So it turns out I'm the demon!

Inside the Demon Slayer Division.

When the Zhang brothers pushed their cart in, a large crowd had already gathered in the courtyard.

Clearly, news travels faster than wheels.

The courtyard, which had been filled with whispers, fell into a deathly silence as people stared at the cart full of demon corpses.

"Snapped!"

Zhang Xiao Kui stopped the cart, not even bothering to wipe the blood and sweat from his face, and took out the official document that Jiang Mu had prepared in advance. He strode up to the head of the department, Ran Qingshan:

"Reporting to the Chief, Lord Jiang, the head of the Eighth Hall, has personally led his subordinates Zhang Daxiao and Zhang Xiaokui to Longshou Mountain to carry out a demon-slaying mission."

We have located and destroyed a demon's lair in that area, and captured one third-tier demon, one second-tier demon, and five first-tier demons. Their bodies are here; please examine them, sir!

Ran Qingshan's eyelids twitched.

He took the official document and walked to the car.

His gaze swept over the demonic corpses on the vehicle, finally settling on the headless third-tier weasel.

Zhang Xiaokui followed behind, his chin raised the whole time, his mouth always wide open.

His expression was just like Wang Yousheng's in the TV series "Bright Sword".

"Where is Lord Jiang?"

Ran Qingshan asked, "Why didn't I see him come along?"

"My husband..."

Just as Zhang Xiaokui was about to speak, Zhang Daxiao stepped forward first, clasped his hands in greeting, and said:

"Reporting to the Chief Inspector, Lord Jiang expended a great deal of energy fighting the demon, so he went back to recuperate first, and specifically ordered my brother and me to come and report back."

As he spoke, he took a package covered in mud from the car and unfolded it in front of everyone.

Splash!

Several tattered, blood-stained pieces of coarse cloth clothing and other belongings lay on the ground.

Zhang Daxiao said in a deep voice:

"Sir, this is what we found inside the demon's cave. Upon examination, it was found to be the belongings of the villagers who went missing near Dragon Head Mountain a few days ago. We can confirm that this demon is the real culprit behind that series of murders."

Ran Qingshan turned his gaze to Wen He, whose face was ashen:

"Master Wen, you've been in charge of the Dragon Head Mountain case. You should be very familiar with these pieces of evidence and the aura of this demon. Come and take a look. Are you sure?"

Wenhe's fat cheek twitched.

He felt as if everyone's gaze was piercing his face like needles.

He stepped forward, glanced at it, and said in a low voice, "...The aura matches, there shouldn't be any problem."

Then, he suddenly turned and stared at Zhang Xiao Kui, questioning him sharply:

"Now that you've found clues about the demon, why didn't you report to me first? This case falls under the jurisdiction of the Third Division; that's the rule in the department! Do you even have any respect for superiors and subordinates? Do you even have any respect for me...?"

"Lord Wen!"

Zhang Xiaokui interrupted him directly.

"I am now a member of the Eighth Hall, and I work for Lord Jiang. If I have any intelligence, I should report it to my hall master immediately, not to you."

"you--"

Zhang Daxiao stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said:

"Lord Wen, please calm down. It's not that we want to steal credit, but rather that we are acting out of expediency."

"We initially received a tip-off, but we were unaware that this demon was related to the old case at Longshou Mountain."

Master Jiang, considering the demon's cunning and fearing it would flee at the first sign of trouble, decided to strike immediately. It wasn't until after the demon's lair was destroyed that the villagers' belongings were discovered.

Zhang Daxiao was more thorough in his considerations.

According to company regulations, once a related clue is discovered, it should be promptly reported to the head of the department.

These words, at least, have a basis in reason.

We are eliminating harm for the people. If you continue to pester us, it means you don't care about the lives of the people and only care about taking credit.

Wenhe was speechless for a moment, choked up.

Finally, he let out a sneer through his nose: "Master Jiang is quite lucky!"

Having said that, he flicked his sleeve heavily and turned to leave.

The other hall masters also had a "let's watch the show" mentality. After all, it wasn't them who would be embarrassed. They were all competitors anyway, and they were happy to see each other suffer.

The old colleagues in the third hall looked at the Zhang brothers with envy practically overflowing in their eyes.

But as much as they envy them, they certainly wouldn't want to go to the eighth hall.

After all, you can't always be this lucky.

Thinking of this, everyone secretly sneered: Just wait and see how long you can keep gloating.

Ran Qingshan sighed inwardly:

"This Jiang Chen... he really does surprise me every now and then."

……

Jiang Mu didn't care about the turmoil within the Siyan Palace.

As soon as I entered the backyard, I saw two figures, one big and one small, busy in the vegetable garden.

Bai Xiang, with her slender, willow-like waist bent, was carefully mulching several newly planted vegetable seedlings, her profile serene and picturesque.

Yuan Aqing followed beside her, carrying a small wooden bucket.

The warm golden sunset cast a halo around the two women, creating a beautiful scene.

Hearing footsteps, Yuan Aqing was the first to look up. Seeing that it was Jiang Mu, her eyes lit up, and she quickly wiped her hands on her apron and jogged over to greet him.

"Master is back? I've already prepared the hot water. Would you like to take a bath now?"

"Okay, thank you for your help."

Jiang Mu sniffed the stench of the demonic creature on his body; it was indeed quite pungent.

"It's no trouble at all!"

The little girl answered crisply, then turned and ran towards the kitchen.

