Back To When The Demon Lord Was A Beggar - Chapter 8

Seeing her distress, Chu Nanzhen hurried forward to help her up, frowning as he spoke in a gentle voice. “Please, stand up first, then tell us exactly what happened to your son.”

The old woman took a deep breath, wiping away a stray tear with a trembling hand. “Early this morning, my son went into the woods to chop wood,” she began weakly. “When he didn’t return after half a day, I went out to look for him. I ran right into him the moment I stepped out the door, but in the next second, my son’s eyes just… they fell right out! His body shriveled up instantly, like he’d been sucked dry!” Her frame shook with uncontrollable sobs as the tears began to flow again.

Zhi Shiyi stood nearby, hands clasped behind his back. “Did you report this to the authorities?” he asked calmly.

The city was full of magistrate offices scattered throughout. For such a gruesome death, the logical step would be to seek a local investigator, yet she had gone to great lengths to come directly to the City Lord’s manor.

The woman shook her head feebly. “I didn’t. If the killer could end my son’s life so silently, they can’t be an ordinary person! But oh… my poor son! He was my only child! My only one! His father passed away early, and now our family line ends with him!”

She had a point. The circumstances were too bizarre for a commoner without magical skills to pull off. However, if a cultivator was involved, that was a different story entirely.

“Can we see the body?” Chu Nanzhen asked.

“Yes, of course…” She turned to the people behind her. “Bring him over.”

The group dressed in mourning clothes parted ways, and two men pushed a wooden cart forward. Although the body was covered with a white cloth, it looked strangely flat, with only minor ridges showing, as if only a few branches or stones lay beneath the shroud.

Zhi Shiyi stepped forward, glancing at his companion. “Since when did you learn how to perform an autopsy?”

Chu Nanzhen looked confused. “When did I ever say I knew how to do that?”

“What? If you don’t know how to examine a body, why did you ask to see him!” Hearing this, the old woman’s grief flashed into anger. She grabbed Chu Nanzhen’s wrist with a grip like iron, her eyes burning with a sudden, fierce rage.

He truly hadn’t claimed to be an expert, but her sudden outburst was grating on his nerves. He had simply hoped to find some clues, since any crime usually leaves behind a trace or a flaw.

A burly man in the crowd shouted at the top of his lungs, “If you can’t do it, let the City Lord do it! What’s the point of being the City Lord if you can’t even examine a corpse!”

 Chu Nanzhen turned to look at Zhi Shiyi, only to find the man staring coldly at the burly speaker.

Then, Zhi Shiyi let out a soft, mocking scoff and raised an eyebrow. “As it happens, I don’t know how either.”

The burly man went silent.

Taking advantage of Chu Nanzhen’s distraction, the old woman gave him a violent shove. He stumbled, nearly hitting the ground, his eyes wide with shock. Fortunately, Zhi Shiyi reacted quickly, catching him by the waist to steady him.

Chu Nanzhen’s heart hammered against his ribs. As he leaned into Zhi Shiyi, he noticed the man’s warmth and that lingering scent, he found himself wanting to breathe it in more deeply, just to steady his nerves.

Seeing them like this, the old woman collapsed onto the ground and clung to Chu Nanzhen’s leg, crying out to regain his attention. “You must avenge my son! He was the only spark left in my house! My only boy!”

The scene finally sparked a flare of temper in Chu Nanzhen. He glared down at the old woman and snapped, “What did you push me for? I’m not the one who killed your son!”

His anger only made her wail louder.

“I don’t care!” she sobbed. “You have to find the killer! If you don’t, I’m never leaving this manor! If you can’t find them, I’ll go to the Emperor himself and tell him to strip you of your title!”

Threats were useless against Zhi Shiyi. He didn’t even care for the imperial throne, let alone the position of City Lord. Besides, the Emperor had seen far too much of the world to fire an official over the rambling of a stranger. To Zhi Shiyi, she simply sounded foolish. He held Chu Nanzhen by the waist and tried to step back, but she held on so tightly that no amount of shaking could dislodge her.

Chu Nanzhen gritted his teeth. “Is there really a need to grip me that hard? Are you trying to tear my leg off?”

