Crossing the threshold from one world to another dimension, was like walking against the current of a powerful river, which pushed against them relentlessly, while they did their best to maintain their footing. The purple fog was thick there and charged with an overwhelming power that, at times, threatened to bring them to their knees. Since Pei Siheng was currently between two stages, Yun Guang was by his side in his human form, protecting him against the crushing energy and supporting him from falling. Yichen hadn't objected, as Zhu Yan provided sufficient support for him at this initial stage, and Siheng was a valuable member of their unit.
They knew, from Li Lun's experience crossing thresholds multiple times, that the pressure of the tainted energy between the worlds would be their first major obstacle, but at least this one was easier to overcome than the rest of their challenges. Hand in hand, in pairs, they walked against the demonic current and resisted the invisible force that sought to crush them. As they moved further through the gateway, the mist began to thin, and finally, after what seemed like hours, they crossed the threshold completely, into an incredible sight not unlike the one Zhu Yan had shown them during their training.
The sun was setting in the demon world, so everything around them seemed to be bathed in a golden light, making the forest in front of them look like something out of a fairy tale. They stood there for a moment, while Li Lin sent a whirlwind of his leaves to scout ahead and see if there was anything they should be wary of, as they ventured further into the demon world.
"This is truly quite a beautiful sight. Everything around here is so divine, so why would the demons want to go out and conquer a world that has less beauty than this?" Bai Jiu asked, and Li Lun looked at the young healer.
"Not everything here is as it seems. Initially, this world was even more beautiful than what you see now, but the malicious energy began to change everything—the soil, the air, the water, the plants, and even the environment. The great demons could withstand the malicious energy, but everything else fell prey to it. Of course, the demons were aware that the monkey here; was tasked with guarding the gate. Thus, as the son of a demon god with a unique power that could create worlds, and saw him in action during the war; you can't blame them for staying away from the gate. It's not like those few demons who actually tried to conquer the human world, back when the demon world was created, lived to encourage others to try. Only I kept challenging him throughout the centuries, but it was well known that we were once best friends, so... they didn't take my failed attempts seriously. Neither did I..." Zhu Yan chuckled.
"I beat you every time." Zhu Yan teased Li Lun.
"I wasn't serious, so stop puffing up your chest like a peacock showing off its feathers to its lover." Li Lun corrected, and Yichen sighed.
"Don't let him get to you so early in our journey, Li Lun. Ignore him if you can." Yichen advised, while Zhu Yan approached him with a dramatic, pained expression.
"Baobei, how cruel of you. Despite your many brothers or brothers-in-law, I am your only devoted lover." Yichen rolls his eyes.
"Don't involve Yun Guang, Bai Jiu, Ying Lei or Pei Siheng in this. Get over it." Yichen replied in his most mature response yet, causing the women in their group to giggle and the men to chuckle.
"That was amazing, Xiao Zhuo Ge!" Bai Jiu praised his older brother, but Li Lun burst his bubble shortly after.
"How come most of this group are either your brothers or brothers-in-law? Baobei, that's not fair to your poor lonely husband," Zhu Yan joked.
"What husband? Also, if they are my brothers or brothers-in-law, it means they are yours too, so stop complaining," Yichen replied, causing Zhu Yan to laugh and give him a quick kiss on the cheek.
"I swear, if there are any demons nearby, they'll know the monkey is here, along with a group of unnatural beings. Their names mean nothing to the demons in this realm, but never utter the forbidden one's name, for his name will awaken the entire realm." Li Lun warned them, as demons had much better hearing than most of them.
"Oops, should we just call him monkey until we reach Crystal Valley?" Ying Lei asked, while trying to suppress a laugh, as did the rest, especially Wen Xiao.
"How many times do I have to repeat myself? I'm a white ape. Ape, for goodness's sake." Zhu Yan whined, and Yichen took his hand to calm his theatrics down.
"That won't work either, as that will also give you away too." Li Lun added, and this time, some of them did laugh.
"Alright, don't tease him too much, this isn't the place for that. So, have you ever used another name that we can use instead?" Yixuan asked, feeling sorry for him. Zhu Yan recalls the time he spent with his father and Bing Yi, while the other looks at him expectantly.
