Crashing into Daylight

Warning: Slight mentions of gore.

 

Xu Yinian locked the door of the box from the inside, then overturned trunks and boxes to find the belt of a sleeping robe that he then used to tie up the Wolf demon well and good. He pressed a finger bursting with electricity against the Wolf demon’s temple. “If you dare scream, I’ll poke a hole through your skull.”  

After tasting the pain of his electric current, most of the Wolf demon’s body had gone numb; only his facial expression hadn’t changed. He bared his fangs, but was too scared to not lower his volume. “What are you trying to do? … Ouch! Do you know where this place is?”

Xu Yinian ignored him, using the Shared Heart incantation to contact Chen Ran instead. [Chen Ran? Are you done fighting?]

After not getting a response for a good while, just as Xu Yinian was suspecting that Chen Ran had been put down, there came a voice in his mind. [I’m done. How are things going for you?]  

[I’ve contained the idiot in this VIP lounge, maybe we could use him as a hostage.]

 

Chen Ran hummed in affirmation and was about to compliment Xu Yinian on doing a good job when the demons in the cages saw him fish out the keys from the bodies of the two dead guards. As they watched him release the humans from the birdcage, their hearts all itched to leave. “Demon slayer, could you let us out too?” 

Chen Ran turned his head around. Having entered his line of vision, the demons all clamored for his attention. “I swear I’m a good citizen! I’ve never violated the statues of peaceful coexistence and have nothing to do with the dumbass organizers!” 

“I was kidnapped while walking down the fuckin’ streets! I’m one hundred percent a victim!”

“Let me out, demon slayer! Us demons draw a clear line between gratitude and resentment. I’ll repay you if you let me out!”

[These demons want me to release them.] Chen Ran announced to Xu Yinian. [It looks like they were innocently implicated in this. The organizers locked them all into power-suppressing cages.]

 

[They are rather pitiful.] Xu Yinian adjusted his posture as he pondered over it. [If someone dares lock me in a cage, I’ll tear apart their ancestral grave.]   

 

Listening up till this point, Chen Ran had a sudden brainwave. [What if we let these folks out and get them to help us deal with the organizers?]

Xu Yinian was not opposed to this plan. [I think it’ll work! Can you talk it out with them?]

At the same time. 

In the auction hall on the first floor, as the auctioneer watched the final auction good enter the stage, he couldn’t help but flash a satisfied smile. Unlike all the previous goods that had graced the stage, this item was a priceless treasure that could truly astound and wow the crowd.

The auctioneer raised his voice. “As a rule, during every Demon Realm auction, an auction catalog is provided to all the guests that come. There is only one item that will not show up in the catalog – our grand finale. I’m sure everyone here has waited long enough. I guarantee that even the most experienced and knowledgeable guests here will not be able to pick out a single flaw after seeing what we’ve prepared for the finale.”    

As lights came beaming down from directly above the exhibition booth, an image of the auction good flashed on the screen. It was a youth with a slender frame. He stepped onto the stage with a smile. If you ignored that birdcage that grew on most of the youth’s face and that seemed to be attached to his skull, he was indeed extremely delicate and pretty.   

“This year’s finale is a Caged demon. If anyone here has never heard of such a title, it has a name that is even more well known.” 

“—Wishgranter.”

The entire hall descended into an uproar.

Like droplets of water that had dripped into an oiled pan, the crowd was now on the edge of their seats and sizzling with excitement. The demons who had been sitting indifferently in their VIP lounges lifted up the drapes and looked towards the youth in question.  

“As long as you provide enough humans as live sacrifices for the Wishgranter, he can grant you a wish, any wish! Whether it’s a hundred years of life you seek, the most beautiful lady, or the greatest of strength, he can grant it all! He can even ensure that the skull of your nemesis living on the other side of the world falls onto the ground instantly!” 

“To express our greatest sincerity, we’ve prepared fifty live humans for the buyer to use as live sacrifices. The flesh, blood, and soul of demon slayers are far more effective than regular humans; among the live sacrifices, there are thirty demon slayers. This has never happened in any past auctions!” 

“This is the current and only existing Wishgranter out there! I believe that everyone has heard that every time the Wishgranter fulfills a wish, the Wishgranter has to go into hibernation for a long time. If you miss out on this opportunity, who knows when the next time he’ll grant a wish will be.” With a wave of the auctioneer’s hand, numerous spotlights turned towards the Wishgranter. “Now then, for tonight’s finale, the starting price is—”

Boom!!

The scarlet red house curtain fell precipitously to the ground, entirely obstructing the spectacle on the stage. None of the guests could make head or tail of what had happened. “What happened?”, “What kinda games are they playing?”, “They’re complicating things for no reason1, is this auction happening or not?!”    

