HISS...
Zhu Ju sat cross-legged in a corner of the woodshed yard. White steam billowed from his body as bloody sweat, tinged with a black substance, seeped from his pores.
Upon hitting the ground, it corroded the earth with a sizzling sound.
Red Eagle Tong Zhixiang had used a special Method to hide poison within his Qi Blood, even forming a Poison Sac in his heart.
Once activated, it could kill any living creature within a radius of several dozen feet.
Even Zhu Ju had been caught off guard and fallen for it, but thankfully, his unique constitution meant the poison wasn't fatal.
Time slowly passed, and the Blood Poison was gradually expelled from his body.
HUFF...
Letting out a long, turbid breath, he slowly opened his eyes, a trace of exhaustion showing in their depths.
"The last of the poison is gone."
'I need to be more careful from now on. This body only has a Ninth-Grade Cultivation, after all. Caution is key.'
"Hm?"
Sniffing the air, Zhu Ju's expression changed slightly.
Something seemed to be spreading through the air. As he breathed it in, a ripple went through his Qi Blood.
But it settled down in an instant.
'What's going on?'
He leaped onto the roof ridge and scanned his surroundings, his gaze landing on the courtyard where Red Eagle Tong Zhixiang had been hiding.
Thick smoke was billowing from it.
Under the cover of night, the smoke was not easily noticed.
But there, the smoke rose like a pillar, as if someone had covered the fire with something damp, letting the fumes spread. Even so, it caused a commotion nearby, with what sounded like cries of "Fire!"
'Are they really burning Red Eagle's body?'
Zhu Ju rubbed his chin and chuckled in spite of himself. Just as he was about to turn and leave, a commotion erupted from the adjacent courtyard.
"AH!"
"Stop it!"
"Pull the chains tight! Don't let them get away!"
...
Inside the courtyard, a dozen or so guards, armed with sabers and spears, had surrounded two Dog Demons. A corpse lay on the ground.
"A demon is a demon!"
A pot-bellied, middle-aged man glared at the Dog Demons.
"I gave you the best food and drink every day, and you still eat people! It's true what they say—you can never tame a demon."
"Master," one of the guards said, cupping his fists.
"These two Dog Demons were already asleep, but they suddenly went berserk for some reason. Wang Er, who feeds them, came to calm them down but was bitten to death. They're not usually like this."
"Hmph!"
The man snorted coldly.
"I don't care why. Since they've eaten a person, they can't be allowed to live. Kill them!"
"Yes, sir!"
The guards acknowledged the order and charged forward with their spears.
Wealthy families would often keep dogs with a keen sense of smell to guard their homes, and some would even raise Dog Demons directly.
Dog Demons had opened their Spiritual Acupoints and possessed Demon Qi.
They had a sharper sense of smell and greater strength than ordinary dogs, and could even use the Power of Heaven and Earth to temper their bodies. They also possessed a degree of intelligence, which was why people still raised them despite repeated prohibitions.
The Court and the Government Office officials also turned a blind eye to this, as anyone who could afford to keep a Demon was no ordinary person.
Now, it was clear the Dog Demons' bestial nature had erupted, causing them to kill the very person who fed them.
SQUELCH!
...
The Dog Demons were strong and agile, but they were bound by chains. Facing the squad of guards, they had almost no way to resist. After a few frenzied lunges, they were stabbed to death on the spot by the long spears.
'Demons?'
Hiding in the shadows of the rooftop, Zhu Ju's expression gradually turned grim. He scanned his surroundings, his eyes narrowing.
'So many Demons!'
He knew that some wealthy citizens in the city raised Demons, either to guard their homes or as rare commodities to be hoarded.
But he had never expected there to be so many Demons in the city!
Plumes of Demon Qi, some strong, some weak, were rising into the night sky, spreading to every corner of Taiyuan Prefecture.
The Demon Qi was especially concentrated over the Sanhe Gang's headquarters, stretching for miles and suggesting there were at least a hundred of them there.
