Chapter 61: The Shocked Luo Xiaoluan

However, it was painfully obvious that his words failed to spark the slightest bit of interest in either Luo Xiaoluan or Wang Lin. Xiao Xiao raised an eyebrow and continued on his own. In truth, he had no desire to be so blunt and piercing, but left with no alternative—since people simply ignored you otherwise—he let out a slightly melancholic internal sigh.

"Your reconciliation with Wang Lin must be the result of some external force intervening, right?"

"Are you certain Wang Lin is reconciling with you of his own free will?"

"Is there any meaning to a romance obtained through deception?"

"Self-deception is not the least bit enjoyable."

"Besides, isn't a Wang Lin like this simply too pitiful?"

"And aren't you, yourself, a bit too pathetic?"

......

Luo Xiaoluan's sweet and gentle expression gradually froze. Hints of ferocity crept across the girl's delicate face, an attempt to mask the anger and embarrassment of having her sore spot exposed. The quiet demonic aura around her also began to churn and boil.

Clearly, Xiao Xiao's words had provoked her quite severely.

Wang Lin, on the other hand, looked somewhat bewildered. The mask of gentleness he had worn like a second skin over the past few days seemed to develop faint cracks on its surface.

His own demonic aura was also surging. Yet, unlike Luo Xiaoluan, who remained entirely unaffected, Wang Lin's face gradually displayed a struggle and a profound agony.

Seemingly sensing Wang Lin's abnormality, a trace of panic flashed across Luo Xiaoluan's face. "A-Lin? A-Lin, what's wrong with you?"

"......Xiaoluan?" Emotions in Wang Lin's eyes were in complete chaos: gentleness, affection, infatuation, fear, panic, and revulsion. But very soon, only a limpid gentleness remained, making the previous turmoil seem like a mere illusion.

"Xiaoluan."

Luo Xiaoluan's eyes turned red, filled with infatuation as her voice choked with emotion.

"A-Lin."

......

"Tsk, I can't bear to watch this anymore."

Xiao Xiao's sudden interjection completely infuriated Luo Xiaoluan. Remembering the revulsion and fear that had previously flickered in Wang Lin's eyes, her heart felt as though it were being twisted by a knife. Even now, despite meeting Wang Lin's tender gaze, lingering terror remained. The secret panic clung to her like the bones of a ghoul, lurking in the deepest recesses of her heart, and that momentary outburst just now had almost completely crushed her.

"Unforgivable, unforgivable... unforgivable!" Luo Xiaoluan's eyes bloodshot, veins bulging visibly across her face. An unnatural flush spread across her entire visage at a speed visible to the naked eye. She muttered neurotically, her voice growing louder and louder until it finally erupted into a roar.

For such a vibrant and lovely young girl to suddenly turn into something so hideous and ghost-like, Xiao Xiao could not help feeling a bit startled.

"Crack—crack—" A teeth-setting sound of grinding bones suddenly echoed, so abrupt and eerie that it made one's heart skip a beat.

***

This setting and atmosphere were exceptionally spine-chilling.

"Ah—!" "Screeech—!" Accompanied by shrill screams came the sound of clothing being violently torn. Xiao Xiao wondered if he had walked onto the wrong set. Wasn't this supposed to be a record of strange demon tales? How had it turned into Resident Evil?

......

Luo Xiaoluan bent deeply at the waist, seemingly enduring excruciating pain.

With her head lowered, her cascading hair cast an obscure, impenetrable shadow, concealing her expression from view. However, her entire body was trembling violently. The exposed skin was covered in terrifying bloodshot veins and bulging tendons, as though some horrifying entity within her petite frame was struggling to awaken.

The demonic aura grew increasingly dense.

"Ah—!" Luo Xiaoluan abruptly jerked her head back, her slender neck arching into a breathtaking, heart-stopping curve.

"Rip—!" The sound of fabric tearing.

"Crack—crack—"

Luo Xiaoluan's face was distorted beyond recognition, save for a pair of eyes flashing with a brilliance that chilled the soul.

"Ah—!" A wing slowly grew from her shoulder blade, extending outward until its streamlined arc gleamed with an astonishing, chilling edge.

