Chapter 47 - 41: Raising a Skin?
Ling Ye looked Jiang Mu up and down. He was dressed in all black, and her expression was strange:
"Why are you dressed like a common degenerate?"
Jiang Mu had no time to explain. He said in a low voice:
"Lord Ling, there’s a demon in the city! It’s in the secluded courtyard at the end of Three-leaf Lane in the west district. I saw it with my own eyes. Come with me, quickly!"
Ling Ye’s fine brows furrowed slightly:
"Demons that appear in the city usually don’t have high Cultivation Levels. Your Demon-slaying Bureau can handle it yourselves. I have other business."
She turned to leave.
Jiang Mu spoke quickly:
"That demon isn’t in my jurisdiction; it’s the Third Hall’s territory. Besides, its Cultivation Level is extremely high—Tier Five at least. I stumbled upon its true form by accident and barely escaped with my life."
"Tier Five?"
Ling Ye turned, her slender waist twisting, a look of surprise on her face.
"If it’s the Third Hall’s territory, why didn’t you inform them?"
The night wind swept past, pressing her black dress tightly against her body. The undulating peaks of her chest were like two volcanoes imprisoned by the night.
Jiang Mu said helplessly:
"I did. Master Wen wasn’t there, and the others wouldn’t listen. I suspect they hold a grudge against me because of what happened before and don’t believe a word I say."
Ling Ye said flatly:
"It’s not that they don’t believe you. They’re afraid you’ll embarrass them again. They’ve probably already gone by now."
After all, Ling Ye had been around the Demon-slaying Bureau for many years and knew its inner workings well.
She asked, "What kind of demon is it, exactly?"
Jiang Mu’s voice was grim.
"It’s a Painted Skin Demon. I saw the woman peel her own face right off."
"Painted Skin?"
Ling Ye’s beautiful eyes suddenly narrowed. "You’re saying you saw her peel off her skin with your own eyes?"
"Yes."
"It was snakeskin."
"What?" Jiang Mu was stunned.
’So that female snake has been hiding in the city. No wonder we couldn’t find her.’
Ling Ye shoved the large watermelon she was holding into Jiang Mu’s arms. "Hold this for me. Be careful not to drop it."
Jiang Mu took it instinctively.
Before he could react, the beautiful figure before him flickered and transformed into a streak of light, racing toward Three-leaf Lane.
"Hey, wait for me!"
Cradling the watermelon, Jiang Mu chased after her.
...
...
After Jiang Mu left, Wang Ershang quickly gathered six men and headed for the courtyard Jiang Mu had mentioned.
Besides himself, a Fourth Realm expert, the rest were all Third Realm.
In Wang Ershang’s opinion, this lineup was already extravagant—more than enough to capture a demon.
Arriving outside the courtyard, Wang Ershang first directed the others to set up a simple demon-trapping formation with Talismans to seal off the perimeter.
He also arranged for two men to guard the front and back exits to prevent the demon from escaping.
Once everything was in place, he vaulted into the courtyard with his two most capable subordinates.
The moment he landed, a faint blue light gleamed in Wang Ershang’s eyes.
His Star Position was the "Earth Ambush Star Official."
The Divine Ability it granted him was enhanced night vision, allowing him to see every detail within ten zhang and to detect demonic energy.
"Strange..."
Wang Ershang scanned the deathly silent courtyard, his brow furrowed. "Not a trace of demonic energy."
"Boss, you don’t think that kid with the surname Jiang is messing with us, do you?" one of his subordinates asked suspiciously.
Wang Ershang shook his head. "He’s not that childish. You two, go check the house up ahead."
He pointed to the candlelit house in front of them.
The two men nodded lightly and split up, circling around from either side.
Wang Ershang tightened his grip on his saber’s hilt, his eyes fixed on the door.
For some reason, his heart suddenly began to pound.
He was filled with a sudden, inexplicable sense of foreboding.
One of the men reached the eaves outside the house. He wet his finger with saliva, gently poked a hole in the paper window, and pressed his eye to it.
But the instant his eye touched the paper,
he saw a sinister eye staring right back at him!
"FUCK!"
The man jumped back in fright, retreating instinctively.
PFFT—
A hand burst out from his chest.
The courtyard’s lone maidservant had appeared behind him at some unknown moment.
In her slender, pale hand, she held a still-beating heart.
THUMP!
The man collapsed to the ground, silent.
The maidservant emotionlessly stuffed the piece of flesh in her hand into her mouth and began to chew.
Blood trickled down the corners of her lips.