“Sorry sorry sorry!” An employee rushed towards the booth. “There’s something wrong with the house curtain, it’ll rise back up immediately!”

As he spoke, he tugged at the pulley to lift the house curtain back up. For some reason, this house curtain was rising especially slowly. The chatter from beneath the stage got louder and louder, and the employee, burning with anxiety, instinctively glanced in the direction of the stage. 

Something was wrong.

The employee stiffened, a look of sheer disbelief evident in his eyes. 

Based on the height that the house curtain had risen up till, it should technically have already exposed the feet of the auctioneer and the Wish-granter, but the stage was empty.

In a corner of the auction hall, a Marionette2 stood up from the sitting area, then walked unhurriedly towards the exit. 

After exiting the auction hall, the Marionette’s ease immediately vanished as he started running for his life. By leaning low and close to the ground, his speed was astonishing. A figure tailed him closely from behind, eventually obstructing the path in front of him.   

He was here.

Filled with immense hatred and fear, the pupils of the Marionette’s eyes precipitously constricted.   

“I thought I’d already killed off all of the Marionettes, imagine my surprise to discover that I missed one.”

The Marionette halted his step, casting a frigid look of resentment towards his pursuer. They had both left the auction hall when the employees had been busy adjusting the house curtain; the Marionette was gasping for air due to his frantic attempt to escape, yet the other party’s breathing was calm and steady. Under the moonlight, his face was youthful and handsome, but his arrival was akin to that of an evil spirit straight from hell.  

Yu Huai was expressionless as he asked lightly, “Where is the Wishgranter?” 

“Dead.” The Marionette announced frostily. “But not to worry, you’ll meet him very soon!”

Following the Marionette’s sinister words, countless puppets that had long been lying in wait emerged from the dim shadows. On both sides of the pavement, treetops, and rooftops… there were puppets concealed everywhere!  

The moment they received the command, over a thousand puppets flung hell for leather towards Yu Huai.   

He retched.

The Marionette puked out a mouthful of fresh blood, yet his smile only grew wider. 

The dense crowd of puppet strings was attached to his heart. The number of puppets that a single Marionette could manipulate at any time was limited; if they wanted to control hundreds or even thousands of puppets, the Marionette could only use their heart as the medium, and pay the price of a shortened lifespan. In order to get a shot at taking out Yu Huai, he was even willing to put his life on the line!

Countless puppets assaulted Yu Huai in an endless tide. Not even a powerful demon would be able to hold back these many targets at once. The Marionette stared fixedly, anticipating the moment when Yu Huai would be too preoccupied.

The moment when he would kill him!

The Marionette had the entirety of his attention fixed on the Ghost who was caught in the formation of puppets when there came a sudden stabbing pain at the side of his neck. 

A puppet string had inconspicuously winded up and made its way into his neck. With a tug and pull of that string, the Marionette had lost all physical autonomy, falling hard on his knees. His mind blanked for a few seconds, only realizing belatedly that his control over the puppets had been ripped from him. He’d been taken control of instead.  

As the Marionette fell to his knees, the puppet strings attached to his heart also followed suit and were tugged down. The thousands of puppets that had previously been attacking Yu Huai all halted their movements, kneeling down in an organized fashion in front of Yu Huai. This sight was indescribably comedic.  

“If you won’t talk while standing, then kneel.”

Yu Huai plucked at the puppet strings in his hand, and the Marionette who was now under his control rolled and crawled before him.

The Marionette stared incredulously at the thin string in Yu Huai’s hand. “How could you… How could it be…?!”

Not only was Yu Huai controlling him, but he was also simultaneously controlling hundreds of puppets. To control all of these puppets, the Marionette had had to sacrifice the blood that pumped from his heart, yet all Yu Huai had to do was move his fingers. Confronted with the disparity in strength between him and Yu Huai, the Marionette’s voice trembled unconsciously.  

There was a soul the size of a palm resting on Yu Huai’s shoulder. The snow white and perfectly round soul looked unbelievably pleased with itself, its chubby fingers connected to an uncountable number of puppet strings. It resembled a miniature Marionette. 

On seeing that soul, the eyes of the Marionette turned bloodshot. He proclaimed hatefully, “Your clan is filled with monsters. An abnormal power like this… You all deserved to die!”

The word ‘ghost’ in ‘Ghost race’ stood for the exorcism of ghosts.

The demons and humans that were slaughtered by any member of the Ghost race could be utilized by the Ghost who had killed them. The Ghosts could summon the soul of the deceased and borrow on their powers. In other words, the more demons and demon slayers a Ghost killed, the more variety of powers that Ghost would possess. Naturally, they would also become more powerful. 

