PID Chapter 8

During lunch, a servant replaced Chu Jinglan’s chopsticks once.

 

After lunch, when the servant came to clear the dishes, they found Chu Jinglan’s expression cold and angry, as if he had swallowed a fly rather than enjoyed a delicious meal.

 

The servant’s heart skipped a beat, and they quickly asked, “Young Master, was the food not to your liking?”

 

Chu Jinglan frowned, as if suppressing some anger: “What?”

 

He truly hadn’t heard clearly, because when the servant asked, the inner demon’s flute had just hit a long, discordant note. The devastation was comparable to birds fleeing the mountains and beasts vanishing for hundreds of miles. Chu Jinglan’s ears were buzzing, nearly exploding.

 

The servant thought: Oh no, the Young Master’s expression is terrifying!

 

Fortunately, Chu Jinglan usually treated the servants well. If it were young masters from other branches of the family losing their temper, the servants would already be on their knees begging for forgiveness. The servant wiped away cold sweat and weakly repeated the question.

 

This time Chu Jinglan heard clearly. He tried to smooth his brow and soften his tone: “…The food was fine. You may clear the table and leave.”

 

The servant didn’t dare ask how the first pair of chopsticks had broken. They quickly cleaned up and left. Chu Jinglan raised his hand to rub his ears but forcefully resisted the urge.

 

Covering his ears would be showing weakness to the inner demon, and he refused to compromise.

 

Chu Jinglan’s fingers clenched and unclenched repeatedly. He looked like he wanted to find a block of tofu to knock himself unconscious with—if he couldn’t hear, all would be peaceful.

 

He understood music theory, which made it even worse. After listening for half a day, he couldn’t discern what tune the inner demon was trying to play from any of the notes… No, it couldn’t possibly be a proper tune, could it?

 

Of course Chu Jinglan couldn’t recognize it, because Xiao Mo wasn’t playing a tune from this world.

 

Xiao Mo had tried practicing with this world’s beginner sheet music but found it difficult. So he switched to a simple, universal beginner’s tune from his original world—”Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.”

 

Xiao Mo had never learned an instrument, but he had a good memory. The simple notation for “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” was easy to remember, and he had memorized it after seeing it once.

 

Unfortunately, Xiao Mo’s rendition of “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” sounded more like a great ape in the rainforest, beating its chest and roaring. Luckily, only Chu Jinglan could hear it, so the embarrassment was limited.

 

The system had muted its audio input, but the notifications hadn’t stopped. It kept chiming that mental attacks were successful, adding points continuously.

 

The lunchtime performance was gut-wrenching, far more effective than harsh words. Chu Jinglan’s emotional state remained steadily in the red zone, never dropping.

 

Xiao Mo was delighted as he played the flute, both cultivating and earning points: What a profit!

 

After playing for most of the day, Xiao Mo grew tired and paused to rest. He clearly saw Chu Jinglan’s tormented expression relax for a moment when the flute sound stopped.

 

There was a sense of relief, as if surviving a disaster.

 

Xiao Mo’s entire mist form was black. Observing Chu Jinglan’s expression, he felt mischievous and couldn’t resist. After just two seconds of silence, he playfully blew another note.

 

As soon as the flute sounded, the just-relaxed Chu Jinglan jolted, his shoulders visibly shaking.

 

Xiao Mo finally couldn’t hold back his laughter: “Hahaha!”

 

Realizing he was being toyed with, Chu Jinglan: “…”

 

Inner demon!!!

 

Chu Jinglan could no longer endure. He summoned his spirit sword and swung to strike!

 

He knew the sword couldn’t harm the inner demon, but Chu Jinglan was too enraged to care. Whether it worked or not, he would strike first and think later!

 

Otherwise, he might go mad with anger!

 

This time, Xiao Mo didn’t stay put to be struck. He rolled through the air to dodge, nimbly floating up to the roof beam. Looking down at Chu Jinglan, he loudly retorted: “This is payback for deliberately mocking me at mealtime. You started it!”

