txolops Chapter 7 This demon and I are destined to meet.
Chapter 7 This demon and I are destined to meet.
Lin Xuan traveled downstream along the Qiantang River, not in a hurry to go to Hangzhou.
He knew very well that the higher the level, the greater the gap between each level, especially for Bai Suzhen and Fahai from Hangzhou, who were still using the boss template.
With my current level 14 stats, rashly participating in the Jinshan Temple dungeon, even with my past connection to Bai Suzhen, wouldn't yield much benefit. So...
"He really needs to practice this level! Hiccup!"
Lin Xuan swallowed a huge old turtle spirit and let out a satisfying burp.
After transforming into a dragon, his size increased considerably. Even without invoking the proverb "a snake trying to swallow an elephant," he could still devour the old turtle.
[Defeat the 'Old Turtle Demon' (Lv12).]
[Experience points gained: 100.]
The closer you get to the lower reaches of the Qiantang River, the higher the level of the monsters in the river.
Any random old turtle is comparable in level to the water monkey he encountered not long ago.
However, this old turtle doesn't have any resentment or high-level bloodline, so it only provides experience points.
But that's enough.
"Looks like I should be able to break through to level 20 before I reach Hangzhou, then I'll have the power to stir up trouble!"
Lin Xuan smiled smugly and continued swimming forward.
Its black body swayed in the water, stirring up ripples that caused the surrounding fish to scatter in panic.
Lin Xuan was unaware that his clearing out of the pirate ships last night had not only attracted offerings from wealthy merchants but also drawn the attention of cultivators.
In this world, the government has not been overthrown by various demons and monsters, which means it must have powerful backers.
Leaving aside the lofty Heavenly Court, the imperial court makes lavish offerings every year in exchange for the protection of these beings.
Local governments also supported many cultivators to deal with the monsters that the Heavenly Court was too lazy to deal with.
Inside the government office in the prefectural city, an official with a square face sat upright in a grand chair, dressed in the official robes of a prefect. He had a dignified and upright appearance.
"Esteemed Immortals, the appearance of such a monstrous creature within my jurisdiction has caused me great distress! I wonder if any Immortal is willing to step forward and subdue this demon for me?"
Several cultivators sat before him, including Taoists, Buddhist monks, and some independent cultivators who were neither fully Buddhist nor Taoist.
These monks remained outwardly calm upon hearing the prefect's words, but inwardly they were all sneering.
The prefect's words sound grand and dignified, but do you think we don't understand your ulterior motives?
That gang of river bandits has been causing trouble for so long, yet they haven't been wiped out. Isn't it all because you, the prefect, are their backer?
Now that the dragon has destroyed your black glove and ruined your plans, of course you can't sit still!
But the words she says are so sweet; it's such a waste of her talent that she's not in a theater troupe!
Seeing his words fall to the ground unattended, the prefect's eyes flashed with anger; he was furious.
But after taking a few heavy breaths, he suppressed his anger and said in a gentle tone:
"If anyone can destroy that monster, I am willing to report to the court to commend him."
This statement did have an effect; the cultivators present were somewhat moved and began to whisper among themselves.
If one can receive an official title from the imperial court, it's equivalent to being registered with the Heavenly Court. If one is lucky, one might be able to enter the Heavenly Court and obtain a formal position.
Become one of the glorious 100,000 heavenly soldiers!
In Heaven, you can call me a Heavenly Soldier and I won't argue with you, but on Earth, every ordinary Heavenly Soldier is a Celestial!
But in the end, no one stepped forward.
A white-bearded monk sat in a chair, chanted a Buddhist prayer, and then earnestly said:
"Your Excellency, based on the tracks on the ship, the culprit behind this disturbance is a dragon, which is far beyond our capabilities!"
"You should report this to the imperial court and have them send someone to handle it."
The other cultivators all nodded in agreement.
"Yes, the Jiaolong is also a dragon, under the jurisdiction of the Four Seas Dragon Kings, who in turn obey the Heavenly Court. As long as the Heavenly Court gives the order, a mere Jiaolong is nothing to fear."
The prefect finally couldn't hold back any longer, and his face darkened.
I feed you well and take good care of you on ordinary days. When I occasionally collect rare and precious materials, I send them to you.
When things got tough, you all cowered and hid, and even dragged the Heavenly Court into it?
I'm so angry!
However, at this moment, someone actually stepped forward.
"It's just a dragon, isn't it? This demon is destined to be mine; it's only right that I capture it!"
Upon hearing this, everyone turned around, and the next moment they all frowned.
"Yun Hezi, are you serious?"
"Would I joke?" Yun Hezi smiled slightly and responded calmly.
After saying this, he cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards the prefect:
"Rest assured, Prefect, as long as I personally take action, I will definitely capture that dragon."
The prefect's expression relaxed; finally, someone was willing to take action!
He stroked his beard and smiled:
"Alright! Then I'll wait for the Taoist priest's good news in the prefectural city!"
"After your triumphant return, I will immediately submit a memorial to the court to request commendation for you."
Yun Hezi nodded and turned to leave.
Before he had gone far, the other cultivators began to shake their heads. This Yun Hezi was really crazy. Although his cultivation was not bad, he was no match for the dragon.
After leaving the government office, Yun Hezi showed a hint of disdain on his face. He had seen the expressions of those cultivators earlier.
