"Miss, that man had already left." An aged voice rang out.
It was an Old Woman.
She wore a gray robe and stood in the shadows of the corner.
She had been there from beginning to end, yet Song Chengan had never noticed her.
Ye Jin set down the pipa in her hands, lifted the teacup before her, and took a sip.
"Have you found out who that Shaman is?"
"She seemed to be from the Six Demonic Sects, but we do not know which sect specifically."
"Forget it."
"This was our mistake as well. A business deal turned us into accomplices helping a tyrant commit evil."
"Miss, this Song Chengan seemed to have quite good comprehension."
"Oh?" Ye Jin was intrigued.
"In Lingqiu County, there was actually someone who could catch your eye, Granny?"
The Old Woman chuckled. "Miss, you are making fun of this old woman again."
"It is this Song Chengan."
"First, his temperament."
"This man used to be a gambling wreck, yet in the space of a single thought, he could turn back from the edge and return to the right path. From then on, he never set foot in a Gambling House again."
"With such temperament and such perseverance, he surpassed who knew how many others."
"Among Chen Kingdom's current young generation, there were only a scant few with such a disposition."
"But he began cultivating too late." Ye Jin said, "He only embarked upon the Dao at thirty. Even if his will was steadfast, it would be difficult for him to achieve anything great."
The Old Woman said, "Beginning cultivation at thirty was indeed rather late."
"By common sense, it truly would be difficult for him to achieve anything great."
"But Miss seemed to have forgotten someone."
"That person only heard the Dao at eighty, yet in the end became one of the strongest sect leaders in Daoist history."
"Most importantly, if Miss wished to find that High-grade True Qi of the Moon God Sect, this man would be a fine source of assistance."
"That was true."
"This True Qi was the key to opening that Moon God Grotto-Heaven..."
Ye Jin nodded.
"Then lend him some help. Let him become Lingqiu's Commandant as soon as possible."
The Old Woman nodded.
"Miss, should we deal with that Wu Cong...?" The Old Woman made a throat-slitting gesture.
Ye Jin did not know whether to laugh or cry.
"Granny, according to the information we obtained, Song Chengan only became a Demon Suppression Envoy because of Wu Cong's recommendation."
"It could be said that Wu Cong had shown him the kindness of recognizing his talent. If we killed Wu Cong, would we not become his sworn enemies?"
"Moreover, Granny, Wu Cong had committed no wrongs in his entire life. By all reason and sentiment, he should not be killed like this."
"Please do not speak of killing people at every turn."
The Old Woman looked somewhat embarrassed. "Was I not simply thinking of helping Miss obtain that Moon God True Qi sooner?"
"What a headache."
"I wonder what secret Lingqiu held, for the Moon God Sect to value it so highly. And who had killed the Moon God Sect's sect master back then?"
"Truly terrifying."
"This person had once been one of the Ten Righteous Prodigies."
Inside the Void Heaven Mirror.
The three Phantom Bodies were still practicing.
They were practicing the Fire Cloud Staff Technique, the Water Repelling Art, and the refinement of Spirit Essence Pills respectively.
There had originally been four.
But the Phantom Body practicing the making of Paper Cranes had already completed its practice and been absorbed by Song Chengan.
"The Fire Cloud Staff Technique and the Water Repelling Art were still being practiced."
Song Chengan took a glance.
The Phantom Body practicing the refinement of Spirit Essence Pills had already stopped all movement, sitting cross-legged and staring blankly ahead.
This meant its practice with Spirit Essence Pills had ended.
Let's make two more Phantom Bodies!
With a thought from Song Chengan, two Phantom Bodies immediately appeared.
The moment one Phantom Body appeared, a volcano emerged before it.
Then it sat cross-legged beside the volcano and began devouring flames!
The instant the flames were swallowed, a thread of spiritual energy wreathed in fire appeared in the Phantom Body's meridians and began coursing through them.
But in the next instant, that meridian shattered.
Something miraculous happened. In an instant, the severed meridian recovered, and the Phantom Body continued devouring flames as it cultivated the Southern Bright Illusory Fire True Qi.
"Once this Phantom Body completes its deductions, I'll absorb its insights and go find Earth Fire to practice this Southern Bright Illusory Fire True Qi."
Song Chengan looked toward the other Phantom Body.
A table appeared before it. With a solemn expression, it held three copper coins in its hand and tossed them repeatedly.
Divination Art.
Song Chengan withdrew from the Void Heaven Mirror.
"I have two hundred Talisman Coins on me now. Time to spend some of them."
Song Chengan took out the Ghost Token.
As his True Qi flowed into it, a line of small words appeared.
"Three days later, at midnight, at the well in the rear courtyard of the haunted house west of the city."
"Three days?"
"Let's go have a bowl of noodles first."
Song Chengan felt somewhat hungry.
"Shopkeeper, one bowl of noodles, another two taels of sliced beef, and a jar of wine."
"Coming right up!"
"Brother Song, please wait a moment!"
"Brother Song!"
"Brother Song!"
"Big Brother Song!"
The moment Song Chengan entered.
A whole group of people greeted him.
They were still the same group of people.
Song Chengan was still Song Chengan.
Only Scholar Song had become Brother Song.
"Brother Song, you subdued another demon today?" Boss Shi raised his wine cup in Song Chengan's direction.
Song Chengan raised his cup as well.
He smiled and said, "Boss Shi, your news travels fast."
