Chapter 8 – Nangong Shi in Despair

Late at night, in the backyard of the Baiyang Inn.

Inside the shed used to keep livestock, there came strange sounds of gnawing and chewing.

The air was thick with the stench of blood, enough to make anyone gag.

The fat, big-eared busboy had just finished tidying up the front of the inn and hurried to the backyard. As soon as he stepped into the shed, he couldn’t help but grumble.

“Big Brother, Second Brother, you didn’t wait for me again! Did you at least save me that woman’s heart and liver?”

“No. You’re late. Big Brother already ate the heart and liver.”

“Ah… fine then.”

Glancing toward the deepest part of the shed, where a pig demon much larger than him was gnawing silently on a human leg, the youngest didn’t dare say more.

He sat down quietly to one side and grabbed a fresh woman’s arm.

Immediately, the youngest pig demon grinned, revealing sharp fangs. His nose rose and became more pig-like as he tore into the flesh with savage delight.

They were originally a litter of pig demons from the mountains. When they were young, their parents went down the mountain to eat humans but were slain by the Demon Slaying Division, leaving the three brothers to survive on their own.

To stay alive, they too ventured into human lands, doing everything possible to avoid the Demon Slaying Division.

For example, disguising themselves as piglets at a farmer’s house—then, once it seemed safe, revealing their true forms and devouring the whole family.

Or deliberately being spotted by hunters, leading them away and then killing and eating their wives and children instead.

After drifting from place to place for several years, they devoured countless farming families, gradually becoming familiar with the ways of the human world. In the end, they stopped hiding and directly opened an inn to do business—serving human flesh.

“Haha, Big Brother was right—human flesh really does greatly boost demon power!”

“Ever since we opened this inn, we’ve never lacked fresh meat, and our cultivation has advanced so quickly.”

“Yeah, Big Brother has even broken through to the Postnatal Realm.”

Looking at that tall figure radiating demonic power, the second and third brothers couldn’t hide their envy.

A demon in the Postnatal Realm was far rarer than a human martial artist of the same level—and because of their demonic bodies, they were much stronger than humans at the same stage.

Their parents had reached the Postnatal Realm when alive, able to dominate local lands—if they hadn’t provoked the Demon Slaying Division, they would probably still be mountain overlords.

“How many more do we have to eat to catch up to Big Brother?”

“You and I are both in the late Qi-Gathering Realm… probably need to eat another hundred humans.”

Just as the two pig demons were discussing, a knocking sound suddenly came from outside the front door—followed by the pleasant voice of a young lady.

“Is anyone there? My sisters and I are passing through and would like to stay the night—please open the door.”

Women?

And judging by the voices, they were teenage girls!

At that age… their hearts and livers would be especially tender!

“Big Brother, Second Brother—we’ve got customers!”

Hearing the voices, the third pig demon sprang up excitedly, tossing aside an old man’s arm with a flick of his hand.

Old meat was his least favorite.

The eldest pig demon grinned hideously, picking up a blood-soaked bone-cutting knife.

“Luck’s good tonight. Didn’t expect travelers this late—perfect for a snack with our wine.”

“Old Third, lure them in and kill them.”

“All right.”

Old Third nodded, and his face squirmed and shifted until he once again looked like the chubby, big-eared busboy, then hurried to the front.

But soon after, an unexpected change occurred.

“Aaaargh—!”

A shocking pig-like scream split the night’s silence.

Pig Eldest and Pig Second exchanged a glance, then rushed into the inn’s main hall—only to see Old Third lying dead on the ground, hacked to pieces by ten Qi-Gathering Realm martial artists!

At the front stood Nangong Shi, dressed in martial attire, righteous and imposing, with fresh blood still on her sword.

“Foul demon! You dare harm the people of Great Xia—prepare to die!”

“Humans—you court death!”

Seeing this, the two pig demons flew into a rage, instantly revealing their true forms and charging forward.

In an instant, the two massive pig demons, each over two meters tall, clashed with the human martial artists.

Pig Second was somewhat manageable: though tall and ferocious, a few martial artists working together could barely hold him off.

But Pig Eldest’s situation was far beyond what anyone had expected.

