A-Shui

The farther upstream they went, the more pungent the river's fishy stench became.

The plants on both banks had long since withered and died, their bare branches swaying in the wind.

Not a single insect could be seen along the riverbank.

Zhao Hu finally couldn't hold back any longer. He hollered, "Damn it, there isn't a living thing in this godforsaken place!"

"Shut up."

Liu Chen, at the front of the group, barked the order.

Zhao Hu sulkily fell silent, though the irritation on his face only grew.

Old Wang reined in his horse and leaned toward Liu Chen, lowering his voice. "Chief, something's wrong."

"What makes you say that?"

"The people in the Yellow Battalion are best at leaving signals. But we haven't found the slightest trace of them along the way."

Liu Chen's expression darkened too.

That was right.

The Demon Suppression Bureau had its own secret signals.

If the people from the Yellow Battalion had investigated this area, they would surely have left a clue.

But they hadn't found a thing along the way.

Could that old man have been lying?

The group continued onward for about half an hour, and the river gradually narrowed ahead.

After a few more miles, the view before them suddenly opened up.

The foul stench stopped abruptly here.

Not far ahead was a cliff. Clear spring water bubbled out from a crack in its face, flowing into a pristine pool. Farther downstream lay the reeking Black River.

The water at the source was clean.

"..."

They exchanged glances, each seeing the same suspicion and bewilderment in the others' eyes.

There was nothing wrong with the source.

So where had all the filth in the river come from?

"Search separately!"

Liu Chen dismounted and strode toward the cliff.

The others dismounted as well and began searching the area carefully.

After the time it took an incense stick to burn, they regrouped, all shaking their heads.

"Chief, there's nothing here."

"Same on my end. I didn't see so much as a hair."

Liu Chen's brows knitted into a frown.

"Over there."

A cool voice suddenly spoke.

They turned toward it and saw Jiang Yuechu standing before a stretch of dead woods not far away, pointing into the depths.

Liu Chen's heart stirred, and he immediately led the others after her.

They passed through the dead woods, and a small temple appeared before them.

It was tiny, even a little shabby.

But the open space in front of it had been swept spotless. Not a single fallen leaf could be seen.

Liu Chen stepped forward and pushed open the half-shut wooden door.

It creaked.

The inside was just as clean.

But the offering table was bare, without a trace of incense or offerings.

The statue in the shrine facing the doorway had been smashed to pieces, leaving only its bare pedestal.

"Be careful." Liu Chen drew his Horizontal Blade halfway and warily scanned the room.

The others filed inside and spread out, searching the little temple carefully.

But after a long search, they found nothing.

"Chief, there's nothing here."

"We even checked every mouse hole. It's spotless."

Liu Chen's brows furrowed tighter and tighter.

It was so clean that someone must have been tending to it regularly.

But why were there no offerings? Why had even the statue been smashed?

Just then,

a small, thin figure appeared in the temple doorway.

She was a little girl, perhaps seven or eight years old. She wore a ragged hemp garment, and her face was streaked with black and gray.

The girl apparently hadn't expected anyone to be inside. She stopped short, frozen in place.

She was still holding a broken bowl, half full of water.

Their gazes met.

In the next instant, all the color drained from the girl's face. As if she'd seen a ghost, she dropped the bowl and turned to run.

Crash—

The bowl hit the ground and shattered into pieces.

"Don't run!"

Before the others could react,

Zhao Hu had already bolted after her without a second thought.

"You little brat, why are you running? Get back here!"

There was no way an undernourished child could outrun a skilled member of the Demon Suppression Bureau.

In just a moment,

Zhao Hu returned, the struggling girl tucked beneath his arm.

"This girl's got some strength."

"Ow! Damn it, she bit me!"

He walked to the front of the temple and tossed the girl onto the ground, then clutched his arm and grimaced as he inspected the bite marks.

The girl hit the ground with a muffled groan of pain, curled into a ball, and trembled all over.

"Zhao Hu!"

Liu Chen shot him a glare.

He hurried over and crouched in front of the girl, softening his voice.

"Don't be afraid. We're not bad people."

The girl looked up. Her wide eyes were full of fear, and she bit her lip hard, struggling not to cry.

Liu Chen sighed and pulled a piece of dry, tough jerky from his robe, holding it out to her.

The girl stared at the jerky and swallowed, but didn't reach out to take it.

"We're from the Demon Suppression Bureau."

"We came here to find out why the Black River turned like this. Do you know anything?"

The girl stiffened abruptly.

They exchanged glances, understanding dawning in their hearts.

The child clearly knew something.

Liu Chen sighed, feeling a headache coming on.

He looked around, and when his gaze fell on Jiang Yuechu standing nearby, his eyes suddenly lit up.

He hurried over to her, lowering his voice. His face held a trace of embarrassment.

"Miss Jiang... why don't you... go ask her?"

Jiang Yuechu raised an eyebrow, a strange look in her eyes.

She had only just joined the Bureau. This was her first mission. How could it possibly fall to her to question someone?

Seeing her confusion, Liu Chen blushed and quickly explained.

"We're all... rough sorts. We spend every day fighting and killing. We stink so much that even rats would steer clear of us, let alone children."

Jiang Yuechu's gaze swept over the rough-looking men one by one.

Some had faces full of raw, brawny flesh; others wore hard expressions. Their Horizontal Blades at their waists constantly radiated a murderous aura.

In terms of looks, she really was more likely to inspire goodwill.

But Jiang Yuechu felt an even worse headache coming on.

She might have been a woman in this life, but deep down, she was still the guy who'd lived for over twenty years in her previous life.

She wouldn't even blink at being sent to fight demons with a blade.

But being asked to comfort a little girl scared out of her wits...

How was she supposed to do that?

She looked at the girl curled up on the ground, then at the hopeful faces of the rough men beside her, and felt a wave of irritation.

But they couldn't just stand around forever.

Fine.

She tamped down the strange feeling in her heart, walked over, and slowly crouched beside the girl. She tried to make her voice sound gentle, even attempting to tug the corners of her mouth into what she thought was a kind smile.

"Don't be afraid. We won't hurt you."

"What's your name?"

Maybe her face really was pretty, or maybe the fact that she was a woman made the girl less wary.

The girl truly seemed less frightened. She secretly looked up and carefully sized Jiang Yuechu up.

"My name is... A-Shui."

"A-Shui..."

Jiang Yuechu repeated the name. She tried to reach out and pat the girl's head, but halfway there, the gesture felt awkward, so she drew her hand back.

"A-Shui, don't be afraid. We won't hurt you."

"Are... you also from the Demon Suppression Bureau?"

A-Shui asked timidly.

She was puzzled. How could such a pretty big sister also belong to the Demon Suppression Bureau?

Weren't people from the Demon Suppression Bureau all supposed to be fierce-looking men like those beside her?