Chapter 792: Unfit for Great Use?

Flint was essential for people in the martial arts world, and Zuo Wuji naturally carried one. In a few swift motions, he lit some thin twigs, then used a broken chair from the temple and some collected branches as fuel. There was no need for a knife; he simply crumbled the wood with his bare hands.

The food provided by the town's patrol, though called *baozi* (steamed buns), consisted mostly of *mantou* (steamed bread), with very few containing actual fillings. Fortunately, their hardened state meant they wouldn't spoil easily. After being warmed over the fire, they softened and released a pleasant scent of flour, which was far more appealing than eating elixirs.

"Master, here you go."

"Fourth Master, have another one. This one has a filling."

Zuo Wuji handed the first two roasted buns to Yan Fei and Lu Chengfeng before finally preparing one for himself. This small bag of *mantou* and *baozi* wasn't quite enough to fully satisfy the three of them, but it was certainly enough to tide them over. Zuo Wuji was already contemplating hunting a wild boar or deer the next day.

Among the three, Zuo Wuji ate with the most relish. Lu Chengfeng always preferred to eat with wine, and Yan Fei rarely showed any expression while eating. Only Zuo Wuji devoured his food with obvious satisfaction.

"Ah, it's still not enough."

Even after finishing his last bun, Zuo Wuji still felt a little unsatisfied, but he began preparing his bed. There was plenty of dry straw in the temple. However, Yan Fei glanced outside, then at Lu Chengfeng, before speaking to Zuo Wuji.

"Wuji, don't fall asleep tonight."

Zuo Wuji paused, his expression instantly becoming serious.

"Master, do you mean something's going to happen?"

Innate masters naturally possessed unique intuitions, and Yan Fei's were particularly keen. Though he hadn't identified any specific issue, he simply had a strong feeling. Lu Chengfeng also furrowed his brow, looking at the temple's severely damaged main entrance. Those few decaying wooden planks offered absolutely no protection.

"It seems we'll have to rely on ourselves for good fortune, eh? Wuji, want a sip?"

"Alright!"

Zuo Wuji smiled as he took Lu Chengfeng's flask and took a deep swig. The liquor brought a warmth to his stomach; though it was a turbid wine, its taste wasn't too bad.

Inside the temple, only Lu Chengfeng and Zuo Wuji lay down, wrapped in blankets, while Yan Fei remained seated cross-legged by the fire. As those in the temple rested, a patrol team on the edge of the town watched the distant firelight from the dilapidated temple.

"These strangers have incredibly strange accents. We could only barely understand some of what they said through gestures and guesses. Who knows where they came from."

The leader was a constable. The person next to him heard his words and muttered.

"Perhaps they really are transformed demons?"

"They don't look like demons."

"Then they could also be human traitors helping the demons. I've heard such incidents happened a few times elsewhere, where traitors infiltrated towns, helped dismantle the magic formations set up by mages and masters from within, and harmed the majority of the city's inhabitants!"

The constable nodded slightly.

"That is certainly possible. So it was definitely correct not to let them into the city. Not only them, but even those with local accents need to be watched carefully. We'll continue our patrol tonight, but we also need to keep a close eye on that dilapidated temple."

"Understood!" "Don't worry, Brother Lin."

"I'll stay vigilant."

"Good!"

The patrol was currently divided into three teams. Although they were outside the city, they weren't far from the city wall, and one team constantly kept its eyes on the dilapidated temple. Inside the city, people also patrolled throughout the night, and two mages were stationed there.

As the night deepened, the bonfire in the dilapidated temple grew weaker. Lu Chengfeng's wine flask lay beside him, and faint snores could already be heard. Zuo Wuji, covered by a blanket, breathed steadily, while Yan Fei remained seated cross-legged by the bonfire, his long sword resting across his knees, perfectly still.

*Whoosh... whoosh...* *Clatter clatter clatter...*

The night wind picked up, causing the dilapidated temple's door to creak loudly. Yan Fei's eyes snapped open, a glint of light flashing within them. Lu Chengfeng, lying nearby, became even more relaxed, though ready to spring into action at any moment. Even Zuo Wuji's hand was already resting on his flat staff.

However, the wind only lasted for a while before quickly dying down. Yan Fei looked toward the doorway, then, after a long moment, closed his eyes again. Zuo Wuji muttered, "How anticlimactic," under his breath and drifted back to sleep.

After that, there was no unusual activity throughout the night; it seemed as if the night would pass peacefully. However, just before dawn, Yan Fei opened his eyes again. Lu Chengfeng sat up from his bed a mere half-breath later, and Zuo Wuji, hearing his two masters stir, also sat up.

"Brother Lu."

"Hmm, the smell of blood..."

