After school, he was then offered himself to a succubus.

Chapter 92 Ah, that esteemed person has arrived (Important chapter, please subscribe! Meow~)

Jiangzhou, Tushan.

A layer of haze shrouded the mountaintop, while a light drizzle fell below the mountainside. Monsters crawling along the mountain path mingled with humans on foot, forming a strange procession.

Suddenly, the rain curtain seemed to be cut in half by a gust of wind, and both the travelers and the demons couldn't help but look up.

A dark shadow swept across the mountains, raising a cloud of dust that settled in the bamboo forest at the foot of the mountain.

"Croak? Whose demon king has arrived, with such a grand air?" The little frog demon selling lotus leaf umbrellas at the foot of the mountain was startled.

"Even the company's immortals dare not fly over here, croak!" said a fat frog.

"Croak! Could it be that the Great Bird King has arrived?!" exclaimed a skinny frog.

The fat frog stuck out its tongue and smacked the skinny frog, scolding, "What do you mean 'Great Bird King'? That's the Boundless Blessed Phoenix King! But I remember that lady has already arrived; wasn't she just buying an umbrella here? Croak?"

As the two frog demons were confused, the dust gradually dissipated, and the giant crow flew off to who-knows-where.

Footsteps approached, and a man and a woman emerged from the dusty rain.

The girl was holding two small mice in her arms, looking dazed, her helmet still on, and she followed the boy blankly.

"The rain seems a bit heavy," the boy muttered to himself, bending down to look at two frogs carrying lotus leaves on their backs.

"Can these lotus leaves be used as umbrellas?"

"Gugua! Of course! Purely natural and additive-free!"

"How much is it?"

"Croak! One umbrella costs three incense sticks!"

"Incense money? Is that just paper money?"

"Cuckoo! No, you need to go to the Acacia Temple halfway up the mountain and offer three sticks of incense to the memorial tablet of the Pure Yang Taoist. That will be your offering fee!"

"...Ghost money?" Zhang Chen was embarrassed. There were even monsters burning money for him, so how come he was still so poor?

The money burned was all taken as kickbacks by Tushan, right?

"Okay, then give me two umbrellas."

"Croak! Okay!"

The fat frog took out two large lotus leaves from the bamboo basket behind him. Zhang Chen picked them up and weighed them. They were lighter than ordinary umbrellas, had a light fragrance, and the leaves were very sturdy.

"What are you selling these umbrellas for if you don't get any payment?" he asked.

"Croak, what's the point?" The skinny frog scratched its head. "Why does it have to be for something?"

"You're not after money or food, so you simply enjoy selling umbrellas?" Zhang Chen asked again.

"Croak, I know! You must be the young master of some immortal family, right? You even have to ask this... Strange, strange, you can actually speak the language of monsters?" the fat frog suddenly realized.

"Well, I'll light a few more incense sticks later. Can you tell me why?" Zhang Chen said.

The two frogs looked at each other, and then the fat frog continued, "Croak, my brother and I have been selling umbrellas here for fifty years."

"I don't know why, but fewer and fewer humans are coming to worship Master Chunyang. If no one continues the incense offerings, Master Chunyang will really disappear!"

"Disappeared, disappeared! Ribbit! Pure Yang Daoist has been missing for a long time! Our grandpa still mentions him often!" The skinny frog chuckled.

"Grandpa said that the Pure Yang Taoist must be angry. No one is offering incense to him, so the Bitter Love Tree is slowly withering, and that's why the Pure Yang Taoist is no longer appearing!"

3

Zhang Chen was taken aback.

"But, Lady Dragon Girl wants to plant a new Bitter Love Tree! Lots of monsters came today! They're all so lucky!" The frog suddenly became excited.

"What are they going to do?"

"Croak? You didn't know that either? Of course, you gloriously became nourishment for the Bitter Love Tree, croak!"

"Will I die?"

"Death? This isn't death! The Bitter Love Tree will ensure that all the monsters that become its nourishment have a good reincarnation!"

"It's a pity that my brother and I aren't strong enough... so we can't join the frog." The frog suddenly slumped down again.

"You've been selling umbrellas here for fifty years, that's quite an achievement," Zhang Chen comforted her.

"Fifty years is nothing, quack!" the fat frog sighed. "There's also Grandpa Turtle selling water halfway up the mountain; he's been selling it for five hundred years! He carries water down the mountain several times a day, quack!"

