Scourge Messenger

Chapter 60 Inside and Outside the Woods
With the blessing of Yingjie's painting, the first three waves of demonic frenzy were no longer a challenge for Jiang Shi and his companions, but rather a game of slicing through butter. It was as if the Mansu Forest was no longer a terrifying forbidden land fraught with danger, but rather an amusement park for beautiful girls.

But pleasant times are always fleeting.

"Isn't this quantity... a bit too much?" Qian Gongyu's voice trembled slightly. "There weren't this many yesterday, were there?"

After the fourth wave of demonic frenzy began, the dense fog didn't approach the shelter too closely, but rather kept a distance of two hundred meters. At first, they didn't understand why the fog had suddenly become 'cowardly', until the demons began their march across the mountains and plains.

Too much.

Red-haired apes with lava-covered backs crawled out of the thick fog. Even with their bodies hunched over, they were taller than adults, with bulging muscles and fierce, terrifying appearances. They were packed together so tightly that there seemed to be nearly a thousand of them at first glance, and many more could be seen with the naked eye in the fog. Their footsteps were deafening. If it were to rain at that moment, the rainwater would be burned into steam by the lava on their backs before it hit the ground.

Commanding them were five enormous ape kings. If the backs of ordinary red apes were merely covered with scorching lava, then the lava on the backs of the ape kings was erupting, constantly flowing with orange-red molten lava.

"The demon king of the 'Oil Melting Cave,' a secret realm of the third level in the Qi Kingdom, is the Crimson Ape King." Jie Yuanshao spoke calmly, only her right hand, tightly gripping the hilt of her sword, betrayed her emotions: "Ancient texts refer to him as the number one demon of the third level!"

Thousands of demons, including the Demon King who is the number one in the third stage of cultivation!

"I had a vague feeling that something was wrong during the first three waves, and now I can confirm that today's demon frenzy is indeed more difficult than yesterday's," Shang Xinlei said. "Although they are all five-headed demon kings, yesterday the five demon kings were of uneven strength, and their compatibility was so bad that they canceled each other out. Their demons were also chaotic and uncoordinated. Today's formation is the true power of the five demon kings combined!"

"Sister Shang, my dear sister, why are you praising them now!" Qian Gongyu was on the verge of tears. "Let's hurry back and lean against the city wall, shall we? Anyway, I've already killed over two hundred demons. As long as I can get this blood weapon out of here, I'll be satisfied. Let's leave the rest of the work to the statues..."

“But she seems to think it’s not enough.” Shang Xinlei pointed ahead: “She’s much more greedy than any of us.”

Jiang Shi suddenly produced another blood-stained longsword from somewhere. Both swords radiated spiritual energy, clearly having been unlocked after slaying a hundred demons to break the first seal. While they were still struggling to break the seal on three hundred demons, Jiang Shi had already begun unsealing the second blood-stained weapon. Moreover, she was clearly not as easily satisfied as Qian Gongyu—she intended to kill two thousand demons to turn both blood-stained weapons into legendary enhancement materials!

Faced with the demand for two thousand lives, the overwhelming Red Ape army was not a hurdle in her eyes at all, but rather a sumptuous feast!

As the Crimson Ape King pounded his chest and roared, the Crimson Apes responded in unison, surging towards Jiang Shi like chariots and waves!

"I'm not satisfied with just taking away some ordinary tokens." Shang Xinlei walked past them: "Why do you think Jiang Shi wanted Jian Yingjie to paint this spectacle?"

Qian Gongyu was taken aback. After watching Jie Yuanshao and Shang Xinlei charge into the enemy formation, she finally understood Shang Xinlei's subtext—without Yingjiehua, the three of them would only be able to fight with their backs against the edge of the city wall, and naturally they would not be able to compete with Jiang Shi for monsters.

