In the Compendium of Demons and Evil Spirits Ning Xiu had read, it was recorded that when someone drowned by jumping into water or by accident, their soul would remain trapped where they died. Influenced by the yin energy at the bottom of the water, it would eventually become a Drowned Ghost.
These evil spirits excelled at illusions. Sometimes, they would take the form of beautiful women by the water and lure passing men closer.
Other times, they would transform into gold and silver treasures that had fallen into the water, tempting passersby to dive in and retrieve them.
The moment anyone entered the water, the Drowned Ghost would use its hair to drag them forcibly into the depths and drown them alive. Ordinary people had no way to fight back.
Ning Xiu took the iron saber from the table and was about to execute the Drowned Ghost when it suddenly opened its mouth in the vat. "Kid, I've got a great deal of money hidden where I used to live—no less than a hundred thousand taels of silver. If you help me escape, I'll tell you where it is."
It wasn't strange for an evil spirit to speak. As far as Ning Xiu knew, many evil spirits disguised themselves as humans to prey on the innocent.
A hundred thousand taels of silver did sound tempting. Unfortunately, the Drowned Ghost had picked the wrong person. An ordinary youth might not have been able to resist such an offer.
But though Ning Xiu looked to be only a teenager, with all the impulsiveness of youth, he had actually lived two lifetimes. He knew how to weigh gains and losses. How could he let such words cloud his judgment?
In this age of demons and monsters running rampant, evil spirits were everywhere. Only growing stronger offered a lasting solution. With a hundred thousand taels of silver, he would still be nothing but a lamb waiting to be slaughtered.
If he helped the Drowned Ghost escape, he could forget about staying in the Demon Subduing Bureau. He might even be branded an Evil Spirit Cultivator and executed on the spot.
"No need. Save it for your next life." Ning Xiu brought his saber down, driving it straight into the Drowned Ghost's throat.
Killed an evil spirit. Gained 600 Universal Proficiency.
Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle!
The instant the Drowned Ghost died, a great many white bubbles surfaced in the vat, quickly spreading across the entire surface.
One by one, faces of all shapes and sizes broke through the water, scrambling to climb out of the vat.
They were soaked through, with water plants and shellfish clinging to them. Each looked like a Drowned Ghost, and there were at least seven or eight of them.
It was hard not to wonder how such a small vat could hold so many men and women at once.
Ning Xiu's chest suddenly tightened, as though a breath were lodged fast in his throat, neither coming out nor going down.
A sensation of drowning welled up inside him. All around him, he heard the gurgle of bubbles, while the stench of rotten water surged through the air.
These were the signs of being tainted by Evil Qi. Everything a person saw, heard, and smelled would become distorted.
Ordinary people who encountered this would become trapped in the illusion, unable to escape, until they frightened themselves to death.
Ning Xiu had devoted himself to the Primordial Yang Fist, giving him blood qi far stronger than an ordinary person's. It could counter the effects of Evil Qi.
And after he had raised the Primordial Yang Fist to the fifth level, his blood qi had grown far more vigorous than before. The Evil Qi released by the Drowned Ghost's death could no longer make him lose consciousness.
Ignoring the eerie scene before him—it was all an illusion—Ning Xiu turned and walked straight out of the cell.
The evil spirit had been eliminated. Now it was time for Ning Xiu to rest. As long as he didn't leave the Demon Subduing Prison, he was free to move about.
Because of his arm injury, Ning Xiu hadn't practiced his fist for two days.
Now that his injury had healed, he couldn't keep slacking off. He returned to his quarters and began practicing the Primordial Yang Fist.
Even though killing evil spirits could earn him a large amount of Universal Proficiency, Ning Xiu still valued the dozen or so points he gained from practicing diligently every day.
As the saying went, even a mosquito's leg was meat. Until he could kill evil spirits at will, every point of proficiency mattered.
The next day.
Ning Xiu arrived at the main hall and saw a crowd gathered around several jailers, discussing something heatedly. It looked lively.
