SSEWC Chapter 59

Despite the lingering doubts, the moment He Heng sensed something unusual, he immediately ordered his subordinates to evacuate all the tourists from the underground caves. Furthermore, he instructed them to take down any online videos that had already been circulated.

After completing these tasks, he put away the spirit mirror and turned to Yan Qing’an, saying:

“Sorry, Master, but I might need to go down below the underground caves to see what’s going on. It seems there’s a problem.”

Upon hearing this, Yan Qing’an was momentarily surprised, then quickly added, “I’ll go with you.”

There was an obvious concern in his eyes.

“Alright.”

Watching the other with an obviously uneasy expression, He Heng nodded with a somewhat amused smile. He then led Yan Qing’an directly to the entrance of the underground caves through a fast passage.

At the dim cave entrance, the little fox demon was anxiously waiting.

He Heng quickly scanned the people who had just been dispersed to a safe area, now gathering and chatting in the distance. Seeing that everything seemed normal, he turned to the fox demon,

“How is it? Have all the people inside been evacuated? Did you encounter any problems just now?”

“Yeah, everyone has been evacuated,” the little fox demon nodded.

“There weren’t any safety issues with the personnel. However, when I was dispersing the tourists underground just now, I saw that thing from the video. At that moment, I distinctly felt a piercing cold, and I sense that it might not be an ordinary demonic creature. Something like that shouldn’t suddenly appear in the Cangshan Abyss.”

“Could someone be causing trouble in the shadows?”

At these words, He Heng’s brows slightly furrowed. He and Yan Qing’an quickly exchanged a glance, then He Heng turned to the little fox demon and said:

“I understand. I’ll go down and take a look now.”

With that, he chanted a spell, and a bright light flashed between his fingers.

Guided by the bright light, He Heng and Yan Qing’an entered the underground caves.

As they stepped into the dim underground tunnel, a distinct chill enveloped them.

In the area shrouded by Yin energy, the trains on the tracks had come to a halt midway.

He Heng noticed that many props and scenes had been damaged when suddenly, in a corner, a bizarre red light flashed from the shadows. It was as if something lurked in the darkness, revealing a pair of crimson eyes. Accompanying this strange light was a deafening roar.

As if out of nowhere, a terrifying creature charged towards the two.

The monstrous being had two sharp bull-like horns, a lion-like visage, but was entirely pitch black, with eerie blue flames flickering around it.

“Be careful.”

In the moment the creature lunged towards them, He Heng instinctively positioned himself in front of Yan Qing’an. Without hesitation, he unleashed a sword technique, slashing towards the creature.

“Awoo!”

The moment the sword energy struck, the creature let out a painful roar. Seemingly losing its senses from the pain, it careened wildly in another direction.

In the gap when He Heng was about to pursue with his sword, his sleeve was tugged from behind. Turning around, he saw Yan Qing’an looking somewhat nervously at him.

“Are you okay?” Yan Qing’an asked.

He Heng shook his head. “I’m fine.”

In the instant the creature attacked, he felt a chilling sensation on his back. This cold even distracted him momentarily, as if for a brief moment, he found himself in a different dimension. However, that peculiar feeling existed only for that short moment, and after it passed, everything returned to normal.

The next moment,

“Master, that thing ran in this direction,” He Heng pointed to a dark alley in front of them and said to Yan Qing’an, “We need to catch up quickly; we can’t let it escape.”

Yan Qing’an nodded. “Yes.”

With that, the two set off, swiftly chasing after on their flying swords.

Despite the creature’s large size, its four legs moved with remarkable agility, almost as if powered by motors. It sprinted through the underground maze, twisting and turning, creating a whirlwind as it evaded the pursuit of the two.

Finally, after turning an unknown number of corners, the creature unwittingly ran into a dead end.

Seeing this, He Heng rushed forward. Wielding several sword techniques in succession, he forced the creature into the cramped corner at the end of the narrow passage.

As it seemed the creature had nowhere to escape, there was a sudden “clang!” sound from behind.

At that very moment,

For some reason, a heavy mechanical gate dropped down, completely separating the two.

Yan Qing’an was blocked outside the iron gate, watching helplessly as He Heng and the creature vanished together into the darkness. He felt an overwhelming sense of urgency and helplessness.

He continuously pounded on the door, shouting the other’s name,

“He Heng! He Heng! Can you hear me? Are you inside?”

Yan Qing’an shouted while trying to use his inner strength to break the iron gate, but the door seemed to be enchanted, resisting all his efforts.

