Queen of Ten Thousand Demons Insists on Marrying Me - Chapter 7

The trial mission Tan Taijing received this time was very strange; just before their departure, she suddenly received a message changing the assignment.

The location for the new mission is called Zhujia Town. A few days ago, Yao Xia Palace received a letter from Zhujia Town. The sender, Zhu Zhen, is a peddler who travels year-round, often leaving home for several months at a time. As the New Year approached, Zhu Zhen excitedly returned home, only to be told devastating news by his wife: his only daughter, Zhu Yujie, was to be sacrificed to the Mountain God.

Zhujia Town is one of the largest and most prominent families within a five-hundred-mile radius, with the clan leader having the final say in all town affairs. Zhujia Town had been suffering from drought for years, but this year it was especially severe; the crops in the fields were on the verge of withering. In August, the ancestral hall hired wave after wave of Daoist priests, slaughtered three pigs, and organized several rain-seeking rituals, yet none yielded the slightest result, leaving the common people grumbling with worry. Zhu Liang, the clan leader of Zhujia Town, had even developed a considerable amount of white hair from stress.

One day, Zhu Liang had a dream. The scene in the dream resembled a fairy land, and in the distance stood a young man shrouded in an aura of celestial energy. This young man told Zhu Liang that he was the Mountain God of Huangping Mountain next to Zhujia Town, responsible for guarding the villagers in this area. Seeing the town’s people suffering, he was compelled to appear and communicate through a dream to the clan leader. Following the Mountain God’s instructions in the dream, the clan leader took several people into the mountain. After they emerged, a series of heavy rains fell within three days, resolving the crisis for the townspeople. The townsfolk later built a Mountain God Temple in the mountains, which has since seen a continuous stream of worshipers, incense, and offerings.

However, a few days ago, according to Zhu Liang, the Mountain God appeared to him in another dream. The god forewarned that a major flood would strike the upper reaches of Zhujia Town next year, which would affect the town. The water would reach two zhang (approx. 6.7 meters) deep, and a plague would follow the flood, leaving no villager alive. Zhu Liang woke up pale and couldn’t sleep for several nights. A few days later, the Mountain God sent him another dream. This time, the Mountain God claimed to have a method to survive this calamity but reluctantly stated that it required two children—a boy and a girl.

Since the unfortunate Zhu Zhen was away year-round, Zhu Liang and the entire town’s populace, taking advantage of his family being a lonely woman and daughter, selected Zhu Zhen’s daughter, Zhu Yujie. When Zhu Zhen returned home, he was struck as if by lightning. It took him a long while to recover before he sought help from a peddler from another region to send the letter to the closest immortal sect, Yao Xia Palace.

What should have been a half-day’s journey was forcefully compressed by Tan Taijing at full speed into a single hour.

Just as the group landed, heavy goose-feather snow began to fall from the sky. Zhujia Town, with its black tiles and white walls, was bisected by a river. In the dead of winter, the river had long been frozen. Within moments, the small town was enveloped by a blanket of white. Distant pavilions and terraces, and nearby ancient bridges and memorial arches, were quickly covered in snow…

Lu Xiaoxiao jumped off the flying sword, rubbing her red hands: “Let’s grab a bite to eat and warm up before we start.”

Tan Taijing nodded slightly and led the group toward the town center. As it was winter and snowing, they didn’t see a soul along the way. After walking for roughly the time it takes an incense stick to burn (about 5–10 minutes), the group finally found an inn and requested a private room. Perhaps business was slow in the winter, as the waiter was unusually enthusiastic in recommending dishes, rattling off a string of names: lamb skewers, quail soup, fried duck stomach, shark fin sashimi, blood pudding, and candied sculpted flowers. It seemed he was set on fleecing Tan Taijing for a grand meal. However, Lu Xiaoxiao accepted every suggestion, and finally ordered two pots of the inn’s liquor.

Lu Xiaoxiao picked up a slice of sashimi and stuffed it into her mouth, cheeks puffed out, saying: “This Yao Xia Palace is good in every way, except for the food. There’s barely any meat. Cultivation is cultivation, so why must we eat only vegetables?”

Lu Wanbai and Mei Yuanhua nodded in agreement while continuously eating. Tan Taijing ate slowly and meticulously, but the others barely managed a few bites of the candied sculpted flowers. Lu Xiaoxiao secretly thought: This demon is both picky and protective of her food. Eating so many sweets, isn’t she afraid of getting bad teeth?

