In the muddy ground at the foot of the mountain, spots of blood wound onward. Seeing them, Su Ye quickened his pace and plunged deeper into the dense forest.
Before long, he finally spotted Black Commander beside a boulder. The fierce bird had something clenched tightly in its beak, one wing drooping, its claws beating the air as it fled frantically deeper into the woods.
Seeing this, Su Ye suddenly drove off with both legs. The thick tree beneath him shuddered, its leaves shaking wildly. Amid the bleak autumn wind, he skimmed from one foothold to the next like a light swallow soaring through the sky. In a few short breaths, he had caught up with the shadow ahead.
Black Commander suddenly sensed something behind him and whipped around. His pupils contracted as he stared at Su Ye, then spat out the wing in his beak and snarled, "Kid, you really think I'm an easy target?"
"Oh? Don't tell me you've still got a trump card."
As he spoke, Su Ye closed in, bringing the Ghost Head Saber down without hesitation.
"Clang!"
The metallic crash rang out into the distance. Black Commander had stopped the incoming blade with his left claw, holding it fast.
Seeing this, Su Ye couldn't help showing surprise. He'd used only half his strength, yet even after losing a wing, the big bird had still managed to block him. He really had underestimated it.
Black Commander wasn't as relaxed as Su Ye imagined. He wasn't suited to head-on combat, and blocking the Ghost Head Saber had been his limit.
As Su Ye continued to press harder, the cold blade crept closer to the crow's chest.
"Wait... wait! I was wrong, I was wrong!"
Su Ye acted as though he hadn't heard him, continuing to put strength into his arm.
The blade drew closer and closer. The skin beneath Black Commander's feathers even began to prickle with pain.
Black Commander begged repeatedly, "Stop! I have information for you!"
"Magistrate Chen of Linshan County is working with us."
"The Corpse Demon Cult!"
"I also found traces of the Corpse Demon Cult inside Linshan City."
Seeing that Su Ye still wouldn't budge, Black Commander immediately used a Secret Technique to communicate with him: "I'm willing to make you my master."
The voice that suddenly appeared in his sea of consciousness made Su Ye's downward motion stop short. The information had already caught his interest, but what truly surprised him was that voice.
This was telepathic communication. He'd heard that only powerful experts above the Aperture Opening Realm could gather their thoughts and transmit them directly into someone else's ear.
Su Ye slowly pulled back his saber, then rested it against Black Commander's neck. His gaze was deep. "What method did you just use? You're only in the Body Tempering Realm, yet you can communicate telepathically."
Black Commander spoke with some pride. "It's a talent of my kind. Most of us can use it once we're grown."
"But my spirit was powerful from birth. I'm one hundred and eight years old now, and still sixty years from adulthood."
Su Ye cut him off. "You just said you'd make me your master. How does that work?"
The big bird hesitated. Su Ye slightly shifted his wrist, edging the broad blade closer to its neck.
"Wait... wait!"
A transparent crow's silhouette suddenly appeared in Su Ye's mind. He now looked like a crow too, but his figure was much more solid and far larger than the shadowy bird.
"What is this?" Su Ye asked in surprise.
The crow's shadow explained, "This is my spiritual imprint. We're both in your sea of consciousness now. But why is your soul even stronger than mine?"
Su Ye said nothing, simply staring at the crow's shadow.
The crow grimaced and pleaded, "Big brother, spare me! From now on, if you tell me to go west, I wouldn't dare go east. Just put your imprint in my body, big brother. My life will be in your hands—one thought from you is all it'll take."
Thinking of the contracts he'd often seen in novels in his previous life, Su Ye asked, "Do you mean a contract?"
"Yes, yes, a life-and-death contract! If you so much as think about it, I'll wish I were dead." The crow grinned, making an exaggerated expression with its beak.
This world actually had something like a contract. If things were as the crow said, there was no harm in sparing him. After all, a flying scout who could gather information would save him a lot of trouble.
At that thought, Su Ye looked at the crow. "You're certainly quick to give in."
With Black Commander willingly opening his mind, Su Ye instinctively placed his spiritual imprint inside the crow.
After a while, the man and bird sat facing each other. Su Ye said calmly, "Tell me about the information you mentioned earlier."
Hearing Su Ye's tone soften, Black Commander visibly relaxed and ingratiated himself with him. "Ahem. Boss, your might is peerless. You're clearly no ordinary man."
"Don't change the subject. You mentioned Magistrate Chen, the Corpse Demon Cult, and the matter of your people slaughtering the town."
"Yes, yes. Magistrate Chen knew about all those schemes."
"As the local magistrate, he dared to act with such monstrous cruelty. Wasn't he afraid the truth would come out?"
Black Commander stammered for a long while. "I don't know. I only heard Great King say that even if the old magistrate disagreed, we'd still do it."
"Weren't you afraid of drawing the Demon Suppression Division's attention?" Su Ye asked in surprise.
"That wasn't it. Of the brothers sent out hunting last night, only two groups came back. The other three groups never showed up."
"So Great King sent me to investigate. There were three towns in all. One was yours, boss. Another had a Martial Artist who'd luckily broken through his limits."
Black Commander looked relieved. "The last one was where the Demon Suppression Division had left a covert agent behind. Once Great King learned about it, he quietly dealt with him, then sent Hu Dang to the county office to demand a reward."
"Boss, I heard from Hu Dang that the old magistrate refused at first. But once we promised him three thousand jin of blood-and-flesh medicine, he happily agreed."
At this, Su Ye's expression grew colder. Blood-and-flesh medicine was refined from the bodies of humans or Demonic Beasts. It took twenty jin of flesh to make one jin of medicine.
As for the medicine in the hands of Demonic Beasts, it was naturally made from human flesh. He hadn't expected Magistrate Chen to collude with Demonic Beasts—and now the man had demanded such a huge amount of medicine. What sort of scheme was he plotting?
"Did you give it to him?" Su Ye's voice grew even more somber.
Black Commander laughed in his nasal voice. "We were already running for our lives. Who'd bother with him?"
Su Ye nodded slightly, then asked, "Who's Hu Dang?"
"Hu Dang? He and I are both commanders under the Qu Mountain Demon King."
"Big Black, how many commanders are there besides you? And what sort of strength does this Qu Mountain Demon King you mentioned have?"
Black Commander was visibly startled. He stared at Su Ye in confusion. "Big Black is...?"
"That's what you'll be called from now on. Got a problem with it?"
"Of course not! No problem at all."
"There are only two commanders: me and Hu Dang. His strength is about the same as mine."
"As for the Qu Mountain Demon King, he's from the Tiger Demon race. I hear he has a bit of a background. He broke through to the Meridian Unblocking Realm decades ago, so he's probably even stronger now. I don't know his exact strength."
From Big Black, Su Ye learned that the Demonic Beasts had split into three groups and gone to different towns for one final sweep. Daybreak was their signal to regroup, after which they'd make a quick getaway.
Now that the Demonic Beasts had split up, it was the perfect time to collect Assistance Points.
But the Qu Mountain Demon King was too powerful. With his current strength, Su Ye would have a hard time taking him down.
Hu Dang was different. At most, he was as strong as Big Black. If Su Ye killed him, he could collect another handsome haul of Assistance Points.
That would give him a substantial boost in strength, and then he could deal with the Qu Mountain Demon King too.
Having made his plans, Su Ye told Big Black to tend to his wounds quickly. Then he turned and headed deeper into the dense forest. Once he found a deserted spot, he slowly opened the system panel.
His eyes quickly swept over the panel.
Remaining Assistance Points: 370
Before you continue