"I heard his cultivation level is high enough! He's been chosen by the Dragon Girl! I'm so envious!"

"Oh, croak, and there's Uncle Cow who sells rice balls, croak... Brother Macaque who sells toys, and the one who sells sweet soup... wait, who sells sweet soup, croak? I forgot, croak." The skinny frog's eyes looked very wise.

"It's Sister Sheep, you stupid frog!" The fat frog tapped its brother with its tongue again.

"I remember now, quack! Stop hitting me, quack!" The skinny frog covered its head and ran away.

A fat frog chased after them, and the two frogs chased and fled, scattering lotus leaves from the bamboo basket all over the ground.

Zhang Chen and Jiang Rou helped pick up the lotus leaves from the ground and watched them play.

The croaking of frogs echoed through the bamboo grove, blending with the sound of rain, creating a truly refreshing symphony.

But for some reason, Zhang Chen felt uneasy.

Jiang Rou lowered her eyes slightly and subconsciously tugged at Zhang Chen's clothes. She could understand some of the monsters' words.

It seemed that Zhang Chen's earlier touch on her head, that warm sensation, had activated something in her mind...

The two waited for quite a while, and some more monsters and pedestrians passed by.

There are all kinds of monsters, some of which have almost transformed into human form, can walk upright, and have some human characteristics.

Their expressions, without prior arrangement, all conveyed a profound and intriguing quality as they quietly made their way up the mountain.

At the same time, all kinds of people are there.

The scene was chaotic, with some complaining about the difficult mountain road, while others chatted and laughed, a stark contrast to the monster's tranquility.

It gave Zhang Chen the illusion of a life of extravagance and debauchery.

Some people mistook them for umbrella sellers, while others thought he had gotten lost and asked him which department in the company had referred him and whether he had paid.

"money?"

"Nonsense, ordinary people have to pay to come here, right? Three million per person, and they have to sign a confidentiality agreement. Anyone who leaks information will be dealt with by the company."

"What are people doing here?"

"For the Mid-Autumn Festival, the company announced that the sacred spring halfway up the mountain has reopened after 300 years! Soaking in it for an hour can extend your life by a month, and soaking for a day can cure all diseases!"

"It's just too expensive. The price doubles for every extra hour! But the people who come here are all celebrities and big shots from all walks of life. Even if they don't soak in the spiritual spring, spending three million to expand their network is not bad."

"What? You don't know anything? You didn't sneak in, did you? Did you pay the admission fee?"

"I am a monster," Zhang Chen said.

"A demon... or a human form..." The man looked terrified and quickly ran back into the group, chattering to his companions.

"Do you know anyone here?" Zhang Chen asked, looking at the stunned Jiang Rou.

Jiang Rou comes from the Beijing area, and her family is considered well-off.

"It seems... there's someone familiar." Jiang Rou, holding a white and a yellow mouse, said blankly, "When I was little, I heard my elders say that as long as you're willing to spend money, it's not hard to live an extra year or two..."

"Hmm." Zhang Chen nodded, then he probably understood.

There are quite a few people who know about monsters, but they just need money.

He initially had a favorable impression of the company and thought that keeping the existence of monsters a secret from ordinary people was truly for the sake of a stable and peaceful life.

Although what he saw was that the monsters in the city were almost harmless to people.

Now it seems that... someone is treating this kind of knowledge as a resource—a monopolized resource—and selling it at a price to make a profit.

Anyone who has gone through nine years of compulsory education knows that an old system that has been in place for too long will inevitably produce such dross.

What exactly went wrong between that human and the demon?

In these two thousand years, have I truly not considered this point? Have I really just let the female demons die one by one?

Have you wasted two thousand years of your life? It's so stupid to only think about having sex with monsters. At least you should know the principle that you can only think about lust when you are well-fed and clothed, right?

There must be some boomerang that hasn't returned yet.

"Splash~"

Suddenly, the rain intensified, and the number of people and demons climbing the mountain decreased.

"Cuckoo cuckoo cuckoo!"

The two frog demons jumped back from the bamboo forest and breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that their lotus leaves were in Zhang Chen's hands.

"Croak! Human, thank you for watching the umbrella for us! Can we have it back now?" The fat frog hopped in front of him.

