Chapter 60: The Juvenile River Demon (Three Chapters Total, Please Read to the End)

In the dim river god temple.

The towering statue was shrouded in shadow, its benevolent face tinged with something uncanny.

A plump woman in blue robes lay sprawled across the altar, her hands gripping the edge tightly, causing the entire table—and the statue—to shake violently with her heaving body.

Her neck arched high, veins bulging; beneath the mound of fat, her features were still clearly defined, strikingly similar to the statue’s—seven parts alike.

“Hah!”

Yet compared to the river god’s gentleness, her face was now twisted, eyes rolled back, gasping for breath—utterly grotesque!

Behind her, a young man with a youthful face stared with savage intent, bare-chested, his back covered in mottled black scales, countless healed wounds crusted dark red like a spiderweb across his body.

Most striking of all was the horn on his forehead, thick as a thumb.

The youth fixed his gaze on the river god statue, grinning to reveal a row of sharp, white fangs: “Is this you?”

“It’s me!”

With a long sigh from the woman, the horned youth shuddered slightly, seized her head, and slammed it hard onto the table.

Then he opened his mouth and bit into her neck, blood gushing into his throat.

He swallowed greedily, and his wounds healed a little more.

The plump woman convulsed, yet her expression grew even more rapturous—as if being devoured were some supreme honor.

“Ugh! Smells like fish.”

The youth’s brow twitched as he wiped his lips, clearly displeased: “I need great medicine!”

The body of a martial cultivator brims with the most potent qi of heaven and earth—undisputedly a divine elixir.

The river god rose, gasping as she straightened her robes, then touched the wound on her neck, gazing at him with adoration tinged with fear: “Great medicine has arrived—better than last time, five in total, two of them at the Jade Fluid realm, young and delicious. I won’t let them slip away. I’ll make sure you’re satisfied.”

“Same as before—those two are mine.”

The youth raised an eyebrow: “Just help me hold one. The other three beginners are yours.”

“I dare not,” the river god hurriedly shook her head; though her own aura was even denser than his, she bowed her posture to the lowest degree.

Hearing this, the youth grabbed her face: “I’m giving it to you. Take it.”

“Go.” He waved his hand.

“Yes!” The river god dragged her weakened body toward the exit.

…

Bamboo-mat courtyard.

The young widow carefully ladled soup into a bowl.

Since that incident, the madman’s manic expression had lessened; he sat quietly in the corner, sipping fish soup in small sips.

Shen Yi sat in the courtyard, chewing bland fish meat.

He swallowed with intense focus, as if determined to fully dissolve every nutrient into his stomach.

If his judgment was correct—

From the moment they entered the village, their party had already been marked by demons.

Danger could strike at any moment.

One misstep, and they’d vanish like the previous captains, never even getting a chance to return their rank plaques to Qingzhou.

“Ah! So that’s why I couldn’t find you—you’re sneaking food here.”

Li Mujin strolled into the courtyard leisurely.

Seeing another demon-suppressing captain, and a beautiful, alluring woman at that, the young widow wisely rose and carried the bowl out, sitting with the madman by the gate.

“Tasty?”

Li Mujin studied the youth curiously.

Though she didn’t believe he could defeat Fang Heng, the fact that he’d made Fang Heng yield was enough to prove Shen Yi was no ordinary beginner.

And on his first mission, he was even more composed than her younger brother.

A calf unafraid of tigers?

Regardless of whether he’d ever witnessed demon cruelty, this courage was exceptional.

“Warn the others—stay alert, don’t scatter. There’s a demon in the village.”

Shen Yi swallowed the last bite of fish, lifting his gaze to her.

“What?”

Li Mujin froze slightly, then smiled: “You’re giving orders now…”

Before she finished speaking, under Shen Yi’s serious stare, she unconsciously dropped her smile: “Understood. I’ll notify them right away.”

She didn’t ask how he’d learned the news.

All were seasoned demon-suppressing captains; even the slimmest possibility demanded precaution.

