Chapter 146: Food Delivered to an Open Mouth

Watching the woman's retreating figure.

Shen Yi shook his head; he had more or less guessed the young woman's identity.

Being able to see through his Breath-Concealment Art at a single glance proved her strength, and the fact that Xiao Qiangwei trusted her so completely revealed her identity.

Anyone who could satisfy both conditions at once was either one of the great Demon-Suppressing Generals, or a Golden-Bell Demon Hunter.

Shen Yi stepped out of the ruined temple.

This kind of joyful bargain-hunting opportunity—he hadn't come across one in a long while, not since leaving Qingfeng Mountain.

The two of them, one ahead and one behind.

Jiang Qiulan glanced back slightly, seemingly not having expected Shen Yi to actually follow.

When she had passed through Outside Qingzhou, besides exchanging a few words with Aunt Aqian, she had also casually flipped through the case files the Captains had turned in regarding Bai Yun County—including the matter of slaying the Black Ape and the county government office's Liu Dianli—and finally read through Lin Baiwei's letter.

Therefore, the instant she saw that familiar ink-black blade.

She had already known the young man's identity and name.

"……"

Jiang Qiulan gave a slight nod of her chin, then withdrew her gaze and walked unhurriedly toward the back mountain.

She had said what needed saying; she had no habit of interfering with others' choices.

Shen Yi did not let his guard down just because a master was at his side. The woman had not restrained her aura, and he could very easily sense that sharp, uncomfortable edge of killing intent radiating from her.

To ambush a powerhouse like this, demons and monsters weren't fools—they would certainly have many contingencies prepared.

Bargain-hunting was bargain-hunting, but he shouldn't end up bargaining himself in.

The only thing that puzzled Shen Yi was—even he had a movement art like the Carefree Wind-Riding Art, so with a woman of such high cultivation, why wasn't she using any lightness skill at all? Was she planning to walk those dozens of li step by step?

Just then, a sharp whistle suddenly rang in his ears.

In an instant, a black shadow hurtled in from afar and crashed to the ground right in front of Shen Yi.

A whimpering wail rang in his ears. He lowered his gaze and saw, right there at his feet, a tiger over a zhang long.

At this moment a transparent longsword, seemingly congealed from glacial ice, was plunged into the tiger's belly; even its blood had frozen, its entire body was covered in frost, and its eyes were filled with terror.

It looked as if it wanted to beg for mercy and also wanted to flee, but beneath that sword its four limbs struggled weakly, and even its sharp claws were trembling.

It seemed unable to fathom how, just a moment ago, it had been hiding far away, and then in the blink of an eye had been pierced through and delivered here.

"This one… Lord Jiang… has nothing to do with me! Nothing to do with me! It was all Bai Lu's scheme!!"

Jiang Qiulan, as if she hadn't heard, glanced at Shen Yi and said softly, "I'm not a demon hunter, no need for formalities."

"……"

Lord Jiang?

Shen Yi felt the thick demonic qi emanating from the monster beneath his feet. Though his expression remained unchanged, his heart stirred.

If he wasn't mistaken, this tiger was most likely the target of his trip—he just hadn't expected their meeting to take this form.

He understood what the woman meant.

Without the slightest hesitation, he swung his blade and lopped off the Mountain Lord's head; a wisp of heart-blood drilled into the silver bell, and then he gutted the corpse to extract the core.

【Slain Core Formation Complete-stage Tiger Demon. Total lifespan: 5,800 years. Remaining lifespan gained: 1,200 years. Absorption complete.】

As the young man bent to take the core, Jiang Qiulan stood quietly beside him, a gleam of reminiscence returning to her eyes, faintly flickering, as if making up for some inner regret.

Only after Shen Yi tucked the tiger core into the silver bell did her expression return to normal. With a light wave of her hand, the longsword in the tiger demon's belly transformed into a silver needle and pierced into her palm.

"Let's go."

Over those mere dozens of li, Jiang Qiulan walked very slowly, as if taking a leisurely stroll through a courtyard.

About half a cup of tea's time later.

The exact same scene played out once more.

Again the chill came rushing in, and a figure crashed down from the sky—only this time, instead of a tiger demon, it was a purple marten.

This time it didn't even get the chance to speak before the three-chi ceremonial blade cleanly slit its throat.

【Slain Core Formation Complete-stage Purple Marten. Total lifespan: 5,600 years. Remaining lifespan gained: 1,400 years. Absorption complete.】

Shen Yi wiped his hands on its soft fur, feeling a touch of emotion. He finally understood why those two old Daoist Priests had been so shocked earlier—a generous little benefactor like this really should have been met sooner.

Even without a panel to absorb lifespan, the vital qi and blood from a demon's heart alone could be exchanged from demon hunters for a handsome reward.

……

By the time the third thing fell from the sky.

Shen Yi didn't even give it the chance to hit the ground. He slashed through the air with a single blade, and while harvesting the lifespan, his hand had already plunged into the demon's body, tearing out that inner core and tucking it into the silver bell.

【Slain Core Formation Complete-stage Golden Eagle. Total lifespan: 5,700 years. Remaining lifespan gained: 1,250 years. Absorption complete.】

【Remaining demon lifespan: 3,862 years】

This time, Jiang Qiulan didn't wait for him; instead she cast her gaze toward the depths in the distance.

This last golden-eagle demon had been slain right in front of that Bai Lu—even though it had desperately fled toward this place and even hidden behind Bai Lu, it was still pierced through by a single sword.

"……"

The tall white deer hung in mid-air on all four hooves, its form elegant, its magnificent antlers like a blood-bathed crown.

Yet at this moment, those crystalline eyes of its brimmed with an almost overwhelming mix of grievance and fury. Its deep bellowing roar shook the mountain valley, and its words were vulgar, utterly at odds with its appearance: "I fucking told you I never went to Qingfeng Mountain! Why the hell won't you believe me! You chased me all the way from Linjiang Commandery to Tingyang Commandery!"

"Back then it was Lady Yushan's general who tried to kill me—this lord really couldn't stand it anymore, so I dealt with him. Other than that, when has this lord ever provoked you!"

"The fuck would I be full and have nothing better to do, go provoke Chen Qiankun for no reason?!"

A voice like the peal of a great bell made the valley tremble; one really could hear the heartfelt injustice in it.

"……"

Shen Yi stared calmly at Bai Lu, the long blade in his hand eager to strike.

He only needed to step forward and righteously expose the lie.

Jiang Qiulan said nothing more, merely walking slowly toward Bai Lu. With every step she advanced, Bai Lu involuntarily retreated one step—where was even half the bearing of an Embracing Elixir Realm demon lord?

Until the Miss in the ink-black robe had completely stepped into that inner ground.

The fear on Bai Lu's face finally faded; she seemed to let out a breath of relief and sighed, "I never wished to make an enemy of you. It was you who bullied me too far, so don't blame this lord for calling in reinforcements."

The words had barely fallen.

The mountain slopes on either side of the inner ground suddenly began to tremble, the stone walls splitting apart rapidly, boulders crashing down with a rumble, half the mountainside collapsing.

After a moment, an incomparably tall stone throne was finally revealed.

A towering figure fully eight zhang high leaned against the back of the chair. It had not revealed its true form—its body still held a human posture, one hand resting on a ring-pommel greatsword, the other lazily propping up its chin.

Two curved great horns pointed straight at the clouds, the enormous bull-head fierce and terrifying, a pair of eyes looking down at the woman below as though she were an ant.

"Jiang Qiulan, this king has been thinking of you for a long time."

(End of chapter)