Chapter 55

After Yun Che fainted, Jiaoli's body no longer appeared in a phantom state. She slowly opened her eyes and looked at the blood on the corner of Yun Che's mouth and the shocking wounds on his left arm. All the coldness and indifference in her eyes melted like ice, replaced by a deep complexity and haziness...

Yun Che didn't know how long he had been unconscious. When he finally regained consciousness and opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was Jiaoli's open eyes.

"Jiaoli! You've regained consciousness!?" Yun Che exclaimed in surprise, but his voice was hoarse. When he tried to get up, he found his body felt as heavy as a thousand pounds. After struggling several times, he still couldn't stand up due to the massive blood loss and his weakened state.

"Why did you save me?" Jiaoli's voice still carried a hint of weakness. She glanced at the scars on Yun Che's arm and quickly looked away. "If I had died, wouldn't it be better for you? At least, you wouldn't have to deal with the things you promised me, and you wouldn't have to worry about me killing you after I regained my body!"

"Because... Jiaoli saved my life with her own..."

"I did it to save myself!" Jiaoli said, her voice a few decibels louder.

Yun Che was slightly taken aback, not understanding why his words had caused such a strong reaction. He said helplessly, "Then... it's also because you are my master. How could I, as a disciple, watch my master die?"

"Master?" Jiaoli gave a bitter smile. "To gain a new life, I had to help you obtain powerful mystic energy in the shortest time possible. Being your master was just my way of not helping you for nothing... Ultimately, it was for my own sake. Do you really think I did it for your benefit?"

"I know all of that." After saying these words, Yun Che didn't see any disappointment on Jiaoli's face; instead, he saw her smile slightly. Yun Che moved closer to Jiaoli, looked into her eyes, and said gently, "But none of that matters. The most important reason I desperately wanted to save Jiaoli is because Jiaoli is a very... very beautiful girl, as beautiful as an angel."

Jiaoli was stunned.

"Even though Jiaoli has always tried to appear cold and even scary, this is a fact that can't be hidden. No one would want such a beautiful girl to leave them forever, and I am no exception... Isn't this reason enough?"

"What kind of... reason is this..." Jiaoli's lips, which had regained some color, trembled. "I have killed... so many people... On my twelfth birthday last year, I killed over 1.3 million people in one day... My whole body was stained with blood... Even my name is called 'Blood-Stained Jiaoli'..."

"!!!" Yun Che's heart skipped a beat... Over 1.3 million people in one day!?

Seeing the deep shock on Yun Che's face, Jiaoli closed her eyes and said bitterly, "How can someone like me be called a beautiful girl... I am Jiaoli... Blood-Stained Jiaoli... a terrifying devil who has killed many people..."

Yun Che stared at Jiaoli for a long time... But his eyes were not filled with shock or fear; instead, they carried a very complex emotion that no one could understand. After a while, he looked at Jiaoli and slowly shook his head. "Jiaoli, although I can't understand what it feels like to kill so many people at the age of twelve, I believe it must have been very painful... A pain that is indescribable and that you never want to recall. After that, you would be haunted by countless nightmares and a sense of guilt, even hating and despising yourself, labeling yourself as a devil, heartless, and cruel to numb your soul..."

Jiaoli's eyes widened, and she stared at him in a daze.

"But I believe Jiaoli has always been a kind girl. The reason you turned into the devil you hate the most is entirely for the sake of someone important to you, perhaps your closest friend or family... Such a person, no matter how many people they kill or how much blood they shed, can never truly be a devil."

"Moreover, a cute and beautiful girl, even if she makes a big mistake, can still be forgiven. If you feel that you carry countless sins, then I will share these sins with you. Because you are my master, and as a disciple, it is only right to share such things with my master."

Jiaoli was completely stunned, staring at Yun Che as if she had lost her soul. Her eyes became increasingly hazy... She couldn't understand why, despite her confession of her cruel sins, he didn't show fear or rejection... Instead, he looked at her with such gentle eyes and spoke such gentle words...