"I've bought all the lotus leaves, so you don't need to sell umbrellas anymore. Go and live a good life," Zhang Chen said.

"Gugua, you've already bought them, but we still need to go back and pick lotus leaves to sell! Why aren't you selling them?" the skinny frog asked, puzzled.

"Who are you selling these umbrellas for?"

"So that Daoist Chunyang won't get angry! So that he can come back!" the two frogs said at the same time.

Zhang Chen smiled, reached out and patted the heads of the two little frogs, then put the lotus leaf down.

"He wasn't angry at all, and besides, he's already back."

The two frogs were stunned.

"Let's go up the mountain."

Zhang Chen turned around and pinched Jiang Rou's cheek. The girl stared at him intently, and only after he had walked more than ten steps did she jog to catch up with him, holding up her lotus leaf umbrella.

Only the two little frogs remained frozen in place. After a while, the skinny frog finally reacted: "Big brother, was what that person said true or false?"

"have no idea."

"Big brother, I feel like I've developed a brain."

"Stupid frog! Your cultivation level has increased!"

"Oh, I see... Brother, your cultivation level seems to have improved as well!"

"Hmm...that's strange."

"Brother, are we still selling umbrellas?"

"Now that our cultivation has increased, we're even selling 'Frog Umbrellas'! Let's go up the mountain and ask the Dragon Girl if our cultivation is high enough to become nourishment for the Bitter Love Tree!"

"Quack! That's great!"

The two little frogs happily hurried up the mountain.

The lotus leaves fell to the ground, rustling loudly as they were soaked by the rain.

"Zhang Chen, what are those two frogs going to do next?"

"Perhaps they're heading up the mountain to find Long Luoyang now."

"Isn't that just going to your death too..."

"No," Zhang Chen said. "I'm still here."

"Oh..." Hearing Zhang Chen's resolute voice, Jiang Rou's slightly worried face melted away, revealing a shy smile.

The girl suddenly realized that she felt at ease as long as Zhang Chen was around.

Pure Yang Daoist is indeed not heartless and ungrateful... There must be some misunderstanding!

"Zhang Chen, are you going to marry Lady Long in the future? I'm willing to be her maid... My family has been able to continue to this day thanks to her..."

"...If you're not satisfied after having sex with Lord Long, I can stay with you in bed. I'm really good at enduring hardship, I'm just afraid you'll think I'm ugly."

"You're already quite beautiful... Let's talk about this later, not for now."

"Oh." Jiang Rou felt a little awkward when Zhang Chen praised her for being pretty. She pursed her lips slightly and took bigger steps.

The girl held the lotus leaf umbrella high, above Zhang Chen's head, looking just like a maidservant carrying an umbrella.

The two walked to the mountainside.

I saw the so-called Temple of Longing. Fox spirits roamed inside and outside the temple. The incense smell was strong. Peach trees were planted all around, and countless red ropes were hanging from the trees. All the way to the top of the mountain were trees with red ropes and prayer plaques hanging from them.

I imagine that on ordinary days, many couples would come here to tie red strings, pray for blessings, and have their marriage prospects told, and there must also be many couples who are human and demon.

But at this moment, most people only went up to the mountainside and stopped, while the monster continued to rush to the top.

Because opposite the Xiangsi Temple is a modern building, which looks very awkward and out of place – a “hot spring pavilion” made of reinforced concrete.

Inside is probably the magical spring that those people were talking about, the one that can prolong life and cure all diseases.

Zhang Chen saw an old turtle demon selling water at the door. It had a human body and face, white hair, and a turtle shell on its back.

"Sir, how much is the water? I'd like two bottles."

"Five incense sticks' worth of water for a bottle, all top-quality spring water. Today is the last time I'm selling this; if you don't buy now, it'll be gone!"

"Why is this the last time?"

"It's time for this old man to return to his hometown. I've lived enough! It would be good if I could make some contribution before I die!"

"How long have you lived?"

"More than five hundred years!"

"How much longer do you have to live?"

"I can live another five hundred years."

"Then why not continue living?"

The old tortoise demon chuckled. "Young man, you're not from the company, are you? Are you a descendant of some hidden immortal sect?"

Zhang Chen remained noncommittal.

"I could tell at a glance that you are different from those people. They came here for the spiritual spring water... but they don't know that the spiritual spring water is just the root water of the Bitter Love Tree."

