Chu Liang

"Hello, my name is Chu Liang."

A slender young man in fine clothes with bound sleeves sat upright in his chair. His hair fell to his shoulders at the temples, his complexion was fair, and his brows and eyes were clear and bright. He had something of a baby face, with an endearing smile as he introduced himself in a gentle voice.

"Greetings, Young Master Chu. This humble one is called Yi Nianhong."

Opposite him sat a delicate woman, her cloud-like hair pinned with gold and her face like peach blossoms. She covered her smile with a sleeve, revealing a pair of sparkling eyes.

Between them was a table laden with sumptuous dishes, rich in color and fragrance. They were in an elegantly furnished pavilion, brightly lit by candles, with landscapes painted upon the screens and red gauze curtains hanging low.

"Miss, your name sounds... quite elegant," Chu Liang said with a smile.

"Young Master, is this your first time in a place like this?" Yi Nianhong asked softly, studying him.

"Indeed." Chu Liang nodded. "My elders never allowed me to come before. They said I was still too young..."

"How old are you, Young Master?" Yi Nianhong promptly asked.

"Seventeen," Chu Liang answered.

"That's not young at all. You should have come to try it for yourself long ago." Yi Nianhong chuckled. "Once you've tried it, you're not a child anymore."

"I... actually tried quite often before, but they were all near home, and they were all relatively small..." Chu Liang smiled awkwardly. "Something as big as you is indeed my first time encountering."

"Hehe." The woman's gaze turned languid. "When one is young, one does not know how good an older sister is..."

Chu Liang said earnestly, "If there's anything I lack experience in later, Miss, please bear with me. And I hope you'll... cooperate more. Thank you in advance."

"Don't worry. Why be so polite?" Yi Nianhong raised her fair hand, poured a cup of wine, and pushed it before Chu Liang. "Big Sister guarantees you an experience of ascending to heaven in a while."

"Uh..." Chu Liang blinked. "Shouldn't I be the one saying that? I guarantee I'll let Miss ascend to heaven."

"Heh heh." Yi Nianhong's seductive eyes shifted. "The little fellow talks big. Are you that confident in your skills?"

"My skills... may not yet be fully cultivated, but I can try to make up for it with tools," Chu Liang said.

"Oh? You're even using tools?" Yi Nianhong raised her brows. "Who would have thought someone as proper-looking as you knew how to play. What did you bring? Take it out and let me see."

"Fine. Then let's begin earlier." Chu Liang nodded, then flipped a hand at his waist and pulled something out, dropping it onto the table with a clang.

It was actually half a glittering golden brick, its radiance flowing across its surface. It clearly was no ordinary object.

The woman's expression changed. "I really don't know how to use that thing... If you want to play something perverted, I'm not accompanying you."

"Hmm..." Chu Liang pondered for a moment, then suddenly pointed behind the woman. "What's that?"

"What?" Yi Nianhong turned to look.

The mild-mannered youth opposite her suddenly sprang up, snatched the brick from the table, and smashed it into the back of the woman's head!

Bang.

As the brick came down, ripples of golden light spread outward. Then black qi burst from the spot where the woman had been struck!

"Ah—" Yi Nianhong clutched the back of her head in agony and let out a shrill cry. "You... you tricked me!"

As she screamed, she rose and retreated two steps. Then black qi erupted from the back of her head like a fountain, thick with demonic aura! Her entire body flashed, and she suddenly transformed into a gigantic spider over a zhang long! On the spider's abdomen was a human face—the very face of Yi Nianhong from before. Yet the beauty of peach blossoms was gone, leaving only savagery and fury.

This young man, who looked so harmless, had actually struck with such a black hand. The spider demon's rage was plainly visible.

With one brick, her true form was exposed!

By now, Chu Liang had already put away the golden brick. Facing the terrifying demon before him calmly, he smiled. "I didn't trick you. This really is my first time coming alone to slay demons."

"Hiss—" the giant spider roared repeatedly. "Where did this greenhorn come from? Watch me tear you into ten thousand pieces!"

