So it turns out I'm the demon!

Jiang Mu didn't know much about the inner guards' henchmen, and he had never heard of the name Hai Baichuan.

But from Shui Miaozheng's tense expression, one could tell that the guy in front of her was no pushover.

"Wasn't Lord Hai ordered to investigate the whereabouts of the Black Armored Guards in the Mirror Kingdom's homeland? How come you have time to come to my little Fazhou City?" Shui Miaozheng protected Jiang Mu to her side, her tone indifferent.

Hai Baichuan put down his teacup, stood up, and said with a smile:

"Chief Shui's information network is quite impressive. This is a secret mission personally ordered by His Majesty. Could it be that Chief Shui has planted spies within my Imperial Guard?" Shui Miaozheng said with a faint sneer.

"Your internal guards are not good at keeping secrets. Especially your subordinates, Lord Hai. A few years ago, they secretly captured a rooster monster that could lay duck eggs, and the subordinates bragged about it everywhere, making it known all over the world."

Hai Baichuan's face stiffened, and he chuckled dryly while touching his nose.

"Humans are all prone to showing off, and it's hard to control their tongues. Let's not talk about that anymore. I've come here specifically to see Lord Jiang and have some questions to ask him."

"What do you want?"

Jiang Mu asked.

Hai Baichuan stared at Jiang Mu's face and asked:

"A few days ago, we discovered the remains of Lord Xun Xiaomo a hundred miles outside Yancheng."

Does Lord Jiang know that Lord Xun has already died in the line of duty?

So that's what it was all about.

Before Jiang Mu could speak, Shui Miaozheng's phoenix eyes widened suddenly, her jade hand covering her red lips, her beautiful face showing astonishment: "What? Xiaozhang is dead!?"

Jiang Mu pulled out a piece of dough, feeling deeply moved.

Women are indeed born actresses.

That expression, that tone. If he hadn't already discussed it with her, he would have truly thought it was the first time she'd heard this news.

Since Aunt Shui has already set up the stage, Jiang Mu naturally has to play along.

A look of shock and astonishment appeared on his face:

"Lord Xun is dead? How is that possible! How come I didn't hear a thing? She... how did she die?"

Hai Baichuan kept his eyes fixed on Jiang Mu and said quietly:

"According to a confession from Lord Xun's subordinates, she accompanied you, Lord Jiang, on a secret mission, traveling together in a carriage to a certain location before disappearing. Lord Jiang, what is your explanation for this?"

Jiang Mu's face was grim, and she said coldly:

"What do you mean by that, Lord Hai? Do you think I killed Lord Xun?"

This is utterly absurd!

Lord Xun and I hit it off immediately and admire each other. How could I possibly be so cruel? You are insulting my character!

Hai Baichuan smiled and waved his hand:

"Lord Jiang, please calm down. Without solid evidence, I will naturally not draw any conclusions."

I am merely inquiring as a matter of routine. If you, Lord Jiang, find this offensive, you are free to remain silent, and I will simply return to the capital and report the truth.

After all, Lord Jiang is currently a favorite of the Demon Slayer Division, highly regarded by the court and the chief commander. I dare not casually label him.”

Hearing the veiled sarcasm in the other person's words, Jiang Mu snorted coldly:

"There's nothing I can't answer. Lady Xun was indeed with me at the time. She was ordered by Commander Yang to find a person named Yan Zixiao. I happened to have a clue, so I helped her find her way."

Later, halfway there, Lord Xun met Yan Zixiao and left with his men. As for me, I changed course and went straight back to Fazhou City.

As for what happened afterward, I have no idea. However, we were attacked by the "Demon Slayer Society" cultists. If you really want to investigate, you might as well look into those lunatics; you might find something unexpected.

"I see. It seems that Lord Jiang is indeed not involved in this matter."

Hai Baichuan nodded without delving into the matter, and cupped his hands, saying, "I apologize for disturbing Lord Jiang this time. I have official business to attend to, so I will not linger any longer and will take my leave now."

After saying that, he cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Shui Miaozheng and left the hall with two guards.

Watching Hai Baichuan and the others disappear outside the door, Shui Miaozheng blinked in surprise:

"He just left like that?"

