Duan the Demon's Terror Was Beyond Measure

The carriage followed the stream of traffic into the city, and a majestic urban panorama slowly unfolded before Duan Yun's eyes.

A morning rain had just passed. The closely packed buildings carried a damp air, and tiny droplets still clung faintly to the wind chimes beneath the eaves.

When the wind blew, the droplets shattered, and the chimes drifted into the crowd, soon drowned out by the clamor of voices.

The crowd flowed like a tide, yet every face was different.

There were merchants hurrying along, young women dressed like blooming flowers out shopping, and hawkers selling candied hawthorns as they cried their wares through the streets, their calls colliding with the steam boiling up from the noodle shop beside them.

This was the first truly bustling city Duan Yun had encountered since coming to this world.

What surprised him was not merely the lively spectacle before him, but the endless stretch of buildings.

Every so often, towering structures stood on either side of the road. Red silk ribbons hanging beneath their upturned eaves fluttered in the wind, beautiful as clouds at sunset.

Some wooden towers were more than thirty zhang tall, nearly rivaling the skyscrapers from his previous life.

Duan Yun even saw an enormous cage covered in flower branches, with people standing inside as it rose toward the upper floors of a wooden tower.

"An elevator."

That was Duan Yun's first thought.

Such architectural standards truly exceeded his expectations, even though he had long known that Springwatch City was a great city built by the master craftsmen of the Ink Sect.

Duan Yun could not help recalling that bear—the Man-Bear with a human brain grafted into its head.

In a world where people could graft human brains, constructing a city like this was not impossible.

The main thing was, the towns he had seen along the way had all been shabby wrecks. Martial artists only knew how to fight and kill, displaying every kind of ugly behavior. He had not expected anyone to put such thought into this sort of thing.

The carriage stopped before an inn named Drunken Star Tower.

According to the driver, it was the most famous inn in Springwatch City's outer district, as well as the tallest building one could stay in there.

The tower had thirty-nine floors in total. The Heavenly-class room on the very top floor was called Star-Picking, the perfect place to admire the city's nightscape.

It was Duan Yun's first time in Springwatch City. Since he had happened to pass by and happened to earn a tiny bit of bounty money, naturally he had to experience this rather decadent indulgence.

Drunken Star Tower was probably much like Prosperity Carriage Workshop. As long as the money was sufficient, they could "put people first and create happiness through lodging."

The receptionists were not the usual inn servants and proprietors, perhaps with a still-charming proprietress added at most. Instead, they were all young women.

It made it feel like...

Why did so many businesses in Springwatch City seem to have taken on the flavor of brothels?

Still, these girls were dressed in a fresh and natural style, not nearly as seductive as women in a pleasure house, making it less likely for guests to let their imaginations run wild.

When the young lady at the counter heard that Duan Yun wanted the Star-Picking Room, her smile became even sweeter, the dimples in her cheeks lovely as pear blossoms.

Fifteen taels of silver per night—how could she not be happy?

Still, Duan Yun figured that was about right. The finest sky suite in the finest inn of the capital had never been about value for money, much like those presidential suites in modern society that cost tens of thousands a night.

Within Drunken Star Tower, Duan Yun rode this world's "elevator" for the first time.

The wooden cage was carved with flowers, ancient and elegant. As this Flower Cage slowly rose, Duan Yun truly had the illusion of riding a sightseeing elevator.

The Flower Cage was steady both going up and down. The exposed gears showed that it had been carefully designed, though he had no idea what powered it.

Had someone already invented something like a steam engine?

In truth, Duan Yun had guessed wrong. In an underground workshop beyond his sight, more than a dozen donkeys covered in muscle were slowly pulling a mechanism around.

These donkeys had blank faces, yet were nearly the size of cattle, as though they never knew fatigue. It was said that this was the Ink Sect's latest research result: making donkeys and cattle mate and bear offspring.

They called these creatures Ox-Donkeys.

