Demon Lord (14): Lock up Gu Juntian and make him accompany him only!

In the blink of an eye, Zhou Qinghao had returned to the outer perimeter of the Demon Palace.

The entire palace was enveloped in layer upon layer of formations. These formations were invisible to the naked eye, but they could be sensed with spiritual perception.

Most of these formations had been set up by his own hands, each one a deadly killing formation.

Gu Juntian had said these formations were meant to fend off invaders, but was that really the case?

Zhou Qinghao took a deep breath and slowly walked inward.

He had rarely interacted with people in the past and didn’t understand many things, but he wasn’t foolish.

He knew the dangers of human hearts.

In the past, anyone who harbored murderous intent toward him or tried to harm him, he would kill without hesitation, never showing mercy.

But Gu Juntian was different.

When he had seen Gu Juntian in his dreams, he had liked this person. And when Gu Juntian appeared before him in reality, he liked him even more.

He couldn’t bring himself to kill Gu Juntian, so he kept him locked in his palace, checking on him from time to time.

Just seeing Gu Juntian made him happy.

At the time, Gu Juntian had been hostile toward him, his gaze filled with murderous intent every time he looked at him.

But he didn’t care. Gu Juntian was too weak to pose any real threat to him, and his hostility meant nothing.

It was like how ordinary demonic cultivators, when raising low-level demonic beasts, wouldn’t care whether the beast disliked them or not.

If the beast resisted, a single strike would be enough to make it submit.

That day, when he went to check on Gu Juntian, he happened to encounter someone who had come to kill him.

He had thought Gu Juntian might step down from the formation-protected bed and join the attackers in assaulting him.

He didn’t want to harm Gu Juntian, but if Gu Juntian had done that, it would have caused him some trouble.

Fortunately, Gu Juntian didn’t.

He had been quite pleased, and later, when Gu Juntian showed concern for him, he was even happier. He even unilaterally decided that Gu Juntian was his partner, growing closer and more intimate with him.

In the blink of an eye, a month had passed.

He felt that this month had been the happiest time of his life, but what about Gu Juntian? How did Gu Juntian feel?

For Gu Juntian, had this month been one of enduring humiliation?

The fat demonic cultivator had told him a lot, and he now knew about Gu Juntian’s past.

Gu Juntian was a prodigy, taken to the Qingyun Sect by its leader at a young age. He grew up carefree in the sect and eventually fell in love with Ao Jin.

Ao Jin had been adored since birth. His parents had abandoned him, but they doted on Ao Jin to an extreme.

Many people liked Ao Jin, and Gu Juntian was one of them.

Gu Juntian would roast meat for Ao Jin, groom his scales, and protect him…

He had seen how devoted Gu Juntian was to Ao Jin in his dreams, but at the time, he had stubbornly refused to believe it was just a dream, insisting that the Ao Jin in the dream was himself.

For the sake of that little warmth, he had been deceiving himself all along.

And then? Ao Jin was injured by a demonic cultivator, his dragon core damaged. That demonic cultivator might have even mentioned him.

So, Gu Juntian came to him, seeking revenge for Ao Jin.

Gu Juntian couldn’t have been unaware of his strength, so at the time, Gu Juntian must have come with the determination to die.

Gu Juntian was willing to die for Ao Jin.

Realizing this, Zhou Qinghao felt a sharp pain in his heart.

How could such a Gu Juntian ever willingly become his partner?

In Gu Juntian’s accounts, demonic cultivators and righteous cultivators had always been sworn enemies. Gu Juntian would never fall for a demonic cultivator.

That day, Gu Juntian’s sudden change in attitude towards him was probably because he had seen his true form and wanted his inner core, right?

Gu Juntian was only at the Nascent Soul stage, very weak in strength, and simply couldn’t defeat him. So, he decided to be nice to him, using that as a way to get close and wait for the right moment to strike.

He should have been on guard, but he liked Gu Juntian too much, and thus let his guard down.

Or perhaps, he was just deceiving himself again.

He wished that there was someone in this world who loved him.

For the past month, Gu Juntian had been very good to him, but that kindness didn’t really mean much.

