Chapter 112: The Innocent Shen Yi
Chapter 112: The Innocent Shen Yi
"You've come a long way from Yushan County. I hope you've settled in comfortably?"
Deng Jianyuan stood with his hands behind his back, gazing calmly at the three people in the courtyard. "If you're not settled, perhaps you'd prefer to stay with me. I'd be delighted to play host."
Upon hearing this, Deng Mingxu, who had been silently complaining about the aloofness of his elder, which had caused Lin Rou to feel neglected and himself to be implicated, now wore a delighted expression.
The elder was going to take the initiative to help him with his marriage proposal!
Jiang Chengyun, who was somewhat surprised by this, glanced over before nodding in agreement after a moment. "Thank you for your hospitality."
Deng Jianyuan smiled, his gaze sweeping over the three of them without lingering, as if he didn't recognize Shen Yi. He dismissed the rest of the family and turned to walk towards the depths of the compound.
When they arrived at their destination, Jiang Chengyun finally understood the source of his unease.
In the courtyard stood a figure in a red dress—Xiao Qiangwei. She toyed with a jade bracelet, seemingly bored, and tossed it onto the stone table.
"Please make yourselves at home."
With those words, Deng Jianyuan silently walked into the house and slowly closed the door, leaving only the three familiar people staring at each other.
Shen Yi sat by the flower bed, taking out the black dagger and placing it on her knees as she gently caressed the golden patterns on its surface.
"When you're out on business, why bring so many youngsters? Can you handle them all?" Xiao Qiangwei's face, devoid of the dust of the previous day, now held a hint of mockery.
Lin Rou timidly reached out. "Sister Xiao, I just happened to pass by."
In such a small courtyard, the presence of two Silver Bell Demon Catchers simultaneously was enough to make one feel uneasy.
Thinking of this, she glanced at Shen Yi, who was sitting at a distance.
They were both young, but she seemed so calm, despite having less experience than herself.
"It's still better than you going to a brothel to hook old men." Jiang Chengyun clearly had no interest in bickering and abruptly shut the door after finding a room.
Xiao Qiangwei let out a cold laugh, having no interest in paying attention to the remaining two youngsters. She turned and walked back to her room.
Bang!
In the tense atmosphere, Shen Yi raised her eyes to look at the room that belonged to the elder of the Deng family.
The speculation she had made on the way here resurfaced in her mind… Where had this news come from?
Putting herself in their shoes, if it were her testing her child, she would have said a few words at home and left it at that. Why would she need to spread the word outside?
Unfortunately, as newcomers, neither Jiang Chengyun nor Xiao Qiangwei, let alone an ordinary demon catcher like Lin Rou, would take her words to heart.
As she had said on the way, even if it were a false rumor, they would never let it go.
As the bigwig of Yong'an City, could it be that the elder of the Deng family knew something that even the demon catchers were unaware of?
Recalling the old man's abrupt behavior regarding his last words yesterday, perhaps it wasn't because he had a special opinion of her, but because Jiang Chengyun and Xiao Qiangwei were too strong, and he couldn't match them in conversation. He didn't want the Deng family to live in fear, so he took advantage of her presence and the lack of wine to fill the void.
If that were the case…
Then the whole thing seemed very suspicious.
Knowing that two powerful experts were by his side, the old man wasn't a novice; why would he be intimidated before the battle had even begun, even going as far as to contemplate death in advance?
Thinking of this, Shen Yi silently tightened her grip on the dagger's hilt.
Initially, she had thought that if there really was no opportunity, she could just follow along and learn, which would be helpful for future tasks. But now, it seemed that might not be necessary.
...
Time passed quickly, and three days had gone by in the blink of an eye. It was night once again.
Since that day, Deng Jianyuan had not stepped out of his room.
However, Jiang Chengyun and Xiao Qiangwei remained vigilant, still keeping a close eye on him as if he were a thief.
People from the court naturally held a sense of distrust towards martial artists, and this was their way of survival, learned from countless experiences.
Lin Rou was clearly getting bored. She tried to strike up conversations with Shen Yi several times but realized that the other party didn't seem to be a mere bystander like herself.
"Hey, why don't the two of us leave first? Anyway, they won't share the credit with us."
"..."
Before Shen Yi could reply, the silver bell at her waist suddenly vibrated violently.
A breath of air drilled into her ears.
The information within was... nothing.
At the same time, Jiang Chengyun and Xiao Qiangwei instantly pushed open the door and stepped out, their faces slightly changed, carrying a hint of excitement.
After about three breaths, the second message came from the silver bell.
