4: Just go away (ask for monthly ticket and collection)

Soon, five catties of cooked meat were consumed, filling the Dantian with threads of refined Qi.

The progress bar of the Taoist Internal Scripture Diagram moved slightly forward.

This process of being able to personally feel oneself getting stronger little by little was captivating.

Chen Yuan silently experienced it for a moment, then pulled out the few papers from his sleeve.

These were Old Wu's notes from the days he was away.

They listed over a dozen items, all concerning the recent happenings in Qingshan County.

"At three-quarters past the hour of Chen on the Dingmao day, a guest reported that the Mi family's shop in Guilinfang was haunted; the grain continuously decreased throughout the day."

"At a quarter past noon on the Dingmao day, Lin Sheng, a martial artist from the Youshan Escort Agency, recounted that during an escort mission at Wuli Temple, they encountered a man-eating monster, resulting in casualties, but fortunately, villagers came to their rescue, and the injured monster fled."

"At the hour of Shen on the Dingmao day, a servant from the Wang family in East Market reported that his Young Master was gradually wasting away, looking emaciated, suspected to be afflicted by evil Qi…"

...

The entries were complete with location, time, and event.

It was not hard to guess that Old Wu was his informant.

His exact background was unknown.

He had been in Qingshan County for eight years, serving three Patrolling Mountain Commandants!

And these three had all died in the eight-hundred-li Langdang Mountain!

He was the fourth!

Taking a deep breath, Chen Yuan's gaze fell upon the papers, scanning through each item.

After the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, he rubbed the papers between two fingers, turning them into fragments.

Then, with a sweep of his sleeve, Chen Yuan rose and went to the inner room to wash away the dust.

After washing, he paid no mind to the bright daylight outside and collapsed onto the bed.

He fell into a deep sleep.

This sleep lasted until sunset and moonrise.

Moonlight cast a slanted shadow on the window, and a wild cat jumped onto the room's window, lazily arching its tail, meowing softly.

It prowled, wanting to jump inside to find some food.

It leaped.

"Thud."

A dull thud.

The wild cat fell, its fur instantly bristling, emitting a low growl.

Its green pupils stared intently into the darkness.

Suddenly.

A hand from the darkness grabbed its neck.

A face with a half-smile stared at it, scrutinizing it closely.

"What a pity."

It wasn't a demon!

Chen Yuan tossed the wild cat out the window.

The wild cat let out a shrill wail, tucking its tail in fear, and vanished into the night.

Chen Yuan smiled wryly, then looked up at the moonlight.

The next second, his body blurred.

Then disappeared.

...

"Dong dong."

"Dong."

The two short, one long sounds of the night watchman's drum echoed through the night.

The third watch of the night.

A dark alley in East Market.

"Thump, thump, thump."

Disordered footsteps grew clearer in the darkness.

Under the moonlight, a woman in white, barefoot, ran through the alley, her expression terrified, constantly looking back.

In the darkness behind her, it seemed as if something terrifying was pursuing her.

She frantically knocked on the doors of the houses in the alley.

Crying for help.

"Help!"

"Help!"

But every household's doors and windows were tightly shut, and any sounds of people being startled were quickly muffled by something.

Finally, a door opened.

A Hunter grumbled, half-asleep, as he opened the door:

"Damn it, who isn't sleeping in the middle of the night?"

Before he could finish cursing, a fragrant breeze assailed his nostrils, and a soft, warm body threw itself into his arms.

A sobbing, delicate voice immediately sounded.

"Good sir, save me! A scoundrel is trying to harm me."

The Hunter's sleepy eyes suddenly widened as he looked at the woman in his arms, her face beautiful and pitiful.

He was no longer sleepy.

He puffed out his chest, speaking with great pride:

"Young lady, fear not! In my younger days, I roamed the Jianghu and hated nothing more than scoundrels who bullied women. Where is this scoundrel?"

No sooner had he spoken than...

