Prologue (Part 2)

Prologue (Part 2)

Yanhuadang lay in the southern part of Heavenly Secret Mountain. It was a land of waterways, where the Li River rushed down from the north. After entering Yanhuadang, its waters were divided into countless streams by the region's intricate terrain. Their flow slowed, irrigating the land and nourishing its rich, fertile soil.

A small fishing boat was drifting slowly along the river, casting its net from time to time.

At a little teahouse nearby, several travelers had stopped to rest and drink tea.

At the outermost seat sat a woman. Though female, she was broad-shouldered and stout as an ox. Most astonishingly, she drank tea while picking at her feet, occasionally holding her fingers to her nose for a sniff, looking utterly pleased with herself. Her behavior was no different from that of a boorish man.

Beside her sat a scholar and a round-faced girl.

The scholar waved a folding fan. Whenever the mountain of a woman raised her foot-picking hand, he would flap the fan several times with all his might, as though trying to blow away the stench.

The round-faced girl propped up her chin and stared into space, lost in thought.

At the next table sat a hunchbacked old man, eating peanuts. When he saw that there were only a few left on his plate, he called, "Waiter, another plate of peanuts and a pot of wine!"

"Coming right up!" The waiter came out, a young man with delicate features.

He brought the old man peanuts and wine, but his movements were terribly clumsy. His hand tilted, and wine spilled from the pot all over the old man.

The old man flew into a rage. "What kind of way is that to do your job?"

The waiter hurried to apologize. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

He took the grimy towel in his hand and wiped the wine stains off the old man's clothes.

The hunchback cursed and grumbled for a good while before finally calming down. "Bring me another pot of wine. It's on you."

"Yes, yes." The waiter hurried off to fetch more wine.

The round-faced girl watched, looking annoyed. "That old man's going too far."

The foot-picking woman curled her lip. "Mind your own business."

The scholar with the folding fan shook his head. "As the saying goes, 'Cultivating oneself lies in rectifying one's heart. If one is angry, one cannot be centered; if one is afraid, one cannot be centered; if one is fond of pleasure, one cannot be centered; if one is troubled, one cannot be centered. When the heart is elsewhere, one looks but does not see, listens but does not hear, and eats without tasting the food.' That is what it means to cultivate oneself by rectifying one's heart... Junior Sister, don't let trifles bother you."

The round-faced girl sneered. "Shen Linxin, you're the only one who can come up with so many highfalutin words. If we really shouldn't let trifles bother us, then what's the point of coming down the mountain? Also, I'm not your junior-most sister anymore. I'm the eighth junior sister!"

She put particular emphasis on the last sentence.

The scholar with the folding fan chuckled. "You're right, Junior Sister. I said too much."

"Tch." The round-faced girl folded her arms and went back to staring into space, her gaze fixed on the lake.

On the lake, the fishermen were still at work, and everything was peaceful and quiet.

But just then, the surface of the lake suddenly surged. A wave rose up without a breath of wind, soaring into the sky and forming a towering wall of water that crashed down toward the fishing boat.

"It's here!" Seeing this, the round-faced girl didn't panic. Instead, she grew excited.

The waves rolled and churned. A huge white fish surged out of the lake, beautiful to behold—until it opened its mouth and revealed rows of razor-sharp fangs.

Riding the wind and cutting through the waves, it lunged at the fishermen aboard the boat.

The burly fisherman at the bow had a broad face, large ears, and a full brow. He looked every bit as strong as he was, but even so, anyone would have expected him to cower at the sight.

He did no such thing. When the white fish appeared, he laughed. "I've been waiting for you!"

He stomped hard on the bow. The boat sank a section, and he soared into the air, punching straight at the white fish demon.

It looked like an ordinary punch, but the moment it struck the white fish demon, a streak of purple lightning flashed. The blow made the demon shriek sharply.

Realizing things had gone badly, the fish demon didn't linger to fight. It turned and fled.

"Trying to run?" Another man had appeared on the fishing boat: a fair, plump fellow who looked like a wealthy merchant.

He pointed at the lake. The water surged wildly, forming a curtain that blotted out the sky. The fish demon was naturally at home in the water, but when it slammed into the watery barrier, it couldn't get through.

