Can't win.
Then just run.
Compared to my own life, everything else is insignificant.
Zhuang Mingyuan never expected that a mere probationary Demon Hunter would be an Innate Martial Artist.
This matter—
was completely beyond his expectations.
Even—
Zhuang Mingyuan even suspected that perhaps the Demon-Subduing Division had already sensed something strange in Lin'an City and deliberately sent a Profound Rank Demon Hunter here, disguising them as a probationary Demon Hunter, just to lower their guard.
"Impossible!"
"In that battle, every Demon-Subduing Division in the land suffered heavy losses—how could they have the spare resources to assign a Profound Rank Demon Hunter to a small place like Lin'an City—"
Even at first, he had some doubts about whether the Demon-Subduing Division still had any manpower to spare.
But in reality—
in Zhuang Mingyuan's mind, it was simply impossible for the Demon-Subduing Division to free up any forces right now.
Therefore—
when sending out the false information, he just wanted to lure a few probationary Demon Hunters over to die.
After all, probationary Demon Hunters capable of carrying out assessment missions were usually only just entering the Pulse Condensation stage—not weak, but definitely not too strong—just enough to let the Blood Soul devour them and advance.
Across the Jianghu—
apart from the Demon-Subduing Division, which could muster a great number of Pulse Condensation Warriors, it was difficult for even ordinary sects to come up with more than a few themselves.
Besides—
Jianghu martial artists have always been deeply wary of Demon Evil, and wouldn't dare go near them lightly.
Even if word spread that there were Demon Evil in Lin'an City, those martial artists wouldn't dare come here to hunt them down.
So—
the hope for the Blood Soul's advancement ended up falling on the Demon-Subduing Division.
However—
the Demon-Subduing Division only sending a probationary Demon Hunter truly did take Zhuang Mingyuan by surprise.
But this also proved, in a way, that the Demon-Subduing Division really was short on strong warriors now.
So in that case—
even if one probationary Demon Hunter wasn't enough to let the Blood Soul advance, he could still let it devour more innocents wantonly, without worrying the Division would dispatch true experts for suppression right away.
But all of Zhuang Mingyuan's calculations—
missed just one thing—
and that was Shen Changqing's strength.
He simply never could have imagined a probationary Demon Hunter could be so powerful.
At this moment—
Zhuang Mingyuan didn't even need to think to know: the Blood Soul in Guyue Village must have perished by Shen Changqing's hand.
An Innate Martial Artist—
was not someone a mere Ghostly Level Fiend could handle; if you wanted to kill an Innate, at the very least, you needed a Resentment Level Monster to make a move.
Zhuang Mingyuan made his escape without hesitation.
But Shen Changqing had already been watching his movements. The moment Zhuang Mingyuan ran, Shen Changqing immediately gave chase.
He hadn't cultivated Qinggong—
however—
even without Qinggong,
with Shen Changqing's current strength, his speed was ghost-like.
The two—
in a flash, disappeared from the Yamen, one after the other.
At once—
the scene fell into silence.
A few government officials, torches in hand, looked with complex expressions at Zhao Fang, whose face was ashen, and at Zhang Long's mud-stained head on the ground, not knowing what to do.
Arrest the traitor!?
But Zhao Fang was, after all, an official of the Imperial Court. The lot of them had served under him for years—
If they let him go—
they wouldn't dare do it either.
If Shen Changqing came back and saw that Zhao Fang was gone, they were just lowly officials—how could they bear such a crime?
As they hesitated,
Zhao Fang looked at them and waved his hand calmly. "You all go back. Don't worry, I'll wait here for Lord Shen's return."
"Zhao—" someone opened their mouth, wanting to say something, but didn't know what to call him for the moment.
"Go on!"
Zhao Fang waved them off and turned toward the hall.
At that moment—
he seemed to age decades all at once.
Watching Zhao Fang's desolate, lonely back, the others wore complicated expressions, but said nothing more.
"Let's go!"
"Let's all go back—"
Soon—
the once-bustling Yamen fell silent and still.
But the commotion from earlier had already drawn the attention of the nearby townsfolk. Yet because of curfew, after nightfall, no one dared venture out.
Elsewhere,
Zhuang Mingyuan and Shen Changqing, one ahead and one behind, had already reached beyond the city gates.
In terms of speed—
Zhuang Mingyuan was truly fast,
but as an Innate Martial Artist, Shen Changqing was just as quick. Except for gaining some distance at first, Zhuang Mingyuan was now being closed in on, bit by bit.
When the two were less than a zhang apart—
Shen Changqing struck with a palm through the air. The fierce force swept out in a heatwave, making the very air grow hot.
Feeling the threat at his back,
Zhuang Mingyuan didn't even think as he whirled and struck back with his palm.
Boom—
Their palm strikes collided midair, but Zhuang Mingyuan's strength was much weaker. Instantly, he was knocked to the ground.
Immediately after,
Shen Changqing's long blade slashed down, aiming straight for Zhuang Mingyuan's head.
"Don't kill me, I can tell you a secret—" Zhuang Mingyuan screamed in terror as the cold light neared, finally halting at his neck.
An icy chill—
sent a nameless dread through Zhuang Mingyuan's heart.
He might disregard others' lives, but cared immensely for his own.
Or rather—
most who turned to Demon Evil cherished their own lives above all.
If not for that—
they wouldn't have allied with Demon Evil.
Shen Changqing's blade rested firmly on Zhuang Mingyuan's shoulder, pressed close to his neck. "Go on, what's the secret? If I catch you lying, death will be the least of your troubles.
You've heard of the Demon-Subduing Prison, haven't you?
Demonfolk like you, if taken alive and locked in the Demon-Subduing Prison, will find a fate worse than death."
Demon-Subduing Prison!
At those words, all color drained from Zhuang Mingyuan's face.
There's no way he hadn't heard of it.
It was a highly guarded place under the Demon-Subduing Division—countless powerful Demon Evil were locked there, unable to ever escape.
It's said the Demon-Subduing Prison—
is a true deathtrap for Demon Evil.
However—
Though heartstruck with terror, Zhuang Mingyuan wasn't stupid. He forced himself to stay calm.
"I'll tell you, but you must swear on the Demon-Subduing Division's name that after learning the secret, you will let me go unharmed—swear you will not kill me!"
"Are you threatening me?"
"I wouldn't dare. I just want a chance to survive, that's all."
Seeing Zhuang Mingyuan's look of utter resolve—as if he'd rather die than speak without an oath—Shen Changqing raised an eyebrow.
"Fine. I swear on the name of the Demon-Subduing Division: as long as your secret is truly valuable, I will let you walk away, fully intact!"