Chapter 413: Dividing the Treasures

The light of heaven fell, revealing the horrific scene of Zi Yun.

The impact of those stone giants could not be ignored; when they charged and slammed into the city wall, even the thick brick-and-stone ramparts cracked and shattered in large sections. The great demons who leapt onto the wall also possessed immense destructive power—merely using their sharp claws, they could tear apart the wall and battlements like tofu.

Had it not been for Little Xiao Shimei, Lin Jue, Third Third Shixiong, and Good Fuyao, the city's garrison and the extraordinary individuals of the Ju Xian Mansion would have been torn apart at once.

Everywhere were traces of axe cuts, sword slashes, smoke, and fire.

Fortunately, Zi Yun had been relatively well defended; few demons had breached the wall, and even Dong Wang Mu's Tunyang Array had not yet formed, so the devastation was concentrated solely along the wall.

Inside, fewer than a few dozen houses had collapsed, and most civilian casualties were caused by venomous insects and ferocious birds.

Even so, Lin Jue still heard many cries of weeping.

Many neighbors and townsfolk had gathered spontaneously; the county magistrate had summoned clerks and constables to dig through the ruins, rescue those buried beneath, treat the wounded, and comfort the people.

The sky was now fully bright; though outside everything was in ruins, it was eerily quiet, and the extraordinary individuals and Daoists finally relaxed, joining in to help.

In this age, soldiers and civilians had little connection, and the defending troops had suffered heavy losses, so they mostly stood by indifferently—until they saw the extraordinary individuals and Yishan Daoists rushing to assist, at which point the garrison commander ordered some uninjured soldiers to follow and lend aid.

Third Third Shixiong ordered the Bean Soldiers to lift the beams and pillars.

Little Xiao Shimei smashed a wall with one palm, used her art to move aside the rubble, and rescued the people trapped inside.

Fifth Third Shixiong swiftly sealed the blood and halted the qi.

Second Third Shixiong did not withhold his pills.

They worked tirelessly from morning until noon.

Outside the city, all movement had ceased; even ordinary birds dared not fly over, and beasts avoided the area entirely.

Only then did Lin Jue find time to return to the watchtower and, with his brothers, examine the magical artifacts and treasures left behind by the demons.

Dong Wang Mu was clearly the underground demon king; last night, countless demons had gathered outside the city. Even though most possessed no magical artifacts, and many had been damaged in battle, quite a few still remained.

After careful counting, at least several dozen were intact.

Most of these treasures had offensive or defensive effects.

Third Third Shixiong picked up a short sword, swung it once, and instantly a thin bolt of lightning shot out, striking the ground.

He immediately looked down at his robe, where a charred patch remained from last night.

"This thing can release lightning—it belonged to a fox demon. I fell victim to it last night," Third Third Shixiong said. "But now this lightning is thinner than it was last night… Huh? It has spiritual resonance, yet I cannot channel qi into it. Could it be absorbing thunder during rainstorms on its own?"

The fox heard him mention "fox demon," twitched its ears, and turned to glance at him.

"That must be it."

Lin Jue also picked up a fan from the pile of artifacts—it was made of five-colored feathers, quite beautiful. When he waved it toward the ground, a sharp gust of wind sounded—

A crack appeared on the floor tiles.

"This fan works the same way. I saw a demon use it yesterday to shatter a hero's shield—but it weakens with each swing, as if it needs to absorb wind power in a strong breeze to recover."

"That's interesting."

"The advantage is you don't need qi to use it; the drawback is you can't use it continuously," Lin Jue nodded. "It would suit my brothers well after they take disciples—leave it for them while their cultivation is still low."

Second Third Shixiong picked up a hammer, struck the ground lightly—and a floor tile shattered.

"Earth-element artifact. Can split stone and crack the earth."

Seventh Third Shixiong picked up a soft whip, aimed at a nearby pillar, and swung casually. Though the whip's length fell short of the pillar's distance, it inexplicably stretched and struck the pillar.

"Huh?"

Seventh Third Shixiong swung again.

This time, the whip stretched even longer—not only striking the pillar, but wrapping around it once.

"This thing is poisonous."

Second Third Shixiong glanced once and declared his judgment.

There were mirrors that revealed cold qi, war drums that emitted thunderclaps, ropes that bound targets—various and each strangely unique.

Some had combat power but not directly—

For example, a bronze tea-flower lantern: when lit, it emitted enchanting smoke, within which illusions of terrifying great demons could be seen.

For example, a bell that, when shaken, released brilliant golden light—not only dazzling, but also dispelling yin evils and common illusions.

A few had no direct combat function yet were equally wondrous—

For example, a robe that, when worn, transformed the wearer into a thicket, allowing concealment in mountains and forests, nearly impossible to detect.

A mirror that could make one's shadow vanish, then release it again to deceive others with a false image.

A conch shell that could store sounds, replay them, amplify distant sounds, or create echoes.

A brush that, when used to draw ordinary objects, could briefly make them real.

For example, an umbrella that rained when opened, and a jade horse with a similar effect to the paper donkey;

Such magical artifacts were few.

