Joining the Demon Suppression Office

Most of the time,

people thought they had fate in their grasp, when in truth, fate had them in its grip.

"Jiang Xun's daughter, Jiang Yuechu?"

At those words,

Jiang Yuechu went blank.

She had known her identity might be exposed, but she had never expected it to happen like this.

Shit!

Shit!

Shit!

In an instant,

countless thoughts flashed through her mind.

Run?

How?

This was the Military Commissioner's Office of the Demon Suppression Office. She could not even get out of bed.

Kill him to silence him?

In her current wretched state, she stood no chance. Even at her peak, this middle-aged man felt more unfathomable than that Bone-Chiming Realm Pig Demon.

Play dumb?

Sir, what are you talking about? I don't understand...

That would not just mean treating him like a fool.

It would make her look like one, too.

In the flash of a spark, she forced down the terror that had nearly suffocated her.

She raised her eyes to his refined face and, to her surprise, felt herself grow calm.

Thinking it through, this body's former owner had been a prisoner escorted by the Demon Suppression Office itself.

From the capital to Longyou, every document, file, and register along the way clearly recorded her name and origins. Some might even contain her portrait.

As long as she needed to slay demons, and as long as the Demon Suppression Office existed,

she was bound to cross paths with them. It was only a matter of time.

Once she understood that, Jiang Yuechu felt strangely relieved.

A criminal who spent every day hiding from place to place

might feel relieved when finally caught, too.

She did not answer Wei He's question. She merely watched him in silence.

Her reaction brought a flicker of surprise to Wei He's eyes.

Beside him, Wei Qing looked from her brother to the silent girl on the bed, utterly bewildered.

"Brother, do you... do you know her?"

Wei He shook his head. "I wouldn't say that... Qing, leave us."

You don't know her?

Wei Qing grew suspicious.

No one knew her brother's temperament better than his own family.

Apart from official business, all he did was practice with his blade. He was sparing with words and smiles, and even the dogs at the residence found his Killing Intent so heavy that they went around him.

Yet from the moment he had told her to care for this girl personally, Wei Qing had sensed something was off.

Not only had he put her in charge of the girl's care, but every medicine he had ordered was a rare treasure from the commissioner's storeroom.

Snow ginseng, Solomon's seal...

Even an ordinary commandant grievously wounded in action might not have been given such things.

Now they were being poured like water into a girl of unknown origins.

Could she be the result of some romantic entanglement Brother had outside the residence?

Wei Qing immediately shook her head, flinging the absurd thought away.

That block of wood? What would he know about romance?

Despite her wandering thoughts, she obediently acknowledged him, bowed, and withdrew, gently closing the door behind her.

Only Jiang Yuechu and Wei He remained in the room.

Silence settled over them.

Wei He did not speak, and neither did Jiang Yuechu.

After a long while,

Wei He finally said, "Half a month ago, Pei Changqing led a squad of Demon-Suppression Guards out of Liangzhou. Now they've suddenly vanished without a trace. Whether they live or die is unknown."

"You alone survived..."

With matters laid out so plainly, any further defense would be futile.

She slowly lifted her head and met Wei He's eyes.

"What do you want?"

Seeing her so blunt, Wei He smiled instead.

"What do I want?"

"Jiang Yuechu, you are a fugitive who was supposed to be exiled to the border. Escaping on your own compounds your crime. And that is without even mentioning your suspected murder of Demon Suppression Office personnel, a crime punishable by death."

"But..."

Wei He changed tack.

"You killed a Bone-Chiming Great Demon and saved Xu Nian, Liu Chen, and five other Demon-Suppression Guards. That is a great service."

He extended two fingers and tapped them lightly against his knee.

"Your merits offset your crimes. Your life is spared."

Jiang Yuechu said nothing. She only stared hard at him.

She did not believe anything this good could happen.

Would the Demon Suppression Office really spare a fugitive who might have killed their comrades simply because she had earned some merit?

Wei He finally stated his purpose.

"I'm curious where those strange abilities of yours came from, but I can choose not to care."

He stood, returned to the window, and clasped his hands behind his back, presenting Jiang Yuechu with his silhouette.

"You now have two choices."

"First, I have you escorted back to the capital. Your strange abilities and Pei Changqing's death will be handed over to the Ministry of Justice, Dali Temple, and... the Imperial City Office. They can take their time investigating every last detail."

"Rest assured, no one dares torture a prisoner of the Demon Suppression Office."

Jiang Yuechu's heart sank straight to the bottom.

Back to the capital?

Her father's case was strange to begin with, and her strength had only just reached Perfected String-Hearing.

If she was sent back, she would have a slim chance of surviving.

"What's the second choice?"

Wei He turned around. "Simple."

"The Demon Suppression Office does not ask about your background or your past. We care only about what you can do."

"Join the Demon Suppression Office."

