Start slaying demons from the proficiency panel.

"No, no, I've booked the Spring Breeze Pavilion. Just take me there." Lu Hao urged impatiently. The woman could tell at a glance that this man wasn't into her type. She was leaning against him, but his hands were still behaving themselves.

Anyone who could stay in a place like Chunman Pavilion must be a shrewd and clever person. The woman immediately distanced herself from Lu Hao and took the initiative to walk to the front to lead the way for Ning Xiu and the others.

"Gentlemen, please follow me."

Ning Xiu followed behind the group, his eyes constantly looking around. Having spent more than a year in the champion camp, this was the first time he had come to such a lively place.

In the center of the hall stood a magnificent high platform specifically for entertainers to perform. The staircase leading to the second floor was located to the left of the platform, so when Ning Xiu walked up the stairs, he could clearly see the situation on the platform by looking down.

At that moment, five dancers in blue dresses were gracefully performing on a high platform, accompanied by a beautiful melody composed of pipa, guzheng, and flute, creating a very strong atmosphere.

Just as Ning Xiu was watching the performers dance with great interest, the scene before him suddenly changed.

The five women, who were originally beautiful and graceful, were instantly transformed into white-haired, claw-wielding, and hideous figures, with black and gray mist spreading around them.

As an executioner who had just come out of the Demon Suppression Prison, Ning Xiu was all too familiar with this black and gray mist.

It is precisely the evil aura that only evil spirits can emit!

Before Ning Xiu could show a horrified expression, the scene before him returned to normal, as if the strange phenomena he had just witnessed were all just a hallucinatory dream.

"What's wrong?" Lu Hao, who was walking in front of Ning Xiu, turned around and asked.

Following Ning Xiu's gaze, Lu Hao immediately showed an "I understand" expression on his face, and then put a hand on Ning Xiu's shoulder and said with a wicked smile, "Brother Ning, I know you're craving it, but don't worry, I'll find you something better, just bear with it a little longer."

Ning Xiu was speechless, but he couldn't reveal the strange phenomenon he had just witnessed. He used his Spirit Eye Observation Technique, and the performer on the high platform instantly transformed back into the white-haired evil woman. Only then did Ning Xiu realize that what he had just seen was not an illusion.

It's unbelievable that a malevolent spirit could transform into human form and mingle among the common people in the capital city, where the powerful Demon-Slaying Division is located.

These evil spirits are so arrogant and openly manifest themselves through transformation, completely disregarding the Demon Subduing Division. Ning Xiu absolutely does not believe that there is no powerful figure behind them tacitly approving of this.

Ning Xiu withdrew his gaze, knowing full well that this matter was beyond his control, and could only silently follow Lu Hao upstairs to the second floor.

After discovering the presence of evil spirits within Chunman Pavilion, Ning Xiu would occasionally use his Spiritual Eye Observation Technique to observe his surroundings when no one was looking.

He actually discovered quite a few things. Some of the servants in Chunman Pavilion actually had evil spirits resembling souls inside their bodies. They lived in those servants' bodies like parasites, without affecting each other.

You wouldn't know unless you looked, but once you did, you'd discover that Chunman Pavilion was actually a den of evil spirits, right here in the capital, right under the emperor's nose, and guarded by the Demon Subduing Division.

The appearance of such a place was truly unexpected for Ning Xiu.

"Gentlemen, we have arrived at Spring Breeze Pavilion." The plump woman pushed open the door, revealing the spacious layout of the room.

After Lu Hao and the others entered, Ning Xiu suddenly said, "Brother Lu, you guys play first, I'm going to the outhouse."

"Go back quickly."

Along the way, through his observation of the Qi with his spiritual eyes, Ning Xiu discovered that most of the black and gray mist in Chunman Pavilion was concentrated in the upper levels, which was where the most evil spirits were.

Taking advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention, Ning Xiu secretly went up the stairs to the third floor, intending to find out what was going on.

The eerie atmosphere permeating the corridor on the third floor was as thick as a foggy day, mostly emanating from the various private rooms on both sides of the corridor.

Ning Xiu walked briskly to the window of a private room and then poked a hole in the window paper with his finger.

"Sir, have another drink!"

