Night fell again and Changyuan Street became very quiet. After two consecutive murders, the residents of this street became very careful. When night fell, they did not dare to make any noise. They shut their doors and windows and even placed defensive equipment by their bedsides. Rolling pins and kitchen knives were the most common items.
The county office was very tight-lipped. Some people who were well-informed only knew that two murders occurred on Changyuan Street. The few people's deaths were fishy, but they did not know clearly that it was the work of demons.
Hence, there was not too much panic that spread in the county.
In the dark night, at a street corner of Changyuan Street, Magistrate Mi Ke and a group of court underlings were currently standing guard here, all nervously looking at Changyuan Street in the night.
"What's Warden Chen doing? Why isn't he here yet?"
Mi Ke turned his head to look in the distance, but he did not see any figure. His heart which leaped to his throat was even in a flustered state. Now, seeing that it was almost time, why was this guy not here yet?
He bet his own life on Chen Chao. If this guy was not reliable, his body that was over 100 pounds would be forfeited.
Registrar Zhang carried a steel saber. At this moment, his eyes did not have much fear. On the contrary, he was a little excited. He lowered his voice and said, "Warden Chen is a martial path powerhouse, he's likely already here. It's likely that he's not meeting up with us in order to not alert the enemy."
Don't look at how Registrar Zhang looked boorish, in reality, his mind was unusually meticulous. Otherwise, he could not have held this position of official registrar for so many years too.
Mi Ke nodded his head and said doubtfully, "The demon this time shouldn't be tough to subdue, right?" "Do you know what realm Warden Chen is?"
Registrar Zhang shook his head and whispered, "Either way, he should be a pure martial artist. As for what realm, this lowly official can't say for sure either."
Cultivators and martial artists coexisted in Great Liang Dynasty. Martial artists were simple; there was only one path. But, cultivators had many diverse paths. There were various sects and schools of thought; each with its own divine abilities. Those who had not set foot on the cultivation path could not explain the intricacies. Laymen such as Registrar Zhang only knew that the world seemingly divided cultivation realms into six stages. It was all universal whether was it cultivators or martial artists.
Six realms. There was a saying that each realm was a layer of firmament.
As for which realm that young warden presently was, he did not know either.
But, just these few years of peaceful days, it constantly reminded them that the realm of that mysterious young warden was absolutely not low.
Also, there was no need to think too much. If even Chen Chao could not deal with the demon, this group of people teaming up would not be a match for it too.
It was not known whether or not Mi Ke had ever thought that Chen Chao would leave this place one day. Anyway, every time Registrar Zhang thought about it, he would feel great pain.
Just as Registrar Zhang was feeling pain all on his own, he suddenly discovered that Lord Magistrate next to him also revealed a pained expression on his face.
Registrar Zhang was stunned and actually felt somewhat touched for a moment. Could it be that he had such a heart-to-heart connection with His Excellency?
Just as Registrar Zhang's eyes were about to brim over with tears, Mi Ke already placed a hand on his shoulder and slightly exerted strength, making Registrar Zhang feel something that he... had never felt before.
His bearded face turned slightly red and he actually felt a little shy.
At this moment, countless thoughts flashed in his mind.
"What's wrong, Your Excellency?" Registrar Zhang asked with concern.
"My legs are numb." Mi Ke frowned. Only then, did his entire face relax and the pained expression faded. He tried his best to lean against Registrar Zhang so that his legs would not have to exert strength.
Registrar Zhang instantly became lost in deep reverie, feeling as if something had drifted away.
"It's going to be 10 pm soon, is Chen Chao that kid coming or not? Why isn't there any activities at all?!" Mi Ke gradually became irritated and began losing composure.
……
……
When Chen Chao left, the sky was not dark yet. Xie Nandu moved that newly-bought stove out. Sitting on that old chair under the porch, she lit the charcoal inside.
It was her first time doing something like this. At first, she seemed a little clumsy. But very soon, she could handle it with skill and ease. After lighting the stove that she paid money for, Xie Nandu grabbed a handful of snow to wash her hands and sat back down. Extending her hands, the two snow-white hands began to steam with white vapor.
Looking at that brand-new stove, she felt a little disappointed. It was likely because there were no sweet potatoes.
Compared to those things that she ate in the past, sweet potatoes were really something not worth mentioning. But, she had never experienced that kind of sweetness before.
