Demon Fire

"Fire!"

"Fire! A huge fire!"

In the dead of night, the sudden inferno at the Xu residence drew the attention of countless people.

Several streaks of sword-light shot into the sky, followed by an unceasing stream of water-controlling talismans and fire-extinguishing array patterns—

By the time Xu Jing, who had been carrying out his night patrol duties, received the news, the blaze had already been put out.

The Xu residence had burned to the ground.

Xu Jing stepped into the estate, moved aside the massive stones from the collapsed buildings, and saw only a woman's corpse burned into charcoal, no longer recognizable as human.

"Shen..."

With a thud, he dropped to his knees, bracing his hands against the ground, unable to believe this sudden nightmare.

Xu Jing remained dazed for a long time.

How could this have happened?!

He had only been gone for a moment. How had the Xu residence become like this?!

A streak of sword-light slowly descended.

"This was demon fire. The sparks at the scene still carry traces of phoenix-fire."

A figure in yellow stood suspended atop the sword-light.

Xu Jing raised his head, his eyes bloodshot as he ground his teeth. "City Lord, do you mean... a Demon Cultivator set fire in Taian City?"

"...Yes."

The Taian City Lord sighed softly and offered consolation. "Who could have expected someone to be so audacious as to set fire to the Xu residence? That person came without a shadow and left without a trace. I sealed the city gates at once, but could not capture any corresponding aura whatsoever. I have already reported tonight's events to the higher authorities. Azure Prefecture is under strict lockdown now, and the Primal Chaos Monitor has cast its net over the workings of heaven. There should be clues soon enough. We simply do not know when the Imperial City Bureau will respond... Young Master Xu, please restrain your grief."

"Wait, where is my adoptive father?"

Xu Jing suddenly recalled another crucial matter.

The Taian City Lord sighed again.

A moment later.

Xu Jing was brought outside Taian City, where he stared at the small pile of ashes before him.

"This is your adoptive father."

The words sounded rather ironic, absurd.

The Taian City Lord sighed quietly. "Xu You died much like Shen Yan. He was burned to ashes, leaving not even an intact corpse behind... Judging from the lingering demon-fire aura here, this atrocity was likely committed by the same Demon Cultivator."

Azure Prefecture was sealed off, and Demon Cultivators were under strict investigation!

Yet this Demon Cultivator had brazenly murdered people in Taian City, treating Great Chu's laws as if they were nothing!

"Demon Cultivator... Demon Cultivator..."

Xu Jing abruptly raised his head.

He sprinted madly toward Taian City, heading straight for the residence where Xie Zhen had been staying.

But from several miles away, he saw flames rising into the sky and thick smoke billowing. He crashed through the door, only to find the place already reduced to ashes.

"Who was staying in this residence?"

The Taian City Lord followed on his sword. Seeing this, he frowned and asked.

"My adoptive father entertained several guests tonight. They were staying here..."

Xu Jing looked at the ruins, his expression despondent. "I had thought the Demon Cultivator you mentioned was connected to them."

"What exactly happened?"

The Taian City Lord hurriedly asked.

Xu Jing briefly recounted the events of the night.

The Taian City Lord listened in silence, then asked, "You said that Xie Zhen has no vital energy in his body, yet is skilled in talisman arts?"

"Yes."

Xu Jing laughed at himself. "Thinking about it carefully, he could not possibly be the culprit. He is merely a Qi Refiner. Even if he knows some talisman arts, could he possibly be a match for my adoptive father?"

"That is true. But tonight, more than one place in Taian City caught fire... From the City Lord's Residence to the garrison platform at the city gates, demon-fire traces were found everywhere."

The City Lord frowned, finding the entire matter exceedingly strange. Everywhere he looked, there was an inexplicable sense of wrongness.

The City Lord's Residence and the garrison platform had both been set ablaze, yet there had been few casualties.

Only several garrison soldiers had fallen unconscious and had yet to awaken.

And at the Xu residence, which appeared to have suffered the greatest losses, only Shen Yan had died.

If this had truly been deliberate revenge by a Demon Cultivator, why attack only the Xu residence?

As for the residence where the guests Xu Jing mentioned had stayed, it had been burned clean... How could ordinary mortals endure the erosion of demon fire? Flesh and bone alike had been burned into nothingness, leaving not the slightest trace at the scene.

"Strange. Too strange."

The Taian City Lord pondered inwardly.

