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Chapter 475: Breaking Out from the Cocoon

Still, it was better than a prison cell.

By the time Chu Liang returned, it was late at night, and he was very exhausted.

He had always believed in making the best use of both people and resources, ensuring that no one on Silver Sword Peak remained idle.

But he hadn’t expected the Imperial Supervisory Bureau to take this principle to a whole new level.

The Imperial Supervisory Commissioner had dragged Chu Liang along to review bizarre cases reported from different provinces, tasking him with analyzing each one, identifying the key issues, and determining the best course of action.

At first, it seemed like the commissioner was trying to mentor him, guiding Chu Liang’s thought process. But after half a day, when the commissioner realized how quickly Chu Liang was picking things up, the old man started slacking off.

He left everything for Chu Liang to analyze. He asked Chu Liang to propose solutions and would only step in at the end to approve the final decisions.

This made things easier for the commissioner, but Chu Liang’s stress kept building. These were important matters for the nine provinces, and he knew he had to be careful. After all, this likely concerned the lives of many others.

The more carefully Chu Liang handled things, the more satisfied the commissioner seemed. By the end of the day, Chu Liang had been used as free labor, completely worked to the bone by the old man.

However, it wasn’t without its benefits. Chu Liang realized that strange and evil events were constantly happening across the land of the nine provinces. Even in what seemed like peaceful times, these cases were as common as cow hair.

The Imperial Supervisory Bureau and the City Supervisory Division formed the first line of defense, while the sects in the Divine Nine and Terrestrial Ten made up the second, working together to maintain the current peace.

The demonic creatures and evil entities had never stopped in their desire to bring chaos and destruction to the world.

According to the commissioner, things had never been this chaotic before. Ever since rumors of the Demon God’s return started to spread, demons and villains across the land of the nine provinces had grown more active, plunging the Yu Dynasty into turmoil unlike anything seen in hundreds of years, leaving the bureau overwhelmed.

Chu Liang realized that the demonic race’s divine envoys hadn’t spread these rumors without a purpose. There had to be a larger, more sinister plan behind it all.

Even before the rumors of the Demon God’s return, the chaos within the Yu Dynasty had already started to unfold.

Just as this thought crossed his mind, Chu Liang felt a sudden, strange movement within the White Pagoda.

He focused his divine sense inward and saw the golden cocoon, formed earlier by the little golden butterfly, beginning to crack. Thin beams of golden light seeped through the cracks, and the cocoon trembled, as though something inside was fighting to break free.

It seemed that breaking out of the cocoon this time was much more difficult than before.

As Chu Liang pondered this, he suddenly heard a series of cracking sounds, and then a small hole appeared in the cocoon.

As expected. It\'s easier to use teeth, Chu Liang thought.

Moments later, a tiny head poked through the hole in the cocoon, its two bright black eyes locking onto Chu Liang’s.

Chu Liang blinked.

She blinked back.

"Huh?" Chu Liang\'s brows furrowed slightly.

According to the ancient book Jiang Yuebai had found before, the Heaven-Devouring Bug evolved through several stages: maggot, silkworm, butterfly, snake, dragon... ultimately reaching the ninth realm, in which it would transform into a fearsome nine-headed demonic insect, said to be the form of the Demon God in the past.

But the small head poking out now clearly belonged to a chubby little human girl.

She appeared to be no more than one or two years old, with smooth, tender skin that looked as soft as a freshly peeled boiled egg, both in texture and size.

After exchanging glances with Chu Liang, the little one suddenly broke into a smile, her eyes squinting with joy as she babbled, “Ah ba... ah ba...”

She couldn’t speak yet, and her eyes were filled with the pure innocence of a newborn.

But...

What’s going on here?

While Chu Liang was still trying to make sense of it all, the little girl wriggled her chubby neck and stretched out her pudgy arms, attempting to push the golden cocoon off herself.

It was only then that Chu Liang understood why breaking out of the cocoon had been so difficult.

In her previous forms, she had always bitten her way through the cocoon. But now, in this tiny human form, she didn’t know how to use her hands properly, and they were clumsy and uncoordinated.

"Umm..." After struggling for a bit, the little one seemed to grow frustrated. Her chubby face scrunched up, and then she let out a soft, babyish cry, "Wahhh—"

Then, the crackling sounds started up again.

Soon, the little one had eaten through half of the golden cocoon. Only then did she finally crawl out, fully revealing herself to Chu Liang.

The large golden butterfly wings hadn’t disappeared; instead, they had become whiter and more translucent. Her body was now the size of a small palm, with tender white skin and a chubby little face. She wore a dress-like garment woven from golden threads, draping around her like a delicate, gauzy skirt.

