Chapter 41: The Serpent Demon’s Growing Bounty

“Here they come, here they come! Freshly steamed *xiaolongbao*! We have xiaolongbao, soup dumplings, and vegetable buns, all piping hot and fragrant, making your mouth water!”

“Wontons for sale! Freshly wrapped wontons, first come, first into the pot~”

“Fried dough sticks~ Crispy, golden fried dough sticks, and freshly ground soy milk~”

In the early morning of Zhuocheng, various hawkers called out their wares along the streets.

The array of goods was dazzling, far more bustling than Chongxi Town could ever hope to be.

“Wow, so much food! It’s just like Cloudfall Mountain!”

“Comparing a city to a town? I feel like you’re subtly disparaging Zhuocheng.”

Bai Jiujiu and Tong Qiu walked along the main street, both uniformly wearing veils to conceal their faces and simultaneously casting the God-Concealing Spell to diminish their presence.

They were currently wanted, with their likenesses plastered on every bounty poster. If they were mere ordinary people lost in the crowd, it might not have been an issue. However, whether it was Bai Jiujiu, the serpent demon capable of bringing ruin to nations, or Tong Qiu, the valiant and awe-inspiring constable, their beauty was legendary.

In the eyes of common folk, their enchanting smiles could captivate an entire populace. For any ordinary person, a mere glance would feel like an ‘explosion’ of beauty. If they were to stroll brazenly through the streets, it was highly probable that the Demon Suppression Bureau’s threshold would be trampled by eager citizens rushing to provide clues in the very next second.

One thousand five hundred gold ingots!

That sum was enough to ensure three generations of an ordinary family would live lives free from worry, easily becoming affluent landowners.

“Ahhh, why has the serpent demon’s bounty increased again?!”

One human and one demon approached a notice board, reading its contents from a distance, away from the bustling crowd.

Due to Tong Qiu’s wanted status, her identity token had been directly locked down by the Demon Suppression Bureau headquarters. The token’s surface was entwined and sealed by several chains, losing its luster as a magical artifact. Aside from serving as a slightly harder brick, it was utterly useless.

It was only then that Bai Jiujiu discovered her bounty had increased once more, filling her with extreme vexation.

An increased bounty meant more cultivators would be eyeing her, making her existence in the world even more perilous.

“It’s all that wicked disciple’s fault!”

“That sounds more like your own doing…”

Tong Qiu ruthlessly exposed Bai Jiujiu’s attempt to shift blame. Instinctively, she raised her wine flask to her lips, only for a thin, watery liquid to trickle onto her tongue.

‘No more wine?’

‘She drank it too quickly…’

“Speaking of which, what’s the highest bounty here?”

Bai Jiujiu gazed at her bounty, which had climbed from fifty million to sixty million. She was somewhat curious if it reached its peak, would it turn into a hundred million, or something else?

‘Does this world even have a unit for a hundred million?’

“Actually, sixth-rank constables of the Demon Suppression Bureau don’t typically accept bounty missions like these. Even minor constables from wealthy families don’t care for such rewards.”

“If not for the constant pressure from King Chu’s side, you and Su Ling’er should actually be on a Earth-rank bounty, not a Heaven-rank one. Only truly heinous demons like Scarlet Soul are ever placed on Heaven-rank bounties, to be hunted by disciples of major sects. And the rewards for those aren’t gold ingots that cultivators disdain, but rather powerful cultivation techniques that can make them stronger.”

“I see.”

According to Tong Qiu’s explanation, Bai Jiujiu felt there was no need to be overly nervous.

After all, those coming to capture her were just weaklings, with Tong Qiu herself probably being the strongest among them.

‘The serpent demon feels relieved~’

‘The serpent demon feels completely out of danger now~’

Since even Tong Qiu was easily defeated by her, wouldn’t constables weaker than her be effortlessly subdued?

“However, based on what I’ve learned, many sects have heard that Cloudfall Mountain is a geomantically auspicious place. They’ve all sent their elite disciples to investigate, attempting to claim it for themselves.”

“Uh!” Bai Jiujiu’s smile froze on her face.

“And if those people were to discover that Senior is currently unable to use her demon arts, hehehe~ they would either curse you into servitude or toss Senior into a pot to be stewed into serpent soup. A demon at the Demon Manor Realm is quite the tonic, you know.” Tong Qiu smirked mischievously, whispering to Bai Jiujiu.

This fellow had gotten her wanted. Although the primary reason was her own greed for money that led to their cooperation, this didn’t stop Tong Qiu from ‘scaring’ Bai Jiujiu as revenge for increasing her workload and nearly costing her job.

Sometimes, a little resistance against a ruthless superior was necessary.

“Eek!!” Bai Jiujiu was so terrified that the scales on her belly became visible.

Stewed… stewed into serpent soup!

The serpent demon was a great demon of the Demon Manor Realm! One with eight thousand years of cultivation.

How could she possibly be easily stewed into serpent soup?

“How could that be? You stewed the serpent demon for half the night yesterday, and it didn’t even help me lose any weight. I’m not afraid at all.”

Though she claimed not to be afraid, Bai Jiujiu was actually hiding behind Tong Qiu, speaking in a soft, muffled voice, afraid of being discovered by others.

‘So cute!’

‘Like a child, yet an eight-thousand-year-old great demon.’

Tong Qiu’s lips curved into an arc, thinking of how the formidable great demon of Cloudfall Mountain now behaved like a child from her orphanage, clinging to her and refusing to leave.

‘Strange attributes seem to have awakened.’

She had intended to continue scaring Bai Jiujiu, but seeing the morning market grow increasingly crowded, they didn’t linger. After quickly buying some breakfast and packing it into a storage ring, they returned to the inn.

Passing by a teahouse, a rich aroma of wine pierced through Tong Qiu’s veil and into her nostrils.

“Sniff, sniff~ Such fragrant wine!”

“It does smell very good.”

Bai Jiujiu followed behind Tong Qiu with her head down, like a wronged young wife. Beneath her white veil, she pouted, muttering curses at Tong Qiu.

“Draw a circle to curse you, draw a circle to curse you…”

‘How dare she scare the serpent demon?’

‘Just wait until we get back to the inn; she’ll see how I deal with her!’

She placed her hand on the Demon-Binding Rope, which emitted a faint glow in response to Bai Jiujiu.

One serpent and one rope had reached a consensus.

Flowing Shadow Sword: ?

Nevertheless, Tong Qiu had reminded Bai Jiujiu that even if her bounty wouldn’t attract other powerful cultivators, she wasn’t absolutely safe.

And though she had lived for eight thousand years, the time she had actually spent observing the world was exceedingly short; she had never truly left Cloudfall Mountain.

Even now that Bai Jiujiu knew Su Ling’er’s location and no longer needed Tong Qiu to investigate, she remained unfamiliar with human rules and order. She needed a knowledgeable companion to guide her and explain things.

Tong Qiu was, without exception, the best choice at the moment.

The moment she stepped into the mortal world, she could no longer return to the mountains untainted.