"Three hundred years ago, after the Bitter Love Tree began to wither, the spiritual spring water lost its power."

"The reason it's reopening today is simply because a large number of demons will soon be turned into the flesh and soil of the Bitter Love Tree... The dissipated demonic power will be transformed into spiritual energy to nourish the entire Tushan Mountain. That water is more like corpse water than spring water!"

"These people are quite pitiful. The real big slice of the pie was already divided up by those old cultivators at the mountaintop! The spiritual spring they spent so much money on is not as valuable as just going up to the mountaintop to breathe some spiritual energy. Tushan hasn't been this lively in a long time, and I never expected it to be like this..."

The old tortoise demon sighed and tapped the ground with his cane.

Zhang Chen realized that this old turtle demon was smarter than the two frogs at the foot of the mountain, and knew that what he was about to face was not so pleasant.

"You know all this, so why did you still go to the mountaintop to die?" he asked again.

"My lover is human," the turtle demon laughed. "I drank a bottle of water given to me by the Pure Yang Taoist, which allowed me to take human form and fall in love with my lover more than four hundred years ago."

"She has been reincarnated seven times in four hundred years, and I have loved her for seven lifetimes."

"Now that the Bitter Love Tree is dead, I don't know where she was reincarnated, or who she was reborn as. There's no point in her living any longer."

"Why not replant this Bitter Love Tree to benefit future generations and repay the immense kindness of Daoist Chunyang?"

Zhang Chen paused for a moment, then asked, "Do you know what the chances are of the Bitter Love Tree reviving?"

"The Dragon Girl told me it was 30%, which is a bit low, but it's not impossible."

Zhang Chen shook his head at him and held up one finger, "Only 10%."

The old turtle demon was stunned for a moment, then smiled with relief after a few seconds of blankness.

"One percent is all it takes, just one percent... You can imagine how difficult it was for Daoist Chunyang to attempt it back then. He took such a risk all by himself, so why can't we, with so many demons, do the same?"

"Besides, we have received his kindness for over a thousand years; how can we forget this debt of gratitude?"

"Young man, are you also going up the mountain to absorb the spiritual energy transformed from that demon corpse? You can get closer to my old body then."

The old turtle demon handed him two bottles of water, saying, "You're the first person to buy water today, so we're destined to meet. If the Dragon Girl fails, I'll give you all my demonic power."

Zhang Chen took the water and continued listening to the old turtle demon chant, "Alas, what a pity that Lady Dragon Girl, in the prime of her life, must die like this old man. I wonder how many people will devour her cultivation... And who knows whether those who come are good or evil, or whether they are truly trustworthy?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen suddenly realized something.

It would be best to keep Long Luoyang's scheme a secret from him.

The female demons like Tu Shan Han Su and Bai Nuo Yan even made him make that bizarre mooncake in order to get him away.

Why did Long Luoyang personally summon him? Was it really for some kind of face-to-face "revenge"?

Not like.

She knew that the resurrection ritual was likely to fail, and if it failed, all those demon corpses would become the company's property.

Especially herself.

Therefore, Long Luoyang sent him to collect the corpses. Rather than letting the company reap the benefits, it was better to let Zhang Chen collect all the spiritual energy.

Hmm...it feels like a final dance. Long Luoyang is about to return all her cultivation to him, severing all ties completely.

Looks like I'll have to just electrocute her, turn the big dragon girl into a little dragon girl, and take her home.

Let's talk about these little emotions in bed; there's no need to embarrass ourselves in public.

There's no problem that a pound of Yang energy can't solve; if there is, then take two pounds.

Let's see how the Dragon Girl behaves now that she's been overfed.

"Sir, I'll buy all of this water."

"Hmm? That'll require quite a bit of incense offerings..."

"Forget about the incense offerings," Zhang Chen joked. "Maybe he doesn't need that many offerings at all?"

"How can that be? I'm not selling this water to you. Honesty is the best policy in business."

"Alright." Zhang Chen looked at Jiang Rou, "Go and stay in that temple across the street. Light as many incense sticks as you can."

Jiang Rou immediately understood, knowing that Zhang Chen was going to go to the mountaintop alone, and that she would only be a burden if she went along.

Staying in the Temple of Longing should be safe.

The girl nodded like a chick pecking at rice, returned the two little mice in her arms to Zhang Chen, and ran into the temple with her umbrella.

