A Little First Love Shock for the Demon Lord - Chapter 8.2

Seeing her reaction, Minglou let out a disdainful snort.

So, this woman was finally scared senseless by his fearsome reputation.

At last, he felt he’d regained some dignity, and the anger in his chest subsided significantly.

He was just beginning to feel a little proud when Ying Ning slowly raised her right hand, pointed at him, and said, “Minglou, you’ve returned to your original form…”

Startled, Minglou looked down at himself and realized that he had indeed reverted to his true appearance. The pain that had wracked his body was gone.

Could it be… when Ying Ning summoned the land god just now, it had jolted him? And because all his thoughts were focused on maintaining his powerful, towering image, the dream had responded accordingly—restoring him to his real self.

After confirming he was no longer a child, Minglou’s usually stern expression finally relaxed into a faint smile.

Ying Ning jumped to her feet with delight and asked, “Does this mean you’ve stopped taking this dream so seriously?”

Minglou looked at her, smiling—but just as he was about to nod, his expression suddenly froze. The smile vanished, replaced by a cold, serious look.

“You’re laughing?” he asked icily.

Ying Ning blinked in confusion, not understanding his shift in mood.

Minglou took a step toward her. His tall figure exuded a chilling aura of dominance.

“Didn’t you hear what I just said? I’m the ruler of the Demon Realm.” He leaned in close, his breath brushing her face. His voice dropped to a low murmur. “I’m also a demon—the most wicked one in all six realms.”

A strange red light flared in his eyes. It was like falling into a frozen abyss.

Ying Ning swallowed nervously and clenched her clothes with both hands.

Sensing her fear, Minglou smirked with satisfaction. “What, afraid now?”

Ying Ning didn’t respond.

Her silence made Minglou’s expression darken.

He raised his left hand and slowly reached toward her.

Ying Ning watched his hand approach, her heart in her throat. When it was about to touch her, she instinctively shut her eyes.

But instead of hurting her, his hand swerved and opened a hidden door beside her.

“You’re my little treasure vault. I won’t kill you—yet.”

With that, Minglou turned and left the dark chamber.

Ying Ning opened her eyes and exhaled softly.

So, he really was a demon. That revelation left her with a sense of loss.

She had thought she’d grabbed onto a lifeline—only to realize she’d been clinging to a great demon.

Minglou turned around and saw her still standing there. He snapped coldly, “Do you want to die? Why aren’t you following me?”

Ying Ning looked at him but didn’t move.

Annoyed, Minglou strode back, grabbed her wrist, and pulled her forward. “Even if you want to die, I won’t let you.”

Ying Ning stumbled after him, eyes filled with confusion as she stared at his side profile.

Now that he had recovered his true form, Minglou moved much faster.

He dragged Ying Ning quickly toward the edge of the dream, calculating how much of his power had returned.

This dream had boundaries. Its edges were indistinct and unstable—the weakest part of the nightmare. If he could find that place, even with just 20% of his power, he could break free and take Ying Ning with him.

It wasn’t hard to locate. When he was a child, he’d never left the Demon Palace and had no knowledge of the world beyond. The dream could only construct what he knew—everything else would be a blur. That blur was the edge.

Before long, they reached the gates of the Demon Palace.

Beyond the gates was impenetrable darkness, and a rancid stench wafted in.

Without hesitation, Minglou dragged Ying Ning into the gloom.

Ying Ning coughed from the smell and pinched her nose. When she looked again, Minglou had already hurled a black sphere forward.

The sphere struck the darkness with a resounding crash. Sparks exploded, and the darkness trembled violently, making Ying Ning dizzy.

As the shaking subsided, a crack opened in the void ahead. Faint white light leaked through.

“If you pass through that, you’ll wake from the dream,” Minglou said coolly.

Ying Ning looked at him, both nervous and relieved.

She wasn’t sure what scared her more—the nightmare, or the terrifying demon who hadn’t abandoned her. Was she happy to escape the dream, or because he hadn’t left her behind?

Without looking at her, Minglou took her hand again and led her toward the crack—but after a few steps, he suddenly stopped.

Ying Ning asked in confusion, “What’s wrong?”

“…Chen Wuxiu,” Minglou muttered darkly.

Ying Ning looked down and saw what appeared to be strands of hair tightly coiled around Minglou’s waist.

“Trying to run?” a mocking voice said behind them.

They turned to see a red-haired man at the palace gate, twisting his neck at an eerie angle. “Little Minglou, you can’t leave me. I’ll be bored if you go.”

The moment the man spoke, Ying Ning clearly felt Minglou’s body tense.

The dream wanted to trap him again.

Ying Ning quickly reached out and covered Minglou’s eyes. “Don’t look! He’s not real—he’s your nightmare!”

Her voice snapped Minglou back to awareness, and he quickly lowered his gaze.

“Close your eyes. Don’t look or listen. I’ll get you out,” Ying Ning said.

“You?” Minglou turned to her with a trace of mockery. “Even knowing I’m a demon, you still want to save me?”

He didn’t believe her, so he stubbornly grabbed her wrist and pushed forward.

Behind them, Chen Wuxiu’s voice grew more furious. “Minglou! Try leaving, and I’ll gouge your eyes out! Remember the first time you ran? You stayed in the ice cave for seven days! Want to suffer like that again?!”

Ying Ning frowned, glancing at Minglou.

Was this the torment the great demon had endured in his past? Why did a demon’s history seem so tragic?

Then the voice behind them shifted into a cold, female tone.

“Go to hell.”

Minglou froze again.

Realizing he was faltering, Ying Ning tried pulling him forward, but their strength was no match.

Desperately, she shouted, “Don’t stop! We’re almost there!”

Minglou glanced at her, then at his feet.

Several pale women in white were crawling out of the ground, all with identical faces and dead eyes.

“You shouldn’t exist,” they chanted in unison, before lunging forward to grab Minglou’s legs and drag him back with their hair.

Ying Ning couldn’t compete with their strength. Both she and Minglou were pulled away as the crack slowly began to close.

Minglou’s eyes darkened.

He knew that once the crack sealed, both he and Ying Ning would be trapped. Worse, the nightmare demon would devour her.

He would never allow that.

His expression turned icy.

While Ying Ning still struggled with the ghostly women, Minglou suddenly shoved her away.

She nearly fell, staring in shock as the nightmare dragged him back.

“Go!” he said coldly. “Recite your life-saving talisman wrong on purpose. It will shatter the magic tablet and the one who gave it to you will come save you.”

Ying Ning shouted, “What about you?!”

“That’s none of your concern.”

She looked at the shrinking crack, then back at Minglou.

The light was fading fast.

Biting her lip, she finally turned and ran toward the exit.

Minglou scoffed.

This was a dream—yet not just a dream.

Real or not, past or present, no one had ever wanted him to live.

The women continued crawling toward him, whispering emotionlessly, “Go to hell… Go to hell…”

He closed his eyes. Cold seeped into his bones.

Then—

“I know!”

Ying Ning’s voice rang out.

Minglou’s eyes flew open.

In the distance, Ying Ning was running back to him, breathless, yet smiling.

She looked like a spring breeze, warm and gentle, dispelling the cold around him.

The malicious whispers in his ears faded, replaced by her voice.

She called out with a bright smile, “I know how to save you!”