A cold female voice drifted from inside the house. "Kill them all. I am in the middle of nourishing my skin. I am not to be disturbed."
"Yes, Mistress."
The maidservant demon swallowed the heart and instantly rushed toward the other man.
Seeing his companion die, the Demon Slayer Envoy let out a furious roar, drew his saber, and charged the maidservant.
"Third Realm?"
A flicker of disdain crossed the maidservant’s eyes.
Her figure flashed like a phantom. As she dodged the blade, her five fingers formed a claw and clamped down on the man’s throat.
PFFT—
The Demon Slayer Envoy didn’t even have time to scream before his throat was ripped out.
"Old Lin!"
Wang Ershang’s eyes nearly split from their sockets in rage as he drew his saber and charged forward to meet her.
He could tell this maidservant was a Tier Four demon, so he put all his strength into his first strike. His blade, wreathed in Star Power, slashed straight for her head.
CLANG!!
The maidservant raised her arm, actually blocking the saber with her bare flesh.
Sparks flew!
A layer of fine, cyan scales covered her arm.
"A Snake Demon?!"
Wang Ershang’s heart sank.
The Snake Demon maidservant’s eyes were icy as she attacked again, her entire body now covered in hard scales.
At the same tier, a demon was always half a step stronger.
After just a few exchanges, Wang Ershang was already at a disadvantage, forced back again and again by her sharp claws, which left several bloody gashes on his body.
Hearing the commotion, the other four men rushed in and joined the fray.
Only then did Wang Ershang have a moment to catch his breath.
The two sides were locked in a bitter stalemate.
Just then, an impatient, cold female voice suddenly came from the house: "Noisy!"
CRASH—
The door to the house burst open.
Before Wang Ershang could see clearly, he was struck by a heavy blow to the chest.
He flew backward like a kite with a snapped string, crashing heavily against the courtyard’s water cistern and spitting out a large mouthful of blood.
A Great Demon!!
Wang Ershang lay in the shattered cistern, his eyes filled with horror.
’Master Jiang wasn’t lying. It really is a Great Demon!’
In that moment, despair and regret washed over him.
Through his blurry vision, he saw a giant, ghostly hand formed of black mist reaching for him, blotting out the sky.
’It’s over...’
Wang Ershang closed his eyes, waiting for death.
SHIIING—!
Suddenly, the ring of a sword echoed through the night sky.
The black, misty hand froze in mid-air, then dissolved and dispersed.
Wang Ershang’s eyes snapped open in astonishment.
He saw a beautiful figure standing on the roof ridge, her clothes fluttering in the wind.
Ling Ye’s delicate nostrils twitched slightly as she said coldly:
"That foul stench... It really is you, you female Snake Demon. You’ve got some nerve, coming into the city to break through."
"It’s you!?"
A venomous roar came from inside the house. "You bitch! You’re like a persistent ghost!"
BOOM!
The roof exploded.
A figure cloaked in demonic energy shot into the sky, the Blood Saber in its hand leaving a several-zhang-long tail of dark red light as it slashed toward Ling Ye.
Ling Ye brandished her ice sword.
The two became entangled in battle.
At times, the bloody light surged, threatening to swallow the silver glint of the sword; at others, the net of sword light would suddenly contract, strangling the demonic energy.
The constantly expanding rings of the shockwave shook the courtyard walls, causing dust to rain down.
Although Ling Ye had appeared in time to engage the Great Demon, the Tier Four maidservant demon was still there.
With Wang Ershang severely injured, the other four Third Realm Demon Slayer Envoys were clearly no match for her. In just a few moments, two more of them were dead.
The remaining two were also gravely wounded, clinging to life as they lay on the ground.
"It’s your turn."
The maidservant licked the blood from the back of her hand and walked toward Wang Ershang step by step, her eyes filled with mockery.
Wang Ershang tried to grip his saber, but he couldn’t lift his hand.
Despair filled his eyes.
’If only I had listened to Master Jiang, it wouldn’t have come to this!’
Just then, a rush of footsteps sounded as Jiang Mu vaulted over the wall and into the courtyard, still holding the watermelon.
Seeing the scene before him, Jiang Mu was speechless:
"Wang Ershang, you really are an idiot."
When the maidservant saw the sudden appearance of a handsome, masculine man, her eyes lit up and she smiled:
"What a handsome young gentleman."
"If we use you to nourish the Mistress’s skin, it will surely turn out beautiful."
’Nourish her skin?’
Jiang Mu’s gaze swept over the corpses on the ground as he slowly drew his saber.
’I see you’re just a bitch itching for a beating.’