Demons and monsters wreak havoc: gain one new confidante every day.

Shen You was also very happy to meet Xiao Hui.

After exchanging a few words, Shen You casually asked, "Xiao Hui, are you aware of the recent rumors about snakes attacking people in the city?"

"I know!" Xiao Hui exclaimed, her eyes wide. "Miss said those demonic snakes specifically target pure virgins. There must be a mastermind behind it all, using this to achieve some kind of evil purpose. It's utterly despicable!"

"Oh, so you only pick pure virgins?" Shen You raised an eyebrow, not expecting to find useful information here.

Although the only requirement for the demon-hunting team is to hunt down a sufficient number of demons.

But if we could expose the conspiracy behind it all and capture the mastermind, wouldn't that be an even greater achievement?

If one performs a great service at Renxin Hall, all sorts of miraculous elixirs and medicines will surely follow. If one can obtain those rewards, one's cultivation speed will reach a new level.

Thinking of this, Shen You's heart burned with excitement. "Xiao Hui, go back and continue to inquire with your young lady for me, see if you can find any clues. If there's anything she can't handle herself, feel free to leave it to me!"

"Give it to you, brother...?" Xiao Hui seemed a little hesitant.

Shen You laughed and said, "Don't worry, I'm not as weak as you think, and besides, I have a group of reliable partners!"

Shen You gestured behind her, and Xiao Hui, seeing Hong Xiugu and the others, finally felt a little relieved: "Okay, Xiao Hui will find out information from Miss! That kind of villain, hiding in the shadows and manipulating demonic snakes to harm people, Big Brother must not let him get away with it!"

"Of course!" Shen You nodded vigorously.

Xiao Hui added, "I'll go buy the gecko you need today, and deliver it to you tonight."

"That's great!" Shen You exclaimed happily. "If I'm not there when you deliver it, you can just give the demonic gecko to Aunt Dou in the outer courtyard. Also, you shouldn't go out alone for a while. It's best to take a few Lin family guards with you. After all, you said that the demon specifically targets pure young girls like you, right?"

"I understand!" Xiao Hui nodded gratefully.

After saying goodbye to Xiao Hui, Hong Xiugu glared at Shen You with displeasure: "Why is your sister at the Lin family's house?"

"It's here!" Shen You shrugged, too lazy to explain further.

Hong Xiugu pouted and asked, "Then what is... a reliable partner?"

Shen You raised an eyebrow, thinking to herself, "So that's what he really cares about. He really is a stubborn tsundere!"

"Because I've witnessed your strength firsthand!" Shen You laughed. "You're all exceptionally talented, one after another. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call you reliable partners!"

Hong Xiugu blushed, turned her head away, and scoffed, "Fine, you can have it!"

Tian Yi'er was also a little shy: "Brother Shen, I'm not that reliable..."

"Oh, I know," Shen You replied casually, which made Tian Yi'er's face darken again.

Shen You then looked at Han Shu, the last one, "However, this Junior Brother Han, I've truly never seen you in action before. I wonder if you're reliable!"

Although Han Shu had an honest appearance, he always made Shen You feel uneasy.

Han Shu smiled simply and said, "My strength is probably the weakest among us. I dare not claim to be reliable, but I'm sure I can handle some fill-in-the-blank work."

Hong Xiugu also said, "That's right, Junior Brother Han is very reliable!"

"Heh." Seeing this, Shen You didn't say anything more.

Hong Xiugu leaned closer and asked, "Where do you plan to go next to search for the demon snake?"

Shen You shook her head: "I don't know either."

Hong Xiugu raised an eyebrow: "You don't know either?"

Shen You took out a bamboo leaf viper, held it in her hand, and smiled slightly: "But it knows!"

Guided by the bamboo viper, the group then wandered around the city, hunting down the demon snakes.

Of course, while it was ostensibly the bamboo viper guiding the way, Shen You had actually cultivated the "Golden Snake Technique," which greatly enhanced his perception of snake-like demonic beasts, allowing him to smell snakes from afar. So, in reality, Shen You was leading the way, with the bamboo viper merely serving as a cover.

There weren't many demonic snakes in the inner city; only two or three were found. They were several feet long, emerald green venomous snakes that looked similar to bamboo vipers and posed little threat. However, any girl bitten by one would instantly fall into a coma and die soon after.

They themselves possess strength equivalent to a first-rank martial artist, with thick skin and flesh, and are especially agile, making them difficult to deal with.

Fortunately, the four of them worked together and managed to get through the journey without any major incidents.

After passing through checkpoints, the four finally arrived at the outer city.

This place is much more dilapidated, with sewage flowing everywhere. Among the people lying there are poor people suffering from serious illnesses, and the crowds and vendors on the road are all dressed in rags and look listless.

It was as if everyone was starving, their faces pale and emaciated. This alone showed the difference between the inner and outer cities.

Upon arriving here, Shen You sensed that the demonic serpent's aura was even stronger and more pronounced.

He led the three of them through the filthy alleys, slaying one demonic snake after another.

Unlike in the inner city, where the local people would thank those who killed the demonic serpent, here even if they rid the people of a scourge, the locals would only look on with indifferent eyes.

It looks as if the people living here are already dead.

In the outer city, one could see many gang members, all burly and fierce-looking, including many first- or even second-rank martial artists. However, upon seeing Shen You and his companions in their Renxin Hall blue uniforms, these people dared not approach them and chose to avoid them from a distance.

Shen You also happened to pass by the Blackwater Hall, where there was a strong smell of venomous snakes and a constant stream of customers buying poisons.

Shen You originally wanted to buy the monster gecko while he was at it, but then he thought that Xiao Hui would be heartbroken if he took the mission, so he decided against it. Anyway, Xiao Hui would bring the monster gecko over that night.

After wandering around the outer city for half a day, the four of them had already collected forty or fifty snake corpses, far from completing their mission.

Shen You couldn't help but marvel at the sheer number of demonic snakes; no wonder Renxin Hall had issued a snake-hunting mission. This also suggested that the mastermind behind it all must have extraordinary ambitions; the initial planning alone was already on a massive scale.

"You only target innocent young girls, just wait till I catch you!" Shen You thought to himself with a cold snort.

Back at the meeting point, Liu Gongbai and the other apprentices in blue robes were already waiting there. Seeing that Shen You and the others had made a considerable gain, Liu Gongbai, though still expressionless, relaxed slightly.

He did indeed possess a unique air of nobility, and just by slightly withdrawing his imposing manner, everyone felt a sense of physical relaxation and an immediate sense of ease.

"I have fulfilled my mission." Shen You said with a smile as she walked over.

"Hmm," Liu Gongbai responded indifferently.

Shen You looked at him and suddenly asked curiously, "Senior Brother Liu, did a member of your family ever fall in love with a lotus fairy?"

Liu Gongbai frowned slightly, looked at Shen You, and after a long while slowly said:

"That's true... but that happened a hundred years ago!"

"A hundred years ago?" Shen You looked surprised.