After eating and drinking their fill, the tabletop was a complete mess. If the waiter hadn’t noticed their extraordinary clothes, he might have thought they were refugees fleeing famine. Lu Xiaoxiao had a couple of sips of the liquor and was so sleepy she was ready to go upstairs and rest. As Tan Taijing was slow to call for the bill, Lu Xiaoxiao had an uneasy feeling and finally asked, “Tan Taijing?”

Tan Taijing replied calmly, “What is it?”

Lu Xiaoxiao said, “I’m full, and I’m a little tired. It’s not convenient to act in broad daylight, so let’s go out tonight.”

Tan Taijing continued calmly, “Mhm.”

Lu Xiaoxiao raged in her heart: ‘Mhm’ my butt! Pay the bill!

Mei Yuanhua seemed to notice her predicament and said awkwardly, “It’s been too long since I was down the mountain. I only have spirit stones on me, not silver money.”

The four looked at each other, their eyes finally falling on Lu Xiaoxiao. Tan Taijing actually blushed, which was rare, and said to Lu Xiaoxiao, “You go pay the bill.” When had a great demon ever dined and dashed? She had actually forgotten to bring money when inviting people to dinner.

Lu Xiaoxiao, the penny-pincher, shouted back, “Why should I! You can have my person, but not my money!”

Upon hearing this, the faces of the remaining three were a sight to behold. Mei Yuanhua’s face was as pale as a wall. Lu Wanbai’s face was crimson as she covered it, secretly wondering: When did things progress so quickly between these two? How could I not have known about this?

Tan Taijing’s expression was a mix of white and red: “Stop talking nonsense! Just consider it a loan from me. What do you mean ‘my person’? I simply asked you to come and help.” After she said this, Mei Yuanhua’s face improved, and Lu Wanbai looked suddenly enlightened. If things had progressed to that level, she surely would have been able to spot some clues.

Hearing that it was a loan, Lu Xiaoxiao finally called the waiter to settle the account. The total for the meal and lodging came to ten taels of silver! The mortal world was indeed full of black markets.

After returning to her room, the slightly tipsy Lu Xiaoxiao fell asleep immediately and wasn’t woken up until the hour of Xu (7–9 PM) by the others to discuss the mission. In the end, the four decided to split into three groups: Lu Wanbai and Mei Yuanhua were separately responsible for gathering information at the homes of the boy and girl victims, while Tan Taijing and Lu Xiaoxiao were to investigate Zhu Liang’s house and the ancestral hall.

Just before heading out, Mei Yuanhua shyly produced a Sub-Meridian Compass and lent it to Tan Taijing. According to him, this compass was a family heirloom, capable of detecting demonic qi within a few miles, and was the only one of its kind in the world. He hoped it could help Tan Taijing with the mission. Lu Xiaoxiao was quick-witted and snatched it up: “Thank you for your kindness, but this thing is too heavy. As your teammate, I’ll hold onto it for Tan Taijing.” Seeing Tan Taijing present, Mei Yuanhua couldn’t flare up. He gave a stiff-faced farewell and left.

Only when everyone had left and it was just Tan Taijing and her remaining did she take out the compass to examine it closely. The compass was made of one-hundred-year-old Tiger-Bone Wood and felt somewhat heavy in her hand. The craftsmanship was exquisite, and it worked exceptionally well, as the needle was pointing directly at Tan Taijing and didn’t move. Lu Xiaoxiao looked at the compass, then at Tan Taijing, and then raised her finger to point at her, saying, “Your Demonic Qi is leaking out.”

Tan Taijing snatched the Sub-Meridian Compass back, her face a mask of disbelief. She took out the Concealment Pearl worn around her neck and confirmed that it was ineffective under the compass’s magnetic needle—it could no longer help her hide her demonic qi. Her expression was so dark it looked as if water would drip from it. Lu Xiaoxiao was trying to think of something to comfort her when she saw her clench her fist and punch the compass twice. After punching it twice, she punched it twice more…

“See, it’s fixed.”

Lu Xiaoxiao cautiously took the Sub-Meridian Compass. Is this ‘fixed’? She thought. It’s broken. The surface of the Sub-Meridian Compass looked fine, but Lu Xiaoxiao felt the compass trembling in her hand, and the needle was spinning non-stop. Tucking the Sub-Meridian Compass away, Lu Xiaoxiao quickly followed Tan Taijing, swallowed, and said, “I can now confirm you are not a Fox Demon.”