"I am a disciple of the Shushan Sect. Someone reported to Shushan that a demon was causing trouble here, setting up a brothel and secretly harming human lives. I accepted the order from the mountain gate and came especially to slay demons and eliminate evil!" Chu Liang declared in a ringing voice.

"A Shushan disciple?" Upon hearing this, the spider demon immediately felt fear. As one of the Nine Heavens of immortal sects in this age, even if the Shushan Sect had declined somewhat in recent years, its accumulated might could still make ordinary demons tremble in terror!

Yet it opened its mouth and spat out a mass of Red Light, which transformed into a great net in midair and descended toward Chu Liang. Its main body, meanwhile, turned around. All eight spider legs exerted force at once, and with a swish, it shot toward the doorway, seeking to flee.

Unfortunately, its plan to obstruct its enemy was useless. Chu Liang's figure flashed, evading the spiderweb. At the same time, he raised his left hand in a sword gesture and shouted, "Sword Control Technique! Out!"

A flash of light flickered from his left wrist. The bracelet he wore suddenly transformed into a streak of light and flew out, clanging as it became a flying sword!

Sshh—

With a single strike, the spider demon's enormous body had nowhere to evade. It was pierced through on the spot by the sword light.

"Ah!" The giant spider shrieked and fell, crashing through the floor into the first level with two thunderous booms, revealing a field of ghastly white bones beneath the wooden planks.

It was clear just how many lives had been taken here before.

Faintly, a strand of golden light invisible to ordinary people drifted from the spider demon's corpse and entered Chu Liang's body.

Satisfied, he retrieved his sword. The flying sword transformed back into a bracelet and slipped onto his wrist.

The dust had settled.

Only then did he let out a long breath.

This truly was Chu Liang's first time... accepting a mission to descend the mountain alone and slay a demon. Though he had appeared calm before, he had actually been somewhat nervous inside.

Though this spider demon's cultivation was not high, it excelled at deceiving the eye and could transform into human form, making it difficult to distinguish. If not for accurate intelligence and the unique magical treasure in his hand, Chu Liang might not have dealt with it so easily.

After the battle ended, Chu Liang did not hurry to leave. Instead, he sat down cross-legged where he was and closed his eyes in meditation.

As his divine consciousness sank, he arrived in a dark space. It was empty, save for a towering White Tower standing before him.

Nine stories and six corners, it rose in majestic grandeur. Its surface was covered in intricate, obscure inscriptions and illustrations, ancient and solemn.

Chu Liang walked into the White Tower and saw that it was filled with iron cells lined with upright black bars, like a prison! There were countless cells, one after another, yet all were empty except for one.

Within that iron cell was a golden phantom. From its appearance, it seemed to be a large spider...

The iron cell had no door, only a wall bearing a red character: "Refine." Chu Liang stepped forward and pressed it lightly.

Boom—

With a flash of Red Light, the golden phantom instantly vanished.

A mass of white radiance then floated out of the iron cell.

That was right. Every time Chu Liang slew a demon, a phantom would appear in this tower. Refining that phantom would yield a treasure... as though it were a reward for slaying demons and eliminating evil.

Chu Liang reached out and caught the white light. When the glow faded, a bundle of red rope remained in his hand, and an impression arose in his mind.

Demon-Binding Rope:

When activated with true qi against an enemy, the Demon-Binding Rope will automatically subject the enemy to a tight Turtle Shell Bind. While rendering the enemy unable to fight, it can also shatter their psychological defenses and even awaken their hidden personality. Its power is immense.

Hahahaha, a new book is finally here! Three chapters on the first day, then two chapters daily afterward. Early read-throughs are especially important on Qidian now, so if you're interested, please try not to stockpile chapters. Feel free to stop by, bookmark, comment, and vote. Thank you, everyone!

(The holiday ended amid more than forty days of lockdown. It was utterly miserable. Every day now, besides thinking about what to write, I also have to think about what to eat... And under the current policy, if one person in a building tests positive, the whole building could very likely be taken away for quarantine. Every day is spent on tenterhooks—it's truly too hard. But even in such hardship, I'll still work hard to spread laughter and love for everyone.)