The Demon Qi was violent and agitated, clearly out of control.
'There's something wrong with that smoke.'
Zhu Ju whipped his head around, looking back toward the courtyard where Red Eagle Tong Zhixiang had hidden.
'Demon-Luring Grass?'
Demon-Luring Grass was a special, extremely rare herb. Once burned, its scent would trigger the bestial nature within Demons.
The lower a Demon's Cultivation, the harder it was for them to suppress it.
Great Demons, on the other hand, were unaffected.
By now, the scent of the Demon-Luring Grass had filled the entire area. The Demons in the city were likely all going to go berserk.
After all, no one could raise a Great Demon, and ordinary Demons would have a hard time resisting their inner beast.
It was just that no one could have imagined that so many Demons were hidden within the Taiyuan Prefecture City.
"AH!"
Screams erupted.
Chaos.
Began to spread.
*
*
*
The Zhou Mansion.
"What's going on?"
Zhou Jingren walked out of his room, a long robe thrown carelessly over his shoulders. He frowned and shouted in a deep voice,
"Where are the guards?"
"Here!"
"Guard the courtyard well. Don't let my father be disturbed."
"Yes, sir."
After giving the order, Zhou Jingren reached out his hand and made a grasping motion. The Qi Blood Divine Weapon, the Cyan Frost Sword, abruptly appeared in his palm.
'Hai Yunzou, is this you?'
'Making a move now... isn't it a bit too rushed?'
He muttered to himself, a disdainful look on his face, then leaped to a high vantage point.
He scanned the surroundings.
Empowered by his Sixth-Grade Cultivation, he could see almost the entirety of Taiyuan Prefecture at a glance. The signs of chaos were already apparent.
The sounds of battle were especially heaven-shaking from the direction of the Sanhe Gang's headquarters.
Zhou Jingren's eyes flickered. The Qi around him surged and ebbed, but he then smiled calmly and remained completely still.
...
The Zhu Mansion.
"AHH!"
Veins bulged on Qian Hu's forehead as he gripped the bedframe with both hands, his fingernails cracking and breaking from the force.
His eyes were blood-red, and an intense killing intent relentlessly battered his sanity.
"Kill!"
"Kill!"
"Kill them all!"
"Tiger," a familiar voice sounded by his ear.
"What's wrong with you?"
"ROAR!"
Qian Hu snapped his head up. His pitch-black eyes had turned crimson, and now glinted with hints of gold.
"Ah!"
His roommate, terrified, stumbled backward before letting out a cry and bolting out the door.
「A short while later.」
"Tiger!"
Qian Shiyao hurried over.
"Tiger, what's wrong with you?"
"Tiger..."
Qian Hu's body stiffened. Certain blurry memories gradually became clear, and he slowly raised his head.
"Sis..."
"It's me, it's me." Qian Shiyao threw her arms around him, tears streaming down her beautiful face.
"Don't scare me. You have to be okay, you hear me?"
Now, the two of them were all that was left of the Qian Family. If something happened to Qian Hu, she couldn't imagine what she would do.
"I... I'm okay."
Qian Hu's body trembled, his forehead was beaded with sweat, and his clothes were soaked through.
"I... I think I remembered something."
"Hm?"
Qian Shiyao froze.
"Remembered something?"
"Yeah." Qian Hu nodded slowly, his eyes filled with confusion.
"I think it was a Cultivation Technique... a strange one called... *Tiger Roar Ghosts*."
The reason it was strange was because, in his mind, he understood that this Cultivation Technique could turn the people he killed into Chong Ghosts, which he could then keep by his side and command.
'Hm?'
Qian Shiyao's expression flickered. She glanced behind her, then pursed her lips and whispered,
"Tiger, listen to me. You must never tell anyone else about this. Not a soul."
"You must remember this!"
"..." Qian Hu blinked and slowly nodded.
"I'll remember."