Reborn as a succubus - Chapter 39

Xiaoyao Mountain wasn’t just a single mountain — it had towns, and facilities as complete as those in a modern city. When Jin Lingzi used to follow Xi Che, he had learned many things from him, especially how to live comfortably and how to build a fully equipped nation… so it was only natural that Xiaoyao Mountain turned out like this.

Xi Che easily found a tavern nearby and walked in.

“Boss, bring me a bottle of Peach Blossom Clear Wine, a jug of Ten-Thousand-Calamities Buddha Wine, a jar of Matured Barley, another of Golden Honey… and a plate of peanuts.”

Although his reason told him he shouldn’t be here, he couldn’t help it — his heart hurt so much he just wanted to shut down. Worried that his emotions might stay chaotic for too long, Xi Che finally decided to relax with a few drinks before getting back to business.

Wine was a good thing — especially when one was heartbroken; it was the best kind of medicine.

This tavern had a very modern look — in fact, it looked more like a bar, but not the small, stingy kind. Xi Che didn’t like bars; the drinks there came by the glass instead of the jar, and one couldn’t drink freely.

How could you get drunk like that?

The wine was served quickly. Unfortunately, there was no one to drink with him. The White Tiger was still frozen in ice, Chu Yan had been driven away by his own hand… who else did he have?

Xi Che first picked up the smallest bottle — the Peach Blossom Clear Wine — took a sip, found it too mild, then tilted his head back and drank more than half the bottle in one go.

That felt good.

From his robe he pulled out the little brocade qilin. The tiny creature was still squeaking “mia-mia” nonstop, so Xi Che handed it a peanut.

“Stupid thing. When will you ever grow up a bit? If you could drink with me, that’d be something.”

 Asa, when did you fall so low?

The moment he finished talking to himself, Xi Che seemed to hear that furious voice again echoing in his mind. His chest tightened — as if someone had gripped his heart and twisted it, sour and painful. To block it out, he grabbed the bottle of Peach Blossom Clear and gulped down the rest.

He drank as if it were medicine — fast, desperate, not caring how strong it was.

As long as he couldn’t hear Chu Yan’s voice again, it was enough to save him.

He kept drinking like that until the alcohol took over, blurring his sight. Sprawled over the table, he reached for the golden bottle of Ten-Thousand-Calamities Buddha Wine and poured it slowly into a small cup.

With a face like that, and drinking like this, he easily drew attention. By the time he finished the Peach Blossom Clear, he had already attracted several unsavory gazes.

Soon, three or four large men walked out from a corner of the tavern and came over to his table.

“Hey, new face. Never seen you around before. Mind if we sit here?”

Xi Che didn’t answer, nor did he even look at them — he just kept drinking.

The man, ignored, grew angry. He reached out to grab him by the collar.

“I’m talking to you! Are you deaf?”

Xi Che finally reacted — leaning aside to avoid his hand, then grabbing the empty wine bottle and smashing it over the man’s head.

With a sharp crash, the tavern went dead silent. Blood poured from the man’s scalp, but Xi Che didn’t even glance at him. He picked up the golden jug and drank straight from it.

Afterward, he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, one hand holding the broken bottle, the other still clutching the wine jug, laughing with reckless abandon.

How strange, he thought — this body of his really did attract trouble, just for being beautiful.

No wonder Chu Yan could say such words without hesitation. Though Xi Che had led him into that misunderstanding, maybe he really did think that way.

Xi Che leaned against the tavern wall, taking large gulps of the Buddha Wine, not caring that chaos had erupted all around him. He was the very center of the disturbance, but didn’t even realize it.

To everyone else, he looked like a stunning yet dangerous sight — a man too beautiful and too wild, like a jar of intoxicating, burning liquor.

In the demon realm, taverns were never safe places. Brawls broke out daily, or every other day at best. The owner, used to such scenes, immediately sent people to intervene. The demons Xi Che had fought were stopped; someone told them that anything outside the tavern was fair game, but if they wanted to fight, they had to take it outside.

Xi Che could barely make out what they were saying — the alcohol was hitting hard — he simply finished the jug of Ten-Thousand-Calamities and hiccuped.

Swaying, he staggered over to grab the two jars of wine he had bought, and mumbled as he walked out,

“I paid for these… I’m taking them with me…”

Several demons followed him outside, and the moment they were out the door, they grabbed him by both arms and dragged him down a dark alley, finally throwing him onto the ground.

Xi Che, still clutching his wine jars, just sat there staring at them. Then he bit off the seal of one jar with his teeth, pulled it open, and began chugging, ignoring them completely.

The honey-scented wine ran down his throat and along his neck, soaking his chest. His skin, pale as snow, glowed under the dim light, dangerously alluring.

