Chapter 9

Volume One: Mountain Ghost Rumor, Chapter Nine: All the Evils of the World Gather Here

The teacher sighed leisurely: "It's hard for you."

Compared to those students from Daguan Lane with substantial family backgrounds, Zhao Chan was more devout toward knowledge.

It was precisely because of this devotion that the teacher allowed Zhao Chan to audit in the classroom without charging him a single wen.

"Now, can you tell me why you haven't come to the school to audit these past two days?"

Zhao Chan was overjoyed and briefly and concisely told him about following Wang Huan to Shanniu Village to deal with the demon infestation and joining the Demon Slaying Division, omitting the parts about the Mountain Ghost, the sisters Bai Youjun, and the confrontation with the merchants at Xizhao Inn.

The teacher had a thick beard, which he groomed exquisitely, not appearing messy at all: "You became a Demon Slayer of the Demon Slaying Division?"

"Yes, Teacher," Zhao Chan said respectfully.

"Do you know that Demon Slayers often face life-and-death dangers?"

The teacher sighed heavily. He certainly understood that this youth, who had lost his parents early, wanted to achieve something and stand tall in Youju Town.

"I know."

"So you still decided to become a Demon Slayer who faces demons head-on?"

"Yes. Teacher once said, 'A gentleman hates living in a lowly place, for all the evils of the world gather there.' Slaying demons and eliminating monsters is an act that increases morality and can protect the borders and bring peace to the people," Zhao Chan explained calmly.

The teacher pointed at him and laughed: "Little youth, you actually know how to sophistically argue! I also said, 'A gentleman can be deceived by what is right,' and you use 'hating living in a lowly place' to fob me off!"

Zhao Chan bowed sincerely: "Student is terrified. In student's heart, Teacher is indeed a gentleman."

"Sweet talker." The teacher patted his shoulder lightly. "Take back your money. You don't need to borrow 'Forest of Literature' to copy it; I have already copied it. I originally intended to give it to you when you came to audit yesterday."

"Teacher..."

"If you really want to thank me, then study hard and practice your calligraphy diligently."

He picked up a book exuding the scent of ink from the teaching desk and handed it to Zhao Chan seriously: "The Sage said, 'Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous,' and also, 'Learn without satiety.' You are extremely intelligent; originally I shouldn't have to exhort you, but you must understand that if you think yourself quick-witted and neglect your studies, the final outcome will surely be to fade into the crowd."

Zhao Chan held the book with both hands in excitement. He clearly smelled the faint scent of ink. On the cover were two large characters written by the teacher: "Forest of Literature." "Student will keep it in mind and will certainly not fail Teacher's expectations."

"If you have questions you don't understand, come to the private school to ask me at any time. When you can recite 'Forest of Literature' backward and understand it thoroughly, I will teach you the 'Analects Collected Commentaries.'

The learning of the Sages is like a vast and boundless galaxy; only by laying a solid foundation can one explore the profound and seek the excellent.

I hope you are down-to-earth and take the long journey from the near."

Zhao Chan bowed to the ground.

The teacher said: "It's noon, stay for a meal."

"Student has already been very presumptuous by disturbing Teacher's noon rest; how can I continue to stay for a meal with a thick face?"

Zhao Chan bowed again, carefully put away "Forest of Literature," and prepared to leave.

The teacher scolded with a smile: "Stubborn! While knowledge is good, money is also important. Don't you want the money on the desk?"

After collecting the copper coins, Zhao Chan walked out of the private school respectfully.

The teacher stood outside the door with his hands behind his back, watching Zhao Chan's figure disappear into Daguan Lane.

The youth with the peach branch at his waist was completely out of place in Daguan Lane.

"What a fine peach-blossom youth."

"And he's become more talkative..."

Zhang Cui Cui had a pair of fox-like eyes. Her appearance among women was at most mediocre, but thanks to her eyes, she had a unique, wonderful charm that could stir the heart.

Added to that were her full, ample chest, her round, wide hips that swayed when she walked, her soft, boneless wasp waist, and her slender, alluring long legs. Ever since she came to Youju Town, she had become the object of comparison for the town's women and the dream lover that men couldn't help but yearn for.

