Chapter 26
There are only a few ways to obtain demonic energy.
The simplest is, of course, to directly arrest the demon and hand them over to the lab for slow and thorough research. But this method wouldn’t work for Ye Xiyao, because his power is too strong. If Xing Xu tried to capture him, both of them would end up dying together.
The second method is similar to what happened with the stalker—take a hit, and the injury will naturally retain demonic energy. But the sacrifice would be too great. Not to mention whether the demon would show mercy again, even if Ye Xiyao didn’t kill, a human would suffer significant damage from just one demonic attack.
So that leaves the third method: directly extracting fresh blood from the demon.
Initially, Xing Xu thought obtaining Ye Xiyao’s demonic energy would be a simple task. For him, drawing blood was commonplace—just a quick stab with a knife, clean and efficient, and there’d be no shortage of fresh blood.
However, in reality, Xing Xu spent an entire month without being able to complete this task, which he had originally considered easy.
At first, Xing Xu used a roundabout tactic, organizing a department-wide health check-up under the pretext that their colleague Wen Jisheng had suddenly fallen ill and been hospitalized the previous week. He even claimed, “Health is wealth; the company wants everyone to stay healthy.”
Under the guise of a health check-up, blood could be drawn without raising any suspicion from Ye Xiyao. Even Qiao Linchuan, who usually found Xing Xu annoying, thought this was a good idea and led everyone to cooperate enthusiastically.
But soon, Xing Xu realized he had made a stupid mistake.
Ye Xiyao refused the check-up.
Of course, why would a demon willingly participate in something like that? Xing Xu had somehow, in a moment of foolishness, truly treated Ye Xiyao like a human, thinking that drawing blood would be an easy task.
The moment Ye Xiyao heard the whole department would be undergoing a physical, his face turned pale, his eyes darting around. Xing Xu thought he was about to hear the words, “I’m quitting.”
Fortunately, Xing Xu reacted quickly, adding, “This health check-up is valid for a whole year; everyone can choose when to go to the hospital.”
Both Xing Xu and Ye Xiyao breathed a sigh of relief at the same time.
He didn’t know why, but the more he interacted with Ye Xiyao, the more his brain seemed to stop working properly.
If Xing Xu had thought a little more, he would’ve realized that Ye Xiyao, being a demon in human form, didn’t have real flesh and bones—everything, from his limbs to his internal organs and sensory organs, was fake.
Any blood drawn from Ye Xiyao would be formed from demonic energy, and a hospital would immediately notice something was wrong.
How could Ye Xiyao possibly undergo a health check?
After this initial failure, Xing Xu adjusted his rare underestimation of the situation and came up with another plan.
Since Ye Xiyao couldn’t know his blood was being taken, Xing Xu had to act behind his back.
So, one lunchtime, Xing Xu coaxed Ye Xiyao into the break room to take a nap, while he held a blood collection needle provided by the research institute, preparing to act.
When Xing Xu opened the needle and saw how thick it was, he was furious.
That needle was so huge—were they expecting him to draw blood or to stab Ye Xiyao to death?
But there was no other choice. Ye Xiyao had finally fallen asleep, and the opportunity was too rare to pass up. Xing Xu had to grit his teeth and proceed. If Ye Xiyao woke up and noticed something was wrong, he’d just lie and say there was a thumbtack on the bed.
Alright, mental preparation complete.
Xing Xu started to move the needle.
However, he had still underestimated how sensitive Ye Xiyao was to pain. Before the needle even pricked his skin, Ye Xiyao whimpered in his sleep, on the verge of waking up.
Xing Xu took a deep breath, determined to finish the job in one go, but Ye Xiyao suddenly rolled over in his sleep.
It was the first time Xing Xu had done something so sneaky, and he was feeling guilty. He withdrew the needle too quickly and ended up stabbing himself in the thigh.
“Hiss…”
Two minutes later, Xing Xu limped out of the break room, crushed the blood collection needle, and threw it away.
