The divine manifestations began at the Gongwei Division.

Lin Qingshan and the others stared wide-eyed at the leopard demon bound in the air by blood-red chains.

It was as if some force was suspending it there.

All eyes turned back to Zhou Heng.

Zhou Heng stood there calmly, holding the Dragon Sparrow Blade.

"Brother—Your Excellency—"

Lin Qingshan's lips trembled as he uttered two words.

Other镖师 (bodyguards/escorts) might not know, but he had just fought this leopard demon and knew very well how strong it was.

This young man subdued the leopard demon so effortlessly; he couldn't even figure out how the other party had done it.

Such strength was something he had never seen in his entire life of wandering the martial world.

With such strength, if they were truly after the goods he was escorting, none of them would survive.

Zhou Heng ignored the people from Zhenyuan Escort Agency and walked straight up to the leopard demon.

"Can you speak human language? Tell me, where are you from?"

Zhou Heng spoke up.

The leopard demon bared its teeth and roared angrily.

It struggled desperately, but the more it struggled, the tighter the chains bound it became; the blood-red chains even dug into its flesh.

"I'll eat you all, I'll eat you all!"

It roared, its voice hoarse and unpleasant, as if it were not accustomed to speaking human language.

"Aww—"

A deep roar suddenly came from afar.

As if it had gained some kind of power, the leopard demon's eyes turned red, and its body suddenly swelled up.

With a bang, the chains binding it broke.

As Zhou Heng frowned, the leopard demon pounced on him from mid-air, its eyes filled with intense hatred and killing intent.

"Be careful!"

Lin Qingshan exclaimed in surprise.

Swish.

A flash of light from a blade disappeared in an instant.

When everyone looked closely, Zhou Heng was still standing there, the knife in his hand as if he hadn't moved at all.

The leopard demon's body froze in mid-air, then split into two pieces and crashed to the ground with a smooth, clean cut.

The bloody scene left everyone present speechless and too afraid to utter a sound.

Especially Xiao Fang, who had previously tried to harm Zhou Heng.

He was now completely pale and trembling all over.

"Lin was blind to the great man."

Lin Qingshan, being a seasoned veteran, clasped his hands in a fist salute to Zhou Heng and said, "May I have a word with you in private?"

Zhou Heng remained noncommittal, leaving Lin Qingshan with no choice but to drive the group of bodyguards out. Then, he took the initiative to walk up to Zhou Heng.

"To be honest, the shipment I'm escorting this time is a priceless treasure."

Lin Qingshan lowered his voice and said in a deep voice, "It wasn't that I intentionally concealed it before, but this escort mission is of great importance and cannot afford to fail."

"Then why are you willing to tell me now?"

Zhou Heng asked calmly.

"With your strength, if you really wanted to rob the caravan, we wouldn't be able to stop you at all."

Lin Qingshan smiled wryly, "Moreover, I see that you are upright and honest, and are by no means a wicked person."

Our Zhenyuan Escort Agency has now been targeted by demons, and leaving safely is now a pipe dream.

I would like to ask for your assistance. My Zhenyuan Escort Agency is willing to waive all fees for this escort mission and give them all to you.

"Aren't you afraid this is a ruse?"

Zhou Heng pointed to the leopard demon's corpse on the ground.

"If this is truly a ruse, then I, Lin Qingshan, have misjudged people and deserve to die."

Lin Qingshan said firmly.

"Let's first tell you what exactly you're escorting."

Zhou Heng said noncommittally, "I do find something that can attract the covetousness of demons rather interesting."

The countdown to danger was still ticking before his eyes, clearly indicating that the lurking monsters had not given up.

Even after he had already killed two demons, the other party still did not give up.

That means that the allure of this thing to them has outweighed their fear of him, the powerful one.

Although Zhou Heng didn't necessarily have any covetous intentions, he was still somewhat curious.

Lin Qingshan's expression changed, and after hesitating for a moment, he took something out of his pocket as if he had made a huge decision.

It turned out that the priceless treasure he mentioned was actually carried with him, and those carts were just a cover.

Lin Qingshan took out a small wooden box from his pocket and opened it carefully.

Inside the box was a bone the size of an infant's fist, crystal clear and emitting a faint red glow.

Lin Qingshan immediately closed the box again.

"This is a demon king's bone. I have been entrusted to escort it to Shu Prefecture and deliver it to Lin Hanyuan, the King of Southern Medicine."

Lin Qingshan said in a deep voice.

"Shuzhou?"

Zhou Heng's heart stirred.

However, considering that this official road was the only way to Shu Prefecture, it no longer seemed strange to me.

"The Demon King's Bone is a great tonic for demons; any demon that swallows it has the potential to become the next Demon King."

Lin Qingshan smiled wryly, "I thought our secret of escorting the Demon King's bones was unknown to anyone, but I didn't expect it to attract demons."

The Demon King refers to a powerful demon of the highest rank.

With the chance to break through to the upper three ranks, it's no wonder those demons went berserk.

If it were Zhou Heng, he wouldn't let go of any opportunity to break through to the upper three ranks if it presented itself.

"Lin Hanyuan, the King of Southern Medicine..."

Zhou Heng asked thoughtfully, "His surname is Lin, and yours is Lin too. What's your relationship with him?"

"It's just a coincidence that we share the same surname. The Lin family in Shu Prefecture is very powerful, and I have nothing to do with them."

Lin Qingshan shook his head.

Zhou Heng responded with an "oh," recalling that the Lin family of Shu Prefecture seemed to be related to Xue Zhiwei.

"How much money did your employer pay you to take on such a dangerous job?"

Zhou Heng asked curiously, "This demon king bone would probably interest even a fourth-rank great demon."

The monster that just escaped from his grasp was definitely a fifth-rank creature.

A fifth-grade demon was enough to wipe out the entire Zhenyuan Escort Agency group.

"One thousand taels of gold."

Lin Qingshan hesitated for a moment before uttering a number.

Zhou Heng couldn't help but glance at him.

One shipment, a thousand taels of gold?

No wonder he risked his life to deliver this shipment.

That's quite an amount that's hard to refuse.

Thinking about his empty pockets, Zhou Heng couldn't help but laugh and cry.

If I had known that escorting goods was so lucrative, I would never have joined the Imperial Guard.

As a garrison commander, my annual salary is only two thousand taels of silver.

Of course, the rewards from the Guardian Division are not just silver, but also martial arts and immortal techniques.

That's the kind of good stuff that money can't buy.

"If you can help us through this crisis, I am willing to give you all the silver."

Lin Qingshan quickly replied.

"Aren't you afraid I'll steal both the silver and this demon king's bone?"

Zhou Heng said.

"I'm afraid, but I have no choice."

Lin Qingshan said with a bitter expression, "I fought that leopard demon with all my might just now, and I really don't have the confidence to lead everyone out of here."

"Besides you, does anyone else in the escort team know about the Demon King's Bone?"

Zhou Heng could tell that Lin Qingshan had just used some kind of secret technique and was completely exhausted, and had not yet recovered.

Upon hearing Zhou Heng's question, Lin Qingshan paused for a moment, a thoughtful expression appearing on his face.

"You suspect that someone leaked information about the Demon King's bone, which is why the demons were attracted?"

Lin Qingshan, being a seasoned veteran, immediately realized what was happening. "No way! He's my apprentice! I raised him from childhood and taught him martial arts. How could he betray me?"

His expression was one of surprise and uncertainty, clearly indicating that he already had someone he suspected.

Just then, a scream suddenly came from outside the temple, and a gust of evil wind blew directly in from the temple gate.