"We actually knew this lock might be useless if we really faced those monsters. It was only there to give us some peace of mind."
Su Jiu nodded. "So what exactly happened to your village? Why are you worshipping a demon?"
The man was shocked. "You mean the stone statue outside is actually a demon? A devil like the ones in storybooks?"
Su Jiu fell silent for a moment, realizing that this man truly knew nothing about cultivation. Still, his explanation was not exactly wrong. Weren't the demons that invaded the Nine Provinces Continent and fed on humans precisely such devils?
Su Jiu nodded again. "More or less, though it should be even more frightening than the devils you know."
The man paused. "Then are you a Taoist, miss?"
In storybooks, Taoists subdued monsters, demons, and ghosts. That made perfect sense.
Even so, Su Jiu's expression stiffened for a moment. She decided to steer the conversation back on track. After all, this was not the time to answer a hundred thousand questions. "So what exactly happened in your village?"
Though small, the house had everything one could need, like a sparrow with all its organs intact. His wife was probably a very attentive woman, for she had made their little home especially cozy.
But now, even such a cozy little home could no longer offer them warmth. After all, no one knew when a man-eating devil might descend upon them.
The man carefully recalled what had happened ten years ago and slowly began his account...
Ten years ago, this had still been an ordinary village.
As the saying went, those who lived by the mountains ate from the mountains, and those who lived by the water ate from the water. Their village had both, as well as vast stretches of