I am the old, fiery-faced man from the senior department.

"It's alright, sister."

During the day, he picked up the sleeping girl and put her in his car.

"I just feel like I've seen her somewhere before... but where was it..."

The daylight swept over her figure, taking in all the information.

A white fox with nine tails, looking no more than sixteen years old, the age when flowers are at their most beautiful.

Have you seen it before?

Nian curiously leaned over and asked.

"Hmm...it might be her."

He suppressed his suspicions for the time being, then checked the surrounding area again to make sure there were no remaining traces of yin energy before continuing to drive away with the three of them.

After walking for about half an hour, the little fox finally woke up, stretching.

"Huh? Where's the monster?!"

The little fox stared at the dragon and the immortal before it, then at the somewhat dilapidated cart beneath it, and froze.

How come after I took a nap, I didn't end up in the monster's lair, but instead ended up in someone else's car?

Were these two brave individuals who mistakenly believed she was a persecuted "bride" who saved her?

"Oh, little girl, you're awake. How did you sleep? Did you have a sweet dream?"

Before she could react, he greeted her first.

After Bai Zhou mentioned that he seemed to know the girl, Nian stopped treating her like an ordinary person.

The girl's slightly regretful expression now only confirms her suspicions.

"Ah, I'm so sorry, thank you both so much for saving me. I have no way to repay your kindness."

The little fox immediately came to its senses and bowed to the two of them in thanks.

"You two may have misunderstood. I am an exorcist hired by the town to handle this matter."

"Exorcist?"

Nian sized up the little fox's appearance.

So thin and frail, she looked more like an ordinary little girl than a demon slayer. She possessed neither formidable martial arts skills nor the air of a powerful sorcerer capable of commanding the wind and rain.

How could she possibly rid herself of the demon that was causing havoc in the area?

"You look so thin and small, but I didn't expect you to be so brave. You actually dared to go alone to break into the demon's wedding procession."

"I just have a few tricks up my sleeve. Even if I can't get rid of them, I can still run away, so I feel a little confident."

The little fox then looked at Bai Zhou, who was driving with a serious expression.

"My name is Shuangyue. May I ask your esteemed names?"

"Yes, I am the ninth child in my family, and I am a few years older than you. You can just call me Ninth Sister."

"This is my son."

Just as Nian was about to introduce Daylight to her, the little fox exclaimed in surprise and delight.

"Oh my! I've seen this distinguished guest before!"

Joy appeared on the little fox's pretty face. She raised her hand to touch the daylight, but then hesitated and lowered her hand. Then she reluctantly raised her hand again and lowered it again... Her helpless appearance made her look quite cute.

"My lord, do you still remember Shuangyue? I once held the reins for you!"

The little fox's voice was filled with excitement, and its moon-white tail swayed back and forth with its owner's joy.

"I naturally remember the daytime."

During the day, he turned his head to look at her and gave her a slight smile as a greeting.

"How have you been lately, Grandma?"

"Oh, Grandma is in good health; she can eat a big bowl of rice at every meal."

Upon hearing that Bai Zhou had mentioned the old woman, Shuang Yue was even happier.

This means that they are indeed remembered during the day.

"How are your two older sisters?"

"My elder sister is well, so there is no need for your concern, sir."

Frostmoon replied, then, as if remembering something, she asked:

Did the distinguished guest pass through Chang'an on his way here?

"I went there and stayed for two days. What happened in Chang'an?"

Bai Zhou wanted to ask Shuang Yue how she knew about this, but then she remembered the old woman's divination skills and the answer came to her mind.

"Sister Qinghuai also went to Chang'an, saying that she went to participate in some kind of Yan Kingdom martial arts and Taoist theory conference."

"Why do you all remember this so-called 'Laozi Conference'?!"

Seeing Shuangyue utter the name of the long and hard-to-remember conference so fluently, Nian couldn't help but wonder if there was something wrong with his own Yanqiang.

"This name is indeed hard to remember. But Grandma said that we must remember this name, and Shuangyue was scolded by Sister Qinghuai a few times because of it."

The little fox calmly comforted everyone during the New Year.

Then she looked at the daytime with expectant eyes.

"Didn't the benefactor meet Sister Qinghuai?"

"Yes. Zhou left Chang'an before the grand gathering and discussion began. He was unable to meet Sister Qinghuai."

Upon hearing what Shuangyue said, Baizhou remembered.