Only after the crowd gradually dispersed did Ning Xiu approach a jailer. "Sir, I'm here to receive today's assignment."
The jailer held a ledger in one hand and a writing brush in the other. "What's your name?"
"Ning Xiu."
"Let me see. Ning Xiu, you've executed two evil spirits. Go to Huang Zone Cell Eight this time. I'll record the number of evil spirits you execute from now on. For every ten, you'll be allowed to leave and go to the Three Saints Pavilion at the Demon Subduing Bureau to choose a technique to study. This is the Bureau's reward to you, and a way to ease our labor shortage."
"Thank you, sir." Ning Xiu cupped his hands, then asked, "Sir, there's something I don't understand. Why are executioners limited to executing just one evil spirit a day? Can't I apply to execute a few more?"
"You're getting ahead of yourself, kid." The jailer shook his head. "We set that rule for your own good. The Evil Qi released when an evil spirit dies is extremely harmful to the human body.
"After killing one, it's best to spend a day recovering. That way, you won't suffer any lasting harm. If you execute several in one day, you'll easily absorb a great deal of Evil Qi over time. It'll rot your body from within like poison seeping into your bones, impossible to remove. By then, even a miracle-working physician won't be able to save you."
Ning Xiu asked curiously, "Is there really no way to deal with that?"
"Of course there is. It's just still a long way off for Champion Camp apprentices like you. If you reach the Ninth Rank, the martial path strengthens your blood qi, the Buddhist path cultivates a golden body, the immortal path refines the Primordial Spirit, and the Confucian path nurtures righteousness. Whichever path you take, each has its own way of purging Evil Qi from your body. Then you can kill as many evil spirits as you want."
The jailer seemed unwilling to say more. He waved him on. "Go. Don't waste any more time."
Every day, the Demon Subduing Prison received new evil spirits brought in from outside by Demon Subduing Captains. They were locked in cells that had been vacated.
Ning Xiu had noticed that the evil spirits chosen for execution were all ones that had already been held in the Demon Subduing Prison for a long time.
The people from the Demon Subduing Bureau seemed to be trying to obtain something from newly captured evil spirits. Only after getting what they wanted would they arrange for an executioner to kill them.
What exactly was going on, Ning Xiu couldn't figure out for now. Perhaps he would learn the answer if he managed to join the Demon Subduing Bureau in the future.
When he entered Huang Zone Cell Eight, he found the evil spirit inside was rather unusual. It was a White Fox with three tails.
Though the cell was filthy and unkempt, with no one to clean it, the White Fox was spotless. Every strand of fur was as soft and white as silk.
Seeing someone enter, and seeing him wordlessly pick up the Wild Goose Feather Saber from the wooden table, the White Fox hurriedly rose from the ground, trembling.
With a turn of her body, she transformed into a ravishing woman wearing nothing at all. Her figure was graceful and alluring, her curves slender and bewitching.
Ning Xiu instinctively took two steps back.
Oh wow. Was I really allowed to see this for free?
"Sir, I'm just a little fox from the mountains. I've cultivated diligently for a hundred years and never done anything evil. Please show mercy and spare my life."
The White Fox Woman knelt on the ground, covering her face as if about to weep. She looked so pitiful that it was hard not to feel a pang of sympathy.
The Compendium of Demons and Evil Spirits said that Fox Demons were the best at deceiving people. Their techniques were so lifelike that they had ruined countless men.
Fox Demons cultivated by absorbing the essence of men. Those who fell under their spell often ended up as dry as kindling, drained to the last drop of life.
This White Fox had already grown three tails. How could she possibly have never done anything evil?
Looking at the Fox Demon's pleading expression, Ning Xiu suddenly asked, "While you were in the Demon Subduing Prison, did the people from the Demon Subduing Bureau take anything from you?"
The White Fox Woman froze. "N-no, they didn't take anything. They only forced me to write down a technique I'm good at, the Spiritual Eye Qi Observation Technique."
Ning Xiu suddenly understood. At last, he knew why the Demon Subduing Captains brought evil spirits back to the Demon Subduing Prison and locked them up, only to send executioners to kill them after a while.
