Returning to Qingzhu City

The sky was gradually brightening. Carrying the incomparably heavy Buddhist staff wrapped in a long cloth, Fang Mu headed out of the temple with Fang Jing, who had just awakened.

Wen Xuan and Qi Zhu had basically recovered from their injuries and replenished their Vital Energy, and were leading the way ahead.

After leaving the underground chamber last night, Fang Mu refined the demon serpent's corpse and obtained several decent Essence Blood Pills and Essence Pills.

It was just a pity that he had not obtained any other items.

However, the remaining faith power inside those shattered demon Buddha statues had all been absorbed by Fang Mu, greatly increasing his soul power once more.

This trip had not been in vain. Both his physical body and soul power had clearly grown stronger.

He would not dare boast about anything else, but Fang Mu was confident he could beat a Third-Rank Realm martial artist into submission.

The shadowless little monk had been truly fierce last night. He had smashed the heads of three great demon serpents, along with many lesser demons, using utterly savage methods.

To be so ruthless when slaughtering demons and monsters, he did not look like a monk with a compassionate heart at all.

If Wen Xuan had not repeatedly vouched for him, Fang Mu would definitely have thought the little monk was a fake.

While Fang Mu was somewhat distracted, they finally walked out of the dense forest. After leaving it, he was already drenched in sweat.

"You two go to the village and explain things. I'll rest here for a while and wait for you."

Seeing Fang Mu drenched in sweat, Wen Xuan could not help laughing. He turned and headed toward Gu Village.

Qi Zhu did not leave. She took out a handkerchief and wiped Fang Mu's sweat, while Fang Jing fanned him from the side.

This let Fang Mu enjoy the treatment of a pampered master for once.

Before long, Wen Xuan returned with three spirit horses.

What left Fang Mu speechless was that his Buddhist staff was too heavy, making it completely impossible for him to ride a horse. He could only follow behind the three mounted riders.

"Ah! I'll just treat it as cultivation!" With a sigh, Fang Mu could only console himself this way.

And so, stopping and starting along the way, Fang Mu was exhausted half to death before finally following Wen Xuan and the others back to Qingzhu City.

On the way back, Fang Mu explained Tu Qing's death to Wen Xuan and Qi Zhu.

He only said that Tu Qing and the others had failed to escape into the temple before darkness descended and had therefore been devoured by it.

Wen Xuan merely nodded indifferently without showing the slightest reaction, as if he did not care about Tu Qing's death at all.

Qi Zhu was somewhat suspicious, but tactfully did not ask any further.

By the time they returned to the County Office, it was already evening. Fang Mu had Fang Jing return first.

With Green Snake guarding her, ordinary villains and demons would not be her match, so Fang Mu was not particularly worried.

Fang Mu followed Wen Xuan and Qi Zhu to the main hall of the Demon Extermination Division.

This was Fang Mu's first time in the Demon Extermination Division's main hall, and it was far more imposing than the Demon Slayer Division's hall.

Quite a few Demon Slayer Envoys were gathered inside, speaking in hushed voices as if discussing some mission.

At the seat of honor sat Tu Shan, the Deputy Chief Envoy.

"Greetings, Deputy Chief Envoy! Wen Xuan has returned after completing the mission and reports as ordered."

"Qi Zhu greets the Deputy Chief Envoy!"

"Fang Mu greets the Deputy Chief Envoy!"

As Fang Mu and the other two saluted, Tu Shan's expression grew extremely gloomy.

"Where is Tu Qing?"

His cold voice rang out. Fang Mu could sense Tu Shan's gaze fixed on him, with killing intent flickering within it.

"Reporting to the Deputy Chief Envoy! Tu Qing and the others failed to enter the place protected by divine light before darkness descended and were devoured by the darkness."

"Bang!"

"You said Tu Qing is dead?"

The moment Fang Mu finished speaking, Tu Shan smashed the desk before him with one palm, rose to his feet, and shouted darkly.

"Yes!" Without the slightest hesitation, Fang Mu raised his head, met Tu Shan's gaze, and answered calmly.

"You killed him?"

A terrifying killing intent suddenly enveloped Fang Mu, making him feel as though he had fallen into an ice cellar. But he did not yield, maintaining his calm as he stared back at Tu Shan.

"Deputy Chief Envoy, please do not misunderstand. We all witnessed Tu Qing's death."

"Although it is regrettable that we were unable to save him in time, his death truly cannot be blamed on anyone."

