Ling Yan flew ahead for some distance and realized Si Miaoyin had yet to catch up.
"What's taking so long?!"
So he slowed down and waited for Si Miaoyin to catch up so they could travel together.
But before long, he saw the very sight he least wanted to see!
That guy!
He was actually riding with Si Miaoyin!
And sitting so close to her!
Ling Yan was so jealous he nearly spat blood.
He had confessed his feelings, pursued her in every possible way, and done everything he could to impress her.
Yet even now, he had not even held her hand. What gave this brat the right?!
Before long, the pair approached from the distance and caught up.
Seeing Ling Yan waiting for her, Si Miaoyin nodded at him and continued flying on her own.
Yet Li Xuanxiao felt an inexplicable chill.
He turned his head to look at Ling Yan and found the other man staring at him with ill intent.
"Hmm? What's going on?"
Li Xuanxiao was somewhat bewildered. Why did Lord Ling Yan suddenly have such great hostility toward him?
He looked back toward Si Miaoyin, who was sitting slightly ahead of him.
Wisps of delicate fragrance drifted from her fluttering hair and brushed past Li Xuanxiao's nose.
Making him...
Making him sneeze.
After sneezing, his mind instantly became much clearer.
Aha!
I get it. So this guy likes Si Miaoyin!
As though he had just stumbled upon some juicy gossip, Li Xuanxiao patted Si Miaoyin on the shoulder.
Si Miaoyin impatiently shrugged her shoulder. "What?!"
"Let me tell you something."
"Lord Ling Yan seems to be interested in you!"
Without turning around, Si Miaoyin said, "You think I didn't know that?"
"You already knew?"
"What else?"
"Then do you like him?"
Si Miaoyin snorted. "What's it to you?"
"I'm bored. Can't we chat a little?"
"No. Shut up!"
Li Xuanxiao shrugged. "Fine, then. The way he looked at me just now, it was like he wanted to kill me."
"How about I do a good deed and have him teach me the martial art of sword flight?"
"I'll go fly on a sword and let you two fly wing to wing?"
What did he mean, fly wing to wing?!
Si Miaoyin's face reddened slightly as she snapped, "Get lost! If you keep babbling, I'll throw you down!"
Li Xuanxiao looked below and was instantly hit by a wave of dizziness.
He had not learned any flying martial arts and had no experience with high-altitude flight.
At this height, he was still terrified!
"Alright, alright, I'll stop talking, okay?!"
Pei Province, Demon Slayer Division.
Inside the Mission Hall, people came and went, all of them Demon Slayer Division martial artists clad in standardized uniforms.
Most were at the Extreme Realm, though several Profound Realm martial artists could often be seen as well.
With demon disasters breaking out everywhere, Demon Slayer Divisions across the land were too busy to breathe, wishing they could work around the clock without rest.
They had only just dealt with demons in Juye City when another demon attack occurred in Jinlu City.
A village here had been destroyed; a merchant caravan there had been robbed.
It was enough to make one endlessly vexed.
The Pei Province Demon Slayer Division did not actually lack martial artists.
But compared to the demons that seemed impossible to kill clean, they were truly stretched thin.
"Have Miaoyin and Ling Yan not returned yet?"
"Reporting to my lord, the two inspectors have yet to return from their mission. They are expected back tomorrow or the day after."
The refined-looking middle-aged man nodded.
He wondered how that lad Ling Yan was doing. Had he won the beauty's heart?
Just as he was preparing to return to the side hall.
He sensed two familiar auras rapidly approaching.
A faint smile appeared on his lips, and he immediately stopped walking.
Very soon, he saw Ling Yan, flying on his sword, slowly descend.
Behind him, a white fox with sleek fur lightly leaped to the ground as well.
Upon it sat the radiant and beautiful Si Miaoyin, along with...
Hmm?
Why was there another person?!
Ling Yan and Si Miaoyin immediately spotted the middle-aged man as well and hurried over to greet him.
"Master!"
"Uncle Yang!"
The middle-aged man smiled. "The two little ones are back?"