The gossiping women in Youju Town who had nothing to do loved to arrange the two of them in private.

One was the landlady of Xizhao Inn, Xie Wan, and the second was the widowed Zhang Cui Cui.

The gossiping women said that Xie Wan was a demoness with insatiable desires, and the reason she opened an inn was to seek carnal pleasure from the men traveling north and south.

Don't look at how Xie Wan usually didn't step out of her door; in fact, she was yearning for men, only restraining herself because of her identity as a demoness to avoid exposure.

As for Zhang Cui Cui, the gossiping women arranged her even more viciously, saying things as ugly as could be.

Things like Zhang Cui Cui not being honest as a widow, entangled with men every night for pleasure, and even saying with a straight face that they saw Sun Mazi from the north end of town secretly running into Zhang Cui Cui's house at night...

Zhang Cui Cui was not one to be trifled with either.

Whenever she heard gossip, she would stand on the main street with her hands on her hips and curse loudly.

And so, two women walking together passed by the wonton stall and hurriedly cast a cold glance at Zhang Cui Cui.

One whispered: "You must not tell anyone else, I heard from Third Sister that Zhang Cuicui left her door half-open last night. Guess what? That pockmarked Yang Yun, whom everyone in our town despises, snuck inside."

As luck would have it, this sentence was heard by Zhang Cui Cui.

She served wontons to a customer without changing her expression. The customer reached out to take them with a lecherous look, and incidentally, as if by accident, touched the back of her hand.

So smooth, so moist.

Zhang Cui Cui glared at him: "I'll chop off your hand."

"Hehe..." this idler who hung around Youju Town laughed, "Cui Cui, I want to marry you."

"Marry me? Hmph!" Zhang Cuicui put her hands on her hips and cursed at the two women, "Look at who is touching my hand, oh my, isn't this Liang You, the husband of Wang Lvshui from Little Flower Lane? What's the matter? Tired of Big Sister Wang not being pretty enough, so you ran here to touch my hand? If Big Sister Wang finds out, she'll definitely feel worse than if she had eaten maggots."

Wang Lvshui turned around with a livid face; she was the woman who had just been gossiping about Zhang Cui Cui. She looked closely and saw that her own lazy husband was indeed at the wonton stall, and now, holding a bowl of hot wontons, he was in a position where he couldn't stand, couldn't sit, and couldn't leave.

Just now he was sitting behind the wonton stall, and Wang Lvshui had glanced over and not seen him.

Zhang Cuicui was relentless: "Brother Liang You wants to marry me? No, no, if you want to marry me, you have to divorce Big Sister Wang first. A person as proud as Big Sister Wang, how could she endure your divorce letter? She'd hang herself that very day! I'll give you an idea: at night, after Big Sister Wang is fast asleep, you sneak over to my house, and I'll be with you."

Wang Lvshui was so angry she jumped: "Liang You! What wontons are you eating?! Aren't you afraid they're dirty! Why are you standing there like a fool? Get over here!"

Liang You defended himself: "Wife, why don't you try the wontons Cui Cui cooks? They really are quite delicious."

When Wang Lvshui heard this, she was dizzy with anger. The woman beside her ran to Liang You in two or three steps, snatched the bowl of boiling wontons, and slammed it onto the table, splashing soup in a circle. She dragged Liang You, who kept looking back, to Wang Lvshui's side.

Wang Lvshui didn't care about her face and beat her husband over the head in public.

Watching this scene, Zhang Cui Cui sneered: "Yang Yun is handsome and honest, reading hard behind closed doors all day. Brother Yang just has a few pockmarks, and you gossip about him. Hmph, you can slander me, but don't spread rumors about an honest man."

Liang You and his wife were fighting, and the other woman really couldn't bear to watch, so she dragged them toward Xiao Hua Xiang.

As they walked, she still cursed at Zhang Cui Cui: "Fox spirit who hooks men! Ptooey! Vile! Your body will rot sooner or later!"

Zhang Cui Cui didn't care, treating it as wind past her ears.