For the past few years, a large part of the reason why the two realms were scornful towards Yu Huai was due to the fact that there were a large number of different demon races gathered at the Burial Mounds, including races that were not even recorded or archived by the Demon Slayer Bureau. God knows how many demon races Yu Huai had taken out while in the Burial Grounds and how many abilities he had amassed. 

Yu Huai repeated his question. “Where is the Wishgranter?”

“Then I’d also like to ask you a question. You annihilated my entire clan, do you still remember their faces?” The Marionette laughed sardonically. “Oh, I forgot. You even managed to walk out of the Burial Grounds alive, why would you remember a mere clan of demons that you massacred?”

“You took away the Wishgranter because of this?” The temperature in Yu Huai’s voice abruptly dropped several degrees. He tugged that puppet string in his hand, and the skull of the Marionette slammed heavily onto the ground with a thud, then was tugged up again. This act of prostration was repeated over and over.  

This was the first time that the Marionette, who was accustomed to controlling others, had a taste of his own medicine. His eyes were bloodshot and the fresh blood pouring from his forehead blurred his vision, yet all of this was not enough to obscure the resentment in his eyes. “… Just kill me already!” 

“There are very few people who know I’m looking for the Wishgranter. Since you have the guts to use him to lure me out, death won’t come so easy.” Looming above, Yu Huai stared at the bloodstained face of the Marionette. “Who sent you?”

It was at this moment that the Marionette finally realized what the problem was. He endured the severe pain, gritting his teeth without uttering a single word. 

With a clink, a sharp boning knife landed in front of him.

While in the midst of wondering what Yu Huai was planning to do, he heard the latter drawl. “After you’ve personally peeled every inch of your skin and flesh, you’ll probably be willing to tell the truth.”

The Marionette felt a chill run down his spine.

To his dismay, he realized that he had picked up the boning knife, and the sharp edge of the knife was pressed against his arm. Try as he might to resist, his actions were no longer his own. He could only succumb to the pull of the puppet strings and drive the knife into his arm. Piece after piece of skin and flesh were carved off by his own hand, his entire arm dripping with blood.   

Faced with such gruesome punishment, even the most reluctant cave. The Marionette had no choice but to grovel and beg for mercy.  

“… I’ll talk, I’ll talk! Stop! Please, stop! I’ve never seen my employer! He contacted me using the message array! Around three months ago, a short while after you annihilated my clan, my employer contacted me on his own. He said that you were back for revenge; it didn’t matter if I managed to stay hidden once, you’d find me eventually! As long as I managed to abduct the Wishgranter during the auction, he would conceal my identity. I controlled the auctioneer, making him bring the Wishgranter to—”

The Marionette’s voice abruptly dropped off as he spurted out a large mouthful of blood. 

Right after, his eyes, ears, and nose all started to bleed, his blood tinted purplish-red from poison pouring out from the orifices of his body. The Marionette’s eyes rolled back into his head, yet the expression that remained frozen on his face was fearful and beseeching. It was apparent that he himself hadn’t expected there to be poison hidden within his body.    

Yu Huai immediately summoned the soul of an Ice Psionic in an attempt to freeze the Marionette’s blood, but it was already too late. It was impossible to stop the poison from spreading. 

Before even thirty seconds had passed, the Marionette died before him. 

Realizing that this Marionette may have already been poisoned before carrying out his mission, Yu Huai called back the soul. He then turned around and hurried back to the auction hall.  

–

[It’s been settled. These demons have been holding back their resentment for ages. As long as I let them out, they’re all very happy to help us deal with the organizers.] Chen Ran relayed the message while letting the demons out. [No signs of Su Tang or Gu Xiaodong backstage. Did you see them?]

 

[I also… Wait!] Xu Yinian rushed towards the glass window. 

 

The lights illuminating the auction hall on the first floor were resplendent and dazzling. Along with the clinking sounds of handcuffs, two attendants escorted a person out from the shadows. Seeing the silhouette of the person that was being shoved on stage, Xu Yinian gasped. [I see Su Tang!] 

Under the eyes of the audience, the Wishgranter had vanished. In order to placate the guests, the organizers had no choice but to bring out new auction goods at the last minute. The auctioneer who had returned to his position on stage gave an introduction in a clear and loud voice, trying his best to recapture the attention of the guests. “In the many years that the Demon Realm auction has been taking place, treasures of all kinds have graced our stage, but what is up next is an item that has never appeared in the auction before – a young and outstanding demon slayer!”     