It did not take much time. "Whoosh—!" The wing fully unfurled. Even as a single wing, it made the entire underground parking garage seem cramped and confined. In the dim light, jagged bone spurs appeared increasingly pale and ghostly, while the excessively vibrant feathers flickered with faint, eerie phosphorescence, emitting a dangerous and ominous aura.

......

"Bzz—bzz—"

"Bang—!"

After flickering frantically a few times, several fluorescent tubes on the garage ceiling finally burst, sending tiny shards of glass scattering everywhere and reflecting pale, fleeting rays of light.

An increasingly heavy and viscous air pressure drilled into Xiao Xiao's ears, nose, and mouth. A suffocating sensation akin to drowning spread outward, causing his blood to run in reverse and roar through his body with a deafening rumble.

His vision began to blur, his ears filled with a cacophony of roaring sounds, and his head thundered as though about to explode.

Xiao Xiao subconsciously tightened his grip, his entire body swaying unsteadily.

The Demon Codex, held firmly in his hand, saw its silver patterns on the black cover erupt with a dazzling brilliance. Faint, shifting gleams of crimson traversed across the surface, leaving behind stunning and illusory afterimages.

A warm current abruptly surged from the Demon Codex into Xiao Xiao's body, instantly clearing his drowsy mind and banishing all the heavy fatigue from his limbs.

The mist before his eyes gradually dissipated. In his restored, crystal-clear vision, a pair of monstrous, enlarged claws lunged forward abruptly, their long black nails curved into razor-sharp arcs as a chilling murderous intent washed over him.

Xiao Xiao dropped and rolled like a tumbling donkey, narrowly dodging the strike. A wave of cold air shot straight from his spine to the crown of his head, leaving his mind blank for a split second.

***

"Slash—!" The razor-sharp, knife-like nails carved deep gouges into the hard concrete floor, sending debris flying and fracturing the ground into spiderweb-like cracks.

Xiao Xiao dropped to one knee, the lingering fear of cheating death intertwining with an acute sense of crisis. His heart hammered violently, emitting a deafening roar.

His expression was blank, yet beneath the paleness lay the cold, rigid fortitude of marble. His dark, calm eyes were bottomless, and a dangerous aura gradually diffused around him.

This was neither his first time encountering a demon, nor his first brush with a life-or-death crisis.

Xiao Xiao had long since discarded his initial panic and helplessness.

Moreover, as he tightly clenched his empty left hand, he could clearly and vividly feel the surging of power throughout his body—abundant, fluid, and on the verge of eruption!

The Demon Codex in his right hand was enshrouded in layers of hazy silver light, accompanied by faint, crimson threads of light. The aura it inadvertently leaked out caused even the air to freeze, akin to some primeval beast lurking in the shadows, waiting to strike. A profound and extreme sense of danger clung to him like a shadow, prickling like thorns on his back and chilling his spine.

......

Having missed her first strike, Luo Xiaoluan kicked off the ground and lunged forward once more like an arrow loosed from a bow, cutting through the air with a piercing whistle.

Xiao Xiao did not dodge. Facing Luo Xiaoluan as she hurtled straight toward him, he took a step forward, coiled his left hand into a fist, and punched outward.

Though he was clearly a beat slower than Luo Xiaoluan, his punch arrived first. Just as her claws were about to rake across his face, Xiao Xiao's fist connected with her abdomen—a spot that, while soft, was countless times tougher than a human's. A massive force surged into her body; time and space seemed to stall for a single second before Luo Xiaoluan was sent flying backward at a speed even faster than her approach.

"Boom—!" Luo Xiaoluan crashed heavily into the ground, sliding back a long distance as shattered rocks and a cloud of dust filled the air.

......

Remaining in the posture of a single-handed punch, Xiao Xiao flexed his left hand, feeling a faint numbness.

A sticky liquid slid down his cheek.

He knew it was blood.

Although Luo Xiaoluan's claws had not managed to scratch his face, the razor-sharp edge of her intent had grazed his skin open.

There was a slight stinging sensation.

He knew that wounds inflicted by demons relied on his own body's self-healing capabilities, and recovering completely would take a fair amount of time.

Perhaps it was due to the lingering demonic qi contaminating the wound?