I Was Called A Demon

Bianca awoke within a tight embrace, warmth covering the front of her body. Although she didn’t recall falling asleep to such a sensation, she didn’t need to ponder the reason behind it for very long.

She opened her eyes just a little and was met with Song Ming’s peaceful, sleeping face, her eyes shut and some strands of her blonde hair resting on her face. Her lips parted ever so slightly with each breath, warm air escaping them and landing on Bianca’s face, tickling her skin just a little. It was a rather pleasant sight, even if the exact logistics of her ending up in such a position were a little more confusing.

As far as she remembered, she hadn’t gotten in bed with Song Ming, and even if she had, she wouldn’t have ended up in such a tight embrace.

Hence, she inevitably considered that the naughty kitsune might have attempted something. She had asked her not to mess with them, but since they didn’t even make a proper promise, not to mention something more binding, she wasn’t too surprised that something ended up happening anyway.

Fortunately, Xue Yaling didn’t try anything more egregious. She had no idea exactly what resources the kitsune had at her disposal, but if she had some toys akin to those from Orbis, waking up with something filling her butt wouldn’t have been too surprising, if extremely frustrating. After all, if there was one thing she was relatively sure of, it was that the kitsune was a total pervert, through and through, and if toys like that had been conceptualised and manufactured in the Planar Continents, there was no way that Xue Yaling wouldn’t have obtained one.

‘Actually… If my arrival here isn’t unique, and is something that could have happened before, or might happen again…’ Bianca’s eyes opened wide, ‘Not only might there be people from Orbis stuck in this world, but they might know a way back! Or, well, at least have some more ideas than I do, and maybe they could have even brought some nice things with them… Hm…’

She would’ve sighed if she didn’t want to disturb Song Ming. It was hard to be sure if her conclusions were correct, and even if they were, it didn’t provide her with a good direction to head in. Even if she was given numerous maps to look over and study, she wouldn’t be any more sure of where to search for people like her, and, if she was to be entirely honest with herself, she knew that her own understanding of the world and, well, just about anything else was nowhere near as high as it could be.

Despite having someone that seemed rather knowledgeable around all the time, she barely understood anything, but if someone more suited for this type of place had taken her place, they would almost certainly have grasped most of the world’s intricacies in the time that she had.

Therefore, if someone other than her had landed in the Planar Continents, especially if they had done so much earlier than she did, they would be certain to knock much, much more than her. Most likely, they might not even have the Demonic Tyrant, whatever that even was, so they would be free to cultivate normally, potentially without attracting any attention to themselves.

In all likelihood, those people would have a much better time than she did. If they ended up somewhere that was less rural and allowed them to find work that might benefit from their experience on Orbis, then they might be able to live a very comfortable life here. Modern technology and inventions may not be replicable – nor usable even if they were, since there was no power grid or anything of the sort – but considering what cultivation seemed capable of, it was likely that most things could be replicated using other means.

‘Doubt anyone has replicated a computer yet, though…’ Bianca thought, ‘Although-’

Her thoughts were interrupted when she saw Song Ming’s eyes opening just a little, though their gazes just happened to meet regardless.

“… Hm? Bianca… since when…” the young woman muttered, likely feeling as confused as Bianca had.

“Probably Xue Yaling’s fault,” Bianca whispered back, “Just woke up as well… want me to let you go?”

“… No. Let’s stay like this a little longer… I wouldn’t have minded going to sleep like this, by the way,” she replied, moving in a little closer and tightening her hold on Bianca, “I don’t really get her… She’s helpful and weird and…”

“And?”

“She’s… lewd.”

Bianca chuckled, “Of course she is. If, one day, she suddenly didn’t behave in the same way, I’d be rather afraid… also, she might still be nearby and awake.”

“No, she’s out of the tent. I doubt she’s looking at us,” Song Ming said, even though her gaze never left Bianca’s eyes.

Naturally, she had to ask, “How do you know?”

“…” her sleepy gaze turned into one of pity, “Spiritual perception.”