She suddenly beckoned to the youth on the street: "Zhao Chan!"

"Greetings, Cui Cui Jie."

"Haven't had lunch yet, right?"

Zhao Chan nodded honestly. This time he took the initiative to walk closer to the wonton stall and sat on the wooden stool that Zhang Cui Cui had made herself. He looked at the bowl of wontons that should have belonged to Liang You and asked: "Cui Cui Jie, can I eat this?"

"Aren't you afraid it's dirty?" she asked with a coquettish smile.

He took out the "Forest of Literature" from his bosom: "Sister Cuicui, can you temporarily keep this book for me? I'm afraid that when I eat the wontons, the soup will splash onto the book."

Zhang Cui Cui was stunned for a long time, then carefully held the book: "Eat, don't you dare give me money, or I'll really be angry."

"Okay," Zhao Chan replied.

The wontons were still chive-filled, and the youth ate very slowly.

Zhang Cuicui brought over a wooden stool, wiped it hard with her own clothes, and after confirming it was clean, gently placed the "Forest of Literature" copied by the private school teacher on the stool.

She turned her back.

Breathing rapidly.

It was a lie to say she wasn't angry or didn't care. Human words were terrifying; she was, after all, a mortal of flesh and blood, how could she face vicious rumors with indifference?

Sometimes, she really wanted to slaughter Youju Town and be done with it.

Fortunately, there was a kind youth.

After eating the wontons, Zhao Chan tucked away the "Forest of Literature": "Sister Cuicui, I'm full."

"Go home and rest," she turned around and smiled brilliantly.

The youth picked up the bowl and chopsticks he had used, walked to the water bucket behind the wonton stall, and washed them clean, which could be considered repaying the favor.

"Stupid kid..."

Zhao Chan ran a few steps, turned his head, and shouted: "Cui Cui Jie is a good person."

"Huh? What is the silly kid saying? Your Cui Cui Jie is really not a good person!"

Watching the back of the youth with the peach branch tucked at his waist, Zhang Cui Cui smiled very beautifully.

Charming like a demon fox.

She knew clearly in her heart that Zhao Chan was comforting her in his own way.

As it happened, Zhang Cui Cui also needed this kind of comfort that was as plain as water the most.

Wang Huan, who was searching for the sisters Bai Yuqing and Bai Youjun, stood at the street corner, watching this scene, and muttered to himself: "As expected of the Demon Slayer I picked, this kindness is the great fortune of the people of Youju Town."

Perhaps feeling that there was a successor, his exhausted body was instantly filled with energy.

Even as an Upper-grade Body Tempering Realm cultivator, facing that village full of Chang Ghosts yesterday had exhausted his strength; furthermore, during that time, he had used the Sword Out Shaking God strike to slash the Mountain Ghost that had disguised itself as Song Er.

That sword strike, while powerful, also put intense pressure on his physique.

He walked into Xizhao Inn.

Wang Huan scanned the room.

The troupe's performers were tidying up the props for the shadow puppet show in the hall, and the troupe leader, who had spoken with him last night, was drinking tea listlessly.

"An honored guest has arrived, an honored guest has arrived! Wang Lishi, how do you have time to come to Xizhao Inn?" The landlady Xie Wan raised her head from behind the counter, puffed out her proud chest, moved with lotus steps, and leaned toward Wang Huan, full of smiles.

"Shopkeeper Xie, how is business at the inn recently?"

"Oh, don't mention it. The autumn rain has been continuous, and business has been terrible these past few days. It's just that quite a few guests arrived yesterday, so my small business won't have to close down in a loss."

Wang Huan asked casually: "Are there any suspicious people staying or dining here?"

"Yes!" Xie Wan said seriously, "A group of merchants moved in, and this group doesn't look like good people!"

"Oh?"

"Wang Lishi might not know, but if Zhao Chan hadn't acted righteously last night, I... I wouldn't have the face to see anyone!"

"What exactly happened?" Hearing that it involved Zhao Chan, Wang Huan asked urgently.

