My Core is the Boss

A gust of wind swept through and lifted the veil, revealing a fish head with two bulging, protruding fish eyes. The gills where her cheeks should be appeared hard to the touch. Her pouty mouth stuck out so far it seemed ready to snag a fishing hook.

Qi Yuan stared at her and a string of thoughts ran through his mind. He couldn't help but ask, "Can you do it the other way around? Human face on top, fish body on the bottom?"

What had surfaced in his memory was the classic dilemma. If you were stranded on a deserted island with only a mermaid for company, would you rather have a beautiful woman with a fish tail, or a bombshell with a fish's head?

Fish Girl smiled. "If you prefer it that way, why ever not, Your Majesty?"

Her form shifted. The lower half became a fish tail, while the fish head became the face of a strikingly beautiful woman no less stunning than Green Pearl.

The customers, who had been frozen in horror a moment ago, now found themselves betrayed by their own expressions. A glint of greed and fascination creeping in. Even as a fish from the waist down, she still had an undeniable allure.

Qi Yuan gave her a look. "Have you ever heard of—"

The Fish Girl interrupted, "Are you about to say that humans and demons cannot coexist? Or that different species must harbor different intentions? In this world, the strong decide everything. Rules and rights are determined by the powerful, like Your Majesty. Your Majesty is mighty, and we are your most loyal, most razor-sharp blade!"

"You're wrong."

"Perhaps I am too extreme, but—"

"Let me finish. Interrupting you feels strange to me. What I was going to say is this: the power of a White Moonlight lies in residing only in memory. Even if the real person shows up, she can't defeat her own image."

Green Pearl stared blankly. The customers were equally bewildered. Even though it felt like his words carried profound weight, no one could figure out what he was trying to express. The Fish Girl was also at a loss.

Qi Yuan added, "Once a White Moonlight takes the initiative, you've already lost. So you might as well die and become a part of me."

A killing intent thick as fog poured out in that instant.

Huo Mushi, who had been watching calmly, took out his suona and began playing.

Qi Yuan spared a glance at Green Pearl. "From here on out, how much you absorb is down to your comprehension."

Without another word, he made his move. The whole room was stunned. Green Pearl had not expected things to unfold this way.

The Fish Girl's shock didn’t last long, and her expression turned icy. "So Your Majesty refuses to be our emperor. You want to be our enemy instead."

She showed no mercy. The Xi River Water Clan was the mightiest demon race around here. Even if the other eleven demon races joined forces, they would still be no match for it.

Qi Yuan laughed sardonically. "You would be better off staying peacefully as my White Moonlight. Were you actually thinking of becoming my bride? You want to destroy the image of a White Moonlight I hold in my heart?"

Immense power surged outward as his blood-red staff expanded. The earth itself seemed to tremble beneath the aura radiating from him.

The Fish Girl's expression shifted. "So you truly have entered the Martial Spirit realm!"

Gasps spread through the customers.

"The Red Staff Demon Butcher has entered the legendary Martial Spirit realm!"

"He is a Martial Spirit! He controls the clouds with one hand and the rain with the other!"

The Martial Spirit realm was legendary, so much that a single person rivaled a nation. Mountains and rivers were mere playthings in the hands of one.

The Fish Girl roared fiercely, "But it doesn't matter! Water clan soldiers, march with me! Strike him down!"

Sharp cracks appeared on the calm river surface ahead. Thick sheets of ice shattered. Battle cries, screams, and howls came surging in.

Twenty thousand soldiers appeared clad in armor and clutching long spears. A dense black mass blanketed the river surface for several li in all directions.

"Die! Die! Die!"

"You must die for offending our water clan!"

The Fish Girl had returned to the river at some point.

She smiled coldly, radiating a power that surpassed even the Demon Spirit. In any world, she would be no weakling, capable of rivaling a Nascent Soul.

The Fish Girl said, "You may still reconsider, Your Majesty. There is still a chance to turn things around."

Twenty thousand demon soldiers stood at her back like a crushing black tide. Her confidence was well backed.

Qi Yuan's eyes remained calm. "Green Pearl, watch carefully. I won’t hold anything back."

Heaven-Cleaving Sword Art. Death Radiance. Sharing One Robe!

Heaven and earth went dark in that instant. Everyone instinctively looked up at the sky. It turned out the sky hadn’t darkened in the slightest. Qi Yuan’s towering form had simply blotted out the light. His blood-red, terrifying silhouette appeared like a monstrous death god. Gripping a staff tall as a mountain, he leaped high into the sky.

Heaven-Cleaving Sword Art. Die!

With one swing of the staff, every snowflake and shard of ice within ten li wrenched free of the earth and hurled upward. The moment that terrifying staff crashed down into the demon soldiers, they returned to their original place.

Though heaven and earth remained the same, the world had flipped over.

A third of the demon soldiers were wiped out. The Xi River split in two, its waters evaporating.

The Fish Girl spat a mouthful of fresh blood, suffering grievous wounds. Disbelief flooded her eyes as she went pale and screamed frantically, "Impossible, I am a Demon Spirit! How can a Martial Spirit be this strong?!"

Qi Yuan's voice cut through the chaos. "You can't even survive one swing of my staff, and you wanted to marry me? You’re deluding yourself, Fish Head Girl. Someone like you deserves a shrimp-headed man at best."

High above in the sky, he brought the staff down a second time. "Take another swing!"

Boom!

Another seven thousand demon soldiers fell. The Fish Girl was torn apart. Even the gills inside her fish head were beaten out. She stared in total disbelief as every shred of her pride disappeared.

Already broken-spirited, the demon soldiers scattered in every direction. Unbeknownst to them, from the moment Qi Yuan had appeared in this world, their fate had been sealed.

Qi Yuan leaped once more. "One last strike. Time to end this."

Heaven-Cleaving Sword Art!

He delivered one final, devastating blow that landed on the river surface. In an instant, all twenty thousand demon soldiers perished. Not even ten minutes had passed since they appeared.

Shock rippled through the crowd. Green Pearl stood trembling as she stared at the towering silhouette. For unknown reasons, the wariness she had felt earlier was completely replaced by a faint sense of loss.