It shouldn't be like this... I have killed so many people, I am such a terrifying devil, and everyone is afraid of me... No one could possibly like me... Why did he save me so desperately, and why does he look at me with such gentle eyes... After Mother and Brother died, no one should treat me like this anymore...

Jiaoli's eyes became increasingly hazy. Through her blurred vision, Yun Che's face gradually transformed into her brother's smiling face... In an instant, tears streamed down her cheeks, and the hatred and guilt that had frozen her heart began to thaw.

"... Jiaoli, you can cry too? Yes, that's more like a girl, isn't it?" Yun Che smiled and reached out to wipe the tears from Jiaoli's face.

Jiaoli didn't resist him but cried even harder, sobbing, "I... I am your master... You... You secretly kissed me so many times to save me, and now... you let me cry in front of you... You can't... bully your master like this... sniff... sniff..."

"Ah, you're right, Master." Yun Che smiled. "Then, when Master Jiaoli recovers, you can punish me as much as you want. Even if you want to kiss me back, I won't resist."

He was completely right. Jiaoli's true nature was not what she usually showed. Because he had a similar experience and had the same aura and eyes as her, he understood her heart and knew where her most vulnerable and soft spots were.

After crying, Jiaoli's mood gradually calmed down. Her body and soul were still very weak, but the fatal danger had been largely averted. She extended her small hand and wiped away all the tears on her face, then tried to put on her usual cold and indifferent demeanor, though she avoided Yun Che's gaze. She said in a cold and hard voice, "Although the danger is now gone, I can't use any mystic energy for at least three months. Otherwise, even if you use all your blood, you won't be able to save me."

"I understand. In the future, I will be as careful as possible to prevent such things from happening again." Yun Che said with a sense of guilt.

"The red bead you obtained, swallow it... It might be the seed of the evil god I mentioned before!"

"Ah?" Yun Che, surprised, picked up the strange red bead that Jiaoli had almost died to obtain. "You mean, this is... is..."

"I'm just guessing. The fire dragon has always stayed in this place, probably because of it. When you obtained it, I sensed a very strange fire element inside, which I had never seen before. You also said you felt something calling you, and you held it without being burned. So, it might really be one of the five seeds of the evil god mentioned in the memory imprint!" Jiaoli said uncertainly.

"Also..." Jiaoli lightly bit her lip, out of Yun Che's sight. "In the future, don't touch my face without my permission."

After saying this, Jiaoli transformed into a red light and returned to the Heavenly Poison Pearl, leaving Yun Che speechless.

Previously, she had a cold face, then cried uncontrollably, and now she was putting on a hard face with a hint of menace... The speed at which girls can change their expressions is indeed impressive.

Yun Che's body was also very weak, and the massive blood loss had severely drained his energy. He probably couldn't even walk now. Not to mention the fire dragon, even a regular mystic beast would be enough to end both his and Jiaoli's lives here.

"If killing 1.3 million people in one day is an unforgivable sin, a devil, and Blood-Stained Jiaoli... then what about me, who poisoned 7.7 million people in one day, turning the entire city into a toxic hell, with bodies strewn everywhere?" Yun Che silently whispered to himself. "If we're talking about devils... I am the true devil... So, I never dared to defile the angel by my side... until the day I lost her forever..."

Yun Che closed his eyes and remained in a daze for a long time. Then he opened his eyes, spread his palm, and looked at the round bead emitting a strange red light. Thinking about Jiaoli's words, Yun Che hesitated for a moment, then steeled his resolve and swallowed it directly.

Holding it caused no discomfort, and he felt a strange sense of familiarity. He didn't have to worry about it being poisonous... No matter what, swallowing it shouldn't have any bad consequences, right?

The red bead was forcefully swallowed and went down his throat.

At that moment, he felt his mystic veins suddenly stir. Before he could investigate the change in his mystic veins, a burst of red light erupted from his body. The red light then transformed into a raging fire, enveloping his entire body in a crimson blaze.

"This... this is?"

The sudden fire startled him, but what shocked him even more was that his body felt no burning sensation at all, only a strange sense of comfort. Even his clothes remained unscathed in the flames, as if the terrifying fire was just an illusion.