11: Monk Baojing encounters a ghost on the road

An hour later.

Inside the training grounds of the Demon Suppression Division.

A middle-aged man, dressed in a date-red robe with a cloak tied behind him, stood there.

This person was Qiu Rang, a Centurion within the Demon Suppression Division.

Chen Heguang stood beside him, his expression somewhat complex.

Opposite Qiu Rang stood dozens of Demon Suppression Guards.

He pointed to the two Demon Suppression Guards on the far right.

"You two, go station yourselves in Little West Village."

"Yes!"

Two Demon Suppression Guards stepped forward and responded in unison.

"You two, go to Xiao Dong Village."

"Yes!"

Then, the Centurion's gaze turned to Jiang Lan, pointing at him and a young man next to him, saying:

"You two, go to Xiao Nan Village."

Jiang Lan and the young man stepped forward.

"Yes!"

Hearing Jiang Lan speak, Chen Heguang, who was standing beside the Centurion, glanced at Jiang Lan, his eyes filled with a sense of melancholy and resentment.

He truly couldn't understand what was wrong with Jiang Lan; he could clearly live a peaceful life in the Division, yet he insisted on going out and putting his life on the line.

If he could genuinely gain some benefits, then it would be understandable.

The crucial point was that the daily allowance for official duty was only one mace of silver.

One mace of silver could buy a good meal, but it wasn't worth risking one's life for a single good meal, was it?

Especially Xiao Nan Village, which was almost bordering Black Wind Mountain.

What if they encountered that tiger demon… They said that tiger demon was in the Bone Forging Realm, but who knew what stage of Bone Refinement it was at?

Just as he was pondering, the Centurion had already finished calling out names.

"For these three days, you will guard your respective villages. If you encounter a danger that is difficult to resolve, use a flare as a signal."

The Centurion continued, "Within three days, I, this Centurion, will personally lead forces to take down that tiger demon!"

"Yes!"

The Centurion waved his hand.

"You may all disperse."

Upon hearing this, the Demon Suppression Guards scattered.

Jiang Lan glanced at Chen Heguang, then turned and left with his teammate.

On the way, Jiang Lan finally took a good look at his teammate.

He was a young man, appearing to be seventeen or eighteen years old, with red lips and white teeth, looking quite refined, almost out of place with the general atmosphere here.

Unlike the other Demon Suppression Guards, this person didn't have long hair; he was bald.

His attire was also different.

Everyone else, including Jiang Lan, wore standard black robes.

But this bald man was draped in a monk's robe.

He was a Little Monk.

Jiang Lan had some impression of this Little Monk.

The Little Monk's Buddhist name was Bao Jing, and he was originally a young novice monk in a temple in Yan Capital City.

Just the year before last, a demon entered the temple, and almost all the monks in the entire temple died, leaving only Bao Jing alive.

Coupled with his good martial arts talent, he was then taken in by the Demon Suppression Division.

Seeing Jiang Lan staring at him, Monk Bao Jing became a little embarrassed, a slight blush rising to his face.

"amitabha, Benefactor Jiang… We should hurry on our way, lest we miss the appointed time."

Jiang Lan raised an eyebrow, took a cylindrical flare from his in my arms, and casually tossed it to Bao Jing.

Bao Jing didn't react immediately, only fumbling to catch the flare when it was close.

This flare was similar to the signal flares Jiang Lan was familiar with in his previous life; it contained gunpowder, and once ignited, it would fly into the sky, emitting colorful light… The two walked all the way to the official road outside the city.

Jiang Lan's strength was already at the Bone Refinement Eighth Stage, so his foot speed was naturally very fast.

Even when he deliberately slowed down, Bao Jing still found it quite difficult to keep up.

"Benefactor Jiang, please slow down…"

Jiang Lan slowed his pace again.

Bao Jing walked beside him, and as if remembering something, he said with some surprise:

"Little Monk just remembered, didn't Benefactor Jiang not enter the Martial Dao Realm? How…"

Jiang Lan was not surprised by Bao Jing's confusion.

The fact that he had not entered the Martial Dao Realm was basically known to everyone in the Demon Suppression Division.

Many colleagues even privately made fun of him for it.

Jiang Lan glanced at Bao Jing.

"A sudden Epiphany."

Monk Bao Jing looked a bit awkward upon hearing this, his face flushing slightly again.

"amitabha, Benefactor Jiang has good Comprehension Ability…"

Jiang Lan twitched the corner of his mouth.

This Little Monk, he's quite shy.

Actually, he didn't want to be with others.

Teaming up with Bao Jing, he was the one being held back.

Although Bao Jing's Martial Dao Realm could be considered outstanding among the Demon Suppression Guards, he had only just barely stepped into the Bone Forging Realm.

But everyone was assigned in pairs, and he couldn't very well jump out and say something when the Centurion was calling out names.

This was also due to the tight manpower in the Demon Suppression Division, coupled with the many villages around Yan Capital City.

Otherwise, the Centurion would probably arrange for three or even four people per group.

However, even with two people per group, it was barely enough.

Even if one of them had an accident, the other would still have a chance to fire the flare and transmit information.

Jiang Lan's eyes flickered.

He wondered if he would encounter any troublesome demons this time in Xiao Nan Village.

But he figured the chances were probably not high.

The thought merely flashed, and Jiang Lan didn't dwell on it.

It would be best if he encountered some, but if not, he could at least enjoy some peace… Xiao Nan Village was located less than ten li in front of Black Wind Mountain.

It was almost the closest village to Black Wind Mountain.

Its danger level was naturally much higher than other villages.

The Centurion seemed to randomly assign people, but he had still given it some thought.

Chen Heguang had already told the Centurion about Jiang Lan's strength.

However, Chen Heguang had said it was Bone Refinement Second Stage.

So, in the Centurion's eyes, he and Monk Bao Jing were considered the two strongest in the entire Demon Suppression Guard team… Nearly an hour passed.

It was now evening.

Jiang Lan and Monk Bao Jing were less than ten li away from Xiao Nan Village.

Although Monk Bao Jing couldn't quite keep up with Jiang Lan, he was still in the Bone Forging Realm after all, and dozens of li of travel weren't enough to show fatigue.

Suddenly, their footsteps stopped.

Jiang Lan looked up.

He saw an old man standing not far in front of him.

The old man was hunched over, his head lowered.

However, he was balanced on the tips of his toes, which looked somewhat eerie.

"amitabha," Bao Jing clasped his hands together and bowed, then said to the old man, "Elder, what's wrong?"

As he spoke, he walked towards the old man.

Jiang Lan's eyes flickered.

This was no old man; it was clearly a Tiger's Accomplice.

He was all too familiar with this thing.

After all, he had just seen one at Scholar Qian's house last night.

"Young man… This old man can't find his way home… Can you help me?"

The Tiger's Accomplice still had his head lowered, his voice hoarse, like two pieces of sandpaper rubbing against each other.

"amitabha, Venerable Elder, where is your home?"

Bao Jing walked up to the Tiger's Accomplice.

The Tiger's Accomplice whispered:

"This old man doesn't remember…"

"It's alright," Monk Bao Jing's face showed a gentle smile, "I remember."

"You remember?"

"Yes."

Bao Jing's smile became somewhat sinister.

"Your home is in the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss. Little Monk will now send you to liberation!"