There was a name that the Baize goddess herself, had once told his father, it would be useful someday. Ying Long had even called him by that name several times, just to make sure he would respond, if he were ever called that.
"Zhao Yuanzhou. That was the name that Wen Xiao's blood ancestor once gave me." To everyone, the message was clear: no god could be named either, and everyone knew that the goddess Baize was Wen Xiao's ancestor, so there was no need to clarify that either.
"Alright, Zhao Yuanzhou it is. Now, is it safe for us to keep walking? Staying at the gate isn't exactly safe, either. There's something strange about this place..." Yichen said, feeling it in his very core.
Yixuan closed his eyes and opened them again, surveying the demon world with his divine sight, and although he couldn't see any demons nearby, he could feel that it wasn't safe either.
"We should leave." Yixuan agreed with his brother, and after Li Lun made sure there was nothing nearby that could ambush them, they moved away from the gate.
For miles, there were only strange forests, shining crystals, strange rock formations and glowing plants, but none tried to ambush them, unlike the first time they had failed inside Zhu Yan's illusion. Li Lun, Zhu Yan, and Yixuan kept their senses alert to every detail in the forest, as theirs were the strongest, while the others walked in formation, as they had trained. Yun Guang was still in his human form, so he had to keep his mind sharp, and Pei Sijing had her bow in hand.
Eventually, they encountered some low-level demons, but nothing the demon hunters hadn't dealt with before, and even though Li Lun was still somewhat conflicted about hunting his own kind, he understood that it was something that couldn't be avoided. If a low-level demon escaped after realizing that Zhu Yan had crossed the gate, even with his appearance changed and his demonic aura heavily suppressed, any slip-up could cost them their lives. And those demons they had hunted had no redemption; they were too tainted to ever become something they never were.
They continued walking for several hours, even though the humans were exhausted, not only from the exercise they were accustomed to, with their many years of demon hunting, but also from the oppressive energy of the place they were still getting used to. Fortunately for them, their bond allowed Zhu Yan, Li Lun, and Yun Guang to channel energy into their life force chain, keeping them going until they reached a place that would be absolutely safe. A place that Li Lun had already secured for them, one he had used himself for almost a lifetime. So they just needed to hold on a little longer.
When they arrived there, all the humans gazed upon the beautiful sight that was truly breathtaking. Before their eyes, a tall and majestic mass of stone rose proudly and completely dreamlike, elevated above a sea of colorful forest below, an inselberg with a nest of luminous trees blooming with different colors at its center. From their vantage point, the swaying of the forest canopy sounded like welcoming whispers, while a hollow space under its protection seemed like a warm bed of earth and leaves. A paradise for trees, awaiting its owner.
There were some magical ribbons of water running down the sides, cascading from the edges of the rock into the forest below. In the center, the trees converged into a protective cocoon that emanated pure cultivation energy, an ancient sanctuary of a great demon, which had stood there for centuries, resisting malicious energy, remaining untainted and purer than most demons in that realm.
For Yixuan, seeing this place was like being at the gates of home. Everything there was Li Lun—his trees, his water, his cultivation, his clean air, his spectacular view of the icy mountains in the distance, and his beauty. If he weren't aware that once a tree demon transforms, their true form is within their core, just like Yun Guang and Zhu Yan, he would swear that a massive pagoda tree would stand tall in the center, protected, cherished, and feared, for in such a pure place, no tainted demon could live. Li Lun wouldn't allow it.
"Li Lun... it's overwhelmingly beautiful," Yixuan whispered as he continued to gaze at it, unable to tear his eyes away from the magnificence. Li Lun smiled in satisfaction as he approached Yixuan and gently wrapped an arm around his husband's waist.
"I'm glad you like it. This is my home, yours too by demon standards, considering our current bond. I know they just look like colorful trees, but so I am," Li Lun whispered into Yixuan's ear, who smiled.
"They're not just trees, they're a part of you, and it's already a miracle that you've maintained this place as Ying Long intended. It's my home too," Yixuan assured him, and out of nowhere, Li Lun lifted Yixuan into his arms.
