No Need for You to Slay Demons, You Still Get the Merit

Lu Yuan walked up to the clerk and placed the file on the counter.

"Sorry to trouble you, Clerk Liu, but I'd like to register for the task in Chixia County."

Old Liu looked Lu Yuan up and down with an expressionless face, then shook his head slightly.

"A newcomer who just joined? You can't take this task."

Lu Yuan placed his Waist Token on the counter. "I am a Demon Suppression Captain."

Old Liu's expression shifted in surprise; he instinctively glanced at the token, then immediately put on a smile and bowed.

"So it is Lord Lu himself. Please forgive this subordinate for my poor eyesight."

"It's fine. Register it."

"My apologies, Lord Lu, but even as a captain, you cannot take this task."

Lu Yuan was stunned. Even a Demon Suppression Captain couldn't take it?

Old Liu smiled and explained, "According to the rules, a newcomer must be accompanied by at least one Demon-Suppressing Guard on their first mission to ensure there is someone to handle things if something goes wrong."

"Although Lord Lu is a Demon Suppression Captain upon entry, you are still a newcomer at the end of the day. This rule cannot be broken."

Lu Yuan frowned. He needed a Demon-Suppressing Guard to accompany him?

Who should he find?

He had intended to take down those Blood Demon alone from the start.

Just as he was thinking, he noticed Su Ding'an behind him.

Wasn't there one right here!

"Brother Su, why don't you accompany me to Chixia County?"

"Ah? Me?"

Su Ding'an's smile stiffened for a moment, and he opened his mouth, unable to speak for a long time.

A complex look flashed through his bright eyes—surprise, delight, and a hint of guilt.

"That... Lord Lu... I..."

Su Ding'an lowered his head, his voice dropping a few notches.

"If I were to be killed by a demon, there would be no one to look after my mentally challenged mother at home, not to mention my frail and sickly wife and my toddler son..."

Lu Yuan opened his mouth, but remained silent.

Just then, a series of footsteps suddenly came from nearby.

"Su Ding'an, I've finally found you."

A bailiff wearing an Ink-Black Brocade Robe leaned half his body in from outside the door.

"Your mother asked me to bring you a message: you're not getting any younger, and if you don't find a wife this year, don't bother coming home for the New Year."

The air suddenly went quiet.

Su Ding'an's expression stiffened, and he stood there at a loss.

Lu Yuan looked at him with amusement. "You don't have it easy either, do you? You have a wife and child, and you're still being pressured by your mother to get married?"

"That..." Su Ding'an squeezed out a smile that looked worse than crying. "That's why I said I have a mentally challenged mother at home..."

Silence.

After a long while, he let out a heavy sigh and buried his head.

"Lord Lu... I am just... just... afraid of death."

"Actually, I wanted to slay demons and eliminate devils too, but my aptitude is too poor. It took me seven years after joining to be promoted from a bailiff to a Demon-Suppressing Guard."

"I have no skill, and I have no guts. To this day, I haven't even mastered a decent martial art."

"I'm fine with flipping through files and using my small wits to earn a bit of silver, but if I were to actually encounter a demon, I'm afraid I'd be the first to die."

"Forget it, Lord Lu. Thank you for giving me this opportunity, but I really don't have the ability."

Lu Yuan nodded, suddenly feeling that Su Ding'an was much more interesting than he had imagined.

Moreover, since Su Ding'an was afraid of death, he didn't have to worry about the man stealing his demons.

Match successful!

"Come with me. You don't have to kill the demons, and you'll still receive the merit," Lu Yuan said.

"Ah?" Su Ding'an looked up abruptly, thinking he had misheard.

No need to kill demons?

Wouldn't that be earning merit for nothing?

The file clearly stated that once the Blood Demon were slain, the lead could claim twenty points of merit and ten taels of silver, while the assistant could claim ten points of merit and five taels of silver.

If they could capture the mastermind of the Blood Demon and bring them back to the Demon Suppression Bureau, each person could receive an additional five points of merit and three taels of silver.

