Turns Out I'm the Real Monster?!

But then Jiang Mu had intervened, displaying terrifying power. The subsequent appearance of the Black Armored Divine Soldiers and the Zombie Queen had kept the Horse Demon from acting rashly.

That’s why it had been playing dead the entire time.

Only when everyone had fled to the foot of the mountain did it seize the chance to slip away.

Jiang Mu asked in a low voice, "What is the Horse Demon’s Cultivation Level?"

"We originally thought it was an early Tier Five Demon, which is why we dared to pursue it all this way."

Du Yuanfei said resentfully, clenching his fists,

"But when we finally caught up and engaged it here, we discovered that the beast had been hiding its true strength. It’s a Tier Five Great Perfection Demon!

The demon is extremely cunning. It kept its real power hidden and even possesses Divine Abilities, which misled our judgment."

Jiang Mu’s brows knitted together as he gently tapped his fingers on the table.

"Something’s not right. If it’s at Tier Five Great Perfection, why didn’t it attack Aunt Tang and the others when I left to draw away the zombie horde and they were the only ones on guard?"

"Was it because it wasn’t confident, or... did it have some other scheme?"

"It’s fishing!"

Tang Guixin blurted out, her expression turning grim.

Even Xu Fu, who was standing to the side, now understood. He sucked in a sharp breath.

"So the beast’s plan is to cast a long line for a bigger fish?

It held back on purpose so it could follow us, find a larger gathering of Demon Slayer Envoys, or... wait until our guard was completely down and then wipe us all out in one fell swoop?"

The atmosphere in the room instantly dropped to a freezing point.

The three of them looked at each other, seeing the horror reflected in one another’s eyes.

If this speculation was correct, it meant that from the moment they descended White Deer Peak all the way to Li family Village, the cunningly disguised Tier Five Great Perfection Horse Demon had likely been following them.

It might even be mixed in among them!

𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

After all, the Horse Demon could transform into an ordinary horse of a different appearance.

Moreover, if it wanted to strike, it would never choose a time when everyone’s vigilance was at its peak.

It would only make its move when everyone felt safest and most relaxed.

And when would that be?

Right now!

Having just escaped with their lives, they had settled down in Li family Village, eaten their fill, and were beginning to rest. This was precisely when their guard would be at its lowest.

A chill shot up from the soles of their feet straight to the crowns of their heads.

Just then, Zhang Xiaokui’s panicked shout suddenly came from outside the door:

"Master Xu! This is bad!"

"Your horse is gone!"

"My *what* is gone?! Watch your mouth!"

Xu Fu instantly bristled like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, storming out the door while cursing.

The next moment, however, his curses were drowned out by a series of screams.

Outside, the horses that had been docilely tied to the trees seemed to have been agitated by something. They were stampeding in all directions as if their camp had been thrown into chaos.

More horrifyingly, with the sound of tearing flesh, sharp, jet-black horns forcefully sprouted from the horses’ foreheads. Their eyes turned blood-red as they began to madly attack the unprepared Demon Slayer Envoys around them.

Several screams rang out in succession.

Some were too slow to dodge and were gored through the stomach by the horns, while others had their legs broken by hooves. The scene instantly descended into chaos.

"How are there so many Horse Demons?!"

Xu Fu drew his saber, dodging the charge of a crazed horse, his face a mask of horror.

Tang Guixin’s figure flashed. She appeared before a frenzied horse and sent it reeling back with a palm strike. After a closer look, her expression changed drastically.

"The Horse Demon really was hiding among them! It waited for us to lower our guard and infected all the horses with its demonic poison... These horses are beyond saving. Quick, kill them all!"

She acted decisively. Her long saber left its sheath, and she charged into the herd of horses with a flash of cold light.

Hearing her, the others no longer hesitated. They all drew their blades and began to attack.

Bizarrely, however, the hides of these horses infected with demonic poison had become as hard as iron, as if protected by a layer of tough Gang Qi.

Aside from the considerably powerful Hall Masters—Jiang Mu, Tang Guixin, and Xu Fu—who could break through their defense, the attacks of the other Demon Slayer Envoys only left white marks on their hides.

Even when Jiang Mu sliced a Horse Demon in two at the waist, its severed body, wreathed in black energy, healed rapidly.

Xu Fu even managed to decapitate one, but flesh tendrils squirmed from its neck, and in the blink of an eye, a new horse head grew back and it shrieked as it lunged forward to bite again.

"It’s no use!"

Du Yuanfei staggered out, forcing his weakened body forward, and shouted:

"Lord Tang, Lord Jiang! This Horse Demon’s Divine Abilities are extremely treacherous. As long as its true body remains hidden and alive within the herd, these puppets it has infected are effectively immortal. We’ll never be able to kill them all!"

’True body?’

Hearing this, Tang Guixin frowned deeply.

She quickly pulled a cyan-glowing Talisman from her robes. With a tap of her finger, the Talisman ignited and transformed into a streak of golden light that shot toward the chaotic herd.

"Reveal!"

This was an "Illusion-Breaking Talisman," specifically designed to see through a demon’s disguise.

However, the golden light circled once in the air before drifting down aimlessly, as if it had lost its target, and turned to ash.

"It didn’t work?!"

Tang Guixin’s heart sank.

’This Horse Demon’s concealment abilities are truly profound.’

Jiang Mu’s figure flickered. Like a great roc spreading its wings, he leaped onto a rooftop and looked down upon the chaotic herd from above.

With a thought, a faint purple light flickered between his brows.

Spiritual Light Divination!

His Earth Spirit Star Divine Abilities activated!

As starlight flowed through his eyes, the world before Jiang Mu instantly changed. A pale blue, scanner-like light spread out rapidly from his position, enveloping the entire herd of horses below.

Amidst the chaotic stampede, a blood-red word, [Ominous], was hovering conspicuously above the head of a bay horse!

"Found it!"

Jiang Mu’s gaze narrowed.

The next second, however, the [Ominous] word flickered, vanished, and then reappeared above the head of a different black horse nearby.