The Wolf Demons' Provocation

Watching the two leave, Lu Feng shook his head helplessly, picked up his chopsticks again, and continued eating.

Early the next morning, Lu Feng had just finished getting ready and was about to leave for the Demon-Slaying Hall when someone knocked at the courtyard gate.

He opened the gate and saw that the person standing outside was none other than Chen Hu.

Surprised, Lu Feng asked, "Brother Chen, what brings you here so early?"

Chen Hu's face was somewhat stiff. Avoiding Lu Feng's eyes, he pulled a yellowed cultivation manual from his robes and shoved it forcefully into Lu Feng's hands. His voice awkward, he said:

"Th-this is a cultivation art the records officer rewarded me with. It's called Iron Cloth Shirt."

"Lu Feng, I'm giving you this manual, but I'm not asking you for anything. I just want you to... stay away from my sister from now on!"

Lu Feng looked down at the manual in his hands. Three large characters on the cover read "Iron Cloth Shirt."

"Iron Cloth Shirt!" Holding the manual, Lu Feng raised his eyes to Chen Hu.

"If you give this to me, won't the records officer blame you?"

Chen Hu still looked awkward as he said stiffly, "Any constable is qualified to cultivate it! Before, you were Lin Yuan's man, so the records officer didn't teach it to you."

"In that case, I'll accept it gladly!" A smile appeared on Lu Feng's face, and he tucked the manual into his robes.

Changing the subject, he looked at Chen Hu's bushy beard and asked with feigned curiosity, "Brother Chen, is Miss Chen Lan really your own sister?"

"What do you mean by that?" Chen Hu bristled at once, demanding an answer with a wary look.

"No particular meaning." Lu Feng stifled a laugh. "I just thought the two of you look far too different."

One had a face full of bushy whiskers and looked as fierce as a demon; the other was petite and cute, gentle and charming. No one who saw them would have guessed they were brother and sister.

"Hmph! Cut the nonsense!" Chen Hu's cheeks reddened, and his embarrassment turned to anger. "I've repaid you for helping my sister! Remember, you're not to have anything more to do with her!"

With that, he turned and strode away, not even daring to look back.

As soon as Chen Hu left, Lu Feng turned and went back inside, eager to open the Iron Cloth Shirt manual.

After he read it just once, the art automatically appeared on the system panel.

System, spend Demon Points to raise Iron Cloth Shirt to the consummate level! Lu Feng said inwardly.

[Ding! Demon Points spent: 500. Iron Cloth Shirt raised to the consummate level;]

In an instant, a vast amount of experience cultivating Iron Cloth Shirt flooded his mind. It was as though he had practiced the art painstakingly for decades and knew every trick by heart.

[Cultivation art: Iron Cloth Shirt (consummate);]

Lu Feng could clearly feel that the skin all over his body had become incomparably tough, as though it were covered by a thick layer of iron armor.

He slowly drew his saber and lightly slashed his own arm. It left only a faint white mark, without even breaking the skin.

Damn! My body is as tough as a first-tier demonic beast's! Lu Feng was delighted and thoroughly satisfied.

He opened the system panel again and swept his gaze over its various entries:

[Host: Lu Feng]

[Cultivation: Ming Jin Perfection;]

[Cultivation arts: Gale Saber Art (consummate), Carefree Steps (consummate), Gate-Severing Saber Art (consummate), Grasping Hand (consummate), Iron Cloth Shirt (consummate);]

[Demon Points: 400;]

Not only had the art reached perfection, but his cultivation had also broken through to Ming Jin Perfection!

Lu Feng considered his next steps: he would look for more high-level cultivation arts while killing demonic beasts to earn Demon Points, and wait for an opportunity with the Demon-Slaying Bureau!

But no sooner had he finished the thought than Ergou's urgent cries came from outside the courtyard gate, thick with panic.

"Boss! Boss! Something terrible's happened!"

Lu Feng immediately rose and opened the gate to find Ergou deathly pale.

"Ergou, why are you so frantic? What happened?" Lu Feng's voice grew grave.

Ergou swallowed and stammered, "Q-Qian San is dead! K-killed by a demonic beast, and it threw his head outside the county yamen!"

"V-Vice Magistrate Lin told me to fetch you right away!"

"What?"

At those words, Lu Feng's face instantly darkened, and a glimmer of killing intent flashed in his eyes.

Although Qian San had been the original owner's subordinate and was a man of poor character, his gruesome death was clearly a deliberate provocation by the wolf demons!

Without further delay, he used all his strength and raced toward the county yamen like an arrow.

At that moment, the atmosphere in the county yamen's main hall was as tense as it could be.

Lin Yuan, Records Officer An, Chen Hu, and five of Chen Hu's men were all present. Only Lin Shan was missing.

On the table in the middle of the hall lay a head that had been bitten beyond recognition. Although it was badly mangled, Lu Feng recognized it at a glance as Qian San's.

Wolf fang marks were plain to see on the head. Clearly, the wolf demons had done it deliberately to provoke them!

"Wolf demons!"

Lu Feng clenched his fists, his nails digging deep into his palms, and spoke in a voice as cold as ice.

"I'll slaughter every last one of you!"

Seeing everyone's anger, Lin Yuan slowly spoke, his voice tinged with gravity. "Qian San wasn't the only one killed this time."

"More than a dozen scions of the city's prominent families have also gone missing. I'm afraid... they too have fallen victim to the wolf demons."

"What?!"

At this, the crowd's anger burned even hotter. Scions of prominent families were different from ordinary commoners. If anything happened to them, all of Lin'an County would fall into chaos!

Lin Yuan added fuel to the fire at just the right moment, saying helplessly, "As you know, these families wield great power. If anything happens to their children, none of us can bear the consequences."

"The wolf demons have sent word, Lu Feng. They want you to go to North Mountain in person and apologize to them."

"Otherwise, the next time people go missing and get killed, there'll be more than just these!"

With that, he looked at Lu Feng and spoke with a hint of command. "Lu Feng, go to North Mountain and talk things over with the wolf demons. Don't provoke them any further."

Lu Feng raised his eyes and gave Lin Yuan a long look. For some reason, it made Lin Yuan's heart tremble, and he instinctively looked away.

"Apologize and beg for peace? I'll deal with these wolf demons myself!"

With that, he turned and strode toward the door, his bearing upright and imposing.

"Wait!"

Chen Hu suddenly spoke up, then hurried after Lu Feng. "I'm going with you!"

"Boss, we're going too!" Chen Hu's five men also stepped forward one after another, their eyes resolute.

"Even if we die, we'll fight those wolf demons and drag some of them down with us!"

After they left, Records Officer An looked at Lin Yuan's face, shaking all over with anger, and berated him sharply. "Lin Yuan! You're clearly sending Lu Feng and the others to their deaths!"

Lin Yuan sighed with feigned helplessness. "Records Officer An, I had no choice."

"You know how formidable those wolf demons are. There are more than a dozen first-tier wolf demons, led by a second-tier one!"

"I did this to preserve the lives of most of the people in the city. I truly had no other choice!"

He was secretly pleased with himself. His cultivation was at Late Ming Jin, while An Shi's was at Ming Jin Perfection. Though his official rank was higher than Records Officer An's, he could not order him around at all.

If Lu Feng, Chen Hu, and the others all died at the wolf demons' hands, then from now on, he would have the final say in all of Lin'an County!