Her hands became dry very quickly.
But, a gust of wind howled behind her.
Only to hear a creak, the wooden door in the courtyard was slammed heavily against the courtyard walls on both sides.
Wind and snow poured into this small courtyard.
Along with the wind and snow, there was also a figure.
He passed through the courtyard and arrived under the porch, shaking off the snow on his body.
Xie Nandu did not turn her head. She still had both hands placed above the stove and did not speak.
Only when that person reached a distance of several feet behind her, did she retract her hands. Standing up, she walked over to the bench opposite the stove and sat down. This time, she was face-to-face with that person.
The arrival was a young man with feminine looks. His complexion was pale and his body was thin. He was dressed in a thick, white cotton robe.
"Worthy of being the most outstanding descendant of White Deer's Xie Clan in this generation. With this composure alone, there won't be any problems gaining a firm foothold in the Divine Capital." The young man opened his mouth with a slight smile, his voice full of appreciation.
"But, since you've guessed something, why didn't you stick with that young warden at all times?" "Is it that you don't want to implicate him?" The young man smiled. "White Deer's Xie Clan is ultimately a level inferior to the Divine Capital's Xie Clan."
The teenage girl seating on the bench said calmly, "This is between us. There's no need to implicate others."
"I originally thought that you'd die in that mountain god temple. But I didn't expect that your luck is pretty good." The young man's voice was very faint; as if describing the most ordinary matter that had nothing worth paying attention to.
"Looks like Song Lian that old fellow is still quite capable."
Luring a blood demon to kill the young girl's party on that mountain was his original plan. But, he did not expect that the Song Lian who was already an arrow at the end of its flight, could really leave a glimmer of hope for this young maiden.
"Since you're so scared of people knowing, wouldn't killing me here leave behind more clues? Aren't you scared?" Xie Nandu looked at the young man and said calmly, "Methods of rearing demons, even if it's disguised as demons eating people, as long as a big shot from the Divine Capital comes, they're bound to find many flaws."
The young man nodded his head; very much in agreement with this, "It was indeed my fault before. I felt that I had to make your death flawless without any traces. But only later, did I understand one thing. After you're dead, there won't be so many problems anymore. After all, who'd go to war for a dead person?"
Xie Nandu shook her head, "White Deer's Xie Clan won't let their most outstanding descendant die so bafflingly."
"You're wrong. If you're really a genius; young but prudent and capable, then you won't die here. If you die here, how can you live up to the word genius?"
The young man had a mocking look, "If you're not a genius, who cares whether you're dead or not."
Xie Nandu stopped talking. At this point, she already knew the cause of everything that had happened.
There was someone in the Divine Capital who did not want her to appear safely in the Divine Capital. But, it was absolutely impossible for that person to influence the true big shots of the Divine Capital's Xie Clan. His means could not hide from the eyes of those big shots too. Being able to accomplish all these, he had clearly received tacit consent.
Even her time of departure from White Deer, how many retainers she had, how high their realms, it was all acquiesced by someone.
Why acquiesce?
Xie Nandu had a strange emotion in her eyes. But, it merely flashed across before fading; instantly returning to tranquility. This young girl who was considered to have gone through all kinds of hardships and difficulties before arriving at Tianqing County just said calmly, "Presumably, those big shots in the Divine Capital don't mean me any harm."
The young man nodded and said, "Yes. They merely wanted to have a look. Otherwise, why would it be me?"
"Aren't you afraid that you'll really become a scapegoat in the end?" Xie Nandu looked at him and said in a calm voice, "I have another option for you to choose from."
The look of appreciation in the young man's eyes did not dissipate. But he still shook his head, "What a shame."
Seeing that this young man was so determined, Xie Nandu smiled and did not speak.
The young man glanced at the sky and let out a sigh, "I really want to talk to you more. But, there's not enough time."
He shook his head with some regret.
A mass of black-colored demonic qi poured out of the ground in front of the young man. A ferocious-looking demon instantly appeared. Its entire body was pitch-black and it was incomparably hideous. Thick demonic qi surrounded it, making people feel stifled at a glance.
”It's really quite a shame that a beauty like you will be eaten by such an ugly demon. But, it's something that can't be helped too." The young man shook his head sadly and then he waved his hand.
A strange aura poured out from his finger and slowly dissipated.
