect leaders, Cang Jiumin can't become a Devil God."
More protests followed her declaration. Cang Jiumin lowered his head in defeat as Sect Leader Cen shouted at Li Susu everything that Di Mian told everybody. Li Susu… let me go. Let me accept the punishment that I deserve… don't…
He felt a soft hand caress his face and made him raise his head. He met Li Susu's eyes, warm with sympathy for his pain. "Susu, don't…" he whispered, but the determined look in her eyes stopped him.
Li Susu knelt beside him. "Cang Jiumin can never become the Devil God… because 500 years ago, I personally took the evil bone from him," she said, her clear tones ringing throughout the Devil Subduing Peak. He slowly shook his head, but she smiled sadly at him. "It's all right," she whispered, wiping the tear that fell from his face.
Cang Jiumin closed his eyes. You're risking your life for mine again. He felt Li Susu stand up and turn to the sect leaders. "I've heard the Chixiao Sect have an artifact called Truth Jade Slip," she said. "To determine whether I'm lying or not, I am willing to have the Truth Jade Slip extract my memories for everyone to see."
Cang Jiumin opened his eyes in shock. "Li Susu… don't!" he cried out, but Li Susu had already taken the Truth Jade Slip and cast it on herself to show everyone her memories of 500 years ago.
He looked up at Li Susu's projected memories. He had seen it all that snowy day at the tower, but now it hit differently.
You are the Devil God, the greatest calamity to befall humanity.
He watched as the Devil God promised to eradicate every immortal in the world, stepping over the dead bodies of Xiaoyao Sect disciples. He saw his master chained in the very place he was chained in, suffering the insults of the Devil God and his subordinates, Si Ying and Jing Mie. He saw Chief Qu defend his master, but both of them fell under the power of the Bone-refining Seal.
He had seen it all that snowy day… but now…
"Dad!" He heard Li Susu cry out as Chief Qu was struck down by the God-slaying Crossbow's bolts. He saw the present Li Susu tremble and look away from the projection. He himself had to look away as his master fell, his spiritual energy exhausted from the casting of the Light-breaking Array.
"Tantai Jin. I'll kill you," Li Susu vowed before the Light-breaking Array took her away 500 years into the past.
My purpose in the first place is to kill you.
Cang Jiumin bowed his head. So this is the truth that you couldn't tell me before. When he saw the same memory 500 years ago, he thought that was because she hated him so much she never really saw him as anything but a Devil God. He raised his head. Scenes from their past life rolled overhead, taking on a new meaning for him, as if he was seeing them again for the first time.
You took care of me when I was sick, tended to my wounds when I was hurt, protected me when I was at the verge of death, all because you were afraid of me dying. You took on the curse of the World Overturning Jade for me, yet all the while, you wanted me dead, approached me repeatedly to attempt to kill me.
He looked away as the memory of Ye Xiwu stabbing Xiao Lin appeared overhead, painfully regretting the puppet spell that he had cast on her. He saw her conjure up the Soul-slaying Nails on their wedding day with the power of the World Overturning Jade, and embed six of them into his heart. He saw her despair when the last three nails broke and disintegrated in front of the Heart Guarding Scale, and her pain when the backlash of the World Overturning Jade ravaged her body.
He saw her fall, again, after taking out the evil bone and exchanging it with her divine essence.
Li Susu stood in front of him, trembling as the memories she held in her heart poured out of her and into the Truth Jade Slip. But you have always stood in front of me, protecting me through all the dangers and taking on the misfortunes that was supposed to be mine. You've done so much for me, and I didn't even know.
You changed me. In more ways than I even knew. And for that, I am grateful.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxx