Although Ren Yijue’s injuries had yet to heal, his strength remained. The two rode the wind down side by side, following the mountain path.
By the time they reached the foot of the mountain, they ought to have seen a few villagers from the countryside, perhaps hunters or woodcutters entering the mountains to make a living. Yet by now the sun was already high enough to be shining on their backsides, and the empty mountain remained utterly silent.
Ren Yijue could not help stopping and softly saying, “Hm?”
“What is it?” Qian Xuelang stopped with him.
Ren Yijue suddenly thought, He Tianjun was proud by nature. Perhaps he set up a formation to keep ordinary people from entering and disturbing his secluded cultivation. Maybe I am overthinking it.
“It is nothing.” Ren Yijue shook his head. “Let us keep going.”
Before long, the two reached a village at the foot of the mountain. There seemed to be several dozen farmhouses, yet there was no cooking smoke and no one working in the fields. Even the chickens and dogs were silent. The entire village was so still that it carried an eerie, almost ghostly air.
Before Ren Yijue could speak, Qian Xuelang suddenly said, “When you found something strange just now, was it because no one was entering the mountain?”
“Exactly,” Ren Yijue said. “I assumed your honored master had laid down a formation that kept the villagers out. But now there is a whole village gathered here. If the mountain were inaccessible, why would people settle at its foot? It seems I judged a gentleman by the measure of a petty man.”
Ren Yijue had always been skillful with words. Knowing he could not hide his thoughts from Qian Xuelang, he admitted them openly, then turned the sentence into a compliment for He Tianjun so neatly that no one could take offense.
Qian Xuelang said, “Master was not quite that petty. Still, your attention to detail has changed my opinion of you.”
Ren Yijue could not help wondering, “What sort of person did the Jade Beauty think Ren was?”
Qian Xuelang considered for a moment. “Your injuries have not healed. Although the spirit pool suppressed the demonic qi in your body, it did not remove it completely. You were worried you might affect other people. Is that right?”
His cultivation was exceptionally high, but he had spent too long living alone and inevitably overlooked some ordinary human conventions. Fortunately, his state of mind was exceptionally clear. A single hint was often enough for him to understand.
Ren Yijue deliberately teased him, drawing out the end of his words with mischief. “Is that so? So this is what Ren is like in the Jade Beauty’s mind?”
Qian Xuelang did not answer. He simply walked straight into the village, as though he needed no one to confirm whether he was correct.
Faced with a traveling companion like this, what could Ren Yijue do but accept it? He truly had no other choice and could only follow him into the village.
The two pushed open the nearest door and went inside. A corpse lay on the floor, nothing but skin wrapped around bone. Sunlight streamed through the window and illuminated it clearly. Skin was skin, bone was bone, as though something had sucked away every trace of flesh and blood, leaving an empty hide hanging limply around the skeleton beneath its clothes.
Rolled up, it could probably have been tied into a bundle.
Qian Xuelang said nothing. He stepped forward and touched the corpse. The skin was still soft beneath his fingers, showing that the person had not been dead long. It resembled a painted human hide, soft and pliant.
Half-eaten food still sat on the table, and chopsticks lay scattered on the floor. The victim had presumably been killed suddenly in the middle of a meal.
The two left the house and checked several more farmhouses. Every one held the same horrific scene. Even the chickens, ducks, pigs, and dogs in their pens had not been spared.
“Ling Baiyao?”
Qian Xuelang asked.
“I am afraid he was not the only one who came last night.” The playfulness left Ren Yijue’s face, replaced by gravity. “Ling Baiyao may be a half-demon, but what he prefers to consume are the seven emotions and six desires. Quite a few people in Liuyanzhu have suffered at his hands, but those who lose their emotions usually become dull and vacant. They do not end up like this. I suspect someone else traveled with him.”
Qian Xuelang had considerable confidence in his own judgment. “Only Ling Baiyao came up the mountain yesterday.”
“I am not doubting the Jade Beauty’s ability.” Ren Yijue shook his head. “I mean that this demon may have traveled with Ling Baiyao without climbing the mountain. Perhaps he remained nearby, and he is the one who killed these villagers.”
Qian Xuelang asked, “Do you have a suspect in mind?”
Ren Yijue considered it. “I do have one. To explain, I should tell you about the Three Demons of Liuyanzhu.”
“I did not spend very long in Liuyanzhu, though I built up some reputation there. But Liuyanzhu is vast, and no one knows how many remarkable people hide within it. These Three Demons are even more famous than I am there. Naturally, theirs is hardly a good reputation. Everyone fears them. To their faces, people respectfully call them the Three Venerables. Behind their backs, they call them the Three Demons.”
