Chapter 63: The Pandora's Box Changes Hands

Xiao Bugui walked down the streets of the Di Family Sword Manor, escorted by a crowd of fiends. A canine demon blocking the way was treated as a mere obstacle by Gao Zhuang, who kicked it flying with a single motion. The vicious hounds, no longer daring to block their path, turned into docile pets. Panting with their tongues out, they watched Xiao Bugui leave like a cluster of adorable creatures.

Even some canine demons murmured, "I knew the newcomer's identity was extraordinary. How could three mere mortals ever dare to come to our Di Family Sword Manor?"

Another canine demon remarked, "If our Manor Lord weren't so greedy, wanting to monopolize the treasured sword and human flesh all for himself, and if we had all stepped in to help, perhaps that pretty young lady and the fiend's son would have already been chopped into minced meat and boiled in a pot."

Yet another canine demon sighed, "Fortunately, this young master is unharmed. Had he been turned into minced meat, our entire Di Family Manor would surely have been roasted into barbecue by that female fiend."

Upon learning Xiao Bugui's true background, Hao Meili felt as though her heart had plunged into an ice cellar. When she first met Xiao Bugui, she had thought him to be a predestined groom sent by the heavens. Later, suspecting he might be a demon and fearing the Dragon-Roaring Sword would be stolen by the Demonic Cult, she took back the treasured sword and severed all ties. After he rescued her at the Cliff of Life and Death and she spent some time living in the Demon Mountain, she had come to feel that Xiao Bugui was a pure and kind-hearted man. Yet now, with his identity confirmed, humans and demons belonged to entirely different worlds. Surely, she had truly run out of affinity with him.

Ma Zengsan, folded over his little donkey, was hoisted across Gao Zhuang's shoulder like a sturdy hunter carrying two pieces of game back home.

Flying through the sky, the journey was short. The breeze was cool, and the sky stretched out in an endless shade of blue, allowing one to see far into the distance. Ji Qingcheng stood waiting among the clouds high above the Demon Mountain. Xiao Bugui spotted Shi Yuhuan and softly asked Hu Jiao, "Sister Jiaojiao, were you lying to me? Is Cult Master Shi my mother?"

Seeing that Xiao Bugui had yet to recover his composure, Hu Jiao replied, "Do you not know how well I have treated you? I would never lie to you."

Xiao Bugui asked, "Then who is my father? Do you know?"

Hu Jiao answered, "You'll have to ask your mother about that."

Mother and son reunited. Ji Qingcheng dismissed everyone else, stating she wished to speak with Xiao Bugui alone. Thus, the onlookers departed. Cult Master Ji Qingcheng and Xiao Bugui sat together on a single cloud, gazing down at the Demon Mountain below as she began to recount the past.

Xiao Bugui asked, "Cult Master Shi, am I truly your son?"

Ji Qingcheng replied, "My name is Ji Qingcheng. You are the son of Ji Qingcheng."

Xiao Bugui could tell no difference between the Ji Qingcheng before him and Shi Yuhuan, filling his heart with confusion: "You are Ji Qingcheng? Then where has Shi Yuhuan gone?"

Ji Qingcheng explained, "Let me tell you, Shi Yuhuan and I share a single vessel. When the magic box resides within this shell, I am Ji Qingcheng; when the magic box is absent, I am Shi Yuhuan. But one thing must be made clear: I am I, and she is she."

Xiao Bugui grew even more perplexed. "Does that mean I am your son, but not her son?"

Ji Qingcheng said, "You are my son, and you can also be considered her son. Because we share one physical shell, and you were nurtured and born from this very shell."

Xiao Bugui said, "I lived on the Immortal Isle since I was a child. I want to ask you, was it you who abandoned me on the Immortal Isle?"

Ji Qingcheng replied, "For the child of a demon to be able to go to the Immortal Isle and study under a master, I spent at least one hundred thousand silver taels on you."

Xiao Bugui asked, "Do you have any heart at all? Did you not come to check on me all these years?"