Inside the room, He Heng, upon hearing the loud noise, realized that something was amiss. However, he quickly regained his composure.

After a moment of hesitation, he pulled out a demon-sealing rope from his sleeve and swiftly subdued the creature.

However, He Heng didn’t notice that, in a dark corner, a red dot had already lit up. The images from the room were being broadcast in real-time to someone’s spirit mirror.

On the other side, outside the underground caves,

Tian Shouyu, watching the scene in the spirit mirror, had an expression on his face as if a captivating show was about to begin. He muttered to himself,

“Let’s see what the out-of-control Demon Lord will do, shall we?”

With that, he anonymously shared the link to this live broadcast on the Nine Nether forum.

His action immediately stirred up a storm on the forum,

[What’s going on? Who uploaded a broadcast with a black screen? Where is this? It’s so dark; I can’t see anything.]

[Upstairs, it doesn’t seem like a black screen if you look closely. There’s light, and it looks like there’s someone!]

[Looks like something exciting is happening!]

[Am I not mistaken? Is that the Demon Lord?!]

In the midst of their flurry of comments, a tall man dressed in black suddenly appeared in the center of the screen. For some reason, his expression seemed somewhat melancholic.

The moment He Heng subdued the creature, gazing at its ugly head, an uncontrollable anger surged within him. It was as if the blood in his entire body began to accelerate.

Feeling the urge to cut the creature into pieces with the raised knife, He Heng quickly grabbed a piece of cloth and covered the massive body of the creature.

Afterwards, he paced anxiously in the room, trying to calm the chaotic energy in his dantian. However, all his efforts seemed in vain.

The more He Heng tried to calm himself, the more restless he became.

Is this what it feels like when a demonic soul loses control?

At this moment, He Heng felt like everything in the world had lost its color. The patterns meticulously crafted on the ceiling seemed like a pile of hastily assembled, garish talismans.

Every inconspicuous detail now appeared magnified in He Heng’s eyes. Any deviation in color, any mistake in the lines, seemed like gross and unacceptable flaws.

What kind of aesthetics is this?

He Heng internally criticized. Why was he stuck in such an ugly place?

Thinking about this, he plopped down onto the creature, running his fingers through his hair in frustration.

Simultaneously, He Heng felt a surge of restless heat gradually spreading throughout his body, as if his entire blood was about to boil. A inexplicable sense of irritability filled him.

Why?

Why did everything now seem so ugly to him?

Could it be that there was nothing beautiful left in this world?

And his recent act of sitting down happened to be right in front of the camera.

Through the screen, the audience only saw the Demon Lord lifting his face with his hand. Through the gaps in his fingers, one could faintly discern the slightly lowered long lashes and the half-closed eyes, conveying a hint of loneliness.

Everyone currently watching the live broadcast on the spirit mirror was also taken aback. Comments flooded in again,

[What’s with this sudden sense of melancholy from the Demon Lord?]

[Haha, is that a statue there? Let’s call it ‘The Melancholic Ponderer’?]

[But don’t you think he looks quite handsome like this?]

[Damn, is it just that easy to show off when you’re good-looking?]

On the other side, Tian Shouyu was not as relaxed. Seeing that He Heng hadn’t lost control as he had expected and instead diverted the topic in a strange direction, Tian Shouyu couldn’t hold back any longer. He quickly called one of his subordinates and urged,

“Hurry and check the situation! Didn’t we say that being influenced by the demonic aura of the creature would lead to loss of control? What is He Heng doing?”

“Don’t worry, I’m on my way.” A faint voice of a junior disciple came through the phone, sounding like the signal wasn’t very strong.

At this moment, he was lurking in the underground caves, keeping an eye on the surroundings.

“I think the reason why He Heng hasn’t shown any obvious contrast is because there’s no one with him right now.”

As the junior disciple approached He Heng, he suggested, “Why don’t we release him from inside? Once He Heng enters a crowded place, he will inevitably lose control of the demonic soul inside him again, and it might lead to chaos.”

Hearing this, Tian Shouyu had no other option but to nod. “Alright, let’s do it your way.”

With those words, the junior disciple cautiously moved through the darkness until he reached the iron gate at the end of the corner.

In the moment of opening the gate, he felt a rush of cold air hitting him. He was frozen in place, unable to move.

Without even a chance to turn and see his surroundings, he experienced a disorienting sensation of weightlessness as if he were being flung out like on a theme park ride.

The next moment,

A sudden “snap!” echoed, and a shadow flashed by as the junior disciple disappeared with a “whoosh”.