"Hehe, everyone here made a living at the docks!"
"I heard Qi Feng became a monster after eating Monster flesh."
Song Chengan nodded. "He obtained the flesh and blood of demons from the Shaman."
"After eating it, he became a demon."
"Brother Song, I heard that after eating demon flesh and blood, a person would possess immense strength and abilities like an immortal."
Song Chengan said upon hearing this,
"Eating demon flesh and blood could indeed grant immense strength, but the price was becoming a demon forever."
"They would gradually lose their intelligence and completely turn into Monsters."
"Yes, they would essentially die completely and become a new Monster."
"What, did you want to eat it?"
The burly man who had asked hastily waved his hands.
"Forget it, then."
"I heard Qi Feng was no longer even human by the end."
"I do not want to become a monster."
Song Chengan shook his head.
No wonder the Demon Suppression Division never allowed demon flesh and blood to enter the common folk.
Setting everything else aside, just the fact that consuming demon flesh and blood would turn one demonic...
How many people in this world had suffered every imaginable grievance? If everyone went to consume demon flesh and blood, things would surely descend into utter chaos.
"That Qi Feng was a pitiful man too."
Someone seemed to know Qi Feng.
"I did not kill him."
"He took his own life in the end."
"Once one consumed demon flesh and blood, demonization became irreversible."
"Until they completely became demons in the end, becoming monsters that knew only slaughter."
"They were even more terrifying than ordinary demons: without fear, without intelligence, knowing only frenzied slaughter."
The atmosphere in the Noodle Shop became somewhat heavy.
"By the way, why have I not seen Hu Lu?"
Song Chengan asked curiously.
He had not seen Hu Lu for several days.
As soon as those words came out.
The Noodle Shop became lively again.
Boss Shi said, "Wasn't it a few days ago?"
"That fellow made jokes about someone else's dead mother, so that person made jokes about his son."
"That fellow could dish it out but could not take it."
"When he got angry, he dragged his son to the Noodle Shop and wanted to publicly test their blood relation to make everyone shut up."
"And what happened?"
Song Chengan asked.
Hu Lu really was an uninteresting person.
He liked making jokes about others, but the moment anyone said something about him, he got angry.
"The blood did not merge."
"Uh..."
Song Chengan was speechless.
"Brother Song, you do not know."
"Back when everyone made remarks about his son, it was not simply because they were foul-mouthed."
"It was because his woman had always been entangled with Wang San'er next door."
"Everyone had seen it."
"We only thought his woman had some shameful affair with Wang San'er. Who would have thought that even the child was not his?"
"Then were they making a fuss now?"
"No." Boss Shi shook his head.
"That fellow did go back and make a scene."
"But his woman was fierce too, and her family had some influence. She was now set on separating from him and living with Wang San'er, but Hu Lu refused."
"Casting out her husband?"
Someone said, "This woman really was bold."
"To say nothing of the fact that all the fault lay with her. If this were in our village, she would surely be stuffed into a pig cage and drowned."
"That was the truth."
"But when all was said and done, whoever held power had reason in this world."
"That woman's family had some influence, and Wang San'er followed Master Hu. How could Hu Lu possibly contend against them?"
"If you ask me, her family was to blame for this."
"Before she married, she had already taken a liking to Wang San'er. But Wang San'er was merely a little hooligan back then, and her family looked down on him. In a hurry, they chose the honest Hu Lu as their son-in-law."
"What was so good about Wang San'er anyway? What he did now was not respectable work either."
"The Black Tiger Gang did nothing but extort people and collect protection fees."
"Castrating pigs was not exactly a prestigious job either, but at least it ensured food and clothing. With help from the family as well, life would not be too bad no matter what."
"That little hooligan had a slick tongue and knew how to make people happy."
"Hu Lu had a terribly foul mouth. He often said things that could infuriate people to death."
"That is not right." After listening for so long, Song Chengan said, "By your account, was this woman not now trying to separate from him and live with Wang San'er?"
"She had the upper hand, and the son was not Hu Lu's. So why was Hu Lu the one refusing to separate?"
"Could it be they couldn't agree on the division of the household assets?"
Song Chengan found it strange.
"Isn't it because that woman of his is still heavily pregnant?"
"Hu Lu is already over forty."
"If that woman leaves, he'll probably have a hard time finding another woman for the rest of his life."
"Right now, all he can think about is keeping that woman and the child in her belly."
"Is that child his?" someone asked.
The moment those words were spoken, the Noodle Shop fell silent.
"Probably?"
"They can't both be not his, can they?"
"Forget it, forget it. Let's stop talking about Hu Lu."
"Brother Song!"
When Song Chengan walked out of the Noodle Shop, he saw Hu Lu approaching him.
There were a few more white hairs on his head.
His expression was haggard.
When he clasped his hands in greeting, he bowed very low.
Song Chengan said nothing.
He merely nodded at him.
"What a mess."
Three days later.
The haunted house in the western part of the city.
Song Chengan looked at the well before him and leaped down.
He needed to buy materials for refining Spirit Essence Pills, as well as a pill furnace.
He decided to try pill refining for the time being. Once that Phantom Body completed its comprehension of the Southern Bright Illusory Fire True Qi, he would seek out Earth Fire and cultivate the Southern Bright Illusory Fire True Qi.
And also.
Song Chengan felt that he needed an escape technique.
Before you continue