You must be a Wild Boar Demon or a Black Bear Demon.

The night was deep. Not a single lamp was lit on the streets; only a single full moon hung serenely in the sky. The moonlight shimmered, spilling onto the road as if covering it with a layer of glistening frost. Lu Xiaoxiao followed closely behind Tan Taijing, and the two walked forward in silence.

Their heavy footsteps crunched on the snow, making a kā chī kā chī sound, and fine particles of snow constantly hit their faces. Borrowing the moonlight, Tan Taijing’s slender silhouette was reflected in Lu Xiaoxiao’s eyes. Every movement was exceptionally clear; even her clothes, which fluttered when she stepped, looked remarkably graceful.

Perhaps because the surroundings were too quiet, Lu Xiaoxiao felt herself becoming lighter along with the fluttering hem of the person in front of her.

Looking at Tan Taijing’s back, she rubbed her nose and said, “With the snow falling so heavily, going to investigate tonight isn’t a smart move, is it? Tomorrow morning, when people clear the snow, they’ll see the footprints.”

Tan Taijing replied calmly, “We can’t delay any longer. The sacrifice is the day after tomorrow. We’ll fly in on the sword later and land under the eaves.”

Another period of silent walking followed.

After following Tan Taijing for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea (about 5 minutes), the two finally saw a wooden gate tower. On the front of the gate tower, dougong (bracket sets) were densely arrayed under the eaves, and the horizontal beam was carved with a pattern of two dragons playing with a pearl. Above it were the four characters: Zhu Clan Ancestral Hall.

The two flew over the wall on a sword and landed under the eaves of the innermost building. Zhujia Town is small, but the Ancestral Hall was quite large, having three courtyards in total. Only the middle room was lit with candlelight.

The moment Lu Xiaoxiao pushed the door open, she saw densely packed spirit tablets and the light of white candles. Sneaking into someone’s ancestral hall in the middle of the night was indescribably eerie. Lu Xiaoxiao wanted to ask Tan Taijing if ghosts existed in this world, and if so, whether the people represented by these tablets were watching them. But she was afraid of saying it aloud and being heard by the ghosts in the hall, so she could only remain silent and follow quietly behind Tan Taijing.

Tan Taijing circled the room and then picked up a white candle from in front of the spirit tablets before leaving.

Lu Xiaoxiao put her hands together and silently chanted a few times: “Sorry to disturb you, sorry to disturb you…” She immediately ran out after her, grabbed Tan Taijing’s arm, and said, “Are you cold? I’ll warm you up.”

Tan Taijing glanced at her and continued along the corridor toward the back. A few trees were planted inside the ancestral hall, but in winter, only bare, withered branches remained. As the wind and snow blew through, they made a suō suō sound, as if someone was running quickly toward the two of them from behind.

The room in the back was locked. Tan Taijing pried open the window, and the two climbed inside. This room was much larger than the one with the spirit tablets and was crammed with many densely packed boxes. Lu Xiaoxiao felt something was off. Under Tan Taijing’s strange gaze, she picked up the candle and walked toward the boxes.

Lu Xiaoxiao jumped back a full zhang (about 3.3 meters) in surprise: “Damn it! Why is this a pile of coffins!”

Tan Taijing let out a soft chuckle: “Well, well! Good jumping ability; stronger than us demons.”

Lu Xiaoxiao angrily said, “You saw them, so why didn’t you tell me beforehand?”

Tan Taijing laughed as she walked past her: “Your guts are too small; you should train them.”

Lu Xiaoxiao, still annoyed, shook her fist at Tan Taijing’s back, then quickly picked up the candle, grabbed the hem of Tan Taijing’s clothing, and followed her. After walking back and forth twice, Tan Taijing’s brows furrowed. It was coffins, nothing but coffins—likely custom-made ones the Zhu family members had prepared for themselves in advance.

Just as she was about to leave, Lu Xiaoxiao spoke up: “Don’t you think that wall over there is a bit strange? The entire room is full of coffins, but there’s a nanmu curio shelf right here. It doesn’t look like an old, discarded item. Also, all these coffins have a layer of dust on them, so why is the area around this curio shelf so clean?”