In the darkness, the air shrieked.

A white light slammed into the tree in front of the Hunter's door.

The large tree shattered with a crash, wood splinters flying.

In the darkness of the alley, there was a clang.

"Scram!"

The Hunter's face stiffened, his chest heaving rapidly.

"Scram then!"

With that, he shoved the woman in his arms without another word.

He darted inside, closed the door, all in one swift motion.

The woman, pushed to the ground, looked in terror at Chen Yuan, who slowly emerged from the darkness.

She opened her mouth, letting out a shriek that could pierce eardrums.

She exhaled a cloud of pink mist, which swirled towards Chen Yuan.

Then, her body turned into a phantom and slipped into the surrounding wall.

"Trying to run!"

Chen Yuan's entire body vibrated with True Qi, his figure flickering wildly, scattering the pink mist, then he clenched his fist and punched the wall.

"Boom!"

The wall was punched through.

The white shadow flickered again.

His fist followed closely.

Punch after punch, like surging waves.

Seeing that it couldn't win, the white shadow actually split apart, dividing into four, fleeing in all directions.

"Prodigy, reveal yourself!"

Chen Yuan roared, a white glow flashing in his eyes.

The Minds Eye Divine Ability appeared.

Then he directly slammed a fist into one of the white shadows.

"Ah!"

A mournful scream.

The white Qi dissipated.

The next second, the Banshan Tiger Talisman in Chen Yuan's mind vibrated.

"Killed one Miasma Demon, Luck point +1."

"Miasma Demon: Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi and miasma trapped in a Yin-binding place, born by seizing creation..."

This demon was found at the Wang family in East Market; their Young Master had gone for an outing in a peach forest half a month ago and met a woman.

From then on, he was utterly captivated by her, meeting her every night, which led to the rumors spread by the Wang family's servant later on.

Chen Yuan put away the Demon Subduing Fist.

He immediately added the newly acquired Luck point to the Taoist Internal Scripture Diagram.

The progress bar advanced another segment.

Only after the surging Qi within his body calmed down did Chen Yuan notice.

His recent commotion seemed to have demolished someone's courtyard.

The trembling Hunter, seeing that Chen Yuan had seen him, was so scared that he immediately knelt down, closing his eyes.

"Good sir, spare my life!"

"I didn't see you, I didn't see you!"

Chen Yuan felt it was inappropriate to say more and prepared to leave directly.

Just as he turned to leave, a wail pierced the air.

Chen Yuan turned around, frowning, looking at the cowardly Hunter.

"Why are you wailing?"

The Hunter was wronged, shaking his head frantically.

"Sir, I wasn't wailing!"

Saying that, he quickly closed his eyes again in fear.

Chen Yuan's ears twitched slightly, and his gaze shifted to the alley next to the Hunter's house.

His figure moved.

Soon, Chen Yuan arrived at one of the houses in the adjacent alley.

Under the night sky, this house had lights on.

He saw a woman with her hair tied up, frantically trying to leave.

Chen Yuan's appearance startled her.

"Who are you?"

"Who is the person inside?" Chen Yuan asked back, his gaze fixed on the lit house.

"My husband." The woman looked at the newcomer's solemn face, his eyes flickering with divine light, and took a few steps back in fright.

Then, remembering something, she seemed to grasp at a straw and asked:

"My husband is sick, please, save my husband."

"Cough, cough!"

"Take me inside to see!" Chen Yuan said.

The reason he came was due to his Minds Eye Divine Ability, which had detected a strange red glow through the wall.

But he didn't know what it was.

The woman was now desperate, not thinking why someone would appear in her house in the dead of night.

She led Chen Yuan into the house.

Inside, on the bed, lay a man.

He was strong and clearly had a martial arts cultivation aura, but at this moment, his Qi was scattered, and his body was covered in fiery red pustules.

The pustules looked as if they would burst at any moment.

He looked incredibly hideous.