There was endless chatter going on among the seated guests. From the shadows, Yu Huai headed up to the second floor. Upon hearing this, he looked towards the stage.  

“This is the very first time we’re auctioning off demon slayers! After taking into careful consideration ability, age, and appearance, we have meticulously selected this rare object! To date, she has killed multiple demons and has completed hundreds of demon slayer missions! What’s more, she possesses the elusive healing ability. Not only is she able to heal others, but she can also heal herself. As long as she has a single breath left in her, she’s your eternal blood bag, and can be used anytime…”

The person who was pushed on stage was slim and beautiful, with long hair hiding a thin and frail frame.   

It was a girl.

Yu Huai looked away with disinterest. Nan Zhi, who had been waiting for a while, could smell the faintly discernible scent of blood on him. In a low voice, she reported, “After you left, there were no traces of the Wishgranter from either of the other entrances. The organizers did not do anything suspicious either.”

“These bastards…” Yu Huai gripped the railings, the veins on the back of his hand gradually protruding. The railing had been cleanly snapped into two with a “crunch”. His eyes filled with contempt. “They’re pretty good at cleaning up after themselves.” 　　

As bids began to flow in, the girl on stage grew pale, her eyes exposing fear and dread. The demons were eyeing her figure greedily. The more timid and helpless she grew, the higher the bid prices rose. It was as though they couldn’t wait to tear her apart right there and then.

“By the way, Young Master Xu might also be underground.”

Yu Huai turned his head, signaling for her to continue. 

“He and his schoolmate have taken two of the demons working for the auction hostage. Who knows what bad they’re up to right now?” Nan Zhi couldn’t help but smile.

After a long while, Yu Huai laughed softly. “He’s pretty good at making trouble.”

-　　

As Xu Yinian listened to the auctioneer’s introduction, his fingers pressed firmly against the glass. [Chen Ran, hurry up. Su Tang is being auctioned off by them!]

Chen Ran cursed out loud, but quickly regained his calm. [Keep watch on the situation. I’ll bring these demons from backstage over right away.] 

Xu Yinian was about to continue but was abruptly cut off by the restrained Wolf demon. “You know that girl on stage? If you want to save her, you’d better do it fast.” 

Xu Yinian turned around. The Wolf demon was drowning in schadenfreude. “Based on their usual way of doing things, she’s going to be ‘inspected’ soon.” 

Before he could clarify what ‘inspected’ meant, the auctioneer’s voice resounded across the auction hall. The well-dressed guests were all shouting their bids. As the bid price soared, a couple of demons found it unbelievably outrageous. “This is just a good-looking human girl, she’s nothing to write home about!”

“Didn’t you hear? She has healing abilities! As long as you’re careful not to kill her, you can eat her flesh and drink her blood forever!”

“It’s such a waste to eat her flesh. She’s so pretty, what’s wrong with buying her back to fuck?”

“—Five and a half million!” The auctioneer announced the bid price jovially. “Five and a half million going once, five and a half million going twice… Six million! A guest from section D has made a bid of six million!”

The girl on stage was a bundle of nerves. As she listened to the bid price increase, she bit down hard on her lip, finally breaking down in tears. 

Su Tang’s sobbing led the auctioneer to turn around. He let loose a laugh. “There seems to be a little situation with our auction good. Although this isn’t by any means ugly, it’s not too appropriate to be weeping and wailing on stage.” 

“That’s right! Make her smile!”

“What’s with her crying face? It’s ruining my appetite!”

“Come on, smile for us.” The auctioneer patiently coaxed. “All the guests want to see how you look happy.”

Su Tang’s face was drained of blood as she backed away while shaking her head. Upon noticing this, the two attendants standing guard by the side stepped forward. In the instant that both her wrists were caught, she couldn’t help but let out a piercing scream—

Her fear had further fueled the excitement of the guests by the foot of the stage. There came a shrill voice from among the demons. “What if she’s just a useless thing to look at?! Let me see her powers!”

There was an outburst of voices echoing his sentiment. “Inspection! Inspection!”

“That’s right! Who knows if she’s any good?”

“Bring a knife up! Cut her up once or twice so we can see!”

The noisy shouting within the auction hall obscured the sounds of movement occurring outside, and the guards stationed at the four entrances silently collapsed to the ground. Chen Ran, along with a dozen or so demons from backstage, was pressed against one of the main entrances. At the other remaining entrances, the demons who had been let out by Chen Ran were also holding their breaths and waiting with rapt attention for his signal. 

“Bastard…!” Hearing the shouting and screaming coming from inside, Chen Ran cursed, his eyes rimmed with red. A demon standing by the side tapped him on the shoulder. “Yo, still looking? When do we take action?” 

