The battle saber slashed, and fresh blood splattered.
Shadow Que felt an intense pain sweep through his entire body, then instinctively looked down to see his waist bisected by a line of blood, with fresh blood gushing out like a spring, impossible to stop.
"How is this possible!"
Shadow Que murmured in disbelief, his pupils gradually dilating, a sign that his life force was dissipating.
He slowly raised his head and looked at Lin Baichuan. His expression was complex and meaningful, yet there was no resentment. Instead, his eyes were as clear as water, even holding a hint of relief.
"Pfft..."
A few breaths later, Shadow Que spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, and his body crashed to the ground, split into two, the blood instantly staining the earth.
Inside the main hall, there was a deathly silence.
Qin Qing and Liang YouTian both looked at Lin Baichuan in shock. They had never expected Lin Baichuan's strength to be so formidable, turning the tide at the last moment. Qin Qing, especially, was standing beside Lin Baichuan and felt it most deeply.
Although Lin Baichuan's saber strike just now wasn't aimed at her, it still sent shivers down her spine.
Lin Baichuan, however, raised his eyebrows, sheathed his battle saber with a backhand, and then strode towards the emerald jade talisman that had fallen to the ground. This was the container for the Nine Yin Ice Soul Net, and thus part of this High Grade Spiritual Artifact.
With a raise of his hand, internal Qi surged, forming a suction force in his palm, forcibly drawing the jade talisman from the ground into his hand.
It felt cool to the touch, with a faint Evil Qi emanating from it, stimulating Lin Baichuan's skin.
However, he had already cultivated Copper Skin, reaching the limit of the Ninth Grade Body Refinement Realm, and his Physical Body strength had even broken the Human Race's shackles in the Body Refinement Realm, reaching thirteen thousand catties. With his Physical Body transformed, mere Evil Qi had no effect on him.
Lin Baichuan held the jade talisman in his hand, playing with it and observing it carefully.
"Spiritual Artifacts must be refined with blood to be used."
At this moment, Qin Qing's voice came. Her expression had already returned to normal, seemingly having recovered from her shock. She looked at the jade talisman in Lin Baichuan's hand and said in a deep voice, "This Nine Yin Ice Soul Net is a High Grade Spiritual Artifact, priceless. You should try not to show it to others in the future, otherwise, it will certainly bring great trouble..."
"Of course!"
Lin Baichuan nodded slightly, and with a backhand, put the jade talisman into his pocket. Of course, this was just a cover; the jade talisman had actually already been placed into his spatial ring.
After putting away the jade talisman, Lin Baichuan then continued, "The matter is concluded, isn't it time to leave?"
As he spoke, he intentionally or unintentionally glanced at Liang YouTian, who was still sitting softly on the ground, not yet fully recovered from the shock.
"Yes, it is indeed time to leave."
Qin Qing nodded slightly, then glanced at Liang YouTian and said in a deep voice, "Lord Liang, since the matter has been resolved, we shall take our leave. We hope Lord Liang can handle the remaining affairs."
The Demon Slayer Guard of the Demon Suppression Division was only responsible for subduing demons and slaying devils. As for other matters, they were not their concern.
Now that the demons causing chaos in Yunshan County and Shadow Que, who was behind them, had been apprehended, they naturally wouldn't linger. Instead, they prepared to return to Cangwu Prefecture City to report their mission. Their squad had suffered heavy losses this time, and they needed to return as soon as possible to report and explain everything.
"Of course, both of you take care."
Liang YouTian let out a long breath, slowly stood up from the ground, and then solemnly bowed to Lin Baichuan and Qin Qing, saying, "This official represents all the people of Yunshan County and thanks both Demon Subduing Envoys..."
"No worries, it's merely our duty."
Qin Qing waved her hand slightly, then exchanged a glance with Lin Baichuan, and together they walked out of the county yamen, returning to their residential courtyard.
Li Da was still healing in his room, completely unaware of what had just happened. Qin Qing glanced at Li Da's room, then said to Lin Baichuan, "Rest for a night, and we'll set off for the prefecture city first thing tomorrow morning."
"Good!"
Lin Baichuan nodded slightly, not wasting words, and turned to enter his own room.
Late at night, with the moon bright and stars sparse.
Yunshan County City was completely silent, with only the night wind howling, like ghosts crying and wolves wailing, making one's hair stand on end. Inside the county yamen, however, the lights were still brightly lit. Liang YouTian's expression was cold; he had long since regained his county magistrate's authority and was arranging for the aftermath.