Zuo Wuji's heart gave a slight jolt. He calmed himself and sniffed hard. A moment later, he indeed detected a very faint smell of blood. Despite his youth, he had experienced the brutal wars between Da Zhen and Zu Yue, and he knew this particular scent meant it was fresh.

Yan Fei nodded slightly to the two, then slowly rose. Lu Chengfeng and Zuo Wuji followed in quick succession. Two breaths later, the three of them suppressed their *qi* with the *Wusha Yuangang* technique, and using their lightness skill, they silently exited the dilapidated temple. Following the scent of blood, they quickly moved to one side. Just thirty *zhang* away, the three spotted dead bodies in front of a patch of wild grass.

"Two of them..."

Lu Chengfeng's brows were tightly furrowed. The two people on the ground had met a gruesome end: half their faces were missing, and their chests were caved in with large holes.

"It seems their hearts were eaten, and a lot of blood is missing."

Zuo Wuji hadn't felt anything particular until he heard Lu Chengfeng's words, and then goosebumps instantly erupted all over his body.

During the war to conquer Zu Yue, although he had heard that the enemy included mages and even demons, these martial artists rarely encountered them. In most cases, they were dealt with by the masters of Da Zhen, making this situation entirely different from anything he had known.

"There are more over there."

Yan Fei was the first to run over. Zuo Wuji and Lu Chengfeng quickly followed, and sure enough, behind a patch of weeds on a lower earthen slope, more than twenty paces away, they found another person, also gruesomely dead.

"Are they from the patrol team?"

"Yes, no doubt about it."

Lu Chengfeng looked up into the distance. A team of people carrying lanterns was moving along a fixed route outside the city.

"Let's go ask them."

The three, possessing exceptional lightness skills, leaped like birds over grass. In just a few bounds, they appeared before the patrol team, startling them. The patrolmen immediately raised their weapons.

"Are they human or ghost?" "Who are you?"

The local dialect was somewhat difficult to understand, but they could generally grasp what was being said. Lu Chengfeng quickly used gestures to explain.

"Gentlemen, don't panic. We are outsiders staying in the dilapidated temple. Someone in your patrol team has died! Someone has died!"

Lu Chengfeng handed an object he had taken from one of the deceased to the wary men—a blood-stained chest ornament. The patrolmen, however, dared not take it.

"Don't come closer, throw it on the ground."

Lu Chengfeng frowned and threw the ornament onto the ground. When the patrolmen illuminated it with their lanterns, their faces instantly contorted in shock.

"It's Old Liu San's chain!" "Did something happen to him?"

"Brother Lin, what do we do?"

The leading constable paused, then suddenly became alert.

"No, something's wrong with you three! Back away, back away! Fire the magic arrows, shoot them!"

"Shoot them!"

This group of over a dozen patrolmen included five at the back who immediately drew and fired their arrows. The seemingly haphazard arrows surprisingly emitted a glow as they flew.

*Swish swish swish...*

The five arrows instantly approached the trio. After they leaped to dodge, the arrows surprisingly curved, following their evasive movements with whistling sounds, and their speed steadily increased.

*Clang...*

Yan Fei was forced to draw his sword. The long sword in his hand became a streak of silver light.

*Clang clang clang clang clang...*

All five magic arrows were struck. The moment their speed slowed, Lu Chengfeng instantly approached, his palms striking out like phantoms, firmly grasping the five arrows.

These arrows continued to twist in Lu Chengfeng's hands, like nimble snakes, possessing immense power. Lu Chengfeng snorted coldly, and his internal *qi* and *gangqi* erupted, his body emitting a dull "rumbling" sound.

*Crackling*, the five arrows flashed a few times before completely losing their movement.

"Shoot again, shoot again! Let's retreat!"

Seeing their magic arrows "captured" by the "demons," the patrolmen retreated in panic, still intending to fire more arrows. Yan Fei and the two others, however, had already used their lightness skills to travel a considerable distance.

"We are not demons! Be careful of Old Liu San, the one you saw – he's dead!"

Lu Chengfeng, once known as the Gentleman of Yun Pavilion, was exceptionally skilled in various social interactions within the martial arts world, and his linguistic aptitude was superb. After just a brief exchange, he had already picked up some of the local dialect's nuances. His shouts now carried a distinct local flavor, which allowed the patrolmen to understand. Though they continued to retreat, the second volley of arrows was not fired.

"We are not demons, but traveling martial artists! Whether human or demon, we kill only those who commit evil. Be careful of Old Liu San! Use those arrows of yours against them!" Lu Chengfeng shouted toward the retreating patrol team.

"Fourth Master, they've already fled far away."

The patrolmen were not ordinary civilians; they all possessed martial arts skills. If they were determined to escape, their speed would naturally be quick. Moreover, they seemed to have other items on them that made their escape even faster, to an exaggerated degree. In Zuo Wuji's sight, only faint glimmers of lantern light remained.

