The burning idol and shrine made Su Ye suddenly realize that he seemed to have forgotten to ask why Chen Qing and the other person had insisted on performing the sacrifice. Wouldn't it have been simpler to feed the mountain demon and kill it for its meat?
One evening, as the bonfire burned through the branches with loud crackling pops, Big Black rotated the wild deer roasting on the rack, drooling with hunger.
"Boss, are you done yet?" Big Black urged him on, slurping his drool.
"More or less. It's ready to eat."
Su Ye reached out and tore off a roasted deer leg. "Big Black, you've been roaming around Linshan for quite some time. Have you ever heard why Great Xia takes private proselytizing so seriously?"
When he had been a constable, he had been strictly instructed that anyone secretly gathering followers, subtly indoctrinating the people, or inciting public unrest had to be reported.
After joining the Demon Suppression Division, the rules had become even stricter. Once discovered, such people could be killed outright without question. After what had happened with the Blood Lotus Cult, Su Ye attached even greater importance to this law.
Big Black thought for a moment before saying, "I don't know either. I heard it isn't just Great Xia. Great Zhou and all the human dynasties, big and small, have similar bans."
Su Ye said no more. Regarding this matter, he guessed it had something to do with the power of incense and faith. As he pondered, the Black Iron Token at his waist suddenly shook violently, its dark light flashing rapidly.
"Emergency assistance requested."
The Black Iron Token could not only display identity information, but also be used to request emergency assistance or transmit messages.
After infusing the token with true qi, Su Ye learned that a Hedong County lay a hundred li from there. The demonic beasts causing havoc within it were seriously inconsistent with the information reported to the Demon Suppression Division.
"Come on, let's go take a look at Hedong County." Su Ye put away the Black Iron Token and rose to his feet.
As for the matter in Linshan County, when he returned to Yunzhou City this time, he should be able to claim an Aperture Opening Realm cultivation method. With a little more accumulated strength, once he obtained the technique, it would be time for his power to soar by leaps and bounds.
They raced onward. The outline of a city gradually emerged in the distance. Su Ye did not slow his feet, and after reaching the base of the city wall, he leaped over it in several bounding steps. On the wall, a group of yamen runners guarding the city had not noticed a thing and were still dozing.
Big Black spread his wings and surveyed the city from midair. Following the Black Iron Token's guidance, Su Ye soon entered a dark alley, but at that moment, a strange sound reached his ears.
"Scrape, scrape..."
It sounded like shoes dragging across the ground. The noise drew closer and closer. Suddenly, around the bend ahead, five or six figures appeared, carrying a bright-red bridal sedan chair between them. They wore garish clothes, their faces were deathly pale and bloodless, and their bodies drifted through the air.
As if they had sensed the presence of living people, the eerie faces daubed with rouge stretched into exaggerated smiles. Their lips opened and closed as though they could swallow souls.
Paper figures.
Su Ye recognized their origins at a glance. When Tang Heihu had described the martial world's various forces in Yunzhou, he had mentioned them in passing.
The Paper Folding Sect was one of them. They used living people's souls as the core of their paper figures and the blood essence of the living as ink. Their methods were extraordinarily cruel. A sliver of intelligence remained within the trapped souls, yet because of the Secret Technique's restraints, they had to endure the torment of soul-fire scorching them day and night.
"Very well. Today, I'll help you escape this sea of suffering."
Having figured out the origins of these ghostly things, Su Ye looked toward the two Paper figures hurtling toward him.
He stirred the true qi within his body. Golden light instantly blazed across his skin, and he charged straight ahead without dodging.
The first Paper figure had only just touched his skin when it silently turned into a heap of ashes. The other Paper figures seemed to have been provoked, and in an instant, they swarmed toward him like moths flying into a flame.
"They look pretty intimidating, but who would've thought they'd be this useless?"
Before even half a tea's time had passed, all the Paper figures had vanished without a trace, as if they had never appeared. Su Ye strode to the crimson bridal sedan chair and shattered the entire thing with a single palm.
