Xiang Lu was nicknamed the owl girl since she was possessed years ago. She has felt pain in her chest and her body has weakened since she was a little child of 7 years old.
At such a young age, she had to endure the bitterness of life without freedom.
Rather than a caged bird, Xiang Lu seemed more like a nocturnal animal that could only come out at night when her body was slightly better. Her brief freedom was not the same for others.
A girl is better off at home when it's late, but it's different for Xiang Lu. How could she enjoy the freedom of her youth if she could only come out when night fell? That alone was tormenting enough.
Not to mention, Xiang Lu had to endure all kinds of insults, curses, and other things. In addition to her physical body, her heart was also hurt at the same time. The smile that was etched on the girl's face when she managed to help Yong might have been the first time.
"I'm happy to have a friend I can talk to," Xiang Lu said with a returning smile.
Feeling strange and bewildered, Yong asked her, "How can you smile right now? Just because you coincidentally met someone who is similar to you?"
"I'm just happy. Is that not allowed? Hehe," she said and then laughed.
Her sanity was gone. That's all Yong could think.
No matter what, everyone who is possessed definitely has different problems. Little by little, a part of their body and personality will be taken and replaced. However, Xiang Lu claimed that she would never be controlled because she had become accustomed to this routine.
"How did you do it?" Yong then asked.
"How I did it? What?" The girl was confused.
"Yes. I mean, how do you control the evil spirit in your body?"
"Oh, that. It's easy, just calm yourself down and think about who you really are. By remembering both good and bad memories, as long as your identity is there, it will be easy for you to control your own body," Xiang Lu said.
"What if I still can't?"
"Then just forget it. As long as you don't listen to the demon's words in your heart," Xiang Lu said, pointing to where Yong's heart was.
"Xiang Lu! My daughter! Where did you go?" someone called the girl's name.
Not just one person, but several people who seemed to be Xiang Lu's family had come looking for her. They had long known about this habit of Xiang Lu, and as soon as they approached them, Yong quickly withdrew without saying goodbye.
Yong disappeared as if swallowed by the darkness of the night. Xiang Lu was startled and felt a little disappointed that she couldn't talk to the young man anymore.
"Xiang Lu, oh my. If you want to leave, you should tell us. You made us very worried," her mother said while hugging her daughter.
"Mother, I made friends with a boy."
"Don't be friends with a boy!" her father said firmly.
***
The night was still long, and there were many things to do for the young man whose body was almost taken over by a demon. The demon had a much greater power than its shadow, making it difficult to control. Negative emotions would be the trigger for the demon to control Yong's body.
"I can't deny it, I've become this weak."
Yong lamented in disappointment and sadness. His gaze was directed at the two sheathed swords. How much he longed for them like he used to.
Slowly, he tried to lift one sword, then dropped the other one, and then opened the sheath of the sword he was holding. Little by little, the blade of the sword became more and more shiny under the moonlight.
The smooth and rough parts of it still looked good enough to be used for the next few months. He had painstakingly learned swordsmanship and maintained the swords as he would himself. There was no way he would neglect them like useless garbage.
"This is my sword. I made it with materials that I painstakingly searched for."
"Useless! You're useless! Even if your swordsmanship returns, what are you going to do after? Go back to defending justice or something?" The demon spoke again. Its hoarse and heavy voice sounded irritating in his ears.
Yong was silent with his eyes closed. He then dropped the sheathed sword and began to lift the sword. He was imagining a swordsman dueling him.
"Hey, forget it! Forget all that! It's useless, you useless brat!" the demon shouted, trying to taunt Yong.
"Noisy," Yong snapped.
Yong's memories began to swirl in his mind. Each memory was filled with a sword that was like his own life. He kept trying to remember it repeatedly.
He gripped the handle, raised the blade, and prepared his stance. While imagining an opponent in front of him, he began to lift the sword parallel to his chest, then lifted it again to the top of his head.
His forearm was bent back, and the sharp sword blade was ready to be thrust. The warm feeling of good memories from the past, when he felt happy dueling with friends, that's what he was feeling.
For a moment, Yong smiled.
"Why are you smiling?!" The demon's rage began to shake his posture.
But Yong was able to endure. He strengthened his grip on the sword and swung it with all his might. A gust of wind was produced by the swing of the sword.
"Tsk, stubborn!" The demon clicked its tongue in annoyance.
Its annoyance was even clearly visible on half of Yong's face. The young man quickly opened his eyes slowly, and the impact he received piled up in an instant.
"ARGHH!"
His sword fell and struck the sheath and the ground. Yong's palms were hot as if they were on fire. He was also surprised to feel this happening so suddenly.
"HAHAHA! FEEL THAT!" The demon laughed at him.
"What did you do?!" Yong raged with trembling palms. He was enduring the pain and heat.
"I hate swords." One sentence was uttered, expressing its displeasure with a sword and Yong.
A fleeting unfamiliar memory crossed his mind. The demon that was possessing him had a deep hatred for a sword because someone had used it to destroy the demon.
"Oh..." Yong smiled. "So you hate it because you were once sealed by a sword, right?" Yong added.
"You! How dare you look at my dark memories!" The demon shrieked angrily.
Feeling happy because the demon was openly showing its dislike, Yong continued to smile as if he were celebrating a happy day.
While covering the half of his face that had changed, Yong said, "If you don't want your dark past to be seen by others, then you shouldn't have possessed me."
The smile slowly faded, replaced by a mixture of annoyance and anger.
"And don't take everything that's mine!" he added, shouting loudly.
Unbeknownst to him, his loud scream made the grass rustle and the trees sway as if an earthquake was happening.