The next day.
Dawn broke, and the sun rose in the east.
The people of Tongling County, who had endured yet another night, took down the boards sealing their doors and windows and streamed out into the streets.
Neighbors looked at one another, their eyes shining with both the relief of having survived a calamity and the unease of what might come next.
They were relieved that they and their families had made it through another night in safety.
But it was only temporary. Who would die three days from now?
The commotion last night had been greater than ever before.
The sounds of hacking and killing, the whistle of signal arrows, the soul-chilling roars...
The collapsed houses scattered everywhere before them, the enormous palm print sunk deep into the ground...
It was practically the end of the world!
A monster like that had been hiding in the city. Was there any hope of survival for them?
Run?
Where could they run?
They were ordinary people who had lived in this little county town for generations, farming the land and putting food on the table.
If they abandoned their homes and livelihoods and left, how would they survive afterward?
Despair spread through the crowd—
"Hyah!"
Just then, the urgent pounding of hooves rang out through the street.
A yamen runner galloped past, his loud voice echoing in the air:
"The county yamen announces: spread the word in all directions! The murder case is solved, and the true culprit has been executed!"
"The serial murder case is completely solved! The demon has been beheaded by Flag Chief Chen of the Heavenly Qilin Guard!"
"The county yamen announces: spread the word in all directions..."
The people watched the yamen runner disappear into the distance, their expressions dazed.
The demon... was dead?
The dark clouds that had shrouded the entire county town suddenly scattered. They stood at a loss, their minds utterly blank.
After a long while, they came back to their senses as if waking from a dream.
The crowd grew noisier, punctuated by waves of stifled sobbing.
At the city gate.
County Magistrate Li Minghan and a group of yamen officials waited there.
They had arrived at first light and had already been waiting for over an hour, yet not one of them showed the slightest impatience.
Clip-clop, clip-clop—
The sound of hooves grew louder.
A group of riders rode out through the city gate.
The handsome young man at their head rode at an easy pace. With his refined features and peerless good looks, he seemed every inch the elegant young master of a troubled age.
Li Minghan hurried forward with his men and bowed with clasped hands.
"Lord Chen!"
Those brief words held countless emotions.
He had never imagined that the culprit who had taken twenty-nine lives in three months and left the whole county gripped by fear would turn out to be the widowed Lady of the Liu Mansion!
And Lady Liu's true identity was even more horrifying—
Qin Wuxiang, the Evil Ghost, one of the Ten Heavenly Demons!
She had slaughtered countless people, was utterly wicked, and used the most vicious methods imaginable!
Thinking that such a fiend had been hiding in the county town made Li Minghan shudder with lingering fear.
If Chen Mo hadn't stepped in, the consequences would have been... unthinkable!
Constable Xing and the other yamen runners looked at him with awe.
They had witnessed Chen Mo slay the demon in a bloody battle with their own eyes!
This wealthy young master, who seemed to have been coddled his whole life, was in truth a ruthless man more savage than that demon!
"It's still early, my lord. Why not stay for lunch before you leave? It would give this humble official a chance to play host."
Li Minghan urged warmly.
"No need. The matter here is settled, and I must return to the capital to report. Lord Li would do better to focus his efforts on the aftermath."
Chen Mo replied coolly.
Once news of this spread, it would surely cause quite a stir.
This little county town would probably be lively for a while.
"In that case, I won't try to keep you any longer."
"But please, my lord, do not refuse this small token of appreciation."
Li Minghan calmly drew five banknotes from his sleeve, each worth a hundred taels.
Chen Mo frowned. "What does Lord Li mean by this?"
Seeing his displeasure, Li Minghan hastily explained, "My lord, please don't misunderstand. The brothers all worked hard in last night's fight with the demon, and you were seriously injured. This is a little money we gathered at the county yamen for your recuperation, just a small expression of our gratitude..."
Chen Mo said nothing.
Qin Shou, standing beside him, understood at once. He reached out and took the banknotes, smiling as he said,
"Then I'll thank Lord Li on behalf of the brothers."
Li Minghan let out a breath of relief and nodded repeatedly. "It's only right, it's only right."
"Let's go."
Chen Mo said.
"Hyah!"
The riders galloped away, kicking up a great cloud of dust.
"Take care, my lord."
Li Minghan watched them leave until they vanished from sight.
His adviser came over and lowered his voice. "My lord, however you look at it, five hundred taels is far too much, isn't it?"
Although Li Minghan had said the county yamen had pooled the money, in truth, it was all the savings he had kept tucked away for a rainy day.
"You don't know a damn thing."
Li Minghan shook his head. "I was the fool. Yesterday, I didn't even realize he was a young master of the Chen Family..."
Never mind how distinguished the Chen Family was—there was also a Noble Consort backing them!
That lady was far more terrifying than any of the Ten Heavenly Demons!
"If I lose money, I can still squeeze you lot and slowly earn it back."
"But if I lose my life, then I lose everything!"
The adviser: "???"
Li Yuan sat astride her horse, her head feeling a little muddled.
Last night, everyone had been utterly exhausted, so they had stayed at the Liu Mansion. But every time she closed her eyes, she saw Chen Mo flinging her around...
There was no way she could sleep!
And the swelling in her backside hadn't gone down yet.
The jolting of the horse made the burning pain even worse. Waves of soreness, itching, and tingling rippled through her, nearly making her let out a soft moan.
"Lascivious scoundrel! He hit me so hard he even used martial techniques!"
"Mm, no... I'm about to lose it..."
Just as Li Yuan was swaying in the saddle, Chen Mo rode up beside her.
"Flag Officer Li."
"What is it?"
Li Yuan pulled herself together.
"There's something I've been curious about."
"What exactly did you see in the illusion last night?"
Chen Mo asked curiously.
He'd heard Li Yuan muttering his name, and something about "crushing you to death"...
But it couldn't have been that sort of situation. After all, their relationship was so awful that, without the favorability lock, it would surely have been in the negatives.
Could they have been competing in saber techniques?
"I..."
Li Yuan was at a loss for words.
Recalling what had happened in the illusion, she felt her ears grow hot.
At first, she really had been competing with Chen Mo in saber techniques.
But as they fought, somehow they ended up on the bed...
After fighting a while longer, their clothes were gone too...
And then...
She'd been slapped awake.
"I-I'm not telling you." Li Yuan turned her head away.
Chen Mo frowned.
Why did she seem so strange?
Suddenly, several lines of text flashed before his eyes:
["Li Yuan" favorability increased.] [Favorability exceeded the threshold; progression lock lifted.] [Current progress: 48/100 (Regret not meeting sooner).]
Chen Mo:
(⊙ˍ⊙)
(´･ω･`)?
щ(ﾟДﾟщ)
What was going on?
She'd been chasing him around and threatening to kill him not long ago. How had she suddenly started to "regret not meeting him sooner"?
Could all the female leads in this world have a hidden trait... the harder you hit them, the faster their favorability rose?
Chen Mo's expression turned grave.
In the spirit of rigorous inquiry, as they passed a fork in the road and the people behind them had yet to catch up, he raised his hand and slapped Li Yuan on the lower back.
Smack!
"Mm~"
It was as if the last straw had landed on the camel's back.
Li Yuan shuddered violently, then collapsed limply over the horse's back. Her gaze went unfocused, as though her soul had left her body.
["Li Yuan" favorability increased.] [Current progress: 49/100 (Regret not meeting sooner).]
Chen Mo: "?"
When I put a question mark, it doesn't mean I have a problem. It means I think you have a problem...
This woman had a serious problem!
Before you continue