The winged demonic rabbit was merely an interlude.
Afterward, the Demon-Slaying Team, accompanied by Li Wangyi and Little Qianjun, continued into the small town. Linggui Town was one of the Demon-Slaying Team’s regular haunts; they would sell the spoils of their demon-hunting excursions here, purchase necessities, and prepare for their journey north toward the imperial capital.
Li Wangyi had read in a book that the night sky over Linggui Town was unlike any other—not only was it clearer and more brilliant, but if one were lucky, they might even witness a rain of "Emperor’s Dew." He hoped to try his luck and see if he could catch a glimpse of this marvel. If they truly encountered such a rain, it would be an immense stroke of fortune for Little Qianjun. He and Guo Hengbei agreed to stay the night and set off again the following day.
Wei Lun led the way to their usual lodging, the Tongfu Inn, and secured three superior rooms. Once settled, the three members of the Demon-Slaying Team headed out to sell their goods, restock supplies, and trade for intelligence. With nothing urgent to do, Li Wangyi took Little Qianjun out for a stroll.
As a scholar, Li Wangyi made a point of visiting bookstores whenever he descended from the mountains, hoping to unearth a hidden gem. If he could find an ancient text or a rare, singular copy, that would be ideal. With this in mind, he asked around for the location of the town's bookshops and headed straight for them. There were three bookstores on Big Locust Street: Seasons Bookstore, Hundred Schools Bookstore, and Listening-to-Rain Used Books.
Li Wangyi started with Listening-to-Rain Used Books. There were no assistants inside, only a thin, elderly man who beamed as he saw Li Wangyi and Little Qianjun enter.
"Young Master, are you looking to buy books or gazettes? I have many rare and refined editions that were famous in history but have long since been lost, as well as the latest gazettes from the immortal sects. I guarantee this is the only shop in town that has them!"
Li Wangyi glanced at the shopkeeper and said, "You guarantee it's the only shop, but you don't guarantee the authenticity of those rare editions, nor the freshness of those immortal gazettes, do you?"
"Ah, well... the old man here is not that sort of person."
Having been called out, the old man looked sheepish. He hadn’t expected this young man—who looked like a scion of a noble family—to be so sharp. He had assumed a "fat sheep" had walked through his door. A miscalculation, a grave miscalculation!
Fortunately, the shopkeeper was a seasoned veteran of such situations. He recovered quickly, his face not turning red nor his heart skipping a beat. "You jest, Young Master. Listening-to-Rain Used Books prides itself on fairness and honesty; I have never deceived a child or an elder. As for the books the guest chooses—well, I invite you to test your eye!"
The implication was clear: the shop *did* contain genuine rarities, but it depended on whether the customer possessed the discernment to find them.
It was rare to encounter such an amusing shopkeeper. As a man who had read nearly ten thousand volumes, Li Wangyi was unfazed. He lightly fanned himself and walked toward the shelves. Little Qianjun, however, was more interested in the gazettes and flitted toward the counter like a green shadow.
Gazettes in the mortal world generally fell into three categories. The first were official government gazettes, issued by the various kingdoms of the continent to promulgate imperial decrees. The second were the secular gazettes, which recorded events in the martial arts underworld. The third were the immortal gazettes—the content was similar to the martial arts gazettes, but they were documented by and for those who cultivated the Dao. Naturally, the residents of Linggui Town cared only for the immortal gazettes.
Little Qianjun landed by the display and was just about to leaf through one when the shopkeeper barked, "Immortal gazettes are ten Great Dao copper coins each!"
Little Qianjun peeked at the date on the gazette. "But this is from ten days ago. It’s not the latest."
"Then five coins."
"One coin."
"That’s too little. Four coins."
"I don't have that much money. One coin, please?"
"If you don't have money, ask your master."
"I am only a little spirit creature, and my master..."
"At least three coins!"
"Grandpa Shopkeeper, I really want to read the news. Won't you sell it to me for just one coin? Please?"
"Fine, one coin."
The shopkeeper finally yielded. Who could resist such a cute, spirited little creature, especially when she played the part of both the victim and the charmer? Even the old man, with his five hundred years of experience in swindling and cheating, couldn't hold out.
