What? All the Other Demons Were Dead?!

For the next two days, Cui Lang led Zhao Changshan and the others on patrols every day, seemingly carrying out the county magistrate's orders with due diligence.

In truth, he was only making sure those demons had not run away.

Fortunately, all the demons were still there. Several of them even asked when fresh blood-meals would be provided, saying they were about to lose control.

Cui Lang merely soothed them with a few words, telling them it would be soon. They had to put on a show this time; once the prefectural office was satisfied, fresh blood-meals would be delivered at once.

When the commoners saw the constables and yamen runners patrolling the villages, they were all quite pleased.

The masters in the city had finally remembered them villagers. After all, the people most ravaged by demons across the land were villagers like them.

At night, after returning home, Cui Lang shut his doors and trained diligently in martial arts.

Whether it was the Blazing Sun Technique, his body-tempering arts, or the Eight Desolations Slash, all had improved.

Of them, the Eight Desolations Slash had improved the fastest. Cui Lang vaguely felt that he was about to touch upon the edge of true martial intent.

It seemed as though he was only one step from the threshold, yet countless people had been stuck at this very step, including the already dead Constable Li.

That day, he had just arrived at the constables' quarters and was about to practice the Blazing Sun Technique for a while when he heard someone beating a drum.

It was the grievance drum at the entrance to the county yamen. Someone had come to report a case!

At once, Cui Lang heard someone shouting, "County Magistrate, demons are causing trouble in our village! Please quickly send people to slay the demons and eliminate evil!"

A figure swept from the rear yamen to the county yamen entrance like a gust of wind, glaring fixedly at the commoner who had reported the case. "What did you say? Demons are causing trouble in your village? Which village are you from?"

The farmer knelt on the ground. "In reply to you, sir, this lowly one is from West River Village. My name is Ma San."

"Last night, there was a huge commotion in our village. It sounded like wild beasts roaring, and all the livestock in our homes became restless. We were so frightened that none of us dared sleep."

"After dawn, I gathered my courage and went out for a look. There was a huge hole in my neighbor's door, and there was a great deal of blood inside."

"My neighbor was dead too, and the elder relative who had sought refuge with him had vanished. It must have been demons that harmed their family."

"The people in the village said I was the first to see it, so they had me ride a donkey here to report it. Sir, please send someone to take a look quickly. What if the demons haven't gone far and come back tonight? This lowly one begs you!"

Zhou Yafeng's expression turned extremely ugly. He shouted angrily, "Someone, go call Zheng Fengyun here!"

When Zheng Fengyun came before Zhou Yafeng and heard what had happened, his expression changed drastically. "County Magistrate, this subordinate will certainly handle this matter properly. I will immediately lead men to West River Village and apprehend the escaped demons."

Zhou Yafeng snorted coldly. "Zheng Fengyun, the people from the prefectural office only left two days ago. Just how have you been doing your job?"

"I'll give you one day. There must be a result!"

With a sweep of his sleeve, Zhou Yafeng returned to the rear yamen.

Zheng Fengyun immediately sent someone to notify the other constables to assemble. During that time, he also had Cui Lang summoned.

"Cui Lang, you went to West River Village, didn't you? You didn't find anything wrong?"

Cui Lang nodded. "This subordinate went yesterday and didn't find anything unusual. Magistrate Zheng, I just heard the grievance drum being beaten, and it seemed like I heard someone shouting something about demons?"

Zheng Fengyun's face was cold. "Someone came to report that demons are causing trouble in West River Village. The county magistrate has ordered this official to produce a result within a day."

"Go get a horse. We're heading to West River Village right now. We won't wait for the others."

The two galloped wildly on horseback and soon arrived at West River Village.

As they neared the house where the demon had been hiding, their horses refused to move forward.

Zheng Fengyun's heart skipped a beat. They had smelled a demon's scent. Things seemed to be different from what he had expected.

Standing at the entrance, he saw that there truly was a large hole in the door, even marked by a claw slash.

There were scattered bloodstains all over the ground, damage to the walls, and fragments of windows and door panels in the courtyard. It was clear that a fierce battle had taken place.

Yet aside from that, there were no bodies to be seen.

Zheng Fengyun used his scabbard to lift a clump of bloodstained soil. His expression changed dramatically. It really was demon blood!

He had originally thought that perhaps this demon had suddenly gone berserk, tried to flee back into the mountains, and killed all those serving it.

But now, that did not seem right. Clearly, this demon had encountered a powerful enemy—and that enemy might even have been a demon as well.

"Magistrate Zheng, what exactly happened? Did someone kill it?" Cui Lang's eyes widened in utter shock.

Zheng Fengyun glanced at the claw marks on the door. "You also went to Song Family Village and Li Family Village, didn't you? Did you notice anything unusual there?"

"No. She even asked when things could continue." Cui Lang wore an enlightened expression. "Magistrate Zheng, do you suspect something happened at Song Family Village and Li Family Village too?"

Zheng Fengyun lowered his voice. "To hell with something happening at Song Family Village too. Look at those claw marks on the door. Those two must have done it."

He had thought these demons were all quite obedient and that they could continue working together. He had even been about to break through to the Dan-Embracing realm.

But now, demons had actually attacked other demons, completely disregarding their rules!

Wait. Could something have happened to the other demons too?

Zheng Fengyun immediately rushed out the door. "This official will go to Little Wang Village. You go to East Willow Village and see whether it is still there."

Cui Lang watched Zheng Fengyun leave in a hurry, then swung himself onto his horse and raced toward East Willow Village.

When he arrived, the villagers who saw him were all very agitated.

"Officer, you came so quickly. Did Xiao Qi reach the county seat so soon?"

"You're here to investigate the demons, right? Come with me. It's in the courtyard ahead."

Cui Lang walked inside. There were also quite a few bloodstains in this courtyard, along with signs of battle.

It seemed those two cat demons had acted quickly. Had they killed all the other demons last night?

He picked up a tuft of cat fur from the ground and pinched it in his palm.

"All right, all right, stop gathering around. The county magistrate already knows about this matter and has ordered us to apprehend the demons. Did any of you see any trace of the demons? Do you know which direction they fled?"

Everyone shook their heads. When they heard the commotion, who would have dared show their faces? Every one of them had wished they could hide in their cellars.

Only after dawn, when they had heard nothing for a long while, had they dared open their doors and come out to take a look.

"If you didn't see anything, then go home. Do not approach this place. Be careful not to get contaminated by demon blood."

After sending the villagers away, Cui Lang had someone seal the door, then waited outside for Zheng Fengyun to arrive.

Earlier, he had deliberately told the cat demons that they could attack the other demons to strengthen themselves. He had thought those two cat demons would wait for him, but they had actually acted ahead of time.

Could those two cat demons have already fled back into the mountains?

The other demons had all been killed by the cat demons, and the cat demons themselves were nowhere to be found. Could those, like Zheng Fengyun, who had colluded with demons still remain calm?

After waiting nearly an hour, Zheng Fengyun indeed came galloping over on horseback.

When he saw Cui Lang, Zheng Fengyun's face twisted viciously. "The one over there is gone too. It was most likely killed."

"Come back to the city with me. We must find someone to discuss how to resolve this, or else we're all finished!"