"Fang Mu! Open the door!"
The sky was just beginning to brighten when a burst of shouting and pounding on the door rang out, making Fang Mu frown and leave his cultivation.
"I'll go take a look. You go cook!"
Seeing that Fang Jing had also been awakened, Fang Mu reminded her before walking outside the courtyard to open the door.
Actually, Fang Mu could tell from the voice alone that it was Qi Zhu.
He had no idea how she had found out where he lived or why she had come looking for him so early in the morning.
"Creak!" The courtyard gate opened, and sure enough, Qi Zhu stood outside. She was alone.
Before Fang Mu could even greet her, she walked into the courtyard on her own. Her casual attitude made it seem as though she were entering her own home.
Fang Mu closed the courtyard gate and walked toward Qi Zhu. "What do you want with me?"
Qi Zhu ignored Fang Mu and instead walked into the house. When she saw Fang Jing busy at work, she froze for a moment before greeting her.
"Your little sister is really pretty. No wonder you're so handsome too."
"..."
Fang Mu was speechless. It was pleasant to hear, but had she really come over so early just to flatter him? That didn't seem like her personality.
"Say it. What do you really want with me?"
"The person who knocked me unconscious last night was you, wasn't it?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about. Everyone was unconscious last night. If you don't believe me, you can ask the survivors."
"Hmph! Stop changing the subject. I have proof!"
Qi Zhu snorted coldly, pulled a skirt hem from her sleeve, and revealed a faint palm print.
"You hugged me last night! Do you admit it? If you don't, I'll go back to the County Office right now and have them investigate this palm print thoroughly."
Looking at the questioning gaze Qi Zhu directed at him, Fang Mu's lips twitched. He had never expected to leave evidence behind after being so careful.
"Just tell me what you want. There's no need to beat around the bush!"
"Hmph! So you're admitting it?"
"You don't have to say anything. I'm an unmarried maiden. Since you hugged me, you have to take responsibility for me."
"What are you trying to do?"
"You're going to propose to my father!"
"No!"
"What did you say? Do you believe I'll expose you?"
"Do as you please!"
"You bastard! You used me and now you won't take responsibility?"
"I didn't do anything, and I'm not interested in you."
"Y-you're infuriating me!"
"You really won't propose?"
"No! I won't propose even if you beat me to death. And if you can't beat me to death, I won't propose even more!"
Looking at Fang Mu, who was as shamelessly tough as a meat cleaver that refused to bend, acting as though she could do whatever she wanted, Qi Zhu's face flushed with anger.
"Fine, you don't have to propose. Help me with one thing instead."
"If you dare refuse, I'll throw a tantrum and roll around in your house!"
"..."
"You win! I admit I'm afraid of you. What exactly do you want me to do?"
Fang Mu was speechless. It was obvious that Qi Zhu's endless nonsense and shameless threats were all just a roundabout way of asking him for help.
"Come over here!"
Qi Zhu glanced at Fang Jing, who was busy in the kitchen, and gestured for Fang Mu to speak with her in the inner room.
After entering the inner room and closing the door, the atmosphere grew awkward for a moment.
"Say it. What exactly do you want me to do?"
Fang Mu was relatively calm and quickly asked her.
"I want you to help me investigate my mother's whereabouts."
"Uh, your mother disappeared? Didn't your father go look for her?"
"Shut up! Let me finish!"
Qi Zhu angrily kicked Fang Mu and snapped irritably.
Fang Mu was speechless. He had not expected Qi Zhu's temper to be so explosive.
After steadying her emotions, Qi Zhu finally said, "I've never seen my mother. Ever since I was little, my father has told me that she's gone."
Hearing the sadness in Qi Zhu's voice, Fang Mu fell silent.
In this life, he had no parents either. All he had was a token-shaped birthmark on his back.
"I originally thought my mother was no longer in this world, but every year, my father takes me to the Sacrificial God Hall."