 

Chu Jinglan stood in the room, sword in hand, his chest heaving. He laughed at the absurd logic: “An inner demon who suddenly appeared, trying to kill and possess me, says I started it?”

 

How shameless could he be?

 

Xiao Mo immediately shot back: “It’s because your mind is unstable that an inner demon was born! You think I want this? I don’t want to be your inner demon at all!”

 

Forced to transmigrate, forced to become an inner demon, unable to take human form even to sunbathe, tethered to Chu Jinglan—Xiao Mo had long harbored a belly full of grievances. A youth’s grievances often turn to anger, ready to explode at the slightest provocation.

 

Two seventeen-year-old youths from different worlds, bristling with hostility, finally abandoned their sarcasm and probing to engage in their first real argument.

 

At the root, they were both innocent. Being bound together wasn’t their fault, but many reasons couldn’t be explained, and many things had to be done. Even loving couples have their quarrels, let alone two strangers suddenly forced into close proximity.

 

Both of them argued with genuine anger.

 

“If you don’t want to be an inner demon, then disappear right now and leave me in peace!”

 

“If you have the ability, kill me right now! I won’t fight back, come on!”

 

Although Xiao Mo held grudges, he only remembered true hatred, not petty matters. True hatred didn’t require arguments but action. Thus, he had never experienced arguing to the point of flushed faces before; this was his first time. As for Chu Jinglan, for his mother’s sake, he had to endure in front of the Chu family elders, his anger always cold and restrained. He had never lost his composure like this before.

 

It was the first time for both of them to completely lose face in an argument. They argued without any dignity, without using their brains, purely driven by the anger in their chests.

 

If the system hadn’t muted its audio input at this moment, it would have been stunned and would have used a popular modern phrase to accurately describe their argument scene—

 

Two elementary school kids pecking at each other.

 

What happened to being mature beyond their years? What happened to being calm and steady?

 

It was all fake. When young hedgehogs collide, the scene of mutual scratching is quite spectacular.

 

Both were puffed up with anger like pufferfish. Chu Jinglan’s chest heaved, veins bulging on his hands. Xiao Mo’s entire mist form had grown larger, looking as if it might explode.

 

Xiao Mo: “Ha.”

 

Chu Jinglan: “Hmph.”

 

After hurling many more harsh words at each other, they each ended with a single syllable, turning away from each other. Chu Jinglan gritted his teeth and sat down at the table, while Xiao Mo huffed and sprawled on the roof beam.

 

The chaotic room finally fell silent.

 

Both sides simultaneously ceased fire. With no more voices in the room, their heated minds gradually cooled. They finally regained their intelligence, and every word they had spoken earlier echoed back in their own ears.

 

Xiao Mo: “…”

 

Did I just argue with someone? And not just argue, but argue so recklessly? The things I said… even elementary school kids wouldn’t be so childish. How did I end up arguing with him?

 

Chu Jinglan: “…”

 

He pinched the bridge of his nose, unable to figure out how he had suddenly lost his composure, engaging in a pointless verbal spat with an inner demon, and doing so in such an irrational manner.

 

It was a waste of time, disrupted his state of mind, and… was incredibly childish.

 

Both Xiao Mo and Chu Jinglan thought simultaneously: How embarrassing.

 

The room fell into an awkward silence, broken only by the sound of Chu Jinglan’s breathing, which gradually steadied from its earlier heaviness.

 

For a long time, neither spoke nor moved.

 

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Chu Jinglan let out a faint scoff.

 

It was a cold, self-mocking laugh.

 

To think he had been influenced by the inner demon to this extent. Yes, the root cause of the inner demon’s existence lay within him. He had always believed his mental state to be steadfast, but clearly, he had overestimated himself. He hadn’t even noticed his vulnerabilities.

 

See? With just a few words, the inner demon could provoke him into losing all rationality. Clearly, his cultivation was far from sufficient.

 

Chu Jinglan lowered the hand pressing against his brow, his expression icy.

 

—When his mental state was fully tempered and his cultivation strong enough, he would ensure that the inner demon was obliterated.

 

This mistake would be corrected by him alone.

