Liangzhou Prefecture.
The wind and sand were always fierce.
The flags on the city wall were frayed at the edges, hanging lazily.
This place was not the administrative seat of Longyou Circuit, yet it was several times more important than the seat.
Solely because of the yamen that stood north of the city, never seeing the light of day year-round, with anti-evil wind chimes hanging from its eaves.
Commandery Office, rear hall.The hall was very quiet.
A regal and well tempered looking middle-aged man in a dark robe sat behind a large desk, holding a scroll and reading intently.
A steady sound of footsteps came from outside the door.
A young man in black clothes with red patterns walked in, his figure straight as a spear, and the hilt of the horizontal saber at his waist was wrapped with layers of fine leather rope.
The young man stopped three steps in front of the desk, clasped his fists, and bowed."Great General Wei He."
Wei He's gaze did not leave the scroll, he merely let out a faint "hmm. What is it?"
"Urgent report from Lanzhou."The young man said in a deep voice, "Half a month ago, six villages under Jincheng County, Lanzhou, were completely massacred overnight, with no survivors."
"What was the Demonic Qi inspection like?" Wei He eyes tilted and looked up from his documents.
"Demonic Qi soared to the heavens, lingering for three days. According to reports from surviving soldiers, the Demon's attack involved Sword Qi, which is not the usual method of ordinary Demons. Moreover, the Demon called itself..."
Wei He finally put down the scroll in his hand, looked up, and glanced at Liu Chen.
"Called itself what?"
The young man's expression was a bit strange, "Called itself... Black-Clothed Sword Immortal."
"..." Wei He was silent for a moment, then suddenly smiled
"Sword Immortal? These days, the demons' boasts are getting bigger and bigger."He extended two fingers and lightly tapped on the desk.
"However... for the Demonic Qi to linger for three days... this Demon has already entered the Bone Resonance ."The young man's heart tensed.
Bone Resonance Realm!
Such a great Demon, with its bones resonating and Divine Abilities forming naturally, was no longer something ordinary Imperial Guards could handle.
"General, do you mean..."" The young man trembled slightly.
"Assemble a team. You and Xu Nian will personally lead it to Lanzhou."
"Your subordinate obeys!"
"Oh, right, that prisoner sent from the capital a few days ago, has he passed through the gate?"
Wei He looked out the window, as if remembering something, and casually asked.
The young man was stunned for a moment before realizing who he was asking about.
"You mean... the one Pei Changqing escorted?"
"Yes."
The young man thought for a moment, "By their travel speed, they should have arrived at Guangwu County yesterday.""Guangwu... is not far from Jincheng County."
He paused.
"I hope that kid Pei Changqing has good Luck and doesn't run right into it."
The young man frowned.
Pei Changqing, holding the rank of Squad Leader, had decent skills in the Dusi.
But against a great Demon in the Bone Resonance Realm... it would be like a mantis trying to stop a chariot.
He hesitated for a while, but in the end, he couldn't hold back.
"Great General, your subordinate has something he doesn't understand."
"Speak."
"The Jiang Family case has long been settled, why use people from our Demon Suppression Division to personally escort him?"
The rear hall fell into dead silence once more.
After a long while.
"Why do you think?" Wei He finally turned around, his face devoid of expression.
"...Your subordinate does not know." He bowed his head before raising it to Wei He
"Then don't ask." Wei he waved away the servant before returning his focus back to the mountain of documents before him.
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Late night.
The wind outside the window never stopped.
Jiang Yuechu lay on the bed, eyes open, staring at the ceiling beams.
Her horizontal saber was beside her, though occasionally pressing against the scabbard made it uncomfortable.
But compared to her own safety, this minor discomfort was nothing.Her mind was in a mess, and she just couldn't fall asleep.
After a long time.
She suddenly sat up.
Slap.
A crisp sound.
She slapped herself.
Jiang Yuechu, oh Jiang Yuechu, when did you become so indecisive?
Thinking this and that, will it solve anything?
With a thought, the ancient painted scroll opened in her mind.
[Dao Cultivation: Two hundred years]
Her gaze fell upon the two collected Demon painted scrolls.
Now, holding so much Dao Cultivation, she hadn't immediately thought of how to use it.
