A Little First Love Shock for the Demon Lord - Chapter 9

By the time Minglou came to his senses, Ying Ning was already running toward him.

He quickly shouted, “Don’t come any closer!”

Ying Ning halted a few steps away and said, “I know how to save you now. We can leave this dream together.”

“I told you to leave!” Minglou roared in frustration. “These nightmares will never stop haunting me. They won’t give me another chance to open the path out! Once that road disappears, you’ll be trapped in my nightmare forever!”

But Ying Ning didn’t look frightened. Instead, she responded eagerly, “I know! But if the nightmares disappear, you’ll naturally wake up. We won’t need a path anymore.”

“You said before that when you remembered you were the Lord of the Demon Realm, you regained your original form. That proves that if you stop thinking about those terrifying things and focus on happier thoughts, the nightmare will collapse on its own.”

As she spoke, she once again stepped toward him.

Minglou watched her coldly. “You’re too optimistic. Unfortunately, I’m not you. I’ve never had anything worth being happy about.”

Ying Ning paused for a moment, then continued walking until she stood directly in front of him. Her voice softened.

“Then if there’s nothing in the past, think about the future.”

The moment her words fell, Minglou felt the force pulling him backward suddenly weaken.

But the nightmares had no intention of letting go. Noticing his attention shift to Ying Ning, the women entangling him, along with Chen Wuxiu, who guarded the gate to the Demon Palace, all turned furious.

“You’re a burden—you must die!”

“No one wants you alive. What are you still struggling for? Just die!”

“Minglou, you can’t leave! If you’re alive, you belong to us!”

The voices overlapped and turned into ear-splitting screams—anger, hatred, and disgust ripped through Minglou’s eardrums.

He clutched his forehead in pain as the nightmares pulled him back again.

Though Ying Ning couldn’t hear the shrieks, she could tell from the bulging veins on Minglou’s forehead that he was in excruciating agony.

A pale, withered hand reached out from behind him, cold fingers caressing his cheek, making him involuntarily avert his gaze from Ying Ning.

Seeing this, Ying Ning quickly reached out, grabbed his face with both hands, and forcefully turned his head back to face her.

“Don’t look at them—look at me,” she commanded firmly.

The soft scent of flowers drifted past Minglou’s nose, clearing his mind a little. He blinked and looked at her, puzzled.

“Even if I’m a demon, you still want to save me?” he asked.

Ying Ning looked at him with gentle exasperation. “Even as a demon, you never abandoned me. So how could I, a mere human, abandon you?”

That was her sense of morality—she would help anyone who had never harmed her.

Minglou stared into her eyes.

In them, he saw a light like a clear blue sky on a sunny day, endless and serene, with a gentle breeze sweeping through a field of flowers, creating waves of color.

At their feet, tiny flowers began to bloom.

Ying Ning suddenly felt a tickle near her ear. She reached up instinctively and touched a small flower nestled against it—she had no idea when it had appeared.

She removed it and watched it bloom and spin delicately in her hand.

Then she noticed how the flowers and grass beneath their feet were rapidly spreading outward. The cold, hard ground was soon carpeted with blossoms, and even the foul stench in the air was masked by floral fragrance.

Delighted by the dreamscape’s transformation, Ying Ning beamed. “You like flowers?”

“Huh?” Minglou was momentarily confused by the question. When he understood, he lowered his eyes and answered stiffly, “Mm.”

Ying Ning eagerly asked, “Do you remember that field of flowers where we first met? Did you think it was beautiful?”

Minglou was flustered by her questioning and mumbled, “There are no flowers in the Demon Realm.”

“That’s okay,” Ying Ning said brightly. “When we wake up, I’ll go to that field and pick the prettiest flowers for you.”

Minglou looked at her again, then asked cautiously, “Why… why would you give me flowers?”

“Because you like them, don’t you?” Ying Ning replied seriously, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

“Minglou, as long as you like them, I’ll give you as many flowers as you want.”

His eyes slowly widened in surprise as he stared at her.

He didn’t know what to say—whether to ask something, respond, or just stay silent.

But doing nothing only made the storm in his heart more restless.

And with that unrest, a beam of light suddenly pierced the darkness above them.

The flowers around them grew taller, forming a wall of blossoms. Vines stretched out, wrapping tightly around the nightmare women clinging to Minglou. The tighter they coiled, the more the nightmare women screamed in pain, eventually releasing their grip.

The light overhead intensified. One by one, every flower in the dreamscape exploded, scattering petals across the sky in a blizzard of color.

Ying Ning stood in the floral downpour, laughing with joy, reaching out to catch the falling petals.

Minglou simply stood there, watching her, utterly bewildered.

If this strange feeling in his chest was supposed to be anger, then why did it feel… good?

Never mind. He didn’t want to think about it right now.

The dazzling light engulfed them both, slowly obscuring everything from view…

Minglou jolted awake.

Looking around, he confirmed that he was inside the enchanted barrier of the Yinglong divine tablet. He let out a long sigh of relief.

He lay flat on the ground, a faint curve tugging at the corner of his lips.

Just as he was beginning to relax, he felt something… off.

Why did his chest feel so heavy?

Turning his head, he found Ying Ning curled up on top of him, sound asleep—with her right index finger resting on his earlobe.

The soft touch sent a tingle through him, making his heart involuntarily race.

Minglou quickly raised a hand to push her off, but just before making contact, he paused.

Right—he could only regain his powers through physical contact with her. Wasn’t this the perfect chance?

He curled his fingers slightly and hesitated for a moment before reaching toward her again. First, he poked her cheek with one finger.

