After seeing Xie An off, Xie Shuci suddenly felt lost.

Looking at Xie An’s figure disappearing at the end of the street, Xie Shuci looked around in confusion, feeling that everything around him was unfamiliar. It suddenly dawned on him that he had left his world where he had grown up and arrived in a strange and dangerous place.

It’s okay though, there’s no time to dwell on it.

Enduring hardships and going with the flow is the true nature of a hero. Xie Shuci, you are a strong and resolute man of the 21st century, what is this little difficulty to you?

Isn’t it just a monster? What does it matter? Don’t underestimate yourself, Young Master Xie. Within three moves of yours, the demon will kneel down and beg for mercy, clinging to your thigh! Young Master Xie is full of integrity!

Turning back to the inn, the innkeeper was carrying a bucket of dirty water downstairs and crossed paths with Xie Shuci.

“Master Xie,” the innkeeper’s face was pale, as he forced a smile.

Xie Shuci remembered what happened last night and silently followed the innkeeper into the backyard.

“Brother Chen, is this matter related to you?” Xie Shuci walked with him to the well and couldn’t help but ask.

The innkeeper’s surname was Chen, named Chen Cai.

Chen Cai poured the dirty water into a wooden barrel and then fetched fresh water.

Hearing Xie Shuci’s question, Chen Cai’s movements paused for a moment, and his body trembled. After a moment of silence, he suddenly burst into tears without warning.

“It’s my fault. I was blinded by greed and it was me who harmed Ah Dong!”

Chen Cai needed an outlet for his emotions. He felt like he was floating in the water and desperately needed to grasp every floating straw around him. He tearfully recounted the truth of the matter.

Originally, when Zhang Quan found an injured wolf-dog demon, he didn’t have any intention of dividing its meat for consumption.

Chen Cai managed the inn, and the disciples of the Xie family often stayed there when they descended from the mountain. He had heard some stories about spiritual beasts to some extent.

He knew that the meat of ordinary poultry was different from the meat of spiritual beasts. Consuming it not only strengthened the body but also prolonged one’s life. Later, he heard that Zhang Quan had found an exceptionally intelligent beast, and he immediately thought of the legendary spiritual beasts. So he went to observe it several times and found that this beast was not only intelligent but also naturally friendly towards humans, just like a six or seven-year-old child.

Chen Cai was overjoyed and thought that Zhang Quan had found a treasure. He believed that the meat of this dog-like beast must be tender and delicious, with medicinal properties that could treat stubborn illnesses. So he urged Zhang Quan to use the beast’s kindness to locate its kin. However, because these beasts were too intelligent, they didn’t capture them all at once, fearing that it would alert them and make them run away. So every other day, they went to hunt and poached two beasts, selling their meat at a high price after cooking it.

At this point, the innkeeper suddenly said, “Zhang Quan has always been the one involved on the surface. No one else knows that I was also involved. Even though the demons can smell our scent left in the wilderness and track us, but Xie An by your side should never have known about this!”

Xie Shuci didn’t have time to think about anything else. Upon hearing this, he immediately straightened his posture and asked, “Does Xie An know about this?”

Chen Cai nodded wearily. “I originally wanted to warn you to be cautious of him, but I never had the chance. Later, I found out that he knew about this matter and had leverage against me, so I dared not tell you. Sending him away now is a good thing.”

After listening, Xie Shuci couldn’t help but furrow his brows.

He recalled that Chen Cai seemed to want to tell him something but hesitated when Xie An appeared.

And after last night’s incident, Li Song also came to warn him that Xie An was not simple.

Xie Shuci had speculated about Xie An’s identity before. After all, according to the nature of a typical protagonist in a bl novel, a character like Xie An, who was good-looking and burdened with deep grudges, couldn’t be a simple role.

If it weren’t for the fact that the protagonist shou, Xiao Xun, was a madman who pursued the path of slaughter, and no one dared to chase him except for him chasing others, Xie Shuci would almost have guessed that Little Blind was Xiao Xun himself.

But well, he didn’t believe in such a melodramatic plot. And if he had encountered Xiao Xun, he would have been chopped to pieces by him long ago… Wait a minute!

