Translator: Fate Translation Checker: Silavin The courtyard was completely silent. Even the chirping of the birds and insects could no longer be heard. Time and space seemed to freeze. It felt as if the world had disappeared, leaving only this young man. As a Princess of the Primitives, Ah Man had always been bold. She was only a few years old when she followed the hunters from her settlement into the forests to hunt down wild creatures. She was always able to face all kinds of danger and difficulties without losing her head. Yet, she was stupefied today. Her expression tensed up. She had never seen such a strange scene before. The mysterious man in front of her seemed to have popped up out of nowhere. She did not even know when he came. The world seemed to exist only for him as everything went silent. Ah Man could not even begin to imagine how powerful he had to be in order to do something like this. The most powerful beings she had ever met were only the Elders from the Primeval Deity Sect. They certainly could not have done such a thing. She could not believe her senses. “Who are you? Why are you here in my courtyard?” Ah Man had a sharp mind. She swiftly composed herself and fixed her eyes on the young man before her as she asked. She looked like a little cheetah was gearing up for a potential fight. Her eyes were alert and wary. “Impressive. You possess such courage and insightfulness at such a young age.” The young man was unaffected by her wariness. He ignored her questions too. He had a faint smile on his face as he continued, “You don’t need to try and use your poison against me. It won’t work on me.” His eyes flickered over to Ah Man’s sleeve. He saw her secretly opening a white jade bottle. Ah Man stiffened. She never thought that the young man would manage to notice her actions despite her best efforts to keep them hidden. “Who are you?! What do you want?” Ah Man repeated her question uneasily. When the young man looked at her, she felt as if he saw right through her. She could not hide anything from him, not even her secrets. “Who am I? You can think of me as your benefactor. I came here to save you.” The young man was smiling as he spoke. Ah Man stiffened. She did not quite understand what he meant. [My benefactor? He’s here to save me?] “Of course, you could also think of this as fate bringing us together. I came here to look for a suitable Successor. By coincidence, you’re the most suitable candidate.” The young man was none other than Gu Changge. He had arrived in this world for some time now. First, he studied the origins of this world before coming to find the most suitable pawn. After all the universes and countless Lower Realm Worlds he traversed, he finally found one anomaly in the hazy sea of destiny. All Fortuitous Ones and one-in-an-epoch prodigies could not even hold a candle to the young woman before him. She was shrouded in a fog of Great Dao. Her aptitude far surpassed the limits of her physical body, and most importantly, she was a born Demon who possessed a Demonic Heart. In Gu Changge’s eyes, it would be impossible to find someone more suitable than her. The little girl in front of him was destined to become one of the most powerful Demons in existence. “You’re looking for a Successor? I’m the most suitable candidate?” Ah Man’s eyes grew wide with shock. She knew a little about the strange stories recorded in ancient texts of ordinary people who ran into Great Masters by chance and would be taken in as a disciple, thereby immediately ascending to the Upper Realm. However, those were only written records. No one knew for certain if the stories were true. [Would something like that happen to me?] Ah Man was highly suspicious. She found it hard to believe. She never believed in such strokes of luck. Such a seemingly wonderful thing would not be happening without strings attached. Even now, she was still a little suspicious of her current Master and did not fully believe him. Therefore, she was even less trusting of the words said by this young man before her. Gu Changge did not mind her doubts. Considering his strength and power, all he had to do was blink and he would be able to see the entirety of a person’s life from the past to the future. Although Ah Man was shrouded in a fog of Great Dao, her past was clear to him. Thus, he was unsurprised by her attitude towards him right now. In fact, he approved of her personality. “You don’t need to be so worried,” Gu Changge said crisply. “Even if I intend to do you harm, you wouldn’t be able to do anything. If I wanted to hurt you, it’ll be a million times easier for me to do that than for you to kill that young woman who was here just now.” “Why me?” Ah Man asked after a brief moment of silence. She knew he was telling the truth. Words could not describe the disparity between them. “Because you’re like me. We’re born Demons who possess a Demonic Heart,” Gu Changge explained casually. He had an Innate Demonic Heart when he roamed the world as the Demon Lord, so it was not wrong of him to say that. “A born Demon?” Ah Man was thunderstruck. She heard about Demonic cultivators before. They were the scourge of society who committed all manner of atrocities. Even though she was a little ruthless at times and merciless towards her enemies, she was not a Demon who would slaughter innocent people. [Why did he say that I’m a born Demon? What’s a Demonic Heart? I’ve never heard of that before.] “In the future, you’ll understand that a born Demon is fated to be shunned by the world. It is also fated that everyone close to you, including your friends and family, would be embroiled in misfortunes and plagued by calamities. You will have to live a life of solitude…” Gu Changge said with a faint smile. “That’s ridiculous. That’s impossible. Why would Grandfather and Father be…” Ah Man could not believe him. She refused to accept the future he described. [Misfortune would befall Father and Grandfather because of me? Why? How’s that possible?] Throughout all these years, the urge to protect the settlement and her Family had been the main driving force in her cultivation journey. That was her sole mission in life. “That’s why I said I’m your benefactor. I came to save you.” Gu Changge was still smiling faintly as he informed, “Four years from now, your Adoptive Father will set off on the journey to find your so-called Primeval Deity, and while doing so, he will stumble across some of the truth, only to end up dying a miserable death there.” “My adoptive Father? How could this be?” Ah Man gritted her teeth in disbelief. Gu Changge was calmly describing the events that would take place four years from now, and for some reason, she felt chilled to the bone. He seemed to be merely describing a future event. [How does he know what will happen in the future? Can he see the future?” “Haven’t you ever noticed, or haven’t you ever thought that you might not be your Father’s Biological Daughter?” Gu Changge asked simply, ignoring the look of shock and incredulity in Ah Man’s eyes. [Perhaps this young woman doesn’t even know just how much pain and sorrow she will have to endure over the next few years. She’s still a long way away from becoming a True Demon. But, this is the path she has to take to bloom.] Gu Changge was going to lend a hand to speed up the process. He did not have that much time to waste. Whoosh! With a flick of his hand, the space in front of them turned hazy. Then, ripples emerged and formed a clear sheet that looked like a mirror. Many images began to surface. “What a pitiable girl you are. Your Master, the one you respect so much, simply considers you a suitable Human Cauldron to be harvested when the time is right. Fortunately, you saw through his malicious intentions and killed him with poison. Alas, four years later, your settlement is massacred by the Primeval Deity Sect because of you. Everyone dies. Your Father leaves on the journey to search for the Primeval Deity and vaguely discovers a bit of the truth… But, he gets killed in the end. Doesn’t the killer look extremely familiar? He’s your Grandfather, the one you respect the most. The one who taught you to read and write, and also the one who imparted medical knowledge to you and raised you…” “Are you curious to know who your birth parents are and where you came from? What a shame. How pitiable.” Gu Changge’s voice was calm and nonchalant. He sounded like nothing more than an observer who spoke of matters that had nothing to do with him. There was no hint of emotion in his voice. “Just who are you? Why do you know all these things? They’re not true. They’re all lies…” Ah Man could not believe the scenes depicted in the mirror. Her eyes grew red and her voice trembled. “Who I am doesn’t matter.” Gu Changge smiled faintly and said, “All that matters is the choice you have to make.”