The battle inside the residential complex had been extremely loud. There had been the shockwaves created by my flames, as well as the streetlights the demon had pulled out and thrown. Judging by the decibel level of any single noise, even ordinary construction work had never disturbed the residents to this extent.
Before long, some residents in the surrounding apartment buildings had appeared on balconies and beside windows to look around.
To avoid being stopped by anyone, I hurried out of the residential complex.
At the same time, I kept a close eye on the demon's movements a kilometer away.
After sneaking into the river, the demon quickly noticed something strange about itself. Just like the underwater combustion phenomenon demonstrated in middle-school chemistry class, the flames wrapped around its body refused to go out.
The terrifying goat face immediately displayed an expression of utter fear and despair. Under the hellish pain of being burned, it spat out a string of panicked bubbles. Then it struggled out of the river onto the deserted bank and let out another heart-wrenching howl.
It was obvious that it wanted to do something, but had no idea what to do. Escaping my sight and diving into the water had both failed to extinguish the flames. It could not even think calmly. The pain of the burning had probably almost boiled its brains.
Its only escape route now was the cave in the room on the Fifteenth Floor. If it went beneath the cave, it could cut off the connection between me and the flames. But judging from its appearance, it had not thought of that—or perhaps it did not know how to open the cave or understand its special properties?
After howling for a while, it finally recovered a little of its reason and once again sped away from the residential complex.
What an incredibly tenacious body, and what an incredibly tenacious will to live. If an ordinary person had been burned to this extent, all their mental strength should have been exhausted by now. Though, admittedly, I had never actually tried it myself.
To be honest, I was somewhat disappointed by the level this demon had actually displayed.
From the beginning of the battle until now, it had shown me nothing but physical attacks. The shadow attack just now had been the same. Although the power of shadow had seemed mysterious and unfathomable at first glance, it had ultimately transformed into physical blades to attack me. Wasn't that use of it too boring? Didn't it have any stranger skills?
Could it be that everyone in that world fought in this way? Or was it merely a low-level minion?
Judging by the decision it was making now, it was probably suspecting that it had not put enough distance between us, which was why it continued to suffer the burns. Even if it escaped to the other side of the ocean, it would be useless, but I still had to retrieve it later. I could not let it run too far away.
I stopped where I was for the moment, raised my right palm toward the distant point a kilometer away, and clenched it hard.
Under my control, the flames wrapped around its entire body—specifically, those outside its legs—suddenly seemed to come alive as they frantically bored into its muscles.
With a thunderous boom, both its legs exploded on the spot. Its body could not brake in time and, carried by inertia, it crashed miserably into the woods by the roadside. It rolled a long way before finally coming to a stop.
It pressed both hands against the muddy ground covered in fallen leaves and pushed itself upright. Since I had no intention of damaging the surrounding environment, even though it had fallen into a place filled with flammable material while its entire body was ablaze, the flames showed no sign of spreading at all. It glanced back at its exploded, severed legs and suddenly began laughing hysterically.
"Zhuang Cheng, you're watching me, aren't you!?" It raised its head and let out a crazed howl at the empty night sky. "If you've got the guts... if you've got the guts, then give me a quick death! Kill me!"
"I can't do that." Although I knew it could not hear me, I still replied from a kilometer away. "You're still useful."
A moment later, I arrived in the woods where the demon was.
It lay motionless on the ground, its entire body charred black like a coal with embers still glowing inside. It looked dead, but I knew it was still alive. After all, aside from its legs, I had only let the flames damage its skin and muscles, deliberately keeping them from reaching its internal organs. I could even sense, through the flames, its consciously suppressed breathing.
Perhaps it had been burned to the point that most of its pain nerves had already died. Out of curiosity, I had once searched for some information online (leaving aside why I had searched for that kind of material). Since human pain receptors were mainly distributed in the epidermis and dermis, the depth of a burn and the degree of pain were not necessarily proportional. Some patients with severe burns could even feel very little pain. I simply did not know whether this demon's physiology was similar to a human's in that regard.
"You're still conscious." I spoke to it first. "There are some things I want to ask you. As long as you're willing to answer, I won't burn you for now."
The demon did not respond. I walked a few steps closer. When the distance between us had narrowed to only four or five meters, it suddenly planted both arms on the ground and erupted into motion, its body shooting toward me.
"Zhuang Cheng—!!" From its severely burned throat came a hoarse, hate-filled roar so distorted that I could barely make out the words.
It seemed this was its desperate final attack. Since I had expected it, I felt no surprise. But what happened next was completely beyond my expectations.