He himself, with a cold face, passed through the backyard and arrived at an inconspicuous pavilion.
The pavilion was dim, with a biting chill, and a faint Evil Qi permeated it.
Liang YouTian walked to the innermost part of this pavilion and tapped a stone brick on the wall.
Immediately, there was a muffled creaking sound, and the entire wall slowly rotated, revealing a passage just wide enough for one person to pass through.
The passage was deep and winding downwards, leading directly underground.
Below was a gloomy underground palace, roughly ten zhang in circumference. In the very center was a one-zhang pool, its water crimson and emitting a strong smell of blood. It was actually a pool of fresh blood, constantly churning as if being boiled.
Liang YouTian walked to the edge of this Blood Pool, his eyes gradually turning crimson, and a sinister, grotesque smile appeared on his face.
"Gah gah gah... Demon Suppression Division, Demon Slayer Guard... Heh heh heh, they're nothing special, aren't they still being played in circles by me?"
Liang YouTian let out a low, eerie sneer. Suddenly, a strange black mist of Evil Qi surged from within him, instantly turning his clothes into dust. The black mist enveloped his entire body, Evil、Dark. (Note: The original text had 'Evil、Dark' which is 'sinister, dark'. I've kept the pinyin for 'yīnxíe, ànhēi' as it's a direct translation of the specific qualities of the black mist, which is a stylistic choice in web novels. If a more flowing English phrase is preferred, it could be 'sinister and dark'.)
He stepped into the Blood Pool, his voice growing even more bizarre: "It's just a pity about that Blood Demon; it cost me so much effort.
But it doesn't matter... Once I absorb this pool of essence blood, my body will be completely demonized, transforming into a Blood Demon Body, and I won't need the Blood Demon anymore.
Demon Suppression Division... Heh heh, nothing special. Just find a scapegoat, and they'll be fooled..."
"So you're very proud now!"
Suddenly!
Just as Liang YouTian was sneering endlessly, full of self-satisfaction, a cold voice rang out, echoing continuously throughout the underground palace.
"Who..."
Liang YouTian's whole body trembled. He abruptly turned to look at the passage entrance, and his expression instantly changed drastically, filled with terror.
He saw that at some unknown point, a young man had appeared at the passage entrance, dressed in the dark robes of the Demon Slayer Guard, holding a saber in his right hand, standing there with a cold expression, looking coldly at him.
It was Lin Baichuan.
"Lin Baichuan, it's you! How are you here?"
Liang YouTian's face was as dark as water. He gritted his teeth and growled, "You deliberately left, but then secretly returned. When did you suspect me?"
"When I killed Shadow Que."
Lin Baichuan sneered, "I saw his eyes, clear and calm, without a trace of resentment towards me. Instead, there was a sense of relief, so I concluded that there must be something hidden. And then I happened to see a hint of mocking sneer hidden beneath your feigned panic..."
In fact, after slaying Shadow Que, Lin Baichuan felt that something was amiss. Then, he unintentionally noticed that Liang YouTian's expression was off. He secretly observed carefully and felt that Liang YouTian might be faking it.
Because everything was too perfect, without any flaws.
It was precisely because of this that Lin Baichuan felt something was wrong, so he deliberately left the county yamen with Qin Qing and returned to their residence.
However, after returning to his room, he immediately exited through the window and returned to the county yamen, intending to secretly monitor Liang YouTian. He never expected that this fellow would be so impatient as to come to this underground palace, allowing Lin Baichuan to catch him red-handed.
It turned out that everything was done by Liang YouTian; the Mountain Demon and the Blood Demon were both raised by him.
Shadow Que was taking the blame for him.
From this pool of fresh blood, it was not difficult to see that this fellow was likely cultivating some Demonic Technique, hoping to break through his Martial Dao Realm by means of the Demonic Technique.
Lin Baichuan's eyes narrowed slightly. He held his saber and walked step by step towards the Blood Pool, squinting at Liang YouTian, and said coldly, "I'm just very curious, how did you make Shadow Que willingly be your scapegoat..."
"Heh heh... Willing, you think too much."
Liang YouTian sneered, "The truth is, he was poisoned by my Corpse Poison and enslaved by me, forced to obey my commands..."
Boom!
As soon as the word "my" left his mouth, Liang YouTian suddenly moved, leaping out of the Blood Pool and striking with a palm directly towards Lin Baichuan.