"Brother Shen, why aren’t you sleeping?"
A ghostly and eerie voice rose from behind, instantly making Shen Changqing’s hair stand on end.
Without any hesitation, he smashed through the courtyard door with a palm strike and then rushed outside.
After bursting out of the courtyard, Shen Changqing didn’t look back and headed straight into the distance. Only after a long while did he stop. Looking back, he saw that he had left the courtyard far behind him.
At this mont, Shen Changqing’s rapidly beating heart gradually slowed.
"What on earth was that thing!"
He could now be certain that Mo Zijin definitely had a problem. He had clearly seen the other person enter the room, but when Shen Changqing himself was leaving, Mo Zijin had unexpectedly appeared behind him.
With Shen Changqing’s current realm, no movent within ten zhang could escape his senses.
But he hadn’t noticed Mo Zijin’s footsteps at all.
Even more so, if the other party hadn’t spoken, Shen Changqing would never have known that there was soone standing behind him.
"If he’s a Demon Evil, how co there’s no Yin Evil Aura at all, and why hasn’t he attacked from start to finish—"
After the shock subsided, he had already cald down.
Perhaps! Should I go back and see?
A thought like this popped into Shen Changqing’s mind. If he didn’t investigate the situation and fled in such a panic, he would feel sowhat unwilling.
I left directly earlier, and Mo Zijin didn’t try to stop . It could be because he didn’t want to, or perhaps he couldn’t. In that case, if I turn back now and remain cautious enough, I believe there shouldn’t be a problem.
After estimating the risks of returning, Shen Changqing quietly retraced his steps along the original path.
It was dark. Only the lights in the courtyard guided travelers.
When Shen Changqing approached the courtyard, he saw the door open and Mo Zijin standing there, calmly eting his gaze.
eting Mo Zijin’s gaze didn’t particularly alarm Shen Changqing, but when his eyes shifted to the courtyard door, his pupils suddenly contracted.
Intact!
He clearly rembered having smashed his way out through that door. Such force should have shattered it to pieces. But now, the door was undamaged, which suggested a lot.
"Traveling at night is inconvenient. Brother Shen might as well rest here," Mo Zijin said in a gentle voice, his smile appearing warm on the surface but inexplicably chilling to Shen Changqing.
"What exactly are you?"
"What do you an by that, Brother Shen?" Mo Zijin asked, feigning puzzlent.
Imdiately after, he gestured with his hand. "Co back quickly; it’s going to rain again soon."
Observing Mo Zijin’s expression, Shen Changqing felt his wariness increase further. However, he also noticed sothing else: from beginning to end, Mo Zijin had only stood at the entrance of the courtyard, showing no intention of stepping out.
Could it be that he cannot leave the courtyard? Shen Changqing speculated.
But the doubts in his heart only grew. After all, Mo Zijin hadn’t shown even the slightest trace of Yin Evil Aura from start to finish; he didn’t look like a powerful Demon Evil. However, it was clear there was sothing wrong with him.
After a long, hard look at Mo Zijin, Shen Changqing decided it was best to retreat for now. What stood before him was less a person and more so unknown entity. With his current knowledge, he couldn’t understand much.
However, records may exist within the Demon-Subduing Division. It seems I need to return to the Demon-Subduing Division and investigate thoroughly.
Making his decision, Shen Changqing withdrew. The thing in the courtyard was too eerie, and until he was sure of its capabilities, he didn’t want to provoke a major conflict.
Many Demon Hunters from previous generations had died on missions, and so had died purely due to their own recklessness. The experiences of predecessors serve as lessons for those who follow. Shen Changqing felt that his own survival was paramount.
Watching him leave, Mo Zijin’s expression remained calm as he muttered so words to himself. Only when Shen Changqing’s figure had completely vanished did he close his mouth and go back inside.
The courtyard door closed quietly.
Outside, the horse tied under the tree was still there.
Shen Changqing had no imdiate intention of continuing his journey. With the rain having stopped, he found an uneven stone in an open area. His Heavenly Centipede True Qi flared, evaporating all the water from the stone. With a leap, he managed to find a sowhat comfortable position atop it.
He sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes, entering a state of rest.
The wilderness wasn’t safe; deep cultivation would inevitably lead to disturbances. The main problem was that his Heavenly Martial Gang Qi had reached an unprecedented thirteenth layer, and there were no further cultivation thods available, making further progress impossible.
The night passed quickly.
At the mont the eastern sky began to show the first light of dawn, Shen Changqing’s abdon suddenly contracted. His mouth opened slightly, and he ingested a wisp of purple qi.
As the purple qi entered his belly, his True Qi seed to strengthen by a fraction, yet it also felt unchanged.
With a leap, he landed on the ground. He approached the horse, untied the reins from the tree, mounted, and continued towards the Capital City.
Considerable ti passed.