 

Just as he coldly and ruthlessly composed himself amidst his killing intent, a voice suddenly came from above: “Hey.”

 

Chu Jinglan looked up expressionlessly. He swore to himself that no matter what nonsense the inner demon spouted next, it would not disturb his state of mind again.

 

Then he heard—

 

“Sorry.”

 

Chu Jinglan: “…?”

 

His eyes widened in disbelief. The icy expression on his face was wiped clean by those two words.

 

He couldn’t believe it: “…What did you say?”

 

The inner demon said nothing more. Its form shifted and retreated back into the sea of consciousness.

 

Chu Jinglan stood there in shock and suspicion. He wondered if he had misheard. But there were only the two of them in the room, and that apology had been crystal clear. Besides, in his understanding, an inner demon existed to oppose its host to the death. Even in a dream, it would be impossible for an inner demon to apologize to him.

 

An inner demon apologizing to its host? No one would believe such a thing in ten thousand years.

 

The sharp aura around Chu Jinglan turned complicated and confused. He stood there deep in thought but couldn’t make sense of it.

 

Could this be some new trick by the inner demon to manipulate him?

 

Meanwhile, Xiao Mo had immediately realized something was wrong after apologizing and had fled back into the sea of consciousness.

 

Once he calmed down, Xiao Mo realized there was no need for him to lose his temper at Chu Jinglan. Yes, he hated being transmigrated and disliked Chu Jinglan’s character setting. But transmigration wasn’t Chu Jinglan’s fault, and while Chu Jinglan’s personality might be unpleasant, he hadn’t actually done anything wrong to Xiao Mo.

 

The frustrations and grievances Xiao Mo felt after transmigrating were not Chu Jinglan’s fault. So after calming down, Xiao Mo instinctively apologized.

 

But when Chu Jinglan looked up in surprise, Xiao Mo froze as realization hit him:

 

As an inner demon, apologizing to their host completely OOC!

 

Caught between a rock and a hard place, he immediately retreated into the sea of consciousness.

 

Back in the sea of consciousness, Xiao Mo assumed human form and began pacing anxiously around the withered tree: This is bad! This is bad! What will Chu Jinglan think after hearing that apology? An inner demon saying sorry is so bizarre!!

 

Just as Xiao Mo was about to vent his frustration on the system, he suddenly stopped mid-step.

 

Under the cold moonlight in the silent sea of consciousness, clarity struck him like a bolt of lightning. For the first time, he saw something he’d never realized before.

 

The system never said he couldn’t break character as an inner demon!

 

It was as if all his mental blockages were cleared at once. Finally calm and rational again, Xiao Mo sat by the Moon lake and began analyzing himself objectively.

 

His resistance toward being transmigrated had caused him to carry too many irrational emotions these past few days.

 

Thinking carefully now—it was precisely those negative emotions combined with the naturally antagonistic relationship between an inner demon and its host (plus earning points through mental attacks) that had made it so easy for him to slip into the role of an inner demon and play it so convincingly from the start.

 

But this wasn’t fair to Chu Jinglan at all.

 

Chu Jinglan would have faced an inner demon tribulation eventually—one far worse than Xiao Mo—but that didn’t justify Xiao Mo’s actions.

 

From the moment he declared “I am your inner demon,” he’d been too caught up in this identity. But hadn’t he initially planned to just give up on everything?

 

By nature, Xiao Mo wasn’t someone who would deliberately provoke others without reason. For people who didn’t get along with him but bore no grudge against him, he’d simply choose to distance himself rather than cause trouble for them.

 

The only reason he’d actively antagonized Chu Jinglan was for points—and harsh words had been his only method so far.

 

Unintentionally or not, Xiao Mo realized he’d become too compliant with this “inner demon” identity.

 

And that wasn’t good.

 

Xiao Mo looked down at the flute in his hands thoughtfully.

 

He tightened his grip on it and made a decision.

 

There was a way for him to cultivate while maintaining peace in Chu Jinglan’s life. It was time to set aside their differences in identity and worldviews and have an honest conversation with Chu Jinglan.

 

 

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