Chapter 172: 172. Chapter 172: The Greatest Good Person in the World!

172. Chapter 172: The Greatest Good Person in the World!

Li Ge Xiao's answer was a bit beyond Chu Yang's expectations; he had thought the demons should be closely tied to the other two, but he never imagined they had already begun appearing before the great upheaval of heaven and earth.

No wonder he always felt the demons' vibe was a bit off, with a Lovecraftian tinge; that day he only took one look, and his SAN plummeted.

His intuition told Chu Yang that Li Ge Xiao's guess might be correct.

"How did the demons appear?"

"No records detail the demons' origin; from one day onward, traces of them spread everywhere under heaven."

"If the demons have no relation at all to the spirit demons, then for the spirit demons, the demons should also be a problem that needs to be resolved."

"Your Highness, you're right; the spirit demons also take an extermination stance toward the demons, and when facing demons, they are even more troublesome for us than we are."

"Why is that?"

"You should know that ordinary people who come into contact with demon blood have a high chance of turning into new demons, but for spirit demons, that probability is nearly a hundred percent—far higher than for humans, leaving almost no spirit demon unscathed."

Saying this, Li Ge Xiao let out a long breath: "Thanks to the demons' existence restraining most of the spirit demons' power, otherwise humans and demons would have gone to war long ago—how could we now have the situation where well water does not interfere with river water?"

"If the two sides ever go to war, adding those treacherous demon‑folk, humanity would actually be at a disadvantage."

As they chatted, they saw a tea stall on the official road; the sun was already high, the heat making mouths dry, so Chu Yang decided to rest there for a while.

Even if they could endure the sun, the horses would suffer; without a rest and water, they might collapse midway.

The shop assistant, familiar with the routine, led their horses to the stable, then after they dismounted, guided them to an empty table.

"What would you two gentlemen like to eat?"

"Do you have any alcohol?"

"We only have our own homemade rice wine; I don't know if you gentlemen can handle it…"

"Two jugs of wine, two catties of braised meat, and a few cold dishes—just bring them out."

"All right, sir!"

After the assistant left, Li Ge Xiao glanced around the tea stall, a playful smile on his face; even on the official road, few these days dare to set up a tea stall in the wilderness.

The prices at the tea stall were nearly catching up to those of some luxurious restaurants in the capital, yet passing travelers and merchants had no complaints, for they knew the proprietor was risking his life to earn money.

One never knows when a demon might pass by; if that happened, everyone at the stall would be dead.

"There's an expert."

Chu Yang tapped the table and chuckled.

"Your… Highness, have you noticed already?"

To avoid trouble, Li Ge Xiao changed his form of address, calling out 'Your Highness' to outsiders— isn't that foolish?

Chu Yang replied: "One man and one woman; the man is in the back kitchen, his knife technique is decent, the woman is likely the proprietress, her breathing is deep and steady, and her lightness and internal skills are not bad."

"It's just unclear whether they're running a legitimate business."

Hearing this, Li Ge Xiao felt shocked; from such a distance, Chu Yang could discern these people's details—their level is truly unimaginable.

"How does Your Highness know?"

"Listen."

Li Ge Xiao was bewildered.

The braised meat and rice wine were set on the table in succession; upon smelling the wine, Li Ge Xiao's eyes grew dazed, and all his doubts vanished as he swallowed them down.

Chu Yang was no better; he seized the wine jug and gulped it down right away.

"Your Highness, wait!"

Li Ge Xiao anxiously lunged to snatch the wine jug from Chu Yang's hand—not because he was truly that addicted to alcohol, but because he wanted to test it for poison before letting Chu Yang drink.

When out and about, the thing to watch out for most is exactly this kind of tea stall; drink something recklessly and you might wake up as someone else's chopping‑block meat.

"My constitution is special; even if there's something in the jug, it's no big deal—no need to worry."

Chu Yang gladly downed half a jug; the rice wine was low‑proof, clean‑sweet and crisp, very refreshing.

Li Ge Xiao stared at Chu Yang for a while, confirmed he was fine, then examined his own wine jug—nothing abnormal.

Then he also picked up the jug and drank; the rice wine entered his throat, bringing a cool, refreshing feeling that made him shout in delight: "This trip down to Jiangnan, I will surely catch that four‑eyebrow fellow and make him repay the wine he owes from the capital."

"The intel from the Six Gates and the Embroidered Uniform Guard won't be wrong; I just fear that fellow will have wind at his feet and flee again by the time we get there."

"With so many beauties in Jiangnan, given his nature, he won't be able to pull away anytime soon!"

"Hahaha, that's true."

While they were chatting, a hurried caravan suddenly appeared not far off—about a dozen people, six horse‑drawn carts, one carrying passengers and the other five loaded with goods.

The carts couldn't enter the stable, so they stopped at the roadside; the caravan didn't ask the assistant to tend the horses, but instead produced feed themselves.

