River Demon Eats Men

After inspecting the fields, the three of them returned home.

Along the way, the sisters discussed what vegetables to plant, how to drain the water from the fields, and so on.

Lu Shaolin decided to fish for River Demons again that night. Turning to the sisters, who were still talking, he said, "I have something to do tonight, so I won't be staying home. Lock the doors and windows properly. I'll be back tomorrow afternoon."

Upon hearing Lu Shaolin's words, the elder sister, Dong Jia, nodded.

Dong Linger said, "Young Master, you must be careful!"

"Mm."

Lu Shaolin smiled and patted Dong Linger's little head.

"I'm leaving now. You two need to watch your own safety as well."

Lu Shaolin reminded them.

"Don't worry, Young Master! We'll lock the doors and windows. You should be careful too."

Dong Jia replied gently.

"Mm!"

Lu Shaolin nodded, picked up his spear and saber, then left the house for the county town.

As before, he bought ten live chickens and several meat pancakes in the county town before returning to the shallows.

There was nothing unusual at the shallows. Lu Shaolin dug up the ropes and continued downstream.

There were no River Demons left in these shallows. He had failed to hook any by the end of last time, so he could only change locations.

After walking roughly two li downstream, Lu Shaolin found another suitable stretch of shallows.

There was still a small fishing village not far from these shallows.

Drawing his saber, he chose an appropriate distance and began digging a pit.

Once he finished, Lu Shaolin sat on the sand, took out a meat pancake, and ate while waiting for nightfall.

When darkness fell, Lu Shaolin began fishing for River Demons using the same method as before.

Half the night passed, and River Demon corpses covered the sand.

The live chickens Lu Shaolin had bought had all been used up.

The Source Points on the system panel had risen to 12.8.

With several flicks of his spear, Lu Shaolin tossed all ten River Demon corpses into the Blackwater River.

After cleaning up, he carried his spear and headed straight for the small fishing village.

When he entered the village, Lu Shaolin was about to pick a household and climb over its wall when a piercing cry suddenly rang out from a home to his left.

In an instant, the entire fishing village erupted into commotion. Dogs barked, and voices rose everywhere.

Lu Shaolin suddenly drove his legs forward and charged left.

Arriving before a house with its courtyard gate wide open, he saw a male corpse lying inside. A River Demon was crouched over the body, gnawing at it.

Two meters in front of the corpse stood a woman, weeping and screaming.

The River Demon ate with great relish, completely ignoring the woman standing so close by.

The woman spotted Lu Shaolin outside the courtyard gate and immediately cried out for help.

Without a word, Lu Shaolin slowly entered the courtyard.

Seeing that the River Demon was still feeding on the corpse, Lu Shaolin suddenly lunged forward. Striking in anger, he drove his spear straight through the River Demon's head.

In through the back of the skull, out through the eye socket!

With a wet pop, he pulled out the spear, bringing a mass of blood and brain matter with it.

The River Demon collapsed atop the corpse, its green blood mixing with the red blood.

Lu Shaolin tossed the River Demon's corpse aside. The woman immediately rushed over, throwing herself onto the male corpse as she wailed in grief.

By then, numerous torches had lit up outside the gate. The men of the fishing village had arrived outside, carrying fish spears, clubs, and other weapons.

At their head was an old man with grizzled hair, presumably the village chief.

Four or five sturdy men escorted the village chief into the courtyard first.

The village chief looked at Lu Shaolin standing to one side, then at the River Demon's corpse on the ground, and immediately understood what had happened.

After quietly instructing two young men to help the woman back into the house, he walked over to Lu Shaolin with cupped hands. "Thank you, Daoist, for acting righteously and killing the River Demon. This old man is Zhang Gu, the village chief of this village."

"You're too courteous, Elder. I am not a man of the Dao. I merely wear Daoist robes for the time being."

Lu Shaolin returned the gesture.

"I see. It's noisy in the courtyard, and these youngsters can handle the matter of the corpse. Please come to my home and rest first, sir."

The village chief gestured invitingly.

"Then I'll trouble you, Elder."

Lu Shaolin nodded.

The two headed outside, with two men carrying torches ahead to light the way.

After arriving at the village chief's home, the village chief's wife served tea and then withdrew.

"Please have some tea, sir."

The village chief gestured.

Lu Shaolin lifted the teacup and took a sip.

"If not for you today, Wu Zhou's whole family would have been wiped out. May I ask your name, sir?"

The village chief sighed.

"Lu Shaolin!"

Lu Shaolin replied.

"Wasn't the Blackwater Gang supposed to have people guarding this place?"

Lu Shaolin asked immediately after.

"You may not know this, sir. Some time ago, the Blackwater Gang's men withdrew from this area. It seems something major happened elsewhere."

"We ordinary villagers are not martial artists. How could we possibly resist attacks from River Demons? Sure enough, lives were lost today."

"If the Blackwater Gang's men had been here, the River Demon would certainly have been discovered in time and killed on the spot."

The village chief explained.

"I see. Are all the fishing villages like this?"

"Not exactly. I heard that only a few fishing villages had their manpower withdrawn."

"Mm."

"You must be tired, sir. Please rest here tonight. I've already had my wife prepare a room for you."

The village chief stood and led Lu Shaolin to a side room.

Lu Shaolin cupped his hands in thanks, entered the room, shut the door, and went to bed.

At first light the next day, Lu Shaolin got up.

The moment he stepped out of his room, he ran into the village chief coming in from outside.

It seemed this village chief had not slept all night!

"Why are you up so early, Sir Lu? Was the bed uncomfortable?"

The village chief asked.

"No, I slept very comfortably. I simply have important business to attend to and must get to the county town."

Lu Shaolin replied with a smile.

"If that is the case, please wait a moment."

As he spoke, the village chief walked into the kitchen.

Before long, he came out carrying three large carp.

The carp were strung together with grass rope.

"There is nothing else I can offer to thank you, sir. Please accept these large carp. My sons caught them themselves."

The village chief held the fish out to Lu Shaolin.

"Elder, there's no need for this."

Lu Shaolin refused.

"Please accept them, sir. They are only a small token of our gratitude."

The village chief insisted.

"This... all right!"

Lu Shaolin accepted the carp.

He then cupped his hands in farewell to the old man, left the fishing village, and headed for the county town.

After arriving in the county town and eating breakfast, Lu Shaolin headed toward the docks.

As for spending points to upgrade, he planned to do so after returning in the afternoon. Dong Jia's cooking was no worse than a restaurant's, and it would save him some silver as well.

At the entrance to the docks, Ma San and Li Si were still waiting for him.

Seeing Lu Shaolin carrying three large carp, the two were filled with curiosity.

"Boss, did you catch those fish on the road?"

Li Si asked.

"No, they were a gift."

Lu Shaolin handed the fish to Li Si to carry.

Upon entering the docks, quite a few merchants and laborers greeted Lu Shaolin.

Cries of "Master Lu" rang out without end.

"Hehe, Boss killed a horse with one spear yesterday and scared Liu Dadao away. You've truly made a name for yourself now!"

Li Si's chubby face broke into a delighted grin.