She had prepared several possible responses, and her worst-case scenario was even considering a physical confrontation with Hai Baichuan.

Unexpectedly, the person only asked a few casual questions before leaving.

Jiang Mu sneered:

"Because he knows that as long as I don't admit it, he can't do anything. Without solid evidence, he can't touch me. So this time, his visit is more of a formality, and he also wants to test my reaction."

I bet he'll be staying in France for the next while.

"Is he planning to investigate you secretly?"

Shui Miaozheng's delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly.

Jiang Mu shook his head, his gaze deep:

"Investigating me was just a side job. His real mission is probably to wait for the opportunity to open up the cave of the great demon Jiang Chaoxi. The Imperial Guards can't possibly let this piece of meat pass them by."

At this point, Jiang Mu couldn't help but picture Quan Shanhai's androgynous and alluring face.

Previously, the other party had invited him to take over Prince Sheng's forces to rebel.

The situation in Fazhou City is currently very turbulent, and it's unclear whether that guy has entered the city yet.

Seeing the worry clouding the beautiful woman's brow, Jiang Mu smiled slightly, reached out and pulled her voluptuous waist into his arms, his tongue lightly brushing against her lips as he whispered with a smile:

"What are you worried about? With my current cultivation at the eighth level, there are very few people in this world who can kill me."

Besides, this is our territory.

Shui Miaozheng gave a soft "hmm," her body going slightly limp.

"I don't know why, but I always feel a tightness in my chest, like something bad is about to happen."

Feeling congested?

Jiang Mu raised an eyebrow and grinned mischievously, "It's okay, let me clear it up."

Shui Miaozheng's pretty face flushed red, and she placed her jade-like hand on his chest, seemingly pushing him away while simultaneously rejecting him.

"You little rascal, you're getting more and more outrageous. Don't act like this in broad daylight. I'm your elder, after all. If I keep spoiling you like this, you'll start to ride roughshod over me."

Jiang Mu nodded repeatedly, appearing humble and eager to learn.

"Aunt Shui's reprimand is correct, and I know I was wrong. However... verbal reprimands alone aren't very effective. How about we try a more profound approach?"

"In what way?"

Shui Miaozheng asked a question subconsciously.

Jiang Mu smiled without saying a word, then bent down and picked up the beautiful woman in his arms.

Shui Miaozheng gasped and instinctively hooked her arms around his neck. Before she could struggle, the man spread his wings and flew out the window.

Half an hour later.

Located on the top floor of the tallest pagoda in Fazhou.

Runes flowed all around, creating a barrier that isolated the outside world from view.

Atop the tower, the wind howls.

Shui Miaozheng, slightly out of breath, tucked a strand of hair damp with sweat behind her ear. Her delicate cheeks, still flushed, gave the man a playful pinch, a mixture of reproach and annoyance.

"I shouldn't have believed your nonsense! You said we were here to see the scenery, and what happened? I won't believe anything you say anymore."

Jiang Mu didn't dodge, but just smiled and put his arm around her shoulder.

The two sat side by side on the eaves of the tower, overlooking the entire city of Fazhou from this angle.

In the afternoon, the long street stretched like a ribbon, and the flow of people was as numerous as ants.

Sunlight bathed the green-tiled rooftops, and the Fajiang River in the distance looked like a silver thread winding its way into the horizon.

At the man's insistence, Shui Miaozheng changed into a tight-fitting bright red dress.

The skirt slit was very high.

Her legs were encased in the black silk stockings that Ji Hongyuan had given her, which shone with a soft, hazy light when the sunlight shone on them.

Especially the plump, rounded shape that is a signature feature of Shui Miaozheng.

The skirt fabric traces a smooth, rounded curve, like a ripe peach pressed against a tile beneath her.

Jiang Mu stroked the beautiful woman's calf with his palm and laughed:

"Aunt Shui, you're wrong about that. Sometimes, only by using this method of education can I, as a junior, truly remember your teachings; ah."

Next time, if Aunt Shui finds disciplining someone with her bare hands too tiring, we can consider using a whip or something to help.

