Li Xian finally stayed behind.
That evening, the ten people were divided into two groups of five to patrol the Tang family's territory. Tang Kunshan, worried that others might ostracize Li Xian, assigned Li Xian to follow him. Three of the men were recruits from outside; only he and Li Xian had connections to the Tang family. The three men, seeing Tang Kunshan personally leading Li Xian, also breathed a sigh of relief. After all, among the five, Tang Kunshan had the highest cultivation, reaching Early Condensing Yuan Realm. With him leading, they didn't need to worry about Li Xian's low strength becoming a burden.
In the darkness of night, Li Xian and the other four walked ahead, holding torches. Tang Kunshan followed behind with vigorous strides, looking like a wolf surveying its territory. The other group walked in the opposite direction. Halfway through, the two groups would meet. Tang Kunshan asked a few brief questions, and then the two groups continued on their way. This cycle repeated until dawn.
Nothing happened overnight. After it was fully light, Li Xian, feeling sleepy, returned to his side courtyard. This side courtyard was actually within the patrol area from the previous night. As soon as he entered, Li Xian saw Tang Shiying and her maid Qinger. A food container was placed on the table. Li Xian felt a warmth in his heart.
"You went on patrol last night?" Tang Shiying asked, looking at Li Xian.
Li Xian nodded. "Yes."
"Eat breakfast first, then get some sleep," Tang Shiying said.
"Okay." Li Xian sat down and quietly ate his breakfast. Tang Shiying sat beside him, watching him with a quiet gaze, not leaving immediately. Li Xian took a bite of a meat bun and smiled slightly. "Are you looking at me like that because I have flowers growing on my face?"
"I feel like you've changed a lot these past few days. If it were before, you would have definitely refused to go on patrol," Tang Shiying said.
"Is this appearance of mine not good?" Li Xian asked.
"In the Tang family, only collateral disciples go on patrol; the direct descendants disdain such tasks. You didn't want to be looked down upon before, so you didn't want to participate in Tang family matters," Tang Shiying said.
"Now, you seem very confident."
Li Xian said, "I've stepped through the threshold of martial arts cultivation and finally realized my wish. I can walk further on this path in the future, so of course, I'm more confident."
Tang Shiying shook her head. "The path of martial arts cultivation is actually very difficult. Confidence is good, but you can't be blindly confident, lest you be disappointed and discouraged later and suffer a greater blow."
"Mm, I know," Li Xian said.
Tang Shiying said, "Take my talent, for example. It's actually just average in the Tang family. After cultivating for so many years, I'm only at Mid Spirit Gathering Realm now. But I don't care anymore. We just need to live well from now on, live ordinary lives."
"Okay," Li Xian said.
After Li Xian finished his breakfast, the maid Qinger collected the dishes, and Tang Shiying left with her.
Back in her boudoir, Qinger saw Tang Shiying deep in thought and asked, "Miss, why don't you tell young master your true cultivation level?"
"I don't want to discourage him. Besides, I really want to be an ordinary couple with him and live ordinary lives," Tang Shiying said.
"From fifteen to now, I've followed my master's instructions and slain monsters and demons outside for four or five years. I'm already tired and don't want to live this kind of life anymore. I originally planned to leave in a few more years, but my senior brother always wanted to force me to marry him. However, I despise being forced. When I returned to Fengyang City, I happened to meet Li Xian. He's quite good-looking and suits my fancy, so I took him as my husband to avoid my senior brother's further coercion."
Qinger chuckled. "Miss, it's young master's good fortune to have met you."
Tang Shiying said, "Actually, I was also worried that he would be affected by the gossip. Some time ago, he seemed unhappy all day, and I was afraid he would be utterly dejected. Now, he's much better."
"In a few days, I'll have him move back here to live. He is my husband; it's not proper for him to always live in the side courtyard."
Qinger said, "Okay, Miss! I'll inform young master then."
...
Li Xian slept until around the time of Mao (later afternoon). He practiced Li Family Swordplay and Dragon Elephant Condensing Yuan Art for a while. Qinger brought him food. After a satisfying meal, he came out from the side courtyard and went to the resting place of the patrol team to gather.
As dusk fell, the patrol team began their rounds, just like the day before.
"We'll be exhausted for one more day tonight, and then we can rest tomorrow and the day after tomorrow!" Tang Kunshan said.
"Are you adapting okay?" he asked, patting Li Xian on the shoulder.
"It's alright, it's just a bit boring to walk like this," Li Xian said.
"Boredom is precisely what life is. If we encountered powerful demons, we might not even have boring days to live," Tang Kunshan said.
Li Xian pondered. Perhaps Tang Kunshan was right; boredom was life. Without boredom, there might not even be life.
The night deepened, and the surroundings were quiet. Apart from the footsteps of the patrol team, almost no one was moving.
"Meow! Meow!" A stray cat appeared ahead. The others walked on without paying much attention. Li Xian glanced at it; his panel showed no change, so it wasn't a monster.
After walking a bit further, two sharp lights flickered in the darkness ahead. As they got closer, they saw it was a black dog, sitting by the roadside without barking. Li Xian glanced at his panel; there was no prompt, so it was clearly not a monster either.
"Scram!" A member of the patrol team brandished his scabbard and shooed the black dog away. They had been startled just now. The black dog barked twice and ran off.
Just then, another black dog appeared ahead, standing by the roadside, watching them from afar. The others paid no mind, thinking it was the same dog from before. Li Xian glanced at it again, and his panel changed.
[Current Demon: Dog Demon (Peak Spirit Gathering Realm)]
[Energy gained from killing: 5000 cards]
Li Xian's expression froze. This dog demon was actually more powerful than the wolf demon he had killed, and everyone had overlooked it. The appearance of the black dog just now was likely deliberately orchestrated by this dog demon. A dog demon possesses such cunning abilities, deliberately making people ignore its presence.
Li Xian took a quiet breath, remained composed, and walked towards the black dog, holding his torch.
"Brother Li, no need to mind this black dog, it's the one from just now," a patrol member said.
"Haha! Brother Li is bored and wants to tease the black dog. Let's just watch," another person added.
Tang Kunshan also shook his head. In fact, they had seen this black dog many times before; it often frequented this area, so they didn't pay much attention.
Under the gaze of the four, Li Xian suddenly lunged. He swiftly drew his long sword and slashed at the black dog. The four were instantly astonished. The black dog's body suddenly bulged, moving like a small mountain. It sidestepped, opened its dark maw like a black hole, and lunged at Li Xian's head.
"Monster!" Tang Kunshan's face changed. He also drew his saber and charged at the dog demon. He sensed the dog demon's power; it was a Peak Spirit Gathering Realm monster, just one step away from Eighth Rank Condensing Yuan Art. He didn't expect they had misjudged it and thought it was the previous black dog.
Li Xian's sword turned, instantly severing the dog demon's head, as if he had anticipated its dodge.
*Swoosh!* Dog blood splattered, emitting a strong, bloody scent. The severed head rolled to the side, letting out a final, ear-splitting howl before death.
*Bang!* The dog demon's body, no longer able to support itself, crashed to the ground, making the earth tremble.
Tang Kunshan stopped in his tracks, staring in shock. Wasn't it Early Spirit Gathering Realm? How could it have killed a monster of Peak Spirit Gathering Realm? The other three were also dumbfounded.
...