"How was the journey?"
Si Miaoyin gave a playful smile. "We'll tell Uncle Yang all about it later. We need to turn in the mission first."
Ling Yan gave a bitter smile, then bowed to the middle-aged man again. "Master, we'll be back shortly."
The middle-aged man nodded, but his gaze fell upon Li Xuanxiao, who looked like a greenhorn.
Like a country bumpkin entering a city for the first time, Li Xuanxiao looked around in every direction.
He clicked his tongue inwardly.
As expected of the Demon Slayer Division. Though this was merely a provincial branch.
It was still far beyond a small place like Ning'an City.
In just this short while, nearly everyone he saw was an Extreme Realm martial artist!
He had even seen several at the Profound Realm!
"Perfect. There must be Profound Realm cultivation techniques and martial arts here!"
A faint smile appeared at the corner of Li Xuanxiao's mouth.
"Young friend, may I ask where you are from?"
The middle-aged man looked at Li Xuanxiao with a refined smile.
Li Xuanxiao did not dare put on airs. He had personally seen both Si Miaoyin and Ling Yan treat this man with great respect.
He was surely no ordinary figure!
"I am from Ning'an City."
"May I ask who you are, sir?"
The middle-aged man smiled elegantly. "Yang Zhiru. This old man is unworthy, but I currently serve as the Deputy General of Pei Province."
Deputy General!
Li Xuanxiao froze. This was a position second only to the Commander-in-Chief!
"This junior greets Deputy General Yang!"
Yang Zhiru waved a hand. "No need for such formalities."
"A man from Ning'an City..."
Yang Zhiru pondered briefly. "That is the city at the very edge of the Great Yu Dynasty!"
"Why did they bring you back to Pei Province?"
Li Xuanxiao hesitated slightly. "Because I..."
"Killed the magistrate of Ning'an City."
Buzz—
An invisible pressure descended, and Li Xuanxiao instantly felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.
Every hair on his body stood on end, as though he had been targeted by the fiercest and most savage beast!
Li Xuanxiao grunted, and every muscle in his body involuntarily tensed.
Again!
He was experiencing this feeling again!
The helplessness of being on the verge of having his life taken at any moment.
Yet being unable to do anything about it.
The last time he had experienced this feeling was when he had just transmigrated.
Li Xuanxiao clenched his teeth, his trembling right hand inching toward the saber at his waist.
After experiencing so much, he should have improved at least a little.
He could not still be able to do nothing but stretch out his neck and await slaughter.
Draw the saber!
Resist!
He absolutely could not submit just like this!
Li Xuanxiao's face twisted savagely, his eyes bloodshot and veins bulging along his neck!
Though faced with terrifying pressure, the hand reaching for his saber remained exceptionally resolute!
Yang Zhiru raised his brow in surprise. "Oh?"
Under my pressure, he could still harbor thoughts of resistance?
When Ling Yan faced such pressure, he had trembled all over and did not dare entertain even the slightest thought of resisting.
This brat...
Was somewhat interesting.
He had some balls!
The pressure instantly withdrew, and Li Xuanxiao immediately collapsed to the ground, gasping for air.
Only then did he realize that his back was already drenched in sweat.
"Kid, state your name!"
Yang Zhiru's expression remained refined and peaceful, as calm as drifting clouds and a gentle breeze.
"Li Xuanxiao."
Li Xuanxiao raised his head and looked straight at Yang Zhiru.
His eyes were filled with bloodshot veins, yet they held no fear.
What fine eyes!
A subtle smile touched Yang Zhiru's lips as he said lightly, "You said... you killed the magistrate of Ning'an City?"
"Why?"
Li Xuanxiao coughed twice before calming himself.
"Because he indulged demons and allowed them to slaughter the people."
"To protect himself, he sold out martial artists."
"With demons before him, he drew his blade against his own people!"
Yang Zhiru listened in silence, his eyes narrowing slightly.
"So that was how it was..."
"Still, it should not have been you who acted. He was your superior, after all."
"Never mind. This matter is not for me to decide..."
Before you continue