Chapter 205: Lin Baiwei, Suddenly on Guard

Linjiang Commandery, the Town-Demon General's residence.

Jiang Qiulan stood quietly in the courtyard. After roughly the time it took an incense stick to burn, a clear breeze settled outside the gate.

She said softly, "You're back?"

Shen Yi gave a slight nod, somewhat curious: "Don't you need to cultivate?"

Jiang Qiulan shook her head: "Just one thin line away—it's a matter of patient grinding."

"…"

Shen Yi raised a brow, feeling rather the sting of comparing oneself to others.

He himself had run himself ragged all over the place—up to the Jade Liquid Realm, down to the Enlightenment Stage—searching Linjiang Commandery for a full ten-plus days, scrambling over every mountain and diving into every river, and all he'd harvested was a little over two thousand years of lifespan.

Now, whenever he saw even a slightly bigger dog, he couldn't help staring at it for a while, trying to make it speak.

【Remaining Demon Lifespan: 11,823 years】

"Where is Liu Yuquan?"

"General Shen!"

Hearing his name called, Liu Yuquan's face turned bitter. He strode out quickly, and before the other could even ask, he began begging for mercy: "Really, there aren't any left! This subordinate has already mobilized every brother under me, going county by county to sweep them… General Shen, they're not fools—given the situation now, how would they dare stay in Linjiang Commandery, let alone show their heads…"

They're demons, not radishes in a field—it's not like you can just wish them into growing.

For the creatures of heaven and earth to gain enlightenment was already an exceedingly rare thing in the first place.

"It's fine, I was just asking casually."

Shen Yi sighed inwardly. Back then, Boyun County alone had held a full four dens of demons. Compared to that, the counties of Linjiang Commandery were miserably poor to the extreme—often he'd scour four or five counties in a row without finding a single demon worth the name.

"Then this subordinate will take his leave first."

Liu Yuquan cupped his fist in salute, not wanting to linger a single moment longer, and took to his heels at once.

"You've been busy all day—let's eat."

Jiang Qiulan seemed to find it amusing; the corners of her lips lifted slightly.

Shen Yi agreed casually and stepped toward the main hall.

He had to admit, the cook in charge of the old man's meals seemed accustomed to cooking things on the bland side.

Jiang Qiulan had no objections. Shen Yi, long used to a life of poverty, found it a bit hard to adjust for the moment.

Just then, a familiar voice drifted in from outside the gate.

"General Shen, look who I've brought you."

Chen Qiankun strode into the residence with great steps, looking thoroughly pleased with this outing to visit a colleague—the smile was tucked even into the creases at the corners of his eyes.

Shen Yi turned to look, and behind the General Chen's heavy black armor, a pretty young girl in a white robe stood clutching her sleeve somewhat nervously, glancing this way.

"Jiang Shijie Jiang."

Lin Baiwei clearly hadn't expected to see her here, and stole another glance at Shen Yi on the side.

"Come in."

Jiang Qiulan's voice softened a few degrees.

Hearing that, Lin Baiwei secretly breathed a quiet sigh of relief inside. Jiang Shijie seemed to have changed quite a bit from before—become less aloof.

"We're all family here, and yet you're still being so polite about it."

Chen Qiankun clicked his tongue, and then saw Shen Yi hand the jade tablet back. The old man immediately looked a touch regretful: "So you're still planning to leave? Actually, keeping it with you would have been fine too."

"Many thanks, General. I have no use for it anymore." Shen Yi said no more, and placed the jade tablet back into the other's hand.

"Ah, that's true enough."

Chen Qiankun caught on as well—with that kind of aptitude, the other really didn't need the power of incense and vows to take any shortcut.

He gripped the jade tablet and shook his head with a faint sigh.

Then, as if sensing something, a few traces of puzzlement entered his eyes, and he looked up at the sky in bewilderment.

"Grandpa Chen, what are you looking at?"