This... was it just being handed to him?

Su Ding'an felt his throat go dry for a moment.

Lu Yuan continued, "Once we reach Chixia County, you will be responsible for leading the way, identifying targets, and scouting the situation."

"If we truly encounter demons, find a safe place to hide far away, and come out only after I have finished killing them."

"This..." Su Ding'an could barely suppress the twitch at the corner of his mouth, "Lord Lu, are you joking?"

Seeing Lu Yuan's serious expression, which didn't look like a joke at all, a sense of excitement couldn't help but rise in his heart.

"You really don't need me to lift a finger?" Su Ding'an asked tentatively.

"Not at all."

"Then can I hide as far away as possible?"

"The further, the better."

"Hiss..."

Su Ding'an drew a sharp breath, a strong sense of unreality rising in his heart.

Could such a good thing actually fall into his lap?

Was this some kind of scam?

But then he thought about it—the other party was the only Grade A recruit in this year's entrance examination!

He had been appointed a Demon Suppression Captain the moment he entered!

A figure like this was destined to soar to the heavens; how could he possibly be messing with him?

"How about it? If it really won't work, then forget it." Lu Yuan didn't want to dwell on it.

"No!" Su Ding'an slapped his thigh, his tone excited, "I am honored by Lord Lu's favor; Su Ding'an is willing to accompany you to Chixia County."

"But let's be clear: I will only lead the way and not fight. If we really run into demons, I'm hiding far away."

"Deal!"

With the matter settled, the two walked to the counter to collect their assignment.

As they handed over the files, Old Liu glanced at Su Ding'an with surprise, "Oh? Old Su, you're going to slay demons too?"

The latter grinned, "I don't have that kind of ability; I'm just tagging along to do some odd jobs for Lord Lu."

After the registration was complete, Old Liu pointed at Su Ding'an and said to Lu Yuan, "Lord Lu, this old guy is a distant relative of mine. Please take care of him on this trip!"

Leaving the Administrative Hall, the two walked toward the stables.

The journey from the Demon Suppression Division to Chixia County was over four hundred miles; an ordinary horse would take two and a half days to get there.

But if they switched to the Wind-Chasing Horses raised by the Demon Suppression Division, half a day would suffice.

"Lord Lu, I heard these Wind-Chasing Horses are bred with demon bloodlines. They have extraordinary stamina and can run for a day and a night without stopping."

"It's just that they're too expensive. The price of one horse is enough to buy ten Thousand-Mile Horses. Ordinary Demon-Suppressing Guards don't even have the qualifications to use them..."

As the two were talking, a Demon-Suppressing Guard wearing an Ink-Black Patterned Brocade Robe suddenly walked toward them.

With a Horizontal Saber hanging at his waist and a cold, stern expression, it was Zhou Tong, who had been waiting outside the whole time.

"Lu Yuan, you severely injured Lin Chen during the entrance examination, leaving him in a coma to this day. Now, come with me."

Su Ding'an's face changed slightly; he saw at a glance that the situation was not right.

He whispered in Lu Yuan's ear, "Lord Lu, this is Zhou Tong, nicknamed the Iron-Faced Blade. He has been a Demon-Suppressing Guard for seven years and is at the third level of the Initial Realm."

Su Ding'an had been in the Qingzhou Demon Suppression Division for seven years; not only was he familiar with the case files, but he also had a certain understanding of most of the Demon-Suppressing Guards in the division.

Explaining this now was to ensure Lu Yuan knew his opponent and was prepared.

Lu Yuan cast a glance at him and said bluntly, "What kind of thing are you to be worthy of presiding over justice?"

At this moment, he only wanted to go out and slay demons; how could he have the leisure to bicker here?

He was just a Demon-Suppressing Guard, and his rank wasn't even as high as his own, yet he kept crossing him again and again.

He had lost his patience and didn't bother to save any face in his words.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Tong's face turned furious. His fierce eyes stared straight at Lu Yuan, his entire body like a volcano about to erupt.

"If you have the guts, say that again!"