North Street Murder Case!

Xu Ye was grateful. He cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, sir!"

At work, one addressed others by their position.

Naturally, he could not call him Uncle Du.

Du Yuanxiu understood Xu Ye's meaning and waved a hand slightly.

Xu Ye had the strength. If he were allowed to protect Xu Zhizhi himself, Du Yuanxiu could rest easier too.

In any case, it was all within the scope of his authority.

With that in mind, Du Yuanxiu took a breath and said, "Since you are responsible for patrolling Outer City North Street, matters concerning Outer City North Street should also be handled by you."

Lin Yuyan and the other two were slightly puzzled upon hearing this.

What matter?

Xu Ye's heart stirred slightly.

At that moment, Du Yuanxiu looked at Lü Tao.

Lü Tao immediately understood. He stepped forward and said, "Last night, a demon murder occurred on Outer City North Street. According to the information sent over by the county yamen—"

"At a blacksmith shop on North Street, there were five people in the family. Four were killed, and only one was left alive."

"An order has just come down. We are required to solve it within one day. Since you are officially beginning your duties today, you will handle it."

After Lü Tao finished, Zhao Heng and Lin Yuyan's expressions changed slightly.

A demon had killed someone!

Although they had encountered demons before—

They had never dealt with such a case.

Learning that they had to handle something like this on the very day they began their duties inevitably burdened them with some apprehension.

Xu Ye's heart stirred slightly.

So it really had been a demon harming people?

Earlier, he had heard from the neighbors that everyone in the blacksmith's family had died. He had guessed it was a demon killing people.

He had not expected it to be true!

And, by a strange coincidence, the task of handling it had actually landed on his head.

Xu Ye immediately looked at Lü Tao and asked, "Do we know what kind of demon is causing trouble?"

Lü Tao gave Xu Ye an approving look. Of the three, Xu Ye was the one who had taken the initiative to ask.

Clearly, Xu Ye's thinking was fairly thorough.

Lü Tao promptly said, "That demon is rather cunning, and the incident happened suddenly, so the Demon-Patrol Guards have not yet determined the details."

"However, based on their assessment, after killing the victims, the demon devoured all of their internal organs. This behavior was most likely the work of a yellow weasel."

A yellow weasel—that meant a weasel that had become a demon!

A weasel demon?

No wonder it was cunning!

Xu Ye nodded slightly. "What is the demon's approximate cultivation level?"

Lü Tao said nothing. Du Yuanxiu answered, "Judging from the signs at the scene, you can handle it completely."

They knew Xu Ye's strength, which was why they had made that judgment.

"Isn't he just at the sixth level of Meridian Opening? What's there to show off about?" Zhao Heng muttered resentfully.

No one paid him any attention.

A trace of contempt flashed through Lin Yuyan's eyes.

From what she had seen so far, Xu Ye had no problem being their leader.

Even when it came to asking about such details, Xu Ye had thought of them.

Unlike that good-for-nothing Zhao Heng—what else was in his head all day besides fooling around?

If he were leading them, they would die eight hundred times over sooner or later.

Xu Ye nodded slightly. "Good! Let's head to the scene at once."

Du Yuanxiu said sternly, "This matter concerns the safety of the common people. There can be no mistakes, understand?"

"We will certainly complete the mission!" Xu Ye promised.

His younger sister was on Outer City North Street as well.

If the demon's rampage was not resolved, he would not be at ease either.

Only then did Du Yuanxiu's tone soften. "While slaying demons and protecting the people is important, your own safety is important too. No matter what, you must ensure your safety."

His gaze fell on Xu Ye; most of those words were meant as a reminder to him.

Old Xu was gone!

He did not want Old Xu's son to meet with trouble as well.

"Yes!" Xu Ye nodded solemnly.

After Du Yuanxiu and the others finished their instructions, they turned and went to deal with their own matters, leaving only Xu Ye and the other two behind.

Lin Yuyan immediately stepped forward and asked, "Captain Xu, what should we do next?"

Everyone else in the Demon-Suppression Bureau addressed their superiors that way.

Lin Yuyan followed suit.

It was their first time carrying out such a mission, and for a moment, they did not know where to begin.

Before Xu Ye could answer—

Zhao Heng immediately said, "What else can we do? Find that demon and beat it to death, obviously."

He covered his face, and his speech was slightly slurred through the gaps in his teeth, yet he remained as arrogant as ever.

Lin Yuyan glanced at him and ignored him.

If it were that easy to find, did you need to say it?

Xu Ye said, "Let's inspect the scene first!"

They needed to understand the situation before doing anything.

Lin Yuyan nodded slightly and said nothing.

Zhao Heng curled his lip, but did not say anything either.

Soon, Xu Ye and the other two put on the Demon-Suppression Bureau's black robes, wore Demon-Slaying Sabers at their waists, left the Demon-Suppression Bureau, and headed for Outer City North Street.

Xu Ye could not have been more familiar with Outer City North Street.

He had also visited that blacksmith shop many times.

Thus, he knew the way like the back of his hand.

But Lin Yuyan and Zhao Heng were clearly unaccustomed to it.

The environments of the outer city and inner city were vastly different.

The outer city was somewhat remote and rather crude.

The inner city, on the other hand, was prosperous and thriving, with beautiful surroundings. The two could not be mentioned in the same breath.

And these two were either descendants of officials or children of prominent families. They had lived in the inner city all year round, so naturally, this was their first time coming to a place where outer-city residents lived, and they were not accustomed to it.

Lin Yuyan was fine. Though she frowned slightly, she could accept it.

Zhao Heng was having a harder time.

He covered his swollen red face with a veil and muttered in disgust, "What kind of godforsaken place is this?"

Xu Ye shot him a look. "If you don't want to come, then get lost yourself. Why are you spouting so much nonsense?"

Xu Ye truly did not indulge Zhao Heng.

So what if he was the son of an official?

They all had the same status now.

And Xu Ye was the leader.

Zhao Heng could just endure it.

"You..." Zhao Heng was furious beyond measure.

Damn it!

Ever since meeting Xu Ye, he felt that his status as the county magistrate's deputy's son had stopped working.

"That's enough. We're carrying out a mission, not sightseeing. Why are you talking so much nonsense?" Lin Yuyan also shot Zhao Heng a fierce glare.

Zhao Heng said sullenly, "I'm fine. I'm just afraid you won't be used to it."

"I'm not as delicate as you." Lin Yuyan snorted.

Zhao Heng fell silent, cursing inwardly.

Damn Xu Ye!

Xu Ye could not be bothered with Zhao Heng.

The group soon arrived at the blacksmith shop.

The place had long since been sealed off by the county yamen's constables.

No one was allowed to approach.

As Xu Ye and the others stepped forward, a county yamen constable came up to greet them.

"Greetings, honored Demon-Suppression Guards!"

The Demon-Suppression Guards of the Demon-Suppression Bureau held genuine court offices.

A black-robed Demon-Suppression Guard's status was no lower than that of a ninth-rank official.

Thus, the moment they appeared, their status naturally surpassed that of these constables.

Xu Ye raised a hand, produced his Demon-Suppression Bureau badge, and displayed it. "The Demon-Suppression Bureau has been ordered to take over this place. We need to know what happened here and all relevant details."

Upon hearing this, the constable became even more respectful. "Yes! This subordinate will report everything we have investigated to you, sir!"

Xu Ye nodded slightly.

The constable did not waste words. He took out a case file containing written records and began recounting the findings of their investigation and some of the details.