“Oh… right. Should’ve remembered that it was an option,” Bianca shut her eyes for a moment, unwilling to face such pity especially after she had spent the morning contemplating her own inadequacies, “Are you going to be alright today? Should I ask Xue Yaling not to force you to work as hard as yesterday?”

“Yesterday.. it was just her showing me how to properly use my planar energy for cutting down trees. To get the right results, it’s not quite as easy as simply infusing energy into a weapon,” Song Ming explained, “Hence, I got quite worn out, wasting a lot of energy before I finally understood…”

She paused, her eyes having already opened and the hint of pity vanished. After she spent a few moments staring into Bianca’s eyes again, she continued.

“You have lovely eyes… I mean, ahem, the process of chopping down any planar wood is very taxing on my body, so I was barely able to get into the sleeping bag yesterday. I should be able to do it just fine today, though.”

“If you do get tired, tell me and I’ll get the kitsune to leave you alone for a while, alright?”

“You think she’ll listen to you?”

“Well, out in public, she kinda has to. She was the one to tell me to act like some kind of demonic leader, and what kind of demonic leader can’t even control her subordinates? Well, I’ve never met any demonic overlords, so I don’t really know, but I’d imagine that they’re quite strict and fear-inducing,” Bianca muttered, “I mean, I’m told that I was rather fear-inducing with my energy, which is apparently a good thing in this case…”

“Honestly, I still don’t like this idea. Maybe the people here won’t be as quick to turn against you, but I don’t think that the way to go is to further amplify the demonic energy. We should try to fix it, somehow. To help you switch cultivation techniques so that, one day, you may be free to do as you wish.”

“… Would be nice not to have everyone just assume that I’m a terrible person. I remember how those from the Blazing Skies Sect just…”

As Bianca went silent, Song Ming wasn’t in a hurry to fill the silence. She too had experienced the results of this blind belief, being deemed to be under Bianca’s influence simply due to not wanting things to escalate into an outright battle.

Even thinking back to it brought about an obvious change in expression, though Bianca didn’t bring it up. It wasn’t like she could speak many words of encouragement on this topic, not when she was feeling even more hopeless in this regard. She did have one idea, but it seemed too far-fetched given her own abilities. She had experienced the might of just a few second realm cultivators before, while aided with one of her own and a third realm kitsune, and yet they were barely able to escape.

If someone stronger had come, she might not have survived. Perhaps Song Ming and Xue Yaling wouldn’t have lived either, though the former had a better chance.

Thinking of life and death like that was still rather new to her, and she couldn’t help but share in Song Ming’s despair. She had never wanted to end up in a situation like this, not even after she learnt that she was in a new world, nor when she was first surrounded by the people of Xi Village. However, the longer she remained here, travelling the lands, growing in strength as a cultivator, the more she recognised that it was nearly impossible to escape from such a fate without doing something a lot more drastic than simply fleeing.

‘Maybe… no, never mind. I’ll ask Xue Yaling about this later,’ Bianca decided not to entertain that thought too much just yet. Perhaps it could lead her to a way out, but the only way to be sure would be to inquire with the most knowledgeable person among them.

“Are you thinking about the kitsune?”

“I… well, yes, I was curious where she went. How did you know?” she inquired, since she didn’t imagine that she did anything that would suggest such a thing.

“You frowned in that way you do when you think about her. You do that a lot, by the way.”

“… Yeah. She knows a lot, and can do quite a bit, but at the same time, I’m still not sure if she’s trying to do what would be best for us… However, we don’t really have a choice, do we? She may well know a way to solve some of our issues.”

“What are you trying to come up with now, Bianca?” Xue Yaling’s voice instantly forced the two apart.

Bianca and Song Ming leapt apart, though only a moment later both of them realised that there was no real reason to do so. Not only did Xue Yaling know about their relationship – she had guessed pretty much from the get go, and neither of them were able to refute her effectively – but she was constantly encouraging them to do more together, especially after Bianca’s Demon’s Commanding Rod was revealed to Song Ming.

The potential embarrassment and shame didn’t quite go away, though, so they didn’t immediately attempt to return to one another’s embrace once they realised their folly.

“I’m… well, is it safe to talk here?”