Lin Baiwei curiously followed his gaze, but apart from the slightly dim night sky, there didn't seem to be anything else.

"Uh."

Chen Qiankun gave the jade tablet a shake, then patted it twice: "Nothing—probably this thing's broken."

"It's not broken."

Shen Yi gave him a reminder.

Before Chen Qiankun could even react, he was pulled away by Liu Yuquan, who had hurried over.

"What are you doing?"

The old man was dragged to the side courtyard and frowned over at him.

"You'd better see for yourself."

Liu Yuquan pointed at the ledgers piled full on the table inside the room.

"Believe it or not, I'll kick you."

Chen Qiankun had no time at all to flip through all that stuff.

Liu Yuquan's expression turned strange, and he suddenly began counting off on his fingers: "Stone Gate Cliff, Gut-Wrenching Lake, Thousand-Hand Cave… tsk, let me put it this way—last time a batch of demons pulled out, and then the ones that were left…"

"What about the ones that were left?"

Chen Qiankun's brows knit tightly. When it came to matters of demons, he was more cautious than anyone.

"There aren't any left."

Liu Yuquan spread his hands: "Dead dead, fled fled. Once this fearsome reputation spreads out, I bet for the next few hundred years no demon will dare come back to our neck of the woods. General Shen did all the work for you—finished every last job. You can…"

Chen Qiankun suddenly felt that this old rascal's expression looked very familiar.

When he himself went out to find a colleague for a leisurely chat, he liked to leave his sentences half-spoken just like that.

The old man cast a casual glance over: "So you can hand the position of Town Demon General over to me, is that it?"

"This subordinate wouldn't dare!"

Liu Yuquan hurriedly cupped his fists and said softly: "But if you truly wish to entrust such a heavy responsibility, then for the current Linjiang Prefecture, this subordinate would still dare to stake his life to hold it down."

From General Shen's manner, he had practically written his intention to leave all over his face.

A mere position of Town Demon General was probably never in the other's eyes to begin with.

……

Inside the room of the courtyard.

The table was laden with a generous spread of fine dishes.

Lin Baiwei glanced at the dishes, then looked toward the youth beside her and said softly: "Shall I go make you a couple of small dishes?"

"No need."

Shen Yi shook his head—no matter how much of a slave driver he was, he wouldn't make someone who'd just rushed over here immediately go play little kitchen maid.

Jiang Qiulan watched quietly and noticed the two seemed a touch more familiar than she had imagined.

But according to what the Juan Sect records stated, they should only have spent half a month together in Bai Yunxian; afterward, Junior Sister Lin had gone to the Imperial Capital, and after returning they had only met a handful of times.

She took out three small wine jars from her waist and distributed them.

"Thank you, Jiang Shijie."

Lin Baiwei pressed her lips together and accepted the wine jar.

Shen Yi casually swatted her hand away, then extended his chopsticks to pick up a piece of fish meat and chewed it calmly.

Lin Baiwei gently rubbed the back of her hand and blinked: "Ah?"

"……"

Jiang Qiulan gazed at the youth's face, a few unusual glints appearing in her eyes, and said softly: "I've already switched it out."

She simply wasn't very good at being considerate—it didn't mean she was truly slow to react.

Last time in the carriage, when Shen Yi said he had quit, she had prepared more ordinary fine wines in her storage treasure.

Lin Baiwei carefully broke open the wine seal.

Sure enough, what wafted out was not a harsh, unbearably pungent bite, but a mellow, fragrant wine aroma.

"May I drink?"

Lin Baiwei looked to the side; only after receiving a nod from the youth did she take a small sip.

The mellow wine slid down her throat with perfect smoothness.

A few hints of a smile couldn't help but appear on her face, but very soon that smile stiffened slightly.

Her gaze quietly swept across Jiang Shijie's and Shen Yi's faces.

Switched it out?

Why switch it out?

Because of Shen Yi, Jiang Shijie specially prepared a different wine?!

(End of this chapter)