Chapter 108: The Misaligned Technology Nation-Building Novel, Part 23

“Uh, I know a little.” Mu Yin had initially wanted to say she didn’t know him, but somehow ended up telling the truth. Why had she even come looking for him? After all, if those bugs hadn’t killed him by now, it meant he was fine.

“Are you here to find me?” The man suddenly flashed, appearing beside Mu Yin as swiftly as lightning.

Startled, Mu Yin tried to step back but was caught by him. “What do you know? Why are you looking for me? Why do you want to protect me?”

“You—you know what I’m thinking?” Mu Yin sensed something was off. This man seemed able to read minds; otherwise, how could he know these things?

“That’s right, I can read minds. So, can you now tell the truth?” Liao Changyun’s gift was innate, allowing him to evade the White family’s relentless pursuit time and again. Yet, he didn’t understand why this woman, who had appeared out of nowhere, was trying to protect him. Besides, her thoughts were strange—some parts were blocked.

“Uh.” Mu Yin hesitated, unsure what to say. Should she tell him she was sent by the Heavenly Dao Father to protect him? That those bugs were trying to destroy the world by harming the destined child? But since he could read minds, maybe she didn’t need to say anything.

Sure enough, when she looked up, their eyes met and he seemed somewhat stunned. “Well, heh heh heh, you already know, so that’s why.” Mu Yin felt conflicted.

“What reason? Why is part of your mind blocked? Who sent you? And what am I to you?” Liao Changyun frowned in confusion.

Mu Yin twitched her lips, puzzled why even the Heavenly Dao had blocked him from reading her mind. Why not just block her entire thoughts? Isn’t that how romance stories usually go? Only the heroine is special—pfft, she was definitely not the heroine.

“Heroine? You mean like the main female lead in TV dramas? Are you the heroine?” Liao Changyun, though not often on the virtual network, still used it occasionally.

“No, who’s the heroine? I’m not.” Mu Yin denied it vehemently.

***

In the end, Liao Changyun brought Mu Yin back, and she discovered that he had now become the Demon Lord—or rather, the leader of the demon cultivators. It was quite an ordeal for him because the Thunder attribute conflicted with the cultivation methods and attributes of demon cultivators. He had a Thunder spirit root but was still the leader of the demon cultivators; that was no easy feat, yet somehow he had achieved it.

As soon as she entered the Demon Palace, Mu Yin felt her breathing grow labored. The energy here was antagonistic to her own. To explain: the demon cultivators, though cultivating spiritual energy, dealt with the dark attribute, also known as Yin energy, which symbolizes death. Mu Yin, being a spiritual cultivator with life abilities, represented the energy of life. The two were naturally at odds, making this place inhospitable to her.

Liao Changyun’s situation was similar. After being confined to a room for several days, Mu Yin felt suffocated herself. One day, she was taken to the Demon Lord’s palace, where the maidservants who escorted her left after delivering her.

Looking at the closed doors, Mu Yin felt she was likely safe, so she stepped inside and saw Liao Changyun enveloped in crackling electricity. The sensation was like an internal energy conflict.

After a pause, she approached. After all, he was her protection target. For the sake of the mission’s reward, she decided to be responsible. Maybe the Heavenly Dao would grant her extra rewards since she had completed two tasks.

“Come here.” Liao Changyun heard Mu Yin’s thoughts again and knew she was protecting him for a reward. He didn’t mind; he had heard many thoughts since childhood, and her straightforward purpose somehow felt refreshing.

When Mu Yin stepped near but remained outside the electrical arcs, the man suddenly extended a long arm and pulled her into his embrace. The electricity seemed to flow toward her as if with a will of its own. Mu Yin felt her hair stand on end; the electric current surged through her body. Since she had already formed her nascent soul and tempered her body during tribulation with lightning, she wasn’t harmed, but the tingling numbness was still intense.

“What are you doing?” Mu Yin tried to break free, but her body was numb and powerless.

“Don’t move. Aren’t you here to protect me? This is helping me.” Liao Yun held her tighter and spoke calmly.

“Hey, hey, don’t say things like that. I’m only protecting your safety.” Mu Yin’s mouth twitched; it sounded so ambiguous.

“I think this is good too.” The man’s lips whispered by her ear, sending a different kind of tingling sensation through her body. Finally, she managed to break free with effort.

***

“Sir, please show some restraint. You seem better now, so I’ll leave first. I still have to go hunt demons.” Mu Yin circulated her spiritual power to dispel the numbness and spoke.

“You can leave anytime.” The man leaned against the steps, propping his head with one hand. His black hair flowed like a waterfall, his brows slanted sharply into his temples, his features delicate and striking, with thin lips as red as blood, curling into a faint, enigmatic smile. He looked devilishly charming. Mu Yin had never met a man like this before. Now, she finally understood what that so-called ‘wicked, arrogant, and domineering’ aura was about.

Yet, for some reason, Mu Yin shivered involuntarily. She felt this man was not to be trifled with. “I’ve tried, but they won’t let me leave.” Mu Yin had attempted to leave several times over the past days but was always stopped by strong guardians.

“Then leave on your own.” Liao Changyun threw out this statement. Mu Yin’s spirit was indignant but powerless. Why had this man attained the Great Perfection stage just by going demonic? Otherwise, she would have beaten him to a pulp.

After storming off angrily, Mu Yin didn’t know that Liao Changyun sat up and resumed cultivation. In truth, he had dual spirit roots—Thunder and Dark. Previously, his Dark spirit root was faint and suppressed by the dominant Thunder spirit root, which also countered the Dark root.

But during one cultivation session, he was ambushed, and his Dark spirit root was triggered, creating a demonic heart that suppressed the Thunder root. The demonic heart fostered the rapid growth of the Dark root, creating a battlefield within him where neither side could dominate. Eventually, he lost control, attacked someone in a fit of rage, was expelled from his sect, and hunted relentlessly.

Later, he stumbled upon the original Demon Lord, who, severely injured for unknown reasons, tried to possess him. But because Liao Changyun harbored the Thunder spirit root—which counters demon cultivators—even when suppressed, he was not easy to possess.

Instead, he devoured the Demon Lord, his cultivation soared, and the Dark root completely suppressed the Thunder root. His power grew instead of waning. He then embraced the demonic path, his cultivation skyrocketing. Yet, the Thunder root remained, constantly battling the Dark root inside him, causing his power to flare unpredictably.