Chapter Seventy-Five: Breaking the Siege

This mountain village, with only fifty households, nestled at the eastern foot of Mount Qingcheng, was surrounded by verdant hills and flowing water. Most of its able-bodied men had long since departed for the city to make a living, leaving behind only the elderly.

But now, the village’s usual peace and serenity had been utterly shattered, replaced by a suffocating, chaotic miasma. Acrid white mist swirled through the lanes, yet curiously avoided a single low, thatched hut at the village entrance.

Around this humble cottage, a ring of white light flickered, forming a protective shield that kept the fog at bay. The ill-intentioned mist could only curl and coil around the edges, unable to cross the barrier. A careful observer would detect tall, shadowy figures moving within the white haze, circling the thatched house with predatory patience.

Suddenly, a cold, sinister voice sounded from within the fog: “You overreaching little white snake—refusing to submit to our Golden-Banded King is one thing, but to actually dare oppose him? You must have grown tired of living! Dispel your shield at once, and I might spare your life.”

Inside the cottage, Miss Bai huddled with the village elders. Her jade-pale face betrayed her exhaustion; she clung to the hand seals that sustained the white barrier, but her meager demon power was waning fast.

“I wonder if the Taoist received my plea for help…” Anxiety flickered in her almond eyes.

She had never been entangled with the monsters of Mount Qingcheng before, but lately, the village had suffered repeated attacks. Today, the creatures had brazenly forced their way in, even slaughtering several villagers.

Miss Bai’s heart burned with fury and grief, but she dared not fully unleash her power for fear of endangering the innocent.

“Miss Bai, you must run! Don’t worry about us old folks,” urged a kindly old woman, clutching her sleeve with trembling hands.

“Yes, you’ve done too much for us already. Save yourself!” echoed the other elders, who had long regarded Miss Bai as their own granddaughter.

But determination flashed in her eyes. “I will not leave. Someone will come to save us!”

The elders exchanged helpless, worried glances.

Just then, a monstrous figure—wolf-headed, man-bodied, standing over ten feet tall—strode out from the mist. Clad in gleaming iron armor and wielding a trident, he approached the cottage with the swagger of a predator.

“So stubborn? Then I’ll break your shield, even if it drains all my power!” The wolf demon’s chilling grin contorted his face. The trident in his hands suddenly blazed with blinding silver light.

“With the king’s bestowed weapon, your shield is nothing!” he sneered, raising the trident high before bringing it crashing down upon the barrier.

A piercing clang rang out as the silver light slowly but inexorably breached Miss Bai’s protective shield. Inside, her face was ashen; she had already expended most of her strength and could not withstand the wolf demon’s full assault.

She was spent. The instant she sensed her shield weakening, the wolf demon’s vertical pupils contracted sharply.

A cruel laugh escaped him as he twisted the weapon with murderous force.

A sound like shattering glass echoed as a web of cracks spread from the point of impact, racing across the entire shield. With a thunderous crash, the white barrier—maintained so long by Miss Bai’s desperate will—finally exploded into a rain of sparkling fragments.

The shield undone, Miss Bai felt a bitter sweetness surge in her throat and coughed up blood, her body collapsing in exhaustion.

“Oh, my precious child, are you all right?” a tearful old woman rushed to catch her as she fell.

The wolf demon’s heart leapt with savage delight. Now that he had captured this little wench alive, he would finally indulge himself and sate his vile cravings.

He growled, “Boys, it’s time to feast!”

A thunderous clamor erupted from the mist as dozens of monstrous creatures—each more grotesque than the last—charged forth, brandishing a motley array of weapons, quickly surrounding the thatched house.

“Miss Bai, will you come out yourself, or must I drag you out?” the wolf demon leered.

Suddenly, the door creaked open. Miss Bai, clad in plain white garments and pale as death, stepped forth.

“Spare these elders. I’ll go with you and submit to whatever fate you choose…” Despair filled her heart. She had waited so long, but the Taoist had not come.

Perhaps it was only natural; her troubles had already entangled him too many times. Why should he risk more for her?

