The Junior Brother I Picked Up Is the Demon Lord!

[This is the first story for which I've managed to sort out the full outline. I absolutely, absolutely won't abandon it!]

The obsessive, deranged Demon Venerable Chong Li wants to resurrect his beloved from ten thousand years ago. A political marriage brings him together with Jiang Zhaoyu, a little phoenix who seems sweet and innocent but is secretly sharp as a tack. The day before Jiang Zhaoyu ascends to godhood, Chong Li makes him so furious that he gives up the position of High God and leaps straight from the God-Sealing Terrace!

Under pressure and temptation from Jiang Zhaoyu's elder brother, the Demon Venerable is forced to descend to the mortal world in search of him. But before he can get anywhere, the mighty Demon Venerable is knocked out of the sky by a stream of spiritual energy unleashed by a mortal. He loses his memory and becomes the sidekick of Jiang Zhaoyu, who has been reincarnated in the mortal world as a sweet, naive fool.

*

On one side is the only hope of resurrecting Ling Chu; on the other is Jiang Zhaoyu's life. Chong Li's hand trembles as he grips the blade. He turns his head away, unwilling to meet Jiang Zhaoyu's wounded, doe-like eyes.

'Junior Brother, do you truly want my life?' Jiang Zhaoyu asks.

*

Before the six armies, though Jiang Zhaoyu does not want to speak that person's name, he has no choice but to swallow his shame and reveal what happened ten thousand years ago in order to persuade Chong Li to stand down:

'Chong Li, do you think Ling Chu used all his cultivation to destroy the Pillar of Heaven at Buzhou ten thousand years ago only for the sake of the people? He did it for you! Now, even if only to honor his wishes, withdraw your troops. Don't let them die for nothing!'

*

In the Kunlun Realm, the Ninth-Rank Lotus Seal forms once more. The frail figure of the youth before them overlaps with the graceful figure from ten thousand years ago.

Jiang Zhaoyu smiles faintly, tears in his eyes, his voice tinged with reluctance. 'Chong Li, it's not that I don't want to give you the blood from my phoenix heart. I just want to keep this useful body and spend a few more days clinging to your side. Being alive is wonderful!'

With that, as the consciousness of everyone in the Kunlun Realm gradually returns, Jiang Zhaoyu drifts down from the sky and falls into the arms of the Demon Venerable Chong Li.

Ten thousand years later, in the battle to seal the ghost clan in the Kunlun Realm, Zhaoyu Shangxian of Penglai Shenzhou dies!

The outline is complete, and this has a happy ending, so jump in without worry.

Chong Li x Jiang Zhaoyu. Chong Li is the top, Jiang Zhaoyu is the bottom. Don't ship them the other way around! Don't ship them the other way around! Don't ship them the other way around!

Mostly from the top's point of view, with one arc from the bottom's point of view.

This is a slow-burn story. Don't read it if that's not your thing.

Also, a quick note about something: This story borrows a lot of allusions and place names from the Classic of Mountains and Seas, Investiture of the Gods, and Taoism, mixing them together to create the world as it is now. Please don't take it too seriously. For example, Guixu is probably in the Bohai Sea, but I think 'Guixu of the Eastern Sea' sounds more pretentious, hehe. There are plenty of similar things in the story, so I won't criticize my own work one by one. If that's not your thing, don't read it, and watch out for those points yourself.

Readers, please add it to your favorites and leave comments. Your support keeps me going!

Theme: Fate means that even after ten thousand years, destiny still brings us together. So cherish the person before you!