"The Counter-Water Formation!" the fish demon cried out in human speech. "You're from the Heavenly Mechanism Sect!"

"Oh, you figured it out? You've got a pretty sharp eye for a little demon." The fair, plump man laughed. He was Feng Buting, the Heavenly Mechanism Sect's sixth disciple and a master of formations. With one move, he had blocked the fish demon's escape.

The broad-faced, big-eared man from before laughed and unleashed several punches. Each one came with a blazing sun overhead and rolling thunder. "You fish demon have wreaked havoc on these villages and devoured countless people. Today, your head is coming off!"

The fish demon was horrified. "Sun-Radiance Fist, Heavenly Thunder Curse—you're Zhao Longguang, the eldest disciple of Xin Ranzi!"

"You know a lot!" Zhao Longguang's punches grew even more ferocious.

At the same time, another gray-clad man appeared on the boat. He raised his hand and sent out coils of wind that wrapped toward the fish demon.

His name was Yin Tianzhao, the Heavenly Mechanism Sect's seventh disciple, and he specialized in binding techniques.

But as soon as he made his move, Zhao Longguang smashed the wind coils to pieces with a punch. "I don't need your help. I'll handle it myself. Just cover me from the side."

At that, the round-faced girl at the teahouse put a hand to her forehead. "Big Brother's at it again."

This round-faced girl was Xin Xiaoye, Xin Ranzi's only daughter and the eighth of the nine disciples.

Zhao Longguang loved a fight more than anything. If he could take someone on alone, he would never gang up on them.

The fish demon was strong, but it was only at the Hualun Realm, just like him. What did he have to fear?

Zhao Longguang attacked with wild abandon, thunder rumbling as the world changed color. The people nearby were terrified and rushed to find places to hide. Even the waiter and the hunchbacked old man were cowering under a table, trembling.

While Zhao Longguang battled the fish demon, the demon's power still wasn't enough to keep it from gradually losing ground. Seeing Zhao Longguang's punches grow stronger with each blow, it hardened its heart and suddenly spat out a blood-red bead. A blood arrow shot from the bead and struck Zhao Longguang squarely.

The fish demon was delighted. "My essence-blood arrow hit you! Let's see you survive that!"

To its surprise, Zhao Longguang merely swayed before grinning ferociously. "You've heard my name, but you don't know I've got a nickname: the Dragon of Demon Addiction!"

What?

Only then did the fish demon recall the rumors: Zhao Longguang was born with unusual blood, carrying a demon's bloodline from birth. That was why he was immune to demon poison. It had thought the story was nonsense, but it turned out to be true.

The fish demon froze for only a moment before Zhao Longguang's fist crashed down, caving in part of its head. Knowing it had no hope of survival, the fish demon gathered all its demonic power and sent its blood spraying toward Zhao Longguang like a volley of arrows. The arrows' force wasn't the worst part—the demon blood itself was poisonous.

But Zhao Longguang acted as if he didn't notice. Letting the blood arrows pierce him, he beat the fish demon to death and casually seized its demon core. Looking at the core, most of it crushed, he shook his head and sighed. "What a shame. It used up too much of its power. It's far from perfect now."

Then he rode the wind and waves to the shore.

"Big Brother, you're amazing!" Xin Xiaoye ran over. "I knew you'd take care of that fish demon the moment you stepped in. We didn't need to come all this way. All that talk of a three-layered plan was completely unnecessary."

But the instant she finished speaking, Zhao Longguang's expression changed. "Get out of the way!"

He shoved Xin Xiaoye aside.

A spray of black liquid shot toward them. It passed through the spot where Xin Xiaoye had just been standing and splashed onto a tree. The whole tree withered in an instant.

At the same time, the stout woman and the scholar with the folding fan attacked together, striking into a clump of grass nearby. A giant snake shot out of the undergrowth. It didn't stay to fight, but fled at once, swift as the wind. The stout woman and the scholar couldn't catch up.

Just then, a streak of sword light appeared in the distance and flashed down, cutting the snake at its seven-inch point. The two halves tumbled away, spewing poisonous liquid everywhere. The sword light swept through the air, keeping even a single drop of blood from touching its wielder.