He should’ve just told Luo Yiji he couldn’t do this.
If it were a matter of going to battle and fighting demons head-on, Xing Xu had no problem. If it required risking his life to infiltrate the enemy, he’d do it. But quietly drawing a tube of blood without alerting the target? Why was that so hard?!
Sure enough, every profession has its own specialties, and crossing into a different field is like climbing a mountain.
Xing Xu wasn’t suited for such delicate work.
After several days of reviewing and reconsidering, he decided to change his approach. Drawing blood directly was harder than he had expected. Instead, it would be easier to make Ye Xiyao release his demonic energy voluntarily. In a dangerous situation, Ye Xiyao would undoubtedly defend himself—just like when the stalker broke into his home.
So, this time, Xing Xu disguised himself as a stalker following Ye Xiyao home. As dusk fell, he cornered Ye Xiyao in a deserted alley. Using a voice modulator to alter his voice into a cold, eerie tone, he said plenty of provoking words.
Xing Xu’s goal was to anger Ye Xiyao and make him attack.
The reason Xing Xu dared to do this was, on the one hand, because he had confidence in himself, certain he could escape unscathed from any demon. On the other hand, he wanted to gamble—to see if Ye Xiyao was truly as the researchers suggested, possibly showing mercy to humans.
What Xing Xu didn’t expect was that he would fail again—and this time, utterly.
Ye Xiyao didn’t fight back at all. Even when he was either angry or scared, trapped with no way out, he just pulled out his phone to call the police.
Xing Xu easily snatched the phone and crushed it. He asked Ye Xiyao, “Why aren’t you fighting back?”
“If I fight back, you’ll die,” Ye Xiyao shrank back, trying to retreat further into the corner.
“So, I’m asking you,” Xing Xu pressed, “Why don’t you fight back?”
Ye Xiyao replied, “I don’t want to.”
Ye Xiyao thought about the person he accidentally injured that day, still haunted by the memory. His power was too overwhelming for humans to bear.
Xing Xu didn’t know why, but he suddenly became irritated, his voice unconsciously rising, “You don’t want to? If today it were a murderer stopping you, someone intending to kill you, would you still not fight back? Do you think that makes you kind?”
“It’s not about kindness,” Ye Xiyao said. “I just don’t want to go to jail because of someone like you.”
It wasn’t just about the possibility of going to jail—Ye Xiyao was worried that if his magic flared up in public again, it might trigger alarms like last time and attract demon hunters. He was content with his current life and didn’t want to disrupt his peaceful existence.
After hearing this, Xing Xu felt confused.
During his time interacting with Ye Xiyao, Xing Xu was often puzzled. Ye Xiyao frequently said things that sounded reasonable but were actually absurd.
At this moment, Xing Xu forgot about collecting demonic energy. He realized something else—if a demon had disguised themselves as harmless and innocent to such an extent, they were practically a model citizen in human society. Besides, Ye Xiyao didn’t even seem to be pretending.
Just as Xing Xu was pondering why Ye Xiyao was so foolish that he wouldn’t even resist, a flash of white light suddenly appeared before him.
A sharp pain shot through his ribs.
In less than thirty seconds, Ye Xiyao had escaped.
Meanwhile, Xing Xu had been bombarded by a “flash grenade,” “stun gun,” and “pepper spray”—a series of gadgets he was quite familiar with since they all came from a small black-tech brand under Qiaoshou, likely prepared for Ye Xiyao by Qiao Linchuan and Lu Kou.
Luckily, Xing Xu had dressed in three layers of clothes to stay hidden, and his mask was secure.
Otherwise, he might have been done for.
Despite being hit by the “three-in-one anti-assault combo,” Xing Xu didn’t get angry. Instead, after a moment, he burst out laughing.
Good.
Once again, he had underestimated Ye Xiyao.
This little demon was always using his cleverness in the most unexpected ways.
