Tao Yaoye asked, "Since the demon bird is looking for Zhang Guanjia, have you tried to let it meet him?"
Xiang Zheng sighed deeply, "We didn’t need to arrange a meeting. A few days ago, the demon bird flew straight to Zhang Guanjia's house and shouted 'Monster! Monster!' at him before flying out the window. We don’t know where it went after that."
"We were at a loss about what to do, and then you two immortals arrived."
Tao Yaoye paused for a moment and guessed, "Is Zhang Guanjia a monster? Is the demon bird warning you to be careful of him?"
There are indeed kind-hearted beings among the demon race, some take human form or reveal their true selves to warn people of impending disasters. For example, the great demon king Zhu Yan is said to bring chaos wherever he goes, making people see him as an ill omen.
However, the immortals know the truth is the opposite. Zhu Yan doesn’t bring chaos; rather, he comes from the demon realm to warn humans of the chaos that is about to come, acting out of pure goodwill. Of course, the misunderstanding among the common people is partly Zhu Yan's fault—he is socially anxious and afraid to speak.
A silent and grim-looking demon is hard to believe as a good creature. Perhaps this demon bird is the same, trying to warn the people of Taiping Village that Zhang Guanjia is a transformed great demon.
Speaking of this, Xiang Zheng felt a bit awkward. He didn’t want to contradict this beautiful immortal from the sect, but he also couldn’t ignore the facts and insist that Zhang Guanjia was a demon.
"Zhang Guanjia grew up in Taiping Village. The elders can confirm this. He has two younger brothers, Zhang Guanyi and Zhang Guang, and the three brothers are very close. He now runs a private school, teaching children Confucianism and cultivation. He is one of the few teachers in Taiping Village."
"If you say he is a monster, then..."
Tao Yaoye disagreed with Xiang Zheng's viewpoint, "Demons live a long time. Many long-lived beings stay in one place for decades, allowing themselves to age slowly, just like ordinary people. One day, after seeing the scenery, they might fake their death and emerge from their graves in a new place to start over."
Xiang Zheng opened his mouth, unsure of what to say since he lacked the experience of Tao Yaoye.
Lu Yang gently shook his head and pointed out a flaw in Tao Yaoye's guess, "If Zhang Guanjia is a monster, he must be a transformed great demon. How could a great demon tolerate a small demon bird spouting nonsense? The bird would probably be killed before it could even speak."
Tao Yaoye didn’t refute this; what Lu Yang said was indeed true.
Lu Yang stood up, "That said, we still need to meet Zhang Guanjia."
Xiang Zheng quickly led the way, "Please follow me, immortals."
On the way, Lu Yang pointed out an error in Xiang Zheng's address, "We are all cultivators aiming for immortality. Let’s not mention that we are only at the Foundation Establishment stage. Even if we were True Monarchs or Tribulation Transcendents, those nearest to achieving immortality shouldn’t be called ‘immortals’ by others."
"You can call us Daoists."
Xiang Zheng smiled awkwardly. He didn’t dare treat Lu Yang and Tao Yaoye as ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators. Less than one in ten Foundation Establishment cultivators can advance to Golden Core stage. The disciples of the Wenda Sect are definitely Golden Core cultivators, and their future achievements are beyond his imagination.
"This isn’t a place where no one achieves immortality; there are just some vague tales of immortals."
Lu Yang just smiled at this and didn’t say anything more.
Before long, the three arrived at Zhang Guanjia's residence.
"Old Zhang, someone is here. Open the door."
The wooden door creaked open, revealing Zhang Guanjia with a blank expression standing behind it.
"Let me introduce, these two are disciples of the Wenda Sect, here to help us deal with the demon bird."
Hearing the name "Wenda Sect," Zhang Guanjia's expression changed. He helplessly said, "I really am not a monster. You can’t just believe what the demon bird says. It also shouted ‘A grandpa is here to play!’ Shouldn’t you let some grandpas go find the demon bird to play?"
Xiang Zheng laughed awkwardly, "We were just passing by and happened to come here."
Xiang Zheng was diligent, and everyone said he was a good official. With his words, Zhang Guanjia could only open the door and let the three in.
Zhang Guanjia's home was a two-entry courtyard, looking quite empty as he lived alone.
Zhang Guanjia was over forty and still unmarried.
The conversation inevitably circled back to the demon bird. Zhang Guanjia said irritably, "I’ve never seen that demon bird. Who knows why it called my name?"
"I’ve never left Taiping Village in my life. The farthest I’ve been is Quhe County. How would I know a demon bird?"
"Every day, students ask me, 'Sir, are you a monster?' Some are even afraid I’ll eat them, so they make sure to finish their homework on time!"
"Even my neighbors come to me, saying they have an enemy at the Foundation Establishment stage in Quhe County and asking if I can secretly take care of them. The price is negotiable!" Zhang Guanjia said through gritted teeth, wishing he could fight the demon bird to clear his name.
As an ordinary person, he becomes a demon just because the bird opens its mouth. It’s simply unfair!
After talking for a while, the three didn’t gain any useful information, only listening to Zhang Guanjia complain for two hours about how the demon bird affected his life.
Fortunately, Lu Yang and Tao Yaoye quickly assured him that they would eliminate the demon and restore fairness for him, which made Zhang Guanjia stop complaining.
"The demon bird is back!" someone shouted outside the house, running away from the demon bird.
Upon hearing the commotion, Lu Yang and Tao Yaoye immediately put aside their leisurely attitude, grabbed their magical tools, and left the courtyard to confront the demon bird.
"Be careful, Daoists!" Xiang Zheng urged the villagers to keep quiet and stay away from where the demon bird appeared.
Lu Yang gripped the sword handle, ready to strike at any moment if the demon bird showed any intention to attack.
Tao Yaoye took out a red paper umbrella, her magical tool, the Thousand Illusion Umbrella. When opened, it looked dreamy, drowning enemies in illusions without them realizing it.
Lu Yang made a cautious gesture, signaling that he would scout ahead, and Tao Yaoye nodded.
The demon bird landed on a nearby house, and Lu Yang moved quietly like a cat, stealthily approaching his target.
He remained alert, muscles tense, ready to draw his sword and fight at any moment.
Optimistically, he estimated the demon bird was at the seventh level of Qi training, which would be the best outcome. In the worst case, it could be a late Foundation Establishment demon, making the fight much harder and requiring more effort to defeat.
Finally, he saw the demon bird that had troubled Taiping Village for twenty days.
Its deep green feathers were incredibly bright and shiny, with large patches of red from the corner of its eye to its neck, a striking mix of red and green.
Lu Yang recognized the demon bird at a glance. It came from the depths of a dense forest, feeding on figs and berries, and was good at mimicking human speech.
It was a parrot.
(End of Chapter)