Chapter 43

Outside the window, all was silent.

Inside the room, Luo Qingchen pressed his palm against Yang Guang's chest, finishing the task quickly.

Not a single drop remained!

Then, he took all the silver Yang Guang had hidden under the floorboards.

Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly looked back at the corpse on the floor.

When the roof tiles were quietly replaced and he slipped out of the room without a sound, the heart of the corpse on the floor had already vanished.

"Clatter..."

The silver landed on the table, emitting a crisp, pleasant sound.

Two hundred and twenty taels in total!

Added to the one hundred and nine taels he already had, he now possessed a massive fortune of three hundred and twenty-nine taels!

Combined with his special blood-sucking skill, it was absolutely enough for him to break through to the Blood Changing Realm!

However, before that, he had to handle the matters ahead.

Outside the window, the night grew deeper.

He did not know if other dangers were still lurking in the darkness.

He waited patiently in the room.

It was not until the eastern horizon began to pale and there was still no movement outside that he opened the door and stepped out.

He then arrived at the small stone hut not far away.

He boiled water and brewed medicine.

The light outside the window remained dim; it seemed no other hunters had come to visit tonight.

In the stove, amidst the raging flames, a withered heart was quickly reduced to ashes.

The medicinal broth was soon ready.

Luo Qingchen took off his clothes and stepped into the wooden barrel.

As his body was completely enveloped by the scalding medicinal broth, a sensation of both pain and relief washed over him.

Without hesitation, he immediately took out his dagger and sliced open his unhealed wound.

Fresh blood flowed out rapidly.

Inside his body, the blood in his first blood bar decreased rapidly.

Before acting tonight, he had already added the 25% of blood absorbed from pig blood into his first blood bar.

That was why his combat power had remained at its peak at that moment.

Now, the blood in his first blood bar quickly dropped back to the state it had been in at dusk.

Only 70% remained.

His head began to spin, his body grew weak, and his heartbeat accelerated.

He resisted the urge to replenish his blood.

The blood in his second blood bar still maintained the 95% he had just absorbed.

He cleared his mind of stray thoughts and began to focus on absorbing the medicinal energy generated by the combination of the Demon Stone and the blood in the broth.

Soon, the color of the broth in the tub began to fade.

When all the medicinal effects had been absorbed, he climbed out of the tub and put on his clothes.

After cleaning up the stone hut, he opened the door and walked out.

By then, the sky was already beginning to brighten.

The door to Yang Guang's room remained tightly shut.

At this moment, no one knew that he had turned into a dried corpse, having lain on the cold floor of the room for the entire night.

Luo Qingchen returned to his room, locked the door, set up his traps, and lay down on the bed.

He closed his eyes and quickly fell asleep.

Meanwhile.

In the front building, in the innermost room of the second-floor corridor.

Qingmei stood by the window, watching the night fade away, her heart having been in a state of agitation all night.

That bastard, he wouldn't have taken my silver and gone to spend the night with some other slut, would he?

She thought bitterly.

She hadn't slept all night, and no guests had come to see her.

At this moment, waves of drowsiness washed over her.

She had no choice but to return to bed to sleep.

The window remained open, waiting for his return.

It was unclear how much time had passed, but just as she was lost in a pleasant dream about leaving this place, a sudden knocking sounded at the door.

"Who is it?"

She rose, eyes bleary with sleep, her tone impatient.

She hadn't slept well, nor had she waited for that bastard to return, so who could be knocking at this hour?

Didn't they know she needed to sleep during the day?

"It's me! Open up, quickly!"

At that moment, Sun Ping's stern voice came from outside the door.

Upon hearing it, Qingmei had no choice but to hurry over and open the door. She was just about to ask what was the matter when she caught sight of Sun Ping's deathly pale face.

"Yang Guang is dead."

Sun Ping's first sentence struck her like a bolt of lightning, hitting her squarely in the forehead.

Her body trembled, her legs went weak, and she nearly collapsed.

Sun Ping stared at her with a grim expression. "The maid said Yang Guang entered your room last night. When did he leave?"

Qingmei's face turned ashen, her lips quivering. She looked utterly devastated, as if she hadn't heard a word, and muttered blankly to herself, "My silver... my silver..."

