Hou Niao was deeply shocked by the scene before him. In truth, in all twenty years of his life, he had scarcely ventured beyond the area around Fufeng City. When had he ever witnessed such peril?
Without reliable means of transport, travel in this age was an extremely time-consuming undertaking, and one that demanded considerable courage.
Daoist Xiaosong looked worried and said quietly, "Senior brother, it seems our movements have been exposed. These demons are deliberately trying to cow us!"
They had made no attempt to conceal this journey in the first place. Building embankments to protect the people involved far too many parties and concerns for secrecy to be possible, so it was hardly surprising that water-demon scouts had discovered them. But the water demons gathering where the six waterways converged, openly and ostentatiously threatening them, still came as something of a surprise.
In the Anhe Kingdom, although the Daoist Sect lacked the strength to sweep away all opposition, calling it the foremost power would be no exaggeration. Though the Qingtang water demons were not weak, they were confined to a single river, after all. This was the first time in decades that they had so brazenly challenged the Anhe Daoist Sect.
Jiyue also seemed somewhat uneasy. "These past few years, the world has been far from peaceful. The shadows of Floating Ghosts swarm, the Demon Race stirs restlessly, and the Demonic Sect sharpens its weapons and feeds its horses... They look as though they arranged this together. Senior brother, we should proceed cautiously on this journey. Even if we cannot complete the task, we can return next year. We must not introduce further uncertainties into an already strained situation. Our martial uncle specifically reminded us of this before we left."
Daoist Chongling nodded. How could he be unaware of these underlying matters? But as the one with the highest cultivation among the party, he also looked further ahead. There was the Daoist Sect's prestige to consider. Among cultivation powers, the struggle for Daoist Fortune meant that one side's gain was another's loss. Before certain difficulties, they could not bow their heads. Otherwise, once that precedent was set, endless trouble would follow.
"I understand. Let us see how these creatures that eat raw flesh and drink blood conduct themselves before deciding what to do!"
Whether mountain demons or water monsters, their raw strength was beyond question, but their minds were rather more hasty. Asking them to spend years plotting some great undertaking was asking too much. Most of the time, they simply lacked the patience.
Sure enough, within a quarter of an hour, the mist churned above the Qingtang River. What had been an indistinct haze that hid everything from view was swept clean by a demonic wind. Gongs and drums shook the heavens, and strange cries rang out...
Everyone on the wall looked over. There, packed thickly together, water creatures of every shape and bizarre description appeared upon the river. The weapons in their hands gleamed coldly-sabers, spears, swords, halberds, axes, battle-axes, hooks, and forks. Claws and legs reared high, and bloody mouths gaped like basins...
The Qingtang water creatures clamored together, their voices shaking every direction. Never mind the ordinary townsfolk-even Hou Niao, who stood on the wall believing himself braver than most, felt his heart quake and his hands and feet turn cold!
The Qingtang River also passed through the territory of Fufeng City, but only for a short stretch, where its waters were gentle and shallow, so water creatures seldom appeared there. Since it was also some distance from the city, he had little experience of them. Liupanshui was precisely the opposite: complex currents, rapids, and deep bends made it ideal terrain for water creatures to operate in. That was why these demons had chosen this place to challenge the Anhe Daoist Sect.
The moment the Qingtang water creatures appeared, the people along both banks fled in terror, supporting their elders and carrying their children. Their wails rose to the heavens as they streamed toward the city gates. All the mortal soldiers could do was throw the gates wide, usher people and carts through, and maintain order. No one dared form ranks on the riverbank to resist.
This was already beyond the strength of ordinary mortals. They might have faced a human army from another kingdom, but against these demons, their legs and hands had long since gone weak. They had no will to fight.
Nor could they be blamed entirely.
Among the fleeing crowd, an old woman carrying her granddaughter had fallen behind everyone else, hobbling along Yangzi Bridge.
Her legs were not very nimble, and fear had taken hold of her. Anyone with clear eyes could see that the water demons would not necessarily attack ordinary mortals on such an occasion, and were more likely merely putting on a show of force, but there was no explaining such things to the common people.
Amid the water creatures, a shrimp general leaped onto the bank and made as if to pounce. Frightened into an unsteady step, the old woman stumbled and fell in her panic. Unable to get up for the moment, she could only crawl along the ground, tightly shielding the child. Mingled with her wailing were angry shouts from the humans atop the wall and the unrestrained laughter of the demons on the water.
Egged on by the water demons' clamor, the Green-Headed Shrimp General grew increasingly pleased with himself. He did not attack, merely hopping around the old woman on every side, his long feelers occasionally brushing her body and drawing still more terrified screams.
