Venerable Demon King & The Doting Immortal (QT)
Chapter 292: Third world yay!!

Chapter 292: Third world yay!!

She coughed violently, each spasm feeling like a fight for life. A mouthful of blood spilt forth, painting her lips a dazzling red. The metallic taste lingered, sharp and bitter.

She glanced down, her pale skin contrasting sharply with the vibrant hue that stained her blue chiffon dress. Clutching her abdomen, she felt the chill of the cave seep into her bones. The calm blue pool at the centre of the cave reflected her frail figure, yet her gaze was drawn to a hooded figure sitting nearby, their presence unsettling against the stillness.

With cautious grace, she rose to her feet, the remnants of her earlier struggle forgotten for a moment. Each step was light as if she were floating over the ground. "You said you would help me get what I want," she said, her voice trembling with urgency. "But this is not what I want."

The figure turned slightly, a broken voice escaping from beneath the hood. "I gave you all the advantages. The fact that you don’t know how to use them is not my problem."

Frustration twisted in Peng Xiu’s chest. "I can’t even remember anything when I enter each world! That bastard Xiang Yu has messed with my plans twice!" Her anger simmered, threatening to boil over, but she held it in check. She needed this figure’s help.

"There are limitations to what I can do," the figure replied, their tone flat. "If you hadn’t let Han Xin go, I could have helped you. But you had to be careless."

"I know I messed up," she snapped, her voice sharp. "But reminding me of the problem isn’t going to help me!"

The figure stood, their presence looming. "I can give you an advantage in this next world. Whether you achieve your goal depends on your ability." With a slow, deliberate motion, they stepped towards her. "You must genuinely win Han Xin’s heart in one world. That’s all it will take. If you fail... the Divine Emperor will be ruthless. Your life depends on it."

Peng Xiu furrowed her brow, confusion settling in. "What do you mean by my life depends on this?"

"What I mean is that if the Divine Emperor gets his hands on you, it won’t be pretty," the figure warned, their voice low and ominous.

In an instant, the hooded figure pulled down its hood, revealing a face that sent shivers down her spine. Disfigured and marred, their skin bore the marks of relentless torment as if lightning had struck them repeatedly. Chunks of flesh were burnt away leaving dents and gorges that were unsightly.

Peng Xiu had encountered many demons, but none had been this ugly and disturbing. A sudden thought flickered through her mind. Wouldn’t it be better to just die? If it were her she would kill herself swiftly.

As if reading her thoughts, the figure chuckled softly, the sound hollow and eerie. "He made sure I couldn’t die."

With that, the figure turned and walked towards the cave wall, fading into the shadows as if they had never been there.

Peng Xiu blinked, the air heavy with silence. "Wait! What about the help you were talking about?" she called out, desperation lacing her voice, but there was no response. She was left alone standing there, her rage simmering. This time... she was going to kill that bastard.

***

Xiang Yu woke up with a start, his heart racing. His throat felt dry and scratchy as if he had swallowed sand. He blinked, trying to clear his vision, but everything remained a blur. Panic surged within him. A sudden wave of heat overwhelmed him, wrapping around him like a furnace, making him feel cooked from the inside. Sweat poured down his body, slick and relentless, dripping like a faucet.

He struggled to sit up, calling for the Divine Emperor in his mind, but received no answer. The silence only deepened his dread. With a sharp itch at the back of his neck, pain flared, excruciating and unwelcome. He fought to get up, collapsing back to the floor twice before finally managing to get to his feet.

Stumbling forward, he reached out blindly, searching for a door or something, anything that could lead him to help. He bumped into objects, the sound of shattering glass echoing in the dark, each crash sending a jolt of frustration through him.

Then, a scent wafted through the air, familiar yet more intense. It was the scent of Han Xin, rich and alluring, pulling him closer like a moth to a flame. The closer he got, the foggier his mind became, clouded by desire and confusion.

When he finally reached the door of another room, his knees buckled, and he fell hard to the ground. A grunt of pain escaped his lips as he lay on his back, trying to gather his thoughts. But clarity eluded him, slipping further away with each passing moment.

Suddenly, he heard a painful grunt from within the room. Curiosity and urgency ignited within him, and he raised his head to look. On a bed lay a figure, shrouded in shadows, the scent of Han Xin stronger than ever.

Xiang Yu’s heart raced, confusion twisting in his chest. What was happening? Why was Han Xin here? Where were they? The questions swirled in his mind as he struggled to comprehend the situation, the pull of the scent drawing him closer, blurring the lines of reality around him.

He crawled over in a daze while calling out Han Xin’s name, but the closer he got, the more his mind became muddled. He felt a strong surge of heat pulse within him.

There was a strong need for intimacy. A strong need to possess and mark the person on the bed. The feeling was primal, almost animalistic, and he couldn’t control himself.

In a last ditch effort to regain his sanity he knocked down a vase and the porcelain shattered to the ground hitting the back of his head in the process but he couldn’t even lift his hands to protect himself or get away. Blood soaked his long hair but Xiang Yu didn’t feel the pain.

He felt around for the shattered porcelain and gripped it tightly in his hand. He knew that once he lost his mind, he had no control of what he would do, so he took a deep breath and stabbed his thigh to clear out the fog in his mind. It worked. He could see clearly where he was. A sense of relief washed over him as breathed heavily.