I'm Ximen Qing, living in a ghost story!

"Xiaoqian!"

Upon hearing Nie Xiaoqian's surprised question, Cui Ji tugged at Nie Xiaoqian's sleeve.

However, Nie Xiaoqian still couldn't help but ask the stone tower, "Old man! This concerns my father's life, I must ask this: Is Judge Yan really not in the city?"

"this……"

Shi Lou glanced at them, then gradually realized what they meant and solemnly shook his head: "He is indeed not there! However, Judge Yan's location is not too far from Qingzhou! It is in the Tai Mountain behind the prefectural city."

"Tai Shan?"

Ximen Qing muttered to himself, feeling that the name of this mountain sounded familiar, as if he had heard of it somewhere before.

"Mount Tai? Do you have its location, sir? I can lead men to find Judge Yan!"

Hearing that there were specific developments, Nie Xiaoqian breathed a sigh of relief and quickly asked.

Shi Lou looked troubled and waved his hand, saying, "Judge Yan's whereabouts are unpredictable! Besides, Mount Tai stretches for thousands of miles, with countless demon kingdoms within. A few days ago, Judge Yan rode his sword to the demon kingdoms in the mountains to demand justice! I'm afraid you won't be able to find him even if you go in."

"A demon kingdom? To be punished?"

Upon hearing these two words, Ximen Qing immediately envisioned a peerless swordsman.

Those who can cultivate into demons are the best among beasts, incomparable to ordinary beings.

It took him and Zhou Qingyun working together to deal with a mountain woman who occupied a mountain range of less than a hundred miles in radius.

Yan Chixia was already able to draw his sword and confront the demon kingdom in Mount Tai.

"Junior brother! You went to Qingzhou to find Senior Yan?"

At this moment, Zhou Qingyun, who was standing beside Ximen Qing, gently tugged at his sleeve and asked.

"Yes, didn't I say that before?"

Ximen Qing tilted his head.

Zhou Qingyun pondered for a moment: "Is there?"

"Well, this matter involves a lot of people, which is why I didn't speak up."

Ximen Qing spoke, cupping his hands in apology.

"Let's not talk about such things at a time like this. Since you want to find Senior Yan, it must be something important concerning the demons! But Senior Yan is not here right now. I wonder if Young Master Ximen would be willing to tell my father and Laoshan Dao about this matter?"

This time, Zhou Qingyun did not jokingly call Ximen Qing "Junior Brother," but solemnly referred to him as "Young Master Ximen."

"Laoshan Road?"

Upon hearing Zhou Qingyun's words, Ximen Qing nodded in realization.

He had also reached a dead end. Gu Yunzi asked him to find Yan Chixia because this abandoned disciple of Laoshan could not contact the real Laoshan Road.

But Zhou Qingyun in front of him was a genuine second-generation immortal.

"Of course! If the Laoshan Dao (a Taoist sect) intervenes, that would be a great thing!"

As he spoke, Ximen Qing described the situation in Guobei County in the most concise way possible.

"It's actually a demon from the underworld! And the Naked Cult is involved? That should definitely be taken seriously! You were right to ask Senior Yan for help! Ordinary acquired sword immortals simply can't handle this! Oh right! You also brought the tree demon's roots?"

Zhou Qingyun's expression changed repeatedly, finally revealing a hint of eagerness.

She was never one to stay at home, otherwise she wouldn't have accepted the Shi family's commission halfway through her apprenticeship.

Now, an even greater adventure is unfolding before her, and she suddenly feels that going to Huangshan to find a master is not so urgent anymore.

Meanwhile, guided by Shi Lou, the group arrived at the only three-story pavilion in the village while talking.

This is clearly the center of the village, surrounded by a circle of small courtyards with blue bricks and gray tiles.

"Gentlemen, since we can't enter Qingzhou City for the time being, why don't we settle down in our Changting Village for now?"

"Thank you for your trouble, Brother Shi!"

Simon waved his hand and, without any hesitation, told the convoy behind him to unload the goods.

Traveling is tiring work, so being able to rest in this village is already a good thing.

"Village Chief Shi, is there really no way to get into that Tai Mountain?" Nie Xiaoqian, anxious, had not given up.

But Shi Lou just shook his head.

Having just learned of Guo Bei County's ordeal, Zhou Qingyun left Ximen Qing's side to comfort Nie Xiaoqian: "Miss Xiaoqian, it's not necessary to ask Judge Yan for help! I can ask my father!"

"Oh? Sister Zhou? Really?" A glimmer of hope appeared in Xiaoqian's eyes.

She could tell that Zhou Qingyun was different from them.

Instead of joining in comforting Nie Xiaoqian, Ximen Qing noticed something interesting and curiously approached Shi Lou, asking, "I didn't quite catch the name of your village just now. Is it Changting Village?"

"Exactly!" Shi Lou nodded.

"Then, Brother Zhipu just mentioned that... Madam Shi, whose name is Changting?"

Ximen Qing looked at the stone building with a smile on his lips, recalling the half-human, half-fox woman in palace attire.

The old man's expression changed slightly, and he sighed, "Alas! It's just a temporary measure. That young lady... cough cough, the name of Apu's daughter was indeed acquired after she came to our village."

"It seems this woman is either of unknown identity, or she has another name in Qingzhou that she cannot use. Am I right?"

Ximen Qing looked at the stone building, his tone carrying a hint of determination.

"Young master is indeed perceptive! Well then, since she can travel with Fairy Zhou, she must be one of us. I won't keep you in suspense any longer. Miss Changting does indeed have another identity, and she uses the village name as a code name for the sake of easy record-keeping!"

"Oh? A record?" Ximen Qing frowned.

In what situations would you use place names for easier recording?

"Yes, for example, in Hongting Town, which is less than 30 miles from here, there is also a half-demon woman named Hongting, just like Changting."

"What? How many of these half-human, half-demon beings are there?" Ximen Qing couldn't help but frown.

"No fewer than a dozen! All of them are women, and all of them are half-human, half-fox. Alas, these women are all daughters of high-ranking officials and nobles in the city. As for the many more, I cannot say. They were all released from the city on the orders of Judge Yan. If they had stayed in the city, their fate would have been dire. When Apu went into the city, she brought back Miss Changting. Although my Shi family has hunted demons for generations, we are not pedantic. They are all pitiful people. Now that they have become members of my Shi family, we will never let them suffer any injustice!"

Shi Lou waved his hand, his eyes resolute.

But Ximen Qing was already frozen in place, his scalp tingling.

No wonder Yan Chixia was in such a hurry to go into the mountains to demand an explanation from a dozen or so artificially created half-demons.

If this technology were to spread, the consequences would be unimaginable!

The waters of Qingzhou Prefecture are deep!

"Junior brother! Come here for a moment!"

Just then, Zhou Qingyun's voice came from afar. Ximen Qing apologized and ran to their side.

Then Zhou Qingyun broke something crookedly in her hand.

"What is this?" Ximen Qing asked curiously.

Zhou Qingyun's face froze, turning bright red instantly, while Cui Ji and Nie Xiaoqian's lips twitched.

"Can't you tell? It's a paper crane!"

Zhou Qingyun shouted loudly.

Ximen Qing then feigned sudden realization, "Oh, I see! Your cooking is truly excellent!"

"you!"

Zhou Qingyun couldn't hold back any longer and drew her jellyfish sword.