When the sword light faded, it revealed a man in flowing white robes, sword in hand. He was a rare sight of handsome perfection, and as he landed, he even tossed his head with an outrageously stylish flourish.

"Second Senior Brother, you're amazing!" Xin Xiaoye called out happily.

Shen Linxin, the third disciple, waved his fan in disdain. "Showing off his charm again."

The man who loved to show off his charm was Lin Yufeng. He was a master swordsman, with the nickname Wind-Riding Sword—a testament to how swiftly he drew his blade.

Lin Yufeng walked over with easy grace. "As expected, another demon was lurking nearby. Still, it couldn't escape my fast sword."

"Isn't it more accurate to say it couldn't escape Junior Brother's calculations?"

Another man had appeared beside Lin Yufeng. It was Qing Lin.

The foot-picking woman had already retrieved something from the giant snake. It was a poison pill, formed from the snake's essence.

She casually tossed it to the waiter beside her. "Here. This is what you wanted."

The waiter was Ning Ye. He caught the poison pill and beamed. "Thank you, Fifth Senior Sister."

The foot-picking woman was Shan Rou, the Heavenly Mechanism Sect's fifth disciple.

All nine of the Heavenly Mechanism Sect's disciples had come along on this demon hunt.

The hunchbacked old man was trembling with fear. He ran over and knelt at Ning Ye's feet. "This old man didn't know you were an immortal! I was rude to you before. Please spare my life!"

Ning Ye smiled faintly. "It's all right. You didn't know any better."

The hunchbacked old man sighed in relief and was about to leave.

But Ning Ye said, "I didn't say you could leave. I can overlook your rudeness to me, but I can't let you get away with colluding with demons to harm people."

The old man froze. His body stiffened, and even the other members of the Heavenly Mechanism Sect were startled. They all gathered around.

The old man turned to Ning Ye. "I don't know what you're talking about, young immortal. You're here to hunt demons, but I'm a man, not a demon."

Ning Ye shook his head slightly. "You can keep pretending. But do you really think that if we were only here to deal with two ordinary demons, the Heavenly Mechanism Sect would have sent every disciple down the mountain?"

The old man's face changed abruptly. His body suddenly straightened. "The Heavenly Mechanism Sect just loves sticking its nose into other people's business!"

As his back straightened, the hump on it suddenly burst open. Countless demon bees poured out, swarming toward everyone. Each one was as large as a fist, and they flew incredibly fast. Their stingers could even pierce protective true energy.

The attack came so suddenly that Zhao Longguang and the others were caught off guard. They all rushed to defend themselves.

Born with demonic blood, Zhao Longguang feared no demon poison. Wherever his fists swept, the bees died.

Lin Yufeng sent sword light rippling through the air, keeping every demon bee outside his web of blades.

Shen Linxin let out a low shout. Unusual silver runes appeared and circled around him. The demon bees couldn't get near.

Qing Lin moved like a willow leaf, drifting with the wind. Not a single demon bee could catch him.

Fifth Senior Sister Shan Rou had the simplest method of all. With a roar like a tiger, her whole body turned to bronze skin and iron bones. The stingers that could pierce protective energy couldn't break her skin.

Feng Buting summoned a formation from his person and shielded himself completely. A mass of wind spiraled around Yin Tianzhao. Every demon bee that flew into it was bounced back.

In Xin Xiaoye's hands, colorful ribbons danced through the air. Wherever they passed, demon bees fell in droves. She fought fire with fire. Though she was only the eighth disciple, she was still Xin Ranzi's daughter, and the ribbons in her hands were rare magical treasures, more than capable of protecting her.

The demon bees were fierce, but they couldn't take on so many people at once.

Yet just then, all eight of them suddenly went pale and shouted at the same time, "Junior Brother!"

Ning Ye had somehow fallen into the hunchback's hands.

The old man pressed a hand to the crown of Ning Ye's head and cackled. "You're all experts from the Heavenly Mechanism Sect. You gang up on one old man, and of course I'm no match for you. But it's all right, it's all right. At least I've still got one weakling... You haven't even reached the Hualun Realm, yet you dared provoke me. You might as well have delivered your weakness right into my hands."