Shui Miaozheng glanced at him with a half-smile, her eyes alluring:

"What? Want Aunt Shui to beat you up?"

"Wrong."

Jiang Mu leaned close to her earlobe, breathing hot air, "It was me who whipped you."

Shui Miaozheng was taken aback.

After all, she wasn't a naive girl like Yuan Aqing, who was like a blank sheet of paper. In an instant, the beautiful woman understood the context in the other person's words.

Enraged, she grabbed the man's ear and gritted her teeth, saying:

"Stop thinking about those filthy things. What are you thinking about all day long? If you don't treat Aunt Shui as an elder, at least treat her as a human being, okay?"

"Okay, okay..."

Jiang Mu grasped the other's soft, boneless hand and pulled her back into his arms.

"I love Aunt Shui the most, how could I bear to hit her?"

But Aunt Shui, you've been making excuses to move into my house and live with me, even though we clearly agreed before. Now that you're here, it'll be easier for me to pamper you. Shui Miaozheng rested her head against his chest and said softly:

"You have so many beautiful women at home, one more aunt doesn't make a difference, and one less aunt doesn't make a difference either. Going there would only cause you trouble."

Jiang Mu chuckled and reached out to gently scratch her pert nose.

"That's a sour remark. Even our dignified Headmaster of the Water Department is getting jealous?"

"What woman doesn't get jealous?"

Shui Miaozheng sighed softly, her tone both joking and serious.

"I used to dream of a grand, proper marriage with eight sedan chairs, but I don't dare to hope for that anymore. Just being able to rely on you like this for ten, twenty years, will be enough for me." Hearing the woman's self-deprecating teasing, Jiang Mu lowered his head, kissed the top of her head, and said softly:

"Aunt Shui, don't worry, I, Jiang Mu, will never let you down. I will definitely marry you properly and make you a member of the Jiang family in style." "Oh?"

Shui Miaozheng's beautiful eyes brightened slightly. "Then... when was that?"

"It'll be soon, it'll be soon."

Jiang Mu made a solemn vow.

"When exactly is 'soon'? Give me a definite answer."

The woman pressed on relentlessly.

"It's...that..."

Seeing the man's embarrassed expression, sweat beading on his forehead from the interrogation, Shui Miaozheng chuckled and gave him a charmingly reproachful look. She stopped pressing him for an answer, reached out to stroke his cheek, and softly said:

"Alright, I believe you. When the day comes that you're carried in a sedan chair... Auntie will definitely give you your child."

"Why wait until that day? Let's practice now."

As Jiang Mu spoke, she turned over and covered him again.

in the afternoon.

Jiang Mu began to disguise herself.

Actually, his disguise was much simpler than others'.

With a change of star position, the aura changes accordingly, from the third realm to the eighth realm, one can pretend to be whatever cultivation level one wants.

Even a deity couldn't discern the truth.

Jiang Mu originally wanted to get an ugly disguise mask to wear, but Shui Miaozheng refused, saying that it would ruin her man's image if it was too ugly. In the end, they found a mask that was slightly more handsome.

After the disguise was complete, Jiang Mu looked at herself in the mirror and sighed helplessly:

"That damn charm is undeniable."

To avoid attracting attention, Jiang Mu deliberately left the city, found a place to change his clothes, and disguised himself as a young cultivator at the fourth realm. Then he took a long detour before leisurely re-entering the city.

Upon arriving at Mingyun Inn, Jiang Mu requested a superior room.

Just as Shui Miaozheng had said, the inn was a mixed bag, with more than ten cultivators at the fourth realm or above.

This does not include reclusive masters who deliberately suppress their cultivation aura.

To make it easier to investigate his target, he specifically chose the room diagonally opposite Zhou Yao.

To his right lived a middle-aged couple, and to his left were two burly men carrying axes; their faces were similar, clearly brothers. In the room opposite lived a handsome scholar.

His smile is gentle and harmless.

Based on Jiang Mu's initial perception, the middle-aged couple and the brothers carrying axes were roughly at the sixth realm of cultivation.

Only the scholar opposite him was somewhat unfathomable.

