Chu Feng and Chen Shi Tou carried Afu's mangled remains out and headed for Afu's home.
This was an ordinary house in the southern part of the city. Its courtyard wall leaned crookedly, the thatched roof was a mess, and there were even a few faintly visible holes.
Afu was a well-known impoverished resident of the area. He had many sisters in his family and ranked seventh among his siblings.
Because he was close with Chen Shi Tou, he had gotten a job as a waiter at the restaurant. This gave his elder sister, who had originally been preparing to sell herself to a brothel, the chance to marry.
His brothers and sisters even got to enjoy a bit of meat and oil every few days, filling them with hope for the future. Who could have known that before these good days had lasted even a few days, Chen Shi Tou would be killed by a demon...
Now, Afu was dead.
Overnight, they had been sent back to the days before liberation. Naturally, they wailed to the heavens and cried bitterly, their grief rising and falling without end.
It was impossible to tell whether they were mourning the death of a loved one or weeping over their shattered hopes of a better life...
Only after Chen Shi Tou promised to let one of them take Afu's place did Afu's family finally let them leave.
Chen Shi Tou was not angry. Living in the southern part of the city, where poor families were everywhere, he had long since become accustomed to such things. Besides, this was the only thing he could do for Afu.
At this moment, on the street where Chu Feng had fought the demons.
Two old men in their fifties chatted while repairing a collapsed courtyard wall.
"When martial artists fight to the death, the ones who suffer are always ordinary folk like us. Old Li, rebuilding your courtyard wall and windows is going to cost quite a bit, isn't it?"
"You didn't even dare come out to see, did you? It was clearly a martial arts expert hunting a Fox Demon last night! If my wife hadn't held me back, I would have shouted a few times to cheer that lord on..."
The man replying was boasting about his courage and had not answered the other man's question at all.
Old Li could hardly contain his delight. Can I tell you that the great hero last night threw me twelve taels of silver?
"Who says I don't know? I even know there were two Fox Demons. That lord killed one and the other escaped..." Old Wang said indignantly.
When he saw Old Li change the subject, his mind immediately began to churn.
Old Li is grinning from ear to ear. He doesn't look like someone whose courtyard wall was destroyed at all. Could he have received some silver last night too? Could it have been ten taels as well?
When Old Wang saw that his neighbor Old Li had also profited, the ten taels of silver in his hand suddenly seemed far less enticing...
Just as the two men were letting their imaginations run wild, the County Magistrate led a group of yamen runners and constables over at a hurried pace.
What surprised Old Wang and Old Li was that the chief official of Yong'an County Town was not standing in the most prominent position.
The lofty County Magistrate of Yong'an City was actually whispering something beside a burly man eight feet tall, his entire body knotted with muscle.
This man was the Viscera Refinement Warrior sent by the Demon Suppression Division, Li Xuanhai.
"Demons appeared suddenly last night. This is where they showed themselves, but according to the commoners' testimony, the demon was already driven away by a mysterious passerby..."
Yang Chenwu summoned Old Wang and Old Li and asked, "What did you see during yesterday's battle?"
Old Wang and Old Li exchanged a glance before dropping to their knees in terror.
"My lord, we didn't dare leave the house at all. We stayed beneath the bed, trembling with fear. What we just said was only our guess based on the sounds..."
Yang Chenwu: "..."
At this moment, the young man behind Li Xuanhai stepped forward. After making a brief inspection, he reported to Li Xuanhai.
"Master, there should have been two Bone Forging Realm martial artists and two Fourth Realm Fox Demons at the scene last night. Judging from the traces of battle, one Fox Demon died and one escaped, while the martial artists were completely unharmed!"
"Mm, I already know. I never expected that in such a remote place, there would actually be a martial artist capable of killing a demon of the same realm. Truly rare!"
When Yang Chenwu heard Li Xuanhai's words, he immediately replied, "Lord Li, I think I know the identity of the martial artist who killed the demon."
Seeing the questioning look in Li Xuanhai's eyes, he did not dare keep him guessing and told him about Chu Feng.
Li Xuanhai nodded. "A martial artist capable of killing a demon. This young fellow named Chu Feng can probably be counted among the ranks of geniuses..."
At this moment, the young man standing beside Li Xuanhai curled his lips, a trace of disdain showing in his eyes.
Li Xuanhai seemed to notice the young man's disdain and said with a smile, "Yun Fei, you are a direct descendant of Jizhou's Lu Clan, so of course you needn't pay this any mind. But in this little Yong'an County Town, he is already a golden phoenix that has flown out of a chicken coop."
With that, Li Xuanhai asked Yang Chenwu, "Where is this genius of Yong'an County Town? The Fourth Realm demon that appeared last night may have been a minion sent by the Bat Demon. There are some things I need to ask him about."
Yang Chenwu did not dare delay and hurriedly said, "That Chu Feng is at Hongyun Restaurant on Central Avenue. He is a butcher in the back kitchen."
"The number one genius likes working as a butcher? That is an interesting hobby..." Li Xuanhai said with a chuckle.
Yang Chenwu did not mind at all. Instead, he was delighted for Chu Feng. This Viscera Refinement Warrior was one of the Demon Suppression Division's most renowned demon hunters. If Chu Feng caught his eye, even a little guidance from him might benefit Chu Feng for the rest of his life.
Hongyun Restaurant...
The restaurant's main hall was bustling with voices, and the bold laughter of martial artists rang out everywhere.
Ever since the forces of the Fang Family and Wang Family had been eliminated, with only the powerful Li Family remaining—and behaving itself—the people of the entire city had finally begun enjoying peaceful, happy days.
They no longer had to fear powerful-family scions racing their horses through the streets, gang members extorting them, or the landlord lords who had once drained them to the bone.
At this moment, a young man in the restaurant's main hall said, "Do you know who let us live in peace, without having to fear those powerful families and gangs anymore?"
"Who? Could it have been the County Magistrate?" someone asked in surprise.
"Of course not," the young man retorted.
Seeing everyone's eyes gather on him, the young man basked in the feeling of being the center of attention and grew somewhat carried away.
"Heh heh, on the day Great Hero Chu fought the Fang Family patriarch, I hid in the distance and watched the whole thing."
"Great Hero Chu displayed his divine might, beating that old demon of the Fang Family until he fled with his tail between his legs. In the end, he even chopped off his head with a single stroke..."
The moment these words came out, everyone present erupted.
The young man raised a hand and pressed it down. The crowd immediately fell silent, every eye fixed on him, eager to hear what other earth-shattering gossip he had.
The young man did not disappoint them and revealed another secret.
"I also know where that Great Hero Chu is. He is in the back kitchen of this very restaurant, hiding his identity and keeping his name buried. Truly, he is a man of noble character, unburdened by fame and profit—a role model for us all!"
The old proprietor sat behind the counter, a smile on his face.
Let things get lively. Otherwise, all that deliberate spreading of rumors would have been for nothing. The restaurant's business will probably become even more prosperous in the future...
"A bunch of ignorant bumpkins from the countryside—what kind of genius could they possibly have seen?"
A voice like rolling thunder exploded through the restaurant's main hall. Everyone froze for a moment before turning as one toward the restaurant entrance.
Before you continue