Jiang Yuechu stopped.
She was not angered by such impoliteness.
With demons lurking all around, such strict defense was only proper.
Her mind sank into her Spatial Pouch for a moment.
After fumbling for a bit.
She pulled out a Waist Token that hadn't been used in a long time.
Whoosh—
The Waist Token transformed into a streak of black light, shooting straight towards the city tower.
The Captain, quick-eyed and quick-handed, snatched it.
He looked closely.
"Hiss—"
The Captain gasped.
A Silver-Robed Inspector?!
He quickly looked up, and when he saw the young girl below the city, the vigilance in his eyes had turned into ecstasy.
Could it be... Luling finally has the spare capacity to deal with the demon plague here?
"Quick! Open the city gate!"
The Captain roared, stumbling and scrambling down the city tower.
Rumble—
The heavy city gate slowly opened.
The Captain, holding the Waist Token with both hands, trotted all the way to Jiang Yuechu.
"This subordinate was blind and did not know that Inspector Envoy adult had arrived!"
Jiang Yuechu took the Waist Token and casually hung it back on her waist.
"Lead the way to the Dusi Yamen."
The Captain felt as if he had been granted a great pardon and quickly stood up.
"Yes! Yes! This way, adult!"
Along the way.
Jiang Yuechu's gaze swept across the street.
Although it was daytime, there were few pedestrians on the long street, and every household had its doors and windows tightly shut.
Occasionally, a few daring commoners would hurry along, looking pale and famished.
Not long after.
The two arrived before a solemn Yamen.
At this moment.
Several figures were already waiting outside the Yamen.
It was clear that the city guards had been quick on their feet and had returned to report ahead of time.
The person leading them.
Wore tattered black armor, with disheveled hair and beard, and several unhealed bloodstains on his face.
It was none other than the Demon Quelling General guarding Hengyang Prefecture, Iron Bull Cheng.
Behind him were several Deputy Generals and Captains, all bearing wounds.
Everyone craned their necks, looking towards the street corner.
When they saw the Captain leading a black-clothed girl.
Iron Bull Cheng's large, brass-bell-like eyes suddenly narrowed.
This is that Silver-Robed Inspector?
She's too young, isn't she?
She looked no older than sixteen, with a slender figure. Although she was extremely beautiful, with such delicate arms and legs... But soon.
Iron Bull Cheng seemed to have realized something, and his body suddenly trembled.
At this age.
And a woman.
Able to wear a Silver Robe Inspector's Waist Token.
Looking across the entire Great Tang, who else could it be besides that legendary figure whose reputation had recently soared?
Iron Bull Cheng took three steps as two, striding forward to greet her.
Still three to five steps away.
He disregarded the heavy armor on his body and knelt with a thud, like a mountain of gold and a pillar of jade collapsing.
"Is it..."
"Grand Princess Zhaoyue Your Highness?!"
As soon as these words were spoken.
The expressions of the several generals behind him, who had initially been somewhat puzzled, all changed drastically.
Grand Princess?!
How could anyone dare to be negligent now? They all knelt down in unison.
"Greetings, Your Highness—!!!"
Jiang Yuechu stopped.
Her gaze fell on Iron Bull Cheng, who was kneeling at the very front.
She nodded slightly.
"It is this princess."
Upon confirmation.
A look of ecstasy instantly bloomed on Iron Bull Cheng's dark face, which was full of coarse flesh.
Holy crap!
This was a fierce individual who, in the Ink Dot Realm, had reversed and slain a Seed Lotus cultivator!
Recently, he had even heard that she had already stepped into the Seed Lotus!
With her here, wouldn't a mere demon king be easily captured?!
If Iron Bull Cheng hadn't been mindful of the propriety between men and women, he might have pounced forward to hug her leg.
"Your Highness's Divine Might is unparalleled, and your righteousness reaches the heavens!"
"Traveling thousands of miles, delving into dangerous territory... I, Old Cheng, am a crude Man and don't know how to speak well..."
