Chapter 7: The Green Cage of Chongxi Town

Chongxi Town was a small settlement nestled in the southern reaches of Yunlai Mountain. Though its area was not insignificant, it appeared somewhat underdeveloped when compared to Yunlai Town, which sat directly on the main trade route.

The sprawling town housed only five hundred families, and within its bounds, there was but a single inn. Now, with the inn’s waiter having met his end at the hands of a demon, the village elders had gathered, their discussions spreading the news like wildfire.

What began as a whisper quickly amplified, passing from ten to a hundred, then to countless ears. A throng of people had converged before the inn, their fingers pointing accusingly at Bai Jiujiu, who stood above them, their voices brimming with righteous indignation.

“That girl, she looks so proper, yet she’s a demon bringing disaster upon the land!”

“Tell me, could this be the very creature you’ve been talking about—the one that mimics a baby’s cry to lure and devour people?”

“I say, this is truly a monstrous fiend! She looks perfectly human and speaks so sweetly, yet who knows how many people she’s already consumed!”

“These beautiful female demons are truly terrifying. No, I must rush home and warn my youngest son not to be ensnared by her beauty and have his heart deceived.”

“This demon is truly dreadful. Thankfully, our Chongxi Town isn’t situated directly beneath Yunlai Mountain.”

“Good heavens, a Demon Lord realm! How many lives must it have devoured to reach such a level?”

“And it’s not just people! These mountain-dwelling demons are most fond of devouring young boys and girls.”

Bai Jiujiu, the very person they branded as a ‘disastrous fiend,’ ‘human-like monster,’ ‘sweet-spoken seductress,’ and ‘vicious creature,’ glared through her veil, her teeth clenched as she stared at the bounty notice on the wall.

Her keen senses picked up every single one of the villagers’ pointing fingers and whispered accusations from below.

‘Snakey has never eaten anyone! Nor has Snakey ever devoured young boys or girls!’

Bai Jiujiu fumed, her cheeks puffing out with indignation.

Yet, she uttered no sound, nor did she attempt to loudly explain herself. There was simply no need to waste words on these ignorant villagers, most of whom couldn’t even read five characters. After all, their sole source of information came from the Demon Extermination Bureau.

Bai Jiujiu’s only desire now was to swiftly depart Chongxi Town and find her disciple, Su Ling’er.

For all the frustration she endured here, she would surely use the Demon Binding Rope and her tail to whip that disobedient apprentice’s backside a few times later.

[In Chongxi Town today, due to suffering indignation from ignorant villagers, Su Ling’er is awarded +1 for gluteal muscle exercise.]

Bai Jiujiu jotted this down on a piece of paper, intending to copy it into a small notebook once she reached the county town.

Her current plan was to first head to the county town, where she could gather information regarding Su Ling’er’s whereabouts.

After all, Su Ling’er was the one who had allowed her to escape her narcolepsy. Although that apprentice was exceptionally, uniquely, and utterly adept at tricking her master, her intentions were fundamentally good, and her actions were ultimately for Bai Jiujiu’s own benefit.

As the master who had raised that little fox and slept while holding her, despite her anger, Bai Jiujiu did not wish for any harm to befall her. Su Ling’er was, in fact, one of the few family members who had accompanied her for a hundred years, from her previous life to this one, through her reincarnation into this world.

However…

Bai Jiujiu transformed into her true form, slithering up a tree, a dry, twitching smile playing at the corners of her lips. This efficiency of action was perhaps a little too swift.

Before her lay the southern village entrance of Chongxi Town, now densely packed with two rows of guards. Among them, two leaders each held a flag.

Meanwhile, two teams of people were stationed at each of the four cardinal points—east, south, west, and north. The flags in their hands simultaneously shot a green light wave upwards, which then curved towards the other flags at a certain distance.

Ultimately, a sealed cuboid formed, enveloping Chongxi Town. The green cuboid became transparent after just one second.

The two guards stationed at the southern entrance also crossed their flags, blocking the doorway.

Bai Jiujiu hissed, flicking her serpentine tongue. Her red vertical pupils took in the surrounding environment with perfect clarity. This was the ‘Gaze’ state, an ability only usable in her true form, allowing her to see further and clearer for a short duration.

In her eyes, all non-living objects faded in color, while all living things appeared red. Above the pale yellow thatched town, the cuboid instantly materialized before her.

A vibrant green cage seemed to descend from the sky, covering Chongxi Town. Green spiritual energy surged from the flags, moving along the light pillars that formed the barrier to the other flags, completing a cycle.

Undoubtedly, these eight flags were also magical artifacts.

Bai Jiujiu stood on the tree, shifting her gaze towards the southern entrance while gradually canceling her ‘Gaze’ state.

Just then, the scholar from the inn, having been questioned and released by the Demon Extermination Bureau, walked to the southern entrance. There, a constable, dressed in the same uniform as Tong Qiu, forcefully pulled him towards a glass bead and pressed his hand onto it.

When a white light emanated from the bead, the constable glanced at the flag-wielding guards, who then uncrossed their flags. Bai Jiujiu observed that as the two crossed flags separated, a loophole appeared in the barrier.

“Thank you, esteemed sirs, thank you!”

The scholar’s obsequious tone irked the leading constable, who gave him a hard kick. The scholar, unfazed, silently picked himself up and turned to bow in gratitude behind him.

It seemed he was also a scholar heading to the capital for examinations. But had his bow been slightly off-direction just now? Bai Jiujiu shook her head, dismissing these trivial thoughts.

She leaped from the tree, transformed and dressed herself amidst the tall grass, then generally tidied her appearance. To the east of Chongxi Town lay a forest, a hunting ground for the village’s hunters.

Within this forest, at the junction of the eastern and southern boundaries, was one side of the barrier. Bai Jiujiu intended to go there to personally ascertain the effect of this construct.

What if this thing had no effect on her? Snakey was a thousand-year-old great demon. Though she didn’t know many spells, her demonic power was undeniably at the millennium level.

Even the bounty notice declared Snakey a Demon Lord-level great demon. However, what exactly was the human classification system for demons? Wasn’t it based on age, unlike the fantasy works of her previous life?

She had slept for a millennium; how could she possibly know about such classifications? She hadn’t even met humans, only knowing that demons were ranked by the years of demonic energy cultivation within them.

Bai Jiujiu moved swiftly, avoiding the hunters heading up the mountain, and soon arrived at the barrier. Her vertical pupils expanded beneath her veil, as the green barrier bisected the land.

Bai Jiujiu blinked, extending her small hand, intending to try and touch the barrier. Eem…

Snakey suddenly felt the urge to be cautious. She lifted her head, scanned her surroundings, then leaped onto a tree and caught a small sparrow.

Bai Jiujiu tossed the sparrow towards the other side of the barrier. The little sparrow fluttered its wings, desperately trying to escape. However, as soon as its tiny body passed through the faint green barrier, it seemed to lose its spirit, falling to the ground less than two seconds later.

It felt… indeed… quite dangerous, didn’t it?

Bai Jiujiu swallowed, the effect on animals not negating the possibility that this barrier could also affect a thousand-year-old great demon like herself.

But where could she find another thousand-year-old great demon to serve as a control for Snakey’s experiment now? Could she only force her way through?

Bai Jiujiu shook her head vigorously, immediately dismissing that idea. She absolutely could not be overly arrogant now; it would be disastrous if she attracted more constables or cultivators.

Then… what if, like the Demon Binding Rope and the Fire Talisman, it could become her own? Bai Jiujiu recalled the events of last night. She could now use human spells and spiritual energy.

She was completely different from other demons!