Jiang Mu guessed that this scholar was probably a high-level player who was deliberately hiding his cultivation level.

Zhou Yao, on the other hand, remained inside the room the entire time, never even stepping out of the door.

He didn't go downstairs to the lobby for dinner until evening.

Jiang Mu waited for a moment, then went downstairs and sat down at an empty table behind him, ordering a pot of wine and two vegetarian dishes.

Because Jiang Mu only displayed the aura of the fourth realm, it did not attract much attention.

During this time, he could clearly sense seven or eight hidden gazes sweeping over him in the hall, obviously probing his strength with their divine sense. But after probing and finding him to be a weakling, those gazes withdrew.

Jiang Mu had been secretly observing Zhou Yao.

According to intelligence reports, Zhou Yao is almost fifty years old this year.

He looked to be in his early thirties, with dark skin and plain features—the kind of face that would disappear into a crowd in two or three seconds.

He didn't order any wine, just a bowl of white rice and a plate of vegetables, and ate quietly with his head down.

However, he did not conceal his aura.

The pressure from the eighth-realm cultivator kept everyone around a zhang away.

This resulted in no cultivator daring to approach his table, creating a vacuum zone.

As Jiang Mu drank, pondering when to make his move, he suddenly heard someone politely say beside him, "Young man, there are no seats available in the main hall. Would you do me the favor of letting my wife and I share a table?"

Jiang Mu looked up.

But it was the middle-aged couple who lived on the right who came downstairs.

The speaker was a man with a square face.

The woman beside him was half a head shorter than him. She was beautiful and had the air of a well-bred lady. She quietly leaned against her husband.

She looks like the kind of virtuous wife and loving mother, a woman who upholds traditional virtues.

Jiang Mu nodded indifferently:

"When you're traveling, it's always good to help others. Please have a seat."

"Thank you, sir."

The middle-aged man was delighted. He pulled his wife to sit down and then ordered two jugs of fine wine and several main dishes from the waiter.

"It is fate that we meet. My name is Zhang Yunmo, and I am from Guiyan Manor in Yuancheng. May I ask your esteemed name and where you reside?"

Zhang Yunmo was quite talkative, and before all the dishes were served, he began to introduce himself in a familiar manner.

Jiang Mu put down her chopsticks and replied using the identity she had previously made up:

"My name is Chu Jiang, a native of Hailing Prefecture. I am merely a rogue cultivator from the fourth realm, without any sect or affiliation."

"I heard that a great opportunity has recently appeared in Fazhou City, so I've mustered up the courage to come and join the fun. I'm not looking to seize any treasures, but just to broaden my horizons." "So it's Brother Chu. I've heard so much about you."

Zhang Yunmo politely cupped his hands in greeting, showing no disdain for Jiang Mu's mere fourth-level cultivation.

It's clear that they come from excellent families and have very good upbringing.

He's probably the young master of some kind of manor.

Jiang Mu secretly speculated.

The two chatted for a while about strange and unusual things, and the atmosphere was quite harmonious.

After the food and wine were served, Zhang Yunmo enthusiastically raised his glass: "Come, Brother Chu, this glass is a toast to our reunion."

"Brother Zhang, you're too kind."

Jiang Mu clinked glasses with the other person and drank it down.

The liquor was slightly spicy as it went down his throat. Just as he was about to put down the glass, he suddenly felt a sensation brush against the outside of his calf from under the table.

It felt like someone had brushed against it with their toe.

Jiang Mu instinctively looked up.

Zhang Yunmo was wiping the wine stains from the corner of his mouth with a hearty laugh.

The woman sitting next to Zhang Yunmo had her eyes lowered, holding a bowl in her hand, quietly picking at her vegetables.

The candlelight in the hall illuminated half of the woman's face, making her appear gentle and serene.

Jiang Mu felt a chill run down her spine.

If a normal person accidentally kicks someone, even if they don't apologize verbally, they will at least make some awkward little movements, such as shifting their leg or expressing their apology with their eyes.

But the woman remained calm and acted as if nothing had happened.

Jiang Mu immediately went into a state of high alert.

not good!

"The Incompetent Husband" is about to start.