The real world, Abandoned Temple.
“We… have met before?” Aoki struggled to suppress the storm in his heart and asked in a low voice.
The Demon Queen let out a gentle laugh, her laughter ethereal and tinged with a hint of mockery, as if she was laughing at his forgetfulness, and at the same time, at the cycle of fate. She did not answer directly, but slowly walked forward, her deep violet eyes gazing intently at Aoki, as if she wished to see through him, down to his very soul.
“The passage of time holds different meaning for you and me. Forgetting may be a kind of blessing, or perhaps… an even deeper shackle.” Her words were like riddles, yet carried an undeniable power. “You came to me to discuss the ‘vessel’ and the ‘curse,’ didn’t you? About that poor girl, Yueqi.”
She knows! And she got right to the heart of it!
Aoki’s wariness reached its peak. This Demon Queen not only knew him, but also understood Yueqi’s situation inside out! From the very beginning, this meeting had gone beyond his expectations and veered into the unknown and dangerous.
“It seems you know quite a lot.” Aoki kept his composure, trying to regain some initiative. “In that case, let’s be direct. How much does your Demon Army know about the ‘Heroic Instinct’ within Yueqi? And what is the so-called ‘Ancient Connection’ in the Shadow Demon’s memory?”
The Demon Queen walked to a broken stone pillar and leaned against it gracefully, the moonlight outlining her perfect profile. She seemed unconcerned by Aoki’s vigilance, her tone calm as if she had experienced countless lifetimes.
“There’s no need to be so tense, Aoki. If I truly wished you harm, you would not be standing here talking with me.” She spoke lightly, her gaze turning toward the hazy moon beyond the shattered temple dome. “As for whether you and I… have met, yes, we have. Long ago, in a certain… ‘story’ you have already forgotten.”
She turned her head, her violet eyes flashing with a complex, indescribable emotion, but that feeling soon faded, returning to a deep, tranquil calm.
“We once knew each other, and even… shared a not-so-brief stretch of time.” Her tone was as calm as if she were recounting someone else’s past. “At that time, you were a little different, but the essence of your soul remained unchanged. And I was not as I am now, either.”
Aoki’s heart gave a violent leap! A “story” he had already forgotten? A stretch of time they’d shared? Could it be… this Demon Queen was also someone from a simulated world? Like Lin Qiyou and Nongli, had she also come here from another “storyline” or “worldline”? But her state was different from Lin Qiyou or Nongli’s. She seemed… far too calm and detached, as if she had fully accepted her current existence, and had gained immense power and status.
“You are also…” Aoki probed.
“From ‘elsewhere’?” The Demon Queen picked up his words, a slight smile on her lips. “You could say that. But all of that is water under the bridge. That story ended, and I found a new… home.” She raised her hand lightly, a wisp of pure darkness coiling around her fingertips. “This world, though not without strife, is far more endearing than the madness and obsession found elsewhere. Now, I only wish to live here, in my own way.”
There was no resentment in her words, no unwillingness, only a sense of seeing through all things. She seemed to have completely severed all ties with her “past,” including the “relationship” she once had with Aoki. This very attitude made Aoki even more certain that what she said was likely true. For she had no reason to fabricate such a story, especially when she seemed to hold no lingering attachments toward Aoki.
“So it seems… there really have been quite a few ‘stories’ of ‘us.’” Aoki laughed self-mockingly, then straightened his expression. “Since you know the past and understand the present, then about Yueqi…”
The Demon Queen nodded, returning to the topic at hand: “Yueqi Fengling, a poor vessel chosen by the ‘curse.’ The so-called ‘Power of the Hero’ within her is essentially a hunger program, craving ‘crisis’ and ‘slaughter.’ When there is not enough danger from the outside, it turns on its host, luring her to create chaos in order to satisfy itself. I believe you’ve already learned this much from her.”
“Yes,” Aoki confirmed. “Then, her ‘connection’ with the Demon Army…?”
“It’s not a partnership, but more like a tacit ‘supply-and-demand’ relationship.” The Demon Queen explained. “Yueqi needs ‘enemies’ to appease the hunger of her instinct and keep herself from losing control and harming her homeland. And as for the Demon Army… or more precisely, certain factions within the Demon Army, they just happen to have some… less popular, ‘problematic’ members who need to be ‘taken care of.’”
Aoki immediately understood: “So you exile those unwelcome Demon Kings or demon commanders to this continent, offering them up for Yueqi to hunt?”
“A clever deduction.” The Demon Queen gave Aoki an approving glance. “You could say it’s a win-win, or rather, a reluctant means of maintaining a dangerous equilibrium. Yueqi gets her ‘food,’ stabilizing the curse within; we rid ourselves of unstable elements, and… to some extent, limit that ‘Hungry Hero’ from turning her attention to our more vital interests. Only a handful of the highest-ranking Demon Kings know and participate in this agreement.”