At a glance, she looked like a finely crafted porcelain doll.

"Ah ba, ah ba..." she babbled, awkwardly freeing herself from the cocoon. With clumsy arms stretched wide, she toddled toward Chu Liang as if she was trying to hug him.

But since she couldn’t walk properly yet, she immediately tripped and tumbled to the ground.

"Ouch..." The little girl didn’t cry or fuss after falling. Instead, she simply picked herself up and began crawling toward Chu Liang on all fours.

Chu Liang gently lifted her into his palm, and the little girl instantly broke into a wide, joyful grin and started giggling.

Upon seeing her behavior, Chu Liang couldn’t help but recall something he had once heard—that newborn animals often regard the first thing they see after hatching as their mother.

This little one had seen him first every time she emerged from her cocoon. Could it be that she thought of him as her mommy?

As Chu Liang watched her dance around adorably in his palm, his confusion deepened. This wasn’t at all what the ancient texts had described.

Could it be that the Heaven-Devouring Bug’s evolution involved some kind of mimicry, transforming into the form of whatever species it lived with?

If it could evolve into a human form, could it also be taught like a human and become a true member of the human race?

Chu Liang\'s thoughts were all over the place. It was too difficult to settle on any definitive answer based on the current situation.

For now, Chu Liang decided it was best to give the little one a name.

"Since you have such a big appetite..." Chu Liang thought for a moment and said, "I’ll call you Tuntun[1]."

...

The moonlight bathed Butterfly Fairy Valley, wrapping the entire place in a tranquil silence.

Every creature that called Myriad Poison Mountain home carried some form of poison or venom. The further one ventured into the heart of the mountain, the more potent and lethal the toxins became. In such a place, a being without poison wouldn’t last a day.

Yet, there was one exception: the butterflies in Butterfly Fairy Valley.

They were non-toxic and harmless, yet had somehow managed to thrive for ages within the deadly environment of Myriad Poison Mountain.

The butterflies in the valley, though non-toxic, thrived in the presence of countless poisonous plants. Over time, as they pollinated these dangerous plants, they absorbed the toxins little by little, eventually building a strong resistance that allowed them to live in this valley for a very long time.

Unlike the other areas with vicious and bloodthirsty creatures, Butterfly Fairy Valley was a rather peaceful place.

When Jiang Yuebai arrived, she immediately caused quite a buzz.

Some butterflies immediately sensed the outsider\'s presence and fluttered into the air in a flurry.

Meanwhile, certain sentient plants became wary, swaying nervously even though there was no wind.

Jiang Yuebai quickly released her qi in the air.

With the constitution of a Transcendent Spirit, she shared an exceptional bond with the things in the world around her. Greedy demonic beasts perceived her blood and qi as a valuable spirit herb, while gentle spirit beasts would take an instant liking to her.

Such was the wondrous nature of the Transcendent Spirit constitution.

As her aura spread, the spiritual qi in the surrounding area grew incredibly vibrant. The plants and spirit herbs thrived, stretching upward, while large swarms of white butterflies fluttered around her, swirling in a joyful dance.

Her robes were like the bright moon, and the butterflies danced like falling snow, making the valley resemble a paradise on earth. And she, of course, was the sole fairy in this scene.

As Jiang Yuebai approached the heart of the valley, beneath a towering ancient vine tree, a beautiful woman clad in a gauzy white gown descended. The large, white wings on her back revealed her true identity.

"Are you the leader here?" Jiang Yuebai asked.

"I am the largest butterfly demon in Butterfly Fairy Valley," the woman said softly as she gazed at Jiang Yuebai. "Beautiful cultivator, is there something I can help you with?"

"I’m looking for a butterfly," Jiang Yuebai replied. "It’s gained some sentience and can speak. There shouldn’t be many like it here."

As she spoke, she took out a painting.

It was a painting of the butterfly, drawn by Chu Liang from memory.

But the butterfly demon glanced at the painting in Jiang Yuebai’s hand and immediately shook her head. "Beautiful cultivator, this butterfly is not from here."

"Hmm?" Jiang Yuebai frowned slightly.

"We, the butterflies of Butterfly Fairy Valley, are all white. When exposed to a poison we cannot neutralize, black spots appear on our wings—that\'s how we know a member of our clan need healing," the butterfly demon explained. "But the one you\'re searching for..."

She examined the painting once more and then said, "It appears to be a butterfly from the East Sea."

1. 吞吞 (吞 pronounced Tun) means gulp or devourer ☜