Ji Qingcheng said, "I am a great fiend. If those immortals had discovered your identity, it would only have harmed you."

Xiao Bugui asked, "How did you know I was your son when you went to the Immortal Isle this time?"

Ji Qingcheng replied, "The person who accepted my silver back then naturally knew your background. He was the one who told me."

Xiao Bugui asked, "Who was that person?"

Ji Qingcheng said, "I gave him my word that I would not reveal his identity."

Xiao Bugui asked, "How can you prove that person wasn't lying? And how can you prove I am your son?"

Ji Qingcheng answered, "First, he is my most trusted friend. Second, there is something upon your person that can prove you are my son."

Xiao Bugui asked, "What thing? If you are my mother, then who is my father?"

Ji Qingcheng explained, "I am a demon transformed from a stone, formed from the essence of the sun and moon. Naturally, you were also born from my embodiment of the essence of the sun and moon. In short, you have no father, only a mother." She further elucidated, "All demons possess a spiritual pearl within their bodies, but we stone monsters are different. The spiritual pearl within us is cubic, containing far more powerful energy, thus it is called a magic cube. Once cultivation reaches a certain level, the magic cube can evolve mechanisms resembling the exquisite heart with seven apertures, also known as a magic box. You, too, possess one within your body."

Xiao Bugui asked, "Why can't I feel the presence of the magic cube?"

Ji Qingcheng said, "The meridians within your body have yet to be cleared. I can help you elevate your cultivation and clear your meridians. When the time comes, you will be able to feel the power of the magic cube within you."

Xiao Bugui asked, "Will I end up splitting into two people like you when that happens?"

Ji Qingcheng replied, "It is entirely possible. Right now, your state of mind is kind, with no desires or cravings. Once the magic cube achieves enlightenment, you might well become an even more terrifying fiend than Shi Yuhuan."

Xiao Bugui said, "I am a good person. Even if I am a demon, I am a good demon."

Ji Qingcheng said, "You are a good person now because your power only permits you to be a good person. Once you possess formidable power, your desires will be magnified, and you will turn bad as well."

Xiao Bugui asked, "Can you take the magic cube out of my body?"

Ji Qingcheng instructed, "Close your eyes now, and I will take the magic cube out of your body."

Xiao Bugui closed his eyes. Ji Qingcheng placed her right hand upon his lower dantian and released a formidable suction force. Sure enough, a cubic magic cube stone was drawn out from within him. Ji Qingcheng guided the magic cube into her own body, and then released her own magic box from her left hand, implanting it into Xiao Bugui's body. With utmost care, she said, "My son, I have taken your magic cube and bestowed my own magic box upon you. From now on, you must protect the Demon Mountain alongside me."

Xiao Bugui felt a surge of formidable power injected into his body, causing his physique to expand and grow taller. His long hair cascaded down to his waist, fluttering freely; his energy surged, his gaze grew piercing, his spirits soared, and his body burned with heat, as if a fire raged within him, demanding to be released.

Like a fleeting, sharp shadow, he dropped onto the Demon Mountain with a "Whoosh!", smashing a deep crater into the ground where he landed. A azure lion knelt beside the crater, willingly serving as Xiao Bugui's mount. Man and lion walked through the Demon Mountain together, their awe-inspiring presence striking fear into the hearts of both humans and demons alike.

Yin Wuxiang watched all of this unfold, his heart filled with anxiety. After all, Xiao Bugui knew of his betrayal of the Demonic Cult to join Liu Taiji's Shadow Organization. If Xiao Bugui were to mention this to the Cult Master, a gruesome death awaited him. He now had only two choices: either kill Xiao Bugui or confess to the Cult Master. Seeing Xiao Bugui's imposing and majestic demeanor, he sensed the former option carried immense risk; even if he managed to kill Xiao Bugui, the Cult Master would not spare him, and the outcome would undoubtedly end in a miserable tragedy. Confession for leniency was his only remaining path.