Chapter 431 - 226: The Inhuman Path

Chapter 431: Chapter 226: The Inhuman Path

The world’s myriad professions are roughly divided into the Upper, Middle, and Lower Nine Professions, a system that reflects society’s prejudices and preferences toward certain occupations.

Under the influence of the Darkness, these professions have now given birth to Path Mystic Skills. However, this so-called "upper, middle, and lower" distinction does not signify a Path’s strength or peculiarity.

Many professions that involve working with the dead are feared and are thus mostly classified among the Middle Nine Professions.

As for the Lower Nine Professions, they mostly consist of shady lines of work that cannot see the light of day. The most notorious among them are the so-called "four vices": kidnapping, swindling, thievery, and prostitution.

Swindlers are known colloquially as "Thousand Gate Generals." Zheng Xiu had recently encountered—and killed—quite a few of them. 𝘧𝓇ℯℴ𝓂

As for the "Thief Sect," it sounds grand, but in reality, their business is just as furtive and illicit.

The Path related to prostitution is known as "Orchid." Zheng Xiu’s four maids—Zizi, Bobo, Pingping, and Lily—were once the "Four Golden Flowers" of Heaven on Earth. Because they performed but refused to sell their bodies, they inadvertently entered a branch of the "Orchid" Path: the side road of the "Geisha."

Of these vices—kidnapping, swindling, thievery, and prostitution—the final and most despised is... kidnapping.

—The Time Demon.

"Time Demon?"

Zheng Xiu mulled it over for a moment and recalled this rather obscure profession.

To put it nicely, they’re called "Time Demons." To put it bluntly, they’re "Kidnapping Grannies."

The origin of this name is actually rather interesting. In ancient times, Kidnapping Grannies were secretive and dared not draw attention to themselves. When they struck, they were rarely discovered. Years after a child was taken, once they had grown up, people would say their "time had been stolen." To keep village children from wandering off, adults would scare them with stories: "Don’t leave the village at night! If a Time Demon snatches you, you’ll grow old in the blink of an eye."

The exact origin of the tale is lost to time, but as the story spread, "Kidnapping Granny" gradually became "Time Demon."

Much like the predatory Bi Shui of Ye Weiyang, the "Time Demon" Path is a rare profession in this age of peace and prosperity; practically no one follows it anymore. After all, it isn’t profitable, and it’s an easy way to lose your head.

Zheng Xiu never imagined the Great Emperor would so casually send a Mystic his way. He found himself staring, transfixed, at Yin Qingqing’s exposed back. Just then, Feng Bei heard a familiar melody and happily followed the sound. Arriving in the main hall, she was greeted by the sight of Zheng Xiu staring, motionless, at the woman’s waist and the top of her hips.

The hall was filled with women—some playing music, one even removing her bodice. It was a scene that could easily lead one’s imagination astray. But Feng Bei knew Zheng Xiu wasn’t the type to indulge in debauchery, so she curiously tiptoed up behind him.

"Jiyou?"

Only when Feng Bei let out a questioning sound from behind did Zheng Xiu notice her presence. He shot a harsh glare at Zizi, who was snickering on the sidelines, clearly enjoying the drama. His gaze screamed, ’I’ll deal with you later!’ Then, he cleared his throat twice, his expression becoming as placid and virtuous as a Buddha’s, and said softly, "Put your clothes on."

Yin Qingqing obediently retied the small red strings of her bodice and turned around. Jing Xuemei brought over a cloak and draped it over Yin Qingqing’s shoulders, shooting Zizi a warning glance. "Stop it."

Feng Bei counted on her fingers, then whispered to Zheng Xiu, "That’s very close to Ding Wei."

It wasn’t the fact that Yin Qingqing was a Mystic that surprised and confused her.

She had seen plenty of Mystics recently.

The Monk and Zheng Xiu, for example.

What puzzled her was how close Yin Qingqing’s "number" was to her own in the sequence.

"Time Demon," Zheng Xiu said. Having spent many years in Ye Weiyang, Feng Bei’s expression immediately shifted to one of sudden understanding. She had obviously heard of this rarely-traveled Path.

Now, Zheng Xiu was finally getting interested in Yin Qingqing.

This wasn’t a romantic interest, of course, but an interest in the "Time Demon" Path itself.

This was a novel "Path" he had never encountered before, and Zheng Xiu was quite curious about Yin Qingqing’s Miracle Technique.

’She said she’s thirty-five but looks to be in her early twenties... Can a Time Demon really live up to its name and steal a person’s time?’

Zheng Xiu immediately expressed his desire to witness Yin Qingqing’s Miracle Technique. Hearing this, Yin Qingqing froze, lowering her head in silence. Zheng Xiu merely smiled and watched her, saying nothing. Finally, with a soft sigh, Yin Qingqing bowed her head and gestured to Zizi’s zither. "Master, please permit this humble servant to borrow her zither."

"Call me ’Big Sister’," Zizi said defiantly, puffing out her less-than-ample chest. "There’s a pecking order to things. First come, first served. Whoever gets here first is the older sister."

Zheng Xiu gave his silent consent.

Yin Qingqing’s expression remained placid, showing no displeasure at Zizi’s deliberate needling. She took a step back and gave a slight bow. "Sister Zizi, please allow me the use of your zither."

Zizi magnanimously agreed.

Yin Qingqing then reached out and rubbed her fair arm, scraping off a thin, fingernail-sized piece of her own skin. Like a wriggling insect, the scrap of skin began to spin in her palm, then abruptly expanded.

"Go."

Yin Qingqing took a step forward. To everyone’s astonishment, the "skin" spinning in her palm instantly transformed into a "curtain" of faint gray mist. It draped over the arm-length zither, enveloping it in the blink of an eye.

The bundle then began to shrink at an eerily visible rate, until it was no larger than a fingernail. Yin Qingqing closed her hand over it and opened it again. Zizi’s zither had vanished from her palm.

’The entire process, from her scraping off the skin to the zither’s disappearance, took only a few breaths.’ Zheng Xiu suspected that if Yin Qingqing hadn’t slowed down for the sake of the "demonstration," she could have "kidnapped" the zither even faster.

’Can it be used on a person?’

Zheng Xiu’s breath caught in his throat. He knew perfectly well why Yin Qingqing had hesitated: a Miracle Technique was not something to be revealed lightly. Her decision to finally display her skill meant she had resigned herself to her fate and wanted to put him at ease.