Before joining the Demon Suppression Bureau, Hong Lei had once dreamed of wandering the world with a sword in hand, dressed in white, leading a horse.
But now, it seemed that not being able to enter Qingfeng Mountain and instead joining the more perilous Demon Suppression Bureau might not be such a bad thing after all.
Fifty or sixty Qingfeng disciples were being escorted up the mountain by a group of officers.
Although they were returning to their sect, their faces grew paler with each step.
Shen Yi and Hong Lei walked at the back of the group.
"What is the Sword Pool?" Shen Yi asked.
Hong Lei looked at him in surprise.
"You're not from Qingzhou?"
"I'm from Baiyun County," Shen Yi replied without hiding anything.
"No wonder, a small place," Hong Lei nodded instinctively, then suddenly realized something was off.
Was this the same Baiyun County he knew? That desolate place could actually produce someone like Shen Yi? He opened his mouth, wanting to ask but not daring to, so he quickly steered the conversation back.
"Any first-rate sect has methods to steadily cultivate Condensed Core realm experts, ensuring that each generation has a strong leader. Unlike second-rate sects, if their patriarch meets with an accident or there's a lack of talent, they can disappear within a few decades."
"Our Demon Suppression Bureau has something similar, but you'd have to go to the capital for it."
Seeing the slight flicker in Shen Yi's eyes, Hong Lei guessed what he was thinking.
Having fought alone against a Qingfeng elder and a great demon, Shen Yi was undoubtedly at the peak of the Jade Liquid realm.
He chuckled, "With your current strength, if you work hard for a few decades, you'll definitely have a place in the Martial Temple's Condensed Core realm. But don't think about it for the next few times. Whether it's Miss Lin or Doctor Bai, they're both ahead of you in line."
"Let's talk about the Sword Pool," Shen Yi said.
Hong Lei knew the temperament of these geniuses; they wouldn't tolerate anyone surpassing them.
"Every Qingfeng disciple, after officially joining the sect and paying respects to the founder, the first thing they do is visit the Sword Pool to offer their blood—from their fingertip, brow, and heart. Once offered, they receive the founder's protection, greatly speeding up their cultivation progress."
"Besides that, they can also take a sword used by a senior disciple and continuously nourish it with their essence, calling it a 'Sword of Protection.' You could say half of their strength lies in their sword. I heard you broke that steward's sword. Even if he recovers from his injuries, he won't have half of his former strength."
Hong Lei held up his hand.
"That's why I wanted to check Dai Bing's sword that day, to see if she was a Qingfeng disciple. And I was right... Think about it, the blood essence of thousands of disciples is connected to the Sword Pool. As their cultivation improves, so does the Sword Pool. Only such a treasure land could have the miraculous effect of helping warriors condense their core."
"The old man of the Raging Sword has limited lifespan. By seniority, he should have had a chance to enter the Sword Pool for refinement and make one last effort, but he gave it up to Zhang Hengzhou. His actions today... must have been out of deep disappointment."
Hong Lei sighed with emotion.
Hearing this, Shen Yi fell silent for a moment.
But remembering that such opportunities to learn about martial arts were rare, he continued to ask, "If the Sword Pool has such effects and has existed for thousands of years, shouldn't there be more than one Condensed Core expert on Qingfeng Mountain?"
"Are you worried that General Chen, coming alone, won't be able to handle them?" Hong Lei laughed again.
"You're at the Jade Liquid realm, and so am I. If you faced two or three of me at the same time, would you be afraid?"
Shen Yi thought for a moment, then shook his head.
"Right, so what if there were ten or twenty..."
Hong Lei continued, but seeing the young man's focused expression and then another shake of his head, his smile stiffened.
He looked away, took a deep breath, and pretended not to see it.
"Even if there were ten or twenty, the Demon Suppression Bureau isn't just General Chen. There are twelve Demon Suppression Generals. The old man is too old, and in terms of strength, he's barely behind the general of Yang'an County."
"Where does the general of Yang'an County rank?" Shen Yi asked curiously.
Hong Lei rolled his eyes and after a long silence, said, "Eleventh."
"Who's first?"
"The second disciple of the Commander-in-Chief."
"Second?"
"The first disciple of the Commander-in-Chief."
"Why is it reversed?"
"Brother Shen, we're here!" Hong Lei stopped, feeling a headache coming on.
These were not things he could casually talk about.
Shen Yi looked ahead with lingering interest.
In front of the Qingfeng Mountain gate, a vast plaza paved with pure white stone bricks stretched out.