“A while more.” Chen Ran raised his head, looking towards the box on the second floor. [Xu Yinian?]

The attendant on stage grabbed Su Tang’s chin, then used a knife and slashed across her cheek. Fresh blood poured without end, but the wound was quick to heal. Panicking, Xu Yinian turned around and shouted an order at the Wolf demon. “Buy her for me.”

The Wolf demon stared at him incredulously. “Do you know how expensive you were? I don’t have the money to buy another one.”

Xu Yinian was equally incredulous. “What are you doing here if you don’t have money????”

With the attendant about to make another cut, the Wolf demon was happily watching the show. “What’s the use in wasting time here with me? If you don’t save her now, it’s not just her face that’s going to be slashed.”

Xu Yinian had been about to reply Chen Ran, but paused upon hearing this to stare fixedly at him. Frightened by his stare, the Wolf Demon instinctively snapped back. “What are you looking at? I’m telling the truth.”  

Xu Yinian appeared to be lost in thought, smiling for the very first time since entering this box. “Even if you don’t have any money… if you’re sitting here, your status must be pretty special, huh?”

The Wolf demon’s eyelid twitched, an ominous feeling running through him. “You… What do you want?”  

Xu Yinian reached for the fruit knife on the table, then hauled up the Wolf demon who was trussed up tightly. The ties winded around his neck, then ran behind his back, where both his arms were secured3. The Wolf demon had a sudden realization regarding what was to come and his face paled. “No… Wait, you can’t be thinking—”  

Xu Yinian aggressively tossed the Wolf demon into the one-way glass window of the box. At the same time, he called out to Chen Ran in his mind. [Now.]

The sharp tip of the knife brimmed with electricity, grazing the temples of the Wolf demon to stab into the glass. Web-like cracks spread outwards expeditiously from the epicenter. Under the effect of the electric current, the entire sheet of glass loudly cracked and blasted into pieces, sending an uncountable number of glass shards flying into the crowd like torrential rain.    

At the same time, the flame that Chen Ran had released abruptly exploded in mid-air. Seeing the signal, the demons who had been lying in wait for a long time immediately knocked down the door leading to the main entrance of the auction hall. Like wild horses that refused to be bridled, they stormed towards the patrol squad that could not react in time.  

“Hey! The one with the knife on stage,” the voice of a boy attracted the attention of everyone in attendance. He stepped onto the wall of the boxes on the second floor, hauling along the Wolf demon who was trembling with fear. He pressed a knife beaming with an electric current against the latter’s face. “Look carefully. This here is your esteemed guest. If you dare touch her again, I’ll pay it back twice fold on his body.” 

The entire hall went silent for a moment before waves of shouts erupted right after. The auctioneer and attendants on stage had gone pale from fright, the blood-tainted dagger falling onto the ground with a thud. Other than those who were currently wrangling the demons, the remaining petrol squad members did not dare to act rashly, albeit they immediately sealed the exits. 

During this moment of imminent peril, a guest seated below suddenly pointed towards Xu Yinian. That demon appeared to be entirely unruffled by what was currently happening around him, his expression deranged as he shouted. “I want this one! I’ll bid six million! No, seven million! Get him!”

Even though the atmosphere was overflowing with a deadly aura, it was still difficult for everyone to take their eyes off Xu Yinian. Compared to the graceful but frail Su Tang, his beauty was much sharper and more dangerous, like that of peach blossoms in full bloom on a spring day, bright and flamboyant.  

Xu Yinian’s eyes narrowed as he sent a vicious glare towards the guest who had placed a bid. 

The guests by the side appeared to have been struck by some sort of blight, instead clapping their hands and yelling in excitement. “Seven and a half million! Get him!”

As though infected by this unbridled frenzy, consecutive bids came one after the other, echoing from all corners.

“Eight million! I want him alive! Don’t harm his face!

“Nine million! I don’t care if his limbs are broken! Make sure he doesn’t flee!”

“Ten million! Don’t bother with that unlucky fool in his hands!”

Even though Xu Yinian had prepared himself for an unforeseen circumstance, he couldn’t have imagined that these crazies would place a target on him. The Wolf demon noticed that Xu Yinian had been caught unaware. Despite being strangled with his life hanging by a thread, the Wolf demon was unexpectedly undaunted. “Didn’t I mention this before? In the eyes of demons, you’re far more appealing than that girl on stage.”

Author’s notes:

The great beauty Xiao Nian

 

故弄玄虚: purposely making a mystery of simple things.A demon race. Abilities self-explanatory.五花大绑: See here for visual reference.