Xie Shuci suddenly remembered the chilling gaze Xie An gave him when they first met. At that time, Xie An had wanted to kill him!

–F*ck.

Xie Shuci suddenly had a bold thought. Could Xie An be Xiao Xun himself? Aren’t the members of the Xiaoyao Sect chasing after him?!

No, Xie Shuci shook his head and quickly dismissed the idea.

According to the timeline in the original text, Xiao Xun was cultivating in some corner, making rapid progress in his cultivation within a year. How could he end up like Xie An, almost dying in a small grove in Bianzhou? Moreover, Xie An was now blind and deaf, with his cultivation completely destroyed. He couldn’t possibly be Xiao Xun.

With this thought, Xie Shuci felt much relieved.

As long as Little Blind wasn’t Xiao Xun, Xie Shuci didn’t care about his true identity. Of course, it would be best if he wasn’t the idiot protagonist gong.

But at this point in time, the idiot protagonist gong was still in some secret realm searching for treasures.

Chen Cai brought up a bucket of water and, seeing Xie Shuci lost in thought, suddenly knelt down in front of him.

“What the hell are you doing?” Xie Shuci was startled and instinctively assumed a posture to escape.

With red eyes, Chen Cai kowtowed heavily to him and choked, “Master Xie, now only you can save Ah Dong! Ah Dong can’t wait for the Xie family to find another demon core, and the Li family won’t give this demon core to Ah Dong. Only you… only you can save Ah Dong!”

Xie Shuci’s expression turned dim. Needless to say, he would save Ah Dong. But he was powerless, he can’t obtain the demon’s core, and in the end, he would only end up like Ah Dong, dying under the demon’s claws. Moreover, he didn’t want to harm the demon either.

“Brother Chen, I won’t help you, but I will save Ah Dong.”

“I heard from Daoist Li that if a demon voluntarily offers its core, its life won’t be in danger. As long as it is willing to give the core to Ah Dong, even if it means sacrificing my own life, so be it! Young Master Xie, Please take me to find it! I’ll plead with it, I’ll sacrifice myself! You’re the only person I can trust now!”

Xie Shuci was taken aback and then smiled bitterly.

It sounded so simple, but for a demon to cultivate a core, it not only required a pure heart but also favorable circumstances. Some demons would rather self-destruct than give up their core. After spending several decades or even centuries cultivating something, how could they easily hand it over to someone else?

“You don’t need to worry about this. Take good care of Ah Dong. Also, be prepared for the worst.” After saying that, Xie Shuci flicked his sleeve and returned to his room.

He couldn’t help feeling a little melancholic, realizing that this might be his last time showing off.

Xie Shuci’s thoughts remained naive. He believed that if he could save Ah Dong with Chen Cai’s life, he wouldn’t have to kill the demon and could even save his own life. The demon would lose its core and cultivation, but wouldn’t be struck by heavenly thunder. It seemed like a win-win situation. Chen Cai’s sacrifice would also serve as his redemption for the mistake he had made.

In any case, he would give it a try.

Late at night, the sky was filled with twinkling stars, and the inn was pitch black.

Xie Shuci concealed a dagger in his arms, silently closed the door, and tiptoed out of the inn.

Outside, it was still pitch black. The night wind blew through the deserted streets, emitting eerie and ghostly sounds, which were quite unsettling.

Xie Shuci rubbed the goosebumps on his body and headed toward the direction of the town’s exit.

Li Song had fed the horse plenty of spiritual grass, so it was running exceptionally fast. With a round trip taking only two days, tonight was Xie Shuci’s only chance.

The Daoist in the green robe was seriously injured, and the other disciples were recuperating. During the day, Xie Shuci had no opportunity to leave the town and could only act under the cover of night.

Along the way, Xie Shuci silently recited the core socialist values to boost his courage. After leaving the town, he followed a small path into the mountains. The moonlight barely illuminated the path beneath his feet, and the surrounding area occasionally echoed with the sounds of insects. Xie Shuci tightly held the dagger in his hand, his palm dampened with cold sweat, making it almost slip from his grip.

