Just as Jiang Wang saw the small skeleton and his emotions surged, *shiu!* A sharp whistling sound suddenly arrived.

Jiang Wang, with a twist of his wrist, impossibly raised his sword and scabbard behind him, precisely blocking the rapidly approaching sharp object, creating a metallic clang.

He followed the momentum, turned, and drew his sword in one fluid motion, catching a glimpse of the incoming object: a ghastly white finger bone. With no time to think, his body instinctively spun again.

Upon the bed, the little girl’s skeleton had levitated, its skull splitting open in a gruesome bite aimed at Jiang Wang!

Without the slightest hesitation, Jiang Wang kicked the skeleton back onto the bed. Then, his long sword spun several times, transforming in that instant into a violet lightning bolt dancing within the darkened room. The small corpse was severed at every joint and returned to its original position, appearing as if it had never moved.

“Heh heh heh heh, little Taoist priest, you seem quite angered by my killing of this little girl. But her last remains were destroyed by your own hands!”

The voice, piercing and shrill, drifted from an unknown source, seeming to come from everywhere and nowhere.

Such an illusion, capable of concealing one’s tracks, was not simple. It suggested that the enemy lurking in the shadows had planned carefully.

Jiang Wang, his foundation not yet complete and his senses not yet awakened, was temporarily unable to break through the illusion. However, he did not panic. Based on the knowledge he had learned in the Daoist academy, he could make two judgments. First, the enemy’s level was unlikely to be very high. The reason was simple: if it were truly a high-level expert, they would not need to rely on illusions and could kill him instantly.

The second judgment, inferred from the first, was that the illusion’s level could not be too high due to the opponent’s limited strength. The illusion would automatically break upon attack, movement, or even being attacked. The fact that the enemy’s initial attack only manipulated the corpse, instead of acting directly, supported this idea.

“You were the one who killed her, and you are the one who destroyed her remains. Heretical practices will not shake my heart!”

Jiang Wang moved with his sword, traversing the small room in an instant. The sword light illuminated nearly every corner!

Purple Qi Eastward, the first killing form!

At the moment the room flooded with light, all the sword light converged. Jiang Wang reached out as if to grasp the swirling radiance and slashed forth with a single strike!

The previously closed door shattered open.

Zhang Linchuan stood outside, faint lightning crackling in his hand.

“Just now, the two corpses outside were manipulated and reanimated. I destroyed them with lightning. What is the situation here?” he asked.

“I was attacked as well. I cannot break his illusion, but my sword still injured him!” Jiang Wang flicked his sword. A drop of crimson blood fell from the tip.

Zhang Linchuan reached out and caught the droplet, suspending it in his palm. “With this, it won’t be difficult to track down the demon.”

A hint of praise appeared on his face. “Junior Brother Jiang, you have contributed greatly to this mission.”

Jiang Wang scanned the room, finding no other traces of blood. “Senior Brother Zhang, the demon may not have escaped yet.”

Zhang Linchuan flipped his hand and stored the blood droplet, closing his eyes to sense for a moment. He shook his head. “There is no trace.”

Almost as soon as he spoke, the miasma of death filling the courtyard dissipated.

“Let’s go,” Zhang Linchuan said, putting away the blood droplet. “There are no more useful clues here. Give this drop of blood to the vice-dean; he is skilled in divination and will surely find the demon.”

This mission had impacted Jiang Wang’s mind like nothing before. The mountain bandits and robbers were already villains, but compared to these demons who habitually massacred entire families and desecrated corpses, they paled in comparison.

He had witnessed the cruel and merciless side of the cultivation world. Transcendent power could bring transcendent cruelty.

Jiang Wang wanted to look back at the little girl’s skeleton, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it.

At that moment, Zhang Linchuan said, “The Judiciary Division already investigated once without progress. But we encounter a demon attack as soon as we arrive. Something is fishy here.”

“Senior Brother means…”

“Hmph hmph,” Zhang Linchuan scoffed, twice.

Since joining the inner sect, Jiang Wang only sought cultivation, and had no desire to be dragged into the struggles between Dong A and Wei Quji. But Zhang Linchuan was hinting at such a possibility.

Unfortunately, he still had no right to refuse.