“If you like, I can put up a barrier. What, are you planning to organise a human sacrifice and perform a ritual to regain your memories?”

“W-what… the fuck? First of all, is that even a thing that people do, and second of all, why would I kill anyone? I’m not… well, I don’t want to… uhm… I mean, I never intended to ever…” Bianca stopped herself from stumbling across every word and gathered her breath, “I wanted to ask about something, and you’re the only one… of us three… that might know.”

“… Ugh. Fine. Try not to take too long.”

Xue Yaling waved her hand, and some faint ghostflame appeared at the entrance to the tent, and seemed to burn all around it. How fire – silent fire, at that – would contribute to them not being heard by anyone else was a mystery, at least to Bianca, though she knew that in the rules of this world, all of this somehow made sense. The fire wasn’t actually flame, but energy, and this energy could have just about any properties that they wished without needing to look like it was the case. It could be solid or gaseous, it could be soft or hard, it could burn and scorch or pass by gently like a breeze.

In short, it was more like a game or a convenient magic system in some fantasy story than something a real world should have.

“So, I had asked about sects before. Could we start one of our own? Say, the… Kitsune Sect?”

“Heh,” Xue Yaling looked extremely proud and smug for a moment, seeming to require significant effort to remove those feelings from her expression, “First of all, as much as I like the acknowledgement of my general superiority, the current state of thing would have you be the leader, at least the symbolic one. Thus, it would be the… Demoness Sect? No, far too generic… Destruction Demon Sect?”

“How is the second one better? And, more importantly, destruction? Is that… good?” Bianca could barely imagine such a name ever inspiring positive feelings in others, nor could she understand why it would be associated with her of all people.

“Let’s face it, your planar energy is destructive, wild and, from the outside, uncontrollable. You would not be the Demoness of Peace and Tranquillity, if anyone out there thought to bestow onto you a title to begin with,” the kitsune explained, “There’s no reason to lie about the nature of a sect, nor its apparent leadership. Furthermore, you might be surprised, but there are plenty of factions and sects with names that one might perceive as being outwardly… evil, for lack of a better word. I recall hearing of a Flesh Shredder Clan somewhere in the north, though I believe they may have been wiped out… for unrelated reasons, that is.”

“Uh-huh. Destruction… is it that bad? My energy and cultivation?”

“Yes, that bad. Recall for a moment what happened when you employed your second realm combat skill for a moment, and how you managed to chop down an ordinary tree with a single swipe. That is quite impressive when it comes to destructive potential, though with deliberate effort, most would be able to accomplish such a feat, especially if they were at the peak of the realm. And, well, this is the second point.”

“What is?” Song Ming asked, so focused on the conversation that she managed to forget that she currently had her boobs out on full display despite tending to be shy about that.

“Her energy is very impressive. That much I cannot – and do not – deny. The trouble is that it is only Bianca’s energy. Nobody else has it. This means that there isn’t really a chance of someone in the higher realm being able to assist with it, nor anyone in the same realm being able to use it more effectively than Bianca can. I’m guessing I ought to explain yet again why this is an issue, right?”

“…Yes.”

“The primary defensive measures for a sect, something required to prevent attackers from attempting to destroy, overtake, capture or exploit a sect, as well as to keep out wild planar beasts and various calamities, will either be powerful cultivators, or static defences in the form of arrays and inscriptions.”

“And we don’t have sufficiently powerful cultivators, do we?” Bianca suggested.

“Yes, precisely. I’m in the third realm, you two, for all your unique aspects, are only in the second, so even at the best of times you’ll only be as good as me. This means that we must rely on static defences. The problem is that, even if we were to receive the absolute best arrays from a random master with nothing better to do than to assist us – and then charge nothing and share the details of the array with nobody – we would still need to power them. Planar gathering arrays and such are good, but not for the defence of an entire sect, especially not in the long term.”

Song Ming, who finally remembered to cover herself up with her arm, nodded, “And planar energy stones are not easy to obtain, so they can’t be used either.”

