Yaxiu, You Demon

Silence fell over the living room, leaving only the fading resonance of the Spectre Prophet's ambition hanging in the air. "Setting aside the fact that others besides you must have snatched up spoils, and that the true victor was the Divine Lord of Stars, who completed the feeding ritual..." Yaxiu spoke calmly. "I'll only ask one question—can your Seventh Imaginary Wing truly steal all knowledge?" Weixi glanced at him in surprise. "Your observational skills aren't bad, Yaxiu. I grant you permission to use mouthwash. Of course, with insight like yours, I'm sure you won't actually use it when the time comes, lest you incur my displeasure. "In truth, I wasn't the first to reach the summit. By the time I got there, someone had already taken a draught from the silver holy chalice left on the peak. And the moment I took a sip myself, I was ambushed." "What kind of ambush?" Yaxiu asked. "Sorcery was barred at the time, so naturally it was an ambush of fists and kicks." At this point, Weixi sounded somewhat disgruntled. "I suspect there was more than one assailant, and they had to be at least Fist and Claw Sanctuaries. Even with the feathers blocking my line of sight, to think I actually couldn't beat them!" Igola and Harvey simultaneously recalled the pink-and-purple-haired girl, Yinzhi, and the little boy, Yejian. By all rights, those two should have had an unhindered path to the mountain peak... Could it be that they were the ones who had beaten Weixi to a pulp? "Afterward, once the storm of flying silver feathers ended, I tried charging up again. But my sorcery power was running low, and the battle was intense, so in the end I had no choice but to retreat." Weixi hugged her long legs and said, "Not that it matters. I have already obtained the key to the supreme. "These four eerie blue feathers are the embodiment of my soul knowledge. Even with just these four wisps, whenever I command the relevant soul sorcery spirits, their effects are amplified sixteenfold. And if anyone attacks me with relevant soul sorcery spirits, their might is reduced to a mere sixteenth." "That's not what you said just now," Yaxiu said leisurely. "Didn't you claim you could dominate relevant sorcery spirits? How has it suddenly turned into mere weakening?" Weixi gave him a cold sidelong glance. After a brief silence, she said, "If my estimate is correct, the Seventh Imaginary Wing can only steal the knowledge of a single sorcery faction. Once a sorcerer has plundered all knowledge of that art, they will obtain full authority over it, becoming the supreme sovereign of that faction. "Dominating the sorcery spirits of others, reining in sorcerers of the same path, and commanding specific environments—all of those privileges are unlocked only upon becoming the supreme sovereign of the sorcery. "So as I am now, I truly cannot achieve that yet." Weixi rested her cheek in her hand, utterly devoid of a smile. "Congratulations, Master, on seeing through that. As a penalty, I won't be taking off this stocking. Unless you lick it until it's thoroughly soaked, don't count on me ever sparing your Sword Princess in the future." *We're in trouble now,* Igola thought. First of all, Weixi was already a demigod whom not even death could imprison. Even if Yaxiu bound her in layer upon layer of shackles, they still had no real way to suppress this demon from three millennia ago. And now, at the slightest opening left behind by the angel hunt, she had seized the chance to turn the tables. They couldn't even control the demonic maid from before, let alone a Spectre Prophet who had gained four wisps of soul feathers. Secondly, he really wanted to see Yaxiu humiliated. It was truly difficult to resist such a temptation. Harvey clearly shared the sentiment. With a conflicted expression, the dark-skinned, curly-haired necromancer took out his phone, preparing to record. "Why would you say that?" Yaxiu tilted his head, wearing an innocent, clueless expression. "Aren't you still bound under my control? Why should I be afraid of you?" "I don't know where you got those Ruby Chains of yours, but even if they are the creation of a Six-Winged Divine Lord, they still fall within the domain of the soul faction," Weixi declared proudly. "As long as my soul imaginary wings continue to grow, breaking free of the chains is only a matter of time. After all, all soul knowledge will be subject to my command." Yaxiu nodded in sudden realization. "Then wouldn't it be fine as long as I prevent you from growing your soul imaginary wings?" "Even I haven't figured out how to grow them after studying it for so long," Weixi smiled. "How can you forbid something that even I don't know how to do? "Even if you lock me away, even if you put me into an endless slumber, would your heart truly be at peace?" Weixi stood up from her seat and walked over to Yaxiu. Placing her hands on the back of the sofa behind him, she leaned down like a conqueror, looking down at her master with a flush of delight creeping over her cheeks. "As long as I live, I am bound to find an opportunity to grow my soul imaginary wings. Yet you dare not kill me, nor can you kill me. "I told you from day one—you cannot keep me hidden forever. "Yaxiu, you are a clever master. You can certainly guess how cruelly I will tear apart everything you hold dear if I break free while in a foul mood." The maid leaned close to Yaxiu's ear, whispering like a demon, "It is time to pay the price, my Master." The moment she uttered those words, Weixi clamped her legs together in sheer delight, her breath turning shallow and rapid. Even after all these years, she still had zero resistance to this sort of table-turning drama. She loved nothing more than watching someone's expression shift from victory in hand to disbelief, then to terror, and finally to hysterical pleas for mercy. Watching enemy after enemy grovel in the dust, entirely at her mercy to trample and torment, was