Jiang Shiming clearly intended to kill two thousand demons to unseal the blood weapon, but the choice to build the Heroes' Painting was more of a disadvantage than an advantage for her. Even without the Heroes' Painting, she could still roam freely among thousands of troops without anyone competing with her.

But without Yingjie's painting, Qian Gongyu and the others would have had no chance of killing a thousand demons.

Qian Gongyu's expression immediately became as conflicted as if she were constipated. She neither ran back nor charged with them, as if she were being manipulated by two souls. She wanted to run but felt she shouldn't, and she wanted to charge but didn't dare. She was stuck there until the Red Ape attacked. Only then, under the encouragement of the illusory power of the bond, she helplessly shouted, "I'll kill, I'll kill, okay?!"

At this point, their bond effects are already extraordinary. The Tears Alliance is still in its initial stage, but because the new statue of Killer Warrior was built in the first three rounds, the Companionship bond has been upgraded to the intermediate stage.

"Comrades-in-Arms: When there are ≥4 members in the Comrades-in-Arms, for each Comrade-in-Arms member nearby, the user gains +100 Health and +100 Dexterity, and melee attacks will deal 30% splash damage. Comrade-in-Arms members will also support each other. (Blade Warrior, Chaos Warrior, Dragon Slayer, Assassin Warrior)"

Numerically, there's no change, just the addition of splash damage. But the mere 400 HP and 400 Agility are enough to transform them into humanoid Tyrannosaurus Rex, in no way inferior to the top-ranked third-tier demon, the Crimson Ape King. Even a third-tier messenger who focuses on HP would be blasted apart by their punches!
However, they still face numerous dangers in this battle of thousands. The increase in their health and mana does not equate to improved defense; it only significantly boosts their strength, recovery ability, and life points. If the Red Apes focus their fire and break through their defensive tokens, they will still be entangled and even suffer vital injuries. They are like cheetahs, capable of rampaging through a herd of bison, but once their pace slows and they are injured by a bison, they will be mercilessly trampled.

Dancing on the edge of a knife, brushing shoulders with life and death!
Without stopping, each step splattered with blood, treading on mountains of corpses and seas of blood, Shang Xinlei felt that her long-dormant flying hoop technique had finally reached a new level. Finally, in the instant the flying hoop returned, she extended a finger and flicked it lightly. The vast amount of qi and blood within her body swirled, transforming into the unstoppable kinetic energy of the flying hoop, which spun around her once, drawing a trail of blooming flowers and blood!
Flying Circle Secret Technique: Blood Wheel!
She actually managed to execute the Flying Hoop Technique in actual combat!
Many messengers have wasted decades, and even if they have mastered advanced techniques to an extremely high level, they still find it difficult to grasp the secret methods. They may not even be able to use them in training, let alone in actual combat.

Shang Xinlei had only recently completed her second job advancement, and had only successfully used the secret technique once or twice during training. She never imagined that a sudden flash of inspiration would lead to such a successful execution. Now, she only needs to master the technique step by step to advance her job three times within five years!

Even among merchants, third-party messengers are no longer powerless figures!

Overwhelmed with emotion, Shang Xinlei froze for a second or two, but demons don't slack off. The red apes she had just slaughtered immediately swarmed around her. There's a reason the monsters of the secret realm are called demons; they fear neither pain nor death, they have no mercy or emotion, only a ferocious killing intent like mad dogs. They are practically the best embodiment of the word "demon."

The defensive barriers shattered one after another. Although Shang Xinlei was wearing excellent defensive tokens, it couldn't salvage her earlier mistake. The biggest characteristic of the flying ring was its continuous attack. Once interrupted, it would take a few seconds to get back into full power. The defensive tokens couldn't withstand those few seconds, and the Red Ape would tear her apart!

It's also possible that she won't be torn apart, after all, her qi and blood are so high that they far exceed the third stage, but that would be even more terrifying: her limbs would be torn off, her whole body would be shattered, and she would be in unbearable pain, but because of her strong qi and blood, she would not die...

