THE NEXT MORNING, Fu Jing awoke with fresh vigour, the misery of the previous day seemingly blown away like dark clouds after a storm.

As always, Xuan Qi was already gone.

Fu Jing pushed aside the blanket that covered him and jumped to his feet. This time, he’d confront that demon and wouldn’t relent until he finally received some answers.

He found the demon sitting on his throne in the main hall. With his head lazily resting on his hand and one leg casually crossed over the other, Xuan Qi was reading through some scrolls, pretending to be important.

His expression remained unfazed as if Fu Jing hadn’t just flung the doors open with a loud bang. Fu Jing stomped up the few steps of the dais and knocked the scroll out of Xuan Qi’s hand.

The demon’s expression didn’t falter in the slightest as he impassively followed the scroll’s trajectory. The fingers of his now empty hand slightly curled.

After the scroll had clattered to the floor, Xuan Qi’s gaze languidly drifted to Fu Jing.

“I was reading that.”

“Why do you keep doing this to me, hm? Is it fun?” Fu Jing furiously demanded. “Nevermind, of course it’s fun, why else would you do it? Is this why you lured me here? To keep me as your plaything?”

Xuan Qi patiently listened to Fu Jing’s rant, yet couldn’t help but snort at the word plaything.

“What’s so funny? You said so yourself, didn’t you?”

“I did, but you’re not that much fun to play with after all.”

“If I’m no fun then why are you so insistent on keeping me here?!!”

Xuan Qi exhaled a sigh. “I’m keeping you because if you don’t drink my blood once a month before full moon, you’ll die.”

Fu Jing stared at him, his mind stumbling over itself.

“If– You– What?! I– Bef– Why??”

Xuan Qi responded with a tired smile. He held up his hand with his thumb and finger slightly apart, as if holding something small between them. “Did you happen to eat a blue, glowing berry?”

Fu Jing was somewhat stumped by this seemingly random question, but still pondered it for a moment. That description seemed to ring a bell. He indeed remembered trying such a berry. It had tasted incredibly sweet.

He nodded. “…I did!”

Xuan Qi rubbed his forehead. “Why would you do that?”

“It looked delicious,” Fu Jing replied, not seeing why this would be a problem.

Xuan Qi puffed a dry laugh. “You’re really stupid, huh.”

“Huh?!”

“I thought you were smarter than just eating random stuff from the demon realm. Do you have any idea what effect that berry has?”

Fu Jing shrugged. If he’d known, he certainly wouldn’t have eaten it. “I don’t, but I guess it’s nothing good.”

“As soon as it’s full moon, you’ll attract every demon in existence that’ll do much worse to you than I did, tearing you apart in the process and eating you alive. And all because you had to eat a berry that ‘looked delicious’.”

Fu Jing froze at this revelation. An icy wave of shock crashed over him until even the tips of his fingers were tingling with numbness.

He stood as if trapped in a daze, processing the information.

“…So it’s a curse?” he said at last, his voice so hoarse it was barely above a whisper.

“Yep.”

Apprehension slowly crept over Fu Jing as he remembered what else he’d eaten.

Alarmed, he asked, “Does everything in the demon realm have such an effect? I also ate some nuts and greens…”

“No, just the berry.”

Fu Jing slowly nodded, slightly relieved. But one question remained unanswered. “…I still don’t see why you need to torture me for this.”

“My blood suppresses the curse. The full moon reactivates it.”

Fu Jing was stunned. His mouth formed around words that quickly dissipated until they burst out in a fit of rage.

“Oh, how fucking convenient!” he roared as he swept the pile of scrolls off the side table.

Xuan Qi was slightly taken aback, the question “What the fuck?” written across his face. These scrolls had been carefully sorted by topic and priority, now he’d have to sort them all over again.

Breathing heavily, Fu Jing continued, “Surely there must be a way to break it?”

“Yes.”

“How?!”

“Fall in love with a demon and profess your undying devotion.”

Fu Jing stared at Xuan Qi with a deep frown. This had to be a joke. And a very bad one, too!