Even the water for the horses had to be tasted first by a person; so cautious, Chu Yang thought they must be a veteran caravan that constantly travels abroad.

Soon after, a young couple stepped down from the cart, cradling two infants still in swaddling—a pair of twins.

Only Chu Yang and Li Ge Xiao were in the tea stall drinking and eating meat, which naturally drew the caravan's attention; an elderly man resembling a steward was about to approach them to say something, but the young couple stopped him.

Chu Yang laughed: "They were originally going to try to persuade us to leave with silver."

Hearing that, Li Ge Xiao sighed: "That couple is quite kind; they must be a family that accumulates goodness, but they ought to give it a try…"

Chu Yang smacked his lips: "Exactly—we've pretty much eaten our fill; if they speak up, I'll surely agree, and I can earn some silver to spend."

Li Ge Xiao chuckled: "Your Highness isn't short of money either—why not give the silver to me?"

Chu Yang gave him a look and said bluntly: "Who in the world would complain about having too much money?"

Once the caravan filled the tiny tea stall, Chu Yang and Li Ge Xiao, having eaten and drunk their fill, rose and left, making room for others.

As they exited the stall, Chu Yang brushed past the caravan's male head, unexpectedly receiving a greeting from him.

"Mr. Jiang means no disturbance to your rest; the caravan is large, please bear with us."

Seeing this courteous man before him, Chu Yang felt a flicker of goodwill and bowed his hands: "Sir, you're too kind."

They merely exchanged a polite remark, with no intention of deeper talk; Chu Yang turned aside and walked out of the tea stall together with Li Ge Xiao.

Watching them leave, the man surnamed Jiang visibly relaxed and whispered to his wife, "Yue Nu, those two aren't after us."

The woman called Yue Nu, cradling the two infants in her arms, smiled at her husband.

But barely after Chu Yang and the others walked out of the tea stall…

A sudden anomaly erupted!

The proprietress, the cook, and the waiter all sprang into action, taking advantage of the caravan's relaxed guard and targeting the young couple! At the same time, several dark silhouettes rushed toward the tea stall! "Jiang Feng, the world's number‑one great good man, today the Twelve Stars intend to borrow your wealth!"

Hahaha!!!

The anomaly at the tea stall lasted only an instant; the caravan's guards couldn't react, watching helplessly as the cook and proprietress charged at their own masters.

The young man who had earlier greeted Chu Yang was Jiang Feng, and beside him stood his wife Hua Yue Nu, along with the newborn twins—the future Hua Wuque and Xiao Yu'er. Facing the thieves' ambush, Jiang Feng drew a folding fan from his waist, opened it, and slashed forward.

A gale howled, the force as sharp as sword qi; seeing this, the cook and proprietress twisted their torsos violently, narrowly evading.

The real Jiang Feng was not the "great benevolent man" lacking even the strength to bind a chicken; he had cultivated a divine technique called the Jing Long Secret Manual. This art grows weaker the more one practices, and only when all martial power is gone can it be perfected, reaching the true‑returning, primal Jing Long realm.

Anyone who could become sworn brothers with Yan Nantian, the world's number‑one sword hero, could never be a hollow, pretentious fool.

Unfortunately, Jiang Feng still missed one person.

The waiter, seizing the gap while Jiang Feng counterattacked the two, silently appeared before Hua Yue Nu, his target the two infants still in swaddling.

If he snatched Jiang Feng's children, he would obediently surrender.

These sudden bandits were malicious, yet the waiter underestimated Hua Yue Nu; the moment he struck, Hua Yue Nu also delivered a palm strike.

A strange fragrance drifted in; in the waiter's eyes, it seemed as if countless petals were fluttering in the sky.

Momentarily dazed, the waiter was struck on the shoulder by Hua Yue Nu's palm, sent flying, and rolled to the feet of the cook and proprietress.

The caravan guards surrounded them in a tight circle.

The three wore grim expressions!

"What a trio of useless ones!"

From not far away, curses rose, and a wheelchair appeared before the crowd, bearing a hideously deformed, short‑limbed man whose eyes glowed crimson, like a wolf that selects its prey to devour.

Besides him, more than ten others emerged from the dense forest, each with malicious, cruel eyes.

"Wei Wuya!"

Wei Wuya, the leader of the Twelve Stars, of the Rat constellation!

Jiang Feng's voice cracked as he called out the dwarf's identity, and despair rose within him.

His cultivation now differed from before, his wife had just given birth, and these guards couldn't defeat the Twelve Stars.

How did they learn of this information?

He had set out to seek his elder brother Yan Nantian; Jiang Feng had long prepared a meticulous plan, virtually infallible, and never imagined the Twelve Stars would be waiting on the road!

At Wei Wuya's command, Ji Xiang Si Chenke led the charge, followed by one in red garb with a rooster crest, one in yellow garb with a rooster chest, three in floral garb with rooster tails, and the remaining Star members surged like fish, engaging the surrounding caravan guards.