At this critical moment, two longswords slashed into the battlefield like a whirlwind, like a storm, like a wave, annihilating the red ape in front of Shang Xinlei and sweeping away the enemy!
The splattered blood was sharper than the arrows, piercing the red apes with countless bloody holes. The ripples around them, like sonic waves, tore the apes apart until they screamed and roared in agony.

The splash damage capabilities of the Comrades' Association were put to full use at this moment.

Shang Xinlei stared wide-eyed at Jiang Shi, who was cutting through the demon horde.

How should one describe the person before them? A madman of unparalleled beauty? A butcher who fears neither death nor life?
Shang Xinlei seized the opportunity to absorb the spirit jade, watching Jiang Shi crush the beast horde ahead like a chariot. Jiang Shi's dual-sword technique seemed incredibly rudimentary—far more so than her longsword technique—she relied solely on her brute strength to wildly swing her blades, and almost no red ape could withstand a single blow. Even the lava behind them was smashed into by her blades. Shang Xinlei guessed that Jiang Shi's blood weapon must possess the ability to absorb blood and repair tokens, because hers did too.

Outside, Jiang Shi alone could defeat a large army; even the most elite assassins from various families would tremble before her overwhelming ferocity. However, in this secret realm, their enemies were mad demons.

Fortunately, among them was Jiang Shi, who was even crazier than demons.

Shang Xinlei suddenly understood Jiang Shi. No wonder she looked down on all the conflicts in the outside world. Compared to the demons and monsters of the secret realm, all the struggles in this world seemed too childish. She seemed to have been born to belong to the secret realm. She adapted perfectly to everything in the secret realm. Even though Shang Xinlei and the others were stronger than Jiang Shi, in such a terrifying environment as the secret realm, they were not much stronger than infants.

Jiang Shi waded through the demon horde, leaving a trail of corpses and blood, before suddenly changing direction.

Shang Xinlei glanced at her and knew that she had gone to support Jie Yuanshao and Qian Gongyu.

She suddenly felt both annoyed and amused. You just made yourself sound so pitiful, saying things like "I have no one to rely on" and "I don't want to rely on others"... But now it's clear that you're the one we're relying on!
Despite their humble origins, they had lofty ambitions; despite their loneliness and helplessness, they cared for us; despite their meager strength, they lived as they pleased.

Why are there people like you in this world?
And why...did I end up meeting you?

By the time the fourth wave of the frenzy subsided, almost everyone was covered in blood, and at a glance, it was clear that there were four serial killers. Even Jie Yuanshao, who was somewhat of a germaphobe, had completely desensitized. Ignoring the filth on his body, he lay down on the soft chairs in the castle hall, his eyes vacant, as if he had been drained dry.

Qian Gongyu collapsed from exhaustion, yelling, "I don't want to move anymore! I don't want to search for resources anymore!"

"can."

Everyone was taken aback. They glanced at Jiang Shiyi, then at Qian Gongyu, wondering if something had happened between the two. Otherwise, why would Jiang Shiyi dote on Qian Gongyu so much?
Qian Gongyu was somewhat flattered and said shyly, "I was just complaining, I didn't really not want to go..." "If we launch the fifth wave of demonic frenzy earlier, the rest time we have now will accumulate to the next round," Jiang Shi explained. "Should we do it earlier?"

They exchanged glances and nodded in unison, "Yes!"

Anyway, there will only be one fourth-tier demon in the next round, so they can rest in the castle and wait for the statue to be defeated.

No one knew what Jiang Shi had done, but soon a deafening roar of desire erupted outside, and flames turned the sky above the forest floor a vibrant orange-red. Seeing Jiang Shi turn and leave, they asked curiously, "What are you doing going out?"

"Didn't I tell you? Damage dealt to fourth-tier demons also counts towards the number of kills by Blood Weapons," Jiang Shi said. "Get some rest."

