In the world of demons and warriors, I slay demons through wordplay.

Chapter 12 The Hidden Fox Demon

Lin Bufan couldn't quite understand this swordsman who was about the same age as him.

As far as he knew, those who practiced martial arts in Liaocheng were primarily focused on self-preservation.

They never proactively accept bounties or venture out of the city to subdue demons.

Those who practice martial arts in chaotic times are actually quite ambitious.

Not everyone likes to live a timid and cowardly life.

Who wouldn't want to punch a fox demon and stomp on a dog demon? To be high-spirited and exact revenge?

The reason for this is that they are not strong enough and are afraid of being retaliated against by the powerful demon forces behind them, which would implicate the martial arts school and harm their relatives.

Even he had to worry about his sister's safety and make sure she had a safe escape route before daring to leave the city.

So, when did Liaocheng produce such a martial artist who cares so much about the people? Or is he a swordsman who practices both Buddhist and sword techniques?

Is it ignorance? Or fearlessness?

"You came here to exorcise demons, is it to rid the people of this scourge?" Lin Bufan asked solemnly.

Yes and no.

Hearing Li Qingchen's ambiguous answer, Lin Bufan frowned slightly and said:

"Do you know that the fox demon in this impoverished village has a powerful demon backing her up, known as the 'Great Fox Immortal'?"

"That great demon not only possesses unpredictable and deadly magic, but more importantly, it is a close friend of the dog general north of Liaocheng."

"If you truly slay the fox demon here and offend it, it's equivalent to offending two powerful demons at the same time. Even if the Demon Slayer Bureau comes, they will have to act depending on the situation when facing two demons working together."

Li Qingchen's expression turned slightly serious.

Fox Immortal? Dog General? Close Friend?

Bad friends?

It means that after beating the young one, the old one comes along, and after beating the old one, there will be another old one?

No, are you stacking them up high here?

"Why are you telling me all this?" Li Qingchen asked.

Lin Bufan shook his head: "I just want to tell you that if you want to quit, you'd better do it sooner rather than later, so you don't regret it when you face retaliation."

Li Qingchen said, "Oh? You're so aware of the consequences of provoking a fox demon, why did you still dare to come alone?"

Lin Bufan dismounted and looked at the villagers with sallow, hungry faces, his expression filled with pity.

"I have things I must do, for myself and for them."

Li Qingchen nodded: "I see, I understand."

"What do you understand?"

Li Qingchen chuckled and said, "I understand now, so you're a fool."

Lin Bufan said calmly, "Likewise."

"Since we're both fools, why don't we go inside and talk?"

"That's excellent."

The village chief, who was standing nearby, was completely baffled and had no choice but to obediently lead the way.

…………

inside the house.

The three of them sat around the stove, where the charcoal fire crackled softly, casting a warm, yellowish glow over the room.

The village chief recounted the strange things that had happened in the village.

This fox demon likes to skin people.

After eating human flesh, they use bizarre sorcery to put a complete human skin on themselves, thus transforming into human form.

The height and voice of the deceased will be completely different from those of the deceased during their lifetime.

Even the fox demon's innate pungent smell can be covered up by human skin.

Not only that, but after eating a person's brain, it can even inherit the deceased's memories and replicate their habits, so that even the closest people cannot detect the deception.

It was through such evil magic that the fox demon was able to perfectly integrate into Liu Family Village, constantly hunting for food by using human skin.

This month, a total of nine people have died in Liujia Village.

Li Qingchen thought to himself, "It's fortunate that this other world has a large population. If this were my previous life, nine people would die in a village, and the county magistrate could just go back to planting sweet potatoes."

Lin Bufan frowned as he listened.

He was not good at tracking demons, and with the enemy in the dark and him in the light, the fox demon mixed in with the crowd would surely restrain itself upon his arrival.

So, we need to find the humanoid fox demon in this huge village...

difficult.

Seeing that Lin Bufan remained silent, the village chief exchanged some polite words and then tactfully left.