Li Wangyi watched this scene and smiled, continuing his book hunt. Little Qianjun was overjoyed; she immediately pulled a small coin pouch from her satchel and poured out a Spring Plowing Coin, handing it over. When the old man saw that heavy pouch—containing at least a thousand Great Dao copper coins—he instantly regretted his decision. His gazettes, while not the freshest, were certainly worth at least three coins. He had been played by this little girl.
Little Qianjun ignored him, took the gazette, and began to read. Before long, she flew over to Li Wangyi with the paper in hand and cried, "Eldest Senior Brother, the young master of the Xie family is in the gazette! Look!"
Li Wangyi took the paper and saw that Xie Jiashu, who had descended from the mountains only a dozen days prior, had indeed made the headlines. Twelve days ago, in Zhao County of the Yunshui Kingdom in the Southern Territory, Xie Jiashu had defeated a swordsman of the same realm, followed by the execution of a wicked cultivator at the late Seventh Realm, and finally fought to a draw against a Legalist disciple at the Eighth Realm. Three battles in a single day had made this newly emerged Confucian genius famous, causing his reputation to skyrocket across Northern Zhige Continent. Many lead writers for the immortal gazettes predicted that he would likely ascend to the latest "Continental Prodigy Rankings."
"Truly worthy of being the 'Jade Tree' of the Xie family. Impressive," Li Wangyi praised.
Little Qianjun secretly glanced at her Eldest Senior Brother, thinking that his presiding over the Heaven and Earth Conferment was no less impressive than Xie Jiashu’s three battles in a day. It was just that no one knew about it yet.
After reading the section on Xie Jiashu, Li Wangyi scanned the rest. Titled *Northern Prefecture’s Hidden Dragon Records*, this gazette focused on documenting the extraordinary feats of the young generation of heroes on the continent. Besides Xie Jiashu’s three battles, this issue recorded several other stunningly talented youths.
A half-demon youth who traveled with a coffin on his back, killing nearly a hundred cultivators who blocked his path with one hand... A martial arts powerhouse whose fist momentum was so fierce he dismantled nine major sects in a single night... A lone swordsman, suspected to be from the Hidden Lake of the Western Territory, who visited the Great Luoma Temple—neither the greeters nor the elders could stop him as he walked straight to the Abbot's place of meditation... A plump young Daoist who cast paper dolls as soldiers, besieging an entire city single-handedly... A girl riding a dog, wearing twin buns and a red cloak, carrying a giant blade and rampaging through the Northern Territory...
Every prodigy mentioned in the gazette was remarkable. Such strength at such a young age—as long as they did not fall, they would inevitably become the figures who would shape the future of the entire Northern Zhige Continent.
"Is this the era of great contention?" Li Wangyi whispered softly.
After finishing the gazette, he returned to the old bookshelves to continue his search. He ultimately chose four volumes: *Random Talks on Chan Mountain*, *Mortal Kasaya*, *Drifting Poetry and Sword*, and *The Seven Profound Teachings*. *Random Talks on Chan Mountain* was a rare, singular copy; the other three, while not rare, were seldom printed and difficult to find elsewhere. Seeing the shopkeeper’s pained expression, he grabbed a few more books, paying a total of thirty Great Dao copper coins. It had been a fruitful trip.
Emerging from the bookstore, they visited the other two shops and bought over a dozen more volumes. By the time Li Wangyi and Little Qianjun left the final shop, night had fallen. Every household in Linggui Town had hung a red lantern outside its door, casting a hazy glow over the town. Mist drifted through the air, layering the shadows. Nighttime in Linggui Town felt strangely mysterious.
Li Wangyi and Little Qianjun left Big Locust Street and headed toward Ping'an Ward, where their inn was located. The streets were crowded with cultivators armed with magical artifacts, many of whom cast strange looks upon noticing the spirited Little Qianjun. However, upon seeing Li Wangyi’s Confucian attire and his refined, elegant air, they dared not harbor any illicit thoughts and hurried away. Little Qianjun found their behavior odd, unaware of the reason.
Suddenly, Little Qianjun tugged at Li Wangyi’s robe and stared at the street to their left in surprise. "Eldest Senior Brother, he..."