Xie Wan embellished the conflict between Zhao Chan and the merchants, naturally portraying the merchants as wicked and Zhao Chan as a great person who eliminated harm for the people.

Hearing that Zhao Chan had pulled the banner to act as a tiger's skin, using the prestige of the Demon Slaying Division to scare off that group of merchants, Wang Huan felt relieved, thinking to himself that although the little toad was young, his methods were not bad.

Remembering that on that small mountain, facing the demon that had swatted away his iron sword, Zhao Chan had fiercely used a peach branch to sever the demon's body.

Such a youth joining the Youju Town Demon Slaying Division was truly a blessing for the people.

"I will go and warn the merchants later."

"Ah? Could it be that it's only a warning?" Xie Wan asked, unwilling to give up.

Wang Huan asked: "Or should I beat them up?"

"No, I think this group of people must be lawless criminals using the identity of merchants as a cover. Why not lock them in the Demon Slaying Division's prison and make them confess!"

He laughed in anger: "Shopkeeper Xie's suggestion is good, but I can't do it."

"Why?"

"Where is the evidence?"

"You Demon Slayers still need evidence?"

"Of course!"

A Ping watched the comic book and walked from the backyard to the hall.

Wang Huan sized up the stranger who walked in; he had a sword scar on his forehead, which must have touched the frontal bone when he was injured. He asked a question he already knew the answer to: "Is this hero an outsider?"

Xie Wan smiled: "Wang Lishi, his name is A Ping, he's my cousin, here from out of town to visit me."

"Oh, so that's how it is." Wang Huan seemed to believe it. "Besides A Ping, who else is at the inn?"

"No one else."

"No one else? Are you sure?"

"Wang Lishi, how can you say that? Could I lie to you?"

Wang Huan probed: "Was there not a pair of sisters staying at the inn last night?"

Xie Wan's eyes flickered, and she instantly realized he was referring to the woman in white and the girl in green: "There was indeed a pair of sisters and the troupe that came to the inn, but they didn't stay."

She emphasized the word "troupe."

Wang Huan's attention was diverted, and he temporarily gave up on questioning A Ping's identity, walking to the side of the troupe leader who was drinking tea: "Troupe Leader."

The troupe leader hurriedly stood up and invited him to sit.

They exchanged a few pleasantries.

Wang Huan asked: "Where are the two women from your troupe?"

"Women? Wang Lishi, all the women in the troupe are here. You see who..."

"Their names are Bai Yuqing and Bai Youjun."

"Ha, Wang Lishi is joking. The troupe has never had anyone named Bai Yuqing or Bai Youjun."

"Really?"

"Absolutely true. Even if you gave me a hundred guts, I wouldn't dare lie to the Demon Slaying Division."

Wang Huan turned and looked at Xie Wan.

She had been paying attention to their conversation, and seeing Wang Huan look at her, she shook her head, indicating that she didn't know anything else.

This troupe would come to Youju Town every autumn equinox, and the troupe leader and Wang Huan were also acquaintances.

"Troupe Leader, think carefully, could it be a new performer recruited by the troupe?"

The troupe leader affirmed: "There is definitely no one in the troupe named Bai Yuqing or Bai Youjun; in fact, this is the first time I've heard these two names."

"Alright, I understand."

"Could it be that a demon infestation has occurred? Are these the names of two demons?" the troupe leader asked in panic.

"No."

Wang Huan hadn't heard any relevant news at Xizhao Inn, so he decided to search around Youju Town.

The town was only so big; if the two sisters were still here, he would definitely run into them.

After Wang Huan left, Xie Wan said softly to A Ping: "It's starting to become troublesome."

A Ping sighed: "Last night, the girl in green followed Zhao Chan, and afterward, Zhao Chan found the woman in white.

The woman in white used magic power to isolate their conversation."

Xie Wan sneered: "Outside Youju Town there is a Mountain Ghost that everyone covets, what else could it be? They are interested in the Mountain Ghost."

"Zhao Chan carries the ghost Qi of the Mountain Ghost on him; it was my lack of consideration," A Ping said. "I should have quietly washed away the Mountain Ghost's aura from him."