"They trust ghosts and demons, but not people!"

Yan Fei said coldly, his mind briefly recalling the scene where the nine of them had met Ji Yuan in the Mountain God Temple, finding it quite ironic.

"Master, Fourth Master, what should we do?"

Yan Fei glanced sideways at Zuo Wuji.

"What did we come here for?"

With that said, Yan Fei and Lu Chengfeng immediately used their lightness skills to leap forward. Zuo Wuji, carrying his flat staff, quickly followed.

The powerful *qi* and vital energy of the three, distinct from that of ordinary martial artists, now gradually emanated. Yan Fei, in particular, subtly connected his own primordial *qi* with the primordial *qi* of heaven and earth. Triggered by the environment, he had a strange sensation, as if he could vaguely feel a slightly foul, oppressive aura.

*Howl——*

A faint, piercing wolf howl echoed from afar, and screams also seemed to be coming from within the city.

*Rumble...*

A rumble accompanied by a slight tremor. In Yan Fei's sight, the town, which had seemed somewhat bright in the darkness, suddenly appeared much darker.

"The town went dark?"

"Huh? What went dark?"

Zuo Wuji asked curiously. Yan Fei shook his head without speaking. The three quickly approached the town, then used their lightness skills to leap onto the city wall. Though called a city wall, it was essentially just an earthen wall, hardly wide enough for a person to stand on, but it posed no problem for martial arts masters.

The city still seemed relatively quiet; even the screams sounded distant. But the three could see soldiers and similar figures rushing about within the city. Soon, the sounds grew louder, a cacophony of shouts, screams of agony, and some strange howls.

"Go!"

At Yan Fei's command, his body shot forward like a swift swallow. Lu Chengfeng and Zuo Wuji were, of course, right behind him.

"Wuji, stick close to us. Demons are different from martial artists; you must go all out and show no mercy. What would be a fatal injury to ordinary people might not be fatal to them. Strike hard and heavy!"

"Understood!"

In mere moments, they were close to the demons. Streaks of demonic light shifted with the monsters' sharp claws. The crowd screamed in agony. The soldiers' uncoordinated attacks were utterly ineffective against the demons lurking in the shadows.

*Whoosh whoosh whoosh...*

A few magic arrows shot out, transforming into light as they struck the shadows.

*Roar...*

The shadow suddenly lunged forward, its claws sweeping across the archers, instantly tearing apart both men and bows. The local Earth God, wielding a glowing root staff, was engaged in battle with another demon. Witnessing this, he was instantly enraged, and with a sweep of his wooden staff, he sent the demon before him flying.

"Damn these fiends..."

*Roar...*

But immediately, three or four demons lunged, tangling with the Earth God, while other demons scaled the city walls and entered. The two mages within the city remained motionless. Hundreds of armed people fought fiercely alongside the Earth God.

"Run! The demons are here! Run quickly! If you don't, you'll all die!"

"Run..."

Some soldiers' morale broke, and they were the first to turn and flee. This triggered a chain reaction, and quickly, more and more people joined the escape.

"You cowards, don't run, come back! With the Earth God here, don't..." *Thud...*

The leading general's angry roar was cut short as his heart was ripped out. Now, even those closest to him scattered in disarray, with several demons pursuing and slaughtering them. In the direction where the most people were gathered, a shadowy mass constantly tore lives apart with sharp light.

"Hahahaha, let us see what these demons are capable of!"

As Lu Chengfeng laughed loudly, he, Yan Fei, and Zuo Wuji leaped from a nearby rooftop into the fray, directly engaging an oncoming shadow. Ignoring the panicked civilians fleeing around them, Yan Fei thrust his sword, Lu Chengfeng's fists and palms moved like wind, and Zuo Wuji's flat staff danced. The three combined their efforts to attack the shadow.

*Thump! Thump! Thump! Thud! Thud!*

The dense barrage of attacks caused the demonic energy to reverberate.

*Roar...*

An angry roar erupted from the shadow, like a howling gale, forcing the trio to retreat. Yan Fei stopped after three steps, Lu Chengfeng after four, and Zuo Wuji after six, using his flat staff to brace himself. All three fixed their gaze on the target.

"What?" "Hmm?"

Before them was an impossibly robust monster, resembling an armored leopard standing upright. Their proud martial arts—punches, palms, the flat staff, and even Yan Fei's sword—had left only minor marks on the demon. Forget fatal wounds; even the bleeding cuts had already stopped.

Zuo Wuji was inwardly shocked. He instinctively looked at Lu Chengfeng and Yan Fei, seeing their grave expressions, and couldn't help but tighten his grip on his flat staff, sweat beading on his forehead and his back feeling hot. "Martial artists, without enchanted weapons? Not bad, hehehehe..."

The demon's voice was hoarse, carrying intense malevolence and an oppressive presence.