the very definition of the name 'Spectre Prophet.' Now was the first step in breaking Yaxiu. Still, he would be her plaything for the foreseeable future; she had to savor him slowly and make sure not to break him too fast. Yet when Weixi turned her head to look, Yaxiu showed none of the panic or groveling she had anticipated. Instead, he pulled a golden scale from inside his coat. "Do you know what this is, Weixi?" Weixi examined it closely for a few seconds, her expression shifting slightly. "A scale of the Golden Fish?" "Your observational skills aren't bad either, Weixi," Yaxiu said. "This is a spoil I obtained from the angel hunt. Can you guess what it does?" Yaxiu was not the type to make someone guess for no reason. Coupled with how he had disregarded her threats... Weixi remained silent for a moment before answering, "It grants someone a Seventh Imaginary Wing?" "As expected of my maid, quite clever." Yaxiu smiled and gestured for Igola and Harvey to come over. He pressed the golden scale against their skin, then quietly expended two source crystals. Before long, a wisp of warm-golden down sprouted from the small of the fraudster's back, while dark-green down emerged on the necromancer. However, their Seventh Imaginary Wings were exceedingly tiny, hardly qualifying as a single feather. Even so, it was enough to leave both of them dumbfounded. They hadn't even entered the core area of the angel hunt, merely scraping in a bit of peripheral damage at best, yet they had actually received a reward of the same tier? Under Weixi's covetous gaze, Yaxiu took back the golden scale and said, "As you can see, the golden scale can only grant them the 'seed' of a Seventh Imaginary Wing. As for whether they can cultivate it, that depends entirely on their own efforts. Unlike you, who took a gulp from the silver holy chalice and instantly gained four soul feathers." Though Yaxiu spoke the truth, panic was mounting within Weixi's heart. The more a jailer declared the strength of his prisoner, the more shackles he had prepared. "Bestowing a 'seed,' however, is not the golden scale's only effect," Yaxiu continued. "Can you guess what its second effect is? ...Don't run off. Come here." Weixi halted her retreating steps. With a crestfallen expression, she walked back before him, gazing at him with pitiful eyes. "I can't guess." "You've definitely guessed it. After all, you are a demigod whose knowledge far surpasses ours," Yaxiu chuckled. "I said earlier that I would make it impossible for you to grow your soul imaginary wings, but I also understand that no command of mine could possibly stop you..." "It can!" Weixi dropped directly to her knees and hugged his legs, looking up at him with wide, tear-glistening eyes, her face full of sincerity. "As long as you command me not to grow my soul imaginary wings, I definitely won't! Or the instant there's any change to my wings, I'll report it to you right away! Please, Master, your chains are absolute. Weixi will be good and obedient!" "...The only way is to directly strip away your soul imaginary wing." Yaxiu rested the golden scale on his palm. Weixi watched it helplessly, not daring to snatch it. "Fortunately, the golden scale happens to possess just such an effect." Indeed. Of the two golden scales dropped by the Golden Fish, one had fallen into Niya's hands, while the other had been delivered to Yaxiu by Feili. Once Yaxiu woke up and held the scale, it had triggered Aurora's Sorcerer Handbook. First, it informed him how to use the scale; second, it revealed that the other golden scale had already entered the permanent card pool. In other words, even if Niya refused to give hers up in the future, he still had a chance of drawing the second golden scale from the pool. However, Yaxiu had no such intentions, for this single scale was already enough to solve his problem. 'Heavenly Scale of the Golden Fish' 'Wings of Knowledge: Expends 1 source crystal to activate the target's Wings of Knowledge.' 'Knowledge Feathers: Expends 1 source crystal to absorb the target's knowledge feathers onto the Heavenly Scale. You may transfer the knowledge feathers to another target who possesses Wings of Knowledge. Both parties must not resist and must cooperate fully throughout the transfer process.' Weixi's voice choked with sobs as she whimpered, "Master, Master, I was only joking just now! How could I ever disrespect the Mistress? I know I was wrong, I really do! In the future, I'll kill whoever you want me to kill, and bite whoever you want me to bite, okay? Master, Master, you smell so wonderful. May I lick you?" Looking at the maid's humble, pitiful display, Yaxiu smiled and shook his head. "Weixi, you really leave me no choice. Extend your right hand, open your palm, and let me absorb your soul feathers." Weixi's left hand gripped her right hand fiercely, her nails digging in so hard they nearly drew blood, yet she could not stop her right arm from extending forward. Tears streamed down her face in earnest now, large droplets tumbling down. She bit her lower lip and begged through her tears, "Master, Master, it looks so painful. Can't we do it another day... Don't touch me! Don't touch me! Take it away!" Yaxiu placed the golden scale in her palm, expending source crystals to activate the effect. He drew a deep breath and sighed, "I really have zero resistance to table-turning drama either. Watching your expression shift from victory in hand to disbelief, then to terror, and finally to hysterical pleas for mercy... it truly is delightful." Watching her eerie blue feathers slowly disperse, Weixi's composure shattered completely. "Yaxiu, you demon! Those are mine, mine! You're not allowed to steal them, you can't... Waaah... I waited so many years for this chance... I went through so much to... at least leave me a little!" "To be called a demon by the Spectre Prophet herself—I am deeply honored," Yaxiu replied in a light, cheerful voice.