She wiped the blood from her lips and looked at the wolf demon. “Do not harm them.”

He sneered, “Fine. If you please me well enough, maybe I’ll consider sparing them.”

Without waiting for her reply, the wolf demon lunged with a twisted grin, his eyes burning with lust, straight toward Miss Bai.

She barely had time to react. Humiliated and resigned, she closed her eyes, awaiting death.

But at that desperate moment, a blood-red beam of light streaked from the horizon, arriving in a blink to hover before Miss Bai. The crimson glow erupted, unleashing a torrent of sword energy that slashed through the air.

The wolf demon recoiled, his eyes flashing with shock as he met the sword’s bloody aura with his own weapon, halting his charge mid-stride.

Furious, he scanned the surroundings. “Who dares meddle in Wolf Lord’s business? Show yourself!”

Miss Bai, startled by this sudden turn, gazed at the blood-red sword thrust into the ground before her, a sense of hope stirring in her heart.

Could it be him…?

The monsters around them anxiously searched for the sword’s master, gripping their weapons so tightly their knuckles creaked.

Just then, a cold, commanding voice resounded from the distance.

“Those who slaughter villages and devour the innocent—die.”

“Those who insult Miss Bai—die.”

As the words faded, a whistle split the sky. A streak of green light flashed, drawing closer until it transformed into a brilliant arc before the cottage. As the glow dissipated, it revealed a tall, slender figure.

Chen Jiu, dressed in azure robes, his long hair tied back with a simple wooden pin, stood with his back to Miss Bai, his sleeves billowing in the wind.

“Taoist!” Tears welled in Miss Bai’s eyes as she recognized the familiar silhouette.

The wolf demon, sizing up the newcomer and sensing no formidable aura, barked, “And who are you, to meddle with Wolf Lord’s affairs?”

Chen Jiu calmly surveyed the gathered monsters. They were nothing more than weaklings, not even at the lowest rank. Even the wolf demon, for all his menace, was still beneath the threshold.

With a thought, his spiritual sword appeared, gleaming and eager as it hovered at his side.

“Kill,” he uttered softly.

At his command, the little sword flashed, whirling into the midst of the monsters and unleashing a massacre.

With each flash of the blade, the sword pierced effortlessly through the heads of the demons, their bodies collapsing in heaps, blood soaking the earth.

The horde had no chance to resist; they fell like wheat before the scythe.

The wolf demon was aghast, sensing true terror as he fixed his gaze on the man in blue. “Who are you, cultivator? Dare to interfere in the affairs of the two demon kings?!”

He could sense nothing of this man’s cultivation, only an abyssal dread akin to standing before the demon kings themselves.

In less than ten breaths, all the monsters he had brought lay slaughtered.

Chen Jiu, expression placid, sheathed his sword with a wave of his sleeve, then drew forth the Blood Demon Sword, angling it to the ground.

“I have three questions for you.”

The wolf demon, hands trembling, had lost all will to fight. “I am a general under the demon king! Dare you kill me?!”

A flash of blood-red sword light.

With a sickening sound, the wolf demon’s arm was severed.

Howling in pain, he shrieked, “I’ll kill you!”

But Chen Jiu’s response was two more lightning-fast slashes—the wolf demon’s remaining arm and both legs were sliced away, leaving him writhing in a pool of blood.

Turning slightly, Chen Jiu said in a chilly tone, “This is a bloody sight, Miss Bai. You’d best return inside.”

His icy indifference sent a chill through Miss Bai’s heart. This Taoist, sword in hand, seemed a stranger—cold and terrifying.

“So, do you wish to answer my questions?” Chen Jiu advanced, his gaze unfeeling.

From the moment he grasped the Blood Demon Sword, a restless, murderous urge gnawed at his heart, urging him to slaughter every living thing nearby. Yet, thanks to the Longevity Pearl he carried, his mind was not entirely consumed—only colder and more ruthless.

The wolf demon, seeing Chen Jiu’s implacable approach, finally broke down, sobbing, “Mercy, immortal master! Spare me! I’ll tell you everything—everything!”