That ugly demon instantly started to run!
A short distance of several dozen feet, that demon only needed a breath of time to arrive in front of Xie Nandu and completely kill this teenage girl who was the most highly regarded in this generation of White Deer's Xie Clan!
The young man narrowed his eyes, seemingly already able to foresee the outcome of this story.
In the next second.
Clank-
A loud noise sounded out!
That demon failed to come into contact with Xie Nandu.
A black figure jumped down from the room and instantly rushed towards that demon.
The tremendous impact instantly took that demon out of the corridor.
The demon let out a strange cry, but immediately, the sound disappeared.
What replaced its cry was the sound of some blunt tool striking flesh and blood.
There were continuous sounds, like a series of spring thunders.
But wasn't it still winter now?
The black figure held down that demon and fell into the snow. Moments later, there was no more sound.
The heavy snow that filled the sky suddenly paused. When it returned to normal again, that black figure already rose from the snow.
It was Chen Chao.
The youth in black who was covered in snow lifted his head. Along with the circulation of vital qi within his body, the snow on his black clothes was instantly blown away. Snowflakes could no longer land on the young man's body.
The youth in black who was standing in the snowstorm was filled with surging blood vitality!
He looked at that young man standing under the porch. There were no unnecessary emotions in that pair of eyes that were as bright as stars.
The young man frowned and was just about to open his mouth when that youth in black who was in the courtyard instantly tensed up the muscles in his whole body. His body which was originally slightly bowed straightened in an instant. Like an arrow that left the bow, he stepped on the ground and already shot towards that young man!
Previously, that demon was several dozen feet away from Xie Nandu. Now, Chen Chao was also several dozen feet away from this young man. The demon was pummeled to death by Chen Chao with a few punches before it could come into contact with Xie Nandu. At present, could he come into contact with that young man's body or not?
Regardless of how much immortal cultivators looked down on martial artists, everyone was clear that once a cultivator let a martial artist get close, it definitely would not be a good outcome.
After the young man briefly lost focus, when he came back to his senses, he tapped his feet and already retreated out of the long corridor, returning to the courtyard anew.
Compared to Chen Chao who was akin to a ferocious beast, his movements were clearly more elegant; more in line with those so-called immortals' demeanor.
Prior to this, he already knew the identity of that youth in black who came roaring into existence. He was this Tianqing County's warden. But, he did not expect that this measly little county warden, his realm was actually much higher than he expected!
Was it Spirit Platform or was it Divine Trove?
If he was a Spirit Platform martial artist, he could still engage in battle. But if it was a Divine Trove martial artist opposite, then...
"Do you know..."
The young man floated in midair, vital qi lingering between his fingers. He opened his mouth, but his words were only half-spoken before it was stopped abruptly.
That youth in black who was akin to a ferocious beast already disappeared in an instant. While he was still stunned, his figure already appeared in front of him again.
A delicate face appeared before his eyes.
The expressionless youth in black just looked at him like that.
Without waiting for him to have any reaction, a fist that was not considered too big or small already smashed his face head-on!
Crack-
With a crisp sound, the young man's nose bridge shattered with a loud noise. The intense pain made him temporarily stop thinking. Immediately after, he felt pain coming from everywhere in his body.
The sound of bones breaking was sounding out continuously. Those punches also kept on falling; pitter-patter, like the sound of raindrops falling on roof tiles.
No idea how long had passed. It seemed to be just a moment, but also seemed like a long time had passed.
The sound finally stopped.
Xie Nandu looked at this scene that was currently happening in the courtyard and felt somewhat spellbound.
At this moment, it was as if she returned to that night in the mountain god temple. The same quiet youth was silently doing what he wanted to do.
It was as if only during battle, was that youth dressed in black clothes his true self.
By the time Xie Nandu returned to her senses, Chen Chao already dragged that young man who was exhaling more than what he was inhaling under the porch. He spat out a turbid breath as his chest heaved unsteadily; adjusting his breathing.
Xie Nandu was just about to open her mouth.
But very soon, she saw that Chen Chao was already squatting in front of that young man. He completely ignored the young man who still had blood gushing out of his mouth and started searching for items on that young man's body with a serious face.
Looking at his appearance, he seemed a little excited.
Xie Nandu looked at this scene and became absent-minded again.
She stood in the wind; a little messy.