“…“

As Li Mujin turned to leave, a flicker of doubt crossed her eyes.

Instantly, a stinking black wind surged from nowhere, sweeping across the sky and straight toward the village’s edge!

The two who had just been sitting by the gate were gone.

“Don’t wander off—go notify Xinhan!”

Li Mujin reacted instantly, her laziness vanishing; without hesitation, she drew her short sword and gave chase.

To snatch people right under the demon-suppressing bureau’s nose—this provocation was too blatant!

Her figure shot across the muddy path, covering dozens of zhang with each breath.

At that moment, Li Mujin caught a glimpse from the corner of her eye and paled.

Black robes surged, strands of hair fluttered—Shen Yi, expressionless, gripped a black blade, moving faster than she was by a third!

“Why are you here? You’re fast.”

Li Mujin held her breath, watching the black wind vanish into the low woods beside the river.

With her Jade Fluid realm’s power, her entire aura churned violently.

“I told you to warn them—this is clearly a Jade Fluid demon. Hurrying won’t help.”

Before she finished speaking, Li Mujin sensed something ominous and turned back.

Outside the fishing village, the Yangchun River roared, surging into waves ten zhang high.

Atop the waves, the woman in blue robes stood barefoot.

Like the legendary river immortal, one gesture could drown the entire village.

“Damn it!”

Seeing that familiar figure,

Though she didn’t understand why the demon had suddenly abandoned four hundred years of peace,

Li Mujin’s last shred of hope vanished swiftly.

Shen Yi had been right—not only was there a demon, but one prepared for this.

She turned back to the low woods—but the black wind and Shen Yi had both vanished during her moment of shock.

“…“

“It’s over.”

She clenched her teeth, breathing heavily. After all she’d done for the demon-suppressing bureau, how could she have made such a careless mistake?

And that boy—how could he run so fast?!

Where did he get such audacity?

…

“Huh.”

Shen Yi adjusted his breath, fully unleashing the White Ape Playing with Snake technique.

Climbing the mountain felt like walking on flat ground—even faster than before.

He’d noticed Li Mujin falling behind, and seen the terrifying signs from the Yangchun River.

His thoughts stirred slightly, but quickly steadied.

This was an ambush targeting demon-suppressing captains—likely meant to separate the Li siblings and pick them off one by one.

Shen Yi was no impulsive fool.

Quite the opposite—his mind was crystal clear.

If the river god was truly a late-stage Jade Fluid demon, even the Li siblings together might not prevail, let alone now with this black wind demon also at Jade Fluid.

Under these conditions, gathering all five would be meaningless—someone had to face this beast alone.

The two beasts had planned everything in advance; their extra maneuver was likely just to minimize the chance of injury.

And he—was the only variable.

Shen Yi wouldn’t care for the villagers, nor whether the Li siblings could defeat the river god. In such a life-or-death crisis, hesitation meant death without burial.

He forced his focus onto the present.

Only by severing the demon’s head before him could he gain the sole chance at survival.

If so—

The obsidian blade unsheathed, gripped tightly by slender fingers, mountain winds howled, tearing at his ink-black robe.

Shen Yi halted, the black blade in hand.

Watching the black wind dissipate, revealing the scaled figure beneath.

“…“

When it clearly saw Shen Yi’s face, Jiao Feng dropped the two unconscious men in his hands, his expression growing increasingly irritable: “Why did you follow? Do you even deserve to come?!”

It had not expected the first to pursue would be a mere beginner martial cultivator.

This meant the River God would have to face two Jade Fluid–realm Captains at once.

Yet Jiao Feng’s eyes held no trace of worry—only a flicker of impatience and displeasure… impatience because it could not immediately torture and devour the young woman, savoring her tender, qi-saturated flesh.

And the reason for its displeasure was simple.

The Captain before it was far too weak; compared to the two medicinal treasures, it was so feeble it could not even stir its appetite.

As a dragon, not just anything deserved to be devoured by it.

(End of Chapter)