Start slaying demons from the proficiency panel.

call out!call out!call out!

After several arrows, there were no survivors; not a single Demon-Subduing Officer managed to escape from North Gate Town.

As the last person was killed, the music stopped playing.

Seven people emerged from a nearby house, walking in unison, their arms and legs in sync.

These seven people—an old man, an old woman, a strong man, a beautiful woman, a boy, a girl, and a boy—each had a different appearance, and each held a different kind of musical instrument.

Drums, zithers, erhu, pipa, gongs, xiao, etc.—clearly, the background music we just heard was composed by them.

"You need to change your face three times just to kill a few mid-level three-rank guys? You're getting more and more out of touch with reality," the white-haired old man at the front of the group said to the man with the painted face.

"You're so noisy, shut up right now!" the painted-face man sang in a dramatic tone.

This person speaks entirely through singing, with a tone similar to opera, even bizarre.

Just as all the Demon Slayers were shot dead, Fang Jingzhou jumped down from the carriage with the box in his hand, walked over and said with a soft laugh, "You two arrived quite early. If it weren't for your help tonight, I probably would have been captured and taken back."

The white-haired old man said, "Bring the things over. This place isn't our territory. If those guys run into us, it'll be another fierce fight. We shouldn't stay here any longer."

Fang Jingzhou patted the box in his hand and said, "The Vermilion Bird Blood is inside, it's perfectly safe. You two can take me back with you. You don't need to keep the things for now. I will hand them over to the Holy Envoy when I see him."

"Very well, let's go." The painted-face man reached out and grabbed Fang Jingzhou. Even though Fang Jingzhou was still more than twenty feet away from him, he was involuntarily thrown towards the painted-face man and finally grabbed by him, taking him away from the place like an immortal riding on clouds.

The white-haired old man looked at the three carriages, and the strong man in the group of seven opened his mouth and spat out three huge fireballs, which landed on the carriages and engulfed them in flames in the blink of an eye. This made the town of Beimen incredibly bright in the dark night, like a beacon.

"Roar!"

"Roar!"

Less than three breaths after the flames appeared, a tremendous roar resounded from all directions of North Gate Town, and the ground trembled violently. Something enormous was rushing towards them.

Even the white-haired old man dared not linger any longer and immediately took off running. His speed was incredibly fast, and in just a few breaths, the seven-person team had disappeared outside North Gate Town.

To the east of Beimen Town, a massive black shadow, as large as a mountain, was steadily approaching, its crimson eyes incredibly vivid.

The teeth reflected a white light in the moonlight, and with each step, they caused a violent tremor in the ground.

This is Sixiang Prefecture, a remote land that has been free from the rule of the Shang Dynasty for hundreds of years.

[099] Demon Subduing Summoning: A Rare Outland Quest

The problems in Qiantang City have now been put behind us.

The water ghost was caused by the Black Heaven Gate demons behind the scenes. The demon was attracted to the Dragon King River, a place of spiritual energy, because of the day of the conjunction.

Ning Xiu crippled all the Golden Serpent Gang members in the dungeon. In a few days, Li Jing would send people to escort them back to the Demon Suppression Prison of the Demon Subduing Division in prison carts. Ning Xiu wouldn't need to worry about the rest.

The matter was thoroughly investigated and resolved by the Demon-Subduing Guards, bringing a great sense of relief to everyone from the city guards to the common people.

"Ah!" Ning Xiu stretched and walked out of his room, looking down at the empty inn lobby.

Last night, I was drunk all night at the city garrison with Li Jing and Qin Zhen. The three of us drank like crazy, but how could the two of us possibly be a match for Ning Xiu, who was already at the third level of martial arts?

After passing out from drinking, Ning Xiu circulated his internal energy, instantly refining all the alcohol in his body. He could easily drink dozens more jars.

It was already high in the sky, and Qin Zhen should have already led his team away from Qiantang City, like Captain Zheng and Captain Jia, to carry out missions elsewhere.

Seeing the inn, which was full of people yesterday, suddenly become so quiet and deserted, Ning Xiu couldn't help but shake his head.

Life is unpredictable. It's fate that we met in another place. We might never see each other again.

After going downstairs, Ning Xiu prepared to eat something and then set off immediately. He still had a few tasks left to complete, and once he finished them, he could relax and enjoy the Demon Subduing Martial Arts Competition in a little over ten days.

As Ning Xiu stepped out of the inn, a black-feathered falcon swooped down from the sky, gracefully entering the inn and then passing through the main hall towards the back courtyard.