The old woman didn’t answer, she just kept clutching him.

For a split second, Chu Nanzhen actually considered if losing the leg would be easier, but he quickly dismissed the thought. He wasn’t about to become a cripple over this.

Resigned, Zhi Shiyi called for Guyu to pull her away. He had considered using a bit of spiritual energy, but given her age, he was afraid he might accidentally break one of her bones, so he decided against it.

“As the City Lord, it is my duty to resolve the people’s troubles,” Zhi Shiyi said, his voice cold. “But that does not include dealing with unreasonable harassment.”

His meaning was clear, he had no patience for those who acted out, and she had certainly crossed a line.

The old woman sat slumped on the ground. Sensing she had overstepped, she lowered her head and went quiet. The burly man quickly stepped in to smooth things over, offering a sheepish smile. “Our apologies, City Lord. She’s just out of her mind with grief. Please, be the bigger man and don’t hold it against her.”

“That’s right,” another added. “My aunt only lost her composure because she loved her son so much. She isn’t usually like this. Please help her, City Lord. Since her son passed, she’s all alone in the world.”

Chu Nanzhen hadn’t gotten a good look at the burly man earlier, but now he noticed the man was actually quite short, half a head shorter than himself, though he was packed with muscle.

“I never said I wouldn’t help,” Zhi Shiyi replied. Typically, if a citizen came to his door in need, he would agree to investigate.

Chu Nanzhen tugged on his sleeve and whispered with a frown, “How are you going to investigate if you can’t even examine the body?”

Zhi Shiyi looked down and offered a faint smile. “Your thoughts are my thoughts.”

Chu Nanzhen was speechless.

Despite his lack of medical knowledge, Chu Nanzhen did feel for the woman. He figured he could find some flaw in the killer’s work, and if all else failed, he could find an expert or learn as he went.

The old woman sighed. “City Lord, if you can find the one who harmed my son, I will serve you like a slave! Just don’t let the killer go!”

“That won’t be necessary,” Zhi Shiyi declined coldly.

He had been City Lord for five years. He was here to serve the people, not to be served by them. Even the maids and guards in his manor were employees, not servants bound by contracts to be bought and sold.

He continued, “Leave the body here. The rest of you may go home and wait.” He spoke with such confidence that it sounded as if he already had the mystery solved.

The old woman and the burly man exchanged a glance. After a moment of silence, they looked at the body and nodded. She stood up and said, “I live in the village at the edge of the city. If there is news, please let me know. And if you find the culprit, please let me see them. I want to see what kind of monster dared to kill my son!”

With that, she led the group away.

Once they were out of sight, Chu Nanzhen finally stepped out of Zhi Shiyi’s arms. “You really just took the case? What if you can’t figure it out and they come back to harass you?”

“Are you worried about me, Young Master?” Zhi Shiyi smiled playfully.

Chu Nanzhen froze, looking at him with a look that suggested he thought the man was incredibly narcissistic.

He turned his head away with a huff. “What are you talking about? It’s just because we’re partners, so I figured I should help you out a bit.”

In the days since he’d arrived, he had done nothing but eat, sleep, and wander around the courtyard to kill time. Zhi Shiyi hadn’t given him a single task. Getting paid for doing nothing made him uneasy, so helping with this felt like a way to clear his conscience.

“And how do you plan to help?” Zhi Shiyi asked.

“How else? By looking at the body, you dummy!” Chu Nanzhen walked over to the cart and whipped away the white cloth. A withered skeleton met his eyes. The skull had completely detached from the neck and sat to the side, while the rest of the body was exactly as the old woman described, sucked dry.

There were still bits of flesh and skin clinging to the bones, which reminded him of the eunuch who had died in the Foggy Forest, though this person was in even worse shape. Ordinarily, there should have been a foul stench, but there was none. Instead, there was a faint, delicate fragrance.

It felt familiar, like he had smelled it somewhere before.

Hearing himself called a “dummy,” Zhi Shiyi felt a strange sense of pride. He tilted his head back and laughed softly. “A clever method indeed.”

