The further they traveled upstream, the more pungent the stench from the river became.
The vegetation on both banks had long since withered, its bare branches swaying in the wind.Not even a single insect or ant could be seen on the riverbank.
Tiger Zhao finally couldn't hold back anymore, shouting, "Damn it, this godforsaken place doesn't even have a single living thing!"
"Shut up."Liu Chen, at the head of the group, barked a low command.Tiger Zhao sullenly shut his mouth, though the irritation on his face only grew more intense.
Old Wang reined in his horse, leaned closer to Liu Chen, and lowered his voice, "Boss, something's not right."
"What do you mean?"
"The people from the Yellow Character Battalion are best at leaving markers, but we haven't found a single trace along the way." Liu Chen's expression darkened.
That was true.The Demon Suppression Division had its own internal communication codes.
If the people from the Yellow Character Battalion had investigated this area, they definitely would have left clues.Yet along this entire path, there was nothing.
Could it be... that the old Man was lying?
The group continued forward for about an hour, and the river channel ahead gradually narrowed.After traveling a few more miles, their eyes suddenly lit up.
The foul, pungent odor abruptly stopped here.
Not far ahead was a cliff, from which clear spring Water bubbled out of crevices, gathering into a clear pool, and further down flowed the foul-smelling Black River.
The Water at the source was clean.
"..." The group looked at each other, all seeing the shock and suspicion in each other's eyes.
The source was fine.
Then where did all the filth in the river come from?
"Split up and search!" Liu Chen dismounted and took the lead, walking toward the cliff.The others also dismounted and began to search the vicinity carefully.
After the time it takes to burn an incense stick, the group gathered again, all shaking their heads.
"Boss, there's nothing."
"Same here, I didn't see a single thing." Liu Chen's brows furrowed into a knot.
"Over there." A cold, clear voice suddenly rang out.Everyone looked toward the sound, only to see Jiang Yuechu standing in front of a withered forest not far away, pointing deep into the woods.
Liu Chen's heart stirred, and he immediately led his men to follow.Passing through the withered forest, a small temple appeared before them.
The temple was not large, and one could even say it was somewhat crude.Yet the open ground in front of the temple had been swept spotlessly clean; not even a fallen leaf could be seen.
Liu Chen took the lead and pushed open the partially ajar wooden door.With a creak.Inside, it was equally clean. Only the offering table was completely empty, with no sign of any incense or offerings.
In the shrine directly facing the door, the statue had been smashed to pieces, leaving only a bare base.
"Be careful." Liu Chen drew his horizontal blade halfway, his gaze scanning the room vigilantly.The group filed in, scattering to search the small temple carefully.But after searching for a long time, they found nothing.
"Boss, there's nothing. I even checked every mouse hole; it's extremely clean." Liu Chen's brows furrowed even tighter. Being so clean, someone must be cleaning it regularly. But why were there no incense or offerings, and why was the statue smashed?
Just then.
A thin, small figure appeared at the temple entrance.It was a young girl, looking to be only seven or eight years old, wearing ragged hemp clothing, her face streaked with dirt and ash.
The girl seemed not to have expected anyone to be in the temple; her footsteps faltered, and she froze in place.She was still holding a broken bowl, which contained half a bowl of Water.
Everyone's gaze met hers.The next instant, all the color drained from the girl's face; as if she had seen a ghost, she dropped the broken bowl and turned to run.
~Crash~
The bowl hit the ground and shattered into several pieces.
"Don't run!" The others hadn't even reacted yet.Tiger Zhao didn't even think; he took off in pursuit.
"You little brat, what are you running for! Stop right there!" How could a malnourished child outrun a skilled operative of the Demon Suppression Division?
It took only a moment. Tiger Zhao returned, with the desperately struggling girl tucked under his arm."This girl actually has quite a bit of strength."
"Ouch, she's even biting me, damn it." He walked to the front of the temple and casually threw the girl onto the ground, while he held his arm, grimacing as he inspected the bite marks.The girl hit the ground, let out a muffled grunt of pain, curled into a ball, and shivered all over.
"Tiger Zhao!" Liu Chen glared at him.He stepped forward quickly, crouched down in front of the girl, and softened his voice.
"Don't be afraid, we aren't bad people." The girl raised her head, her large eyes filled with terror, biting her lips tightly to keep from crying out. Liu Chen sighed, took a piece of dried meat from his pocket, and handed it to her.
The girl looked at the piece of dried meat and swallowed, but she didn't reach out to take it. "We are from the Demon Suppression Division.We came here to investigate why the Black River has become like this. Do you know anything?" The girl's body suddenly stiffened.
Everyone looked at each other, understanding in their hearts.This child clearly knew something.
Liu Chen sighed, feeling a headache coming on.He scanned his surroundings and his eyes suddenly lit up when he saw Jiang Yuechu standing to the side.
He walked quickly to Jiang Yuechu's side, lowered his voice, and wore a somewhat awkward expression.
"Miss... Miss Jiang, look... how about, you go ask?"Jiang Yuechu raised an eyebrow, her expression somewhat strange.
She had just joined the division and this was her first mission; there was no reason for her to be the one doing the questioning. Seeing her confusion, Liu Chen blushed and hurriedly explained.
"The few of us... are all rough men, spending our days fighting and killing. With the stench on us, let alone children, even mice would have to detour when they see us." Jiang Yuechu's gaze swept over the faces of those rough men one by one.
Each of them was either fierce-looking or had a cold, rigid expression, and the horizontal blades at their waists constantly radiated an aura of ferocity.
In terms of appearance, they certainly didn't inspire as much goodwill as she did but Jiang Yuechu felt an even worse headache.
In this life, she was indeed a woman, but deep down, she was still the Man who had lived for over twenty years in her past life.If asked to fight monsters with a blade, she wouldn't even blink.But to ask her to coax a terrified little girl...
How would she know how to coax her?
Looking at the girl curled on the ground, and then at the few rough men beside her with their expectant faces, she only felt a surge of irritation.But things had reached this point, and they couldn't just stay in a deadlock.
Fine.She suppressed the weird feeling in her heart, walked to the girl's side, and slowly crouched down, trying hard to make her voice sound softer, even attempting to twitch her mouth corners to squeeze out a smile she considered friendly."Don't be afraid, we won't hurt you."
"What is your name?" It was unknown whether it was because this face was indeed somewhat attractive, or if being a woman made the other party less guarded.
The girl really seemed less afraid; she secretly raised her eyes and cautiously sized up Jiang Yuechu.
"My name is... Water."
"Water..." Jiang Yuechu repeated it, trying to reach out to pat the girl's head, but halfway through, she felt awkward and retracted her hand.
"Water, don't be afraid, we won't hurt you."
"Are you... also from the Demon Suppression Division?"Water asked timidly.She wondered to herself, how could such a pretty older sister also be from the Demon Suppression Division?
Weren't the people from the Demon Suppression Division all supposed to look like those fierce, terrifying men nearby?