They said evil spirits ran rampant across the land, leaving the common people to live in fear.
But when Ning Xiu stepped into Spring Full Pavilion, he was greeted by a garden in full bloom. Beautiful women bustled through the hall, striking up conversations with every guest they passed and charming them with laughter and wit.
"Brother Lu, this place must cost a pretty penny for just one night," Ning Xiu whispered to Lu Hao.
"Oh, don't worry about that, Brother Ning. Relax. I'll cover everything tonight. Just enjoy yourself."
As they spoke, a plump woman in heavy makeup swayed over, her hips rolling as she approached. Holding a round fan up to half-cover her lips, she deftly leaned against Lu Hao.
"Have you taken a fancy to any of the girls, young master? I can have her come keep you company."
"No, no. I booked Spring Breeze Pavilion. Just take me there," Lu Hao urged impatiently. One look at him told the woman he wasn't interested in her kind. Even with her pressed against him, his hands remained perfectly proper.
Anyone who could make a living in a place like Spring Full Pavilion had to be sharp and savvy. The woman immediately stepped away from Lu Hao and led the way, taking the lead herself.
"Please follow me, young masters."
Ning Xiu followed behind the others, glancing around from time to time. He had spent more than a year in Champion Camp, and this was his first time in such a lively place.
A gorgeous stage stood in the center of the hall, built especially for performers to dance. The stairs to the second floor were to its left, so as Ning Xiu climbed them, he could look down and clearly see the stage.
Five performers in blue skirts were dancing gracefully onstage, accompanied by the lovely sounds of pipa, guzheng, and flute. Their music created an enchanting atmosphere.
Just as Ning Xiu watched the performers with interest, the scene before his eyes suddenly changed.
The five lovely, graceful women instantly became white-haired fiends with sharp claws and hideous faces. Black-gray mist swirled around them.
As an Executioner who had only just left the Demon Subduing Prison, Ning Xiu knew that black-gray mist all too well.
It was the Evil Qi that only evil spirits gave off!
Before Ning Xiu could even look horrified, the scene returned to normal. It was as if the strange sight he had just witnessed had been nothing more than a bizarre, fleeting dream.
"What's wrong?" Lu Hao asked, turning back from ahead.
Following Ning Xiu's gaze, Lu Hao immediately wore an expression that said he understood. He slung an arm over Ning Xiu's shoulder and grinned. "I know you're itching for a girl, Brother Ning, but don't rush. I'll find you someone even better. Just hang in there."
Ning Xiu was speechless, but he couldn't very well tell them what he had just seen. He used the Spiritual Eye Qi Observation Technique, and the performers onstage instantly turned back into white-haired fiends. Only then was he certain that what he had seen before was no hallucination.
The mighty Chaotian Capital, seat of the Demon Subduing Bureau, had evil spirits taking human form and mingling among the common people. No one would believe it if they heard.
These evil spirits were brazenly showing themselves in disguise, with absolutely no regard for the Demon Subduing Bureau. Ning Xiu would never believe they could do so without some powerful figure's tacit approval.
He looked away. Knowing this wasn't something he could handle, Ning Xiu followed Lu Hao upstairs in silence.
After discovering that evil spirits were lurking in Spring Full Pavilion, Ning Xiu repeatedly used the Spiritual Eye Qi Observation Technique to survey the surroundings whenever no one was looking.
He really did find quite a lot. Some of the servants in Spring Full Pavilion had soul-shaped evil spirits inside them. The spirits seemed to be living as parasites in the servants' bodies, without affecting them at all.
He hadn't known until he looked. Spring Full Pavilion was actually a den of evil spirits. This was Chaotian Capital, beneath the Son of Heaven's very feet, with the Demon Subduing Bureau standing guard.
Ning Xiu had never expected a place like this to exist.
"Gentlemen, Spring Breeze Pavilion is here." The plump woman pushed open the door, revealing a spacious room.
Once Lu Hao and the others had gone inside, Ning Xiu suddenly said, "Brother Lu, you guys go ahead. I'm going to the latrine."
"Hurry back."
From his observations with the Spiritual Eye Qi Observation Technique, Ning Xiu had noticed that most of the black-gray mist in Spring Full Pavilion gathered on the upper floors. That was where the most evil spirits were.
Taking advantage of the fact that no one was watching, Ning Xiu quietly headed up the stairs to the third floor, intending to investigate.
The Evil Qi in the third-floor corridor was as thick as fog on a misty day. Most of it drifted out from the private rooms lining either side.
Ning Xiu crept up to the window of a private room and poked a hole in the paper with his finger.
"Have another drink, my lord~"
Through the hole, he saw a scene of drunken indulgence. Two wealthy merchants in fine clothes sat at a table, their faces flushed as they downed their drinks.
Eight beautiful women surrounded them, competing to serve them. Their skin pressed against the merchants', who freely roamed their hands over the women and took full advantage.
But in Ning Xiu's eyes, the room looked very different.