Yun Hezi pursed his lips and shook his head, whispering:
"Heh, a bunch of idiots!"
"If the one who wiped out the pirates last night was truly a dragon in its prime, why would it have left any claw marks? Why would it have broken the roof of the ship's assembly hall?"
"If we just open our gaping maw, we can swallow those three warships whole!"
"That dragon is either seriously injured or has encountered some other unforeseen event, weakening its strength. It's not a threat at all!"
It turned out that Yun Hezi had vaguely seen through Lin Xuan's true nature, which was why he dared to volunteer.
"But no matter what, it's still a dragon! If we could kill it, skin it, pull out its tendons, and extract its inner core..."
With greed filling his eyes, Yun Hezi took out a precious sword and stood on it without hesitation. He actually flew up, which caused the people outside the city to kneel down in worship.
"Ah, they're gods!"
"God, please take me away!"
Yun Hezi ignored him, rode his flying sword to the shore, landed in front of the incense table set up by the wealthy merchants for Lin Xuan, and made a hand seal.
[The Method of Locating Qi Through Observation!]
This is a secret technique that Yun Hezi obtained in his early years, originally intended for seeking immortality and enlightenment.
Soon, Yun Hezi discovered Lin Xuan's whereabouts.
"This beast is definitely out of sorts, otherwise it wouldn't have run this far!"
"My chance has truly arrived!"
Yun Hezi got up again and charged towards Lin Xuan's location.
At this moment, Lin Xuan also sensed something was wrong.
"Hmm? Why does it feel like someone's watching me?"
At first, Lin Xuan thought there was some kind of monster lurking in the water around him, so he adopted a defensive posture and curled up.
At the same time, open the system panel to explore the surroundings.
If there are indeed powerful demonic beasts around, then the demonic beasts will reveal their location by displaying their health bars.
But no matter how Lin Xuan investigated, the surroundings remained completely silent.
Although a few monsters could be seen, they were all small fry and nothing to be afraid of.
"That's strange. Could it be my imagination?"
Just as Lin Xuan was about to relax his guard, he suddenly felt a powerful pressure coming from the air, which startled him.
Almost simultaneously, a system notification rang in his ears.
[Enemy Information: Yun Hezi, a rogue cultivator (lv30).]
[Warning: The enemy's strength is five times yours; your chances of winning a head-on confrontation are...]
Before Lin Xuan could finish reading the system notification, the river surface suddenly parted, and a sword aura descended from the sky. The immense force struck Lin Xuan, causing his coiled body to tremble violently, and he spat out a large amount of blood.
"Wow!"
Lin Xuan was struck by lightning and was seriously injured in one fell swoop. He didn't even get a clear look at Yun Hezi's face!
On the river, Yun Hezi was quite pleased with himself. He sheathed his sword and thought to himself that he had really made the right choice in coming here.
This beast is in extremely poor condition. Its current strength is no longer that of a dragon; it's at most a large worm.
I've gotten a really great deal!
Yun Hezi stared at Lin Xuan and, upon discovering that Lin Xuan was still alive, prepared to make another move.
However, at this moment, Lin Xuan finally found Yun Hezi's whereabouts, looked up at the sky, and shouted across the water:
"Who are you, and why are you attacking me? Are you the mastermind behind those river pirates?"
Lin Xuan was able to speak human language, which surprised Yun Hezi at all; after all, he was a dragon.
Yun Hezi originally didn't want to pay any attention to Lin Xuan, but for some reason, he inexplicably replied:
"They're just a bunch of bandits; why would I accept their offerings?"
"It's Prefect Liu of the prefectural city; he asked me to deal with you!"
Lin Xuan hurriedly added, "Prefect Liu? He's the most important official in the prefecture. I wiped out the river bandits for him; he's grateful to me. Why would he send people to hunt me down?"
"You must be lying!"
Yun Hezi felt a surge of anxiety, guessing that Lin Xuan was stalling for time. He wanted to take action immediately and kill Lin Xuan first.
However, after Lin Xuan uttered those words, he seemed to have developed obsessive-compulsive disorder. He felt uncomfortable all over if he didn't answer, and his Dao heart became unstable.
So Yun Hezi had no choice but to reply seriously:
"You don't know this, but those river bandits are actually Prefect Liu's henchmen, just helping him make money."
Hearing Yun Hezi honestly answer his question, Lin Xuan breathed a sigh of relief; his story had been successfully activated!
Ever since he was struck by Yun Hezi's sword, Lin Xuan knew that something terrible was about to happen.
The enemy that suddenly appeared was extremely powerful; not only was it of a high level, but it had also cultivated Taoist magic.
Even if I were to fight him head-on, my chances of winning would be extremely low, let alone now that I've been ambushed and seriously injured.
Fortunately, at the critical moment, Lin Xuan remembered a classical Chinese story: feigning compliance!
Although the word "snake" in this story has a different pronunciation, it is still related to snakes. Moreover, the system has a bug that allows it to be activated by relying on the literal meaning of the words!
Sure enough, as soon as Lin Xuan spoke, Yun Hezi was as if he were being forcibly controlled and had no choice but to answer the question.
Seeing his health bar gradually recover, Lin Xuan felt slightly relieved and then asked Yun Hezi:
"Isn't Prefect Liu afraid of being held accountable by the imperial court for doing this?"