Chapter 56: I Am Skilled at Killing Demons

Outside Qingzhou, Zhen Mo Si, External Affairs Hall.

Gray-tiled, white-walled buildings stood firm; the vermilion gates stood open, figures coming and going in quick succession, all with hurried expressions.

Shen Yi observed the surroundings in silence.

Though all wore black brocade yèsǎ robes, over sixty percent lacked cloud patterns on their sleeves.

Their average age was around forty.

Their qi indeed matched the Foundation Establishment realm, but it was unstable—barely crossed the threshold.

Are these the Zhen Mo Captains Zhang the Butcher called those who "soak in medicinal baths"?

Instead, occasionally a few people wearing cloud-patterned shirts passed by, all rather young, their gazes sharper.

"The Inner Camp has three thousand, the Outer Camp over eight thousand—just over ten thousand brothers total, responsible for the safety of Qingzhou's twelve commanderies and three hundred and forty-two counties."

The beggar walked over, his voice tinged with lament.

"Excluding the two thousand five hundred Inner Camp warriors needed to guard Qingzhou, on average, twenty men must hold one county. So our numbers match this ratio—when a Deputy General departs on a mission, he brings roughly twenty Captains. Even if they face an unstoppable crisis and all perish, including himself, the loss won't be too great."

After listening for a long while, Shen Yi learned the beggar's name.

Shen Yi watched Ma Tao's matter-of-fact expression and couldn't help raising an eyebrow.

It seemed to him that total annihilation was perfectly normal.

Judging by this, to become a Deputy General and lead a team alone, you must at least be a Jade Liquid Realm expert—in Bai Yunxian, that's a Hou Tu Huang Di who can cover the sky with one hand—and you still call that a minor loss?

"But don't worry—so long as your body doesn't vanish without a trace, your family will send someone to avenge you within half a month."

Ma Tao grinned and sighed: "The Zhen Mo General of Yushan Commandery was ambushed and killed by three local sects working together. They thought they'd covered their tracks perfectly. The Deputy Commander of the Regional Commander's Second Disciple led a thousand men—and in just six days, he took twenty-three thousand heads. Word is the skulls still pile up at the city gate."

Compared to being stunned by Zhen Mo Si's ruthless power,

Shen Yi pressed his lips together and made a mental note.

He'd thought his current strength, if not enough for promotion, was at least enough for self-preservation—but the world was even more chaotic than he imagined. Not only were ordinary mortals in danger, but even the most renowned figures could die at any moment.

"Hey, what are you good at?"

Li Mujin stepped out of the office and looked at the group: "Tracking hidden trails? Long-range raids? … Oh, aren't you particularly skilled in close combat, capturing demons and monsters?"

Recalling how Shen Yi had humiliated Fang Heng earlier, her final words carried a hint of curiosity.

Hearing this, Ma Tao shrugged, awkwardly clenching his fingers.

If two members in a team share similar martial arts, and one is far stronger, the other becomes redundant.

Seeing Shen Yi's puzzled expression, he sighed, quickly composed himself, and explained: "Just record it. If later, Brother Li meets misfortune and you happen to survive, it'll help other Deputy Generals pick men. Don't worry about anything else—just say which martial art you've reached the highest level in."

"I see."

Shen Yi fell silent, internally checking his cultivation—and soon a faint frown appeared on his face.

Seeing this, the others glanced at him in mild confusion.

What's there to think about? Which martial art do you specialize in? Which do you supplement with? Which did you start with? Which did you master? Don't you know yourself?

After a moment, Shen Yi looked up, uncertainly: "Killing demons?"

Bao Bao Xuan Body, Tan Lang Zhu Xie, Tian Gang Xue Sha, Jie Mai Qin Long…

It was hard to say which was stronger—they all seemed useful.

Upon hearing his reply, Liu Xiujie and Ma Tao froze in shock.

"Ha."