"From this day forward, I can wipe your slate clean. No one will pursue you over the Jiang Household case, either."

"You slay demons for the Demon Suppression Office, and the Demon Suppression Office gives you protection."

"What do you say?"

At those words, Jiang Yuechu's expression turned peculiar.

Was there even a choice?

A fugitive without household registration or travel papers could hardly take a step in a world rife with demons and ruled by a strict government.

But joining the Demon Suppression Office would not only solve her registration problem; it would also let her slay demons openly, rack up Dao Cultivation, and grow stronger.

Could there really be such a good deal?

Wei He had no idea what she was feeling.

Seeing her peculiar expression, he assumed the proposal to join the Demon Suppression Office had frightened her.

That would have been normal.

Martial artists under heaven were as numerous as fish crossing a river, but precious few were willing to join the Demon Suppression Office.

Those with exceptional talent were rarer still than phoenix feathers and qilin horns.

Why?

They feared death, that was all.

Joining the Demon Suppression Office meant spending the rest of one's life among demons, licking blood from a blade's edge, never knowing whether one would live to see the next dawn.

For any ordinary person, joining a major sect, serving a wealthy family as an Attendant or guard, or even seeking a future in the army was far safer than coming to the Demon Suppression Office.

True, the Demon Suppression Office offered salaries and death benefits unmatched by any other department in Great Tang.

But once you were dead, what use was silver or gold?

How could he have guessed

that the girl before him was no ordinary person?

Wei He meant to say more.

He had even prepared an entire speech.

First would come the threat: he would spell out the consequences of being escorted back to the capital. Then the inducement: the Demon Suppression Office's benefits—salary, merit, martial arts, divine weapons... With enough ability, all of it would be within reach.

He had even decided that if the girl still hesitated, he would add fuel to the fire by revealing a little of what lay behind the Jiang Household case. Then she would understand that, apart from the Demon Suppression Office, she had no place left in the world.

But before he could speak,

the girl on the bed softly uttered one word.

"Yes."

Her decisiveness left Wei He at a loss.

"...What did you say?"

Jiang Yuechu raised her eyes and repeated herself calmly.

"I choose to join the Demon Suppression Office."

"..."

"Ahem..."

Wei He coughed lightly to conceal his brief loss of composure. "Since you've agreed, as of today, you are a Demon-Suppression Guard of the Longyou Circuit Demon Suppression Office."

"A Demon-Suppression Guard?"

"A Demon-Suppression Guard is of the Principal Ninth Rank, the lowest office in the Demon Suppression Office. The monthly salary is five taels of silver, plus three shi of rice and ten jin of meat. On joining, you'll receive one standard-issue iron saber forged from black iron, sharp enough to sever a hair blown across its edge, two changes of clothes, and an identity token."

"There is compensation for injuries and a posthumous honor for death. Any family members you have may attend the office school without paying tuition."

For some reason, he patiently explained further. "By rights, having slain a Bone-Chiming Great Demon and possessing a natural Divine Ability, you could at least be appointed an Eighth-Rank Squad Commander. But even I spent several years as a Demon-Suppression Guard before rising through the ranks on merit. Our brothers-in-arms never want to see a comrade suffer, but neither do they want to see someone ascend to the heavens in a single step. Do you understand?"

Jiang Yuechu did not mind.

Ninth-Rank Demon Suppressor was the lowest rank, but it was still an official post.

In the former owner's memories, a seventh-rank county magistrate in Great Tang was practically a local emperor.

She was a fugitive under sentence, yet she had suddenly become a ninth-rank officer of the Demon Suppression Office. Whichever way she looked at it, she had come out ahead.

Besides, a monthly salary of five taels was quite good.

According to the former owner's memories, even in the capital, an ordinary family of five spent only about two taels of silver a month.

And that was just the basic salary. From his words, there were clearly other sources of income.

"Thank you for the guidance, sir."

A trace of approval flashed through Wei He's eyes.

"Your vital energy and blood are depleted. Though spiritual medicines are sustaining you, your foundation has been damaged. Recovery will take time. Stay here and focus on healing for the next few days."

"Once you've recovered, I'll send someone to take you to your post."

"Thank you, sir."

"No need to thank me. You serve the Demon Suppression Office, and the Demon Suppression Office will treat you well..."

He fell silent for a moment, seeming to consider something, before finally speaking again.

"Your father Jiang Xun's case implicates many people. It is far more than an ordinary struggle between factions at court."

"That case is a whirlpool in an abyss. With your current strength, forget investigating it—even drawing near would be like a mantis trying to stop a cart. You would only bring about your own destruction."

"Consider your position and act within your strength. To fell a tree that towers into the sky, you must first sharpen your axe."

"Do you understand?"

Jiang Yuechu lowered her eyes, her long lashes hiding her emotions, and nodded obediently.

"I will remember your counsel, sir."

