I'm a monster in Demon King's Castle

The magic hourglass flipped from green to blue in 8 hours. This morning's "work" was monotonous and boring. Although Li Yue learned a lot about the nobles of the continent of Chaos through the "Noble Directory of Kalei 259," he also participated in an imaginary "Journey to Fire Valley"\n

Even the next book had been prepared by Mini and Mini, called "Death Town Desler"\n

But while translating, Li Yue couldn't help but be wary of the old scholar. His mind was tense, and it didn't take long for him to feel dizzy, weak, and exhausted. He didn't know if it was related to the old scholar's evil "ritual."\n

If it weren't for the body-cleansing effect of the Supreme Magic Stone, Li Yue even felt that he wouldn't be able to persevere through these eight hours.\n

Even more terrifying was that during the morning's work, Li Yue personally witnessed a brain spirit at the next table let out a miserable cry, and then explode and die, like a fart in the air\n

In response, Mini and Mini explained that this unlucky brain spirit had translated a "forbidden book" and was killed by the curse on the book—no one collected the brain spirit's corpse. Mini and Mini simply took the book that killed the brain spirit and piled it up next to them, waiting to send it to the upper forbidden book area during the lunch break\n

And this further strengthened Li Yue's determination to not only disguise himself as a demon to survive, but also to transform the current environment—the books in the library are deadly, plus the "person" who has been stealing the brain spirits' lifespans?\n

How can he live like this?\n

Li Yue decided to get rid of the old scholar, and then step by step turn "survival" into "life."\n

After imagining countless scenarios in his mind and repeatedly polishing the plan, the lunch break finally arrived.\n

The slave scholars lined up and individually received hard chunks of meat from a large iron pot that floated over, and then lined up to return to the Sixth Library, which was their dormitory, to take care of some physiological needs.\n

"Are we going to eat?" Mini and Mini stood side by side, their heads round.\n

"Go ahead, you've worked hard this morning," Li Yue transmitted the message while also praising them, having found the secret to getting along with Mini and Mini.\n

"Want us to bring you some?" Mini and Mini turned their heads halfway, like two small sweet potatoes.\n

"No need." Hurry up and go, I'm about to make my move—deep down, Li Yue thought.\n

"Okay!" Mini and Mini nodded together, but at the same time crossed their index and middle fingers behind their backs, deceiving the demons.\n

Seeing Mini and Mini receive the hard chunks of meat and sit down among their companions to feast, Li Yue also imitated the other brain spirits, falling to the ground to pretend to rest, but the moment he descended from the table, he looked back and transformed into a slave scholar, a slave scholar who had already received his food and left the hall.\n

The other brain spirits were resting, with no thoughts focused on Li Yue, and no one noticed that the brain spirit had turned into a human; the Book Demon closed the pages the instant the magic hourglass beside him flipped from green to blue, and the spine of the book stood steadily on the ground, falling asleep.\n

Li Yue first checked the ritual marks on the desk, and finding that there was nothing related to it in his memory, he did not destroy it. He turned and walked to the line of slave scholars.\n

【Go back to sleep… don't die… go back to sleep… don't die…】\n

The slave scholar in front of Li Yue was not old, but had deep dark circles under his eyes. He had probably been in Demon King City for some time and was adapting to this life.\n

Li Yue also imitated their numb gait, occasionally shaking his right hand, pretending to be relieving the fatigue caused by copying and recording in the morning—the object he was impersonating did this before leaving, and Li Yue tried to grasp his character.\n

Just as it was about to be Li Yue's turn, a small interlude occurred—a Mini who hadn't had enough to eat reached out to the slave scholar's pot, wanting to take a few extra chunks of meat, but was grabbed by the hand and bitten hard by the slave scholar who was at that spot!\n

The bitten Mini let out a miserable scream, but didn't dare to attack the slave scholar; the slave scholar seemed to be attracted by the soft and glutinous taste, biting hard and refusing to let go.\n

At this moment, the sound of pages turning suddenly came from the Book Demon, and both sides immediately ceased fighting and returned to a stable state.\n

Rather than a dispute between humans and demons, it was more like animal instinct at work—Li Yue thought, not even raising his head. It was finally his turn.\n

The hard chunk of meat was hard, black, and gave off a strange smell. Li Yue didn't know what it was made of, and of course didn't plan to eat it. But at the moment he held it in his palm, he had a vague understanding and a slight sense of sorrow.\n

After receiving the hard chunk of meat, Li Yue put on his hood, hiding his face, and followed the slave scholars to the Sixth Library.\n

The Sixth Library was located at the end of a corner on the bottom floor of the library, in the completely opposite direction from the four libraries where the brain spirits lived.\n

Turning the corner, Li Yue immediately sensed a stench, and then saw several slave scholars each finding a place to take care of their physiological needs, not even waiting to enter the Sixth Library.\n

Even more, some seemed to have no intention of going back, and simply lay down on the corridor leading to the Sixth Library, slowly gnawing and grinding the hard chunk of meat with their molars, preparing to return to the library hall as soon as the break time was over, saving this section of the road, and also saving the energy consumed.\n

The old scholar who shared a table with Li Yue was not here, which brought Li Yue a trace of relief—it was not easy to make a move in front of everyone, it was best if there were fewer people around him\n

Remembering the appearance of a slave scholar lying in the corridor, Li Yue changed his face and body again the moment he pushed open the door of the Sixth Library, bypassed the huge sofa covered with holes, and like everyone else in the room, found a tattered bed and slowly lay down.