“They are Ling Baiyao, the Emotion Demon; Yin Wuchen, the Blood Demon; and Hua Hanyan, the Desire Demon. I—”
Before Ren Yijue could continue, Qian Xuelang suddenly went, “Hm? I have heard the name Hua Hanyan before.”
Ren Yijue froze. “May I ask where the Jade Beauty heard it?”
Qian Xuelang said, “Wei Wenfeng mentioned the name while drunk. He once fell victim to this person’s methods.”
Ren Yijue was silent for a long while. “…Uh…”
They had been discussing a serious matter, only for gossip about an eminent senior to drop into the middle of it. Ren Yijue could hardly avoid feeling awkward, especially since he had only just learned that Wei Wenfeng had harbored feelings for He Tianjun, while Qian Xuelang was He Tianjun’s disciple.
“Well…” Ren Yijue suddenly became much more cautious. “Did Senior Wei ever tell the Jade Beauty what kind of demonkin Hua Hanyan was?”
Qian Xuelang shook his head. “But from what you have said, their titles correspond to their methods. Ling Baiyao devours the seven emotions. Yin Wuchen must be the murderer who created this scene. Then Hua Hanyan must surely…”
At last he realized what he was about to say and stopped abruptly.
The Desire Demon…
After a moment, Qian Xuelang said with perfect composure, “Let us return to the Blood Demon.”
Ren Yijue did not oblige him. Instead, he continued on his own. “Even if Senior Wei suffered at this person’s hands, there is nothing particularly shameful in it. Failing while eliminating a demon would not have been his choice. If he suffered some injuries, that too would be perfectly ordinary and need not imply anything else.”
Qian Xuelang accepted the kindness behind the words and softly answered, “Mm. Well said. I think so too.”
“Still, that makes this stranger.” Ren Yijue frowned slightly. “The Three Demons usually act alone and do not interfere with one another. The Emotion Demon is one thing, but why would the Blood Demon travel here with him?”
Qian Xuelang asked, “Could it be someone other than the Blood Demon? Another blood-drinking demonic cultivator or demonkin?”
“No.” Ren Yijue shook his head. “Other blood-drinking demonic cultivators rarely consume their victims this thoroughly. Yin Wuchen is fastidious about cleanliness, so he usually leaves only skin and bones behind. Even if this was not him, whoever attacked these villagers must have been injured on the road and in urgent need of consuming people to replenish himself. Perhaps that is why he did not come up the mountain with Ling Baiyao.”
Ren Yijue’s brows tightened. “If he is neither here nor on the mountain, then he must have gone somewhere with more people.”
“That is indeed urgent,” Qian Xuelang said. “But I still have one question.”
“What?”
“Why exactly did Ling Baiyao pursue you?”
Ren Yijue froze, his gaze flickering, then smiled bitterly. “Ren would also like to know the reason. One day, that killing star suddenly came looking for me and destroyed my hiding place. But judging by his behavior, he did not seem to want me dead. He wanted to capture me and take me somewhere. How could Ren simply surrender? After escaping from him, I fled through the night.”
“Then that must be why you chose to rescue He Yuntao when he fled into Liuyanzhu.” Hearing this, Qian Xuelang understood at once. “You wanted the protection of the Zhaoying Sword Sect for a time.”
No wonder Ren Yijue had said Ling Baiyao had come for both of them. Ling Baiyao had pursued Ren Yijue, and Ren Yijue had conveniently taken He Yuntao with him. Naturally Ling Baiyao would then pursue He Yuntao as well. It was not a lie, merely not the whole truth.
Ren Yijue smiled faintly. “It was the best of both worlds. But… He Yuntao fled into Liuyanzhu? Heh.”
“What?” Qian Xuelang turned toward him.
“Nothing. Ren simply thought… the Jade Beauty would reject the entire story.” Ren Yijue’s gaze grew deep, his thoughts unreadable. “He Yuntao is still unconscious. The claim that demonkin pursued him comes only from Ren. Perhaps the whole thing was merely an elaborate performance Ren staged himself?”
Qian Xuelang’s expression remained calm. “You would not tell a lie that He Yuntao could expose the moment he woke. You are not that foolish.”
“First the Jade Beauty praises Ren for being kind, and now for being clever.” Ren Yijue froze for a moment, then tapped his own forehead. “Ah, if this continues, I fear Ren will develop feelings before the Jade Beauty does.”
Qian Xuelang cast him a sidelong glance and said nothing.