All those winding words boiled down to something simple: Your father's case involves too much. You're too weak right now. Don't go throwing your life away.

"Good."

He said no more and turned toward the door.

At the doorway, though, he stopped.

"One more thing. Pei Changqing's ancestral home was Guangwu. In a way, he returned to his roots."

Jiang Yuechu froze on the bed.

She understood exactly what he meant.

It was not that he did not know. For the Demon Suppression Office, finding out how Pei Changqing and the others had died would have been easy.

But whatever else might come, the greatest danger before her had passed.

She had an identity and someone powerful at her back. Even slaying demons had become something she could do openly.

At a thought, the ancient scroll opened in Jiang Yuechu's mind.

[Host: Jiang Yuechu]

[Realm: Perfected String-Hearing]

[Martial Arts: Fierce Tiger Swift Blade (Supreme Realm), Azure Cliff Returning Shadow (Supreme Realm), Blood Sustenance Art (Perfected)]

[Dao Cultivation: 120 years]

[Recorded Demons: Tiger Mountain God (Eye-Pointing), Azure-Faced Lord (Vermilion-Stained), Zhu Yan (Shadow Tracing)]

[Innate Divine Abilities: Yin Law Granted by Heaven, Tiger Baleful Blood Boil, Wolf Travels a Thousand Miles]

[Demon Transformation: Tiger Mountain God]

Killing that Pig Demon of the Bone-Chiming Realm had earned her 350 years of Dao Cultivation.

But recording its Shadow Tracing alone had cost a full 230 years.

That cost was outrageous.

Still...

Jiang Yuechu's gaze fell on the martial arts section.

Besides Fierce Tiger Swift Blade and Azure Cliff Returning Shadow, both of which had reached the Supreme Realm, there was now a technique she had never seen before.

[Blood Sustenance Art (Perfected)]

What was this?

At a thought, several lines of smaller text slowly appeared beneath it.

[Blood Sustenance Art (Perfected): Devouring demon flesh greatly improves refinement efficiency, converting it into one's own vital blood and strengthening one's foundation. This art has no ranks. It stems from the Zhu Yan clan's bloodline talent and was granted to the host upon recording Zhu Yan.]

Jiang Yuechu froze for a moment, then understanding dawned.

No wonder...

Outside Jincheng County, she had roasted and eaten the flesh of the two Pig Demons after killing them.

Demon flesh was nourishing to begin with.

Even ordinary martial artists could eat it to strengthen their vital blood.

But without a dedicated art to refine it, the impurities within would invade the body as well.

The process was also far less efficient.

Eating those two Pig Demons had improved her strength, but without a refinement method, most of their essence had gone to waste.

Now that she had Blood Sustenance Art, it must have worked like an instinct, converting all the unrefined demon essence stored in her body into the purest vital blood and carrying her through to Perfected String-Hearing in one surge.

The thought delighted her all the more.

Everyone else avoided demons like the plague. She alone was growing more and more reliant on them.

Blood Sustenance Art offered no help whatsoever in a direct fight, but it might be even more precious than Demon Transformation!

As long as there were enough demons for her to kill and eat...

The Bone-Resonance Realm?

Even beyond it!

Her future looked bright!

"Hehehe..."

Lying in bed, Jiang Yuechu couldn't help laughing aloud.

Creak.

The door opened softly.

Wei Qing came in carrying a bowl of steaming porridge. Seeing Jiang Yuechu lying in bed and grinning to herself, she stopped short.

"What... are you laughing at?"

"Nothing." Jiang Yuechu immediately wiped the smile from her face and said solemnly, "I'm simply delighted to have the chance to serve the Demon Suppression Office."

Wei Qing: "..."

Of course I believe you.

She set the bowl on the bedside table and gave Jiang Yuechu an exasperated look. "Drink it while it's hot. I just made it. There's deer antler and goji berries in it to replenish your vital blood."

Jiang Yuechu sat up and took the bowl. The aroma made her mouth water.

"Oh, right. My brother asked me to give you these."

As Wei Qing spoke, she took a neatly folded set of clothes and a palm-sized wooden token from inside her robe.

The clothes were the Demon Suppression Office's distinctive black fighting outfit with crimson patterns. The fabric felt much finer than the set Jiang Yuechu had stripped from a corpse.

The wooden token was surprisingly heavy in her hand. She couldn't tell what kind of wood it was made from.

One side bore the words "Suppress Demons" in bold, sweeping strokes. Her name was carved on the other.

Jiang Yuechu.

"This is your identification token. Within Great Tang, you won't have to submit to inspections, and you can enter and leave cities without obstruction."

Wei Qing explained, "I picked the clothes in your size, too. Try them on and see if they fit."

Jiang Yuechu held the token, her feelings tangled.

After all the trouble, all the fear, all the days spent licking blood from the edge of a blade...

Wasn't this what she had wanted?

Yet now that she truly held it in her hand, it hardly felt real.