There is no Redemption for A Scum Villain

Chapter 46

After hearing that the mountain had been invaded by a group of demons led by a young demoness, Shen Qingqiu felt a little panicked, but to not frighten the disciples even more, he kept up a calm facade and gave them the sign to walk ahead. As they reached the plaza before Qiong Ding Hall, the tension in the air was overwhelming. Dozens of disciples, including a couple from other peaks, stood across from a far greater number of demons, their swords in their hands and fear in their eyes. The second they saw Shen Qingqiu arrive, an immense wave of relief flooded the young people's faces.

It was almost immediately evident how annoyed the horde of demons was at his arrival. Especially the young female demon, dressed in flimsy red garments, showed an expression almost akin to a youth having been bothered by their parents while playing a game.

Stepping through the crowd, Shen Qingqiu kept his head held high. His face calm as a lake and his eyes shining with authority. In passing, he shoved his cat into Shen Yuan's hands, regarding Princess with a glance that told her to be good as he stepped before the demoness.

"To whom does our humble sect owe the pleasure of meeting?" Shen Qingqiu asked, looking at the young demon. Judging by her demeanor, she was very obviously the leader of this group of 'visitors'.

"Sha Hualing," the young woman replied with an arrogant smile, "Demon saintress." She enunciated every syllable of this title as if she had just presented the entirety of her wealth to him and expected him to gasp in recognition, but all she got was the sound of a fan snapping open and the man before her leisurely fanning himself.

"Miss Sha, I do not recall that you have been invited here. Have you come to stir up trouble with our sect," Shen Qingqiu asked.

Sha Hualing, crossed her arms. "Of course not..." she viewed his uniform and drew a conclusion, "Senior Shen. This lowly one merely visited for a friendly sparring session, nothing more. We initially intended on sending up a messenger, but then we found your barrier inexplicably damaged, so we went to...investigate the issue to see if our human friends may have fallen into the fangs of danger."

"And the Rainbow bridges?" Shen Qingqiu asked, casting a glance over to the remnants of said bridges that had visibly been recently destroyed, "Were they too damaged before you arrived to... aid us?"

"Oh, those." Sha Hualing looked lazily over, obviously not caring much, "As we were frantically searching for a higher ranked sect member, we wished to visit the other peaks, but your bridges seem not to be powerful enough to support the weight of so many people."

It was more than obvious that she was lying and Shen Qingqiu had little interest in playing into her lies, but he could not outright start a dispute despite her obvious offenses. Firstly that would endanger the sect and secondly this could pose a threat to his goal of laying by this seemingly unending war between the human and demon race. If he were able to get these demons to be on his side, that may just be the first step to peace...

"Even so," Shen Qingqiu said, giving the demoness something that was supposed to resemble a small smile, but which ended up just looking like his usual cold expression, "It would have been a little more appropriate to send one scout instead of just arriving with a full...group. Is it not natural for us to assume the presence of aggression?"

"Surely," Sha Hualing replied, "This lowly one deeply apologizes for causing such discomfort to the Immortal Master."

"Is there a reason that Miss Sha decided that this... friendly sparring match should be held today?" Shen Qingqiu asked, ignoring the obviously insincere apology. He knew that Yue Qingyuan was currently visiting Zhao Hua Monastery and he was sure at this point that these demons too were aware of that fact, choosing this point in time in particular to strike as seemingly the sect was defenseless.