Upon seeing the junior disciple, He Heng was truly repulsed by his appearance. Unable to restrain himself, he sent the person flying with a punch.

However, the entire incident happened too quickly. Most of the others didn’t get a clear view of what happened; the scene quickly returned to normal.

Seeing this, comments on the forum swiftly resumed,

[Wait, what just happened? A big white mouse? How did it ‘whoosh’ past like that? I didn’t see anything clearly.]

[I didn’t see it either. It seemed like a white thing that just ‘whooshed’ past. Maybe the screen lagged?]

At this moment,

In Tian Shouyu’s mind, only one thought remained:

Is this possible?

As he gritted his teeth in frustration, a shout came from the darkness,

“He Heng?”

It was Yan Qing’an’s voice.

Tian Shouyu immediately held his breath, watching attentively, fully expecting He Heng to lose control.

Next, everyone saw Yan Qing’an, clad in white robes, slowly approaching the person shrouded in black aura.

The moment He Heng saw Yan Qing’an, it felt as if a beam of light had entered his previously dark world.

Finally, finally, he saw something not ugly!

Seeing the other person standing still, seemingly dumbfounded, Yan Qing’an couldn’t help but worry if something had happened to He Heng. With this thought, he hastened his steps to approach.

However, just as he was about to reach He Heng, Yan Qing’an was unexpectedly grabbed by the wrist and pulled forward.

“Master!”

He Heng, like an affectionate yet moody big dog, at the moment Yan Qing’an approached, immediately wrapped his arms around Yan Qing’an’s waist, pulling him into his embrace.

He then lowered his head, burying it in Yan Qing’an’s neck, nuzzling and rubbing his neck. The pent-up resentment from feeling ugly earlier surged all at once.

Seeing the increasing darkness around He Heng and the deepening mark on his forehead, Yan Qing’an guessed that the demonic aura on He Heng might be out of control.

Witnessing He Heng’s pitiful appearance and thinking about what he might have experienced while alone in the room, Yan Qing’an felt a sudden tightness in his chest, and his heart pounded loudly.

Instinctively, he reached out and gently patted He Heng’s back, soothingly asking, “What’s wrong?”

“Uncomfortable~” He Heng replied in a soft voice.

He Heng’s voice still had a hint of nasal tone, and he held the person in his arms even tighter, resembling a loyal dog that refused to let go of its territory.

As the onlookers witnessed the entire process, they were all left in shock. In the first instant of realization, the forum immediately exploded,

[What the hell! Was the Demon Lord just acting cute?]

[Damn, did I see it correctly? The Demon Lord is cuddling with his master, right? They are hugging, right? Am I dreaming? Someone please pinch me awake!]

[My goodness, it turns out…]

[They look so good together. I feel like I’ve taken a billion doses of ecstasy. Is it just my illusion?]

[Upstairs, you’re not alone. The master-disciple relationship is sweet when they’re younger.]

[So, did He Heng leave the Huayang Sword Sect because the sect doesn’t allow a romantic relationship between master and disciple? Did he embark on a distant journey for love?]

[Haha, upstairs, that actually sounds plausible. Could it be that Master Nie from the Huayang Sword Sect opposes the lovebirds?]

[Oh no, I’ve already imagined a complete melodramatic story of the sinister sect leader tearing apart the miserable lovebirds. What should I do?]

At the palace on the top of Huayang Mountain,

Nie Zong, infuriated, watched the spirit mirror on his desk repeatedly making a “drip, drip, drip” sound and the incessant popping-up messages. The content was filled with strange titles meant to catch people’s attention, such as “Unexpectedly, Master Nie tore apart the lovebirds” and “Initially, the Master despised him as a penniless boy, but a month later, he returned with billions in assets.” The whole situation had a taste of an old-fashioned melodramatic novel.

After scrolling through the comments, Nie Zong was on the verge of crushing the screen in his hand.

Heng Heng, you little rascal!

Not only did you ruin my collection of immortal elixirs, but you also took away my young and beautiful junior disciple. And now, you’ve let people label me as the ‘sinister sect leader’.

This is outrageous!

Fuming with anger, Nie Zong slammed the spirit mirror onto the table and stood up, storming towards the door.

A startled young disciple nearby exclaimed, “Master, where are you going?”

Nie Zong’s lips twitched, forming the expression befitting the “sinister sect leader”.

“I’m going to tear apart the lovebirds.”

 

 

 

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Author’s note:

He Heng’s new nickname: Little Rascal.