Since the life-saving benefactor spoke, Shu Qing believed he should wholeheartedly assist.
He rolled up his sleeves to help but, being inexperienced with such tasks, managed only to draw scolding from Hu Yuyu after a short while.
"That thing isn’t valuable—taking it is useless. We need to take the valuable ones."
Shu Qing blushed furiously and hastily imitated her, picking only items that looked valuable.
Before long, the head of Ma Tou had nothing left but his skin and fur.
"There’s quite a haul here—more than Bear Captain ever had. Perhaps because he carried so many belongings? But now they’re all ours for the taking."
Jiang Liu’er stored the valuables one by one into his Sumeru Ring.
This skill left Shu Qing speechless; he’d forgotten to wipe the blood from his clothes after handling the corpse.
Awestruck, he stammered, "The Sleeve of the Heavens?"
"This is the Sumeru Ring," Jiang Liu’er said. "If I had the Sleeve’s power, I’d head straight for Lang Wují instead of dealing with these minor demons first."
"Wolf Wují is the king of Wolf Gorge Cave, right?" Remembering how close Ma Tou had come to killing him, Shu Qing timidly asked, "What’s his cultivation level?"
Jiang Liu’er replied, "Around three hundred years."
Shu Qing nearly fainted.
Starting his journey as a novice, to target such a monster already… He’d truly been reckless!
Jiang Liu’er pointed at the large pig head Shu Qing carried. "I saw this pig demon at Wolf Wují’s wedding feast—he even gave a gift. You killing him shows some skill, though still inferior to mine."
"Then… why are you carrying this pig head around?" Jiang Liu’er asked curiously.
Shu Qing explained, "To exchange it for travel funds at the local authorities."
Jiang Liu’er raised an eyebrow.
"How so?" Jiang Liu’er, who’d suffered poverty, perked up at the mention of funds.
Shu Qing answered, "When the Emperor ascended, he issued an edict: any citizen slaying a demon may present the head to local authorities for reward money—one guan per demon."
"Though meager, it puts demon corpses to use. At least we can exchange them for travel funds."
Hearing this, Hu Yuyu gasped and began counting on her fingers.
Jiang Liu’er froze.
"Benefactor, we lost 135 guan. A guan is 1,000 coins…" The fox spirit struggled with the math.
Jiang Liu’er calculated grimly, "That’s 135,000 coins—nearly a thousand catties in weight."
Silence fell.
Hu Yuyu’s excitement faded. "I can’t even fathom that amount," she sighed, her ears drooping.
Jiang Liu’er resolved, "No more losses! From now on, we’ll take demon heads for payment!"
He drew the Celestial Sea Sword to decapitate Ma Tou.
…
The next day, a peculiar sight appeared in a nearby county: three youths walked side by side. Two carried large heads—one a horse’s head as wide as a millstone, the other a pig’s head as broad as a chopping block, both vaguely humanoid.
An elder gasped, "Those are demon heads! The horse is a horse demon, the pig a pig demon!"
The crowd gathered, some even tugging the horse’s mane or patting the pig’s plump face.
Approaching the county office, Jiang Liu’er remembered his past offense and hesitated.
"I can’t enter," he said. "Hu Yuyu, take the horse head to collect the reward."
"Right, Benefactor!" Hu Yuyu agreed.
The guards, fearing rebellion, were stunned to learn two demon heads were being exchanged.
The county magistrate personally received them, rewarding each with one guan.
"Benefactor, here’s the money!" Hu Yuyu handed Jiang Liu’er the coins.
"Next, do we kill Wolf Wují?"
Jiang Liu’er nodded. "Without defeating him, Elder Faming’s in danger. But my cultivation is lacking. I can handle a two-century demon like Bear Captain, but Wolf Wují’s three centuries…"
He decided to retreat and train.
Shu Qing offered, "If you need help, I’ll risk my life."
Hu Yuyu edged closer to Jiang Liu’er, claiming her place.
…
At Jingguang Temple, the old abbot found Fa Ming chanting the Praise and Supplication to Shakyamuni Buddha.
"Why waste prayers on a murderer?" the abbot asked.
"My heart isn’t pure," Fa Ming replied.
The abbot noticed new wrinkles. His own age etched deeper, unlike Fa Ming’s frozen youth.
"Old age weighs heavy. We must pass the torch to the next generation," Fa Ming said, ending his prayers.
The abbot lingered before departing to the temple gate, where novice Huijing greeted him.
"How old are you?" the abbot asked.
"Eleven," Huijing answered.
"Ah, such a good age," the abbot sighed.
He invited Huijing to accompany him beyond the temple, through ten miles of forest, until reaching a barren hill.
"This is where we meet an old friend," the abbot said.
"But who’d live here?" Huijing asked.
"Many," the abbot replied.