It disappeared from Ning Xiu's sight in no time.

"Huh!" Ning Xiu exclaimed in surprise, stopping in his tracks.

These black-feathered falcons were bred by demons and used exclusively by the Demon Subduing Division for emergency intelligence transmission. Under normal circumstances, they would never be sent out to deliver messages.

However, the appearance of the Black Feather Falcon signifies that something very significant has occurred within the Demon Subduing Division.

Any Demon Slayer who sees a Black Feather Falcon appear must go and see what intelligence it is carrying; this is an ironclad rule within the Demon Slayer Division.

Without hesitation, Ning Xiu immediately headed towards the backyard of the inn. Every property of the Demon Subduing Division within the Great Shang territory had a roosting point for the Black Feather Falcons, used to provide them with a place to land.

When Ning Xiu walked to the backyard, he saw a sharp-eyed falcon standing on a T-shaped iron pole. A bamboo tube was attached to its leg, containing the intelligence letter.

Ning Xiu walked over, skillfully took out the letter from the bamboo tube, and began to carefully read it. After reading all the contents of the letter, Ning Xiu's expression became somewhat subtle.

The letter stated that a traitor from the Demon Subduing Division named Fang Jingzhou had fled to the outer realm of the Four Symbols State with the precious treasure 'Vermilion Bird Blood'.

The Vermilion Bird's blood is of great significance and cannot be easily lost, but that place is not within the territory of the Great Shang Dynasty, and there is no Demon Subduing Division stationed there.

The Demon Subduing Division then used Black Feather Falcons to send out secret messages everywhere. Demon Subduing Officers who saw the secret messages and whose strength was above the fourth rank were required to go to the Four Symbols Prefecture if time allowed, to secretly investigate, retrieve the Vermilion Bird Blood from Fang Jingzhou, and bring it back to the Great Shang intact.

"It's an emergency summons. This is extremely rare," Ning Xiu thought to himself after reading the letter.

Such summons letters, like the one he was holding, are rarely seen under normal circumstances. They are only issued by the Demon Extermination Bureau in the event of a major emergency, so that the Demon Extermination Officers who are on missions outside will be informed.

Each emergency summons, if completed, yields a substantial amount of merit, and the successful candidate also receives a reward, just like when Ning Xiu and Qin Daorong requested the Purple Lightning Hammer.

Compared to the evil spirits occurring in the states within the Great Shang territory, the danger level of missions carried out in foreign territories not under Great Shang rule is undoubtedly much higher, with a persistently high mortality rate.

The most common deaths among the Demon Slayers in the Demon Slayer Division are in the outer realms, with their remains never being recovered.

"The reward for reclaiming the Vermilion Bird's Blood should be pretty good. Maybe I can go find the Demon Buddha and ask him to go to the outer realms with me to carry out this mission." Ning Xiu's mind immediately started racing.

The dangers of the outer realms are beyond what most people can even imagine. If it weren't for Ning Xiu, the Demon Buddha, a first-class henchman, he wouldn't have dared to undertake this emergency mission even if he had ten times the courage.

A martial arts master at the third rank wouldn't cause any trouble in the outer regions, where there are many figures that even second-rank and first-rank masters would fear.

Compared to the outer regions, the Great Shang territory was as safe as an ivory tower.

Having obtained the cultivation method for the Heavenly Might Divine Spear from Lu Changqing, Ning Xiu needed a treasure-level spear to unleash the true power of this weapon-controlling technique.

Such treasures are hard to find; they must be crafted by a master craftsman of the Weaponry Path. The top three master craftsmen of the Great Shang Dynasty rarely make a move these days, and ordinary people simply cannot persuade them. If Ning Xiu completes the Vermilion Bird Blood mission, he can ask for a reward and have a master craftsman forge a spirit treasure spear for him.

If this opportunity is missed, it will be virtually impossible to get the divine craftsman to help, so Ning Xiu naturally cannot miss this emergency summons mission.

"Let's go to Donghai Prefecture first, find the Demon Buddha, and then set off for the Outer Realms together." Ning Xiu made up his mind as he stuffed the letter back into the bamboo tube of the Black Feather Falcon.

He reached out and beckoned to a waiter from the inn not far away. All the staff in this inn belonged to the Demon Subduing Division. Even a seemingly insignificant waiter was a skilled martial artist in the martial arts world.

On ordinary days, it can protect the inn from the loss of items and prevent thieves from targeting it, as well as maintain the order of the inn.

Of course, if the Demon-Subduing Guards need anything, they can also be dispatched to do things for them.