The demons who’d meant to beat him suddenly changed their minds. They shoved him onto a platform nearby, two of them pinning him down while the one whose head had been smashed reached out and tore his clothes apart.

“Little slut…”

After parting with Xi Che, Chu Yan hadn’t returned to the Nether realm.

He had been truly enraged by Xi Che’s words, but the anger didn’t last long. Once he calmed down, regret took over — he knew how guilty Asa already felt about the divine-demon war. For him to say that… it must have hurt deeply.

Chu Yan sat alone in the woods for a long time. Only when night fell did he finally stand up and decide to go find him.

No matter what Xi Che truly thought, even if everything he’d said was from the heart — Chu Yan couldn’t just walk away.

But he couldn’t show up as himself. Asa didn’t want to see him…

So he changed back into the form of Chu Qi, the one Xi Che was familiar with. It would make it easier to stay by his side with an excuse.

Asking around led him to the tavern, and the moment he stepped inside, his eyes fell on a small brocade qilin sitting on the counter — surrounded by tall demons who poked and teased it.

The tiny creature trembled in fear, squeaking miserably while they laughed and prodded it like some rare toy.

At that instant, he felt his blood run cold. To him, it wasn’t the qilin he was seeing — it was Xi Che.

Wasn’t this exactly what he had done — leaving Asa alone among demons?

He rushed forward, scooped up the qilin, and glared at the bartender.

“Where’s its master?”

Everyone froze at his sudden appearance.

“What? Master? Who are you? Are you here to make trouble?”

Before anyone could react further, the air in the tavern seemed to freeze. The boy’s eyes turned pale glass-blue, his short black hair lifting though there was no wind. His expression was cold — divine, like a statue in a temple.

Though his lips didn’t move, a voice echoed directly in everyone’s minds:

“I’ll ask one more time. Where is the master of this qilin?”

Someone finally stammered out the truth — that Xi Che had left drunk, escorted by three demons.

That answer made Chu Yan’s mind spin with dark thoughts. Could it be that Xi Che truly was as he’d described himself? That he would go off with strangers so easily…?

But even if it was true, he couldn’t abandon him.

Frustrated and heartsick, Chu Yan searched every alley around the tavern until he finally caught the stench of blood. There, in the dim light, he saw a figure slumped on a platform — legs dangling, motionless.

Even from a distance, Chu Yan recognized him. It was Xi Che.

He froze, terrified to move closer — terrified it really was him. How could this have happened in such a short time?

Then the body stirred. Xi Che groaned, pushed himself upright, and reached for a nearby jar, tilting it to his lips. Clear liquid poured down as he drank greedily.

Relief washed over Chu Yan. Then he noticed the corpses — three mutilated demons lying at Xi Che’s feet, blood pooling beneath him. And Xi Che, sitting among them, drinking.

It was a gruesome sight, yet eerily beautiful.

So the rumors were true, Chu Yan thought numbly — that the Demon King Asa drank his wine mixed with blood.

As he came closer, he saw how Xi Che looked now — utterly drunk, his robe half-open, chest and stomach bare, his skin glistening with spilled wine. His eyes were hazy and unfocused, a drunken mess.

“Stop drinking. What are you doing?”

Chu Yan grabbed the jar from his hand and slammed it down beside them. Xi Che blinked up at him, then laughed lazily, raising a finger at him.

“Stick.”

Chu Yan reacted instantly, dodging aside — a spell shot past his face and blew apart the wall behind him.

A killing curse, no hesitation. The three corpses nearby must’ve been hit the same way.

Chu Yan let out a breath of relief. He had been wrong — Xi Che wasn’t weak like that brocade qilin. He could protect himself.

Good. Someone so beautiful should be dangerous — only then could Chu Yan rest easy.

He stopped trying to take the wine away and instead lifted Xi Che off the platform to carry him out. Xi Che felt the movement and struggled furiously, trying to wriggle free.

“Let me go! Don’t touch me — do you want to die?”

Even drunk, he flung spells at Chu Yan, who dodged them all until Xi Che finally exhausted his strength.

Holding him tightly, Chu Yan soothed softly,

“Asa, be good. You’ll fall if you keep moving.”

Xi Che surprisingly went quiet. Eyes closed, he didn’t even realize who was carrying him. For a long while, he said nothing. Chu Yan thought he’d fallen asleep — until Xi Che mumbled under his breath:

“Liar…”

Chu Yan frowned and looked down at him, just as Xi Che turned his head, pressing his face into Chu Yan’s chest as if to hide.

“Liar… he won’t care about me anymore…”

Chu Yan’s heart twisted painfully. Without thinking, he held him tighter.

“…I’ll never stop caring for you.”