"What is it?" Li Wangyi followed her gaze.
In the dim light of the street ahead, a youth with disheveled hair and clad in animal skins was walking through the mist with a coffin strapped to his back. The boy was thin and frail, yet his gait was incredibly steady. The black coffin on his shoulders seemed three shades darker than the night itself. Among his messy hair, a single horn was faintly visible on his forehead.
A black coffin, a youth, a horn. The characteristics confirmed this was the half-demon youth mentioned in the gazette who had traveled with a coffin and killed nearly a hundred cultivators. What a coincidence.
Little Qianjun felt a shiver of fear and leaned against her Eldest Senior Brother. Li Wangyi curled his long sleeves, lifted Little Qianjun up, and placed her on his shoulder. The half-demon youth saw them but showed no reaction, continuing to carry his black coffin in silence as he walked past. Once he had passed, Li Wangyi and Little Qianjun moved to the side and watched him disappear at the other end of the street.
"That was terrifying!" Little Qianjun patted her small chest, still shaken.
Li Wangyi nodded. "Indeed, he is very strong—no weaker than Xie Jiashu." He then led Little Qianjun back toward Ping'an Ward.
They had walked only two blocks when he stopped again.
"Eldest Senior Brother?" Little Qianjun blinked, confused.
Li Wangyi simply patted her head. A few moments later, a figure in grey robes carrying a sword walked over from the distance. The swordsman was tall but looked profoundly lonely; standing on the long street, he seemed profoundly solitary, accompanied only by the sword on his back.
He approached them, glanced at Li Wangyi’s scholar’s attire, and asked, "Xie Jiashu of Hanshan Academy?"
The sword on his back began to hum with intent.
Li Wangyi lazily shook his head. "No."
The grey-clad swordsman said nothing more, his sword returned to silence, and he brushed past them, disappearing into the distance. Li Wangyi turned his head, watching his retreating figure, and frowned slightly.
"Eldest Senior Brother, was that the person mentioned in the gazette?"
"Indeed. A descendant of the Hidden Lake in the Western Territory, the swordsman Pei He."
"It really was him! Why are they all here?"
"It seems something major is afoot. Let’s go, back to the inn, and see if Guo and the others have gathered any intelligence."
On their way back to the Tongfu Inn, they encountered the Heir of the Prince of Zhennan from Great Wei, arriving in town with over a dozen servants in his retinue. Tonight, Linggui Town was truly lively.
Shortly after returning to the inn, the three members of the Demon-Slaying Team rushed back as well.
"Brother Li, this is bad! Something major is about to happen in Linggui Town!" Guo Hengbei said, not even stopping for a drink, his expression grave. Guo Nanjun and Wei Lun looked equally grim.
"Oh? What have you found out?"
"The specifics are still unclear, but we encountered the Eight-Star Blade-Wielder of the Demon-Suppression Bureau, disciples of the Cui clan, descendants of the Ming Mountain Sword Sect, disciples of the Lanyun Peak, and even wandering knights of the Mohist school. With so many immortal factions gathered here, something big is definitely happening!"
Blade-Wielders of the Great Wei Demon-Suppression Bureau, disciples of the millennium-old Cui clan, descendants of the Ming Mountain Sword Sect, disciples of the Lanyun Peak, Mohist knights. Add to that the half-demon youth, the Hidden Lake swordsman Pei He, and the Heir of the Prince of Zhennan. That made eight factions in total! Except for the half-demon youth of unknown origin, the other seven were all major powers with resounding reputations across the Northern Zhige Continent. And these were just the ones they had encountered; there was no telling how many other immortal factions were present.
Tonight, the winds and clouds were gathering over Linggui Town.
Li Wangyi suddenly smiled. There was one more faction they had forgotten to count: himself, Li Wangyi of Hanshan Academy. It was becoming livelier by the second.
What kind of major event could possibly occur?
The Demon-Slaying Team headed back out to investigate. Others in the town had also noticed the anomaly and were scurrying about, trying to gather information. Soon, the first event that shook everyone occurred.
Linggui Town was locked down. No one was allowed to enter or leave for three days.