You've already caught the embroidered ball, and you still say it's not my husband?

A man in white stands on the surface of the Blackwater River.

A gentle breeze blew, lightly caressing the man's handsome face and ruffling a few strands of hair on his forehead. The air was filled with the fragrance of reeds, which the man took a deep breath of and found refreshing and invigorating!

A prehistoric crocodile lurked beneath the river, its brownish-red skin almost blending into the dark water, carrying the man and creating ripples as it sailed towards the shore...

A black donkey was dozing on the bank.

Hearing a noise on the river, its two erect ears twitched, startling it awake. It opened its eyes and looked—

Then Lu Xuan returned, riding a crocodile!

"Owner!"

Bao Bulu exclaimed in surprise as his master floated slowly across the river, looking as handsome as a banished immortal!

but……

"Why did you bring back that cowardly crocodile too?"

The crocodile escaped into the Blackwater River, a vast river stretching for dozens of miles. Yet, Lu Xuan managed to find the crocodile, treat it, and it seems he even successfully tamed it!

This instantly gave Bao Bulu a strong sense of crisis.

Previously, Lu Xuan only had this one demon beast by his side, and no one competed for his favor. But now that there's a crocodile, he has a competitor, and the situation is not optimistic!

Lu Xuan was only a dozen feet away from the shore.

Bao Bulu quickly stepped forward, offering flattery and expressing loyalty: "Welcome back in triumph, Master!"

"Hehe, Master is truly omnipotent! No matter how cunning this little crocodile is, it can't escape Master's grasp. It's a pity that this little donkey can't swim and can't serve Master wholeheartedly!"

Bao Bulu spoke with great remorse and conviction, but earlier at the ferry, when the catfish leaped out of the water and pounced on Lu Xuan, he was so frightened that he ran faster than a rabbit.

Ha ha.

Lu Xuan took a step, and before Bao Bulu could see clearly and the crocodile could react, Lu Xuan had already crossed several meters of river and arrived on the shore.

The speed was so fast, it was like teleportation! (Ghostly Steps)

"Master's movements are getting more and more impressive! Congratulations, Master!" Bao Bulu, fearing he would fall out of favor, seized every opportunity to flatter him.

"My master is not only an excellent swimmer, but also incredibly fast!" the crocodile exclaimed, popping its head above the water.

Ok?

Bao Bulv immediately glared at him: "You're mimicking me? What a formidable rival, what a shameless little crocodile!"

Pearl, not to be outdone, bared her teeth and glared back: "You're the shameless one! You're allowed to flatter your master, but I'm not allowed to praise him? What kind of logic is that? You donkey have so many wicked schemes!"

"Who are you calling malicious? Want to fight?"

"Let's fight! Who's afraid of who!"

"Fine...a good man doesn't fight with a woman. I'm not afraid of you, I just don't want to lower myself to your level!"

"Hmph, you're even more cowardly than me, and you still have the nerve to call yourself a man? Shameless!"

"How...how can you talk like that? You have no manners! I'm the eldest, you're the second eldest. You should respectfully call me 'Big Donkey,' don't you know any manners?"

"Stupid donkey, stupid donkey!"

……

The donkey was on the shore, and the crocodile was in the water. The two beasts stared at each other, neither willing to yield.

"Sigh, I've really taken in two clowns!"

Lu Xuan sighed and rubbed his forehead, but did not stop it.

After all, arguing is also a way for both parties to get to know each other better, so let them get to know each other through arguing.

They'll stop chattering when they get tired of it.

Lu Xuan shrugged, sat down in the reeds, picked a foxtail grass and put it in his mouth, put his hands behind his head, lay back, and closed his eyes.

With the water monster gone and all else settled, I steal a half-day of leisure!

Lu Xuan closed his eyes to rest.

The two demonic beasts fought even more fiercely, their faces turning red.

"As the saying goes, you can't see into someone's heart. You little wench, your brown leather armor is thicker than a mud wall, you must be hiding a lot of bad intentions, right? Tell me, what ulterior motive do you have for getting close to my master?"

"You're spouting nonsense! You idiot, you're the one full of bad ideas!"

……

"Hmph, I can carry my master across the world, consuming only one carrot for every ten miles. What makes you think you can compare?"

"Hmph, I can also carry my master across the ocean, and I can fish and be self-sufficient without consuming carrots!"

As the argument raged on, Bao Bulu belatedly realized that compared to the pearl crocodile, it couldn't beat it, couldn't carry it, and couldn't argue with it... It had no obvious advantages!

This put even more pressure on it, and it started sweating.

"Alright, I'll admit you're quite capable, little crocodile."

Bao Bulu had to face reality and could only sigh and give in.

