The rapid sound of horse hooves echoed along the official road.
Zhang Zongnian urged his mount on, riding hard, rushing toward Hengqiao Town.
All along the way, his heart burned with anxiety, images constantly surfacing in his mind of his old mother being tormented in various ways by the Yang Family Demon.
He admitted that he had been too naïve in the past, thinking too highly of the Yang Family Demon.
He had previously believed that, with the Yang Family in control of the Xichuan Demon-Slaying Bureau, monopolizing all the cultivation resources in the county—though guilty of favoritism and channeling all resources to their own family, wielding their power single-handedly in Xichuan—they were still, as protectors of the Xichuan people, those who stood against evil, and should more or less count as decent folk.
He never expected they could be so utterly without scruples.
To cover up their crimes, they had murdered villagers, wiped out an entire village, and pinned the crime on him, then issued a citywide Demon-Slaying Bureau warrant for his arrest.
This made him realize completely that the Yang Family Demon was no different from those Evil Cultivators who harmed the people for the sake of their own cultivation.
Of the two hundred plus villagers of Li Family Hollow, when he entered the village, only a dozen had been killed by that female Evil Cultivator; the other nearly two hundred lives had all been taken by the Yang Family Demon.
The Yang Family Demon were nothing but fiends wearing human skins.
With his mother in their hands, what hope could there be?
What the Yang Family feared was only that he would expose their crimes to the Inspector Envoy.
He had also thought about disregarding everything, fleeing Xichuan, and heading straight for the County Prefecture to report what had happened.
But if he did that, all that would await him upon his return would be collecting his mother’s corpse.
He had been born right after his father died of illness, and his mother had raised him alone, enduring much hardship.
Mother and son had depended on each other for so many years, their bond deep; he couldn’t bring himself to abandon her and flee alone.
He decided to find the Yang Family, willingly confess, admit to all those terrible deeds, and beg them not to trouble his mother, but to spare her life.
After all, his right hand was already crippled, and he himself was now nothing but a broken man; living on was meaningless, so he would use this ruined life of his to trade for his mother’s, to repay her for raising him.
From time to time, he also thought of Lin Xue.
Lin Xue’s sudden appearance was like a warm ray of sunlight, suddenly illuminating his monotonous life.
After only a few hours together, she had become unforgettable to him.
He also understood that his current plight was all because he had saved Lin Xue.
But he had no regrets.
If, on that night, he had done nothing and just watched Lin Xue be ruined by Yang Yuhai, that beast, he felt he would never forgive himself for the rest of his life.
If he had the chance again, he would still, without hesitation, step forward to stop Yang Yuhai’s atrocity.
And this time, he would choose to pierce Yang Yuhai, that beast, through the heart with his sword.
Zhang Zongnian was riding hard when, rounding a bend ahead, he suddenly saw a group of five people approaching.
All five wore the black uniforms of the Demon-Slaying Bureau, riding Wooden Horses, listlessly meandering along the road.
It was the Heiyi Wei.
Zhang Zongnian slowed his pace.
The five on the opposite side spotted him as well.
The leading Heiyi Wei glanced at the Wooden Horse he was riding, yawned, and asked him in a lackadaisical tone, “Which family’s Cultivator are you? Name and surname? Do you have identification?”
Zhang Zongnian stopped his horse, remained where he was, and said, “I am Zhang Zongnian.”
All the Heiyi Wei were visibly shocked.
Their lazy demeanor vanished in an instant, “clang-clang-clang,” as they drew their long knives from their waists and surrounded him.
One of them pulled out a scroll, opened it, and checked.
“It really is this kid!” That man exclaimed in delight.
The others’ faces lit up with excitement as well.
“Don’t move!” “Grab him quick, don’t let him get away!”
They all rushed forward, dragged Zhang Zongnian off his horse, and one took out a rope to bind him.
Zhang Zongnian raised his hands, offering no resistance, letting them tie him up securely.
He knew that if he resisted, they could kill him on the spot and take his head back to claim the bounty all the same.
Besides, with the five of them at mid-stage Refining Qi, he had no reason to resist at all.
He said, “Gentlemen, brothers, please take me to see Duwei Yang Yuting, I have something to say.”
The leader of the Heiyi Wei sneered, “Relax, we were going to take you to see him anyway.”
“Yang Duwei is in your Hengqiao Town right now, waiting for you.”
Zhang Zongnian fell silent.
The five finished tying him up, threw him over a horse’s back, and escorted him toward Hengqiao Town.
Along the way, the five cheerfully discussed:
“Last night I was sleeping soundly when the captain woke us, saying there was some emergency, told us to search for a wanted criminal along the road. I thought it was bad luck, getting stuck with such a lousy job. Who knew the wanted man would actually fall right into our hands?”
“Yeah, and it’s just our luck too! There are more than a dozen search teams on the road, but we got him first. When the others hear about this, they’ll be green with envy, hahahaha.”
“We’ve hit it big this time. The reward is five hundred Spirit Stones and one Lower-grade Barrier-breaking Pill. That Lower-grade Barrier-breaking Pill is worth quite a bit, too.”
“Too bad that seducing Zhujing Yaojing didn’t stick with the kid. Otherwise, if we caught that Zhujing Yaojing as well, we could get another big bounty! And one Middle-grade Barrier-breaking Pill!”
“A Middle-grade Barrier-breaking Pill, huh, take that and you can reach late-stage Refining Qi. I’ve been stuck at the sixth layer for eight years, just waiting for that Middle-grade Barrier-breaking Pill.”
Someone turned to ask Zhang Zongnian, “Hey, kid, where’s that Zhujing Yaojing that seduced you?”
Zhang Zongnian, tightly bound and hunched over the horse, felt his arm throbbing with pain—Sun Daoyuan had stitched it up, set the bone, and it was already hurting, but now, twisted behind his back, the pain was so severe that cold sweat broke out all over him.
He closed his eyes and replied, “She did not seduce me.”
The man sneered, “Still stubborn, huh? Looks like that Zhujing Yaojing’s really turned your head.”
Another chimed in, “Of course! Otherwise, why would this kid kill a whole village for a Zhujing Yaojing? Even killed his own colleagues.”
Someone teased, “Hey, Zhang, tell your grandpas here, how did that Zhujing Yaojing enchant you? Is she pretty? Did she suck your Yang energy?”
“She must’ve, right? Look at him, all limp and weak, probably almost sucked dry.”
“Come on, tell Grandpa, when the Zhujing Yaojing sucks your Yang energy, does she use the mouth above or the one below?”
“Maybe she uses both at once.”
“Hahahahaha.”
The leading Heiyi Wei boasted, “Too bad that Zhujing Yaojing isn’t here. If I, Lida Tou, ran into her, I’d show her my true might, pin her down right there, drain her till she begged for mercy! Would she dare try sucking me?”
Someone echoed, “They say Lida Tou’s not only got a big head, but what’s down there is big too. That Zhujing Yaojing wouldn’t be able to take it.”
Their vulgar talk continued, but Zhang Zongnian kept his eyes shut, ignoring them.
Suddenly, a pleasant and familiar female voice sounded behind them: “Are the officers here talking about me?”
Zhang Zongnian trembled, opened his eyes, and twisted around to look.
He saw Lin Xue standing atop a gorgeous Flying Boat, silently following behind them.
Her long hair fluttered in the wind, her white Daoist robe light as cloud, setting off a face as cold and pure as frost.