Feng Yongrui was stunned, his feet rooted to the spot. The System was also flustered and didn't make a single sound. Hou Renshu had turned pale and was opening his mouth, hesitating to say something.
The pain in Ma Bo's body had receded, and his vision was no longer blurry. He still felt a dull ache in his abdomen, but he could stand up now. Sensing the strange gazes around him, Ma Bo looked at himself and then shuddered.
He was exposed.
The pendant that hung around his neck was broken -- it was the only thing that hid his secret: his body had a Demonic Constitution, and his spirit root was actually a lightning attribute, not a water attribute...
Ma Bo felt his mouth turn dry and his heart drop down into his stomach. His heart was beating very quickly, and his face turned white. His brain felt cold and blank, and he couldn't even feel the pain in his abdomen.
"M-master..." He whispered weakly, looking at Feng Yongrui's feet. He was scared... too scared to see Feng Yongrui's expression.
Xiang Si was snickering out loud, his face twisted with mockery.
"Hahahaha! Isn't this hilarious? It seems like that kid has a Demonic Constitution... The array must've triggered something within you, exposing you like this... Oh, this is so funny," He guffawed with glee.
Demonic Constitution. As the name implies, people with this constitution are suitable to cultivate in the Demonic Path. In other words, people with a Demonic Constitution have no other choice but to become Demonic Cultivators -- if they cultivate orthodox methods, they won't be able to reach greater heights.
A Demonic Constitution meant that a person was born with a body that was inherently suitable to practice Demonic Cultivation methods. In fact, their Demonic Constitution would enable them to cultivate in leaps and bounds if they were to use Demonic Methods.
What is Demonic Cultivation? Generally, any cultivation method that was considered unorthodox or inhumane would be classified as Demonic Cultivation. For example, a cultivation method that required the learner to drink people's blood to advance their cultivation, or a cultivation method that involved killing arbitrarily.
Demonic Cultivators usually cultivated faster than normal cultivators, but their foundation might not be stable enough, and they would be more susceptible to fall into Deviation.
Of course, Demonic Cultivators were not all bad.
There were some Demonic Cultivation methods that were not inhumane but were simply considered weird. There were also certain methods that involved poison and hidden weapons -- these types of cultivation methods were also frowned upon and sometimes labelled as Demonic Cultivation...
Of course, people like Ma Bo, who had a Demonic Constitution, would be scorned and hated, because they were seen as the embodiment of Demons. Cultivators of the Righteous Path, like the Immortal Pathway Sect, would see them as an eyesore and even kill them.
This was exactly the reason why Ma Bo had been on the run for so many years. When people found out his secret, how could they not fear him, loathe him, and try to murder him?
Even if he did nothing wrong, he was still "in the wrong". After all, it was "his fault" he had this type of constitution... Thankfully, Ma Bo had Hou Renshu, his loyal and caring older brother and best friend...
Xiang Si did not give time for Feng Yongrui to think, he gave a few more taunting words and launched another attack on Feng Yongrui. Xiang Si did not pay much attention to Hou Renshu and Ma Bo.
While lunging at Feng Yongrui, Xiang Si yelled, "Guards! Come and take them down! There are intruders!"
Feng Yongrui twirled and swung his sword at Xiang Si. His robes fluttered with the wind and his sword moved like a blooming rose -- beautiful yet deadly.
"Host, I think this Xiang Si is indeed the master-mind behind this incident... And also, it seems like he has some sort of artifact on his body that allows him to fight on equal grounds with you..." The System spoke.
Feng Yongrui's expression was grave. There were so many things happening at once. He was worried about his disciples, but thankfully the guards downstairs seemed to be deaf. So far, no one had come running upstairs to check on the commotion.
Xiang Si's blows were getting more and more aggressive. Feng Yongrui started struggling a bit, but then the System's voice rang urgently inside his head.
"Host, it's not good. I sense something coming upstairs!"
Feng Yongrui panted and asked, "Are they the guards?"
"I'm not sure, Host... Please hurry and finish this fight as soon as possible. Otherwise, who knows what will happen to your disciples!"
Feng Yongrui agreed with the System, but this was easier said than done!
"System, do you have something in the shop that can help me overpower Xiang Si? A miracle medicine or something, that doesn't have side effects?" Feng Yongrui asked.
The System helped Feng Yongrui browse through the System Mall and found an item called "Strengthening Pill". Without hesitation, Feng Yongrui bought the pill and swallowed it.
At that moment, he felt a burst of energy -- he was stronger than before! Feng Yongrui unleashed his power and soon, he was overpowering Xiang Si.
