With a flick of his battle saber, Lin Baichuan cut open the Blood Demon's corpse and extracted a thumb-sized bead.
It was crimson like blood, surging with Devilish Qi, exuding a chilling aura, and a thick, unresolvable stench of blood.
This was a Demon Core, similar to a Monster Core, formed from the essence of the Blood Demon.
In this world, ‘demons’ were just a general term, specifically divided into races such as demons, devils, Spirit Monsters, and ghosts.
Blood Demons belonged to the Earth Devil lineage, typically living in the Underground Abyss and rarely active on the surface.
This was because the passages from the Underground Abyss to the surface were all sealed and guarded by a large army.
The Earth Devils in the Underground Abyss simply couldn't get out, and precisely because of this, Earth Devil Demon Cores were extremely valuable, even more expensive than Monster Cores of the same grade.
This Soldier-rank Third-tier Demon Core could be exchanged for at least 350 contribution points at the Demon Suppression Division, making it much more valuable than the Mountain Demon's Monster Core from before.
After Lin Baichuan extracted the Demon Core, he immediately carved a stone with his battle saber, fashioned it into a simple stone bottle, then placed the Demon Core inside, and under cover, transferred it into his spatial ring.
“Lin Baichuan, you are truly ruthless… This matter won't be settled like this. I will report it to Colonel Song, so you’d better watch yourself.”
Li Da glared fiercely at Lin Baichuan, his face full of resentment.
Especially after seeing Lin Baichuan collect the Blood Demon's Demon Core, his expression became even uglier.
This time, he had suffered a great loss; Niu Zhenye and the other two were dead, and his Foundation was injured, possibly even cutting off his future path of advancement.
Yet, Lin Baichuan had made a killing, with one Soldier-rank Third-tier Monster Core and one Soldier-rank Third-tier Demon Core, totaling six or seven hundred contribution points, which was more than he earned from half a year of missions previously.
“Captain, if you say that, it’s truly regrettable.”
Lin Baichuan glanced at Li Da and sneered, “I originally thought you were a smart person, but now it seems you are just mediocre.”
“You…”
Li Da’s face grew even uglier, turning crimson, his teeth grinding audibly, wishing he could devour Lin Baichuan alive.
“Alright, now is not the time for internal strife; let's return to Yunshan County City first!”
Qin Qing waved her hand, interrupting the standoff between Li Da and Lin Baichuan, and said coldly, “The demonic calamity in Yunshan County this time was likely caused by these two demons.
However… that Blood Demon was most likely raised by someone, and we need to find the person behind it…”
Li Da was unwilling, but he also knew that he couldn't do anything to Lin Baichuan now.
Moreover, he was severely injured and urgently needed to return for treatment, otherwise, it wouldn't just be a simple injury to his Foundation, but a risk of death.
As for Lin Baichuan, there would be plenty of opportunities in the future.
“Does he really think that having a bit of talent means he can do whatever he wants? I’ll let him know that just having good talent isn’t enough to get by in the Demon Suppression Division.”
Li Da gritted his teeth, secretly vowing to find an opportunity to kill Lin Baichuan, otherwise, his hatred would not be appeased.
Lin Baichuan, however, glanced at Li Da impassively, then looked at Qin Qing and asked, “Miss Qin, who do you think raised this Blood Demon?”
“I don’t know!”
Qin Qing shook her head, then sneered, “However, I believe Magistrate Liang YouTian definitely knows.”
“You want to go directly to Liang YouTian, but what if he denies it?” Lin Baichuan frowned slightly.
“Then it won’t be up to him.”
Qin Qing snorted, her expression icy, her face filled with Evil Qi.
At this moment, as the Blood Demon was slain by Lin Baichuan, the originally swirling dense fog also began to dissipate little by little.
After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the fog completely cleared, revealing the village's true appearance.
Lin Baichuan and the other two burned the bodies of Niu Zhenye and the other two, made three makeshift wooden urns to carry their ashes, and then returned to Yunshan County City together.
Seven people came, but only three returned.
Three died, one was severely injured, and one was missing.
The body of Shadow Que, the hidden guard, was not found, so Lin Baichuan and the others were unsure if he was dead or alive.
Qin Qing and Li Da believed Shadow Que was certainly dead, but Lin Baichuan did not think so, because he knew that Shadow Que had hidden his strength, and that Old thing's strength was very strong, at least not below Li Da and Qin Qing.
Precisely because of this, Lin Baichuan felt much more vigilant in his heart.
A hidden guard, yet he concealed such strength; this in itself was abnormal.
Lin Baichuan suspected Shadow Que had an issue, but lacking evidence, he couldn’t expose him, so he merely kept an eye out in secret, waiting for a future opportunity.
After the three of them quietly returned to Yunshan County City, Li Da immediately announced his seclusion.
He was severely injured now, barely clinging to life.
If he didn't go to heal, he would definitely suffer lasting ailments, which was not what he wanted to see.
He had fallen this time, but that didn't mean he had no capital to make a comeback.
Only after his injuries healed would he have the strength and energy to properly contend with Lin Baichuan.
At the same time!
Lin Baichuan, however, looked at Qin Qing and said in a deep voice, “Miss Qin, what do you plan to do?”
“What else can be done? Naturally, we go directly to the county yamen.”
Qin Qing was momentarily stunned, then immediately shook her head and said, “We’ll find Liang YouTian and ask him directly for a clear explanation.
Let’s see how he defends himself.”
“Now!”
Lin Baichuan was startled, then nodded slightly.
Qin Qing had said before that she would go directly to Liang YouTian, so now that she was going there directly, Lin Baichuan wasn't surprised.
However, he also knew that if the Blood Demon was truly connected to Liang YouTian, that Old thing would definitely not admit it.
If Qin Qing intended to use force, there would likely be a big battle that couldn't be resolved peacefully.
“Let’s go…”
Qin Qing glanced at Lin Baichuan and said in a deep voice, “If this matter is truly related to Liang YouTian, there might be another big battle tonight.
Be careful later.”
“Understood!”
Lin Baichuan nodded slightly; he naturally knew the gravity of the situation.
Immediately, the two left the courtyard again and headed straight for the county yamen.
However, what Lin Baichuan and Qin Qing didn't expect was that the county yamen was brightly lit at this time.
The two didn't use the main entrance but climbed over the side wall and went directly to the backyard where Liang YouTian resided.
Their path was unobstructed; the constables in the county yamen were just ordinary people, ninety-nine percent of whom had not entered the martial Dao, and with such strength, they naturally couldn't detect the traces of Lin Baichuan and Qin Qing.
Thus, they walked as if strolling through their own backyard, and soon arrived at the backyard.
However, what surprised them both was that Liang YouTian seemed to know they were coming, as he was actually waiting for them in the main hall of the backyard.
“Since you two have arrived, why not come in for a chat?”
Liang YouTian’s expression was calm as he looked at Lin Baichuan and Qin Qing outside the main hall and said in a deep voice, “This Liang has been waiting for a long time…”
After Lin Baichuan and Qin Qing exchanged an impassive glance, their eyes narrowed, a sharp glint flashed in their pupils, and they almost simultaneously walked into the main hall.
They wanted to see what tricks Liang YouTian was up to.