“Yes, exactly – and you don’t need to cover yourself up, cutie,” the kitsune’s reminder put that delicious blush back onto Song Ming’s face, “Anyway, that leaves us with the option of using a cultivator to provide energy to the arrays, and to control them to optimise their behaviour. Making fully automatic defences is rather challenging and rarely optimal, so even if we did have the best arrays possible, they would still need some degree of observation and control. Bianca, what is the issue with this?”

“Hm? Me? Uh… Wait, didn’t we start this by talking about my energy?”

“… What. Could. The. Problem. Be. Bianca?”

“Does it mean that if someone was to provide their energy to an array, they could imbue their cultivation’s properties onto it?”

“By the ancients, you actually figured that part out? Yes, so, why is this a problem?”

“… If I was to provide the energy, I wouldn’t be able to control the array effectively?”

“I would say ‘control it at all’, but that works too. Darling, you have demonstrated almost no understanding of planar energy control beyond the seemingly instinctual. When you don’t use your skills, you accomplish nothing, or end up using a skill anyway. You can barely wield your spiritual perception, since you should really have noticed me approaching far sooner than you did,” Xue Yaling sighed, “This is the issue. However, there is a potential – and I must stress that word again, potential – solution to this problem. It would allow your energy to amplify the effects of a defensive array to such levels that it would keep us safe from most casual attackers, thieves and bandits.”

Song Ming gasped, “Is that even possible? I-I don’t mean to say that Bianca can’t learn to control her energy, I’m sure she can, but even with her planar energy, surely no defensive array would be brought to such a level while she’s still in the second realm?”

“There is an item rumoured to be in the possession of the Phoenix Sect. The Weave of the Senses. It is an artefact that vastly amplifies the wearer’s spiritual perception and, in general, any senses related to planar energy. More importantly, it grants the ability to connect with and control arrays more easily than one might control their own body – or so it is claimed, anyway,” Xue Yaling explained, her tone tinged with a hint of the same amazement being demonstrated by Song Ming’s agape mouth and wide eyes, “Better yet, it is said that it nigh unusable by ordinary cultivators, as it will cause their minds to burn in seconds due to the level of amplification. To this day, it has never been worn for longer than a moment.”

“How is that… wait, you’re not suggesting-”

“You, Bianca, are nigh incapable when it comes to sensing and controlling planar energy in the ways that most of us find trivial. However, that also means that if the amplification is done based on your own abilities, and not up to a consistent standard, then you should be able to endure it just fine. Perhaps you can wear it every day without any issues at all.”

“But… I… would it be easy to get? I doubt the Phoenix Sect will give it away. Are you suggesting we join them instead of making our own sect?”

“That would make things easier in certain regards, but I have always found most sects to be needlessly… restraining. Going in would be devastating to you especially, Bianca, since they are not keen for their disciples to practise such violent and destructive techniques as your own.”

Song Ming, after thinking for a moment, raised her hand, “You’re saying it’s rarely in use and so, may be in a storage room somewhere?”

“Better yet, if everything I’ve heard of it is true, then it won’t be kept under such tight guard as most other artefacts. There is no reason to, since anyone attempting to steal it would first need to be able to use it, or know someone that could use it and buy it from them and not fear the wrath of the Phoenix Sect. There are few people like that, and fewer yet that actually have the balls to try.”

“… I mean, I can have balls, but,” Bianca muttered, then spoke at a normal volume, “Are we not afraid of the wrath of the Phoenix Sect? I mean, it certainly doesn’t sound like you can afford to buy it, or that we’re planning to do so, so theft… seems like what you’re suggesting.”

“That, I do not know. However, we have already been heading to the south-east. If we go far enough and avoid the conflict with the Exarch further south, we may have a chance once we get there, and we may come up with a strategy using means that we find along the way. It is a much better plan than sitting around and hoping that we don’t get hunted down by someone keen to receive an easy bounty reward from the three sects.”

“Well… guess we can do that-”

“Then, off to chop wood, Song Ming. Enough time was wasted with this discussion, one that we could have had just about anyway. Oh, and you should get dressed first. I wouldn’t mind, but I have a feeling that Bianca doesn’t want a bunch of sweaty men staring at you,” the kitsune glanced at her, flashing a grin, “Just a hunch.”