And the Ink Sect's next step was to make humans and cattle mate and bear offspring, to see whether they could produce minotaurs.

Over the past half month, Master Lu had neglected even his several wives, immersing himself in stance training every day.

Duan Yun had written down the technique for drawing in Lunar Essence, but it was somewhat difficult for Master Lu.

Master Lu had practiced martial arts before, but it had nothing to do with internal cultivation. The stance training Young Hero Duan had left behind combined internal and external practice: one had to hold the stance, regulate one's breath, and even absorb Lunar Essence.

If an ordinary person had told him this method, he would have cursed them as a fraud long ago.

But Young Hero Duan Yun's terrifying means of slaying the demoness of the Red Tower and saving the entire Lu Family was an undeniable fact. How could he not believe it?

Besides, Master Lu possessed an inexplicable obsession with regaining his former vigor.

Once he succeeded, he could rape some younger women again.

He had not raped anyone in a long time.

Having learned his lesson from the last woman being a demoness, Master Lu would no longer forcibly marry women in the future. He would only rape them.

He would rape women whose backgrounds he knew well, not those of unknown origin!

Thinking of that beautiful future, Master Lu continued to train with his head down.

That night, Master Lu finally found the feeling beneath the moonlight.

He was about to succeed!

Three mornings later, a strange cry suddenly rang out from Master Lu's room.

The eldest young master rushed over after hearing the commotion, only to find his father wearing a strange, terrified expression as he said, "Quick, quick, go invite Xue Divine Physician!"

The Lu Family and Xue Divine Physician were old acquaintances. Xue Divine Physician had always been a man of principle: as long as the silver was sufficient, he would treat anyone's illness.

Two days later, Xue Divine Physician arrived.

He looked at Master Lu's rather "clean" face and revealed a strange expression.

"Master, do not speak yet. Let me take your pulse."

Afterward, he began examining his pulse. With a grave expression, he said, "Master, have you recently practiced a cultivation technique?"

Master Lu hurriedly nodded. "I practiced a stance training method."

"Was the person who taught you this technique a handsome young man?" Xue Divine Physician continued.

"Yes, yes, yes!" Master Lu nodded.

Xue Divine Physician asked doubtfully, "Did he mention his surname?"

"He said his name was Duan Yun. We wanted to call him Great Hero Duan, but he told us that Young Hero would do."

Xue Divine Physician stopped taking his pulse and said, "Master, you need not take off your trousers. I roughly understand what has happened."

Master Lu said emotionally, "Xue Divine Physician, save me! No matter how much silver it costs, I will pay!"

Yes, raping and marrying women were his only hobbies.

Xue Divine Physician shook his head. "Sadly, there is no cure."

"What!" Master Lu's face turned pale.

"This belongs to a cultivation technique of someone called Duan the Demon. After practicing it, one can Shrink Yang into Abdomen and fall into femaleness, becoming a woman. Even this old man is powerless against it. Forget you—even the renowned Lingshui Twin Heroes were struck by Duan the Demon's technique and turned into women."

"Along the way, he killed members of the Thunder Duke and Old Mother Sect whenever he pleased. The calamity that befell the thousand members of the Yellowwater Gang was caused by him. Add in the Lingshui Twin Heroes and cases of falling into femaleness like yours, and Duan the Demon is truly utterly devoid of conscience. Even this old man feels afraid when speaking of him."

Xue Divine Physician spoke at length.

Hearing this, Master Lu knew that his bird was completely beyond saving. He spat out a mouthful of blood with a wail, cried, "Duan the Demon is too ruthless!" and fainted dead away.

The young masters of the household heard the commotion and rushed in with panicked faces.

"Father!"

"Xue Divine Physician!"

"No need to panic. He will not die."

Xue Divine Physician remained unhurried as he began inserting needles.

Even if Master Lu vomited blood like this five or six more times, he could still heal him. But there was nothing to be done about this transformation of falling into femaleness.

All one could say was that Duan the Demon was truly terrifying.