Wen Xuan rose at this moment and stood in front of Fang Mu, blocking Tu Shan's line of sight as he reported.

Fang Mu was somewhat surprised by Wen Xuan's attitude toward him. He had actually been willing to stand against Tu Shan for his sake.

Previously, although Wen Xuan had not been hostile toward him, their relationship had never reached the point where he would make an enemy of someone for no reason on Fang Mu's behalf. At most, they could be considered friends.

"Uncle Tu Shan, that is how things happened. I believe that even if my father were here, he would handle the matter impartially." Qi Zhu stepped in front of Fang Mu and reported.

How could Tu Shan fail to understand Qi Zhu's implication?

Qi Zhu was clearly warning him that the County Office was still under her father Ye Tian's authority, and that before there was conclusive evidence, Fang Mu could not be wronged.

Tu Shan's face was extremely gloomy. He knew that Tu Qing's death definitely had something to do with Fang Mu.

Tu Qing had gone on this mission under his orders to secretly eliminate Fang Mu.

Yet Fang Mu had returned unharmed while his son Tu Qing had died. How could Tu Shan not be furious?

In the end, Tu Shan still did not make a move. He did not care about Qi Zhu. With Ye Tian absent, Tu Shan was not afraid of anyone present.

But Wen Xuan was an exception. His identity was somewhat special, and he had now spoken up to protect Fang Mu.

Though he was the Deputy Chief Envoy, he could not truly act without restraint. There were many ways to kill Fang Mu, so there was no need to rush.

Thus, he suppressed his anger and killing intent, cast Fang Mu a cold glance, and turned to leave.

Watching Tu Shan depart, Fang Mu secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He had genuinely feared that Tu Shan would attack directly; if that happened, he would have had no choice but to expose his strength to protect himself.

Now that Tu Shan had left, it showed that he would not make another move openly. As for striking from the shadows, Fang Mu truly was not afraid of him.

After thanking Wen Xuan and Qi Zhu, Fang Mu returned to the Demon Slayer Division's main hall.

That fellow Huihai was actually still in the Demon Slayer Division's main hall despite it being late at night.

"Envoy Fang! Congratulations on returning safely!"

Hearing the implication in Huihai's words, Fang Mu stepped forward and saluted.

He gratefully returned the Golden Light Talisman to him and said, "I must also thank you, Master, for the talisman that saved my life this time."

"It is nothing! Envoy Fang, you may keep it. If it is convenient, Huihai would like to ask Envoy Fang for a favor."

Fang Mu really did not want to help him, much less take the talisman back.

But he could not reveal anything, so he could only politely say, "What is it, Master? Is there anything I can help with?"

"It is not a major matter. I have never entered the Earth Prison, and I would like Envoy Fang to take me there for a look."

"Envoy Fang can also report this to the Chief Envoy. I would enter the Earth Prison only to transcend and purify the resentful spirits. I absolutely would not disturb the Chief Envoy's cultivation."

Huihai's words left Fang Mu momentarily speechless.

Could this old fellow already know that Chief Envoy Ye Tian is not in the Earth Prison?

It definitely would not do to refuse to take him there. That would arouse Huihai's suspicion and force him to resort to extreme measures.

After hesitating for a moment, Fang Mu still agreed. "Naturally, there is no problem with taking you there, Master. However, it is already late today. You should return and rest early."

"How about I take you into the Earth Prison tomorrow morning?"

Before Huihai could refuse, Fang Mu hurriedly continued, "Please do not laugh at me, Master. I have been exhausted all day today, and I would also like to return and rest early."

"Not at all! I am in no hurry either. Envoy Fang has worked hard for many days and should return to rest early."

"In that case, I will not disturb you any longer. Farewell!"

"Take care, Master!"

Before leaving, Huihai cast a suspicious glance at the Buddhist staff in Fang Mu's hand. It was wrapped in strips of cloth, making its original appearance impossible to discern.

Watching Huihai leave, Fang Mu found his clone and inspected it from top to bottom. Only after discovering that the clone had not been tampered with did he secretly breathe a sigh of relief.

After checking the clone's memories, Fang Mu discovered that Huihai had behaved normally over the past two days.

Every day, he purified the Mortal Character Prison and only left after nightfall. Occasionally, he would teach some Demon Slayer Envoys how to cultivate or impart basic Buddhist teachings.

Fang Mu furrowed his brows and pondered for a long while before finally turning and leaving.