—
Although the plan to collect demonic energy had failed, Xing Xu was in a surprisingly good mood when he reported to Luo Yiji.
After listening to all of Xing Xu’s actions over the past month, Luo Yiji remained silent for a long time.
Xing Xu thought he was about to hear some new perspective on demons, but instead, Luo Yiji asked, “Why did you make this so complicated?”
Xing Xu didn’t respond.
Luo Yiji continued, “I thought the simplest solution for you would be to stage an accident. Whether it’s an explosion, a fire, or even a knife falling from a height and slashing the demon, as long as his physical form is injured, the scene would be covered in blood. And as long as you don’t show up, he won’t suspect you.”
Xing Xu remained silent.
“You even preferred to disguise yourself as a stalker, making things so complicated.” Luo Yiji chuckled. “Xing Xu, have you been possessed by a ghost?”
“Ah,” Xing Xu’s voice was calm and unwavering. “Maybe I’ve gone soft. I didn’t want to see him hurt. I’d rather risk being killed myself than take a more direct route. Maybe I’ve already been influenced by the demon, and my desire to kill him is wavering.”
Luo Yiji was momentarily speechless. “…”
Xing Xu added in a flat tone, “Isn’t that what you wanted to hear?”
“Not really.” Luo Yiji sighed. “You’re the last person I’d expect to be influenced by a demon. I’m confident about that. But… haven’t you noticed? Your attitude has shifted, and your methods have become gentler. I’m surprised.”
“I’ve already explained in my report: Ye Xiyao isn’t hostile towards humans—at least not from what I’ve seen. So, I have no reason to take extreme measures against him,” Xing Xu explained. “But I still hold a highly negative view of his purpose for staying here. I’ll continue to monitor his every move. If I find any indication that he poses a threat to humans, I will kill him immediately.”
Luo Yiji responded, “I’ve never doubted that.”
After that, the two of them fell silent for a long time.
Suddenly, Xing Xu let out a laugh. “But do you really believe it? That a demon could possess humanity.”
“I can’t answer that. Only time will tell.” Luo Yiji, unexpectedly serious, replied, “All I can say is, if Ye Xiyao can maintain his ‘humanity,’ and if he truly has the power to ‘purify’ the demonic energy within him, I would be deeply grateful.”
To believe that a demon could retain humanity, that he wouldn’t harm humans, and could even coexist peacefully in human society—it wasn’t about absolving Ye Xiyao.
It was the silent hope that arose within them at that moment.
The Demon Slayer Array would eventually backfire, unless Xing Xu could stand by and watch as demons hurt people while doing nothing. Otherwise, the day would come.
Demonic energy would invade, taking over the soul of a human. He would become a half-human, half-demon hybrid.
No exorcist could accept the idea of becoming a demon.
So, Xing Xu had long been prepared to walk the same path as his mother, Xue Min.
But, if there was even a one-in-a-million chance that demons could retain humanity, or an even slimmer chance that Ye Xiyao could really purify demonic energy…
“We have to collect demonic energy, no matter the outcome. We need to plan ahead,” Luo Yiji brought the conversation back to the original topic. “If you’re uncomfortable taking action, I can make arrangements.”
At this moment, Ye Xiyao was no longer just a mission target. He represented an unprecedented hope.
Humans were fragile and insignificant in the face of demons. As long as Xing Xu was around, he could barely maintain the surface calm.
But what would happen if one day he was no longer there?
When would the next inheritor of the Demon Slayer Array emerge? How long would humans have to live in fear?
Ye Xiyao’s appearance was both a warning and a rare opportunity. They needed to seize it.
Xing Xu knew exactly what Luo Yiji meant by “arrangements.” It could range from a stray dog attacking him on the street to a truck crashing head-on into him—anything was possible.
But Xing Xu couldn’t help thinking that Ye Xiyao’s small frame wouldn’t survive such ordeals.
Even though he knew that demons could heal quickly from physical injuries, he still said, “Don’t touch him. Let me try again.”