Before the words had even landed, Deng Jianyuan pushed open the door and strode out.
The old man's face was calm as he stared fixedly at Jiang Chengyun.
"Tsk."
He shook his head, took a sudden step, and his figure swept by like a flying swallow, making no attempt to conceal his aura as he instantly landed in the main hall.
The two Silver Bell Demon Catchers followed suit.
The sudden movement of the old ancestor evidently startled the Deng family, and a crowd surged out from the various courtyards, streaming towards the main hall.
Lin Rou looked at the small bell in her hand, her face solemn.
It wasn't that she cared about the death of a colleague, as such things were all too common, but she hadn't expected that the great demon, already comparable to a fully realized Pill Condensation cultivator, would dare to enter Yong'an City despite being hunted by General You of Yushan County, risking its life.
As if struck by a realization, she exclaimed in surprise, "Oh no! It's about to break through and wants to devour a few more human elixirs to become a Demon Lord of Elixir Refinement!"
What bullshit mountain lord trial, this is clearly a feast it prepared for itself.
"That was close."
Lin Rou patted her chest, shivering: "Luckily it was Sister Xiao and Boss Jiang who came, if it had been two ordinary Pill Condensation cultivators, it would have succeeded today."
She subconsciously glanced to the side, only to find that the youth in the ink-colored robe, who had been sitting there all along, was now nowhere to be seen.
In the Deng family's main hall.
A crowd of bewildered family members huddled together, staring at the old ancestor who hadn't taken action in years.
There stood the "Lin family guard" and the "Flower Prodigy" (the top talent, akin to the top scorer in the imperial examinations) that the master had brought back, flanking him on either side.
Jiang Chengyun frowned and gave the order: "Let's go."
If they were dealing with a Mountain Lord, they couldn't afford to miss any opportunity for assistance.
This old man might not have detailed information, but taking advantage of his position as the local powerhouse, he should have guessed something. The demon catcher was afraid he would run away, and he was also afraid that the demon catcher would be scared away prematurely.
Their thoughts collided.
"I'm not going, I'm not going."
Deng Jianyuan chuckled like a mischievous child: "An old man has to protect his family first, and the court won't be able to pick out any faults."
Just as the two were about to change their faces, he suddenly changed his tune: "Unless you find someone to help me watch over them... How about him?"
Deng Jianyuan pointed to someone in the crowd.
Shen Yi held the knife sheath, standing quietly inside.
Unexpectedly, before Jiang Chengyun could respond, Xiao Qiangwei sent a message via the silver bell: "Don't bother with him. After we leave, if you encounter danger, do as you see fit."
Demon catchers weren't like the Demon Subduing Corps and didn't have the duty to protect a particular area.
"Let's go."
Jiang Chengyun no longer hesitated and dragged Deng Jianyuan out of the Deng family compound.
A great demon comparable to a fully realized Pill Condensation cultivator was far more attractive than a few tiger cubs.
As the three of them vanished from sight, the remaining Deng family members finally snapped out of their daze, and Deng Mingxu looked at the approaching Lin Rou and hurried to meet her: "Miss Lin, what's going on?"
Lin Rou shook off his hand helplessly: "What's going on? The demon is coming to eat you all up."
With two Silver Bell Demon Catchers gone to deal with the Mountain Lord, there were only three tiger cubs left, and if any one of them was at the Pill Condensation stage, they could easily hunt down the demon catchers and martial artists in the city.
Now was the time to leave, without delay.
With that in mind, she hurriedly waved to the bewildered young man: "Let's get out of here!"
With the Deng family's old ancestor absent, there were only a handful of Jade Fluid Realm martial artists left, who would undoubtedly become the targets of the tiger cubs.
As she spoke, Shen Yi, as if she hadn't heard a word, strode to the main seat, casually flicked her dress, and sat down, placing the black knife on the table and gently pressing her palm on it.
Xiao Qiangwei's reminder was actually quite unnecessary, as Deng Jianyuan wasn't a fool. How could he not know that once he left, it would be impossible for anyone in the large Deng family to keep her here, and most likely, he just didn't want her to get involved in the matter of the great demon.
It was also a way of returning a favor, and if she was willing to take a few of them with her, it would be better than him simply running away.
"These people just won't speak the truth."
The Mountain Lord had released news ahead of time, intending to break through by devouring human elixirs.
The demon catchers used the aristocratic family as bait, hoping to lure the demon back and exchange it for merit.
Deng Jianyuan, resigned to his fate, played along and kept the demon catchers to guard the city...
Perhaps she was the naive one.
Naively thinking only of slaying demons.
(End of Chapter)
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