Suddenly, she let out a shrill scream. "Sister Sun! Yang Guang is dead, but what about his silver? Is his silver still there? That was all mine! I earned every bit of it with my own hard work! Give it back to me!"

Smack!

Sun Ping slapped her hard across the face and roared, "You idiot! What are you raving about? I'm asking you a question! In a hellhole like this, you think you can get back silver you've already given away? Keep dreaming!"

Upon hearing this, Qingmei collapsed to the floor and burst into loud, wailing sobs.

Meanwhile, in the backyard, Yang Guang's room was already crowded with people.

Zhou Qingyang from the Town Guard Bureau was among them.

Zhang Jiu went over to knock on Luo Qingchen's door. It took a long time before the door creaked open.

Luo Qingchen stood in the doorway, his face pale, looking at him with a puzzled expression.

Zhang Jiu said in a low voice, "Brother Luo, Yang Guang is dead. You were in your room last night—did you hear anything?"

Luo Qingchen paused, then shook his head and asked, "How did he die?"

Before Zhang Jiu could answer, Zhou Qingyang walked over with his men. He scrutinized Luo Qingchen with a sharp, piercing gaze and said, "Just like Chen Ju and the other two, he was drained of all his blood. But this time, his heart is gone, too."

Luo Qingchen's expression shifted. "That Heart-Plucking Monster again?"

Zhou Qingyang didn't answer immediately. He observed him closely for a few moments before saying, "His throat bone was shattered, clearly struck by a heavy object. As for whether it was that Heart-Plucking Monster, it's not yet certain. Guard Luo, did Senior Brother Tian come down to collect blood again yesterday?"

Luo Qingchen nodded silently.

Zhou Qingyang said nothing more. He walked over, grabbed Luo Qingchen's wrist, and began to probe the blood and qi within his body.

Zhang Jiu spoke up from the side, "I was the one who helped Brother Luo back yesterday; he could barely walk. Senior Brother Tian was injured while on a mission and took a large bowl of blood yesterday, saying he would return in seven days."

"The blood and qi in his body are indeed extremely weak."

Zhou Qingyang finished his examination and let go.

However, he did not stop there. He took the red jade stone from his robes and began to search the room thoroughly.

Once finished, he checked Luo Qingchen's person as well.

Afterward, he pulled another red jade stone from his robes and explained, "This is a Demon Detecting Stone. Everyone in the pavilion must be checked."

With that, he placed it against the center of Luo Qingchen's forehead.

Zhang Jiu looked shocked. "Does Captain Zhou suspect that a Demonic Beast is hiding here in the Hundred Fragrance Pavilion?"

Zhou Qingyang said grimly, "Draining blood and eating hearts—this is not something a human cultivator could do. We have searched the town for so long without finding that monster. I fear the creature is a powerful Demonic Beast capable of possession, and it is currently hiding inside someone."

Zhang Jiu's expression changed, and he asked skeptically, "But if that were the case, wouldn't that person be easy to find? After all, if a Demonic Beast possesses someone, it can't hide its demonic aura completely. That person's personality and behavior should show some changes, right?"

Zhou Qingyang put away the Demon Detecting Stone and glanced at him. "The kind of monster you're talking about is one that forcibly seizes a body, which is easier to identify. There is another type of Demonic Beast that relies on the deep-seated desires and emotions within a human heart. It seduces them first, and only after the person is willing does it possess and merge with them. Such a monster retains all the human's memories, and even their emotions. It is very difficult to identify."

A chill ran down Zhang Jiu's spine. "It retains all human memories and emotions? If it disguises itself to be exactly like a person, how can it be identified? Isn't Uncle Wang guarding the entrance? How could a Demonic Beast get in?"

Zhou Qingyang walked out of the room and said in a low voice, "There isn't just one entrance; they can come in through the woods or the river. Let's go. Take me to the other guards. Everyone and every corner of this pavilion must be checked today."

The group wore grave expressions as they hurried away.

Yang Guang's corpse was also carried off.

The backyard returned to silence.

Luo Qingchen stood in the doorway, his expression shifting slightly as he muttered Zhou Qingyang's words to himself.

"Relying on the deep-seated desires and emotions within a human heart... retaining all human memories, and even their emotions..."

Creak...

It was unclear how much time had passed.

He slowly closed the door, once again merging into the darkness of the room.