The barbecued meat and the care for his scales were things Gu Juntian learned for Ao Jin, and sleeping with him was something he was forced into.

No wonder every time he tried to get close to Gu Juntian, Gu Juntian would push him away… From beginning to end, Gu Juntian never liked him.

Who would like a big, pitch-black snake anyway?

As for taking him to set up formations…

His demon palace did have intruders from time to time, but he was very strong, and those who broke in couldn’t really harm him.

Was Gu Juntian setting up so many formations to deal with him?

While setting up the formations, Gu Juntian talked to him about the dragon clan, mentioning how strong they were, and then led him to set up some formations specifically targeting the dragon clan.

At that time, he didn’t think much of it, but now looking back, could the formations designed to deal with the dragon clan also be used against him?

Did Gu Juntian want to kill him in this demon palace, extract his inner core, and give it to Ao Jin to help repair Ao Jin’s dragon core?

An overwhelming hatred towards Ao Jin surged in Zhou Qinghao’s heart. At this moment, he wished he could tear Ao Jin into pieces.

But Ao Jin hadn’t actually done anything wrong.

Ultimately, it was because he was inherently flawed and unlikable.

He thought that finally, someone liked him, but from beginning to end, it was all a lie.

Zhou Qinghao stepped towards the demon palace, once again immersing himself in those formations.

Since Gu Juntian didn’t like him, there was no need to keep Gu Juntian in the demon palace.

Later, he would drive Gu Juntian out of the demon palace!

And these formations… he would destroy them all.

Gu Juntian had underestimated his strength. Although these formations could harm him, they couldn’t kill him. During the process of setting up the formations, he had also learned a lot of related knowledge.

He could indeed destroy all these formations.

As he walked forward, passing through one formation after another, Zhou Qinghao’s mind was filled with the memories of his interactions with Gu Juntian over the past month.

Although Gu Juntian didn’t truly like him, for Zhou Qinghao, it was a beautiful memory.

It was also a dream, a sweet dream that he could revisit over and over again in the future.

Zhou Qinghao walked very slowly.

He was somewhat reluctant to destroy these formations.

After driving Gu Juntian away, he could find a way to take control of the formation cores and make these formations work for him.

After all, these were traces left by Gu Juntian in the demon palace.

Finally, Zhou Qinghao returned to his own chamber.

Gu Juntian was still refining elixirs.

Zhou Qinghao knew he should rush over, disrupt the formations around Gu Juntian, throw him out, and make him leave his demon palace.

But he didn’t do that.

If disturbed while refining elixirs, Gu Juntian might get hurt.

He decided to wait until Gu Juntian finished refining this batch of elixirs.

He also wanted to look at Gu Juntian a little longer.

Zhou Qinghao took a deep breath and quietly watched Gu Juntian.

He didn’t know how long he had been watching, but finally, Gu Juntian finished refining a batch of elixirs.

After placing the elixirs into a bottle, Gu Juntian turned around with a smile and looked at Zhou Qinghao: “Why have you been staring at me?”

While refining elixirs, he still had some awareness of his surroundings.

Zhou Qinghao had tried to approach him after waking up, was blocked by the formations and left, then came back and stared at him… Gu Juntian knew all about it.

Zhou Qinghao must have been getting impatient.

Seeing Gu Juntian’s smile, Zhou Qinghao stiffened slightly.

If it were before, he would have denied it, saying, “I wasn’t looking!”

But this time was different. Zhou Qinghao said, “I think you’re very beautiful.”

Gu Juntian laughed: “You are the most beautiful.”

“Really?” Zhou Qinghao asked.

“Of course it’s true! Qinghao, are you hungry? Shall I grill some meat for you?” Gu Juntian asked.

Zhou Qinghao knew he should immediately drive Gu Juntian away.

Keeping Gu Juntian here was very dangerous for him.

But he couldn’t bear to let him go.

Forget it, after eating the barbecue Gu Juntian made for him, he would drive him away.

Zhou Qinghao said, “I want to eat a lot, a lot.”

“Then I’ll grill more for you,” Gu Juntian replied.

After speaking, Gu Juntian took out various tools and started grilling meat for Zhou Qinghao.

Zhou Qinghao ate the barbecue very slowly, and while eating, he kept staring at Gu Juntian.