"Hey! Be careful with my brother!" Yichen protested as they stood at the edge of a cliff overlooking Li Lun's "nest," and any misstep would be fatal.
"Don't worry, Didi, it's fine, he won't drop me," Yixuan assured him without a hint of embarrassment. Apparently, his brother was having the time of his life. Yichen sighed.
"Baobei, if you like trees, I can make you a nest in mine. You also have a pleasant view from there." Zhu Yan offered, while Li Lun looked at him amused. The stupid monkey was too much.
"No need for a 'nest,' we can always just sit there like last time. To be honest, it was quite nice. So, what now? How do we get across to Li Lun's treehouse?" Yichen asked, and with a smile, Li Lin said, "Wait here, my lover comes first." And everyone watched as Li Lun and Yixuan were covered in leaves and then disappeared like the wind, into the abyss below, which almost made Yichen scream his brother's name, his heart in his throat, at such a stunt. But they all knew that was how he teleported, and soon, they saw them land safely on the other side, and Li Lun lowered his brother to guide him inside.
As they walked closer to the tree nest, it parted on its own, softly and silently, bending slightly to greet their Master, and after they entered, it closed again, with flowers falling in the center, over Yixuan. Yichen smiled at the sight, because he could feel his brother's happiness as if it were his own.
"I'm happy for you, brother. You deserve that and more." Yichen whispered to the wind, and then, he too was lifted into Zhu Yan's arms.
"Hey, you shameless monkey, don't you dare too..." But all he could do after that was scream loudly as Zhu Yan literally JUMPED with him onto the inselberg. And this time, his heart ended up in his throat, as adrenaline coursed through his body, but the landing was as soft as clouds. Still, Yichen was trembling, so Zhu Yan laughed as he turned to face the astonished expressions of the others, while Yichen still clung to him for dear life.
"Who's next?!" Zhu Yan shouted, with Yichen still clinging to him. And obviously, the rest of the group shouted a name in unison.
"Li Lun!! Come back!!!" And inside his protective cocoon, Li Lun chuckled.
Hours later, after nightfall, the humans were resting on their own comfortable mats, which Zhu Yan had created for them, while Li Lun and Zhu Yan were lying on a bed of tall roots, looking up at the open space the trees made, so they could observe the stars of Ying Long, or at least, Li Lun was.
Zhu Yan had his eyes closed in concentration, sensing far more than Li Lun could. He could see a faint red glow covering Zhu Yan and knew it didn't bode well if he let even a sliver of his power escape. The place was under the protection of Li Lun's strongest barrier, but Zhu Yan's demonic energy was in a league of its own.
"What do you see?" Li Lun asked softly.
"Trouble. She's getting closer." Zhu Yan revealed, and Li Lun looked back at the stars.
"We can handle her. We prepared for this." Li Lun told him confidently.
"I'm sure we can handle the Lady in White, but contrary to what we expected, she's not alone." Zhu Yan said as he opened his deep red eyes.
"What do you mean? Those nine have never gotten along before. The times they were paired together in the war, it ended in disaster for the demons." Li Lun had seen it happen more times than he cared to remember.
"Gu Yue is coming from the north, but Luse Zhimei (Painted Skin) is coming from the east, and both are quite close. They'll be here in less than two days, maybe sooner." Zhu Yan closed his eyes again, and Li Lun looked at Yixuan, sleeping on the mat they shared until a few minutes ago, when he joined Zhu Yan in scanning their surroundings again.
"It doesn't matter if they come one by one or all at once, none of them will touch our humans." Li Lun replied, and Zhu Yan smiled.
"I couldn't have said it better myself. In fact, I'm impressed you learned so quickly." Zhu Yan teased him, and he was about to retort, but he closed his mouth, when he faintly saw a shadow overlapping Zhu Yan's body. He knew that form very well, and wondered if Zhu Yan and Ying Long could truly merge into one. Because to him, it sure looks like that.
AN: Oh? So there is more mystery closing in? What's happening to Zhu Yan? By now the story is truly leveling up. Thanks for reading and I hope you like this transition chapter. Until next time, take care.