Chapter 2 My name is A Chan, the Chan of lingering affection.

Under the gaze of those beastly eyes, Ji Chan exhausted all her strength. Her face was pressed against the ground, and her voice was barely audible: "Are you... going to eat me?"

The only sound in the darkness was heavy breathing, and the terrifying beastly eyes remained unchanged.

"Then come and eat me, it's better than dying here like this..." she murmured intermittently, "I'm just a little afraid of pain."

In the suffocating silence, she suddenly heard a soft and alluring female voice: "I don't eat people."

The voice undoubtedly came from the owner of the beast eyes, who was hidden in the darkness.

"You...you're a demon?"

Only legendary demons can speak human language and transform into humans.

"yes."

"How...how did you end up in the capital? If you're discovered, you'll die." Ji Chan curled up on the ground, the fear of impending death seemingly fading away with the appearance of the monster beside her.

"I've come to request an official title."

Ji Chan vaguely remembered that in the strange tales she had read, if a demon successfully obtained a title from a human, it could transform into a human.

"So you want to become human? You can... ask me for a title."

"Why? I'm a demon, aren't you afraid?" The beautiful voice was filled with doubt.

Ji Chan stared blankly at the falling snowflakes: "What's so scary about demons?"

The most terrifying thing is people, the human heart.

The voice in the darkness paused, then suddenly asked, "Do I look like a human?"

"Yes, you are more human than they are."

After saying this, Ji Chan had exhausted all her strength, but nothing happened in the darkness.

She heard the owner of the voice sigh: "Unfortunately, all eight of my tails have been severed, so I can no longer become human."

The matter of seeking an official title could not be spoken aloud. She only spoke of it to the dying woman before her, wanting to have someone to talk to before she died. For her, seeking an official title was merely an obsession.

"How...could this be?" Ji Chan felt a strange sense of resentment. She couldn't do anything, and even her attempt to help others before she died had failed.

"I'm going to die too," the voice said.

She fled thousands of miles to the capital of the Great Xia Dynasty, but there was no way for her to survive here. She broke into the city, but could only wait to die. However, she never expected that she would have a human companion before she died.

In the darkness unseen by Ji Chan, a tailless fox demon, her body covered in deep, bone-revealing wounds, lay silently on the ground. Her body was utterly broken and could not hold on any longer.

The snow fell on her, and was quickly soaked by her blood.

"To be able to die here together, perhaps this is what you humans call fate."

Ji Chan seemed to be touched by the subtle surprise in her words, and unconsciously tugged at the corner of her lips.

Yes, it's fate to have someone die with you.

"Why...did you sever all eight tails?"

"Because you trusted the wrong person, what about you?"

"It might be my father; he doesn't want me to live."

The human and the demon fell silent once again. Being betrayed by someone they trusted, betrayed by their closest relatives, sounded tragic.

After saying only one sentence, Ji Chan coughed up blood, and she gradually lost sight of the snow in front of her.

She knew she was going to die soon, but she was still unwilling to accept it. She was unwilling to die so easily, unwilling to accept that she couldn't do anything.

She suddenly remembered the book of supernatural tales she had read: "I've heard that ghosts and monsters can possess humans and live on in their bodies. Is that true?"

"It's true, but it's difficult; such evil deeds are intolerable to Heaven."

"What if... what if it's voluntary?" Ji Chan's tone suddenly became urgent. "If I gave you my body, could you survive?"

"...Perhaps." After a long silence, the voice finally rang out.

Ji Chan smiled and said, "Alright, I'll leave this body and flesh to you. After I die, you live on in my place."

"Why?" The voice was filled with deep confusion.

"You said we were destined to meet. We can't both die here; someone has to live. I hope that person is you. If... if you survive, can you avenge me and my mother?"

"...Okay." If she really did possess the human in front of her, perhaps she could survive, just as the other party said.

She was born an eight-tailed fox with a powerful soul. After entering a weak human body, her remaining power could repair the other person's physical body.

She didn't know what she would face in the future after agreeing to the agreement. But if she could live, who would want to die?

Hearing her answer, Ji Chan wanted to laugh, but her face was already frozen.

She said, "My name is Ji Chan, Ji as in the four seasons and Chan as in beautiful woman. My mother gave me this name, and I like it very much. I'll lend it to you from now on."

"Alright, once I've avenged you, I'll return your name to you."

"Thank you... And you, what's your name?"

“My name is Achan, the chan of entanglement. I don’t have a surname.”

“Achan…”

Ji Chan called out softly, and then fell silent.

The moment the last trace of life in Ji Chan's body dissipated, the beast's eyes in the darkness suddenly dimmed, and a beam of azure light broke free from the fox demon's broken body and rushed into Ji Chan's body.

A muffled clap of thunder suddenly sounded in the sky, followed by continuous thunder.

As Achan said, possession is against the laws of nature, especially in this capital city, a place where humanity is flourishing. To want to become a human while being a demon is not tolerated by the laws of nature.

If Ji Chan hadn't willingly given her her body, she might have died from the heavenly lightning the moment she was possessed.

After entering Ji Chan's body, weakness and excruciating pain instantly overwhelmed her consciousness, and the constant rumbling of thunder in her ears felt like it could tear her soul apart at any moment.