Zhang Chen unscrewed a bottle of water, but instead of drinking it, he blew on the bottle opening and screwed it back on.

He then handed the water bottle back to the old turtle demon: "This bottle doesn't smell very good; it must be spoiled. Can I return it?"

"Since you bought a day's worth of water from me, returning one bottle is perfectly acceptable." The old tortoise demon smiled, and seeing that Zhang Chen was about to head towards the mountaintop, he called out to him again.

"Young man, it's very dangerous for you to go up the mountain alone. The demons on the mountain are holding their breath and they're going to kill anyone they see before the moon even rises."

Zhang Chen didn't reply, he just waved his hand and walked away quickly.

"This, alas!" The old tortoise demon shook his head and sighed, thinking that the young man was truly fearless, and prepared to remove his tortoise shell and go after Zhang Chen.

"Quack quack! Grandpa Turtle!"

Suddenly, two little frog demons jumped out from behind.

What brings you here? Aren't you selling umbrellas anymore?

"Croak, Grandpa Turtle, my brother and I have made rapid progress in our cultivation! Look, Skinny Crawler's head has gotten a whole size bigger!"

The old turtle demon glanced at the two frogs, his eyes filled with surprise and uncertainty.

"You've eaten people?!"

"Croak! No! We don't eat people! We just got tapped on the head by a guy, and then we suddenly realized!"

"How is that possible? I've lived for five hundred years, and apart from the Pure Yang Daoist, no one else has ever done such a thing..."

As the old turtle demon spoke, he suddenly seemed to have a premonition.

He suddenly looked at... the bottle of water that Zhang Chen had returned.

In the water... there was a faint golden mist glowing.

"Ribbit! Grandpa Turtle? Is your water good? It smells so good, can we have a sip?"

The old tortoise demon was shaken to his core. He rubbed his cloudy eyes, then stared at it again, certain he couldn't be mistaken.

Five hundred years ago, he also drank from this bottle of water.

He took two deep breaths, slapped himself twice, and thought to himself, "I must have been blind to not recognize him."

"Ribbit, Grandpa Turtle?! Why are you hitting yourself, ribbit?"

"You guys..." The old turtle demon smiled bitterly, a mix of emotions welling up inside him, and tears streamed down his face.

He tapped the two frog demons with his cane: "First, come with me to the mountaintop and pay your respects. Don't be so greedy with your drinking."

"Ribbit, Grandpa Turtle, if we bow towards the mountaintop, will we become nourishment?"

"cannot."

"That won't do! My grandpa said we can only kowtow to the Pure Yang Taoist! We won't do that!"

"He is the one you worship."

"Quack?"

The two little frog demons were confused, but they still bowed down to the old turtle demon.

"Three hundred years... finally..."

A mountain breeze blows, peach blossoms flutter down, and then are knocked down by the rain.

Jiang Rou leaned against the Xiangsi Temple, watching this scene, and couldn't help but smile.

What she wanted to see was this harmonious scene between humans and transgender people.

Only that one person can do that.

"Oh, all lovestruck?" A group of fox demons swarmed around, laughing and joking. "It's rare to see a girl prettier than us foxes~ Which immortal young master have you taken a fancy to?"

"It's a good thing you're a half-demon. If you were a monster, this Bitter Love Tree wouldn't be able to grant your wishes~"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Rou quickly shrank her neck and denied it, saying, "No, no, I'm just a concubine...it's a tragedy..."

"?"

""

The fox spirits were all taken aback. "We've heard that monogamy is the norm in the human world nowadays, isn't it?"

"Why are you still so feudal?"

"I did it voluntarily! And you'll be quite surprised to hear who I'm going to be a concubine for!" Jiang Rou retorted defiantly.

"Yo yo yo~" The foxes of Tushan laughed heartily. "Could it be that your master is the Pure Yang Daoist?"

"Our Tushan leader, Lord Hansu, has been chasing that Taoist priest for two thousand years, but he still hasn't caught up with him~"

"Then she must have done it wrong! If she's so eager to be the main wife, she'll never catch up!" Jiang Rou retorted.

The foxes laughed even harder, attracting the attention of passersby. Some young people who couldn't resist the temptation tried to walk over, but were pulled back by others.

Jiang Rou was arguing heatedly with the foxes, oblivious to the fact that the mountain wind was bringing even more rain.

A storm is brewing.

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