So that’s it! The so-called “Ancient Connection” was actually this cruel and pragmatic “garbage disposal” agreement! Yueqi was not a traitor—she was fighting desperately to control the monster inside her, using a nearly self-destructive method to protect the land she loved! She hunted demons not just for the sake of protection, but also for… “feeding”!
Countless clues clicked into place in Aoki’s mind. He recalled Yueqi’s battle style, as if she were suppressing something, and the pain and struggle that sometimes flashed across her face. All of this was because she had been fighting the curse within her all along, and forced to fulfill this dark contract.
And the best time for hunting… Aoki suddenly remembered that in the original history, Yueqi became the Hero and reached her greatest fame right after the fierce battle beneath the Demon King’s Castle, where she achieved a glorious victory against the demon army. In that battle, she must have hunted enough “food,” greatly satisfying her heroic instinct and thus entering a period of relative stability.
But… Yuelan!
Aoki’s heart sank. The reason Yuelan killed Yueqi—was that she had discovered Yueqi’s “collusion” with the demons. Now, it seemed that Yuelan had only seen the outward appearance of this “exile-and-hunt” agreement, mistakenly believing her sister had betrayed humanity and sided with the demons! She never knew the terrible truth hidden inside Yueqi!
It was all a misunderstanding! A huge tragedy of sisters turning on each other, a hero’s untimely death—all caused by the cruelty of reality and the gap in information!
Unaware, Yuelan killed the sister who had silently borne all the pain and tried to protect everything in her own way! And Yueqi, to her dying breath, might have carried both the anguish of being misunderstood by her kin and the torment of the curse inside her!
At this thought, even Aoki felt an overwhelming heaviness and sorrow, as if he could hardly breathe.
The Demon Queen seemed to notice the turmoil in Aoki’s heart and sighed softly: “Fate’s cruel jokes are often far harsher than any demon’s schemes, aren’t they?”
Aoki was silent for a long while before he slowly raised his head, a sharp light returning to his eyes. The tragedies of the past had already happened, beyond his power to change. But now that he knew the truth, he had to prevent such things from happening again—and find a way to solve the problem at its root.
“Thank you for telling me all this.” Aoki said to the Demon Queen, his tone a little more sincere. “This explains many doubts I had. But I don’t think this is the real solution. Whether Yueqi suppresses her instincts, or you feed ‘her,’ it only treats the symptoms, not the cause. What is the origin of that so-called ‘Hero’s Curse’? Where does the power it draws ultimately go?”
A glint of admiration flashed in the Demon Queen’s violet eyes: “You have touched upon the heart of the problem. The ‘curse’ is not without roots; there must be someone behind it, manipulating the system of energy flow. If you wish to find it, perhaps… start with those beings most deeply bound to this world’s underlying rules—those who are also constantly ‘drained’ by it.”
Her words were like the final puzzle piece, instantly illuminating all the clues in Aoki’s mind!
Lin Qiyou’s lost memories! Nongli’s stripped power! The vast energy of crisis and slaughter drawn out by Yueqi’s “Heroic Instinct”!
Were the things they lost, or had drained away, being “collected” by some mechanism of this world—or by a hidden “deity” behind it all? Were these unique energies and memories from different systems and sources all converging in the same place?
“I understand now…” Aoki muttered, a light of unprecedented clarity shining in his eyes. “Lin Qiyou’s memories, Nongli’s power, the ‘crisis energy’ drawn by Yueqi’s heroic instinct… If I can track the destination of these three lost or transferred things… That will be where the secret lies!”
These three points were like three coordinates, all pointing toward the ultimate mystery hidden beneath the surface of this world—toward the one manipulating “fate” and “curses” from the shadows!
The Demon Queen looked at Aoki’s suddenly enlightened expression and nodded slightly: “It seems you have found your direction. This path will certainly be difficult and dangerous, but… I wish you luck, Aoki. I hope this time, you can reach a different ending.”
As she finished, her figure began to grow indistinct, like ink dissolving into the night.
“Wait!” Aoki called out in a hurry, “I still don’t know your name!”
The Demon Queen’s silhouette had nearly faded away completely, but her ethereal and faint voice still lingered:
“Names have long since been buried with the past…”
As her words ended, she vanished completely, leaving only Aoki alone within the temple, and the cold, clear moonlight.
Aoki stood where he was, digesting the enormous amount of information he had received tonight. Yueqi’s truth, the Demon Army’s “agreement,” Yuelan’s misunderstanding, and… the three paths all leading to the final secret.
The goal had never been clearer. Next, he would have to use the resources of both the simulated and real worlds to track down those three “threads” of loss, find the source of everything, unmask the god behind it all, and shatter that damned fate!
He turned, striding out of the abandoned temple. His figure merged with the darkness before dawn, carrying resolute determination.