13: Xiaonan Village is strange, and a beautiful woman

A moment later, an old man with a slightly stooped figure arrived at the village entrance.

Seeing Jiang Lan and Bao Jing, the Little Monk, he respectfully said repeatedly, "Forgive us, Sirs, forgive us."

Jiang Lan raised his eyebrows.

"What is your crime?"

"Those idlers were ignorant and offended you, Sirs. Please forgive them. I will immediately prepare a banquet to entertain you."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Lan first glanced at the village chief.

This village wasn't entirely devoid of educated people.

The village chief's few cultured phrases couldn't have been spoken by someone who hadn't studied for several years.

Then, Jiang Lan glanced around, waved his hand, and said, "No blame for the ignorant. A banquet is unnecessary; just find us a quiet place to stay."

The village didn't look very prosperous.

Moreover, Jiang Lan wasn't here to eat.

As for Bao Jing... he was a vegetarian.

"Alright, alright! Please follow me, Sirs."

The village chief said, then turned around and began to lead the way.

After taking a couple of steps, he respectfully asked again, "Sirs, are you here in Xiao Nan Village on official business?"

"amitabha," Bao Jing, the Monk, clasped his hands together, "Recently, evil creatures have been causing trouble outside Yan Du City. The Demon Suppression Division is concerned that the demonic disaster might affect the villages, which is why Little Monk and Benefactor Jiang were sent here to guard."

To Jiang Lan's surprise, after hearing Bao Jing's words, the village chief didn't have any particular reaction, only saying, "Then we shall trouble you, Sirs."

Jiang Lan's eyes flashed.

This reaction wasn't quite right, was it?

However, before he could think further, a strange fragrance wafted towards them.

It was called a fragrance, but it was subtly mixed with some odd smell, like a fishy odor, but not quite.

If he had to describe it, it was like the smell of foreigners in Jiang Lan's previous life.

He looked up and saw a beautiful woman gracefully walking towards them.

This woman was exceptionally beautiful, with fair skin, like a lotus emerging from clear water. Although covered by a coarse linen dress, one could still see her slender waist, which could be encircled with one hand, and the disproportionately ample bosom compared to her waist.

In Jiang Lan's opinion, this person didn't look like someone from a poor village; instead, she resembled the courtesans entertaining guests in the pavilions of Yan Du City.

Not only did her hands lack the calluses left by years of labor, but her linen dress was also washed clean without a single stain.

Bao Jing, the Monk, had obviously also smelled the scent and looked up.

The moment he saw the woman, he lowered his head again, muttering, "amitabha."

The beautiful woman's attention was also drawn. The moment she saw Jiang Lan and the other, her expression instantly turned to surprise, and her eyes seemed to hold a spring of water.

Bao Jing, the Monk's appearance, goes without saying; with red lips and white teeth, he would be a proper ascetic young handsome man in later generations.

And Jiang Lan's appearance was not bad either.

Especially after entering the Bone Forging Realm, an indescribable temperament had been added to his brows, making him look extraordinarily heroic.

"Village Chief, these two..."

"Widow Li? Why aren't you staying home honestly? What are you doing wandering around?" The village chief frowned, "These two are Sirs from the Demon Suppression Division. If you offend them and get killed, don't blame me for not warning you."

"Gulp."

Widow Li swallowed, then immediately knelt on the ground, "This common woman, Li, did not know that you were the Sirs. Please forgive me."

As she spoke, she began to kowtow.

Perhaps because her clothes were loose, each time she kowtowed, a flash of white skin appeared before Jiang Lan's eyes.

Jiang Lan did not step forward to help her this time. He just silently watched Widow Li kowtow several times before calmly saying to the village chief, "Let's go."

"Yes, Sir!"

...A moment later, Jiang Lan and Bao Jing were led by the village chief to a relatively quiet civilian house.

"Sirs, if there's nothing else, then I'll take my leave."

"Don't be in a hurry to leave." Jiang Lan sat down on the heated brick bed with a grand posture, "I want to ask you something."

"Please ask, Sir. I will tell you everything I know."

"Tell me about Widow Li's life story."

"Widow Li?"

Hearing this, the village chief's eyes darted, then he seemed to understand something.

"Sir, I'll have Widow Li bring dinner to you two later!"

Jiang Lan: "..."

Did he look that much like a lecher?

Jiang Lan's face darkened.

"Answer what I ask."

"Yes... yes..." The village chief's cheeks flushed, "Widow Li is not from this village... She married Li Si from our village half a year ago, but two months ago, Li Si died suddenly from an illness during intimacy, which is how she became a widow."

Jiang Lan's eyes flickered.

At this point, he could basically confirm that Widow Li was probably not a good thing.

Most likely a demon or something similar.

Even if not a demon, she was probably cultivating an evil art that absorbed people's vital Yang.

Jiang Lan had seen the condition of the idlers at the village entrance.

Their bodies were gaunt, and their vital Yang had already been depleted by more than half.

If it happened a few more times, even if they didn't die, they wouldn't be far from it.

A moment later, he looked at the village chief and said, "You can go."

"Yes, Sir." The village chief bowed and said, "Then I will take my leave. If you need anything, I'm in the courtyard next door. You can call me anytime, Sirs."

After the village chief left, Jiang Lan looked at Bao Jing, the Monk.

Bao Jing, the Monk, was also looking at him.

The two looked at each other.

"Little Monk."

"Benefactor Jiang."

The two were silent for a moment.

"You speak."

"You speak."

...Jiang Lan spoke first, "Widow Li, have you figured out what she is?"

"amitabha," Bao Jing clasped his hands together, "Little Monk only observed that the female benefactor does not seem to be an ordinary person. As for what exactly she is, Little Monk's Heavenly Eye cultivation is shallow and could not discern it."

Jiang Lan's lips curved into a smile.

"This village is quite interesting."

He had originally felt that this official trip wouldn't yield any gains, but he didn't expect Xiao Nan Village to give him quite a few unexpected surprises.

Not only Widow Li, but the village chief also seemed to have some issues.

And the Tiger's Accomplice they encountered while traveling earlier... That tiger demon had been entrenched in Black Wind Mountain for many years, undoubtedly having eaten countless people, and surely had numerous Tiger's Accomplice under its command.

Therefore, encountering a Tiger's Accomplice was not unusual.

What was unusual was that a Tiger's Accomplice blocked their path in broad daylight.

From this, it could be seen that the nearby area was probably extremely dangerous.

But strangely, the villagers in these villages all acted as if nothing was wrong.

Even the village chief, upon hearing that the two had come to guard against demonic disturbances, seemed unfazed.

This was not a normal reaction for people to have.

Logically, living in a place where one could lose their life to demons at any time, when someone came to eliminate demons, they should be overjoyed, not indifferent.

Jiang Lan smiled and shook his head.

He didn't want to concern himself with those messy things.

No matter how dangerous this village was, his Bone Refinement Eighth Stage cultivation was enough to ensure his own safety.

What he was more concerned about was how many years of lifespan these three days could add to him.