Chapter 172 - 106: Settling in Qingming Mountain

Chapter 172: Chapter 106: Settling in Qingming Mountain

Wang Hong offered a few words of comfort.

Obviously, the group of Captains had been attacked by a demon, and an arrogant one at that.

All the Captains were dead.

Yet it had intentionally spared their three lives, covering them with skeletal remains. This was a clear provocation against the Demon-slaying Bureau, sending them back as messengers.

But for some reason, though Wang Hong was terrified, he wasn’t particularly angry.

He even felt Gong Yue and the others had gotten what they deserved.

"This is the demon making a statement... Killing to establish its might..." Chang Yi drank from the spring, finally regaining a bit of strength as he scanned his surroundings.

Apparently, he had paid attention during his studies at the Demon-slaying Bureau, as he understood the situation at a glance.

"What the hell has this got to do with you? Still trying to show off at a time like this."

With no Captain to control the Demon-Binding Rope, Wang Hong struggled with the control Formula, messing up the hand seals four or five times before he finally managed to untie Blackhead.

"Hurry, hurry, get me back to Black Water City. We can be rich playboys in the city. Who wants to throw their life away out here?"

"Hah!"

Chang Yi was also relieved to be alive.

Thankfully, Gong Yue’s kick hadn’t been meant to kill him. Even more fortunately, the man had ended up dying at the hands of a demon.

He stumbled to his feet, leaning against a large nearby tree to steady his breathing.

Just then, he suddenly felt a hard, gourd-shaped object in his robes.

He glanced down out of the corner of his eye, and his entire body went taut.

’A Qi-Introducing Gourd?’

Chang Yi swallowed hard, forcing himself to remain calm. Not even Wang Hong, who was standing nearby, noticed anything was amiss.

’Something’s not right! This wasn’t just good luck!’

’That demon killed the Captains, but intentionally left this item on me.’

He stealthily glanced around, his heart beginning to pound.

’Auntie... It must be Auntie. She’s still alive.’

’She’s really here in Demon Mountain!’

’But with Auntie’s level of cultivation, there’s no way she could have defeated these Captains.’

Chang Yi again felt the gourd in his robes.

This familiar act of someone else doing the work for his benefit suddenly brought a fair, handsome face to mind.

’It was Brother Lin.’

’No wonder he completely ignored me at the inn yesterday. It was to avoid arousing suspicion.’

’Auntie has already made contact with Brother Lin.’

Chang Yi’s mind raced as he pieced together the scattered fragments of information.

’So, Brother Lin wants me to bring this Qi-Introducing Bottle back to the Demon-slaying Bureau?’

"Look! The demon left a letter here!"

Someone suddenly walked up to a tree and took down a blood-stained envelope.

The new recruits, finally having an excuse to flee, shouted, "Let’s fall back! Take this letter with us."

"We can’t go!"

Chang Yi suddenly threw out an arm, staggering to his feet. "A demon that arrogant is bound to be careless. It might have left some tracks behind."

He had a point, but in return, everyone just stared at him like he was an idiot.

Gong Yue was about to use him as demon bait, and yet here he was, still thinking about serving the Demon-slaying Bureau.

’He’s gone crazy chasing merit!’

"Are you nuts? You don’t come from some poor family. You don’t have to hang all your hopes on this one path," Wang Hong spat, resisting the urge to kick him.

"Hmph."

Chang Yi ignored their stares, intentionally cultivating the image of someone willing to risk his life for merit.

He formed the hand seals for the Qi Seeking Formulas taught by the Demon-slaying Bureau, carefully following every detail his instructors had passed down, and slowly began to investigate the nearby ridge.

"Let’s go, ignore the lunatic."

Two of the other new recruits, who had also narrowly escaped with their lives, had wet their pants in fear.

Though they were completely unscathed, their legs had turned to jelly, and they were begging the others to carry them to safety.

Gritting their teeth, the group began their retreat out of Demon Mountain.

Just then, they saw Chang Yi rummaging in the grass for a moment. He then shot to his feet, his face ecstatic, and raised his arm high toward them.

"I’m going to be promoted to Captain!" he roared in a low, excited voice.

In Blackhead’s palm, a Jade Gourd glowed brilliantly.

Golden patterns flowed across its surface, a clear sign that it was suffused with Demon Qi!