This was the last barbecue Gu Juntian would ever grill for him in this lifetime, so he had to savor it properly.

After finishing, he would have to drive Gu Juntian away.

It’s funny, in the past, when someone offended him, his first reaction was to kill them, but with Gu Juntian, from beginning to end, he couldn’t bring himself to even think about killing him.

Gu Juntian noticed that Zhou Qinghao was eating the barbecue much slower than usual today.

His little black dragon probably wanted to spend more time with him.

Gu Juntian said, “Qinghao, in a few months, let’s go to the cultivation world together. There are many delicious things there, and I’ll take you to try them all.”

Zhou Qinghao responded with a soft “Hmm.”

He knew Gu Juntian was just saying this to placate him, but he was willing to listen.

He wanted to hear more.

At that moment, Gu Juntian added more barbecue to Zhou Qinghao’s plate.

Looking at the meat on his plate, Zhou Qinghao suddenly realized that he didn’t actually want to drive Gu Juntian away at all.

Why should he drive Gu Juntian away?

If he drove Gu Juntian away, Gu Juntian would surely return to Ao Jin’s side, and might even bring people from Dragon Island to capture him and extract his inner core!

Gu Juntian was his, his alone!

Why should he give Gu Juntian to someone else?

This was the little partner he had fought for!

In fact, he should have kept Gu Juntian locked up from the beginning, making sure Gu Juntian could only stay by his side!

The more he thought about it, the more he believed this was the right course of action. Zhou Qinghao looked up at Gu Juntian, his eyes turning into vertical slits.

“What’s wrong?” Gu Juntian asked.

Vertical pupils often give off a cold and ruthless vibe, but on Zhou Qinghao’s face, they only made him seem adorable.

Zhou Qinghao didn’t speak.

He really wanted to ask Gu Juntian about Ao Jin, but he didn’t dare.

If he asked, and Gu Juntian realized he already knew the truth, would Gu Juntian turn hostile and stop looking at him with such gentle eyes?

He wanted to savor a little more of the warmth from Gu Juntian.

Zhou Qinghao said, “I want you to sleep with me.”

“Be good, I still need to refine elixirs…” Gu Juntian began, but in the next second, Zhou Qinghao transformed his lower body into a snake tail, wrapping it around Gu Juntian and repeating in a stern tone, “I want you to sleep with me!”

Gu Juntian sensed that something was off with Zhou Qinghao’s mood.

Young dragons before adulthood often have fluctuating emotions, acting very capricious and sometimes violent.

In such moments, adult dragons shouldn’t confront the young ones but should instead coax them gently.

Although he needed to refine elixirs, he had actually set aside time to take care of Zhou Qinghao.

Gu Juntian said, “Alright, I’ll sleep with you.”

Zhou Qinghao had already prepared himself for what he would do if Gu Juntian refused.

He hadn’t expected Gu Juntian to agree so readily.

For a moment, he was at a loss.

Gu Juntian then asked, “Are your scales uncomfortable? Let me massage them for you.”

Dragon clans shed their skin when they reach adulthood, and before that, their bodies start preparing for the shedding.

Massaging them could make Zhou Qinghao feel better, help the new skin grow faster, and make the shedding process smoother.

Zhou Qinghao looked down at the spot on his tail where two scales were missing.

His scales had suddenly stopped growing—was this related to Gu Juntian?

Was Gu Juntian really helping him maintain his scales, or was he doing something else?

Gu Juntian hated him and wanted to kill him. He shouldn’t have eaten the barbecue Gu Juntian made for him, nor should he have let Gu Juntian apply various substances to his body.

He should refuse.

“Alright,” Zhou Qinghao agreed immediately, transforming back into his original form and lying on the ground.

He couldn’t refuse. He wanted Gu Juntian to stay with him, grill meat for him, and massage his scales.

Why didn’t Gu Juntian like him?

If he hadn’t been abandoned and had grown up on Dragon Island, traveling with Ao Jin and meeting Gu Juntian together, would Gu Juntian have liked him?

Probably not, right? He was so ugly.

The big black snake’s eyes welled up, and with a “plop,” two huge teardrops fell.