Xie Shuci was extremely nervous. While walking, he accidentally snapped a dry branch, producing a crisp sound. Startled, he felt as if a ghost was chasing him from behind. He sprinted forward as if his life depended on it, muttering, “Prosperity, democracy, civility, harmony, freedom, equality…”

Just then, with a “thud,” Xie Shuci tripped over a stone and fell flat on his face.

“Damn it!” Xie Shuci spat out the grass in his mouth, rubbing his knee as he stood up.

“Xie Shuci, are you even a man? Don’t be a coward! If it weren’t for your bragging, would that damn kid dare to run out?”

Xie Shuci sniffed and warned himself in a hoarse voice.

“You might still be able to return to the modern era if you die, but if Ah Dong dies, he’s really gone. So don’t be a f*cking coward, Xie Shuci. You are the chosen one, believe in yourself. You’re not going to kill it, just negotiate with it. Besides, it’s injured, right? It might not be able to beat you.”

“Xie Shuci, what you’re about to do is fcking amazing. No one will believe it if you tell them later. You have to earn some fcking respect and leave a mark in history, you understand?”

Before long, Xie Shuci saw the desolate mountains.

Under the moonlight, the barren mountains resembled the bald head of an old man, reflecting the light from the sky, illuminating the ground with exceptional clarity.

He had arrived at the demon’s territory!

Xie Shuci tried to recall the feeling when he healed Ah Dong, and a strand of silver spiritual energy emerged from his palm, enveloping the dagger. As his spiritual energy completely wrapped around the dagger, he felt as if the dagger had become a part of his body, inseparable from him.

The cold wind blew in gusts, like icy spring water piercing his body, causing him to shiver involuntarily.

A silver light flashed in the distance as an incredibly fast figure darted through the grass, pouncing toward Xie Shuci with lightning speed.

An overwhelming sense of wild, murderous intent enveloped Xie Shuci. He didn’t even have time to be afraid. Driven by an intense survival instinct, he swung the sword to strike directly ahead.

The sword light shot out like a released arrow, aiming for the figure.

Xie Shuci panted heavily, “Did it get hit?”

The figure in mid-air was incredibly agile, slashing through the air with its claws and maneuvering sideways, seemingly trying to dodge the sword light and attack Xie Shuci.

However, nobody noticed that in the instant Xie Shuci swung the sword, not far behind him in the nearby woods, another sword light flew out, merging at an imperceptible speed with the strike of Xie Shuci’s sword.

Just as the demon twisted its body to avoid the attack, the sword light suddenly expanded at an astonishing speed, splitting into two waves of light. One of the waves struck the demon’s abdomen.

In an instant, fresh blood sprayed, dripping onto the grass.

The demon let out a low whimper, its body plummeting straight down, rolling into the grass.

Xie Shuci was dumbfounded.

He looked at the blood on the ground and then at the knife in his hand, unable to believe it as he murmured, “Am I really this powerful?”

Xie Shuci held a skeptical attitude and slowly approached the spot where the demon had fallen.

He saw the demon emit a dazzling white light, and its large form gradually shrank within the light until it transformed into an ordinary-sized… husky?

“What the hell? Huskies can become spiritual beasts nowadays?”

Xie Shuci took a few steps closer and realized he wasn’t mistaken. The true form of the demon was indeed a dog that looked like a husky.

It had several different sword wounds on its body, almost exposing bone, and fresh blood oozed out from beneath it. Presumably, it had exhausted its spiritual energy and was completely drained, lacking the strength to heal its own body.

However, upon seeing Xie Shuci, it bared its teeth and glared fiercely at him, attempting to deter him with its gaze and barking.

“Aren’t you just a dumb dog? Always pretending to be a big bad wolf? It turns out that dogs of your breed, trade look for intelligence.”

Upon discovering that the demon that had kept him on edge all day was just a pet commonly seen in modern society, he let go of his wariness and approached.

The demon understood his words and, in a fit of anger, opened its mouth wide, trying to intimidate Xie Shuci with its howls.

“Don’t bark. I can save you,” Xie Shuci bent down to examine its wounds. They were quite severe, but luckily, it wasn’t an ordinary dog, or else it would have died long ago.

“Woof!”

It continued to bark.

“Stop barking!”

“Woof!”

Xie Shuci grew impatient and slapped its dog head, saying, “Shut up!”

“Whimper…”