This could not be tolerated! Daoist Chongling sprang up and leaped from the not particularly high city wall. By some unknown method, he raced forward as swiftly as a thunderclap. In the space of a breath, he was near the old woman. He pointed, and a streak of phosphorescent fire shot out.
The shrimp general clearly had not expected this Daoist to arrive so swiftly or strike so mercilessly. He was merely a pawn sent out by the master of the underwater estate to provoke them, and his most outstanding trait was his lack of brains. Relying on brute strength, he had in fact comprehended only a handful of demonic arts and had little experience. Foolishly, he still swung his iron fork, trying to knock the phosphorescent fire away, unaware that this sort of Daoist art was precisely what one must not meet head-on.
The iron fork struck the phosphorescent fire, but instead of scattering it or knocking it away as he imagined, the fire spread along the fork and reached his body in an instant. The Green-Headed Shrimp General became a giant roasted shrimp at once. Howling, he instinctively flailed his iron fork, sweeping it over the old woman's head several times.
Such phosphorescent fire was specifically suited to dealing with water creatures. Once it touched the body, it would not stop until it burned the heart and ate into the bones. Yet it would not kill quickly, especially when used against the vigorous vitality of the Demon Race.
Chongling changed his Daoist art again. Seeing that the shrimp general had fallen victim to his spell, he cast a Demon-Trapping Bind, trussing him tightly while extinguishing the phosphorescent fire.
He was not an impulsive man and judged the limits very carefully. He had to display humanity's might without truly enraging the river full of water creatures. Otherwise, if he provoked a demonic uprising and the already witless water creatures slaughtered the city, his guilt would be beyond measure.
The Green-Headed Shrimp General slumped to the ground. His life had been saved, but the burning had drained all strength from his body. The other three Daoists, who had followed close behind, pinned him down.
He truly was thickheaded. Even now, he remained arrogant and secure in his backing.
"You there, Daoist! Kill me if you have the guts! What's all this fussing and dithering for?"
He had struck the Daoists in their vital spot. Without the absolute strength to subdue the Qingtang water demons, they dared not take things to an irreversible extreme. Having captured the Green-Headed Shrimp General, they could neither kill him for fear of enraging the water creatures nor release him for fear of losing their edge. That would make their intervention meaningless and merely invite the demons' contempt. For a moment, they did not know what to say.
Hou Niao had followed the Daoists down from the wall. This was none of his business, but with all three Daoists going down, leaving him alone on the battlements hardly seemed right.
Now, seeing the water demons growing agitated and their clamor swelling, he knew that a single mishandled move could turn this into a major incident. Years of dealing with disputes among commoners told him that this was the crucial moment. Unless something was done, the situation would become completely uncontrollable. Yet the three Daoists stood there weighing consequences, unable to decide.
In his urgency, he shouted, "Hear me! Heaven and earth give birth to all things; each has its constant bounds. Not a hair may stray from order; act or withdraw as the seasons command. Thus not only may regret be scarce, but injury too may be avoided. Should any fail to abide by what they were given, each and every one may be struck down.
"You make this uproar and stir up trouble only because you have the great Qingtang River to rely on. Believe it or not, we can report to the Daoist Court, sweep away Lushan's snow, and cut off the river at its source, turning you water turtles into dry-land bastards!"
Whether cutting off the river's source in Lushan was feasible was another matter. But as a threat alone, it struck the Qingtang water creatures right at their seven-inch weak spot. Without water, these water demons were nothing!
If humans disregarded the common people along both banks of the Qingtang and actually did this, or diverted the water elsewhere, it would truly be a catastrophe that drowned all hope.
For a moment, the water demons grew wary, though some with broader experience believed these were merely empty threats. Humans might not truly dare carry them out!
Daoist Chongling breathed a little easier inwardly and was about to speak, seeking a compromise, when the criminal investigator awaiting punishment suddenly drew the saber at his waist. A blade flashed through the air, blue blood spattered, and the shrimp's head hit the ground!
Hou Niao pointed accusingly and shouted, "You will not fight, yet you will not retreat! What do you intend?"
As the verse went:
At Liupanshui's crest, a treasured blade was tried; above Yangzi Bridge, the setting sun hung high. Black robes formed ranks to cow the River Earl; a white rainbow cleft the azure heavens before his seat. A single breath spanned ten thousand miles, urging the traveler on; the green-headed general's whiskers bristled with stray hairs. A flick of the blade, and metal's essence howled forth flame; amid unbridled song, a finger suddenly pointed to Changqiang on high.