Through the hole, one could see a scene of extravagance and debauchery inside. Two wealthy businessmen dressed in fine clothes sat at a table, their faces flushed as they downed their wine glasses.

Beside them, eight beautiful women vied to serve them, their skin touching, allowing the wealthy merchant to freely caress them and enjoy all the benefits.

But in Ning Xiu's eyes, the scene inside the house was quite different.

The eight beautiful women were all skeletons dressed in long silk dresses. The two men ignored them and instead stroked the skeletons' ribs and pubic bones with lewd smiles.

During the repeated contact, wisps of white breath could be seen constantly escaping from the mouths of the two men, which were instantly devoured by the eight pink-clad skeletons, making the whole scene extremely eerie.

Who are you?

Just as Ning Xiu was peeking through the window, a shout suddenly rang out behind him.

He turned his head and saw a servant with bloodshot eyes staring at him, who instantly lashed out with a short stick.

Ning Xiu raised his arm and blocked the attack with his bare body. In front of the Golden Bell Shield, this damage was no threat at all.

Before the servant could react, Ning Xiu channeled his inner energy into his right hand and punched him directly in the chest. A crisp sound of bones breaking rang out, and the servant flew backward, lying motionless on the ground.

[Defeat monsters, General Proficiency +100]

As soon as the servant died, his head began to dissolve, and soon turned into a gray rat head.

Since he had already been exposed, Ning Xiu decided to stop pretending and lay his cards on the table.

He grabbed the rat demon's corpse and kicked open the door to the pink skull's private room, then went inside.

Perhaps they never expected someone to break down the door at this time, and both the evil spirits and the people inside were startled.

After Ning Xiu closed the door behind him, the two wealthy merchants, seeing the young man who had appeared out of nowhere, immediately shouted angrily, "Who are you? Do you know where you are?!"

Ning Xiu ignored them and fixed his gaze on the eight skeletal evil spirits: "Come at me all at once."

Seeing the dead rat demon in Ning Xiu's hand, the eight evil spirits immediately understood what had happened. They dropped their wine jugs and rushed towards Ning Xiu.

"Dare to come to Chunmange to kill someone? Tonight, I'll make sure you don't leave this door alive."

"This man looks strong and vigorous; let's drain his life force together."

The evil spirits, despite being skeletons, spoke human language, which made Ning Xiu curious about where their voices were coming from.

Faced with the approaching evil spirits, Ning Xiu forcefully grabbed one of them and immediately slammed his fist into the other's face.

Under Ning Xiu's punch, the evil spirit's face shattered on the spot, unable to withstand Ning Xiu's punch at all.

[Defeat evil spirits, General Proficiency +200]

At this moment, two evil spirits sneaked up behind Ning Xiu and forcefully reached down and stabbed into his back.

However, the moment their fingers made contact with Ning Xiu's body, a powerful shockwave shattered their finger bones, rendering them completely incapable of causing any injury to Ning Xiu.

Instead, Ning Xiu threw a powerful punch, his surging internal energy shattering the two evil spirits on the spot.

[Defeat evil spirits, General Proficiency +200]

[Defeat evil spirits, General Proficiency +200]

Three evil spirits were easily eliminated, and the remaining five were clearly panicked. These skeleton evil spirits were best at disguise, illusion, and bewitching men, and they cultivated by absorbing male energy.

However, he is not outstanding in combat. He is fine against ordinary people, but when he encounters someone like Ning Xiu, who is at the ninth level of martial arts, he is just cannon fodder.

Seeing their fear, Ning Xiu, to prevent these evil spirits from escaping and calling for help, immediately quickened his pace.

Before any of the evil spirits could reach the door, Ning Xiu had already killed all eight skeleton evil spirits inside the house.

In just a short while, 1700 points of general proficiency were gained.

Ning Xiu couldn't help but sigh to himself, "It feels familiar."

Having witnessed Ning Xiu cruelly murder eight beautiful women in one fell swoop, the two wealthy businessmen, who had previously been arrogant, sat trembling in their chairs, too afraid to move.

At this moment, in their eyes, Ning Xiu had become an unreasonable bloodthirsty butcher.

The two remained silent, looking down at the wine in their glasses, fearing that Ning Xiu's next target would be them.

