Chapter Fifty-Four: I Am Both Demon and Angel!

Falling—still falling. Amidst the billowing of his robes, Byakuya gradually lost consciousness, though a smile still lingered on his lips...

A torrent of moonlight pierced through heaven and earth, an immense pillar of light enveloped Muyou, echoing the brilliant full moon above. Endless rivers of starlight adorned the scene, and as the moonlight surged, three Milky Ways formed, severing the space and hanging suspended in the sky.

Crackling sounds filled the air as the Milky Ways shattered, transforming into countless crystal shards. Each fragment reflected a different image of the world—a vision of Muyou plunging headlong into the sea of stars and moon, fusing with it entirely, and then, along with the frozen night sky, descending steadily toward the earth.

How beautiful...

The condemned souls below stared in awe. In their lifetimes, they had never witnessed such a sight—it was as if a portion of the heavens had been sliced away and bestowed upon the mortal realm.

And Byakuya, like a shooting star, burned out his final light and heat, falling to the earth.

“Father, that wanderer saved Brother Muyou, but falling like this, he’s as good as dead!” Xuan Yao, having seen the face of the falling figure, was the first to cry out.

Even as Xuan Yao spoke, An Ruxiang sprang into action. Hu Lei, seeing this, immediately crouched down, bracing his hands as he had done before. With his support, An Ruxiang launched herself skyward, soaring straight toward Byakuya. She collided with him midair, pushing him hard to slow his descent, sacrificing her own speed to cushion him as she crashed back to the ground.

“I’m coming too!” Xuan Yao shouted, beginning to run.

“Don’t be reckless! I’ve got this. You’ve just overtaxed yourself, you haven’t recovered—”

“We can’t worry about that now. We can’t just watch someone die!”

Without hesitation, Xuan Yao leapt into the air as well, but in her haste, she miscalculated and missed Byakuya’s body. Helpless, she managed to grab hold of him and toss him upward at an angle.

The spot Hu Lei had chosen to catch Byakuya was instantly thrown off.

“My silly girl, where are you throwing him?!” Hu Lei dashed desperately as Byakuya was now less than twenty meters from the ground.

“Sorry, I threw him off course...” Xuan Yao, quick-eyed and deft, managed to grab a tree branch at the last moment, muttering ruefully.

There was no time for Hu Lei to reply. Byakuya’s rapidly enlarging form filled his vision as he dove forward, flattening himself on the ground. Byakuya crashed down onto him and lost consciousness.

“How is he?”

He Jing, Xu Chen, and the others hurried over, surrounding Byakuya. Hu Lei, dazed from the impact, hadn’t even spoken when suddenly a radiant light bloomed above. Everyone looked up, and upon seeing what it was, scattered in fright.

A vast swath of the night sky descended gently to earth. Contrary to their fears, it brought no devastation, not even a sound as it landed. When Muyou’s motionless body touched down safely, the entire dazzling expanse shattered into infinite motes of light, scattering everywhere.

Muyou remained in a tense posture, eyes tightly shut, head tilted back toward the sky, unmoving.

Nerves stretched taut, hundreds of eyes fixed on Muyou, desperate to see if he had regained his senses.

Slowly, Muyou lowered his head. Under the watchful, suspicious eyes, he opened his eyes at last—his left eye was awash in blood-red light, his right eye empty and unfocused.

“Heh... Forgive me, but I’ve won.”

Tears streaked ‘Muyou’s face, but a murderous smile now twisted his lips.

A chill swept through the crowd—despair gripped their hearts.

It’s over. We’re all dead this time!

“I hadn’t expected a human’s spirit to be so formidable. Is this the power of human conviction, of bonds? Very well. As a reward, I’ll slaughter everyone ever connected to Muyou, severing his hope completely!”

“You won’t succeed!”

“In your dreams!”

Two fierce shouts rang out from above. Xuan Yao and An Ruxiang dropped from the sky, each seizing one of ‘Muyou’s arms and pinning him to the ground, their proud forms pressed unreservedly against his hands, holding him immobile.

“I still have wings, you know...” ‘Muyou’ made no move to resist. Calmly, he raised his wings, ready to fling them off.

“I told you, you won’t succeed!” An Ruxiang’s blade flashed, a cold emerald light glinting in her eyes. She stabbed fiercely at the crystallized wing, pinning it to the earth.

“Hmph, mere human strength against my blood wings? Foolishness.”

“The fool is you!” Xuan Yao retorted, biting into ‘Muyou’s arm and thrusting her bloodied tongue into the wound.

“That’s right, you demon! What are your companions to you?” For the first time, a startling fury flared in An Ruxiang’s usually serene autumn eyes. Her pupils blazed with green light, locking onto Muyou’s wing, as an intoxicating fragrance erupted from her, spreading rapidly.

“This scent...” Xuan Yao’s eyes brightened—it was similar to her own power.

A piercing cry echoed. For almost everyone there, it was their first time seeing An Ruxiang enraged. Under her dagger, the crystalline feathers began to crack, then shattered. The blade pierced through the wing and buried itself deep in the earth.

“What?!” ‘Muyou’ had not expected such strength from this woman—now his upper body was completely immobilized!

“We’re not done yet!” Hu Lei slammed down onto ‘Muyou’, driving his limbs into the ground, pinning his lower body beyond hope of escape.

“You insects... Get off me!” ‘Muyou’ struggled, blood-red light surging from his body. Flames burst into being before the crowd, but before they could rage, a wave of water doused them. He Jing and Xu Chen clasped the massive blood wings, the former conjuring water from the air, the latter freezing it into solid ice, until ‘Muyou’ was sealed in a block of ice.

“Heh... Hahaha...” Though bound by five people, ‘Muyou’ still laughed wildly. But their strength was waning, the hold threatening to break.

“You demon, let our leader go!”

Footsteps thundered closer. All the condemned souls left on the thirteenth floor rushed over, piling onto ‘Muyou’.

“Boss Lei, we’ll help you!”

“Boss Xiang, we’re here too!”

Inspired by the thirteenth floor’s reckless bravery, the condemned souls from the twelfth and first floors surged forward. No matter how terrifying this monster was, their brotherhood stacked would crush him!

One convict tried to feign help by piling onto An Ruxiang, but she saw through him instantly and, under her murderous glare, he scurried up the human mountain. In moments, ‘Muyou’ was buried beneath a massive mound of bodies.

The gathering of three entire floors was no small matter. News spread rapidly, especially after two earth-shattering explosions and the disappearance of the wanderer. The condemned from other floors began to converge on the blast’s epicenter, uncertain and curious.

“So this is the bond you speak of? The moment you sense my weakness, you gang up and bully with numbers? Pathetic insects, abject to the last!”

Countless flames erupted from the gaps in the crowd, blasting them apart. Prisoners were flung in every direction—above, below, all around—a rain of bodies scattered across the land.

“I’ll show you the absolute terror of true power, sever your so-called bonds, and force you to abandon hope. Only then will you know true despair!”

With that, ‘Muyou’ removed his demon mask and donned the mask of an angel. Hands stained with blood from his chest, he spread his arms wide, aiming at everyone around him—

“I am both demon and angel. Now, as the angel descends, you little devils—prepare to die!”