Jiang Mu arrived at the edge of the vegetable garden, looked at the busy, graceful figure, and smiled, "Should we hire a helper for you? This yard is quite big, and you have to grow vegetables and do housework at the same time. I'm afraid you won't be able to manage."

Bai Xiang straightened her slender waist and turned around.

She gently shook her head, pointed with her slender finger at Yuan Aqing who was running towards the kitchen, indicating that the girl's help was enough.

Jiang Mu nodded: "That's true, it's better to have some peace and quiet."

He abruptly changed the subject and asked, "Xiang'er, would you like to practice martial arts too?"

Bai Xiang was taken aback, and her expression became somewhat strange.

Jiang Mu was not joking.

On his way back, he had already thought that after joining the Demon Slayer Division, he would inevitably have to kill many demons and make enemies.

Although the demons dared not openly enter the city to seek revenge, it is easy to dodge a spear in the open but difficult to guard against a hidden arrow.

It's hard to guarantee that it won't affect family members.

The massacre of the Jiang family, their predecessor, served as a bloody lesson.

Now that there are only these two defenseless women in the house, it would be troublesome if some evil spirit were to sneak in while he was away.

Bai Xiang blinked and raised her hands to make a series of sign language gestures:

I'm a coward, terrified of fighting and killing, and I don't want to train. Besides, I'm already this old; my body is all set, how could I possibly achieve anything significant?

"What's there to be afraid of in a fight?"

Jiang Mu pursed his lips, glanced at her, and subconsciously replied,

"But you're not wrong, you are indeed old and can't achieve any results anymore."

The voice just fell.

Suddenly, I felt the air around me seemed to have dropped a few degrees in temperature.

Jiang Mu looked up.

Bai Xiang was looking at him with a smile.

Those eyes, usually gentle as autumn water, were now curved into beautiful crescent moons.

Her eyes sparkled with a natural charm.

But Jiang Mu sensed a murderous intent sharpening its blade in those smiling, curved eyes.

"What are you looking at? Did I say something wrong?"

Jiang Mu wasn't going to tolerate this woman. "Although you have a good figure, a good temperament, and look only a few years older than A Qing, like a young girl of sixteen or eighteen, you've missed the best age for cultivation."

After saying that, he snorted coldly and turned to go to his room.

Bai Xiang gazed at the man's back, the curve of her lips deepening. The invisible killing intent from before vanished instantly, replaced by a gentle smile.

She raised her hand and touched her cheek.

Her rosy lips pouted slightly, carrying a hint of coquettishness and resentment, as she muttered softly:

"What a terrible mask! Couldn't they have made it look younger? It just makes people say I look old..."

I came to Daqing when I was sixteen.

He's only twenty years old now, he's not old at all.

……

After Yuan Aqing prepared the hot water, Jiang Mu took a comfortable bath, washing away all the blood and fatigue.

After changing into dry everyday clothes and stepping out of the room, he saw Yuan Aqing already sitting in front of a large wooden basin under the eaves, washing the pile of dirty clothes he had changed out of.

The little girl's body hadn't fully developed yet; she looked like a thin, frail kitten.

The enormous wooden tub could almost hold her entire body.

At this moment, she had her sleeves rolled up, her face slightly flushed from the effort, and fine beads of sweat hung on the tip of her nose.

"What a tragedy..."

Looking at her serious, precocious expression, Jiang Mu felt a pang of guilt.

If this had happened in my previous life, I would have been hung on a street lamp and publicly shamed with a label of child labor exploitation.

However, to be fair, Yuan Aqing's arrival did indeed solve many practical problems.

Although Bai Xiang was happy to prepare three meals a day, tend to the flowers and plants, and even help him with the accounts, she was extremely reluctant to accept his smelly clothes.

Previously, Jiang Mu had always washed the clothes herself, albeit with great difficulty.

With this diligent little helper, things are indeed much easier.

"Ah Qing".

Jiang Mu walked over and couldn't help but speak.

"This garment is made of thick material and becomes quite heavy when wet. If you're tired, take a break, or I can wash it myself after I finish practicing. You don't need to work so hard."

Upon hearing the sound, Yuan Aqing quickly looked up.

She wiped the sweat and foam from her cheeks with the back of her hand, revealing a row of small, white teeth and a clean smile:

"Sir, I'm not tired. These clothes aren't even as heavy as the firewood I carry at home. I'm very strong!"

Jiang Mu knew that this girl was stubborn and extremely insecure, and always wanted to prove her worth by working, so he stopped trying to persuade her.

He was preparing to go to the sandy area when a thought suddenly struck him.

"Ah Qing, I remember you're ten years old this year, right?"

"Master, I am eleven years old (by the traditional Chinese age reckoning)," Yuan Aqing replied crisply.

Jiang Mu's eyes lit up.

Xu Fu once said that the period from nine to twelve years old is the golden time for strengthening the body and bones and starting spiritual practice.

This girl is perfectly positioned during this golden period.

I just don't know what my innate talent is like... Oh well, whatever, let's start practicing first!

With this girl's hardworking and resilient nature, even if she has only average talent, as long as she is willing to work hard, she will eventually be able to develop some self-defense skills.

This will provide an extra layer of security when staying at home in the future.

With that in mind, Jiang Mu immediately made a decision:

"Ah Qing, come to this side of the sand after you've finished washing the clothes. I'll teach you cultivation."

"Cultivation...?"

Yuan Aqing looked completely bewildered.