The bunks in the Sixth Archive were double-layered, and the dampness on the beds was thick and heavy, mixed with sweat and complex body odors, causing Li Yue great discomfort. Li Yue covered his face with his hood while projecting his thoughts towards the corner of the room near the window, towards the old scholar there.

Having received the baptism of the Supreme Magic Stone, although Li Yue had not yet fully absorbed it, his mental abilities had been greatly enhanced—even from a distance of more than ten meters, Li Yue could sense the old scholar's pulse and heartbeat, as well as his constantly moving Adam's apple.

He was talking to several other slave scholars.

“The book I translated today... turned out to be the 'Directory of Nobles in the Year 259 of the Kai Calendar'... Ah... that era full of Holy Light...”

“That’s good... you’ve experienced that era... and can write down a beautiful memory... Heavens... to be driven to write by those Brainlings... how painful that must be...”

“Heh heh... being driven by Brainlings to write down human history... is even more painful...” The old scholar sighed, “In that era, the Kingston family wasn’t even the best of the nobles, but they were able to defeat the demon expeditionary army... I wonder if their family's bloodline has been able to continue... Will there be a few more heroes... to save us...”

“Can we hold on for that long... I’m so glad to be able to access your wisdom here... You are our guiding light... Please guide us out of this predicament... to see the Holy Light again...”

“That day will come... as long as we live...” The old scholar shook his head, seemingly losing strength, “I need to rest...”

“Understood... may the Holy Light be with you...”

“The Holy Light be with you...” After the old scholar finished speaking, the slave scholars gathered around him began to disperse.

When only two slave scholars remained beside the old scholar, his tone suddenly changed.

“These few people seem to want to learn the longevity method from us...” The second slave scholar's voice was low.

“Absolutely impossible. The remaining imprint can only support three people to draw power. Besides, we are not only stealing the lives of the demons, these scholars are also our targets,” the third scholar said, his tone relatively irritable and his build somewhat burly. “If we absorb one more person, we’ll have one less bite to eat, unless you die and give up your spot.”

“Then you should die...” The second scholar politely declined.

Li Yue was stunned. He didn't expect that these slave scholars... besides not daring to attack the Book Demon, they hadn't spared any of the living creatures in the hall?

“Today, when I started the ritual... it seemed like one of the Brainlings was acting strangely...” The old scholar's voice was even softer, but it didn't escape Li Yue's perception.

And it was at this moment that Li Yue discovered that the two people surrounding the old scholar... were precisely the remaining two elderly scholars in the archive!

A life-stealing little group? Li Yue frowned. It seemed that the ritual was just a chance discovery that they had exploited, not something they had created.

“What? Did you discover that it is losing its life?” The second scholar laughed. “These stupid, filthy things... why do they uniquely receive the Demon King’s favor, born with such powerful abilities...”

This was the first time Li Yue had heard someone talk about the power of the Brainlings.

“Not only do they have extraordinary understanding of all documents, but they can also control the environment through their thoughts...” The old scholar's tone revealed a hint of longing, “These are all things we dream of...”

“Yes... if we had this kind of ability, we could interpret more demon documents and learn more powerful demon spells...” The second scholar was indignant, “Damn it... hateful...”

“How about it, shall we kill it tonight? Just like the previous forty-seven Brainlings?” The third scholar seemed to be experienced.

Li Yue's expression changed slightly. He thought to himself that it was a good thing he had a habit of "not letting the sun set on revenge," otherwise he would be at a disadvantage tonight—it was just that, unlike what he had planned, there were three enemies, so Li Yue had to make some adjustments.

“You’re mistaken, it’s forty-eight.” The second scholar corrected.

“Is that so? Could it be that my memory is declining? Impossible! I have the nourishment of demon incantations...” The third scholar was somewhat annoyed.

“I allow... you to do it...” The old scholar interrupted the third scholar’s self-pity, “Demon incantations... are a secret of the three of us, and no one is allowed to disturb it...”

“Praise the demons... for creating such a powerful incantation... that allows us to resist the ravages of time...” The second and third scholars sincerely intoned, murmuring incessantly.

“It’s laughable... don’t we... still have our lives slowly stolen by time?” The old scholar listened for a moment and suddenly laughed.

“So... when are we leaving?” The second scholar's tone revealed an extremely strong desire, “When is the next opportunity to escape? How prepared are we?”

The old scholar pondered for a moment, not revealing a word, only his pupils trembled slightly, muttering wildly: “Escape! Escape from this place, live in seclusion among humans... That is our home...”

Li Yue's heart stirred inexplicably, but he was somewhat anxious—if the old scholar didn't act as he had guessed, the midday cleansing plan might fall through.

【Go to the toilet... release to your heart's content...】

Finally, the words Li Yue wanted to hear most appeared in the old scholar's mind. Li Yue got up first and slowly walked towards the toilet in the Sixth Archive.