These mortals lack spiritual eyes and cannot see the true face of evil spirits. Ning Xiu does not blame them. However, he is currently in the lair of evil spirits and does not know if there are other, more powerful evil spirits inside. Ning Xiu does not want to make things worse.

Gaining 1700 points of general proficiency was already an unexpected bonus. After glancing at the two wealthy merchants who dared not meet his gaze, Ning Xiu stepped forward and knocked them unconscious with a single chop to the neck.

After doing all this, Ning Xiu quickly left the house, closed the door, and returned to the second floor along the way he came, pretending that nothing had happened.

……

Not long after Ning Xiu left, two servants arrived at the door of the private room.

"Where did Lao Ba go? Shouldn't it be on patrol right now?"

"I don't know, maybe it went somewhere to steal some food."

"The Eighth Prince is well aware of the Madam's methods. It cannot act on its own; otherwise, if something goes wrong, no one can protect it."

Just as the two servants were wondering what was going on, one of them suddenly noticed the hole that had been poked in the window of the private room.

He hurried forward to peek inside, and immediately saw the scene clearly.

The servant's expression changed instantly: "Oh no! Something's happened!"

The two rushed into the room and were speechless at the mess it was in.

"Quickly, go and report to Steward Chu!"

[009] The Demon's Pursuit

When Ning Xiu returned to Chunfeng Pavilion, Lu Hao and the others had already begun drinking and enjoying the company of beautiful women.

Seeing that Ning Xiu had taken so long to return, Lu Hao hurriedly urged, "Brother Ning, you've been in the outhouse for far too long. Come, come, sit down and punish yourself with three cups of wine."

“No problem.” Ning Xiu calmly found a seat and sat down. No one would guess that he had just killed several evil spirits on the third floor of Chunman Pavilion.

After a few rounds of drinks, the atmosphere in the room gradually became more harmonious, and the initial awkwardness among the group disappeared as they drank.

Seeing that Lu Hao and the others were enjoying themselves, Ning Xiu thought that this was the right time to ask, so he asked, "Brother Lu, do you know who owns Chunman Pavilion? To be able to run such a large-scale brothel in Chaotian City, the person behind it must be no ordinary person."

Upon hearing this question, Lu Hao laughed and said, "Brother Ning, you've come to the right person. I do know about this. Have you heard of Marquis Wuyi?"

Ning Xiu nodded: "I know, one of the thirty-six marquises of the Shang Dynasty, a relative of the emperor."

Lu Hao sighed, “The Marquis of Wuyi was once a devoted man who loved only Lady Han, whom he married in his youth. But life is unpredictable. Lady Han died unexpectedly a few years ago, and the Marquis of Wuyi changed his mind overnight. He began to seek pleasure and indulge in debauchery. There are at least eight hundred or a thousand young women he has brought into his mansion. A year ago, he even opened this Chunman Pavilion, a place for people to seek pleasure.”

"Will Marquis Wuyi interfere with the daily revenue management of Chunman Pavilion?" Ning Xiu asked.

“Brother Ning, what a question you ask. Who is Marquis Wuyi? He is one of the Thirty-Six Marquises, and there are countless people working for him. Why would he need to get involved in a Chunman Pavilion? Of course, someone else will manage it for him without any problems.”

Ning Xiu picked up his wine cup and remained silent. Chunman Pavilion, an enterprise established by Marquis Wuyi, had become a place where evil spirits hid and harmed the people.

It's unclear whether the Marquis of Wuyi is behind all of this, or if someone is using the Marquis of Wuyi's protection to do shady things.

Just as Lu Hao was speaking eloquently, the door of the Spring Breeze Pavilion was suddenly pushed open from the outside, and a plump woman led three servants straight in.

This scene took Lu Hao by surprise, leaving him wondering what was going on.

However, he quickly realized what was happening and immediately stood up angrily, saying, "What do you mean? You dare to barge into my room? Are you trying to kick me out?"

Taking advantage of the chaos, Ning Xiu quietly used his Spirit Eye Observation Technique and saw that behind the plump woman, the three servants all had horrifying appearances with festering sores on their faces, blank eyes, and long arms hanging to the ground. They were actually evil spirits in disguise.

Outside, a long-armed, long-legged, bamboo-like evil spirit slowly crawled past, completely ignored by the wealthy young men walking beside it.