That last line was directed at Ning Ye.

Of the Heavenly Mechanism Sect's nine disciples, the other eight had all reached the Hualun Realm. Zhao Longguang and Lin Yufeng were the strongest, both at the peak of the Hualun Realm.

Ning Ye alone was the weakest. After three years of cultivation, he had reached the peak of the Cang Xiang Realm, only a step from perfection.

But the Cang Xiang Realm was only the first realm, also known as the apprentice realm. How could he possibly stand against this old man, who was also at the peak of the Hualun Realm? He had been subdued in a single move.

Seeing Ning Ye fall into the enemy's hands, everyone panicked.

Xin Xiaoye, Qing Lin, and the others all called out, "Don't kill him! We can talk this out."

"There's nothing to talk about! All of you, get out of here. Don't stay!" the old man shouted.

Without hesitation, everyone started backing away.

Ning Ye suddenly said, "There's one thing you've got wrong."

"What?" The old man froze, not understanding.

Ning Ye said seriously, "This demon hunt is a task my master gave me. It's a trial from my sect, so I'm not meddling in other people's business."

"And what does that have to do with anything?" the old man asked, baffled.

"It means my senior brothers can kill those two demons, but you... I have to be the one to kill you." Ning Ye answered earnestly.

The old man stared at Ning Ye in utter confusion. "You... kill me? Is your master trying to get you killed?"

"No. My master trusts me. You know, defeating someone might take strength, but killing someone doesn't necessarily have to." Ning Ye grinned.

At those words, a sense of dread rose in the old man's heart. "You..."

Ning Ye sighed. "Did you forget that you drank my wine and ate my food?"

The old man was horrified. Suddenly, he realized he could no longer move a muscle.

Ning Ye slipped lightly out of his grasp and walked over to the others.

Xin Xiaoye was both surprised and delighted. "So you'd already figured out something was wrong with him, and drugged him. Nice work! How did you know?"

Ning Ye smiled. "Demons eat people, but they have no interest in wealth. I read all the information my master gave me and realized that lately, when people in this area were killed by demons, their valuables went missing too. That's when I knew someone else was probably behind it all."

"How could you be sure you hadn't picked the wrong person?" Shan Rou asked curiously.

Ning Ye spread his hands. "Who told him he was so bad at pretending to be a hunchback? Hunchbacks lean forward when they walk, with heavier footprints at the front and lighter ones behind. This man's footprints weren't like that at all. He could have avoided leaving footprints altogether, but he was trying to pass himself off as an ordinary person and couldn't even do that right. Earlier, I deliberately spilled wine on him and wiped him down. I felt something moving behind his hump, and knew this was the hunchback I was looking for."

"Even so, you still had to be careful not to accuse the wrong person," Zhao Longguang said with a frown. Ning Ye's reasoning made sense, but he still could have picked the wrong target.

Ning Ye smiled. "That's why I didn't use a lethal poison. It only made him weak all over."

The hunchback finally understood. He gave a sinister grin. "All right, all right. You've got some skill. But that's nowhere near enough to kill me!"

As he spoke, his body suddenly burst apart, turning into black smoke that scattered in all directions.

"Shadow Escape Technique? He's from the Demon Sect!" Lin Yufeng's expression changed.

The Demon Sect's members were vicious and had all sorts of tricks. They were especially good at escaping. The Shadow Escape Technique was one of their most reliable methods. Even the drug Ning Ye had given him hadn't affected his ability to escape in shadow form.

No one had expected him to have a trick like this. They could only watch helplessly as he got away, filled with frustration.

Ning Ye sighed. "He brought this on himself. One... two... three..."

Boom!

A great blaze of white light suddenly rose on the distant horizon. Poisonous smoke drifted within it, mixed with the old man's frenzied, desperate screams.

What was going on?

Everyone looked around in confusion.

Ning Ye said, "He shouldn't have taken me hostage. I went easy on him with the food and wine, but once he took me hostage, that changed... It's just a shame about that poison pill I'd only just gotten."

Ning Ye sounded rather regretful.