Don't farm, cultivate immortality!

"The braised beef is made with salt, star anise, bay leaves, and other spices. This method of preparation must have been rare in the past," Zhuang Xing said.

"Your cooking is excellent," Bai said. "I've only been here a few days, but I've already tried so many cooked dishes that I've never seen before."

"It's not that I'm particularly skilled; it's just that generation after generation has improved the techniques, and the taste has gradually become better and better," Zhuang Xing said. "I'm just inheriting the legacy of my predecessors."

Zhuang Xingxian chatted leisurely with Bai for a while and drank a few sips of wine.

Although they came out to fish, neither of them cared much about whether the fish would bite or not; they were simply enjoying the atmosphere and satisfying their appetites.

But one by one, he caught two small fish fry. Since the fish were too small, Zhuang Xing released them back into the wild.

Fish plunged into the water, their reflections of white clouds and trees blurred by ripples on the surface.

Zhuang Xing thought it was about time and got down to business.

"Mr. Bai, to be honest, I still have many questions I'd like to ask about the demon race," Zhuang Xing said. "The reason I invited you here fishing today is to inquire about this matter. I wonder if you could tell me?"

"So you're asking for my help. You people are all like this, always wanting to be served first before asking questions." Bai grabbed another piece of meat and took a sip of wine. "However, our ancestors had a prior alliance with those demons, so we can't let them fall into danger. You're asking me about the demons, do you perhaps want to slaughter them all to enhance your sect's foundation?"

“Mr. Bai, I am by no means a bloodthirsty person. Besides, the Xuanqing Temple emphasizes following nature and not doing anything that harms the heavens and the earth,” Zhuang Xing said. “I want to understand the demon race for two reasons. First, to satisfy my curiosity. Second, because I have a prior agreement with the elders of the temple and need to make amends for my own mistakes, I have this idea.”

"Then tell me, if you learned about the demon race from me and found those reclusive demons, how would you handle it?" Bai turned his head and looked at him with great interest.

Chapter 313 Humans Fighting for Food

"I believe that humans and demons can coexist harmoniously," Zhuang Xing said.

"Humans and demons have been irreconcilable since ancient times, so how can there be talk of harmonious coexistence?"

The white fishing rod swayed slightly, as if a fish had taken the bait, but when pulled up, no fish was seen, only the bait on the hook had been eaten clean.

“The panda in my house gets along very well with me,” Zhuang Xing replied.

"That's only because the red panda is shorter and weaker than you." Bai stood up and cast his fishing rod again. "You know they pose no threat to you, so you can treat them with a calm mind. But if it were a wolf or tiger demon, it could use its claws to disembowel you and its sharp teeth to bite your throat. Would you dare let that wolf or tiger demon live in your house?"

“If they were still beasts, they would not dare,” Zhuang Xing said. “But since they have become demons, they must be sentient beings. They have sought the protection of Senior Yinglong, so I think we can communicate with them.”

"But what good is communication?" Bai said. "Why should demons believe in humans? Why should humans believe in demons?"

“As long as we can communicate, we can benefit each other and get what we need,” Zhuang Xing said. “There are no permanent enemies in this world, only permanent interests. If we can find common ground between the two sides, we can naturally live in harmony.”

"Shared benefits..." Bai pondered Zhuang Xing's words carefully. "Then tell me, how can we share shared benefits?"

Zhuang Xing said, "The demon race seeks continuation, while humans seek stability."

"Just like the pandas in my house, they were originally spirits from a wild mountain, but they came to Qingxuan Mountain because they were starving."

“I took them in, provided them with food and shelter, and they cleaned my house, washed the pots and dishes. Their cute appearance also made me feel happy and relaxed. We used this as a bridge to live together harmoniously.”

"Humans should seek mutual benefit with demons, just as demons should seek mutual benefit. Unless the demons have no needs or desires, as long as they have something to gain, and that gain does not harm the fundamental nature of humans, then humans and demons can coexist harmoniously. Mr. Bai, do you agree?"

Bai sat down, holding the fishing rod in one hand, and laughed, "You're quite an interesting person to talk to. But even if what you say is true, how would I know if you came to me to ask about this because you want to live with the demons or because you want to wipe out the demon race in one fell swoop?"

"Human hearts are hard to discern, and even harder to prove oneself," Zhuang Xing said. "No matter how sweet the words are, they are not as good as actions. Even if I swear a solemn oath here, no matter how sweet the words are, I cannot guarantee that what Mr. Bai hears is what I think. Whether or not to tell me about the demon race is up to Mr. Bai."

"Interesting, interesting." Bai clapped his hands. "I thought I had already seen the people outside the mountains, but I didn't expect to hear such words."