Ten days later, Shen Changqing finally caught sight of the city walls of the Capital City. Alas, the horse he had purchased in Lin’an City ultimately collapsed on the road to the Capital City. However, by then, he was not far from his destination. Even without a horse, it wouldn’t take much longer.
Compared to Lin’an City, the walls of the Capital City were very high, with soldiers patrolling day and night. The city gates were also heavily guarded and under martial law; everyone entering the city was subject to inspection and had to show their travel pass.
This so-called travel pass, in Shen Changqing’s understanding, was much like the ID card from his previous life.
"Halt! Show your travel pass!"
When it was Shen Changqing’s turn to enter the city, a soldier directly intercepted him. Seeing this, Shen Changqing took out his Identity Token.
The soldier’s expression changed instantly upon seeing it, and his previously indifferent tone beca enthusiastic. "So it is an esteed sir from the Demon-Subduing Division! Forgive my rudeness, sir. Please enter."
"Mm," Shen Changqing nodded, tucked his Identity Token back into his pocket, and walked straight in.
Once inside the city, a hubbub of noise incessantly filled his ears. Looking around, he could see throngs of people everywhere. The liveliness was incomparable to any other place.
Shen Changqing paused to take in the sights for a mont, then headed towards the Demon-Subduing Division.
The Capital City was divided into an outer city and an inner city. The outer city was where the commoners resided and was the most bustling part of the entire Capital City. As for the inner city, only nobles and high-ranking court officials were qualified to reside there. Ordinary citizens, let alone residing in the inner city, might not even be qualified to set foot inside.
Thus, the inner city was comparatively empty, lacking the vibrant bustle of the outer city.
The Demon-Subduing Division, as one of Great Qin’s important institutions, was also located within the inner city.
To get from the outer city to the inner city, one had to pass through an important checkpoint, established to prevent those with ill intentions from sneaking in.
After Shen Changqing showed his Demon Hunter’s Identity Token, he entered the inner city without any obstruction.
For the people of Great Qin, one could offend anyone but never a mber of the Demon-Subduing Division. This was a common understanding. Historically, those who had offended the Demon-Subduing Division never t a good end, no matter how powerful they were; unless one was the current Sovereign, a grim fate was likely.
Over ti, the na of the Demon-Subduing Division beca deeply ingrained in people’s hearts.
An institution as prominent as the midday sun... if it were in an Imperial Dynasty from my previous world, it would have been suppressed long ago. Now, within Great Qin, not only has the Demon-Subduing Division not faced any suppression, but it is also strongly supported by the Imperial Family. It’s impossible that this isn’t related to the Demon Evils.
Walking through the inner city, Shen Changqing processed so of the things he’d heard, and understanding dawned on him.
The principle of ritorious service overshadowing the ruler applies everywhere. The Demon-Subduing Division is currently at its zenith, yet the Imperial Family hasn’t suppressed it. This is clearly because of the rampant Demon Evils. If the Demon-Subduing Division were suppressed, who could deal with the Demon Evils? Although Great Qin has many capable of fighting Demon Evils, the vast majority are from the Demon-Subduing Division. If the Demon-Subduing Division ceased to exist, most of Great Qin’s territories would beco a paradise for Demon Evils.
However, among the upper echelons of the Demon-Subduing Division, there must be mbers of the Imperial Family. After all, even if the current Sovereign trusts the Demon-Subduing Division implicitly and is wary of the Demon Evils, it’s impossible for him to have made no contingency plans.
Shen Changqing did not know much about these matters; he was just a recently promoted Yellow Rank Demon Hunter, not qualified to learn about things at such a high level.
He might never have eaten pork, but he had seen pigs run. So things, he was very clear about.
Although the inner city was sparsely populated, it was by no ans small. It took Shen Changqing half an hour to reach the gate of the Demon-Subduing Division.
He showed his Identity Token and, without any obstruction, stepped onto the premises of the Demon-Subduing Division.
In an instant, a familiar scent of blood rushed to et him. Unlike the peace outside, the Demon-Subduing Division was always filled with a chilling solemnity that made one’s heart palpitate.
If this had been when he first arrived in this world, Shen Changqing would have felt intensely uncomfortable with such an atmosphere. Over ti, he had grown accustod to it. Now, after spending considerable ti away on a mission, returning to the Demon-Subduing Division’s atmosphere instead gave him a sense of comfort.
"Ho at last!" Shen Changqing sighed.
For him, the Demon-Subduing Division was his ho in this world. To others, it might be a tiger’s den. But for Shen Changqing himself, the Demon-Subduing Division had beco a ho.
After this mont of reflection, Shen Changqing didn’t go directly to report to Jiang Zuo; instead, he first returned to his own small courtyard.
He opened the courtyard gate; everything was as he had left it. However, when he reached his room and pushed open the door, a musty odor assaulted his senses, and a bit of dust rose into the air.
Seeing this, Shen Changqing’s True Qi surged forth, sweeping all the mustiness and dust out in one fell swoop.
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