Chapter Forty-Seven: Departure! Return!

Night had fallen.

The stars and moon hung in the sky, casting their pale glow over a world sunk in silence.

It was the first watch of the early morning.

At this hour, both beasts and men lay deep in sleep.

A nimble, agile shadow slipped swiftly along the foot of the alley walls, weaving its way through the winding lanes of Baoyuan County.

Fearing there might be hidden sentries on duty, Qi Xiu didn’t dare take to the rooftops. He crept cautiously along the narrow, twisting alleys, finally arriving beneath the city gate tower.

A bronze brazier blazed, its flames casting bright, leaping light.

At the city gate, four armored soldiers stood sentry like javelins, gripping their blades, occasionally turning their heads to scan the quiet night.

Atop the gate tower, a patrol hawk perched, its sharp, piercing eyes glinting with a ghostly light.

Just one more—patience.

Crouched in the shadows at the mouth of the alley, Qi Xiu, clad in black, observed calmly.

From his recent observations, he knew the two patrol hawks atop the tower alternated their rounds, each circling the city once per hour.

To incapacitate both hawks in one stroke, he would need to act as soon as the returning hawk came back.

Otherwise, even if he took down one, the other would immediately sound the alarm.

He waited, motionless, in the darkness for about a quarter of an hour.

At last, the sound of beating wings reached his ears. Glancing up, he saw the patrolling hawk return to the tower.

Now was the moment!

Focusing his mind, Qi Xiu reached into his breast and drew out twenty-eight neatly stacked Fish-Fragrance Numb Sinew Talismans.

Ten for each patrol hawk.

The four sentries at the gate—two for each.

This should be enough.

Worried that such a powerful raptor might resist the drug, he stacked ten talismans for each hawk, making the dose as potent as a full-strength, authentic Fish-Fragrance Numb Sinew Powder.

As for the guards, with only rudimentary strength, a fifth of the dose would suffice.

His palm flushed red as flickers of fire qi danced from his fingertips, igniting the talismans.

Under Qi Xiu’s control, a mystical cloud of drug vapor materialized out of thin air, seeping into the noses of the two hawks and the four gate guards.

“Down. Down. Down. Down. Down. Down.”

Pointing at each target, Qi Xiu watched as, one by one, their bodies went limp and crashed to the ground.

In the blink of an eye, the heavily guarded checkpoint, where not even a mouse could have slipped through, was filled only with the sound of deep, steady snores.

He did not immediately reveal himself, waiting a while longer to ensure nothing was amiss. Only then did Qi Xiu grin broadly.

Freedom, at last!

With no more obstacles, he bent his knees and launched himself forward. The city wall, towering dozens of meters high, was no challenge at all.

He vaulted over the wall and landed lightly on the other side.

Gazing out at the starlit countryside, where the shadows of trees danced beneath the moon, Qi Xiu took a deep breath. Then, with long strides, he set off toward the vast world beyond.

…

At the Westwind Army encampment.

Inside the brightly lit command tent, Yuan Baiyi stood with his hands behind his back before a map of Baoyuan County and its surroundings.

Nearly a dozen mountains were marked with red crosses.

“We’ve searched every one of these peaks and found not a single trace. Has this demon burrowed into the earth?”

He had been stationed in Baoyuan County for almost a month now.

Yet the trail of the fox demon remained elusive. The delay gnawed at Yuan Baiyi, leaving him with a growing sense of frustration.

He had come here with the army, determined to prove himself to his adoptive father.

But if he couldn’t even capture a mere fox demon just entering the path of cultivation, what hope was there of earning glory? Might as well return home and play the worthless noble.

Just as Yuan Baiyi, troubled, was about to step outside for some air, the sword hanging on the wooden frame suddenly began to hum, emitting waves of potent, supernatural energy, as if warning of something.

“Hm?”

Hearing his sword’s warning, Yuan Baiyi whirled around, startled.

The Xuan Heavy Sword warning on its own?

Could it be…

Sensing something amiss, Yuan Baiyi burst from the command tent and shouted in a loud, clear voice:

“All troops assemble! Prepare to face the enemy!”

Even as his words rang out, a strange, demonic screech echoed in the distance—a sound halfway between a human cry and a beast’s howl.

Any ordinary person who heard it would feel a tingling in their heart, as if being wrapped in warmth, lured to follow the sound.

“Damn it, that’s the fox demon!”

Rarely uttering curses, Yuan Baiyi was sure, from the power in that screech, it could only be the fox demon.

No wonder it had remained hidden so long—it had been lurking near the county all along!

Snatching up his sword, Yuan Baiyi darted forward, transforming into a streak of light as he shot towards the source of the cry.

“Nie Xun! Muster everyone—head to the city gate at once!”

Hearing the order, the vanguard officer Nie Xun donned his armor, seized the great banner, and roared to the surrounding tents:

“Assemble! Assemble! Assemble!”

…

Rushing at breakneck speed to the city gate, Yuan Baiyi manifested from the stream of light and instantly saw the sentries and patrol hawks knocked out by the Fish-Fragrance Numb Sinew Powder.

Hmph!

The fox demon was clearly well prepared and had planned this night assault on the city.

Yet… why only incapacitate these men, sparing their lives?

He frowned, puzzled, as he saw the guards and hawks merely in deep slumber, unscathed.

Boom—

Before he could unravel the mystery, a thunderous stamping outside the city drew his attention.

In the darkness beyond the walls, countless crimson, savage eyes ignited, and a great cloud of dust rose from the forests like a yellow dragon.

Hundreds of fully frenzied, demonified beasts surged forth.

Their bodies were warped and swollen with tumorous flesh, reeking of blood and stench, only barely recognizable as their original forms—just like Guo Youfang before.

An oily, polluted miasma clung to the beasts.

Demonic qi!

The true fox demon was hiding among these crazed beasts.

At the head of the stampeding tide, a single human figure fled at full speed.

Yuan Baiyi narrowed his eyes, noting the black-clad, agile runner.

Though his footwork was far from expert, a faint, birdlike shadow seemed to cloak him, flickering in and out of sight.

Within its cover, each step carried him dozens of meters, his form a blur streaking along the ground as if flying.

The rampaging beasts, wild-eyed and pounding the earth, could not catch him. Instead, he was steadily pulling away.

…

Am I the unluckiest man alive?

Glancing back at the terrifying, frenzied beast tide, Qi Xiu’s mouth filled with bitterness.

After all the effort and cunning it took to escape the siege of Baoyuan County, he’d barely entered the mountains when he realized the darkness around him was suddenly alight with countless red, gleaming points.

Demonified beasts, hungry and savage, had been lurking in the forests.

His appearance was like the spark to a fuse, instantly setting off their madness.

Among them was an even more terrifying presence—just one glance from it made his heart pound and his body go weak.

If the warding talisman in his breast hadn’t suddenly burned hot, jolting him awake, he would already be in the belly of these beasts, well on his way to becoming their next meal.

…