Chapter 6: A Chaotic Morning and an Unexpected Wanted Poster

“Hmm~ I haven’t slept this comfortably in ages!”

In the early morning, Bai Jiujiu awoke from her slumber. The sunlight, bright after the rain, was exceptionally clear.

A small white snake poked its head out from the bundled blanket. Bai Jiujiu had originally intended to transform into her human form to enjoy the long-awaited warmth.

However, the inn’s blanket was too small, and she slept so silently that half her body often lay exposed.

She had no choice but to revert to her true form, leaving only her two nostrils peeking out while she slept. Sleeping nestled in the covers like this was actually quite nice and warm.

Instead of immediately transforming, Bai Jiujiu hopped onto the windowsill, stretching her serpentine body taut to bask in the first rays of morning sun.

“Esteemed Constable, we are laborers passing through on our way to Carefree Continent. We just woke up to continue our journey and found this young man in such a state.”

‘Eh? Why is it so chaotic downstairs?’

From the windowsill, Bai Jiujiu stealthily poked out her snake head.

Downstairs, a crowd had gathered at some point. Several armored guards were cordoning off the onlookers. Seven bare-chested men with bronze skin were subserviently reporting to a man and a woman.

Bai Jiujiu focused her gaze. Wasn’t that woman Constable Tong Qiu, the one who had pursued her yesterday?

‘Have they already caught up? Isn’t this speed a bit too fast? And how could they pinpoint this location so accurately?’

‘Could that Demon-Binding Rope really be a tracker?’

Sensing its new owner’s suspicion, the small golden circlet, which Bai Jiujiu had forcibly moved to her neck because she wanted to sleep undisturbed, trembled wildly, almost crying out in protest.

Regardless, these constables had arrived. She needed to make a swift escape.

She retracted her snake head, then slithered into her original white ancient-style robes. The clothes, having been warmed by her body, were now dry, though still stained with mud at the very bottom.

Bai Jiujiu transformed and stood up, patting the dust from her clothes. She then fastened her veil, preparing to find an opportunity to slip away unnoticed through the back.

While dressing, Bai Jiujiu also paid close attention to the commotion downstairs, quickly realizing that the two were not there to apprehend her. This allowed her to breathe a sigh of relief.

As long as they weren’t after her, it was fine.

Bai Jiujiu delicately raised a ‘lily-like’ finger, casting a Concealment Spell.

‘Stealthily climb over the wall and slip away…’

‘Must not be discovered by the constables…’

Bai Jiujiu leaped from the railing. It was only the second floor, an easy feat for a demon like her. Next, she would slip out through the back door.

Bai Jiujiu quickly reached the back door, but hushed conversations made her stop.

“Hey, hey, do you think the one who killed Niu Dadan might be the one we saw last night?”

“How would I know?”

“Hey, you old rascal, didn’t you see that fox-like shadow?”

‘A fox?’

Bai Jiujiu pressed herself against the wall, quietly opening the back door just a crack. Through the slit, her vertical pupils saw two men carrying water, sitting on a stone and whispering to each other.

‘Could it be that my disciple, Su Ling’er, was the one who killed the inn servant last night?’

“I didn’t see anything. If you want to die, go tell that official outside.”

“You old rascal, I kindly invited you to get rich together, why are you cursing me to die?”

The two men, muttering curses at each other, entered through the back door, carrying their freshly drawn water.

“Do you smell something fragrant?”

“What fragrance? When I get the reward later, don’t you dare try to snatch it from me.”

Bai Jiujiu had already leaped onto a tree planted by the back door. She sat cross-legged, rubbing her chin thoughtfully.

Bai Jiujiu knew that little fox, Su Ling’er. Although the girl was usually mischievous, often tearing down her sleeping cave until only a hole remained.

Her destructive capabilities were comparable to a husky in Bai Jiujiu’s previous life.

But Bai Jiujiu had raised her for so long and knew that her nature wasn’t bad; she merely sought attention. She had once pulled out the tail feathers of their senior sister, the nine-tailed Ghoulish Bird, to use as a feather duster, and together with their fourth senior sister, the Nekomata Xiao Qiang, they had eaten all of their third senior sister, the Moon Rabbit Qing Piaopiao’s, winter provisions.

She had never harmed anyone before. How could she possibly be a murderer? Bai Jiujiu had also taught them not to harm others unless absolutely necessary.

Bai Jiujiu recalled that she had also told Su Ling’er not to reveal her identity if she caused trouble outside. Yet, this little fox had not only exposed herself but also used Bai Jiujiu’s appearance to cause havoc in the Great Chu Kingdom, leaving Bai Jiujiu unable to return home.

Suddenly, she felt it wasn’t impossible for this fox to have done such a thing.

Upon hearing clues about her disciple, Bai Jiujiu abandoned her initial plan to leave immediately. In any case, she had finally learned offensive cultivation techniques. With her thousand years of cultivation, what could two mere constables do to her?

Indeed, a short while later, a group of soldiers filed up the stairs to the second floor, kicking open all the doors and searching each room.

A scholar living next door to Bai Jiujiu was ruthlessly dragged from his bed. Her room was also kicked open.

“No one here?”

“That’s not right. The manual clearly states there’s a woman named Bai Jiujiu here.”

“Let’s go, report to the adults.”

The two men carrying water were also dragged before Tong Qiu and a male constable, kneeling in a row with the scholar and other workers.

“My lord, spare me! My lord, I have a clue!”