The thing he could not understand most of all—

Was Xu You.

How had the dignified deputy City Lord of Taian City died silently outside Taian City?

"We will rest here."

They had traveled without stopping or looking back. After confirming there were no pursuers behind them—

Deng Baiyi chose to halt the group at the foot of a barren mountain.

She held Jiang Huang in her arms. The little girl was still asleep, sleeping sweetly... completely unaware of what had happened.

Other than Jiang Huang, no one could sleep.

"Could Young Master Xie have gone to fight that City Lord Xu to the death?"

Deng Chicheng was somewhat anxious.

He knew Xu You was no good man.

But he was still an important figure. Surely he would not be so impatient as to murder them to silence them over a few pills?

"..."

Deng Baiyi said irritably, "What City Lord? He was only the deputy!"

"He was appointed by Great Chu and stationed in charge of a city. Deputy or not... is that someone we can afford to provoke?"

Deng Chicheng clutched the banknotes in his arms uneasily and said with considerable regret, "Maybe I should return this silver. Holding this thing feels like holding a hot potato."

Deng Baiyi looked helplessly at her oddball father.

"No need to return it."

At that moment, a light, drifting voice floated down to the foot of the barren mountain.

"Xu You is already dead. If you truly want to return it, burn it for him."

At those words, Deng Chicheng's face instantly turned pale.

A figure in white robes stained with blood slowly came into view.

Earlier, Deng Chicheng had thought Xie Zhen looked refined and gentle, innocent as a child. But now, the more he looked, the more wrong it felt! This was clearly an extremely dangerous, blood-handed killer!

Those great demons of Jade Pearl Town—killed!

The ghost cultivator ringleader controlling those great demons—killed!

And now... even Great Chu's officially appointed city official had been killed!

"You're back?"

Seeing that familiar face which put her at ease, Deng Baiyi finally let go of the worry hanging in her heart.

As for Xu You's death, she did not feel much emotional turmoil.

All the way east—

Everyone's lives rested on a single thought from Xie Zhen.

She believed there had to be a reason behind everything Xie Zhen did.

"Mm..."

Xie Xuanyi, who had never been in the habit of explaining himself in the past, thought for a moment before speaking softly. "Xu You and Shen Yan were both Demon Cultivators. If I had not killed them, we would all have died."

"Demon Cultivators?"

Deng Chicheng froze.

Xie Xuanyi gave a soft laugh. "Miss Shen was quite ruthless... For the Demon Kingdom, she placed righteousness above family and personally wiped out everyone on Lingluo Mountain."

Deng Chicheng's face went pale.

She had personally exterminated everyone on Lingluo Mountain? That woman was that ruthless?

Although Shen Yan had never looked like a good person...

He had never imagined Shen Yan could be so insane!

Thinking back to their journey through Azure Prefecture, he and Shen Yan had ridden together the whole way, seated in the same carriage!

A wave of fear washed over Deng Chicheng. Cold sweat seeped across his back, soaking his entire garment.

Deng Baiyi asked in confusion, "Shen Yan is one thing, but Xu You was the deputy City Lord of Taian City... He was a Demon Cultivator too?"

Her expression was exceedingly complicated.

The news Xie Zhen had brought was simply earth-shattering.

No wonder he had warned her not to rest and insisted they travel through the night.

"Though he wore a human body, he harbored a demon's heart. People like that are more terrifying than pure demons." Xie Xuanyi said calmly.

Deng Baiyi sighed softly.

She suddenly realized there was a very serious problem.

"Wait, you killed them... What do we do next?"

Shen Yan was descended from a prominent family of Lingluo Mountain.

Xu You was the deputy City Lord of Taian City.

Both were people of status and standing... Especially the latter. The death of an officially appointed city official would certainly draw attention.

Deng Chicheng instinctively said, "Of course we report them and expose them."

After saying that, he looked toward Xie Xuanyi.

The latter's expression was utterly blank.

"Hey, hey, hey... Don't tell me?" A terrible premonition rose in Deng Chicheng's heart.

"I'm very sorry, but the next step is running away."

Xie Xuanyi said flatly, "The identities of these two Demon Cultivators are not something a simple report can resolve. I cleaned up the clues in Taian City, so there should not be any problems in the short term... Before the Imperial City Bureau comes knocking, I will give everyone a new identity. A safe identity, one that will not invite trouble."

Chirp chirp, again chirp chirp~