Half-Demon

Caught off guard by this barrage of questions, Li Yuan opened his mouth, unsure of which one to answer first, when the white fox beside him spoke up.

Hui sighed softly, with a hint of helplessness but also the composure of someone who had seen it all.

She beckoned to Setis with her front paw, her tone calm but leaving no room for doubt.

“Don't be in such a hurry to ask. Follow me back inside. Once I check your body and make sure everything is fine, we can talk about all of this.”

The white fox's sudden speech gave Setis quite a fright.

She instinctively shrank back toward Li Yuan, staring wide-eyed at the massive white fox before her.

It wasn't that she had never seen a magical beast that could speak—she had heard that dragons and certain ancient species could speak the human tongue—but she had never encountered a fox that could talk, let alone in such a natural tone.

Unsure, she turned to look at Li Yuan, her eyes filled with inquiry.

Li Yuan nodded at her, his tone gentle but brief.

“Listen to her. It's fine. Go inside and get checked first. We can take our time talking about whatever you want to ask afterward.”

Setis hesitated for a moment, then glanced at Hui's golden vertical pupils again. There was no malice there, only a faint scrutiny, as if assessing whether a freshly crafted piece of art met her expectations.

She took a deep breath to calm herself, then nodded to Hui.

Hui turned and walked toward the cottage. Setis followed behind her, her steps still carrying a bit of the weakness from just waking up, but her curiosity had clearly overridden her nervousness. Just before crossing the threshold behind Hui, she glanced back at Li Yuan.

Li Yuan stood in place and smiled gently at her, raising his hand to reassure her to go inside.

The last trace of unease in Setis's heart completely dissolved with that smile.

She turned, took a deep breath, and followed Hui into the cottage.

The wooden door gently closed behind them, leaving only a few wisps of breeze stirred up in the yard.

Although Hui had a sharp tongue, she was always reliable in her work. After all, those were her own tails that had transformed into Setis's bone structure. In a sense, Setis's physical body was already half-demon.

He sat back down cross-legged by the low table, listening to the occasional rustling sounds from inside the house and Hui's brief, concise instructions, and slowly closed his eyes.

The commotion inside was very quiet at first, like someone rustling through clothes, but then Hui's impatient voice rang out.

“Raise your arms.”

“Oh.”

“Don't move around.”

“I'm not moving.”

“Your tail is almost popping out, and you still say you aren't?”

“Tail?!”

Setis's voice pitched up significantly, and the cottage immediately fell silent for a brief moment. Li Yuan, who had his eyes closed, couldn't help but open them upon hearing this, his expression pausing slightly.

After a short silence, Hui's lazy voice drifted out again:

“It was a metaphor. Don't you get it? What are you so nervous about?”

Setis seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, but quickly muttered something in a low voice that was hard to hear clearly through the wooden door.

Sitting by the low table, Li Yuan raised a hand to rub his temples.

Under normal circumstances, he probably would have spoken up to remind her, but remembering that Hui was already full of pent-up anger over her tails, he wisely chose not to interject.

Inside the cottage, Setis stood in the center of the room, her clothes having been changed into a loose white dress. It was something Li Yuan had casually retrieved from his storage space; the style was simple and easy to wear.

Hui slowly walked a circle around her.

Her golden vertical pupils narrowed slightly as her gaze swept from the top of Setis's head all the way down to her feet. Setis felt somewhat uncomfortable under her gaze, instinctively clasping her hands in front of her. After enduring it as much as she could, she finally couldn't help but speak:

“How much longer are you going to stare?”

Hui stopped her steps and glanced up at her.

“What? I saved your life, and I can't even look at you for a bit?”

Setis was choked up by the response, her confidence instantly weakening.

Although she still didn't know the full story, judging by Li Yuan's attitude earlier, this white fox was clearly no ordinary creature.

Coupled with the fact that she was indeed standing here perfectly fine with the wound on her chest gone, she could guess a thing or two.

Thus, she coughed lightly and softened her tone a bit:

“I didn't mean it like that, it's just... I'm a bit unaccustomed to this.”

Hui stopped teasing her and lightly tapped her front paw on the ground.

A wisp of pale gold light rose from beneath Setis's feet, wrapping around her like thin threads.

These threads of light slowly glided along her skin before gradually sinking into her body through her wrists, shoulders, and spine.

Setis's body stiffened.

She could feel those threads of light flowing through her meridians like warm water once they entered her body. It was just that this feeling was far too unfamiliar—it felt nothing like mana, nor did it resemble any recovery spell.

Hui closed her eyes, her eight tails swaying gently behind her.

After a moment, she opened her eyes, her tone carrying a touch of seriousness.

“The soul is fine.”

Before Setis could breathe a sigh of relief, Hui continued:

“The physical vessel has also stabilized, and the fusion is even more thorough than I expected. There is no rejection, and the bone structure has been completely reconstructed.”

She raised her paw again and pressed it lightly toward the space between Setis's eyebrows.

Setis's vision suddenly blurred, as if something had lightly tapped the depths of her mind. She instinctively wanted to step back, only to find that her body felt no discomfort whatsoever.

“Hmm, your divine soul hasn't been awakened yet, but you can sense spiritual qi. That's enough.”

Hui withdrew her paw, her voice finally carrying a bit less disdain.

“Consider yourself lucky.”

Setis was utterly bewildered.

Soul, physical vessel, bone structure, divine soul—she had seen some of these terms in the 《Chronicles of Kyushu》, while others left her with no impression at all.

But judging by Hui's reaction, her situation didn't seem to be bad.

She asked hesitantly:

“So... I'm fine now?”

“You're fine,” Hui answered flatly. “Not only are you fine, but you're also much better off than before.”

Setis blinked.

Seeing her bewildered expression, Hui suddenly found it somewhat amusing, so she turned and walked toward the door.

“Come on out. I'll let that guy explain the rest to you. I can't be bothered to say it a second time.”

The wooden door was pushed open, and Hui walked out of the cottage first.

Li Yuan had already stood up and was standing in the yard. Seeing her come out, his gaze fell behind her. Setis followed her out, her face still carrying a somewhat bewildered expression.

“How is she?” Li Yuan looked at Hui.

Hui flicked her tails, found a comfortable spot in the yard to lie down, and said calmly:

“The fusion is complete.”

A barely perceptible relief flickered in Li Yuan's eyes.

Hui added:

“My tails have completely transformed into her bone structure and bloodline. Her current vessel is already a Demon Emperor Body in the truest sense. Although her soul is still human, she is now practically a Half-Demon.”

Hearing this, Setis finally couldn't hold back anymore.

“The demon race?”