Fortunately, it met Lu Xuan earlier and secured its place early on. Pearl came later, and even if she was more capable, she could only be considered the "second sister." Even if Lu Xuan subdued more and more powerful monsters in the future, Bao Bu Donkey would still be the "eldest brother."

Just like in a sect, the first disciple to join and become an apprentice is the senior brother. No matter how talented or outstanding the disciples recruited by the master later are, they can only stand behind and become junior brothers.

How many years has your little crocodile been with its owner?

My seniority is truly impressive!

Thinking of this, Bao Bulu couldn't help but become smug again. He raised his head and advised Pearl in an elder's tone, "Second sister, although you have some skills, you are fierce and reckless. I advise you to restrain yourself so that you don't make mistakes in the future and cause trouble for the master."

"I'm not mean, you were the one who tried to bully me first!"

Pearl shook her head in denial, saying that it wasn't fierce; it was just that Bao Bulu had been trying to put on airs and be aggressive from the start.

Bao Bu's eyes darted around, remembering the cattle and sheep skeletons he'd found inside Pearl's stomach: "Second Sister, you actually stole someone else's cattle and sheep! You'll ruin our master's reputation!"

Pearl was taken aback, and immediately shrank back a little guiltily.

It has never harmed anyone, nor would it dare to harm anyone, but it has been greedy and stolen "wild" cattle and sheep. This is somewhat similar to a little girl who is craving candied hawthorns but has no money to buy them, so she sneaks a few skewers when no one is looking...

No matter how you look at it, it's just wrong!

"hey-hey."

Bao Bulv seized the moral high ground and felt he was now invincible.

In reality, its behavior wasn't much better; it's just that donkeys are herbivores and don't hunt.

"Don't do evil because it's insignificant, and don't neglect good because it's insignificant. Remember, if you know you're wrong, you must correct it!" Bao Bulu continued to lecture Pearl earnestly. "Besides, Second Sister, you now acknowledge Master as your master. Master is of upright character, a benevolent healer, and a captain in the Demon Suppression Division... You'd better watch your step and not bring shame upon Master!"

Upon hearing this, Pearl's mouth gaped open, her eyes wide with astonishment.

"My master is a captain in the Demon Suppression Division?!"

It lingered at the bottom of the Blackwater River for ten years, and people crossed the river every day, from which they heard of the Demon Suppression Division.

Many demonic beasts also know about the Demon Suppression Division, and some even tremble at the mere mention of those three words.

Because the Great Yan Dynasty had decreed that anyone who feeds on humans should be considered a demon and killed without mercy.

The Demon Suppression Division is the "executioner"!

If the demon beasts behave themselves, the Demon Suppression Division can usually turn a blind eye.

But if someone harms others, especially if they are like the fat catfish who recklessly takes dozens of lives, the Demon Suppression Division will definitely investigate to the end and punish them severely!

Lu Xuan was not wearing the black phoenix uniform of the Demon Suppression Division. Although he had used the Jingluan Blade, Pearl did not know that it was the Demon Suppression Division's sword.

Therefore, it was quite surprised when it heard Bao Bulu say that Lu Xuan was a Demon Suppression Captain!

This time, it didn't argue with Bao Bulv, but nodded earnestly: "Donkey Master, you're right. I must be strict with myself and absolutely cannot bring shame to my master!"

It is now Lu Xuan's demon beast, so it must be careful about its behavior in the future and must not break the law or cause trouble for Lu Xuan.

"Good to know." Bao Bulu chuckled. "Our master has two powerful figures; from now on, we'll each cling to one, and neither of us should compete for credit or favor!"

Pearl couldn't help but roll her eyes, her expression one of disgust.

It turns out that all that Bao Bulu said, and how righteous and awe-inspiring it sounded, was actually just a petty act, afraid that it would compete for favor and credit.

What a narrow-minded perspective!

Ignoring Bao Bulu, it turned its head to look at Lu Xuan: "Master, there's something I'm not sure if I should say..."

After learning that Lu Xuan was a demon-suppressing captain, Pearl had something to tell him.

Lu Xuan lay in the reeds, closing his eyes to rest, relaxed and content: "Go ahead and speak, I'm listening."

Pearl took a deep breath and said seriously, "Last night, around midnight, a creepy old woman rowed a boat across the river. The boat carried many young women, some of whom were wearing red clothes and some had headscarves wrapped around their heads. They were all unconscious..."

Swish!

Lu Xuan, who was lying on the reeds, suddenly opened his eyes.

What kind of ghost is that eerie old woman?

There were also several young women wearing red clothes and headscarves... Why does that sound so familiar?

Could she be the female bandit who went down the mountain to reform after the White Lotus Village was disbanded a few days ago?