But in the end, the thunder only boomed in the sky and did not fall.

At the top of the Tower of Babel in the Imperial City, the officials of the Imperial Observatory, who were observing celestial phenomena and divining the fortunes of the Great Xia Dynasty for the year, changed their expressions drastically upon hearing the thunder.

The supervisor immediately handed the celestial observation plate to the flustered supervisor beside him and instructed, "Quickly send the celestial observation plate to the commander of the Mingjing Division and tell him that a great demon has entered the city and caused celestial phenomena."

"Yes, sir." The supervisor hurriedly left, holding the celestial monitoring plate in both hands.

The Mingjing Division was established by the founding emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty and was led by his elder brother, the Ming King.

The Great Xia Dynasty has been established for a thousand years, and the Mingjing Division has been passed down from generation to generation. The heads of the division in each generation came from the royal family and were given the title of Ming King.

The supervisor stumbled into the Mingjing Division's office, gave his name, and asked to see the commander. However, the guard on duty hesitated and said, "Tonight, the emperor is holding a grand banquet for his officials in the capital. The commander has gone to the banquet."

The supervisor's heart sank. The great demon mentioned by the supervisor was probably at least at the fourth realm.

Among cultivators, the Five Realms are the most revered. The head of the Mingjing Division, Mingwang, is at the Fifth Realm, while the Commander is currently at the peak of the Fourth Realm. With Mingwang absent, it is safest for him to go.

Tonight is the night when the dynasty's fortunes converge. If we make a scene and disturb the emperor, I'm afraid no one will benefit.

"What should we do then? Besides the commander, who else is in command?"

The guard on duty replied, "The Garrison Commander is still at the yamen."

"Which garrison commander?"

The four commanders of the Mingjing Division are responsible for suppressing the strange and chaotic events throughout the Nine Provinces. Each of them is quite skilled, and if even one of them were present, things would be alright.

"Bai Xiu Ming, Master Bai."

Upon hearing that it was the garrison commander, the supervisor was completely relieved and hurriedly said, "Lord Bai is here. Please inform him immediately."

Seeing the guard on duty leave in a hurry, the supervisor wondered why Lord Bai was not attending the banquet with the Prince of Ming tonight.

Bai is the imperial surname, and this young man who has already become a Zhenfu Shi (a high-ranking military officer) is naturally from the imperial family. There are even rumors that he was raised by the Ming Prince and may inherit the Ming Prince's title in the future.

Five years ago, Bai Xiuming was parachuted into the position of Zhenfu Envoy. At first, many people were dissatisfied. Later, he killed the Black Dragon of the Four Realms who was causing trouble on the banks of the Wei River, and those voices finally disappeared.

This Lord Bai has been stationed in Youzhou for a long time, and now it's time for him to take over.

These thoughts flashed through the supervisor's mind quickly. He didn't have to wait long before the guard on duty returned: "Sir, please come with me."

He led the supervisor towards the main hall of the Mingjing Division.

Before they could get close, a figure slowly walked out of the main hall of the yamen. This person looked unusually young and had an exceptionally handsome appearance. His peach blossom eyes had a natural gentleness when he looked at people, which could easily make people mistake him for a very good-tempered person.

He wore a golden crown on his head and a black cloak, with only a glimpse of his bright red official robe visible as he moved.

The supervisor dared not look too long. Upon seeing Bai Xiuming come out, he immediately bowed and said, "Lord Bai, I am the supervisor of the Imperial Observatory. I have come on the orders of the Director to report that a great demon has entered the city and has caused celestial phenomena."

"Location."

The Assistant Supervisor presented the celestial compass with both hands: "This is from the Supervisor, who instructed me to give it to you, sir."

Bai Xiuming reached out and took the somewhat worn-out Celestial Observation Plate, his index finger ring tapping against the wooden plate with a soft sound.

He lowered his eyes to look at the celestial compass, which had three pointers: black, white, and red. The red pointer had shifted, pointing to the location of the great demon who had entered the city.

"Select the people," Bai Xiuming said.

Several people around immediately responded, "Yes."

The supervisor was startled and looked around, but couldn't see where the person who had spoken was.

In a short while, dozens of Mingjing Guards were ready to go.

Bai Xiuming rode the dragon-blooded horse brought by his subordinates and ordered his men to escort the supervisor back.

The Dragon Blood Horse of the Mingjing Division crossed the Heavenly Street, and the surrounding people made way for it, with no one daring to follow and investigate.

With the speed of the Dragonblood Horse, it took less than a quarter of an hour to find the place where the great demon was staying.

A dozen or so horses stopped at Anping Ward. The group dismounted and quietly slipped into the ward. Bai Xiuming then walked toward the location indicated by the pointer.

The dark alley could not block the cultivator's eyes; with just one glance, Bai Xiuming could see the scene in the alley.

A human and a demon lay dead together. The demon was completely lifeless, but the human, curled up beside it, seemed to still be alive. Beside the human was a blood-stained arrow.

Even after her soul repaired her shattered heart, her body remained weak, and A-Chan had no strength left. Humans were far more frail than she had imagined, especially ordinary humans like Ji Chan who were unable to cultivate.

She can't get up now, so she can only huddle together next to her original body for warmth.

Suddenly, she heard steady footsteps; someone was coming.