“…Someone like you?” he finally pressed out.

“Sure. I figured this would be impossible for you, so I sacrificed myself to suppress the curse instead. You’re welcome, by the way.”

Fu Jing closed his eyes, his fingers pressing against his forehead. He suddenly felt extremely exhausted. “…What a load of bullshit.”

“You want proof?”

Fu Jing’s gaze darted to the demon.

“Do you have an enemy in the human realm?” Xuan Qi asked. “I can bring them over, feed them a berry and you can watch what happens.”

Fu Jing refused. This was obviously out of the question.

“…How can you be sure there’s no other way to suppress the curse?”

Xuan Qi took a deep breath. “Actually… there is another option.”

Fu Jing’s head snapped up. “What? What is it?!”

“I don’t think you’ll like it.”

Fu Jing gritted his teeth. What could possibly be worse than what he’d been through so far?! “Just spit it out!”

“You could sleep with me. Semen suppresses the curse too.”

Fu Jing froze mid-breath. His eyes bulged so hard they nearly popped out of their sockets. No way—there was no way. Absolutely not!!

He scoffed. “Right. And I’m just supposed to believe you?”

“There’s a bunch of books on this topic. You can go check them out.”

“And you’ll conveniently point me in the right direction, yeah?”

Xuan Qi rolled his eyes. “You’re free to look for yourself.”

“I shall do that, then.”

“Don’t forget to return to bed.”

“I know the scent lasts at least two weeks,” Fu Jing retorted, already on his way out. “You can’t fool me.”

Xuan Qi placed two fingers at his temple to rub away the pain caused by this foolish human.

And so, Fu Jing visited multiple libraries to do his research.

However, all the books were written in the same ancient script he couldn’t read. That wasn’t much of a hindrance, though. Some of the books contained illustrations that proved immensely helpful. Once he found an image of the berry, he scurried over to the librarian at the reception desk.

Pointing at the image of the berry like a maniac, he asked, “What is this berry?”

The demon lazily looked at the illustration, then back at Fu Jing. “It stands right there, can’t you read?”

Fu Jing pressed his lips together. “I can, but it’s such a long text, I thought it’d be quicker if I ask someone as capable as you to summarise it for me.”

“…” The librarian sighed and gave a concise summary. “It’s a berry that attracts demons.”

“To demons as well?”

“No, everyone but, like humans, yao, fairies and such. …Why?”

“Uh… I saw a friend of mine eating those and was worried they might be poisonous.”

“Nah, we can snack them. They’re delicious.”

Yes, they are… Fu Jing woefully thought to himself. He gave the librarian a wooden grin and thanked him.

But this wasn’t the end of his research. Maybe this librarian had been paid off by Xuan Qi to tell Fu Jing just what he needed to hear, so he visited another library.

Again, he couldn’t read a thing, but found a book containing the image of the berry. He walked up to the librarian and asked, “Sorry, what does this berry do?”

The librarian’s face lit up with excitement. “Oooh, it makes demons horny.”

“…Can there be anything done against it?”

“Yes, sleep with them, or fall in love.”

Fu Jing frowned. “Nothing else?”

“Well… you could drink their blood, but that’s certain death. So, don’t bother.”

Fu Jing sighed and let his head drop in defeat. This still checked out with what Xuan Qi had told him. But Fu Jing didn’t give up yet.

For days, he continued to visit all the libraries he could find, but all bore the same result.

Afraid that Xuan Qi’s scent might wear off, Fu Jing returned after two weeks with a gloomy cloud hanging over his head.

He was utterly devastated. His bloodshot eyes were framed by deep, dark shadows. With his head hanging low, he listlessly shuffled back into the palace.

Xuan Qi sat on his throne, looking down at Fu Jing.

They stood and sat there in silence for a long while. Knowing full well the result of Fu Jing’s research, Xuan Qi patiently waited for him to speak.

“How did you know about the berry?” Fu Jing asked at long last. His voice was flat and lifeless, his eyes lowered.

“Once ingested it gives off a distinct smell.”

