Not only Gu Qingshan stayed awake all night; Mo Fan and his three demon companions did as well.
Mo Fan had thought one night would be enough for Mr. Gu to think things through and understand what was at stake, but the outcome deeply disappointed him.
Could even a scholar willing to sacrifice his life for righteousness not escape worldly prejudice?
Mo Fan gave a bitter smile. Initially, he believed Gu Qingshan was the ideal candidate, but now he realized this scholar, though resolute unto death, was not yet worthy of being called a great Confucian.
“Let’s go!”
Mo Fan sighed, stood up from the ground, and walked out of the basement.
He kept his word.
Though Gu Qingshan’s actions left him regretful, Mo Fan did nothing to them.
At that moment, Black-Clad left.
“Black-Clad!” White-Clad frowned, unable to stop herself from calling out.
“Let her go!”
“Gu Qingshan has long been prepared to die, but the children are innocent.”
Mo Fan spoke calmly, then looked at White-Clad with a smile. “Don’t you think Little Gatekeeper and Little Yard are a lot like you two?”
Hearing this, White-Clad calmed down. Looking at Black-Clad’s retreating figure, her gaze filled with affection.
“Let’s go check on them. After all, there’s a great demon here. If something happens, we can act in time!”
Mo Fan spoke, stepping out and vanishing several yards away.
White-Clad smiled and followed.
…
“Mr. Gu, why are we leaving?”
“Yeah, the immortal masters are still sleeping. Shouldn’t we say goodbye?”
“That roasted goose from last night was so delicious. I was dreaming about it… I wonder when we’ll eat something that good again…”
In the alley, Gu Qingshan walked ahead with a stern face, while the children behind him couldn’t help but speak up. One small child smacked his lips, looking back every few steps, clearly reluctant to leave.
“Sir, why is this? I think those three immortal masters were kind to us. They don’t seem like bad people!” Little Gatekeeper frowned, running to Gu Qingshan’s side to ask.
“They’re not bad people… but they are…”
Gu Qingshan gave a bitter smile, opened his mouth, but couldn’t bring himself to reveal the truth about Mo Fan and his companions.
“Sir, where are we going?”
Another child, about Little Gatekeeper’s height, looked at Gu Qingshan.
“To leave Dongling City, to a place without demons!” Gu Qingshan replied without hesitation.
“But sir, the whole of Dongling City is occupied by demons. I’m afraid we can’t even get out of the city. Where can we escape to?”
The child spoke nervously, glancing around, eyes filled with fear.
His words made Gu Qingshan pause, standing still for a long time. He looked at the children before him, took a deep breath, and gritted his teeth. “Let’s go back to the City God Temple!”
“People, you may not be going anywhere!”
Suddenly, a rough voice sounded nearby.
Gu Qingshan’s face changed. Looking toward the sound, he saw a dog-headed demon perched on a spear, a broad horse-chopping blade on its shoulder, grinning menacingly at them.
“It’s… it’s a demon…”
Little Gatekeeper’s pupils shrank, and he instinctively stepped back, but still reached out to hold his sister Little Yard’s hand.
“Mr. Gu, there’s… there’s… a demon…”
Another child stammered, trembling all over.
“Run!”
“Run fast!!”
Gu Qingshan roared, then turned to Little Gatekeeper. “Little Gatekeeper, take everyone and run back to the City God Temple!!”
“Run?”
“Heh heh… In front of me, White Dog Fang, who can escape!”
The white-clad dog demon on the wall smirked, leapt down, sniffed the air with its blackened nose, and grinned. “What a delicious human scent!”
“Thanks to that dead spider, I caught the scent of you little rats!”
“Oh, no, not rats… delicacies?!”
The dog-headed demon spoke as it approached Gu Qingshan, lowering the blade from its shoulder, its steps quickening.
“Demon, come at me!!”
“My life’s integrity has long been left in this Dongling City. Why should I fear you demons devouring my flesh!”
Gu Qingshan’s hair bristled with rage. Though trembling, he rolled up his sleeves, drew the long sword from his waist, and charged at the dog-headed demon.
“Good! Let’s see if your scholar’s flesh is as sour as they say!”
The dog-headed demon sneered, its body blurring as it vanished.
Swish!
The horse-chopping blade flashed, and Gu Qingshan’s sword fell to the ground.
He looked down at his waist, seeing a long gash, intestines spilling out, blood gushing.
“Old man, no matter how much you’ve read, can it stop a sharp blade?”
The dog-headed demon grinned, then bit into Gu Qingshan’s shoulder, tearing off a chunk of flesh, clothes ripping apart.
“Hmm?”
The demon’s eyes lit up, chewing with relish, sneering. “Seems those guys were wrong. Your scholar’s flesh is far sweeter than common folk!”
“Cough, cough… Demon, reading is for wisdom, for passing down knowledge, for understanding the ways of this world!”
“Your blade may be sharp, but can it cut down every scholar in the world?”
“Why are demons demons? Because they know nothing of heritage or the ways of the world, so you’re destined to be suppressed by humanity!”
Coughing, Gu Qingshan pressed his spilled intestines back into his abdomen. Though staggering, he never fell, blood pooling beneath him.
“You’re courting death!!” The dog-headed demon roared.
“Ha ha ha ha… I’ve long put life and death aside. Why fear death!”
Gu Qingshan laughed loudly, suddenly looking back to see a figure approaching swiftly. Joy flashed across his face, followed by a bitter smile. “Humans have their way, demons have theirs. In the end, it was I who was foolish…”
With that, he collapsed to the ground!
Dongling City’s renowned Mr. Gu could not escape this demonic calamity, falling in a pool of blood.
“Mr. Gu!!”
A child’s voice rang out, heart-wrenching, echoing through the alley.
At the same time, dozens of figures sped toward them from afar, as if drawn by the scent of prey!
“Foolish man, how could a mortal like you comprehend the heritage of our demon clan?”
The dog-headed demon sneered at the corpse, turning to grab the children.
But as it turned, a dark light flashed.
It was a massive scythe!
Splat—
The dog’s head flew high into the air!
...