The eight beautiful women were all skeletons in silk gauze gowns. The two men didn't seem to notice. Instead, they groped the skeletons' ribs and pelvic bones, grinning lewdly.
As the men continued to touch them, wisps of white breath streamed from their mouths, then were instantly divided among the eight Red Pink Skeletons. The whole scene was utterly bizarre.
"Who are you?"
Just as Ning Xiu was peering through the window, a shout suddenly rang out behind him.
He turned to see a servant with blood-red eyes glaring at him. The man immediately swung his short club at him.
Ning Xiu raised an arm and blocked the blow with his bare body. Against Golden Bell Shield, that little bit of damage posed no threat at all.
Before the servant could react, Ning Xiu channeled his Internal Energy into his right hand and punched him in the chest. A crisp crack of breaking bones rang out, and the servant went flying, landing motionless on the floor.
Killed a Demonic Creature, Universal Proficiency +100
As soon as the servant died, his head began to melt. Before long, it had turned into a Gray Rat Head.
Since someone had already caught him in the act, Ning Xiu stopped pretending and decided to lay his cards on the table.
He went over and picked up the Rat Demon's corpse, then kicked open the door to the Red Pink Skeletons' room and strode inside.
Perhaps they hadn't imagined anyone would burst in just then. The evil spirits and the men in the room all jumped in fright.
Ning Xiu shut the door behind him. The two wealthy merchants stared at the boy who had appeared out of nowhere and shouted angrily, "Who are you? Do you even know what kind of place this is?"
Ning Xiu ignored them, fixing his gaze on the eight skeleton spirits. "Come at me together."
At the sight of the dead Rat Demon in Ning Xiu's hand, the eight spirits understood what had happened. They dropped their wine flasks and rushed at him.
"You dare come to Spring Full Pavilion and kill someone? We'll make sure you don't leave this room alive tonight."
"He looks sturdy. Let's suck him dry."
The evil spirits were clearly skeletons, yet they spoke like humans. Ning Xiu couldn't help wondering where their voices came from.
As the spirits closed in, Ning Xiu seized one by force and slammed his fist into its face.
The spirit's face shattered on the spot under Ning Xiu's punch. It couldn't withstand even one blow.
Killed an Evil Spirit, Universal Proficiency +200
Two spirits crept up behind Ning Xiu and thrust their hands hard into his back.
But the instant their five fingers touched his body, a powerful rebound snapped their finger bones. They couldn't hurt him at all.
Ning Xiu simply swung a powerful backhand punch. The surging Internal Energy shattered both spirits on the spot.
Killed an Evil Spirit, Universal Proficiency +200
Killed an Evil Spirit, Universal Proficiency +200
Ning Xiu had effortlessly wiped out three evil spirits. The remaining five were clearly panicking. These skeleton spirits excelled at disguise, illusions, and beguiling men. They cultivated by sucking out men's vital essence.
But they weren't much good in a fight. They could handle ordinary commoners, but against someone like Ning Xiu, a Martial Ninth Rank, they were little more than cannon fodder.
Seeing their fear, Ning Xiu quickened his attacks to keep them from escaping and raising the alarm.
Before a single spirit could make it to the door, Ning Xiu had killed all eight skeleton spirits in the room.
In the space of a few moments, he had gained 1,700 points of Universal Proficiency.
Ning Xiu couldn't help but think, "That familiar feeling."
After watching Ning Xiu brutally slaughter eight beautiful women in one fell swoop, the two wealthy merchants abandoned their earlier arrogance. They sat trembling in their chairs, too afraid to move.
In their eyes, Ning Xiu had become a blood-handed butcher who obeyed no rules.
The two sat quietly with their heads bowed, staring into their wine cups and fearing that they might be his next targets.
Ordinary mortals had no Spiritual Eye and couldn't see the evil spirits' true forms. Ning Xiu didn't blame them. But he was inside a den of evil spirits, and he didn't know whether even more powerful spirits were lurking there. He didn't want to make things worse.
Gaining 1,700 points of Universal Proficiency had already been a pleasant surprise. Ning Xiu glanced at the two merchants, who were too afraid to meet his eyes, walked over, and knocked them both unconscious with a chop to the neck.
When he was done, Ning Xiu quickly left the room and shut the door. He retraced his steps to the second floor, acting as if nothing had happened.
Not long after Ning Xiu left, two servants came to the private room.
"Where's Old Eight? Wasn't it supposed to be on patrol right now?"
"I don't know. Maybe it went somewhere to steal a bite to eat."
"Old Eight knows Madam's methods. It wouldn't act on its own. If something went wrong, no one could protect it."
As the two servants puzzled over what had happened, one of them suddenly spotted the hole poked in the private room's window.
He hurried over to peer inside, and the scene in the room came into full view.
The servant's expression changed instantly. "Oh no! Something's happened!"
The two rushed into the room. Staring at the mess inside, they were left speechless.
"Quick, quick! Go report this to Steward Chu!"
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