His towering body, over two and a half meters tall, was covered in black bristles. Swords and sabers striking him only sparked off like hitting iron wires.

With just a single swing of his bone-cutting knife, he whipped up a gust of wind—an unfortunate late-stage Qi-Gathering martial artist couldn’t even dodge in time and was cut cleanly in half!

“This is bad! This pig demon is in the Postnatal Realm!”

Realizing something was wrong, the martial artists’ faces turned pale. Nangong Shi’s heart sank, and she immediately sensed danger.

She herself was a mid-stage Postnatal Realm martial artist. When humans fought against demons, they generally needed to be at least two minor stages higher to stand a chance of victory. That’s why she had dared to sneak out without bringing any experts, wanting to personally slay these pig demons of Baiyang Inn.

But she didn’t expect that the pig demon had actually broken through—now, to kill it would require a late-stage Postnatal Realm martial artist!

Yet the arrow was already nocked and had to be released. Although Nangong Shi regretted it deeply in her heart, she could only grit her teeth and fight.

“Foul demon, prepare to die!”

She sent someone to run for reinforcements, then brandished her longsword and clashed fiercely with the eldest pig demon—but the longer they fought, the more shocked she felt.

The Postnatal Realm focused on refining the body: of its three minor stages, the early stage tempered the skin, the middle stage the flesh, and the late stage the bones. With each advancement, defensive power would skyrocket.

The Nangong clan was a famous house of Great Xia, its swordsmanship extraordinary. Nangong Shi had inherited its true teachings, her movements graceful and agile, and her sword often found its mark.

But no matter where she struck, the blade could only pierce about an inch—unable to inflict any serious injury.

“Stinking woman, are you just scratching an itch for me?”

The pig demon sneered, swinging its bone-cutting knife at Nangong Shi’s thigh. She barely managed to block it, but the force of the blow smashed her through the inn door and sent her flying.

While airborne, Nangong Shi adjusted her stance, plunged her sword into the ground, and plowed out a deep trench—finally managing to stop herself.

Yet demon energy invaded her body, making her internal organs feel as if they were burning.

“Cough! This pig demon isn’t just newly advanced to the Postnatal Realm—it’s already close to mid-stage!”

“This is bad—I’ve walked right into a trap!”

“The intelligence was so wrong—this must be an ambush!”

She coughed up a mouthful of blood. Realizing the deceit, Nangong Shi struggled to stand, just as the pig elder burst from the building, drooling greedily from his tusked mouth.

“Hahaha! A Postnatal Realm martial artist—eating one of you is worth a hundred ordinary people!”

“The inn may be gone, but if I can feast on you tonight, it’s worth it!”

Laughing madly, the pig elder swung his bone-cutting knife again and again. Sparks flew where blade met sword, the clash ringing out like hammer on anvil, the sound echoing for miles.

Gradually, under the overwhelming force of the attacks, Nangong Shi’s defense began to falter. Her strength ebbed away, and her once-perfect swordsmanship started to slip.

“This is bad—if this goes on, I’ll surely lose!”

Panic surged in Nangong Shi’s heart—but just then, something unexpected happened!

A gust of east wind rose, and sword qi stirred the heavens.

At the end of the road, a lone figure silently appeared.

“Who’s there!?”

Sensing someone nearby, the pig elder leveled his knife and raised his glowing red eyes to look.

But in the next instant, a flash of sword light came slashing toward him!

The demon aura shielding his body was instantly suppressed and restrained by a surge of righteous energy, and his tempered, iron-like flesh was melted away by exquisite swordsmanship as effortlessly as snow in the spring sun.

The eldest pig demon only felt a sudden heat at his neck—and in the next moment, his vision spun wildly.

He saw his own back, the sky behind him, and the astonished face of the young woman in front.

“Plop!”

A large, severed head fell heavily to the ground—and falling with it was the slender figure of a young man wearing a bamboo hat.

Chu Li sheathed his sword, then turned back to glance at the pig demon’s headless corpse, a look of surprise crossing his face.

“That was… surprisingly easy.”

Why did this feel even simpler than cutting down a bandit?

While the young man was still puzzled, the system on his side could no longer hold back and immediately announced:

【You have completed the two-star quest: Baiyang Inn】

【Quest evaluation: Perfect!】