It wasn't that they were inherently rarer, so few great demons possessed them. From Lin Jue's experience, most people crave comfort; such artifacts, like mundane tools, are always more numerous than those with direct combat power when peaceful years outweigh turbulent ones. The reason is simple: this was an expedition. The great demons with deep roots preferred to carry only artifacts aiding battle, leaving the rest in their caves.

Who knows how many remain now. "Don't be modest—my brothers, choose first," Lin Jue remained humble.

"Why hasn't Little Xiao Shimei returned? Let her choose first," First Third Shixiong said.

"No need to wait. We all know her tastes—just don't compete with her," Lin Jue said.

"Fair enough."

The brothers no longer held back.

Each brother had different temperaments, preferences, lifestyles, cultivation methods, and needs, so they naturally chose different artifacts.

Naturally, they all understood that though they, the brothers, had played a decisive role in defending Zi Yun County, they could not ignore or deny the contributions of the extraordinary individuals who followed Lin Jue—so they could not claim everything. Since those people followed Little Third Shixiong, they naturally left the remainder for him.

The Daoists were modest; each took one or two items, and that was enough.

Only then did the sister return from outside.

"Little Xiao Shimei's back?"

No one missed a single word, a single hair, a single detail!

"Little Xiao Shimei! Come divide the treasures!"

"Huh? What's in your arms?"

As she stepped into the light, everyone saw that, besides a fly-whisk, she cradled an infant.

And Xiao Hua walked beside her feet.

Little Xiao Shimei frowned and said, "Brothers, it's over—this child's parents were crushed by falling buildings. I asked every neighbor, found no other relatives. What do we do?"

First Third Shixiong went to inspect, his eyes gleaming.

The child had a delicate face, slept peacefully, as if unaware of last night's events.

"This child has excellent talent—her five qi are balanced. If she truly has no kin, she is destined for us," First Third Shixiong looked around. "Brothers, who wants to take a disciple?"

Several brothers exchanged glances.

…

Several days later.

Zi Yun City was calm; Mo Du Mountain was the same.

The Nine of Fuqiu had moved back from the watchtower to the county posthouse, where carved railings, painted beams, and floating gauze curtains made it seem like an untouched palace—startling the newly arrived brothers.

But none had the heart to dwell on it or tease Third Third Shixiong now, so they let it pass.

Under Fifth Third Shixiong's healing and Second Third Shixiong's pills, everyone's exhaustion and injuries healed rapidly—even Fourth and Seventh Brothers, the most severely wounded, recovered. As for the fox, its body seemed sturdier than that of other great demons of equal cultivation; its wounds had healed at an astonishing speed by the next day.

Each brother chose one or two artifacts.

First Third Shixiong took the umbrella that rained mist when opened—no one knew if he meant to give it to his future disciple or use it to water vegetables;

Second Third Shixiong took the fan that could fan wind to aid fire—likely to assist in alchemy;

Third Third Shixiong took the jade horse—he had long envied Lin Jue's paper donkey;

Fourth Third Shixiong, with refined tastes, fond of brushes, ink, paper, inkstone, zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting, took the brush that could briefly make drawings real;

Fifth Third Shixiong chose a bone pendant for protection;

Sixth Third Shixiong took the bronze tea-flower lantern;

Seventh Third Shixiong unhesitatingly picked the echo conch—no one knew what sounds he meant to record;

Little Xiao Shimei chose the colorful feather fan that could unleash powerful gusts;

Lin Jue also selected one or two.

The brothers, thoughtful, left him the artifacts with direct killing power—and Lin Jue gave most of these to the extraordinary individuals who followed him.

Having defended Zi Yun together for months, he knew their characters well. After the great battle, they knew how they viewed Lin Zhen. These artifacts would not be wasted—though "wasted" was not the right word; these extraordinary individuals had risked their lives to come here and slay demons—they were righteous men. Morally and emotionally, they deserved a share. Even if they later parted ways with Lin Jue after returning to the capital, they would surely make their mark in the coming chaos.

At this moment, the nine brothers agreed to visit Mo Du Mountain.

"Princess Hua, please watch over this child," Little Xiao Shimei handed the infant to Princess Hua. "I'll take her as my disciple when I return."

"Rest assured."

Princess Hua, dignified and courteous, smiled and accepted.

Little Xiao Shimei thanked her, then turned to her brothers.

She saw First Third Shixiong and the others already prepared, carrying the Move-Mountain Mirror and many artifacts, shouldering Third Third Shixiong's sack—but no sign of Little Third Shixiong.

Looking down, she saw Little Third Shixiong had shrunk to tiny size, standing on the ground at the doorway—so small he could trip over a crack in the floor tiles. Good Fuyao stood beside him, no larger than a cat, holding a dog-tail grass it had found, swinging it idly, solemnly harassing Little Third Shixiong.

Little Third Shixiong kept bending over, trying to swat it away.

Xiao Hua sat nearby, watching intently.

"Let's go."

First Third Shixiong stepped forward; the brothers followed, light as swallows, feet stirring wind, swiftly leaving.

Little Third Shixiong quickly brushed aside the dog-tail grass and climbed onto Good Fuyao.

The fox tapped the ground and rode the wind onto the roof.

The junior sister then followed after him.

The group each employed their own methods, displaying their unique abilities, and left the city.

(End of Chapter)