Inside was the body of a young man wearing the uniform of the Demon Suppression Division. Judging by his clothing, he was a Demon Execution Guard.
"There should be other people nearby."
A Demon Execution Guard did not have the authority to undertake a mission alone. There had to be at least one Commandant as well. Just then, Big Black, who had been scouting for information, swooped down.
He shouted, "Boss, follow me!"
Following Big Black's silhouette, Su Ye soon arrived at a luxurious manor. The words "Jia Mansion" on the plaque above the gate were exceptionally eye-catching. Many different kinds of sedan chairs stood outside the vermilion gates, some made of paper and others ordinary silk-covered soft chairs.
Through the half-closed gate, Su Ye saw that the courtyard was hung with lanterns—some red, some white, each different from the next. After casually crushing two Paper figures in the courtyard, he stepped across the thick layer of paper money, which rustled beneath his feet.
"What kind of damned place is this?" Su Ye frowned.
"Big Black, go take another look around."
"Coming, Boss!"
After surveying the surroundings, Big Black found nothing unusual. Su Ye quickened his pace and headed straight for the rear courtyard of Jia Mansion.
When he passed through the fan-shaped gate, Su Ye felt as though he had crossed a layer of membrane. Inside the courtyard, more than a dozen tables were already filled with guests.
The rich scent of meat mingled with the stench of blood and filled his nostrils. The moment Su Ye appeared, the entire courtyard fell silent. Those who had been exchanging cups or burying their heads in food all looked up at him.
"A living person! A living person!" A short, fat old man suddenly jumped down from his wooden chair.
The Groom in the courtyard wore bright-red wedding robes and had a tall, imposing build. His eyes were sunken, with black fluid streaming from them. He looked toward Su Ye and rasped, "Today is my wedding day. Do you have an invitation?"
Facing dozens of eyes fixed upon him, Su Ye remained utterly fearless. From his perception, this Groom was extremely powerful—at least at Meridian Opening Perfection, and perhaps even at the early stage of the Aperture Opening Realm.
Su Ye grinned. "I don't have an invitation, but I did bring a gift."
The Groom wiped the filthy blood from the corner of his eye and sneered. "A gift? What sort of gift?"
Su Ye casually tossed over the fragments of the Paper figures he had killed earlier. As the scraps fluttered through the air and landed on the table, the entire courtyard erupted in fury.
"Kid, judging by that outfit of yours, you should be from the Demon Suppression Division."
"I can't believe you've got the nerve to come here alone." An Ape Demon threw aside the human leg in his hand and shouted.
"You reckless hound of Great Xia, you came running here to die, and you still dare toy with us? Just wait. I'll let you savor the joy of death!"
"Exactly, we were just missing a main course. I think this kid will do nicely." The demons chimed in one after another.
"I'll deal with this blood-food."
A skeletal man wrapped in skin could no longer hold himself back and struck first. Yin wind howled as a pair of bone claws abruptly stabbed out from behind. Su Ye reacted swiftly, turning around and clenching his palm into a fist before blasting it forward.
"Crack!"
The move was plain and unremarkable, but its power was truly frightening. Explosive cracks rang out from the Bone Daoist's entire body. After being sent flying dozens of meters, he immediately burst apart.
For a moment, the entire courtyard was in an uproar. One fierce gaze after another locked onto the young man in their midst.
"This man is powerful. He blew the Bone Daoist apart with a single punch. Everyone must attack together and take him down."
At that moment, a graceful figure suddenly appeared beside the Groom. It was the Bride, who had never shown herself before. Her eye sockets were equally pitch-black, but greedy red light flickered within them.
She gently stroked her bulging belly, her voice cold enough to freeze the bones. "What vigorous qi and blood. My child needs a great medicinal tonic like this."
The Groom brushed a hand over her swollen belly and nodded slightly.
Su Ye's gaze swept across the dozens of demonic beasts in the courtyard. The corners of his mouth slowly split open, and his eyes revealed a greed even greater than theirs.
"Today, this old man is destined to open the feast!"
Before you continue