Wanted

The merchants breathed a sigh of relief and praised Li Qi one after another.

"Exactly, I was already preparing to draw my sword, but Brother Li Qi was even more amazing and managed to fool it!"

"I suspect that monster was mostly out of its mind, probably like Xiong Ga Po, acting according to a set of rules."

"Indeed, I've also heard that some monsters, if you don't open the door when they knock at night, they won't come in, but if you do open it, they'll eat you. These demons and monsters all have peculiar habits. This monster was probably the same. If we had actually drawn our weapons, we might not have gotten out. Li Qi was the clever one!"

It turned out that after Li Qi, Ba Kui, and the others noticed something was wrong with the woman, they immediately realized she was a monster.

What do you do when it's a monster?

Everyone else immediately became vigilant, ready to fight to the death.

But Li Qi, seeing the monster's strangeness, remained calm and even tried to communicate with it according to its rules, unexpectedly managing to escape.

What great luck! That monster also followed rules!

This situation wasn't uncommon. For example, in legends like Xiong Ga Po, the monkey show, the hungry ghost, the Yellow Great Immortal, and the house-guarding snake, the monsters often had some logic. If you didn't offend them, there was a chance of survival.

Li Qi had thought of this, which was why he forced himself to stay calm and talk to the monster.

That was a monster that could shapeshift! If it had suddenly attacked, Li Qi had no doubt that none of them would have survived.

As for Li Qi carrying the monster back, the others weren't too concerned.

Who knew if they would have been chased down and killed if they had left directly?

What if the monster sought revenge for them not helping?

It was better this way; to put it nicely, they had even established a good relationship with the monster, and everyone was happy, so they didn't blame Li Qi.

As mentioned before, although these merchants weren't particular about good and evil, they still had a sense of minor righteousness. Having gone through life and death with Li Qi, they wouldn't turn their backs on him over a small matter.

As everyone rejoiced, they finally reached the city outskirts.

Feng County was here, and they should be safe now.

Around cities, there were always the Demon Eradication Division and garrison commanders. Even in the countryside, there were many witches and shamans who could perform exorcisms and demon subjugations.

Therefore, the city outskirts were definitely safe. If the outskirts weren't safe...

Then it was time to wait for death. What level of existence would a demon be to breach a county town?

With everyone finally relaxing, Li Qi prepared to part ways with them.

They were merely acquaintances, having traveled together for only one night. Each had their own matters to attend to and couldn't stay together indefinitely.

"Brother Li, I'll be taking my leave then. The place I'm going is far, and my business is urgent. I bid you farewell." A'Du was the first to say goodbye.

This was quite normal. He was someone who chose to travel alone in the vast winter, so it was natural for him to have important responsibilities. The others didn't hold him back. After bidding farewell, he left.

Then there were the merchants. They all carried baskets filled with goods that needed to be sold or had already been ordered. They needed to deliver them and get busy with their own affairs.

Ba Kui said to Li Qi, "We're setting off for Lianxia Gorge tomorrow noon. We promised to treat you to drinks, but tonight won't work. We'll meet here tomorrow morning and make sure you drink your fill!"

Lianxia Gorge was a section of the Lishui River that formed a canyon and was a gathering place for many ships, making it a natural destination for merchants.

Li Qi naturally had no objections. Since he could get a free meal and make some friends, it was a good thing. He readily agreed and parted ways with the merchants.

The group had only just become familiar with each other on the road, and now they were about to part ways.

Apart from Ba Kui, none of the others revealed their specific destinations. Everyone had their own business and didn't need to reveal all their secrets.

Most of life was like this; those who pass by are more numerous than those who gather.

After everyone separated, Li Qi walked alone near the city gate, not entering for the moment.

The main reason was that he saw a notice board not far from the side of the city gate. Someone was posting a notice, and many people were gathered around, so he decided to go closer and take a look.

He walked over and looked at the notice board. A new notice had indeed been posted.

The notice stated that a group of merchants, twelve in total, had encountered a demon on the road and had all died. The notice was posted in hopes that relatives would come forward to claim the bodies.

Li Qi felt a chill run down his spine.

Could it be... that Ba Kui and his group had encountered ghosts!?

However, before he could scare himself further, his confusion was resolved because portraits were posted below.

Upon closer inspection, they had nothing to do with Ba Kui and his group; they were purely another unfortunate party.

Only then did he relax and begin to read carefully.

But the more he looked, the more familiar the people in the portraits seemed.

After thinking carefully, he finally remembered that the people posted were from one of the two merchant groups he had met at the roadside tea stall!

Ba Kui's group had successfully made it, but this group had all died on the road. After being discovered by passersby, they were reported to the government office!

After clarifying the situation, Li Qi shook his head.

He once again realized the dangers of traveling alone.

No wonder everyone was reluctant to travel far, and traveling alone was viewed with extreme fear, as if it were a tiger or a leopard.

However, as Li Qi continued to read, he saw a wanted poster.

It read:

"Arrest warrant, by order of the Prefect of Lishui Prefecture!"

"Today, the Tang Kingdom's traitor, Lady Luofu, a Demon God, received the Emperor's favor and was appointed to govern a region. However, she is immoral and wicked, causing chaos among the populace, employing villains, and plunging the region into great disorder."

"The Governor of Jiannan Circuit ordered her to investigate herself, but she disrespected the imperial decree, acted arrogantly, and rebelled. The Emperor, in his benevolence, decreed that she should confine herself and repent. Yet, this villain disregards the imperial command, publicly insults the sovereign, disobeys orders, and intends to defect to Tianzhu."

"For this grave crime, she deserves execution. However, Lady Luofu possesses profound magical powers and extraordinary abilities. She assassinated an imperial envoy, committed treason, and fled. She has now entered Baiyue and her whereabouts are unknown. Our Great Deer Kingdom is one of the states of Baiyue and has been on friendly terms with the Tang Kingdom for generations, forming a brotherhood. A rebel in our elder brother's kingdom is a rebel to our Great Deer Kingdom. Anyone with a lead on Lady Luofu will be rewarded with one hundred gold pieces. Anyone who can kill her will be granted two noble ranks and enfeoffed with ten thousand households. Anyone who can capture her alive will have a prefecture of land split and be made a king."

This wanted poster was different from the others; it was written on yellow cloth. It had likely been hanging by the city gates for some time, but it was still prominently displayed, clearly indicating its importance.

"A treason wanted poster… that makes sense." Li Qi scanned it and immediately skipped over it.

What did it have to do with him? A powerful figure of that caliber, oh, no, a powerful person, and they were still talking about killing her?

The effect of this notice was likely just to warn the world that such a traitor had appeared.

That was all. How could it possibly be accomplished by the strength of ordinary people?

Skipping past it, Li Qi continued to read.

Then he saw himself.