Demons Appeared in Qingcheng Commandery
Up ahead!
A faint, cold, dangerous smile appeared at the corner of Chu He's mouth.
Then.
He strode into the front hall.
There.
An elderly Heavenly Martial Guard sat in a chair. Seeing Chu He appear, he immediately rose and cupped his hands. "Zhou Tao, deputy commander of the Heavenly Martial Guard in Green Mountain Commandery, pays his respects, Squad Leader."
Deputy commander?
Chu He looked at Zhou Tao and nodded. The Heavenly Martial Guard stationed a company of roughly a hundred men in each commandery, with one commander and two deputy commanders, all first-grade martial artists.
However, their cultivation was only at the beginning of the first grade, and they were too old and weak in combat to deal with anything beyond minor demons.
As for why they were old-obviously, what young person with decent talent would come to muddle along in the Heavenly Martial Guard?
"What is it?"
Chu He walked to the seat of honor and sat down at ease.
"Reporting to you, Squad Leader, demons have suddenly appeared in the east of the commandery city, and there have already been three murders."
"I took men to investigate and found some traces, but during the pursuit, the enemy wounded me, and we lost quite a few men."
"And?"
Chu He sipped his tea and asked in a deep voice, "Why come to me instead of reporting to the Demon Suppression Camp in the city or going to the Six Doors?"
After all.
Since Zhou Tao could briefly engage the enemy and return unscathed, that proved the demon was not particularly strong.
At the very least, it would not exceed the second grade, and might only be at the middle or late stage of the first grade.
Both the commandery's Demon Suppression Camp and the Six Doors had people capable of suppressing a demon of that strength.
"My lord, I went to both."
Bitterness appeared on Zhou Tao's face as he shook his head. "But neither the Demon Suppression Camp nor the Six Doors can spare anyone right now."
"Why is that?"
Chu He asked with some puzzlement.
"To tell you the truth, my lord, remnants of the White Lotus Cult appeared in the commandery city not long ago. They made quite a stir and caused considerable unrest."
"The Demon Suppression Camp and the Six Doors had to send large numbers of experts to suppress them. Many of those experts are still pursuing the remnants."
Zhou Tao quickly explained, "The experts remaining in the city all have assignments of their own and cannot act."
"So, when I heard that you had returned to Green Mountain Commandery, I came specifically to ask for your help."
The White Lotus Cult?
A gleam flashed through Chu He's eyes.
He had just slain a White Lotus Cult holy maiden. Though she had most likely been an impostor, judging by appearances, he had not expected remnants of the White Lotus Cult to appear in Green Mountain Commandery too, and on such a grand scale.
No.
The holy maiden I killed was only at the peak of the first grade, while the White Lotus Cult here forced the Demon Suppression Camp and the Six Doors to mobilize in full. There must be third-grade experts among them.
Perhaps the holy maiden I killed had escaped from Green Mountain Commandery and merely wanted to build up her strength in Moon Ancient Village.
No wonder they were so cautious, resorting to drugs against ordinary first-grade martial artists despite having peak first-grade cultivation.
Chu He immediately grasped the key.
He looked at Zhou Tao and asked, "Have similar remnants of the White Lotus Cult appeared in other commandery cities?"
"That... I do not know." Zhou Tao shook his head.
After all, he was merely a commandery deputy commander of the Heavenly Martial Guard, and the Heavenly Martial Guard was only an organization assisting the Demon Suppression Bureau. Its standing was far below even the Six Doors, so naturally, his sources of information were not particularly good.
"Tonight, I will go with you to inspect the scene." Under Zhou Tao's expectant gaze, Chu He nodded.
"Thank you, my lord."
Zhou Tao immediately cupped his hands in salute. "I will report this matter to the prefectural Demon Suppression Bureau, so you will not be doing this for nothing."
This was a rule of the Demon Suppression Bureau.
Killing demons outside an assigned mission earned only half the merit points, or even less, to prevent Demon Suppression Guards from neglecting missions to slay demons in demon-infested wilderness.
However.
As long as the local Heavenly Martial Guard reported the situation, dealing with the demons there could count as a temporary mission, allowing merit points to be earned normally.
Dusk!
Chu He led Lu Feng and the other four toward a secluded street in the east of the city. As soon as they reached its entrance, Zhou Tao approached with several Heavenly Martial Guards:
"Greetings, my lord."
"Explain the situation."
Chu He asked coldly.
"Yes, my lord."
Zhou Tao nodded and said, "This is the most out-of-the-way street in the city's east. Its residents are all poor people or vagrants."
"At first, the demon only targeted vagrants, so although it had been wreaking havoc for days, no one noticed."
"But the day before yesterday, it killed an ordinary resident, and the body was in a rather gruesome state. The family reported it to the authorities, and only then did we come to investigate."
At this point.
Zhou Tao's pupils quivered. Clearly, the gruesome state he had just mentioned was no simple matter.
Chu He quickly asked, "Is the body still here?"
"Yes, my lord!"
Zhou Tao waved his hand, and several Heavenly Martial Guards immediately carried over a corpse covered with a white cloth.
The white cloth was lifted:
A thin, skeletal corpse lay there, utterly bloodless, its eyes bulging and its body densely covered in tiny black holes. The sight made one's scalp crawl.
Hiss...
Lu Feng and the others sucked in cold breaths.
They all averted their eyes. The corpse's condition was simply too unbearable to look at, making them feel prickly inside.
"My lord, he was already like this when we arrived."
Zhou Tao cupped his hands as he spoke.
He also waved for someone to cover it with the white cloth. Though he dealt with demons year-round, he still did not wish to look at this sight.
However!
Chu He stopped him with a wave.
Under Zhou Tao's shocked gaze, he drew the saber at Zhou Tao's waist and plunged it into the corpse.
Shhk!
It met no resistance.
Chu He moved it from side to side twice. The bones inside were like crumbled tofu, shattering at a touch.
This was not because the Heavenly Martial Guard's saber was sharp, but because the bones had already weathered away.
"All his blood and Qi, his lifespan, even the Qi of his flesh and bones have been devoured. This demon's methods are vicious indeed."
Chu He withdrew the saber and returned it to Zhou Tao.
Zhou Tao: (ﾉಥ益ಥ)
(His inner thoughts: Why did you have to use my saber? With such a disgusting corpse, can I even keep this saber anymore? Are you bullying me just because you outrank me? ╯▂╰)
Chu He: "Decent saber!"
Zhou Tao: "As long as it serves you well, my lord."
"That demon has killed quite a few people in total."
"Since the earlier victims were all vagrants, we cannot get an exact count, but there should be no fewer than fifty."
"No fewer than fifty?" Chu He frowned. "Were all the bodies like his, their vital essence devoured?"
"Yes, without exception."
Zhou Tao nodded and asked in puzzlement, "My lord, is something wrong?"
Chu He's expression turned cold. "More than wrong. If it truly devoured over fifty people, its strength would be at least second grade."
"How could you possibly pursue it and return alive? Either there is more than one demon, or someone is behind it."
Chu He instantly analyzed the connections.
At the same time!
He looked up at the night sky and suddenly asked, "Is the slum on the north side of Green Mountain Commandery still there?"
"Yes!"
"This is bad. Follow me." Chu He's expression changed, and he immediately shot toward the north side of the city.
Behind him!
Lu Feng and the other four, along with Zhou Tao and the Heavenly Martial Guards, hurried after him.