Just as I was about to counterattack, a streak of white light flew out from behind me, brushed past my body, and struck the demon directly in the torso. The demon flew backward like a ball powerfully kicked by an athlete, then slammed into a nearby tree hard enough to bend it.
This time, the demon seemed to have truly lost consciousness rather than merely putting on an act.
Who had done that?
I immediately turned around.
From the other side of the woods, a figure holding a sharp sword slowly walked over.
Dark clouds drifted across the night sky, finally revealing the moon. The moonlight spilled into the bamboo grove, illuminating the figure's face.
It was actually someone dressed like an ancient swordsman. The person wore a brown-black straw rain cape and a matching bamboo hat, with a black-and-red sword scabbard strapped to their back. The long sword was held in their hand, its tip angled toward the ground, maintaining a tense, ready-to-strike air.
Judging by the fact that this person had just helped me, they were probably not an enemy. To be honest, I thought it had been unnecessary, but the feeling of having a mysterious stranger draw a sword to uphold justice was fresh, and I could not bring myself to view it negatively. Still, even if I judged that they were not an enemy, they might not see things the same way. Perhaps I should introduce myself first and make it clear that I meant no harm.
"Hello." I spoke first. "I'm Zhuang..."
Suddenly, the other person seemed to recognize my face and exclaimed, "Zhuang Cheng?"
It was a young woman's voice, and one I seemed to have heard somewhere before.
"You know me?" I asked in surprise. "Who are you?"
The other person hesitated for a moment, then raised a hand and removed her bamboo hat, revealing her true face.
The sight surprised me even more—one could even say it shocked me. Even seeing the demon for the first time had not caused such a strong emotional upheaval. The face she revealed belonged to an acquaintance of mine.
In my memories, that face had always seemed sweet and gentle, bringing to mind streams, clear springs, misty lake surfaces, and the delicate beauty of an ink-wash painting. In most situations, she had done her best to avoid any conflicts that might arise in interpersonal relationships.
Now, her appearance had not changed at all, but her bearing was completely different. She was like a mighty swordswoman, facing every dispute with a frank and spirited attitude.
"...Zhu Shi?" I said her name aloud.
The person who had come was Chang'an's younger sister, Zhu Shi.
"You..." She hesitantly looked at me, then at the demon lying nearby. Her voice was filled with disbelief. "...Did you defeat it?"
"No. You were the one who defeated it just now, weren't you?"
Actually, I knew what she meant. I was only trying to buy myself a little time to smooth out the turmoil in my heart.
"I mean, these burns covering its body..." At first, her tone was still somewhat unable to accept it.
But little by little, she regained her composure, and her tone became much steadier. "—Did you do all of this?"
The way she spoke was completely different from the Zhu Shi in my memories. Even her pitch had changed somewhat. By comparison, her former manner of speaking had seemed a little deliberately obedient. Perhaps the way she acted now was her true personality.
I had more or less calmed myself down as well. While analyzing the Zhu Shi before me, I gave her an affirmative answer. "I did."
She observed me for a moment, then deliberately sheathed her sharp sword in the scabbard on her back and asked tentatively, "Are you a Demon Hunter too?"
"Too?... I'm not in that line of work." I answered, "If I had to describe it, I should be a superpowered individual."
"That still counts as being a Demon Hunter." She actually put it that way.
It still counted? This was not the first time I had heard the term Demon Hunter. It should be a profession, right? Could someone be called a Demon Hunter simply by possessing extraordinary powers, even without actually working in that profession? The idea felt somewhat incongruous, and the term Demon Hunter also triggered a realization.
No wonder Zhu Shi's voice had sounded familiar. It was exactly the same as the voice of the female Demon Hunter who had spoken to Agent Kong on the phone during the day.
Zhu Shi was that female Demon Hunter!
Amid my shock, I immediately realized a problem—
The female Demon Hunter—Zhu Shi—was affiliated with Luoshan, and Luoshan was very likely an official supernatural organization. Didn't that mean it would be difficult for me to keep the demon all to myself now?
Was there any way to take the demon back... No, that would be short-sighted. An official supernatural organization had already revealed its existence to me in earnest, yet I was still fixated on some demon of unknown origins. If there was any strange information about that world I wanted to understand, wouldn't it be better to ask them directly?
As it happened, Zhu Shi was also my friend's younger sister. With that connection, all I could say was that heaven was helping me!
My attention immediately focused entirely on Zhu Shi.
"I forgot to introduce myself again. I'm a Demon Hunter from Luoshan, responsible for security in this area." Zhu Shi spoke in an extremely formal tone. "Regarding the matter of you defeating the Fallen Demon Hunter, I have many questions I'd like to ask you. Are you available now?"
Before you continue