As the roars of the demons outside grew closer, Shang Xinlei said, "Now that two statues have been upgraded, we should be able to deal with this fourth-tier demon soon."

"Ah."

"Yes."

The firewood in the fireplace crackled, and the demon's voice rang out again, seemingly approaching the city walls to engage the statues. Jie Yuanshao sighed, dragging his weary body to his feet. "In such a safe environment, I feel I'd be wasting this opportunity if I didn't fight a fourth-rank demon."

"No way, wouldn't it be better if we chatted and had some tea here?" Qian Gongyu rummaged through the cabinet next to her: "There are even pastries to eat!"

"Let's go then," Shang Xinlei said, extending her hand to Qian Gongyu. "You've rested enough, haven't you?"

"It's only been a short time..." Qian Gongyu complained, reluctantly taking Shang Xinlei's hand and standing up.

"Xiaoyu, we are officials with scarlet ribbons and purple sashes. Aren't you being a little disrespectful to us?"

"I'm sorry, my upbringing doesn't allow me to respect a stinky fourth young lady from a wealthy family."

"You really are a true aristocrat through and through!"

……

...

"Strange, why did the fifth wave of demons arrive so quickly today?"

At the entrance to the Forest of Endless Slumber, Jie Zilong heard the sounds coming from inside and couldn't help but wonder, "The fourth wave just ended and the fifth wave is already starting... Could they control when the demonic horde begins?"

"Uncle Zilong".

Qun Yushu came over and asked, "Are they coming back? The luncheon is about to start."

“They said they’re aiming for the tenth level, so it’s still a long way off.” Jie Zilong sighed. “But I’m not too optimistic. After all, even the fifth level has a fourth-tier demon, and the difficulty of the later levels is unimaginable.”

“I am quite confident,” Qun Yushu said. “The goal of the tenth level was definitely proposed by Jiang Shi. She is not an unrealistic person.”

"It seems you're still very interested in her."

"She's so beautiful and so capable, who wouldn't be interested? But I respect her like a father—the kind of respect that keeps me at a distance."

"The Qun family isn't planning to recruit her anymore?"

“Of course the family would like to, but I don’t think it’s very likely,” Qun Yushu said. “From the first moment I saw her, I knew that she was not the kind of person who would submit to anyone. Even if she joined any family, she would not accept any constraints, but would only use the opportunity to achieve her own goals.”

"Arrogance? That's normal. If I had her talent, ability, and looks, I'd dare to throw a tantrum at my old man too." Jie Zilong chuckled. The two of them shared a common topic when it came to rebelling against their elders.

"Arrogant? No, no, no, I don't think she's too arrogant." Qun Yushu shook her head: "She... she just thinks we're all too boring. It's like watching a group of ants carrying a piece of candy. You might find it interesting to observe from above, but if the ants invited you to carry the candy with them, you'd find it boring too, right?"

“Generally speaking, this is called arrogance.” Jie Zilong sighed, “I used to be like that too, thinking that my peers were too boring. Later, I matured after hitting a lot of snags… Since we live in the secular world, we have to accept the rules of the secular world.”

"So, do you think Jiang Shi can become worldly?" Qun Yushu suddenly asked.

Before Jie Zilong could answer, a commotion suddenly arose from a nearby tent.

"Dead!"

"The young master of the Luo family is dead! Quickly, call someone over!"

"It must have been the work of the Demon Messenger!"

"Seal off the camp and thoroughly search the surrounding area!"

Jie Zilong suddenly turned his head to look at Qun Yushu, only to find that Qun Yushu was also staring at the panicked crowd in the distance.

"Don't misunderstand, I don't know what will happen." Qun Yushu smiled, "I only know that it will definitely happen."

"Then which side are you standing on?" Jie Zilong asked.

"I will stand on the side of worldly affairs." Qun Yushu glanced at Jie Zilong.

"You can too."

(End of this chapter)