The Heavenly Court is gone, I don't want to be a True Lord.

A moment later, under the cold gaze of Tang Yu, a commander of the Six Doors, a death row inmate slowly approached the blackish-purple 'boiling water'.

Immediately, the purplish-black waters became even more turbulent, forming a series of whirlpools that seemed capable of engulfing everything.

The death row inmate looked terrified and instinctively turned around, looking at Tang Yu with a pleading expression.

But the next moment...

He trembled all over!

He felt a weight on his body, as if something was lying on his back, and he turned around shakily.

I couldn't help but scream. It was a face that was swollen and bloated from being soaked!

Slippery, cold, viscous...

Seemingly sensing the condemned prisoner's gaze, the floating corpse's eyes, which had turned white from being submerged in water, slowly moved to meet his gaze!

Screams echoed throughout Baoyue Lake.

But the situation that Tang Yu was most worried about did not occur, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

The 'Source' within the demon's lair has fallen asleep once more.

"My lord! Something has happened to the demon's lair in the lake. These floating corpses have turned into...demons?"

A centurion approached Tang Yu and said with a look of terror on his face.

Tang Yu remained expressionless, but his hands, hidden in his sleeves, were clenched into tight fists.

As a sixth-rank commander of the Tian Ce Mansion, he had some understanding of demon nests. Each demon nest contained a "source," which usually slept in the demon nest and influenced everything around it. The birth of demons was due to the influence of the source.

The solution is to clean up the demon's lair and annihilate its source. However, the key is that if you fail, the source may change, the demon's lair may be upgraded, and the demons born may be completely different.

"Our people have been guarding Baoyue Lake. Has anything changed recently?"

Upon hearing this, the centurion pondered for a moment, then said somewhat uncertainly, "Our Tian Ce Prefecture has people guarding Bao Yue Lake day and night, and there's been nothing unusual. Commander Tang, could this matter be related to... the remnants of the Xu family?"

After all, Baoyue Lake was a project undertaken by the Xu family to curry favor with the late emperor. In addition, he heard from his subordinate Nan Yue that someone had discovered remnants of the Xu family outside the city who could vaguely control the demon nest.

Tang Yu's eyes flickered.

The worst is yet to come. The source within the demon's lair has not fully recovered. Although there is a faint possibility of the demon's lair being upgraded, the current danger seems to lie only in the floating corpse demons in that purplish-black water.

By using the lives of death row inmates to probe the characteristics of these floating corpse demons, and then uniting all the warriors in the city to eliminate these demons, this crisis will be over.

Now, the key is to figure out the characteristics of these floating corpse demons.

The Six Doors have extensive experience in dealing with demons, so figuring out their characteristics shouldn't be difficult, but it's still best to be on the safe side.

"Notify the Provincial Administration Office to be prepared to draft a proclamation throughout the city, summoning all warriors to come to the aid of Baoyue Lake."

"yes!"

……

The Fushan Mountains are a continuous range, containing thousands of peaks, and spanning Fengtai and Taizhou prefectures.

Dongshan is the peak of the Fushan mountain range closest to Fushan City. More than a hundred years ago, a martial arts sect also established its mountain gate here, but later disappeared due to the turbulent times.

Therefore, there are many old buildings left on this hill.

The six garrisons are located on both sides of the eastern mountain, and each garrison is responsible for a mountain road leading into the mountain.

It was called a garrison, but it was really just a few wooden huts.

The feeling inside the mountains is different from outside. Zuo Qi stood at the foot of the mountain, looking at the lush Dongshan Mountain. Strange roars could be heard from within from time to time, including bird calls, animal roars, and the sound of wind. Combined with the gloomy weather, it gave people a sinister and terrifying feeling.

The three of them, along with several dogs, left the city overnight; the patrols had not yet arrived.

Ni Heng then started a fire to cook.

Around afternoon, the guards arrived.

There are newcomers like Cheng Yun and Wei Zhenzhen who are practicing at the manor this year, as well as elderly people who survived the previous two years.

Including Zuo Qi and the other two, there are a total of seventy-three people.

After learning that Zuo Qi was this year's leader, the newcomers knew they didn't have much of a chance and didn't say much. The veterans, however, had different expressions and their eyes were full of scrutiny.

Zuo Qi was too lazy to pay attention to any of this.

He Xiao was meticulous. Before coming, he had investigated the personalities of these elderly people and made assignments. Zuo Qi simply followed He Xiao's instructions.

Suddenly, a shrill voice came from the crowd.

"Who do you think you are? You're barely out of hair, yet you dare to boss us around?"

These words seemed to ignite the emotions of the elderly.

Zuo Qi's youth made them somewhat disdainful, and his status as a commander made them even more envious.