Her skin was soft and springy—pleasant to the touch.

She didn’t react.

Encouraged, Minglou added a second finger, gently brushing her face.

Her skin was smooth and delicate. It reminded him of the Cold Jade Bed in the Secret Palace, but unlike the bed’s icy surface, Ying Ning’s skin was warm.

The sensation was addictive.

He slowly spread his hand, intending to cup half her face in his palm.

But just before he could touch her, Ying Ning’s eyes snapped open.

His hand froze beside her cheek, and he blinked in panic.

Ying Ning, staring at his hand in confusion, blinked too.

“You…” she murmured uncertainly.

Minglou’s heart jumped.

Did she figure out what he was up to?

But before he could speak, Ying Ning sat up and solemnly said, “Thank you.”

“Huh?” Minglou was stunned.

“You were trying to wake me up, right?” she said, pointing to his face. “I wanted to wake you earlier, but you were sleeping too deeply. I used all my strength and still couldn’t get you up.”

Only then did Minglou realize his face was stinging.

He glared at her. “You actually dared to—”

She interrupted with wide-eyed innocence. “Weren’t you just trying to slap me awake?”

Her question caught in his throat.

He couldn’t deny it—not without revealing his true motive.

After a long pause, he let out a frustrated breath and swallowed the insult silently.

Standing up, he returned to his usual cold, aloof demeanor and summoned his magic.

Black mist swirled at his fingertips—thicker than it had been in days. It meant some of his power had returned when her finger touched his ear.

A blessing in disguise.

He curled his lips into a sinister smile.

“Now… let’s go deal with that damned stutterer outside.”

________________________________________

When the divine tablet stopped releasing spiritual energy, the Dream Fiend knew the two inside had broken his illusion. But he wasn’t concerned—he still held the upper hand with his magic artifact. They couldn’t defeat him.

So, he waited cheerfully by the tablet, ready for his prey to come out.

Soon, the divine tablet began to flicker.

The Dream Fiend grinned, his instruments of torment already prepared. The moment they emerged, he would destroy them both.

His eyes gleamed with green excitement.

From the center of the tablet, a dark shadow formed.

He stared intently—but what emerged first was neither Minglou nor Ying Ning.

A jet-black longblade shot out from within.

The blade gleamed coldly, its hilt adorned with golden patterns and set with a bl00d-red gem.

Before the Dream Fiend could react, the blade pierced his shoulder, pinning him to the wall with deadly precision.

He howled in pain, staring in disbelief at the weapon.

“The Shadow-Slayer Blade…”

Minglou’s voice followed: “So you still remember me.”

The Dream Fiend looked up to see Minglou standing across from him, with Ying Ning behind him, her expression solemn as she stared at the pinned demon.

“You… it’s really you. When did you wake up?” the Dream Fiend snarled.

“When I woke up is none of your concern,” Minglou said coldly as he walked closer. “Right now, you have only one option—tell me what you and Yu Qianxun are plotting.”

The Dream Fiend’s eyes flickered with panic.

The moment the Shadow-Slayer Blade struck him, its aura had already seeped into his organs. Minglou could tear him apart at will.

This wasn’t a threat—it was a fact. He had no choice but to comply.

“Alright… I’ll talk.”

He took a deep breath. “Yu Qianxun ordered us… to absorb spiritual energy, gather strength… and once we had enough power, to open the gates of the Netherworld… to seek Chen Wuxiu’s fragmented soul.”

“The Netherworld?” Minglou frowned. “Wasn’t Chen Wuxiu’s soul sealed in Yunjing Abyss in the Heavenly Realm? Why are you looking for him in the underworld?”

The Dream Demon pouted and muttered, “That… I don’t know. It was Yu Qianxun who told me.”

Minglou remained silent, lost in thought.

The Dream Demon’s words couldn’t be taken at face value—they needed to be verified.

Seeing Minglou unmoved, the Dream Demon softened his tone and pleaded, “Your Majesty… I was forced into this… I’ve told you everything I know. Could you… let me go now?”

Minglou’s lips curled into a playful, dangerous smile.

“Did I ever say I’d let you go?”

The Dream Demon’s eyes widened in disbelief. “You… didn’t you just say I could choose a path?”

“I did.” Minglou raised an eyebrow, a wicked glint flashing in his eyes. “But whether you talk or stay silent, the outcome is the same—you die. That was the path I gave you to choose.”

“You—!” the Dream Demon sputtered, enraged.

Minglou cut him off coldly, “Enough, dead stutterer. I’ll give you a chance—say your last words.”

Veins bulged on the Dream Demon’s forehead in fury. “I… I don’t stutter. I just… speak slowly…”

Minglou tilted his head mockingly. “Those are your last words? Noted.”

“Wait! That’s not what I meant—” the Dream Demon tried to object, but Minglou didn’t let him finish.

With a flick of his sleeve, the Touying Blade embedded in the Dream Demon’s shoulder flew back to Minglou’s hand. The moment the blade left his body, the Dream Demon disintegrated into dust and vanished.

Only after the Dream Demon was completely gone did Ying Ning, who had been hiding behind Minglou, finally relax her grip on her sleeves.

This long, dark night was finally over.

She lowered her eyes and exhaled deeply, then lifted her gaze with a relieved smile, looking at the man in front of her.

“Great, he’s finally—”

But her voice cut off abruptly.

Minglou turned around, his scarlet pupils glowing ominously as they locked onto her startled expression.

The corners of his lips lifted into a slow, chilling smile as he spoke in a low voice:

“Now, it’s your turn.”