Chapter 116: Unafraid of Demons, Undying Before Dragons

Page 1 of 3

After making all the necessary arrangements in Hangdu, Zhou Bai immediately prepared to leave. The journey ahead was long, and he naturally did not wish to delay.

Still, sharpening one’s tools before chopping wood was never wasted effort. After hurrying about all morning, he arrived at the entrance to Hangdu’s market, intending to buy a horse for the road.

He had exchanged the black robes of the Nether Registry Office for a relatively ordinary white robe. Since his bald head was too conspicuous, he also wore a bamboo hat.

He then used his disguise art to make slight alterations to his appearance. His basic features remained unchanged, but he now looked considerably more rugged, befitting a seasoned wanderer of the martial world.

Following behind Zhou Bai was a yellow-coated mongrel, a little over a meter long. It wagged its head cheerfully and kept rubbing against his trouser leg.

The dog was a hybrid demon named Yellow, created to lure out the Celestial Hound.

Perhaps because Xianyu had forcibly infused it with demonic aura, it had not undergone the transformation toward human form common among ordinary hybrid demons. Instead, it had remained a mongrel from beginning to end.

Nor did it possess the bloodthirstiness of ordinary demons. Its intelligence remained exactly as it had been before, without the slightest increase.

Zhou Bai had originally intended to butcher it and see whether he could gain any points. Unexpectedly, after Yellow became a hybrid demon, it awakened a demonic art called Ten-Thousand-Li Scent Tracking.

So long as it had an object bearing someone’s scent, Yellow could sniff out the general direction in which that person lay. The name was somewhat exaggerated, however. With its extremely meager demonic aura, a hundred li was probably its limit.

The ability was useful enough. Zhou Bai had therefore brought Yellow along for his journey to Xuzhou. Fortunately, the dog was obedient, saving him the trouble of taming it.

Zhou Bai also put the rather conspicuous butcher’s knife into his storage pouch, leaving only the Tang saber hanging at his waist. Through the art of Spirit Fusion, even the saber’s appearance had changed to some degree.

With his new attire and altered appearance, even Wen Meng and the others would have trouble recognizing him. As for Wang Lei, who knew him best, he might not recognize him either.

The old man selling horses at the market spotted the broad-shouldered man approaching from a great distance and immediately hurried forward with an ingratiating smile.

“Good sir, what kind of horse are you looking for? I have everything here.”

“You call this everything?”

Zhou Bai cast a glance at the few uneven, aging horses tethered to the wooden posts nearby. There were little more than a dozen of them.

The old man was not embarrassed in the slightest. He rubbed his hands together and said with a smile, “These are merely the ones left over that nobody wanted. The real treasures naturally couldn’t be left out here. They’re tethered in the courtyard of my home.”

“Since when did horse traders settle down?”

Page 1 of 3

Page 2 of 3

Zhou Bai found this rather strange. Generally speaking, horse traders were nomadic, driving their herds from town to town while transporting and selling various goods along the way.

The old man’s voice was full of delight. “There’s a horse ranch outside Hangdu, isn’t there? Over the years, I saved up a little money and bought the place. From now on, I’ll be raising horses there.”

“Doesn’t that bother you? I heard demons once appeared at that horse ranch.”

“What’s there to fear? Immortal Master Zhou personally slew those demons. Wait a little longer, and the place won’t be worth the same price.” The old man was utterly unconcerned, and it was clear that he possessed a fair amount of courage.

“All right, then. Let me take a look first. Perhaps I’ll find one here that catches my eye.”

After all, the journey to Xuzhou would cover several hundred, perhaps even a thousand li. Relying solely on his feet would be exhausting.

He had come to the market hoping to try his luck, but ordinary mortal horses naturally held no appeal for him. He could travel faster simply by circulating his energy and walking.

“Of course, good sir. You’re a stranger here, so if you take a fancy to any of these horses, I’ll sell it to you cheaply.”

Zhou Bai nodded slightly, then gave Yellow a kick. “Go. See whether there are any good horses inside.”

The old man froze for a moment, only to watch the mongrel trot joyfully toward the wooden posts.

Before Zhou Bai, Yellow had the harmless look of an ordinary dog. In front of the horses, however, it became something else entirely.

It bared its teeth, the yellow fur across its body standing on end as a faint demonic aura spread outward.

These old horses had all developed a degree of spiritual awareness. The instant they caught the scent of that aura, they recognized its nature and panicked. Yet they were bound tightly to the posts and could not move.

Yellow took another step forward and let out a resounding bark. Most of the old horses immediately collapsed in terror.

Only four remained standing. Zhou Bai was somewhat surprised. To be unafraid of demonic aura meant that these four old horses had already developed to a certain level. Whether they were what he sought, however, remained unknown.

“This… this… this…” The old man did not realize that Yellow was a demon. He only saw his horses frightened nearly to death by a mongrel and felt deeply humiliated.

Zhou Bai patted him on the shoulder and strode forward.

Clearly, a horse that could not be sold was not necessarily unwanted. It might simply have possessed too fierce a temperament, in addition to having reached a certain age.

The first horse was entirely black, with a patch of snowy white on each hoof. Had its belly not been mottled, it would have been the famed Black Cloud Treading Snow.

Page 2 of 3

Page 3 of 3

The second horse was small and thin, utterly unremarkable at first glance. Its eyes were somewhat clouded, yet its stance was constantly poised to exert force. It was obvious that it had once seen battle.

The third looked the most ordinary of all. Yet under Yellow’s intimidation, wisps of demonic aura were unconsciously roused from its body. It was only a matter of time before it reached the level of a hybrid demon.

The last was skin and bones, but also the tallest. Its horse face was so gaunt that its features had nearly lost their original shape, giving it a somewhat sinister appearance. It was the oldest of the four and was likely already close to death.

Zhou Bai took out some silver and tossed it to the old man, then pointed at the demon horse.

“Send this horse to the Nether Registry Office and let Wen Meng decide what to do with it.”

The moment immortals became involved, the old man hurriedly nodded. He then said with some unease, “You’ve given me too much. That’s enough to buy two horses.”

“It is payment for two horses. I’m taking this one with me.”

Zhou Bai seized the reins of the final old horse and led it toward the market exit. After walking a short distance, he turned back to offer one last reminder.

“Old man, listen to me. Deliver that horse to the office as soon as possible. Take good care of the other two—they would make fine breeding stock.”

The old man scratched his head. After hesitating for a moment, he did as Zhou Bai instructed and brought the demon horse to the office.

He did not know that a single decision had allowed him to avoid a great calamity.

As they walked along the road out of the city, Zhou Bai discovered that the thin horse was clearly still untamed. Its steps were unnaturally hurried, as though it might break free at any moment.

Seeing this, Yellow’s expression turned fierce, and it prepared to protect its master.

Without haste, Zhou Bai placed a hand on the Tang saber at his waist. The blade slid slightly from its sheath, releasing a crisp dragon’s cry.

The commoners lining the street covered their ears one after another, shaken by an inexplicable might. The thin horse, facing the dragon aura directly, merely shook its head and showed no other reaction.

Zhou Bai contentedly stroked the horse’s back and murmured, “Though you possess not even a trace of dragon blood, you do not fear demons, and you can survive the sight of a dragon. That should be good enough for practical use.”

With everything prepared, he left Hangdu at once.

Page 3 of 3