Zanxing

Chapter 53 - Xiao Shuang (1)

"Ah, I actually ran into a Two-Headed Asura before," said Cui Yufu gleefully from the competition platform. "This kid's luck is really not good."

The Two-Headed Asura is a particularly troublesome type of demon. As the name suggests, this demon has two faces, one beautiful and one horrific. When encountering humans, the demon conceals its ghastly face, using its beauty to seduce its prey, only to swallow them whole when they are unsuspecting. After consuming them, it uses the beautiful skin as its next mask to lure others.

In the past, during the war between humans and demons, many perished at the hands of the Two-Headed Asura. In the entire Muxi Jiezi Scroll, this was the only Two-Headed Asura, and it had just been encountered by a junior disciple. It seemed this disciple would soon meet their end in this assessment.

In the forest, Yanxing stood frozen, unable to watch any longer.

The scene before her was too intense; for someone like Yanxing, who feared ghosts, it felt like watching a horror movie in a holographic projection.

The male disciple, still oblivious to the danger and shyly complimenting, said, "Xiao Shuang? What a beautiful name."

"Is that so?" The upper part of the Two-Headed Asura turned around, revealing its beautiful face behind, while the ghastly face was now in front. It smiled softly and asked, "Which face do you prefer?"

When the junior disciple looked up, he was met with a terrifying green face with sharp fangs. The darkness was deepening, and carrying such a burden on his back was overwhelming. A scream suddenly echoed through the forest, and he didn't even have time to crush the exit talisman before the ghastly face bit into his neck, leaving him as helpless as a chicken caught by a weasel, and he was forced to exit the competition.

The figure in the gauzy robe looked regretfully at the disciple who had turned to smoke and exited, then stood back up. Although she knew it was fake, in the deepening twilight, the sight of such a thing in the forest was eerily unsettling.

The Two-Headed Asura, drawn with spiritual energy, was still quite fearsome, equivalent to a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, making it no easy opponent to fight. Yanxing hadn't decided how to retreat when she noticed that the figure had already lifted its head, pushing back its black hair to reveal a handsome young man's face, like a finely crafted mask, gazing at Yanxing with a slight smirk that radiated an unsettling charm.

Yanxing's heart sank; she had forgotten that this creature also had a face at the back of its head, which could change according to its target.

But after witnessing such a bloody scene, even if it now wore a stunningly beautiful face, Yanxing felt no stir of emotions, only a bit of fear.

She surmised that the gray gauzy robe on the creature must have been stripped from some unfortunate disciple.

At this moment, the Two-Headed Asura had already noticed her, and there was no chance to flee. It even offered Yanxing a gentle smile, taking a few steps closer, saying, "Miss, I..."

With a swift motion, Yanxing drew the iron staff from her waist and said, "Stop talking; let's just fight."

In an instant, the tip of the rod blossomed with layers of floral waterfalls.

Outside the Qingxin Mirror, Li Danshu and the others had unconsciously gathered around. After all, Yanxing had obtained the "Qing'e Nianhua Staff" technique, and in this inner sect assessment, she was also being considered by Xuan Lingzi for the selection of a direct disciple. The previous use of the Torch Eye talisman had already surprised everyone, but none had expected her to encounter the Two-Headed Asura so early.

Encountering a higher-level demon too soon also meant an early exit from the competition, which would hinder her ranking and be very unfavorable for the candidate.

"The Two-Headed Asura is equivalent to a late-stage Nascent Soul's cultivation," said Yueqin with a frown. "Yanxing is only at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment; her cultivation is insufficient."

"That's not necessarily true," Li Danshu chuckled. "Didn't she defeat Duan Xiangrao in the sect assessment previously?"

"Cultivators and demons are different," Zhao Mayi pondered before speaking. "Demons typically employ ruthless tactics, and it seems she hasn't even practiced her technique to the second level yet."

Gu Baiying furrowed his brows, his gaze fixed intently on the figure in the Qingxin Mirror.

"If she tries to fight head-on, she certainly won't win," said Elder Yueguang, shaking his head. "But I have a feeling she might have some unexpected surprises."

In the dense forest, the iron staff in Yanxing's hand was caught by the demon, preventing her from advancing.

The Two-Headed Asura was fiercer and more cunning than the demonic beasts she had faced before. Lower-level demons lacked intelligence, akin to newly evolved beasts relying purely on their instincts to attack. Intermediate-level demons had already developed intelligence, making them more challenging to deal with. The Two-Headed Asura, being high-level, could think, set traps, and during combat, it would avoid injuries while employing even more vicious tactics.

As the shimmering waves of the illusory landscape spread through the air, a dark claw tore it apart with a vicious swipe. The Two-Headed Asura violently shredded the floral waterfall in front of it, and its sharp claws lunged straight at Yanxing's chest.

"Rip!"

The gauzy robe on her chest was torn apart, and Yanxing staggered back, feeling a chill wash over her.

The demon's speed was too quick; she was simply no match for it. While the illusory techniques worked on humans, they seemed less effective against demons that had no weaknesses.

She was in a state of panic yet the Xiao Yuan Pearl at her chest remained unresponsive. Gritting her teeth, just as she was about to wield the rod to charge forward again, she suddenly noticed the Two-Headed Asura picking a flower from the ground.

Its movement was incredibly swift, nearly imperceptible. The flower appeared to be perfectly intact, blooming brilliantly, which the demon concealed against its chest. Yanxing felt a sudden realization and recalled a past event.

Months prior, in a bid to fill her knowledge gaps about this world, Yanxing had visited the library and read numerous miscellaneous texts. Thanks to her past habit of browsing online novels at book stalls, her reading speed was impressive, and she enjoyed various trivial gossip.

The biggest event in the cultivation world in the last hundred years was probably the war between the human and demon clans twenty years ago.

Thus, Yanxing had read "Remembering History: Commemorating 20 Years since the Victory of the Human-Demon War." Though the book had a serious cover, its contents resembled a supernatural novel. It detailed some unique demons that appeared during the war, their origins, physical characteristics, weaknesses, and included illustrations.

The Two-Headed Asura was mentioned within.

Legend has it that many years ago, there was a cultivator of considerable skill and talent, handsome, from a distinguished family, essentially a winner in life at a young age.

However, this cultivator had a peculiar hobby—he liked to dress in women's clothing and secretly disguise himself as a woman. At first, no one noticed, but one day he was caught, and people's perception of him changed dramatically, causing this life winner to immediately experience the hardships of the world.