The man who had initially claimed to have a clue immediately knelt and begged for mercy.

“Oh?” The male constable stood a step ahead of Tong Qiu, indicating his higher status.

“Last night, this servant was instructed by the inn worker to heat a large pot of water, saying there was an important guest who must not be neglected.”

“While heating the water, this servant saw a fox-like shadow appear here.”

“Fox-like?” Tong Qiu questioned aloud.

“Any other features?” the male constable pressed, as there were too many fox-like demons.

“Oh, oh, this servant remembers! That shadow had nine tails, and its body emitted a red glow.”

Bai Jiujiu sat in the tree, her Concealment Spell active. As long as she didn’t deliberately make a sound, the two constables below wouldn’t discover her.

Now, Bai Jiujiu could almost certainly confirm that this demon was not her disciple, Su Ling’er.

Su Ling’er, who possessed the bloodline of a nine-tailed fox demon, was indeed a rare great demon whose true form had nine tails. Nine-tailed demons were almost legendary, only appearing in ancient stone carvings.

But even if it were Su Ling’er, something wasn’t right. The last time the two demons met on Su Ling’er’s birthday, she only had six tails.

When Bai Jiujiu had guided Su Ling’er, she generally understood the characteristics of the nine-tailed fox demon bloodline: each additional tail doubled the original cultivation. When the first tail appeared, Su Ling’er had exactly ten years of cultivation.

This meant that Su Ling’er, despite only cultivating for four hundred years, had already attained six hundred and forty years of cultivation—and that was with her usually being busy playing and not taking it seriously. But it had only been a month since their last birthday. No matter how talented Su Ling’er was, it was impossible for her to cultivate to nine tails in a single month.

Bai Jiujiu immediately dismissed that possibility. Given that disobedient disciple’s personality, if she gained a massive increase in cultivation from a celestial treasure and grew nine tails, she would undoubtedly flaunt them immediately, mocking Bai Jiujiu, her master, with an extremely annoying gaze and caustic remarks.

“Pfft, pfft, pfft, no way. How could Master’s cultivation now be inferior to her disciple’s?”

Clearly, Su Ling’er hadn’t ‘jumped in her face’ to mock her, which proved this nine-tailed demon wasn’t her. Since it had nothing to do with her disciple, Bai Jiujiu had no desire to get involved in this mess.

“What about that guest?”

“Reporting, Lord Zhang, your subordinate did not find them.”

“Hmph, it seems they fled in fear of their crime. This demon named Bai Jiujiu, it was you, Tong Qiu, who mistakenly let the fox demon Su Ling’er escape, wasn’t it…”

Bai Jiujiu’s movement of climbing down the tree froze.

‘Eh? How did this get tied back to me?’

“I don’t think that’s likely, Zhang Feng. You know that Su Ling’er didn’t harm anyone in the Great Chu Kingdom. Moreover, this demon isn’t Su Ling’er.”

Tong Qiu recalled her encounter with Bai Jiujiu yesterday. As the demon fled, she had seen its eyes. In those crimson pupils, there was none of the murkiness typical of demons; instead, they were exceptionally clear.

She had returned to the department yesterday evening to report, the scene of her encounter with Bai Jiujiu replaying in her mind.

“The General Department has not yet issued a punishment for letting a major criminal escape. You are currently only a first-grade constable; do you still wish to plead for a demon?”

Zhang Feng was highly displeased with Tong Qiu’s words. He blocked her step forward with his hand, reminding her ominously. Seeing this, Tong Qiu silently lowered her head and took a step back.

“Guards! Create a portrait of Bai Jiujiu using the Reflection Mirror, and issue a city-wide notice. Offer a reward of one thousand gold ingots for information leading to the fox demon Bai Jiujiu!”

!!!

Bai Jiujiu lay sullenly in the tree, watching the guards in front of the inn cover the blank wanted poster with Su Ling’er’s name with her own portrait.

[Wanted: Fox Demon Bai Jiujiu. This demon caused havoc in the Great Chu Kingdom, stole the King’s sacred treasure, and murdered innocent civilians in Chongxi Town. Her sins are heinous! We hope that cultivators, demon hunters, and extraordinary individuals from all walks of life will assist the Demon Suppressing Department in capturing this demon. By order of the Chu King, the captor will be rewarded with thirty million gold ingots, and those providing effective clues will receive one thousand gold ingots.]

The portrait above was of Su Ling’er disguised as Bai Jiujiu when she entered the Great Chu Kingdom, drawn vividly and lifelike. Beside it was a blank wanted poster, without a portrait, only stating:

[Wanted: The master of Fox Demon Bai Jiujiu, the Snake Demon from Thousand-Mile Cloud Mountain. This demon has brought chaos to the common people, causing immense suffering on Thousand-Mile Cloud Mountain, and instigated Fox Demon Bai Jiujiu to sow discord throughout the land. This demon is a great menace to humanity and has already reached the Demon Manor realm. All cultivators and immortals are advised to proceed with caution. The slayer will be rewarded with fifty million gold ingots.]

Bai Jiujiu was utterly numb. She had finally experienced the ‘net worth exceeding one hundred million’ that she had yearned for in her previous life.

Heh heh, both individuals on the wanted posters were her.

The crucial point was…

‘A snake is not the culprit!’

‘And I’m not a fox demon!!!’

‘I’m a snake, a fair-skinned and beautiful snake demon!’

‘You human bumpkins!’

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