Lin Bufan looked at the swordsman in plain clothes opposite him: "Brother Li, what are your thoughts?"

"It's not exactly a brilliant idea, but it's a workaround, albeit a less-than-ideal one."

Lin Bufan's eyes lit up: "Oh? Please go ahead!"

Li Qingchen said, "Since we can't tell them apart, why not give each of them a sword strike or a slash?"

Lin Bufan's eyes immediately darkened: "Brother Li, you're probably joking."

Li Qingchen gently shook his head: "That's why I said this is a solution that's not really a solution."

Upon arriving at Liujia Village, Li Qingchen immediately used his Qi Observation Technique to observe the area.

The results showed that everyone had a trace of black energy emanating from them, more or less.

The reason why each person exudes a little black aura is probably because the wicked fox deliberately 'smeared' demonic energy on people in order to confuse the demon hunters.

However, there was no particularly strong presence of it.

Based on the village chief's account, Li Qingchen guessed that the human skin the fox had created using demonic magic must have the effect of concealing one's breath.

His ability to observe the aura of demons was only at the beginner level, probably because his level was too low to see through it.

"What a troublesome beast."

Lin Bufan suddenly stood up and walked outside.

Where are you going?

"Sitting here all the time isn't a solution. I'll go inspect the north of the village again. I'll trouble Brother Li to take charge of the south of the village."

"Tsk, are you ordering me around? No way, no way, no way."

Sunset West Mountain.

Crows sing at dusk.

Li Qingchen surveyed the south of the village but still couldn't find anything unusual, so he returned disappointed.

Is it really that hard to give me a ticket to this "lawless place"?

"If all else fails, we'll just slip away and kill some pig demons or wolf demons first, then come back later."

After much deliberation, he unknowingly arrived at the inn prepared for him by the village chief.

Li Qingchen stopped in his tracks.

A young man stood in front of the inn.

The boy looked to be fourteen or fifteen years old, about the same age as Gou Dan. He was thin and had a sallow complexion, clearly indicating long-term malnutrition.

She had beautiful eyebrows and eyes, and her eyes seemed to sparkle with fire.

But why are you looking at me with such intense gaze?

Could it be...?

Tsk.

Li Qingchen pretended not to see and walked straight into the inn.

"Great hero, please wait a moment."

Liu Yi squatted there for a long time, fearing that once Li Qingchen entered the inn, he would never see her again.

So he reached out his hand, making a gesture to stop him.

Then he realized that his hands were not clean, and fearing that he might have soiled the hero's clothes, he quickly pulled them back.

Li Qingchen took in Liu Yi's every move, stopped, and asked:

"What's up?"

Seeing those indifferent eyes staring at him, Liu Yi suddenly felt very nervous.

The words he had prepared were all stuck in his throat, leaving him speechless for a moment.

"Great hero, my name is Liu Yi."

"I didn't ask your name."

Liu Yi became even more nervous upon hearing this.

"Great hero, have you... have you found the demon?"

He regretted saying those stupid things as soon as they left his mouth.

He secretly glanced up and, seeing that the hero was not angry, breathed a sigh of relief.

But the conversation died down.

Sure enough, Li Qingchen turned around, went inside, and closed the door, completely shutting Liu Yi out.

Liu Yi's eyes immediately went dark, like a candle extinguished by water.

I wouldn't say I was particularly disappointed.

The two were from completely different worlds, so this outcome was entirely expected.

In a world overrun by demons, even basic sustenance is a luxury for the poor. To imagine recreating the scenes from those folk tales where a commoner receives guidance from a wise man is simply a pipe dream.

He didn't even say "let's try" out loud.

It's really...

Overwhelmed with shame, Liu Yi lowered his head and muttered to himself, "Great hero, I want to learn martial arts from you to avenge my father, brother, and sister..."

Just then.

"Snapped!"

The door that was supposed to be locked has opened.

.........