Jiang Yuechu's mouth twitched slightly.
"Alright... get up and speak."
...Inside the Dusi Yamen.
Iron Bull Cheng led Jiang Yuechu across the threshold.
This rough and bold Man seemed to have just realized something, and he slapped his forehead.
Oh no!
This was Grand Princess Your Highness!
Ordinarily, he hung out with those crude fellows, drinking large bowls of tea and gnawing on hard flatbreads.
But with such a noble golden branch and jade leaf here, how could he be so negligent?
"Someone! Someone!"
Iron Bull Cheng bellowed with his raspy voice.
"Go! Get that jar of pre-Qingming Dragon Well tea I hid under my bed!"
"And! Go to Deyue Tower and buy some exquisite pastries..."
Before he finished speaking.
His voice abruptly stopped.
In Hengyang City now, let alone pastry shops.
Even the vendors selling flatbreads had closed their doors.
Iron Bull Cheng awkwardly rubbed his hands: "Your Highness... times are tough in the city now, and there's really nothing good to entertain you with. Please don't take offense, Your Highness."
Jiang Yuechu waved her hand: "This princess came here to slay demons, not to sightsee."
"What is the current situation within Hengyang's borders?"
When the serious matter was brought up.
The awkwardness on Iron Bull Cheng's face instantly vanished.
"Alas..."
He sighed: "Your Highness does not know, ever since the Seal of Luling's Old Demon Saint loosened, the Jiangnan West Circuit region has been plagued by rampant demons. Various great demons have emerged, all trying to force Luling to divide its forces!"
"If Luling does not move, they will slaughter indiscriminately in these prefectures and counties, until our hearts ache, until we are forced to save them!"
"If Luling moves..."
Jiang Yuechu nodded, then suddenly thought of something: "I heard that the Commander-in-Chief is stationed in Luling and needs to constantly suppress the loosened Seal, making it difficult for him to create a Clone. This is understandable."
"But what about those several Mountain Gazing Realm mighty figures?"
Jiang Yuechu frowned slightly, a hint of confusion flashing in her eyes.
"With the strength of the Mountain Gazing Realm, if they were willing to clear out these peripheral demon plagues."
"Even if it's a thousand-mile territory."
"It would only take three to five days to completely slaughter these insignificant demons."
"Why..."
"Are they also holding their forces back?"
Why let the common people of the entire city suffer such heavy casualties?
Hearing this.
The expression on Iron Bull Cheng's face suddenly became strange.
"Your Highness... you still don't know?"
Jiang Yuechu raised an eyebrow.
Earlier in the military tent, she had only been focused on debating with Lü Qinghou about staying or leaving, or rushing to find traces of demons.
She had indeed not inquired about the hidden secrets within.
"Know what?"
Iron Bull Cheng sighed, waving away the personal guards attending to them.
Once the door was tightly shut.
He then gave a bitter smile and slowly began to speak.
"Your Highness only knows that the Old Demon Saint has been sealed for many years."
"But you don't know that the reason the Old Demon Saint could be called a Demon Saint, apart from his terrifying cultivation that had long reached the Burning Lamp Realm."
"He also had loyal followers from various paths under his command."
Speaking of this, a hint of apprehension flashed in Iron Bull Cheng's eyes.
"When the Old Demon Saint was sealed, most of his subordinates died."
"But a centipede dies but never falls. It still stirs."
"After all... there were still some who slipped through the net, taking their remaining forces and lurking in those desolate mountains and treacherous waters."
Jiang Yuechu's eyes narrowed slightly.
"You mean..."
"Precisely."
Iron Bull Cheng nodded, his voice growing heavier.
"Back then, this Old Demon Saint had eighteen Demon Venerables of the Mountain Gazing Realm under his command, each one a notorious figure."
"Six hundred years ago, although the imperial court won, it only executed ten of them."
"The remaining eight all fled into the deep mountains with injuries, lying dormant until now."