At this moment, both sides of the plaza were densely packed with kneeling sword cultivators dressed in snow-white robes.
Three hundred inner camp officers and lieutenants in golden eagle-embroidered black robes stood outside the plaza, their postures straight, with black chains flying around, encircling the entire plaza.
Over a thousand outer camp soldiers stood in neat rows, their expressions cold.
At the forefront of the crowd, surrounded by dozens of lieutenants, a figure clad in dark armor sat on a large chair, holding a massive iron halberd, with a blood-red silk cape billowing behind him like a blood-stained sunset.
"..."
Shen Yi frowned slightly, completely unprepared for the scene on the mountain.
He had been fighting for his life below, thinking the situation was tense, but here, everyone was kneeling.
With all this idle time, couldn't they have gone down to help?
"It's not as simple as you think."
Seeing his expression change, Hong Lei stepped forward slowly, leading the group forward, his expression growing more serious.
The Qingfeng disciples clearly had no intention of resisting, yet General Chen still surrounded them without releasing them.
This could only mean one thing.
The sect leader must be about to go mad!
In the center of the plaza.
A man sat cross-legged, bare-chested, with intricate wounds crisscrossing his body like a spider's web, resembling a nearly shattered porcelain vessel.
The familiar scars made Shen Yi hold his breath.
He had seen similar wounds on the demonic dragon in Shuiyun Village, almost identical.
At this moment.
Shen Yi sensed a faint aura emanating from the man.
As he stepped closer, the aura grew more intense.
Suddenly, the man opened his eyes and slowly scanned the area.
Those bloodshot eyes, with just one glance, made Shen Yi's entire body tense, his hand instinctively gripping the hilt of his sword.
Even when he first woke up and faced the black-skinned dog demon with his mortal body, the oppressive feeling wasn't as overwhelming as it was now.
"That's Zhang Hengzhou."
Hong Lei seemed unaffected and simply introduced, "A renowned swordsman of Qingzhou, known for his chivalry. According to General Chen's deduction, he is likely the demonic dragon from the Yangchun River."
Shen Yi seemed not to hear.
The man stared deeply at his face, the pain and ferocity on his face gradually replaced by a hint of resentment.
Under that gaze.
Shen Yi remained expressionless, only his breathing grew heavier.
A thick killing intent surged in his heart.
In front of everyone.
Zhang Hengzhou suddenly stood up and walked step by step toward the edge.
All the Qingfeng disciples raised their heads, and the Demon Suppression Bureau officers tightened their grips on their weapons, shouting, "Step back!"
But they were filled with doubt.
His last outburst was half a month ago, when General Chen struck him back with his halberd.
After being quiet for so many days, why did he suddenly stand up again?
"I am innocent, you cannot kill me."
Zhang Hengzhou's breathing was heavy, his body slightly hunched, as he glared at the old man in dark armor.
He gritted his teeth, "I have slain demons for Qingzhou for one hundred and fifty years, protecting the people of Linjiang County for one hundred and fifty years. They call me a hero! I am innocent!"
Chen Qiankun, with white hair and beard, looked like an ordinary old man.
His expression was calm as he said lightly, "Read it to him again."
A lieutenant stepped forward, "Zhang Zitao, disciple of Qingfeng Mountain, three years ago went to Shuangyang County to slay a demon. He killed a cat demon, but over twenty commoners died, their bodies never found. According to the demon hunters, two days prior, someone had seen this demon five hundred miles away at Woniutan."
"Zhang Yusong, disciple of Qingfeng Mountain, two years and seven months ago, followed the same method in Qiu'an County village, killed a demon, resulting in the death of thirty villagers, their bodies never found."
"Zhang Linglong, disciple of Qingfeng Mountain..."
The same method of slaying demons, the same disappearance of bodies.
All the names, without exception, were descendants of this gallant swordsman.
Just in the past three years, the lieutenant's voice grew hoarse from reading them out.
The Qingfeng disciples silently lowered their heads again.
"So my achievements are fake?" Only Zhang Hengzhou remained unflinching, still staring at the old man.
"Yours are real. I've sent people to verify them, worthy of Qingfeng Mountain's reputation for chivalry," Chen Qiankun nodded slightly.
"Then—" Zhang Hengzhou's voice suddenly sharpened, "With my achievements, shouldn't the people of Linjiang County raise my descendants?! They are all half-demons, it's in their nature. I've been trying my best to teach them!"
"Why! Won't you give me more time!"
"Why! Won't you give me another chance!"
A roar filled with deep resentment echoed throughout the mountain gate.
(End of Chapter)