“It certainly is,” Chu Nanzhen muttered, his focus entirely on the corpse. He reached out to touch a leg bone, but the moment his finger made contact, a cloud of black mist erupted! In an instant, the bone crumbled into fine powder.

His hand stayed frozen in the air. The black mist had already vanished, leaving him stunned.

As if his body were being controlled by someone else, he turned his head stiffly toward Zhi Shiyi. “That… wasn’t just ‘clever.'”

Zhi Shiyi’s smile faded. He strode over, scanned the remains, and leaned down to catch the scent. His eyes flickered as he straightened back up. “This was the work of a demon.”

“The demons in the Foggy Forest have already claimed so many lives.” Zhi Shiyi raised an eyebrow. “He was quite brave, or perhaps just foolish. Going to a place like that without any spiritual energy is a death sentence.”

“Even with spiritual energy, you’d probably die there anyway,” Chu Nanzhen grumbled. “Why don’t we just tell them it was the Demon Mist? If they want to see the killer, they can go to the forest themselves. It’s not like we can drag it back here to meet them.”

Zhi Shiyi nodded with a chuckle. “True enough. We were lucky to make it out last time.”

Guyu spoke up then. “City Lord, should I go?”

“No need.” Zhi Shiyi waved her off. “Since it’s come to this, we’ll go pay the Demon Mist another visit. We’ll see if we have enough luck to make it out a second time.”

Chu Nanzhen stared at him in disbelief, his eyes screaming Are you insane? He thought it was madness. They could just tell the woman the truth; there was no need to risk their lives for a stranger. Especially since Zhi Shiyi himself admitted their last escape was pure luck. Were they betting their lives or their luck this time?

You only get one life. How do you bet on that?

Zhi Shiyi looked at Chu Nanzhen’s face, his eyes narrowing into a playful smile. “Gamblers never see the spring, but luckily, it’s already past the beginning of spring.”

“And if we die there? What then?” Chu Nanzhen retorted. “No more life? No more money?”

“If we were lucky once, we can be lucky twice. I’ll be the gambler this time. If things truly turn deadly, I’ll ensure your safety.”

 Chu Nanzhen felt like he was being treated like a coward. He had been a beggar for years, he wouldn’t have survived if he didn’t have some guts. He cleared his throat. “Fine, let’s gamble. But I have one condition.”

Zhi Shiyi’s eyes lit up. “What condition?”

“If we make it back alive, you have to come with me to the Middle City. I need to deliver some peaches to a friend. If I wait any longer… the tree will probably wither.” He had given his word, and he wouldn’t break it. To others, a peach was just a peach, but to the person he used to be, it was a rare treasure.

“Deal,” Zhi Shiyi agreed without hesitation. “Don’t worry. The Demon Mist might eat people, but perhaps there’s a reason for it.”

Chu Nanzhen’s jaw dropped, a giant question mark practically written on his face. “You… you really are crazy! It eats people! What kind of ‘reason’ could it possibly have? What, did it fail to steal some rice and decide to eat humans out of spite?”

Zhi Shiyi found the logic amusing but shook his head. “There are good and bad people, and the same goes for demons. If your family turned into a demon because of some tragic circumstance, would you automatically assume they were evil?”

“Ah…” Chu Nanzhen faltered. It was a fair point, and he found himself unable to argue.

“Your way of thinking is dangerous,” Zhi Shiyi said seriously. “Many disciples in the great sects today are actually demons who have taken human form. If a human breaks the law, they are punished, and it is the same for them. They should be viewed as equals.”

Feeling a bit ashamed, Chu Nanzhen scratched his head. “I won’t say it again,” he mumbled.

He had never been to school, and no one had ever taught him these things. He only learned through experience, which led to his misconceptions. His cheeks flushed a light red, and he felt a bit awkward, something Zhi Shiyi noticed immediately.

“I used to be just like you,” Zhi Shiyi said softly, offering some comfort. “I didn’t understand anything either. You’ll learn more as you stay with me. If there’s something you don’t know, just ask. That’s what questions are for.”

Chu Nanzhen bit his lip and nodded slowly. “Okay.”

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