"Very well, the alliance has already expired anyway, so saying it out loud won't be considered a breach of contract." Bai picked up his bowl and took a sip of wine. "However, you should know that we will not interfere in matters outside the mountains. Although I like your cooking skills, I will not help you if it causes you trouble."

"I understand," Zhuang Xing said.

Contact with the demon race is bound to be risky.

But rather than letting those demons remain hidden in the shadows and passively confront them in the future, it's better to take the initiative and probe their strength first.

“Alright, let me tell you…” Bai put down his wine bowl and said slowly, “In this Chenzhou region, there are at least three demon races: fox demons, dog demons, and cat demons.”

“Only the weakest demons gather together to form communities. Even if these three races of demons have transformed into demons, they can only keep warm by sticking together. Among them, cats and dogs are numerous in the world. Over the years, although the original races have suffered losses, they have also made progress and barely managed to survive.”

"As for the fox demons, they are fewer in number than the cat and dog demons, but they are all very shrewd and know how to conduct themselves in the world, and this has continued to this day."

"I originally promised them that I would not tell anyone about this, especially not to any other people. But the old fox said, 'Please, sir, do not reveal this, lest you bring disaster upon yourself.' I think it would be a good thing for them to tell you this, so I did."

"May I ask what this is about?" Zhuang Xing pricked up his ears.

“Actually, Qing and I encountered them on our way to find your Taoist temple,” Bai said. “Now, their population is struggling to survive, so they have a plan to steal food from the human population.”

"People taking away food?" Zhuang Xing asked.

I'd only ever heard of snatching food from a tiger's mouth before, but this is the first time I've heard of this novel usage.

If the usage of this idiom is similar to the saying "a tiger eats too much," then it seems that these monsters regard humans as terrifying animals like "tigers."

“There should be more than just the cat, dog, and fox clans,” Bai continued. “But Qing and I only saw them. These demon clans were planning something. Qing and I didn’t go looking for them; they came to us on their own. The few little demons who came to us didn’t recognize Qing and me at first. They just said they wanted to recruit us. It was an old fox who recognized Qing and me and told me about their plan, hoping to get help from us.”

"Mr. Bai refused?" Zhuang Xing asked.

"Things outside the mountains are all in accordance with the way of Heaven," Bai said. "Whether they are born or perish is their own business."

"So what they're plotting is... to steal food from people?" Zhuang Xing asked.

“That should be true,” Bai said. “But this matter is still under planning. They will not make a move until at least autumn. As for how they will do it, I have no idea.”

"Such a thing is true..." Zhuang Xing touched his nose.

Just as he predicted, if people were having a hard time, demons would be even worse off.

That winter, the heroine Yan eliminated many evil spirits outside Yidu City.

Last year, when he brought his younger sister into the city, he also saw demon hunters swaggering into the city to sell the demons they had hunted.

According to his investigation, in recent years, even the originally gentle demon beasts have begun to attack people and trespass into their fields. These demons are probably desperate and have begun to plot such things.

But if it's just about taking food, that's fine. The real problem is that after taking food, they have to fight, kill, and set fires.

Once a fight is started, there's no going back. Even if the authorities want to coexist, it's impossible to find "shared benefits" with them anymore. If someone is hurt or killed, then the very foundation is damaged.

"Where did Mr. Bai encounter those little demons?" Zhuang Xing asked.

"About a month ago, in a deserted old forest to the south, Qing and I came out of the mountains and stumbled upon them while wandering around," Bai said. "If you go now and are lucky, you might be able to find those little demons."

Chapter 314 I will seek justice for you.

Zhuang Xing and Mr. Bai talked for a long time. They arrived early and sat by the lake until evening.

They didn't even go back to the temple at noon. The ingredients for lunch were all taken from the local area. Zhuang Xing lit a fire by the lake, scaled and gutted the river fish he had caught, and made two delicious grilled fish around the small stove.

He had learned most of the details about the demon race by the end of the day.

There's no need to rush.

It was only early summer, spring sowing and autumn harvest. Those little demons were plotting to steal food. Since it was not yet autumn and the grain was not ripe, even if they attacked human villages, they would hardly gain anything.

These little demons are plotting so secretly, clearly because they don't want things to escalate.

If someone reports it to the authorities, or if an exorcist is summoned, it will be very troublesome for them.

If Zhuang Xing was the mastermind behind that demon clan, he would definitely have chosen to make his move after the snowfall.

In snowy weather, transportation is difficult and news is hard to spread. If we act now, we only need to be quick, find a few small villages off the main road, kidnap them all in one go, and then make a quick getaway back to our territory. No one can do anything about it, and it will be absolutely impossible to find their trace.