So they were squeezing the evil spirits for everything they were worth!
Every evil spirit held something of value, to some degree. Taking those things and putting them to use for humankind could strengthen the human race.
Once an evil spirit's value had been wrung dry, there was no need to keep it locked up and fed. They could just execute it and be done with it.
Thinking of how he'd have to kill ten evil spirits before he could go to the Three Saints Hall to learn a technique, Ning Xiu got an idea. He put away his saber and said, "Teach me the Spiritual Eye Qi Observation Technique, and I won't kill you today."
"Are you serious, sir?" the White Fox Woman asked delightedly.
"A promise once made must be kept. I swear on this saber: if I kill you with my own hands today, may I be hacked to pieces a thousand times. How about that?" Ning Xiu said, tossing aside the Wild Goose Feather Saber.
"Good! I believe you."
In this world, oaths weren't to be made lightly. There were unseen ties of ghosts, spirits, and karma. So when the White Fox Woman heard Ning Xiu swear, she believed him almost completely.
Without hesitation, she recited a series of cultivation incantations to Ning Xiu.
The incantations were rather obscure. Ning Xiu barely managed to memorize them. To check whether they were genuine, and whether the White Fox Woman had made anything up or left anything out, he quietly brought up the Proficiency Panel and took a look.
Primordial Yang Fist: Level 5 (0/1600) (+) Golden Bell Shield: Level 4 (110/800) (+) Spiritual Eye Qi Observation Technique: Uninitiated (0/100) (+) Universal Proficiency: 600
Only after he saw the Spiritual Eye Qi Observation Technique appear on the panel did Ning Xiu nod, relieved. The White Fox Woman had at least been honest and hadn't lied to him.
"All right, I've memorized the incantations. I keep my word. I won't kill you today." Ning Xiu left the cell without hesitation and firmly shut the door behind him.
Once the cell had fallen silent again, the White Fox Woman collapsed onto the ground, drenched in cold sweat. She muttered under her breath, "Greedy bastard. Once I escape, I'll skin you and pull out your bones... Uncle, why haven't you come to save me yet? Lan'er can barely hold on."
The White Fox Woman had no idea that after leaving the cell, Ning Xiu hadn't gone far. He stood quietly in the corridor, looking around as if waiting for something.
Before long, another youth who worked as an executioner finally came by. Ning Xiu recognized him; the boy was also an apprentice from Champion Camp, and Ning Xiu had seen him around before.
Ning Xiu went up to him at once. "Brother, have you carried out your execution today?"
"Not yet. I just got the assignment for Huang Zone Cell Fifty-Eight from the jailer. I'm about to go execute the evil spirit there."
"Heh." Ning Xiu grinned. "Could I switch cells with you? I'll execute your evil spirit, and you can execute mine."
The youth looked puzzled. "What do you mean? What's the difference?"
"There's a small reason, but don't ask for now. We've got an execution to get to, so don't waste time. If you switch with me this time, I'll help you out if you ever run into trouble. We're both from Champion Camp. We should help each other."
"Uh... all right." The youth didn't think too much of it and agreed.
Ning Xiu reminded him earnestly, "Remember, the Fox Demon locked up in there is good at tricking people. Whatever she says, don't listen. Go straight in and attack. Finish it quickly."
"Got it." The youth pushed open the cell door and walked straight inside.
Ning Xiu then headed toward Huang Zone Cell Fifty-Eight.
The Demon Subduing Bureau had strict rules. Unless you were dead, you were never allowed to fail, abandon, or neglect a task assigned by your superiors.
Though Ning Xiu had gotten something valuable from the White Fox Woman, if he dared not kill her today, it would amount to abandoning his assignment—a grave offense.
He might as well forget about joining the Demon Subduing Bureau in the future. They'd weld the doors shut in his face.
Ning Xiu had sworn to the White Fox Woman that he wouldn't kill her with his own hands today, but what he was doing now could hardly be called breaking his oath.
At most, he'd found a little loophole in the wording.
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