“Junior Brother Jiang’s swordsmanship is extraordinary, far beyond the crude techniques collected in the Daoist academy,” Zhang Linchuan commented, seemingly unintentionally.

Jiang Wang replied, “For Daoist practitioners, swordsmanship is ultimately a minor path. Senior Brother’s lightning techniques are truly amazing.”

The two corpses from the main hall and courtyard were now gone, leaving only a layer of charred ash. Jiang Wang could almost picture the scene: the two corpses, just manipulated, had not even had time to move before being obliterated by lightning.

“Junior Brother Jiang is too modest. In fact, our Daoist sword arts are second to none, but unfortunately, our Maple Forest City Daoist academy has no methods in this area. Throughout the entire Zhuang Kingdom, only the National Daoist Academy possesses such knowledge,” Zhang Linchuan sighed.

The Daoist sect also had methods of entering the path through the sword, with formidable and unparalleled attacks, not losing to ordinary sword cultivators. But it was not the mainstream, and Maple Forest City Daoist Academy did not have any experts who could teach in this area.

Jiang Wang had no desire to speak, but he couldn’t ignore Zhang Linchuan, so he complimented casually, “With Senior Brother’s talent, entering the National Daoist Academy is only a matter of time.”

“Yes, a matter of time,” Zhang Linchuan suddenly sighed, gazing into the distance, towards the Qichang Mountain range. “But early and late are, after all, different things. I often feel like a knife is poking me in the back, making every moment feel urgent.”

Such a talented and powerful noble, who was clean and particular about his looks, had such real, genuine anxiety and worry in his voice.

Jiang Wang was silent. He also wanted to become stronger faster, to get to where he should have already gone.

Every moment felt urgent.

“Beyond that mountain range lies the Yong Kingdom,” Zhang Linchuan said. “If the demon escapes into the Yong Kingdom, we will no longer be able to catch him.”

Jiang Wang naturally knew why he said that.

The Zhuang Kingdom had been established for over three hundred years. Zhuang Chengqian, the founding emperor, was originally a general of the Yong Kingdom. He led his troops to conquer vast lands and took advantage of the Yong Kingdom’s three princes vying for the throne to independently establish his own kingdom. Afterward, he formed alliances and made the Daoist sect the state religion, leaning on the powerful Jing Kingdom, which also belonged to the Daoist lineage. Only then did he stand firm and pass his empire down until this day.

But because of this history, the relationship between the Zhuang and Yong Kingdoms had always been strained.

The enemies of the Zhuang Kingdom might be welcomed in the Yong Kingdom.

Jiang Wang said nothing in response, but silently followed Zhang Linchuan out of the courtyard.

Tang Dun, who was waiting outside the door, immediately greeted them, his eyes full of anticipation. “How was it? Was the demon eliminated?”

He had heard the commotion in the courtyard and knew that there had been a fight.

“There is a lead now,” Jiang Wang said, turning to Zhang Linchuan. “Senior Brother, could you lend me some money?”

Without asking why, Zhang Linchuan casually tossed a money bag over.

Jiang Wang weighed it slightly and took out the smallest piece of silver—he had wanted to take some knife coins, but Zhang Linchuan’s money bag contained only gold and silver.

Jiang Wang handed the piece of silver to the small-town constable, Tang Dun. “Inside, there is the corpse of a little girl. Please use this silver to buy a coffin and bury her. There are two piles of ashes in the courtyard, her parents. Bury them together.”

Tang Dun’s rough face was very bleak, but he firmly pushed Jiang Wang’s hand away. “I will take care of their funeral arrangements. I can’t accept your money.”

“Take it,” Jiang Wang forcibly placed the silver in his hand. “Just let me be at peace.”

The constable uniform on Tang Dun had patches, showing that his family was not well-off. He was assigned to receive him and Zhang Linchuan, who were an unwelcome group, indicating that he was also a marginalized figure in the government.

He couldn’t break free, so he tightly grabbed Jiang Wang’s hand. “I thank you on Niu’er’s behalf!”

So her name was Niu’er.

The canvas hanging on the wall seemed to reappear before his eyes. She had once hoped to capture a spring. But her life had never bloomed again.

Niu’er, Niu’er.

Jiang Wang repeated the name several times in his heart, as if he was tying some kind of responsibility to his Daoist heart.