What mattered most in life?
Knowing how to control the heat!
Although the three Huang brothers were demons, they weren't like others who liked eating humans raw.
Perhaps because human cooks had raised him from a young age, Huang Xiaotian was very particular about food.
After waiting a while with no word from his third brother, Huang Xiaotian realized that the person behind Sun Zhi probably wasn't coming.
So he took off his shirt and got to work.
The executioner's ghost-head saber from the government execution ground became a kitchen knife in his hands. It flashed so quickly that it blurred, slicing the ingredients one by one and arranging them neatly to the side.
His second brother wore a serious expression as he fussed with the fire, carefully controlling the heat.
Then, once the water in the copper cauldron had come to a boil, Huang Xiaotian scraped the ingredients off the ghost-head saber and turned around. "All right, bring that fellow over."
His second brother nodded, went back inside, and effortlessly picked Sun Zhi up.
With a thud, Sun Zhi's head knocked against the chopping board, jolting him awake.
He instinctively tried to sit up, but let out a muffled groan and gritted his teeth.
A sharp pain kept stabbing through his back and severed arm, making his vision swim.
Just then, he felt a pair of large hands reach toward him. With a gentle squeeze, they popped his joints out of place.
"Ah!!!"
The fresh wave of agony forced a cry from his throat.
But this time, he bit down hard on the tip of his tongue and forced himself to stay conscious.
Because he'd seen the terrifying ghost-head saber nearby, and the enormous cauldron glowing red-hot not far away.
If he passed out again, he'd probably wake up on the other side of the River of Forgetfulness, with a bowl of Granny Meng's soup between them.
Huang Xiaotian looked at him in surprise and laughed. "Well, Head Constable Sun, you've got a will of iron. The ingredients I've tried that on before usually pass out cold on the spot."
"Third Master! I can tell you everything you want to know. Just let me go, and I can be useful to you at the County Office in the future, can't I?"
Sun Zhi focused all his attention on Huang Xiaotian, enduring the pain as he tried to persuade him.
"Hmm..." Huang Xiaotian scratched his chin, looking tempted.
Seeing this, Sun Zhi hurriedly continued. "If you stew and eat me, that'll only fill your stomach once. But if we keep working together, you'll have no shortage of human flesh. I've already been keeping an eye out for those boys and girls you mentioned before."
"Besides, if the County Office ever makes a move against Black Wind Stronghold, I can get word to you right away."
Sun Zhi rattled off a whole string of arguments, staring intently at Huang Xiaotian as he tried to think of what else he could say to save his life.
The corners of Huang Xiaotian's mouth curled up slightly. With interest, he said, "You do make a fair point. So, tell me about the person behind you first."
Sun Zhi felt a weight lift from his heart and immediately started talking as fast as he could.
"His name's Shen Lin. He was originally just a constable under me, but that was only a disguise. His true cultivation..."
Faced with the threat of becoming a meal, Sun Zhi didn't hesitate for a moment. He poured out everything about Shen Lin like beans spilling from a bamboo tube.
"At least the sixth level of the Opening Meridians Realm..."
With a strange smile on his face, Huang Xiaotian looked down at Sun Zhi, who was full of hope. "You know, when humans reveal the secrets in their hearts, they become very calm. The flow of qi and blood in their bodies slows, and their tense muscles relax. In that state, their meat becomes even more delicious..."
Sun Zhi stared blankly as Huang Xiaotian picked up the ghost-head saber. In a hoarse voice, he asked, "You're not going to let me live?"
Huang Xiaotian held the ghost-head saber against Sun Zhi and gestured. "I'll leave a part of your body alive. Some cuts are tender, after all, and taste better raw."
At that, the light faded from Sun Zhi's eyes, and despair filled his heart.
"Don't move. This blade's very fast. As long as you hold still... Who???"
Huang Xiaotian had just raised his blade to cut into Sun Zhi when he suddenly frowned and spun toward the entrance, barking, "Who's there?"
The next moment, a figure dressed in black crept into the courtyard and greeted them with a cheerful grin.
"Well, I seem to have picked a bad time to drop by. Making dinner, are you?"
Huang Xiaotian first signaled to his restless second brother to calm down, then smiled at the newcomer. "Your qi and blood are powerful, but held in check... So you're Shen Lin, then?"
Shen Lin took off his face covering and complained, "I knew this coward was afraid to die, but to spill everything after such a tiny scare? What a disappointment. I'll have to give him a good talking-to when we get back."
Sun Zhi stared blankly at Shen Lin, who had finally shown up, and screamed inwardly, You call that a tiny scare??? I was about to be boiled alive!!!
But it was obvious that nobody there cared how he felt.
Huang Xiaotian sneered. "Get back? What do you think this place is? You think you can come and go as you please?"
"What place?" Shen Lin looked around in confusion. "Isn't this just an ordinary courtyard? Why are you talking like it's a dragon's lair or a tiger's den?"
"You insolent brat!"
Huang Xiaotian hadn't even reacted yet, but his second brother could no longer hold back. He lunged forward, ready to tear Shen Lin to pieces.
"Second brother!!!"
Before he could strike, Huang Xiaotian suddenly seemed to realize something and shouted to stop him.
Then he looked at Shen Lin, his expression gradually darkening, and asked, "Where's my third brother? With him outside, you couldn't have just appeared here like this."
"Your third brother?"
Shen Lin paused, then replied, "Why don't you ask him yourself?"
Clang!
Without the slightest warning, Shen Lin drew the precious sword in his hand and spoke to it. "Hey, your big brother wants to know what happened to you. What? You can't answer? Because your brains have been stirred into a paste by this sword???"
"You'll die for this!!! Roar!!!"
The two dog demons sprang into action in an instant.
Yellow fur covered Huang Xiaotian's body. He grew taller, his rolls of fat jiggling, yet he charged with incredible speed.
His massive body was like a mountain of flesh. The ghost-head saber he'd been using to chop vegetables and meat howled as he brought it down hard toward Shen Lin's head.
In that moment, all his imposing aura burst forth, laying bare his cultivation.
The sixth level of the Opening Meridians Realm!
In Qiulin County, he could practically walk wherever he pleased.
If he wanted, he could even try to break through to the Xiantian Realm at any time.
But Shen Lin remained calm in the face of danger, not a trace of panic on his face.
Holding the long sword in one hand, he casually swung it!
Whoosh~
The slender sword carried even greater force than the opponent's heavy ghost-head saber, whipping up a violent gust of wind.
Clang!
With a dull boom, the sword collided with the ghost-head saber. They locked together for a moment, then the sword instantly forced its way through.
Huang Xiaotian had charged in fast, and he was sent flying just as fast.
His bulky body smashed through the tall earthen wall and tumbled out of the courtyard.
His second brother, who had charged behind him, reacted quickly and threw all his strength into stopping his headlong rush.
Even so, he was now less than ten steps away from Shen Lin.
"Hey!"
Shen Lin greeted him with a bright smile, then thrust out his long sword.
The sword shot like a meteor, crossing the ten-step distance in an instant and striking the demon between the brows.
The light faded from the dog demon's eyes. He met the same fate as his third brother.
[Killed an Awakened Dog Demon, not Xiantian, lifespan: 200 years, remaining lifespan: 143 years, absorbed.] [Shen Lin] [Martial arts mastered: Blood Battle Saber Technique (perfect), Wild Wind Sword Technique (perfect), Qingqiu Body Tempering Technique (perfect), Shadow Severing Step (perfect)] [Cultivation techniques mastered: none] [Remaining lifespan: 1 year] [Demons' lifespan: 297 years]
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