Li Wenyu mentioned this matter in his letter. However, he focused more on the arrangements for the Old Celestial Master's lineage, and only wrote "heroic act" for Qinghuai, who had also contributed a great deal, without providing any more detailed information. As a result, Bai Zhou never learned who the righteous man who performed the act was.

"What a pity."

The little fox sighed, seemingly lamenting her elder sister's misfortune.

Where does Your Excellency intend to go next?

The little fox wanted to see if they were going the same way.

"The original plan was to go straight to Mount Dongyue."

Bai Zhou handed over the entire escape route to the pack animal and turned to talk to the two men.

"However, having just encountered such a terrible thing, I plan to deal with that scourge before setting off."

"You're going to vanquish the demons! That's wonderful!"

The little fox was worried that she wouldn't be able to defeat the demon with just her three tricks, so when Bai Zhou took the initiative to exorcise the demon, she was naturally overjoyed.

"Since Miss Shuangyue has come into contact with the local people and accepted their invitation to exorcise demons, do you know anything about these demons?"

After the exchange, Bai Zhou's assessment of the monster could be summed up in two words: weak and cowardly.

This demon wasn't particularly strong; it would surely die if struck in the face by Bai Zhou's lightning. However, the power of its escape technique, which allowed it to ride the wind, was truly astonishing. Even Bai Zhou couldn't catch up with it without using the earth's veins to fly through the clouds.

Therefore, before exorcising the demon, he wanted to inquire about its origins from Frostmoon.

“My lord, you are unaware of the fact that the demon has been entrenched in this land for many years.”

When asked by Bai Zhou, Shuang Yue did not hide anything and told him everything she knew about the demon.

"I arrived at that small village to the north four days ago."

■

The demon was elusive and its appearance was unknown to anyone. However, based on the villagers' accounts and Shuangyue's own deductions, the demon was skilled in bewitching people and deceiving them.

According to the villagers, the demon appeared a year ago.

It happened to be the only day in the village when a wealthy man's daughter was getting married. The wedding procession was lively and bustling, and the bride was preparing to go back to her husband's home.

However, the bright sunshine changed its face on their way back. Large raindrops accompanied by a loud, howling wind began to fall.

The line of job applicants disappeared into the dark wind.

After the clouds dispersed and the wind subsided, those who came to search were horrified to find that the wedding procession had all turned into withered figures, as if some monster had sucked away their life essence.

The wealthy man in the village was quite knowledgeable, and he immediately reported it to the town.

The town government responded immediately that they would send someone to investigate.

But the messengers they sent were only men who knew a little magic; they were no match for the demons whose strength was unknown.

Those who came were naturally wiped out.

This behavior angered the demon, which whipped up a whirlwind and devoured the entire family of the wealthy man. It then threatened the villagers, demanding that they provide it with a beautiful young woman as a "bride" every month, and that it would eat anyone who disobeyed it.

With the wealthy man dead, and few knowledgeable people left in the village, the remaining villagers dared not provoke him. So they could only search for a girl to deal with the demon while secretly sending people to recruit warriors to "kidnap the bride."

But the result was naturally...

"According to what you just said, young lady, that demon has been entrenched here for over a year. It has already harmed more than ten young ladies and countless innocent people?"

Bai Zhou raised an eyebrow.

"Didn't the people in the town send anyone to investigate again? Nor did they report it to the inspection department?"

The demon wasn't very powerful; the patrol bureau was fully capable of handling it. So why was it allowed to linger here for so long?

Could it be that the officials in that town are simply incompetent and don't care about these people's lives at all?

"Of course, people were sent from above. That's why the demon harmed eight girls, but didn't harm any more people."

Frosty Moon sighed softly, and her large fox ears drooped down.

"But that demon's escape techniques were strong, and the people sent from above could only drive it away, not kill it. But those people couldn't stay in this small village forever; they had to leave for their work. But no sooner had they left than the demon returned, even more ferociously. Finally, it attracted the patrol officers again, and then it ran away again."

"As time went on, not only did those above become irritable, but the demon also became more cunning. Relying on its powerful escape techniques, it no longer took those people above seriously."

“I heard about this in town a few days ago, so I came to check it out.”

“It just so happened that the villagers were preparing for the wedding of the month, so I volunteered to take the place of that poor little girl.”

"Why was it the demon who sent people to pick us up?"