Fu Jing nodded to himself, then probed further, “Does it have to be by force?”

Xuan Qi raised his eyebrows. Fu Jing met his gaze, and when he saw the confusion in the demon’s face, he clarified, “Or can I drink it on my own terms?”

Now it clicked for Xuan Qi. “Oh, sure. You can.”

Fu Jing cracked a bitter smile. “Then why didn’t you tell me?”

“Hah. So you’re saying you would’ve believed me and opened your mouth willingly, Mr. I-Have-No-Weakness?”

Fu Jing bit his bottom lip. There was so much wrong and right in this statement, he didn’t know where to start, nor did he have the energy to argue right now.

“You didn’t even try,” he said hollowly.

“What do you want me to say?”

“I want you to feel remorse.”

“For what? Saving your life?”

“This wasn’t your choice to make! I made the mistake, I’m the one who has to suffer the consequences!”

Xuan Qi inhaled sharply. “See, that’s where you’re wrong. I do feel a little bit responsible. I lured you into the demon realm, after all.”

Fu Jing swallowed hard to stifle the sob stuck in his throat.

“...Can it be anyone’s blood?”

If all it took was drinking demon blood once a month, then maybe he could take it from someone else. Someone he had no history with. Find a demon that was less of a nuisance, someone who might be a bit less… toxic for his body.

Xuan Qi was quiet for a moment, but then replied with a resolute “No.”

Fu Jing closed his burning eyes. Of course not. “Falling in love… does it also have to be you?”

“Yes.”

Fu Jing’s eyes squeezed shut even tighter. A flicker of anguish crossed his face, his fingers curling into loose fists.

“Is that what you meant by making me yours?” he asked in a tight voice. “You marked me as your human, so other demons wouldn’t touch me?”

“Yes.”

Fu Jing’s face and body relaxed, his expression marked by endless exhaustion. “Can I go back to the human realm?”

“No. The suppression will lose its effect. You’d need a fresh dose of my blood after entering the human realm.”

Fu Jing sighed. “...So if I want to go back, I have to convince you to come with me?”

“Yep. If you want to live, that is.”

A bitter laugh escaped from Fu Jing that ended in an even bitterer sob.

After what had happened the last time Xuan Qi set foot in the human realm, Fu Jing knew he’d never agree to return.

A single tear rolled down his face. He gnawed on his lip and nodded before turning around and sluggishly scuffling away. “…See you in two weeks, then.”

“But…”

“I don’t care about the scent. I can defend myself.” The last part of his sentence was barely audible as the door had already fallen shut behind him.

Xuan Qi sighed and shook his head.

Looking like an absolute mess, Fu Jing wandered around aimlessly. He had no place to stay and no destination in mind. All he knew was that, at the moment, he couldn’t bear being around the demon.

He entered the huge pine forest that surrounded the meadow around the capital. Narrow, overgrown paths meandered haphazardly through the trees. As he followed these paths at a sluggish pace, faint, pitiful wails drifted over from between the woods. Fu Jing halted in his steps and perked up his ears.

The wails were weak but miserable. This could be a trap, but with nothing left to lose, Fu Jing cautiously approached the sound.

And there, beneath the branches of a pine tree, lay a black kitten. It seemed to have been attacked, a gaping wound slashed across its body. Too weak and injured to treat its own wound, it just lay there, bleeding and desperately mewling for help.

Fu Jing rushed over and dropped to one knee. Holding two fingers over the wound, he forced all the spiritual energy he could gather into his fingertips. After a bit of a struggle, he’d channelled enough to stabilise the kitten’s condition.

The kitten stared at him with wide, wary eyes, but once it realised the bleeding had stopped, it slowly blinked at Fu Jing and instantly passed out. Fu Jing could only guess from its condition that it probably hadn’t had the chance to properly rest in a long time.

With the kitten fast asleep, Fu Jing sank down beside it, leaning back against the tree. He allowed himself to rest for a little while as well. As he closed his burning eyes, a dull sting caused them to tear up once more.