Should she continue to infuse the Tiger Mountain God, or try the Green-Faced Gentleman?
The Tiger Mountain God had reached Scarlet Dye; going further, she didn't know what kind of state it would be, or how much more Dao Cultivation it would consume.
If she poured these two hundred years of Dao Cultivation in, and it wasn't enough, getting stuck halfway, wouldn't that be frustrating?
As for that Green-Faced Wolf Demon...
Jiang Yuechu's mind focused on the image of the green-faced, fanged creature.
Both were collected; the Tiger Demon took seventy-five years, while the Wolf Demon only took fifty years.
Clearly, this Wolf Demon's foundation was much weaker than that Tiger Demon's.But being weaker also had its advantages.
This meant that the Dao Cultivation required to upgrade it would also be less.
At that time, she would gain another Divine Ability.Should she pursue refinement or breadth?Forget it.It's better to be cautious.
Jiang Yuechu's mind was made up.
The Dao Cultivation, like a river bursting its banks, poured into the image of the green-faced, fanged creature.
Boom—
Everything around her receded...
[Year one, you were born on Black Wind Mountain, birthed by a Wolf Demon. Your mother was eaten by other Demons the day you opened your eyes.]
[Year five, you Cultivated slower than any of your brothers. They mocked you, bullied you, and even your father, the Demon King, disliked you immensely. You secretly vowed in your heart...]
[Year ten, you accidentally learned that your brothers Cultivated so quickly because they ate humans. Eating humans could accelerate Cultivation. You tried it, and it was indeed true.]
[Year fifteen, you killed more and more people. You began to feel that Demons were born to kill people. Humans are the spirits of all creation, beloved by heaven and earth. Killing them was seizing the Luck of this heaven and earth.]
[Year twenty, you killed your father and became the leader of the Black Wind Mountain Wolf Demons. You named yourself Green-Faced Gentleman.]
[Year thirty-five, you felt you had entered a Bottleneck. You began to search for how to Breakthrough.]
...
Her consciousness withdrew from the endless bloody scene.
Jiang Yuechu suddenly opened her eyes.
Outside the window, it was still the same crescent moon.
The room was so quiet she could hear her own heartbeat.
[Eighty years of Dao Cultivation consumed, Green-Faced Gentleman's progress has reached Scarlet Dye]
On the painted scroll, the green-faced, fanged Wolf Demon's eyes also ignited with a touch of scarlet.
[Successfully dyed Scarlet the Green-Faced Gentleman, obtaining a Demon's gift]
[Green Cliff Returning Shadow (Supreme)]
[Talent: Wolf Travels a Thousand Li (The Green-Faced Gentleman is naturally cunning; its movement technique is like a ghost, and its speed is increased.)]
Jiang Yuechu slowly exhaled a turbid breath.
She raised her hand, fingers splayed in the darkness, then suddenly clenched her fist.At her fingertips, the faint phantom of sharp claws flashed and disappeared.
Her fist technique became increasingly proficient.The new talent also made her feel much lighter.Unfortunately, she did not gain a Divine Ability.
Jiang Yuechu's brow furrowed slightly, then smoothed out.
Oh well.No need to dwell on it here.
Any improvement is a good thing.
Her mind moved again; on the painted scroll, only one hundred and twenty years of Dao Cultivation remained.
This would certainly not be enough for what came next.
Hmm?
Wait.Jiang Yuechu's brows furrowed again.
[Realm: Hearing The String Later Stage]
"What's going on? Could my guess have been wrong?"
She had previously thought that collecting Demons or upgrading Demon painted scrolls would boost her own Realm.
But now, there was no change whatsoever.
She irritably rubbed her head.
"How troublesome... This girl's mind has no useful memories about martial arts, it's all just scholarly nonsense..." Never mind, never mind.Tomorrow, she would ask Chen Qingyuan.
The Flying Eagle Sect was a martial School after all; they should know something about Cultivation.
With that thought, she lay back down, placing the horizontal saber beside her pillow.
Since things were as they were, it was best to sleep first.
The evening breeze gently passed through the window, occasionally stirring the girl's hair and brushing her lips.
Whenever this happened, she would shift to a more comfortable position and continue to sleep.