"Whenever he has time, he takes me to the Sacrificial God Hall to worship."
"Every time I see my father staring at the god statue in a daze, I feel that something is weighing on his mind."
"As I grew older, I unexpectedly discovered that my appearance looked remarkably similar to that god statue."
"I suspect that my origins may be connected to the god statue, so I want you to help me investigate."
"Uh..."
Fang Mu was dumbfounded. How am I supposed to investigate that?
But refusing Qi Zhu was certainly impossible. If she really threw herself on the ground and screamed that he had assaulted her, Fang Mu would never be able to clear his name, even if he jumped into the Yellow River.
"What is a sacrificial god? Can you tell me about Qingzhu City? That way, I'll have another clue to follow!"
Hearing Fang Mu's question, Qi Zhu pondered for a moment before speaking. "A sacrificial god is a living being that receives offerings."
"They cast aside their physical bodies, transform into spiritual beings, accept the worship of the people, and absorb the power of their faith."
"The divine light of a sacrificial god protects the city, keeping darkness outside its radiance. In that sense, they and the people benefit each other."
"The people offer it their faith, and it protects them in return. Its strength depends entirely on the power of the people's faith."
After hearing Qi Zhu's explanation, Fang Mu finally gained a sliver of understanding about the so-called sacrificial gods.
After thinking it over, Fang Mu ultimately agreed to help Qi Zhu.
After breakfast, Fang Mu headed toward the Demon Slayer Division.
The main hall of the Demon Slayer Division was much emptier today, with only a scattered handful of people.
The Demon Slayer Envoy who had previously called the roll had also died during last night's operation.
However, he had not died inside the corpse cavern. He had been killed by other demons in the Mass Burial Forest.
"Fang Mu! This is your token!"
"Congratulations. You've become a Demon Slayer Envoy of the Demon Slayer Division. From now on, you'll be responsible for calling the roll and assigning missions."
While Fang Mu was somewhat lost in thought, Wen Xuan and Tu Qing walked in.
Wen Xuan tossed him a token and offered his congratulations.
Fang Mu was dumbfounded. He caught the token and looked at Wen Xuan suspiciously. "I didn't accomplish anything last night. Why was I promoted?"
"Hmph! A huge number of people died last night. Now you have the most seniority and have slain the most demons. If we don't let you do it, who will?"
"Don't celebrate too soon. From now on, not only will you call the roll and assign missions, but you'll also have to slay the demons Wen Xuan and I capture."
Tu Qing gave a cold, gloating laugh.
"Damn!"
Fang Mu could not help cursing inwardly. So after all that, he had only gotten a nice-sounding title. He had gained no benefits whatsoever, and he still had to do all the work himself.
"Hmph! For the next few days, you'll also be responsible for teaching the newly recruited Demon Slayer Envoys. Don't let them die."
"You'll also have to take care of whatever demons the others can't finish."
Tu Qing gave another cold laugh and issued his instructions. Then, seeing Fang Mu's deflated expression, he threw back his head and laughed as he left.
"The capable do more work! Train a few subordinates, and you won't have to work so hard."
Wen Xuan offered a word of comfort before turning to leave, leaving the main hall of the Demon Slayer Division to Fang Mu.
After Tu Qing and Wen Xuan left, the aggrieved expression on Fang Mu's face returned to calm.
He did not mind slaying demons. In fact, it would be best if he could slay every demon himself; that way, he could refine more things.
After checking the demon-slaying register in the main hall, he found that more than twenty demons remained.
However, none of them were particularly powerful. They were all below six stars, so Fang Mu directly took them all on himself.
Watching Fang Mu leave after taking all the demon-slaying missions for himself, the five remaining Demon Slayer Envoys in the main hall could not help staring at one another in bewilderment.
They had all been prepared to slay demons until their hands cramped, yet they had never expected Fang Mu to let them rest.
What a good man.
Before you continue