Chu Yang and Li Ge Xiao, holding the reins of their horses, stood by the roadside, watching the scene in astonishment.

"Lao Li, what's the story behind the Twelve Stars?"

"Young master, the Twelve Stars are the most ruthless, most vicious band of thieves in the past thirty years of the jianghu. They rarely act, but once they spot something worth taking, none can escape. In thirty years, only Yan Nantian and the master of Yi Hua Palace have ever bested them."

"So powerful?"

"They are indeed clever, never confronting the Six Gates head‑on. When I used to drink with Wu Xin, he often cursed them as cowardly as mice."

"Who is Wu Xin?"

"He is the chief of the Four Great Constables; he isn't Master Guo's disciple, so you may not have met him."

"Oh~ now that you mention it, I have a vague recollection—he's a blank‑faced guy who treats everyone as if they owe him money."

"Hehe, that's the fellow. Let me gossip: when Wu Xin gets drunk, he says he's secretly in love with Wu Qing, the chief of the Four Great Constables from the neighboring Divine Marquis Mansion!"

"Damn, Wu Qing? Isn't that a man? How can two men… hmm, times have changed, it's not forbidden, I have no intention of discriminating against them."

"Young master, what are you saying? Wu Qing is female, and she's extremely beautiful!"

Chu Yang's mind hiccuped; for a moment he couldn't figure out which version of Wu Qing this was, but anyway the world is a hodgepodge of chaos.

"Which of them are male and which are female?"

"Each side has three men and one woman; among the Four Great Constables, Wu Qing is female, and among the Four Great Constables, the fourth‑ranked Leng Feng is also a girl."

"Leng Feng? A girl, yet she has a masculine nickname."

"Young master, you are being presumptuous; that's her real name…"

Chu Yang suddenly couldn't hold back, his expression odd as he blurted, "If it's a nickname, I call it a good skill; if it's a real name, I would call it a supreme skill."

Li Ge Xiao laughed dryly, "She never lets others use her full name, so we just call her Leng Leng."

At the tea stall, a life‑or‑death brawl raged, while Chu Yang and Li Ge Xiao watched the spectacle; their actions quickly drew the Twelve Stars' attention.

"You seven go and kill those two, lest word spread; Yan Nantian is not to be trifled with."

Wei Wuya ordered the seven members of the Black Dog Star among the Twelve Stars to deal with Chu Yang and Li Ge Xiao.

These seven split up; their individual martial skill is average, but they have mastered a coordinated joint‑attack technique. After years of fighting side by side, their mutual understanding is extraordinary, and anyone caught in their combined formation cannot hope to prevail, even top masters.

Moreover, the seven have also tamed giant wolf‑dogs the size of tigers; their spirits are awakened, just one step away from becoming spirit beasts, making them formidable in coordinated combat.

The seven, clad in black, charged toward Chu Yang with fierce momentum.

Seeing this, Chu Yang calmly smiled, "Lao Li, you're alive now; can you handle this?"

Li Ge Xiao bowed and said, "Young master, rest assured; although my cultivation hasn't fully recovered, dealing with these stinky, worthless fish is still no problem."

Chu Yang reminded, "Since they are great‑evil bandits, don't hold back; kill them all."

"If it truly can't be done, you don't have to force it—just retreat."

"Yes!" Li Ge Xiao replied with a single word, then walked alone toward the seven of the Black Dog Star.

As a former second‑ranked elite of the Brocade Guard and a direct disciple of Commander Zheng Dongliu, Li Ge Xiao at his peak could single‑handedly battle the Twelve Stars.

Now, still recovering from a serious wound, his cultivation is only at twenty‑to‑thirty percent, but that's enough to handle the Black Dog Star; he doesn't exaggerate that point.

The reason the Twelve Star Signs can roam free of the law is not that the Four Great Divine Constables cannot match them in hard strength, but that these guys are too cunning.

Rat Sign Wei Wuya possesses extraordinary intelligence; each of his actions is meticulously planned, and the Six Gates have had several ambushes thwarted by him—so far the Four Great Divine Constables have never even seen his true body.

Wielding an Embroidered Spring Blade, Li Ge Xiao quickly became embroiled in battle with Heiquanxing, and this blade had been given to him by the Left Captain of a Thousand before his departure.

The martial arts of the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Six Gates are largely similar; both belong to officialdom, and their targets are mostly people, so they excel in swordplay and close-quarters grappling.

Commander Zheng Dongliu, a military veteran, excels in broadsword techniques and wields a thousand-jin heavy halberd as his weapon.

As a disciple, Li Ge Xiao had also studied the broadsword, but his extraordinary talent allowed him to devise his own sword technique from Commander Zheng Dongliu's broadsword method.

The essence of this sword technique lies in excelling at fighting many opponents alone.

In his youth, still harboring a chivalrous spirit, Li Ge Xiao gave it a domineering name.

"Heaven and Earth Unjust"

means:

Though there is injustice in heaven and earth, I myself will break it with a single sword! (End of chapter)