"Lord Ning," the waiter greeted Ning Xiu as he ran up to him.

"Please help me ride my strange beast, the Iron-Eating Beast, back to the Demon-Subduing Division in Jingzhou to return it. Here's some silver for you to buy a horse and bring it back from Jingzhou." Ning Xiu took out the silver he carried with him and handed it to the other party, saying, "Every strange beast is a treasure of the Demon-Subduing Division. Please make sure to send it back to Jingzhou safely."

"Yes, Lord Ning, I will certainly fulfill your instructions." The waiter took the silver and replied earnestly.

Ning Xiu nodded, then quickly left the inn and used his lightness skill to leap towards the ferry.

Once they reached the outer realms, the dangers were immense. Riding exotic beasts on their journey would easily kill these obedient beasts that the Beast Taming Workshop had carefully nurtured. Therefore, Ning Xiu did not plan to take the Iron-Eating Beast with him and instead sent it back to Chaotian Capital.

……

When Ning Xiu arrived at the ferry, he was surprised to find an unusually large number of people from Qiantang City, mostly elderly people and women. They were all carrying incense and candles for the temple, as well as offerings such as fruit and pastries, which puzzled Ning Xiu greatly.

How is this going?

The closer you get to the ferry dock, the more people you see kneeling on their own prayer mats, burning incense and silently chanting.

Ning Xiu could only hear what these people were muttering when he got closer.

"May the Dragon King bless my grandson with peace and prosperity."

"Dragon King, please bless my eldest son so that he can pass the imperial examination with flying colors. He has been taking the exam for seven years now."

"Dragon King, my husband is useless. Please bless him to be vigorous and strong, otherwise I will have no choice but to have an affair."

...

All Ning Xiu heard along the way were people praying to the Dragon King. But why were they gathering in groups at this ferry crossing instead of going to the Dragon King Temple to pray to the Dragon King?

When Ning Xiu pushed through the crowd to the ferry crossing and saw the surface of the Dragon King River, he finally understood the reason.

The dragon was now coiled up in a ball and floating on the water's surface. Its eyes were closed, and its whole body was emitting a pale blue light, which looked dazzling.

Such miraculous signs naturally aroused the people's worship, especially since Qiantang City has always believed in the existence of the Dragon King, and the appearance of the dragon was simply too much for them to bear.

"Still cultivating, huh?" Ning Xiu muttered.

After leaving the dungeon yesterday, he returned to the ferry and observed the dragon for a while. He gradually discovered that the creature seemed to have attached itself to him. It stayed in the Dragon King River without him noticing.

Since both the Thunder Hammer and the Purple Lightning Hammer were inside the dragon's belly, Ning Xiu couldn't easily let them leave him. After all, having witnessed the power unleashed by wielding both hammers together, no one would be willing to give up that power.

Using the Seven Steps to Catch the Cicada's Lightness Skill, Ning Xiu touched the river surface with his toes and approached the dragon. When the distance between them was about ten feet, the dragon suddenly opened its eyes.

Upon seeing that it was Ning Xiu, it immediately stretched out its body happily and swam over across the river.

"We should go now, follow me." Ning Xiu waved his hand and flew towards the lower reaches of the Dragon King River. Following the Dragon King River, they could reach the Yellow River, and then follow the Yellow River to its estuary, where the East Sea Prefecture was located.

Once you find the Demon Buddha Ning Xiu, you can take him to the Four Symbols Continent in the Outer Realm.

As soon as Ning Xiu moved, the dragon quickly followed, its speed in the water even faster than Ning Xiu's lightness skill.

With a sudden plunge into the riverbed, it lifted Ning Xiu off the surface a few breaths later using its head to prop him up, carrying him rapidly away into the distance.

Seeing that the dragon had actually left, the people of Qiantang City at the ferry crossing shouted anxiously.

"He's gone! The Dragon King is gone!"

"Who is that person? Why did the Dragon King leave with him?"

"Could it be that this young man is the real Dragon King, and the dragon is merely his servant?"

"Oh my god! So I've seen the Dragon King in his true form."

The entire ferry crossing instantly erupted in a cacophony of voices, with some of the painters present even taking out their pens and paper and, relying on their memories, beginning to sketch Ning Xiu's figure and appearance on the paper.

It is believed that a brand new statue of a deity will soon appear in the Dragon King Temple in Qiantang City.

……

A place deep in the mountains and forests.

Several young and strong porters were carrying two bamboo baskets on their shoulder poles as they moved forward.