The two were no longer in a stalemate. Feng Yongrui had the upper hand and directly stabbed Xiang Si through his stomach. Xiang Si coughed up a mouthful of blood and fell to the ground.
Pointing his sword at Xiang Si's neck, Feng Yongrui grimaced and spoke.
"So tell me, you're the mastermind behind all this, right? Why are you doing this?"
Even in the face of death, Xiang Si didn't flinch. Instead. he began laughing even louder.
"Hahaha... You must be so~ disappointed, right? That kid must be your disciple... but, who would've thought he's nothing but a Demon's spawn? Pfft..."
Hou Renshu had carried Ma Bo away from the mysterious array on the ground and put Ma Bo on the side of the room, leaning against the wall. Ma Bo's face had turned ashen when he heard Xiang Si's words, and his fists were clenched so tightly that his nails drew blood.
Ma Bo's heart was in turmoil... but most of all, he felt dread. Master would probably be disappointed... Master would be angry... Master would never look at him kindly ever again...
What if Master hated him so much that he severed their Master-disciple relationship? Death seemed better than that...
Ma Bo sincerely wished he could just pass out, or even die, at that moment. If he died, maybe he wouldn't have to face his Master... He wouldn't have to feel like this.
Unknowingly, tears were streaking down his cheeks, blurring his vision. A wet nose touched his palm, making him squirm unconsciously. What was that...? His eyes were wet with tears, so he could not see, but he could feel the soft and fluffy touch of... fur?
"Xiao Gou?" Hou Renshu's voice rang throughout the room.
Ma Bo was so shocked that his breath hitched for a short moment. A wet tongue licked away his tears and he gazed at the dog before him, dumbfounded.
There was no mistaking it, the dog was definitely Little Prince, or, as Ma Bo called him, Xiao Hei. Little Prince gave a few small barks and burrowed into Ma Bo's arms, comforting him.
The soft and comfortable warmth from the dog and the familiar smell made Ma Bo want to cry even harder...
Feng Yongrui was also stunned when he heard that Little Prince was here. He almost thought he was seeing things. But at the moment, he had to interrogate Xiang Si and he couldn't go over to check on his disciples yet.
Who knows if Xiang Si had hidden weapons or if he had a trump card... Feng Yongrui knew that he had to take care of him first.
"Hahaha... you're nothing but a hypocrite," Xiang Si spat out. "Who am I? Of course I'm the mastermind of this incident. I'll do whatever it takes to save my little sister..."
The more he spoke, the more emotional he got. Xiang Si's eyes were red with fury. "You took my sister away from me! You made me suffer! You're all despicable..."
Panting with rage, Xiang Si continued.
"It's true that I kidnapped these children. I tortured them and extracted their blood... All for the sake of activating that array! He said... That person said... as long as there's enough blood here, the array will work... It's definitely work and bring my sister back to life!"
"I may have been cruel to the children. But so what?! They're the ones who started it... They took my sister away from me!" Xiang Si roared.
"Those little brats... They should be more than grateful... No... they should be honored they had the chance to sacrifice themselves for my sister!"
"How can you be so disgusting!" Hou Renshu couldn't take it anymore and yelled.
"Disgusting? It's a dog eat dog world in here! The strong prey over the weak. Those children were too weak, and so they died!" Xiang Si broke into crazy laughter.
"Besides... I'm not the disgusting one here... Isn't there a real demon in this room?" He said, his voice laced with mockery and disgust.
Ma Bo flinched, and the dog in his arms growled menacingly at Xiang Si.
"SHUT UP!" Feng Yongrui roared.
Everyone in the room was stunned. Feng Yongrui's disciples were especially shocked, because through all the years with their Master, they had never seen him so mad.
"Demons? Let me tell you, the real demon in here is you!" Feng Yongrui hissed. "So what if someone is born with a Demonic Constitution? Did he choose it? Does he want it?"
"My disciple is the kindest person I know," Feng Yongrui said. "He cares for the people around him. He is diligent and hardworking. He perseveres through hardship, and he has never complained, even when his training his difficult..."
"Ma Bo may have a Demonic Constitution, but his words and actions are more righteous than those people from the Righteous Sects. Whereas you..." Feng Yongrui glared at Xiang Si.
"You are even worse than a beast," Feng Yongrui spat.
***
Xiang Si: Isn't there a real demon in this room?
Feng Yongrui: System, I think he's talking about you.
System: "..." Host, now is not the time for jokes!
***
Q: In real life, what kind of person is a "demon"? A bad person? A murderer?
Author's answer: A cliffhanger is the worst kind of demon... Writer's block is also a Demon...
Comment below~