True Heir of Chaos: From Villainess to Empress

Ever since Mo Yue agreed to form a Dao companion bond with Ma Chengjun, the Ma family had strutted about the Heavenly Demon Palace with no small amount of pride.

Within the palace, many secretly mocked Mo Yue. In trying to weaken the Ma family's influence, she had ended up being offered to them herself. A poor trade, they whispered behind closed doors.

Others, however, felt a cold sympathy. Though Mo Yue had joined the Heavenly Demon Palace halfway through her journey, she was still considered a disciple in the lineage of a Zhēnzūn. She had poured her efforts into the sect, only to be pushed out as a shield when things grew inconvenient. No one could say whether they might be the next Mo Yue.

Palace Master Mo Lie was not blind to the shift in atmosphere. But no one dared voice their thoughts in his presence, and so he could not act on them.

Even so, the situation still favored the Heavenly Demon Palace. Between two evils, one must choose the lesser. Sacrificing Mo Yue's personal stake had preserved the sect's broader interests. And besides, Mo Yue herself had agreed.

Yet for all his logic, Mo Lie could not rid himself of the unease in his chest. He summoned Mo Zhang to speak with him.

Meanwhile, Jian Dan had secretly arranged for the female cultivators abducted to serve as cauldrons to be safely escorted out.

One of them, a young woman from the Jian clan, had avoided the fate of her past life thanks to Jian Dan's intervention. She left the reach of the Heavenly Demon Palace with her innocence intact.

She returned to the Jian clan's hidden territory, Bamboo Stream Ravine, where she reunited with her elder cousin. Only then did she break down in tears, finally allowing herself to grieve, and apologized for her recklessness.

Jian Shangxi, the young clan leader, sighed with relief to see his younger cousin return safe and sound. After hearing her story, he said nothing, only asked her to take out the storage pouch Mo Yue Jūnshàng had given her.

It was an ordinary low-grade pouch, containing five hundred high-grade spirit stones and four boxes.

The red crystal box held Moonlight Algae, a yin-type herb that nourished the female body and helped prepare it for cultivation. The ice-blue box contained a fist-sized shard of millennium-old frost, useful for refining pills or spiritual tools. In the black-purple gold box was a black beetle's carapace, about the size of a palm.

The last box stood out. It was carved from white jade, the kind unique to the Jian clan. On its base was etched their crest—the Wheel of Fate. Its lid was adorned with a carved magnolia blossom. But the box was empty.

"You opened this pouch before?" Jian Shangxi asked sternly.

Jian Yue blinked in surprise, then shook her head.

"I only accepted it at the time. I was afraid that demon cultivator wasn't sincere about letting us go, so I used a disguise mask and escaped the Heavenly Demon Palace immediately. I traveled through several locations before confirming I wasn't being followed. Only then did I return to the clan. I was worried the pouch had been tampered with, so I kept it sealed and stored separately the entire time."

"You're sure?"

"I'm sure, Brother. This box—is it really from our clan? Did that demon cultivator place it there on purpose, or could she have gotten it from somewhere else?"

"She placed it there intentionally."

"Why?"

Jian Yue's eyes widened as she asked.

"Because the box is empty. Come with me to see the clan head. This Mo Yue Jūnshàng might be one of our clan's lost descendants."

"But she's a demon cultivator!"

Jian Yue looked stunned, clearly skeptical of the suggestion.

"Then how do you explain how she recognized your identity at a glance?"

"I..."

She had no answer. It was something that had puzzled her too. Without further delay, the two took the storage pouch and hurried to the clan head.

Back in the palace, after reporting to Mo Lie, Jian Dan handed over all mundane affairs at Mo Ying Peak to Gong Yi. Only matters beyond his authority were to be brought to her.

For a time, Jian Dan lived quite comfortably. With a token from the Scripture Pavilion in hand, she buried herself in the Heavenly Demon Palace's library, beginning a systematic study of demon cultivator techniques.

Naturally, the list of titles she read was reported daily to Palace Master Mo Lie. Yet he noticed that Mo Yue's reading habits were oddly casual. She read on every topic, even skimming through romance novellas. This made it difficult for him to discern any clear focus.

That day, Jian Dan made a personal copy of a story about a Dao companion marriage between a righteous cultivator and a demon cultivator. Returning to Mo Ying Peak, she had her attendants prepare a spirit meal, poured herself a rare bottle of spiritual wine, and leisurely read her book under the sun. When an amusing passage came up, she even shared a line or two aloud with the nearby attendants.

"Jūnshàng, Tang Jian Jūnshàng from Mo Yun Peak has come to visit."

Jian Dan took a slow sip of her wine and asked, "Alone, or did he bring his pampered concubine?"

"Both came."

"Let them in."

Before long, Tang Jian and Pan Yuanyuan arrived at the pavilion outside Jian Dan's residence.

"Mo Yue Shimei, I trust you've been well?"

"Not bad. And you? Recovered from your injuries?"

The question was direct. Tang Jian's expression froze for an instant, but he quickly smoothed it over.

"A minor wound, nothing serious."

"Sit. What brings you to Mo Ying Peak today?"

Tang Jian flicked his robes aside and sat across from her. He gestured for Pan Yuanyuan to take a seat at the stone stool to his right.

"She can stand. She doesn't have the right to sit in my presence yet."

Jian Dan's voice was calm, but the impact was sharp. Pan Yuanyuan immediately froze, then straightened and stood behind Tang Jian with proper deference, not daring to argue.

"Mo Yue Shimei, isn't that a bit much?"

"Is it? You would have your concubine sit as my equal? Has she earned that status, or achieved that level of cultivation?"

Her counterquestion struck hard. Tang Jian was left speechless.

Jian Dan finally set aside her jade slip, looked at Tang Jian's pitying face, then at Pan Yuanyuan's falsely demure expression, and coolly said,

"Tang Jian, if you care so much about your beauty, why not give her a proper title? Let her stand at your side with pride, instead of suffering this kind of humiliation."

Tang Jian's eyes flickered, but he didn't respond. Behind him, Pan Yuanyuan clenched her fists. Jian Dan's words had cut deep, twisting the knife right where it hurt most—reminding her again that she was only a concubine.

"Hmph. Even if I can't give Yuanyuan an official title, at least I love her sincerely. That's better than someone who'll have a Dao companion in name only, a union forged purely for political gain."

He had finally found his counterattack, and aimed it directly at her.

"That's enough. Don't talk in circles. Even if it's just a political union, I still have the Heavenly Demon Palace at my back. I'm a Dao companion, not a concubine."

Another clean strike. Jian Dan couldn't even be bothered to entertain their visit anymore. She had let them in only to see what they were up to. Clearly, it was to mock her.

She was just about to drive them out when Tang Jian finally revealed his purpose.

"Mo Yue, don't get too pleased with yourself. The Ma clan's patriarch just departed with his entourage. They're heading back to prepare for your Dao companion ceremony with Ma Chengjun. They said they'll be returning in thirty days to escort you to the Ma clan estate."

"Is that so?"

Jian Dan finally smiled and looked at the pair.

"Thank you, Tang Jian, for coming all this way to deliver such joyful news. Then let me extend an early invitation. Be sure to attend the ceremony when the time comes."