Bai Qiao's inner demon saw Ye Ling's sword stopped just above its forehead, a hair's breadth from striking, and breathed a sigh of relief, its entire body going limp.
In that very moment, it had truly believed Ye Ling would cleave it in two!
Ye Ling dispelled the demonic sword in his hand and asked Bai Qiao's inner demon, "Do you know how you came to be?"
Hearing Ye Ling's question, Bai Qiao's inner demon did not answer directly. Instead, it whined pitifully, "Master... are you truly so unchivalrous? I am also Bai Qiao, why must you treat me like this? It's unfair!"
Ye Ling said coldly, "I do not consider you my disciple. I am keeping you here now, not for you to act spoiled."
"If you cannot provide me with useful information, then I will personally slay you to eliminate future trouble."
"Ruthless..."
Bai Qiao's inner demon held no hope for Ye Ling. It muttered, then got up, rubbing its sore backside. It looked at Ye Ling with a resentful expression and said, "Master, as you know, I experienced all the hardships of the human world since childhood. After entering university, I suffered a great deal of bullying. With these experiences, my physical body appears normal on the surface, but in reality, my heart has become twisted into a demon."
"My birth is actually what my physical body desired. In other words, I am the true Bai Qiao, and the one lying on the ground is merely a hypocritical personality that she fabricated to conform to the world."
"Therefore, Master, even if you kill me, as long as the physical body experiences a minor setback, that hypocritical personality will not be able to hold on, and a new inner demon will inevitably appear. And that new inner demon will likely be even more terrifying than me."
Upon hearing Bai Qiao's inner demon's words, Ye Ling lowered his eyelids, realizing that Bai Qiao's inner demon was different from the inner demons that cultivators at the Saint realm needed to sever.
The inner demons born in the Saint realm were tribulations on the path of cultivation, similar to heavenly tribulations. If one could overcome this hurdle, they would ascend to a higher level; if not, they would perish.
Inner demons on the path of cultivation were byproducts of cultivators gaining immense power, and every cultivator would experience them.
However, Bai Qiao's inner demon was actively cultivated by herself, unrelated to the strength of her power.
It was precisely because Bai Qiao's inner demon was not a tribulation on the path of cultivation that even if Bai Qiao's inner demon were slain, Bai Qiao herself would gain no benefit. In fact, the inner demon would likely return in the future.
After all, that inner demon was Bai Qiao's very self!
Moreover, Bai Qiao's inner demon originally had no physical form. Its solidification was entirely due to absorbing Ye Ling's power, sufficient to manifest a physical entity.
Under these circumstances, Bai Qiao's inner demon, having gained a physical form, would not increase its power even if it devoured the physical body, merely switching bodies.
Ye Ling understood that killing Bai Qiao's inner demon was meaningless, and Bai Qiao's inner demon had no motivation to devour Bai Qiao's physical body.
With this realization, Ye Ling's killing intent gradually subsided.
Bai Qiao's inner demon noticed the pressure Ye Ling exerted on it gradually receding. A smile reappeared on its face, and it said to Ye Ling, "Master, you finally understand! I already have a physical form and will not harm my physical body at all. Killing me would only revert the physical body back to its original state."
Ye Ling looked at Bai Qiao's inner demon's cheerful demeanor and replied, "Even if I don't kill you, you have now become an independent entity. I have no intention of being your master."
Seeing Ye Ling refuse again, Bai Qiao's inner demon was not discouraged. It continued to whine pitifully, "Master, there are so many bad people outside who have designs on me. Can you truly bear to drive me out and let those bad people capture me?"
"Disciple is your abandoned disciple, Master doesn't care if disciple dies, but if disciple truly dies, a new inner demon will be born in the physical body. Master, you dote on her, and then you'll have to busy yourself for three days and three nights..."
Hearing Bai Qiao's inner demon's words, Ye Ling sighed slightly and asked, "How can you be so glib-tongued?"
Indeed, the Shadow Hall was clearly targeting Bai Qiao's inner demon. If he let Bai Qiao's inner demon go, it would be equivalent to the Shadow Hall gaining an advantage for free.
He protected Bai Qiao because he was entrusted to do so, and to repay a favor.
Now, protecting Bai Qiao's inner demon was to thwart the Shadow Hall.
As a sworn enemy of the Shadow Hall, Ye Ling could not stand by and watch them gain such an easy advantage.
Seeing Ye Ling's attitude soften, Bai Qiao's inner demon's face lit up with joy. It immediately said, "Does this mean Master is willing to take me in?"
Ye Ling said, "However, let me be clear: if you harm that girl Bai Qiao in any way, you will not live another second in this world!"
Bai Qiao's inner demon was accustomed to Ye Ling's attitude and did not feel hurt at all. It smiled at Ye Ling and said, "Don't worry, Master! She is my physical body after all, and we are still connected. Killing her would bring me no benefit and would only earn Master's displeasure."
"Master, you are my greatest reliance in this world. I will not do anything foolish!"
Ye Ling looked at Bai Qiao's inner demon before him, which looked exactly like Bai Qiao but had a completely opposite personality and demeanor. He felt a bit of a headache, finding it difficult to adapt.
However, Ye Ling was a man of his word. Since he had agreed to take Bai Qiao's inner demon as a disciple, he would naturally not treat her differently and would protect her when necessary.
Ye Ling took out a jade slip from his spatial ring and tossed it to Bai Qiao's inner demon, saying, "This jade slip contains hundreds of introductory cultivation techniques. You have absorbed a lot of my spiritual energy, and your talent is even higher than Bai Qiao's. You should be able to start cultivating without my guidance. Choose one that suits you and begin practicing."
Bai Qiao's inner demon took the jade slip and quickly scanned the cultivation techniques within. Its eyes immediately lit up with joy, and it lunged at Ye Ling with starry eyes, "Thank you, Master! I knew Master loved this disciple!"
Seeing Bai Qiao's inner demon lunge at him, Ye Ling heartlessly dodged, causing it to miss.
"Master... you let me hug you just now..." Bai Qiao's inner demon, having failed to get close to Ye Ling, looked at him with a resentful and pitiful expression.
Ring, ring, ring!
Just then, his phone rang. It was Wang Liren calling.
Ye Ling stopped fooling around with Bai Qiao's inner demon, answered the call, and directly asked, "Is the matter with the Dragon Department resolved?"
Wang Liren replied, "Your Majesty, I have conveyed your anger to the Dragon Department. There are constant internal disagreements within the Dragon Department. A significant portion of people are displeased with the current influence of the Demonic Palace and strongly demand that the Dragon Department break ties with the Demonic Palace and avenge Yun Shanhe."
Upon hearing Wang Liren's response, a hint of amusement flashed in Ye Ling's eyes, and he sneered, "Is that so?"
Hearing Ye Ling's chilling laughter, Wang Liren shivered, fearing that Ye Ling would immediately raze the Dragon Department. He quickly added, "However, Your Majesty, please rest assured that the vast majority of people in the Dragon Department still support the Demonic Palace. The current Minister, Long Fei, is pushing aside all dissenting opinions and wishes to personally visit Your Majesty to apologize!"
"Please give the Dragon Department some time. The Dragon Department is currently... Bang!!!"
Wang Liren's words were cut short by a loud explosion from the other end of the line, and the call was subsequently disconnected.
Wang Liren had lost contact.