Everyone knows that the Six Doors are showing leniency this year; anyone who performs meritorious service can apply to join, and their chances of becoming a leader are definitely greater than those of ordinary people.

They worked as low-level clerks in the city garrison for a year, and they had a deep understanding of the difference between clerks and officials. They dreamed of becoming officials themselves.

When it comes to their future, no one is willing to give up.

"Exactly, it was Coach Li who led us to survive last year. Can you survive on your own?"

"Young man, take my advice. Go back to the city now and tell the young lady that you are not fit to be the commander. Otherwise, you will harm yourself and others. Don't say I didn't warn you."

Ni Heng grew angrier as he listened, his eyes already filled with ferocity.

Zuo Qi pulled Ni Heng back from speaking and said to the crowd expressionlessly.

"It seems there are quite a few people who disagree with Zuo. I wonder which heroes among them are?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the crowd fell silent.

Then it exploded again.

A burly man with a face full of scars stepped forward from the crowd, a rusty long knife hanging at his waist, his eyes full of arrogance.

"I refuse to accept this!"

"I, Zhao Heihu, have been guarding Dongshan for three years. I've seen more mountain demons than you've seen people! Last year during the snowstorm, I even helped Instructor Li slay a mountain demon. What makes you, a pretty boy from the city, think you can be our leader?"

Four or five people immediately stepped out from behind him, all with unfriendly expressions, clearly part of the same group.

"Brother Zhao is right! You don't even know what a mountain demon looks like; you're just a burden to us!"

"Let Instructor Li come! We only recognize Instructor Li!"

Zuo Qi glanced at everyone indifferently, his voice not loud, but carrying an oppressive coldness.

"If you beat me, you're in charge."

The moment those words were spoken, the entire room fell silent.

Zhao Heihu was stunned for a moment, then laughed wildly as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world.

"Hahaha, you little brat, you're asking for it! Don't blame me for being impolite!"

Before he finished speaking, Zhao Heihu charged forward, his fist carrying a bloody smell, and smashed straight at Zuo Qi's face!

He had spent over a decade in the city and two years in the military garrison. His fighting style was ruthless and wild, clearly a life-or-death struggle.

People around him stepped back, waiting to see Zuo Qi get knocked down with a single punch.

Ni Heng gripped the knife tightly, but it was just a subconscious action; of course, he didn't think that Zuo Qi was no match for the people in front of him.

boom!

A muffled thud.

All the people saw was a black shadow flash by.

Zhao Heihu's punch was easily caught in mid-air by Zuo Qi's single palm.

Not moving.

"You..." Zhao Heihu's pupils shrank suddenly, and he felt as if his arm was stuck in an iron clamp, with excruciating pain.

Zuo Qi remained expressionless.

With a twist of the wrist.

Click!

The sound of dislocation was clear and piercing.

"what!"

Zhao Heihu screamed in agony as his arm twisted and deformed, then was casually flung away by Zuo Qi and slammed hard against the wooden wall, lying on the ground howling in pain.

one move.

Just one move.

The old man who was shouting the loudest just moments ago immediately knelt down.

The audience was silent.

The wind swept through the mountains and forests, bringing a chilling howl, but it couldn't drown out the sound of everyone's hearts pounding wildly.

Zuo Qi walked leisurely toward Zhao Heihu.

Zhao Heihu instinctively shrank back, his eyes filled with fear.

Zuo Qi scoffed, "Are you convinced now?"

Zhao Heihu bared his teeth, meeting Zuo Qi's icy gaze, and said, "I...I give up!"

Zuo Qi didn't look at him again.

"Who else?"

The few people who had just been joining in the commotion instantly turned pale, instinctively took a half step back, and didn't dare to raise their heads.

They then understood.

The young man in front of me, who looks no more than eighteen or nineteen years old, is by no means some good-for-nothing who got ahead through connections.

This is a truly ruthless person.

Zuo Qi stepped forward, his voice not loud, but every word struck a chord in people's hearts.

"I don't care who you followed before, or whether you truly submit to me. From today onwards, I'm in charge of the Dongshan Sixth Garrison. Who agrees, who disagrees?"

No one answered.

Even breathing became a cautious affair.

Zuo Qi nodded slightly upon seeing this.

"very good."

He turned and pointed in the direction of the six garrisons behind him.

"He Xiao, according to the previous arrangement, immediately set up garrisons at designated points. Ni Heng, you take Gouzi and help them patrol the ten-mile area, marking the surrounding terrain and wild animals as soon as possible."

"yes!"

"yes!"

The two responded with a resounding roar, full of confidence.

This is considered to be accumulating experience for the two of them, making it a natural progression for them to achieve merit in the future.