Li Mujin stared, then burst into laughter, clutching her abdomen as she turned and walked inside: "Fine, write it down—he says he's good at killing demons."

After a while, Li Xinhan finished the registration and stepped out slowly, giving Shen Yi a helpless look.

Back in Bai Yunxian, he'd known Shen Yi studied too many arts—but he never expected the man had no clear main path. Should he ask a family patron to examine Shen Yi's bones and guide his future direction?

"Xiaoer, arrange the carriage—Linjiang Commandery, Shuiyun Village."

He shook off his thoughts, nodded, and the short, childlike man bowed, then left in silence.

Li Xinhan led the group out of Zhen Mo Si.

"Brother Li is tense."

Liu Xiujie noticed his unease and whispered: "He's low-ranked—every good assignment gets snatched by other Deputy Generals. Saving Inspector Lin was a merit, but until he returns, we can't publicize it."

"If we tally up his merits, one more incident involving a Jade Liquid Realm demon and he'll be promoted to Deputy General… I wonder if we'll get lucky this time."

Speaking of merits, the two longtime partners both brightened.

After all, they came from prestigious families and joined Zhen Mo Si to make a name for themselves.

Shen Yi now noticed their sleeve cloud patterns each had two stripes—clearly, Li Xinhan craved merit, and even his subordinates benefited.

"Don't envy them—participate in five Jade Liquid Realm demon incidents, or earn one primary merit, and you'll earn another stripe. Then, receiving an internal cultivation technique will be natural."

Stepping out of Zhen Mo Si's gates onto the main street, both men instantly dropped their smiles.

Passersby halted and stepped aside as they passed.

Only after the group had gone far did people resume their tasks.

By the time they reached the towering city gate, Li Xiaoer had already been waiting with the demon horse.

"This is our scout—he can run from Bai Yunxian to Qingzhou City and back in a single day. If you ever need to send a message, he's your man."

Liu Xiujie leapt onto the carriage and teased with a grin.

Li Xiaoer glared at him, then nodded politely to Shen Yi and said simply: "Can deliver. Fast."

As everyone settled in, Li Mujin tugged the reins and rode at the front.

Shen Yi sat inside the carriage, beginning to understand.

Even who rode the horse and who rode the carriage had meaning.

The one with the highest realm could stay alert longest and react swiftly to emergencies.

"…"

Li Xinhan leaned against the carriage compartment, his two hands clasped together, fingertips tapping urgently against the back of his hand.

He looked burdened with worries.

"It can't be that bad, right?" Ma Tao reached out and waved his hand in front of the other's eyes: "Although there are fewer hands this time, aren't we just going to Shuiyun Township to find a few people?"

Liu Xiujie took the opportunity to brief Shen Yi on the mission of this trip: "A few Captains went to Shuiyun Township to oversee affairs; by regulation, on the fifteenth day they must send a letter home. We haven't received any word from them for a long time… It's not a big problem—Shuiyun Township has a River God. If something happened to the River God, those villagers would have long since rushed to Outside Qingzhou."

Li Xinhan was silent for a long while, then took a bloodstained waist token from his bosom: "This was delivered by a messenger from the Linjiang Prefecture government office. The External Affairs Hall just handed it to me."

Having said that, he looked toward Shen Yi: "Originally I said I'd bring you out to get familiar with things first… you have no experience fighting real demons and monsters, so you must be careful."

Hearing this, Liu and Ma both held their breath: "…"

They both knew about Shen Yi slaying the dog demon and the ape demon in Bai Yunxian.

Saying he has no experience?

That was the Jade Liquid Realm?

Ma Tao recalled how he had just been spouting nonsense to the other man about dying and getting revenge and the like—words meant to liven the mood—and now he glanced over with a hint of apology.

"Pah! Me and my crow's mouth."

Shen Yi shifted slightly to the side. Li Xiaoer expressionlessly wiped the spittle from his face, then silently looked toward Ma Tao.

(End of chapter)