I Am Your Natural Enemy

Wen Yan glanced back—Pei Tugou could restrain himself and not move, the Demonic Corpse was also standing obediently, even the resentment in the air had calmed down quite a bit. Tong Si looked over, but said nothing.

After corroborating from multiple sources and with the hints in hand, Wen Yan more or less understood: this guy was probably truly the same inside and out.

The Bamboo Forest Demon looked outside; the balloon that others couldn’t see, he could see too. He saw the orb, thought for a moment, then spoke.

”You guys haven’t found the other three yet, have you?”

”Haven’t had the chance yet.”

The Bamboo Forest Demon glanced again at the Demonic Corpse, his expression growing ever more complex. He sighed once more and stood up.

”Let me take you. I’ll be the one to end all this.”

”The remaining three: one is in Binhai County, one in Guanzhong County, and one in Jingchu County.”

Upon hearing this, Wen Yan was immediately at a loss for words.

This guy really knows how to pick, huh.

He chose all commanderies where the Three Mountains and Five Ridges are located.

Fuyu Mountain, Mount Zhongnan, Wudang Mountain.

On top of that, the Bamboo Forest Demon even went straight to cultivate in seclusion at Mount Qingcheng.

This ’hiding under the lamp’, huh? He played it well.

Even that Boss Tao was only near the West River Water System.

The Bamboo Forest Demon had originally just intended to stretch his neck out for execution, to die and be done with it.

But after hearing it wasn’t just cannibalism, and after seeing a Demonic Corpse with his own eyes,

He realized this Demonic Corpse must have been forced out.

Only the immense resentment in a Demonic Corpse’s heart could have directly found its way here.

He felt that simply dying was no longer enough—he needed to get personally involved, to end it all himself.

Before Wen Yan could continue searching with the Demonic Corpse, the Bamboo Forest Demon had already sold out the other three.

Wen Yan, after learning roughly where and what names to look for, immediately made a phone call.

”Hello, Fourth Great-uncle Master? Are you there? I have something I’d like to ask for your help with.”

Wen Yan gave a brief explanation of the situation.

On the other end, the Fourth Great-uncle Master hung up, his eyes filled with a trace of confusion.

The Glutton is still alive—and fragmented into five parts—one of which is right in Binhai County.

Of the remaining two that haven’t been caught, one’s in Guanzhong County, the other not only in Jingchu County, but right on Wudang Mountain itself.

Now the Great Killer Star of Virtue City has been provoked and is furious; Wen Yan is still trying to talk him down, but it’s to no avail.

Fourth Great-uncle Master wanted to say, why are you even trying to talk him down—but rationally, he also felt that if Wen Yan stopped, something big was bound to happen.

He held his phone, pondering for a moment, then, seeing another message from Wen Yan, he immediately went to see the Grand Uncle Master of Fuyu.

A moment later, a figure shot skyward from Fuyu Mountain.

...

Meanwhile, Lord Zhu also received a call on a secured line. After hanging up, his face was full of shock.

A fragment of the Glutton—where did it get the guts to linger in Guanzhong County?

Where did it get the guts to hide out somewhere he himself dared not go?

...

At the same time, atop Wudang Mountain.

The Wudang Sect Leader put down the phone, recited a sacred name, trying to cover the shock within him.

He rose and walked to the main hall, gazing at the deity’s statue in the temple, lighting incense and bowing low.

”Unworthy disciple, blind to the truth, let an evil demon enter the mountain; today, I respectfully ask to use the Patriarch’s treasure to cleanse the sect.”

...

Meanwhile at the Scorching Sun Headquarters, the General Director received a call from Fuyu’s Grand Uncle Master, listening intently to his explanation.

”Alright, I understand.”

After hanging up, the General Director rapidly processed the mountain of information he’d just received, then picked up the phone on the desk again.

”Send Subject 049 to Virtue City by special transport.”

He flipped through a file on his desk—it was a collection of suggestions from insiders at the Scorching Sun Department: they were critically short-staffed, clamoring to increase manpower; the casework procedures were cumbersome, so they wanted those cut back, and so on.

Bottom line: too few usable people, too little authority under normal circumstances, can’t get the job done.

This was nothing new.

Especially this year—with two world-level bosses descending, Scorching Sun’s authority was temporarily maxed out. Now that things have reverted to normal, some people just can’t cope with tightening the belt again.

The branches were doing relatively okay; it was the HQ crowd that had it worst.

But everything they said was true—each problem listed out in full.

The General Director set the file aside—he had no intention of submitting it up the chain. He knew better than anyone: open this floodgate, take this first step, and there’d be no going back.

In as little as twenty years, as many as fifty, Scorching Sun would turn from dragon-slayer to the very worst evil dragon of all.

...

At the foot of Wudang Mountain, the Sect Leader, horsetail whisk in hand, stepped to the sect gate and looked at the stone sculpture standing outside.

”When this poor Taoist descended from the mountain years ago, I met you, newly awakened, and brought you back here.

Hoping that Wudang’s fortune could temper your ferocity.

Never thought—it was my poor judgment. I thought you no more than an ordinary evil demon.”

As the Wudang Sect Leader spoke, the stone sculpture slowly changed, transforming into a Blue-eyed Lion.

The Blue-eyed Lion glanced at the Wudang Sect Leader. Before he could finish his words, it opened its mouth with a roar, spewing blue flames, then bounded away towards the mountain forest.

The Wudang Sect Leader swung his horsetail whisk, lightly twirling it, sweeping up the blue flames in a spiral that soared into the sky.

His eyes carried a trace of disappointment.

He honestly still had a sliver of hope, not fully believing what outsiders had said.

He had wondered if decades of discipline had made an impact.

Never thought—before he could finish, this demon’s ferocity broke through, daring to attack him directly.

Just as he moved to strike with his whisk—

He saw an aura of fiendish energy ahead surging like a tide.

A group approached; the Blue-eyed Lion, having just burst out, was swallowed by a tide of blood, bound at once by countless blood ropes, wrapped up bit by bit into a perfect sphere.