Moreover, it is precisely during snowy weather that food is hard to find. In summer, there is plenty of sunshine, and in winter, the heavy snow covers the soil and nourishes the vegetation as the temperature warms up in spring. During the period from summer to autumn, there are no droughts or floods, so food should not be too scarce.

It is likely that because the weather froze very early, they were unable to gather enough food to survive the winter in the fall, so they resorted to this desperate measure: "humans stealing food."

It's unclear whether they had previously engaged in such clandestine activities.

But this method only treats the symptoms, not the root cause. If they steal this year and get away with it, won't they still be stealing next winter?

Once they've tasted the sweetness of getting something for nothing, these little devils will inevitably become even more ruthless.

At first, they just fought over food, but later they started killing people before fighting for food, and then...maybe they even started eating people.

When it reaches that point, it becomes a demon that everyone wants to kill.

Perhaps they had been committing petty thefts in people's villages for years, but year by year they have become bolder and bolder, and now they have begun to formally gather forces to openly rob people.

In any case, Zhuangxing would certainly try his best to avoid this happening.

All the grain is grown by the hard work of the people. He is a farmer's son and knows how difficult it was for his father to farm and support the family in those years. Even if the monsters don't harm people but only steal grain, how can people survive if the grain is stolen?

He inquired about the location of the old forest from Mr. Bai, and after that day, he went to Qiluzhai and spoke to Master Qingxuzi about the matter privately.

In the dining hall, there were only Zhuang Xing and the old Taoist priest.

The old Taoist closed his eyes and pondered, then said, "Stealing people's food is no different from murder. According to the consistent style of our Taoist sect, such little demons have already entered the category of evil spirits and must be eradicated one by one."

"However, these little demons haven't done it yet. If you can persuade them to turn back, you'll have done a good deed."

"But these demon races... have a long history, and there may be powerful demons among them. It is best to handle this matter with caution."

“Master, although Mr. Bai said he wouldn’t interfere in external affairs, he still agreed to guide me. With Mr. Bai as my intermediary, the demons won’t attack me right away,” Zhuang Xing said. “The demons are just short of food, so this matter shouldn’t be difficult to discuss.”

"What do you plan to do?" the old Taoist asked. "There are countless demons. If you give them food today, they will thank you. If you give them food tomorrow, they will take it for granted. But if you stop giving them food the day after tomorrow, they will turn against you and resent you, wanting to get more from you. This will only increase the demons' arrogance, and in the future, they may turn against each other."

“Master, I understand this principle,” Zhuang Xing said. “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. I don’t want to give these demons food for nothing. I want to take this opportunity to break down the barriers between humans and demons that have existed for many years. Demons have things they can do, and humans have things they can do.”

"Demons and humans each have their strengths, so why not make use of each other and benefit each other?"

“Child, you make it sound so simple.” The old Taoist shook his head. “But you should know that I have been cultivating for seventy years, from my childhood until now. I have seen countless demons. I have seen many ordinary demons and beasts, and I have also seen many spirits that can speak human language. I know a lot about demons, yet I still have a great deal of fear of them. So where are you going to find a group of people who can live together with demons?”

"Ordinary people would be terrified when they see those monsters, and they wouldn't even be able to speak clearly, let alone associate with them."

"Don't even mention Xuanqing Temple. The temple is a place for cultivation, and it doesn't care about food and seeds."

“Master, I did not intend to use the name of the Taoist sect to vindicate it,” Zhuang Xing said. “I understand Master’s concerns, but I happen to know some people who might be able to get along well with that demon race. Master also knows these people.”

"I know him too?" the old Taoist priest wondered, trying to recall who it might be, but he couldn't.

Zhuang Xing told the old Taoist the name, and the old Taoist paused for a moment, stroking his beard.

"Master, do you think it's worth a try?" Zhuang Xing asked.

"It's worth a try," the old Taoist finally nodded.

“Then I’ll go write a letter first,” Zhuang Xing said. “After the letter is sent, I’ll go to the woods to investigate and see if I can find those demons.”

"Do you have a solution?" the old Taoist priest asked.

“I already have a plan.” Zhuang Xing nodded. “However, it’s not good to bring many people on this trip. Too many people will inevitably frighten those little demons. Once they hide and go elsewhere, the sky is high and the sea is wide, and it may be difficult to find them again in the future. If we hear their voices again, they may have already caused a great disaster. Therefore, I would like to ask if it is possible for only me to go with Mr. Bai on this trip. I hope Master will grant my request.”

Zhuang Xing bowed deeply, performing the disciple's salute.

The old Taoist priest looked at his features for a long time before waving his whisk.