Scripture of Days Past

All Passage Manor, Zhao Clan.

Zhao Lingxiao took a sip of tea, then sighed. ”You need to learn to curb that temper of yours, Chu Qiguang. Song Baoyi is not just the provincial thousand-man commander of Shu Province, but also one of the leading figures of the Hunter Hand Faction. The entire Shu Province is his territory, so if you get on his bad side, you’re going to have a very tough time here.”

Chu Qiguang looked around the courtyard where Zhao Lingxiao was staying, and it was immediately apparent to him that the Zhao Clan was far more well-off than the Wu Clan of Azure Sun County.

He took a sip of tea himself, then said, ”I’ve only just arrived in Shu Province, so I don’t know anything about the place. Would you care to enlighten me, Master Zhao?”

Over the past year on Jade Face Mountain, Zhao Lingxiao had come to see Chu Qiguang as a disciple, and he was also very moved by Chu Qiguang’s diligence and sincerity in trying to find his faith. Hence, he was very concerned for Chu Qiguang after hearing that he had gotten off on the wrong foot with Song Baoyi.

”Shu Province is a geographically complex place with countless mountains and ridges. You have to understand that this place is different from the central plains. There are far more fiends here, and overall, they are much more powerful than the fiends of the central plains.

“The members of the Hunter Hand Faction are constantly fighting on the front lines, so they are also completely different from the members of the Demon Vanquishing Department whom you’ve met on Jade Face Mountain. Compared to status and wealth, they hold power in much higher regard.”

Chu Qiguang developed a much clearer understanding Shu Province after hearing what Zhao Lingxiao had to say.

Shu Province was home to many mountains, villages, and ethnic minorities, resulting in a high level of geographic and cultural complexity. It was very difficult to preside over such a complex region, so the imperial court’s power was concentrated in only a few major cities, while the rest of the province was much more rugged and lawless.

Much of the province was very underdeveloped, resulting in very low overall education standards, and the uneducated masses were often easily taken advantage of by cults and other sinister forces.

In addition, the snowy mountains in the southwest were home to many fiends, and the region was colloquially referred to as the fiend nation. Those fiends had established themselves back when the dragon race ruled over the central plains. After the founding emperor of the Great Han Empire drove the dragon back to the East Sea, those fiends fled to Shu Province before being forced onto the snowy mountains.

The inhospitable conditions on the snowy mountains made it nearly impossible for the military to continue pursuing the fiends, so they settled there and began reproducing generation after generation. In recent years, the Great Han Empire had begun to display signs of weakness, and the fiends had begun frequently emerging from the snowy mountains to clash with the local authorities.

Over time, the fiends had become extremely powerful, and their intrusive presence in Shu Province meant that the Hunter Hand Faction constantly had its hands full.

”Master Zhao, have you heard of the Hunter Hand Faction’s Vajra Laws and Steel Tendon Iron Bone Arts?” Chu Qiguang asked.

”Of course. Those are two of the Hunter Hand Faction’s most closely guarded cultivation arts,” Zhao Lingxiao replied. ”Why do you ask? You’re not considering trying to get your hands on them, are you?”

”I was just curious about them,” Chu Qiguang replied with a smile.

”The abundance of fiends in Shu Province is why the imperial court sent the Hunter Hand Faction here, but over time, this region has become the Hunter Hand Faction’s territory. As a member of the Fiend Assassin Faction, it’ll be completely impossible for you to get your hands on the Vajra Laws and the Steel Tendon Iron Bone Arts. If that’s your intention, then I suggest you give up on the idea before you get yourself killed,” Zhao Lingxiao warned.

Chu Qiguang merely smiled and offered no response, then changed the subject and asked, ”The Hunter Hand Faction’s Dao Comprehension-state martial god is also in Shu Province, right?”

The Hunter Hand Faction’s Dao Comprehension-state martial god was a man named Bai Shihe, and he had reached the Dao Comprehension state through cultivating the Sumeru Strength Scripture.

”Martial God Bai is stationed on Profound Lone Mountain,” Zhao Lingxiao replied. ”That’s an important strategic location between the snowy mountains and Shu Province.”

Through his conversation with Zhao Lingxiao, Chu Qiguang was able to learn a great deal about Shu Province, particularly the Ba Manor, where he was set to serve as a hundred-man commander.

”Are you alright, Master Zhao? You don’t look so well,” Chu Qiguang said with a concerned expression.

Since they had last met, Zhao Lingxiao had clearly lost weight, and his face appeared rather gaunt and sunken.

”I’m fine,” Zhao Lingxiao replied with a wry smile.

After leaving the Zhao Clan, Chu Qiguang set off for the Ba Manor.

***

That night, Chu Qiguang and his group were on their way to the next relay station.

”The scenery in Shu Province really is very nice, but all these mountains are very tiring to traverse,” Hao Xiangtong complained.

”We should be able to reach Ba Manor tonight,” Chu Qiguang said. ”We’ll be able to get a good rest once we arrive.”

Meanwhile, three fiends were observing them from atop a nearby cliff.

The three fiends were all of different species, but there was one trait all three of them shared. Their eyes were crimson.

If a veteran of Shu Province’s Demon Vanquishing Department were present, they would immediately be able to identify these three fiends. All three were notorious fiend kings in the region, with hundreds of fiends under their command, and they had committed countless atrocities over the past dozen or so years.

One of them was a tiger-like fiend known as the Chaotic Heavens King, and he said, ”That’s the new hundred-man commander of the Ba Manor Demon Vanquishing Department. I’ve never seen a fourth-state hundred-man commander before.”

”That’s him,” a white ape beside him confirmed. ”His name is Chu Qiguang. I’ve heard that the emperor has bestowed upon him a ton of exquisite pills that provide tremendous benefits.”

The third fiend was a black humanoid creature with a pair of tusks protruding from his mouth and a pair of wings on his back. ”That’s all well and good, but what if he’s already taken all the pills?” he asked.

The monkey fiend was known as the Supreme Elder, and he replied with a grin, ”Then we’ll just have to eat him, won’t we?”

The winged humanoid fiend was called the Yaksha Wraith, and he shook his head and said, ”Killing a fourth-state hundred-man commander is as simple as it gets, but what if we incur the wrath of the Demon Vanquishing Department? If Bai Shihe comes after us, then we’ll all be screwed.”

The three fiends collectively shuddered at the mention of Bai Shihe, who had an extremely fearsome reputation among fiends. Not only did he fight like a deranged monster, but he also reveled in skinning fiends alive before devouring their flesh, and he consumed hundreds of fiends every year.

In the eyes of the fiends of Shu Province, he may as well have been the devil incarnate.

”There’s no need to worry about that,” the Supreme Elder said. ”The Demon Vanquishing Department is divided into four factions, and Chu Qiguang is from the Fiend Assassin Faction, while Shu Province is the Hunter Hand Faction’s territory. I heard that Chu Qiguang already got off to a bad start with Thousand-Man Commander Song Baoyi on the first day he arrived in the Hibiscus Brocade Manor, so there’s no way that Shu Province’s Demon Vanquishing Department will stand up for him.”