The Speedrun Begins with Choosing Hunter

Chapter 350: Chapter 344: Shadow Kill

A cool, crisp wind blew past.

The outer robe draped over Fang Ping’s shoulders fell to the ground, but he didn’t notice in the slightest. He just stood there, stunned.

"Jie... Jie’Er?!"

His eyes were glued to the fox-shaped shadow on the ground.

If the person standing opposite him wasn’t his eldest son, he would have yelped and run for his life.

But that was his eldest son...

Forcing down the terror in his heart, he tried to call out to Fang Jie again.

He watched as Fang Jie slowly raised his head, his face twisted into an extremely bizarre, warped smile, just like a cunning old fox!

Seeing this, Fang Ping let out a yelp. A chill shot through his entire body.

He remembered a legend his father had told him in his youth: old fox spirits from the mountains loved to possess people, then kill their families when they least expected it.

At this thought, Fang Ping could no longer worry about Fang Jie.

He used all his strength to shout: "Run!"

His shout shattered the silence of the night.

Inside the house, Li Xiu and Fang E were startled awake.

Panic was written all over Li Xiu’s face. She didn’t know what was happening outside, but driven almost by pure instinct, she ran to Fang E’s bedside, ready to help her daughter escape through the window.

Fang Jie finally spoke.

His voice was sharp, venomous, and bone-chillingly cold...

"Yin Woman..."

His gaze didn’t linger on Fang Ping at all; it was fixed intently on the door to the house.

For some reason, Fang Ping felt that Fang Jie’s voice sounded as if it came from a dead man. ’But can the dead speak?’

Perhaps such an absurd thought was only a product of his overwrought nerves.

Fang Jie lifted his right foot and took a step forward.

But with that single step, he appeared right in front of Fang Ping.

The sight nearly scared Fang Ping to death.

’A demon!’

’It must be a demon!’

Gritting his teeth, Fang Ping prepared to lunge at Fang Jie. He didn’t know if Fang Jie was still alive, but he had to buy enough time for his wife and daughter inside.

Just then—

With a CREAK, the courtyard gate was pushed open.

Fang Ping froze.

He looked in astonishment toward the gate. The newcomers were the two Officials who had been the first to arrive at his house earlier that day.

"Lord Officials, there’s a demon!"

Wu Ma and Ugly Ox had ice-cold eyes.

The two of them attacked, drawing their weapons in unison and surrounding Fang Jie from front and back in the blink of an eye.

Blades clashed, and after just a few moves, they had Fang Jie trapped.

Their coordination was flawless, as if they had trained in a joint attack technique. Their combined assault from both sides multiplied their power.

Fang Jie was gradually overwhelmed and tried to flee.

"Fiend, don’t even think about running!"

Ugly Ox bellowed, raising his blade to block Fang Jie.

But just as his blade was about to fall on Fang Jie’s head, Fang Jie’s body suddenly went limp and collapsed to the ground, as if he had no bones.

At the same time, the fox formed from his shadow broke free on its own and bolted toward the gate.

Just then, a figure stepped out in front of the courtyard gate. He slowly raised his right foot, then brought it down hard, stomping directly on top of the fox shadow.

The shadow actually let out a bloodcurdling shriek that made one’s muscles go numb.

In the same instant, Yue Xiaobai also appeared in the courtyard, blocking the blade that was about to strike Fang Jie.

Seeing it was Yue Xiaobai, Ugly Ox snorted coldly and put away his saber.

Wu Ma stepped forward.

He saw that where there had been nothing but empty ground, the corpse of a fox had now appeared.

"My thanks."

Holding his Long Sword in a reverse grip, he cupped his fist to Bai Yuan.

Bai Yuan crouched down with great interest to examine the Fox Demon’s corpse.

He had killed countless demons and came from a background of Demon Hunters, yet he had never even heard of such a bizarre technique.

If not for the terrifying killing intent of the White Ape Breaks the Mountain, this Fox Demon might have actually escaped.

"What kind of technique is this?"

Wu Ma crouched down as well, just like Bai Yuan.

"I’ve seen a similar technique before, in a volume of the Royal Secret History."

"Oh?"

"This art is called Shadow Kill. It’s a supreme skill for Assassins, but its lineage was supposedly wiped out single-handedly by the Grand Ancestor Emperor. I never expected it to reappear in the world. But as I recall, the art of Shadow Kill can only be practiced by human Martial Artists. Why would a Fox Demon be proficient in such an advanced Cultivation Technique?"

Wu Ma’s face was filled with confusion.

Bai Yuan couldn’t help but think of the Old Ape he had seen before at the Jingyang Mine.

Just like this Fox Demon before him, it too had learned a Cultivation Technique of the Human Race.

If it happened only once, it could still be called a coincidence. But for it to happen twice in a row in Ling Province could no longer be explained away as coincidence.

’There must be an expert guiding these demons from behind the scenes.’

"This matter is strange. I’ll have someone in the Capital City look for information on Shadow Kill. We might find something."

As a Dark Guard, Wu Ma had handled countless bizarre incidents for the Emperor. He had a keen sense that this matter might be related to the Demon Seed.

Bai Yuan: "I’ll be counting on you."

The Dark Guard could freely browse the archives in the Imperial Palace. That privilege alone put them leagues ahead of most constables in the realm.

When it came down to it, solving cases was a competition of who could gather more information.

As long as you knew enough, you could find the truth even if your analytical skills were lacking. And in this world, the one who knew the most secrets was, of course, the Court.

Bai Yuan: "But why would this Fox Demon abduct so many Yin Women?"

Wu Ma shook his head. "I don’t know."

The best way to deal with something incomprehensible is to not think about it.

Perhaps one day, by a stroke of luck, the answer will suddenly become clear. There’s no use in overthinking it.

Bai Yuan and Wu Ma stood up one after the other.

Ugly Ox stood guard in the courtyard, blade in hand. Yue Xiaobai... was staring into space. To be precise, he was "nurturing his sword."

Bai Yuan, however, was more inclined to call it simply "staring into space."

Yue Xiaobai was probably like one of those academic geniuses from his past life—the kind who would be eating a meal while simultaneously coming up with a tenth way to solve a math problem in their head.

No wonder he had achieved such terrifying accomplishments at the young age of forty.

Fang Ping stood nervously by the door to the house.

He wanted to check on his son, but felt too intimidated by the Officials’ uniforms to step forward.

Bai Yuan glanced at Fang Jie on the ground, a trace of surprise on his face.

’He’s still alive?’

He walked over to Fang Jie.

"Do you have any salt and red string in the house?"

Hearing Bai Yuan’s question, Fang Ping nodded repeatedly, though he had no idea what Bai Yuan needed those things for.

"Yes, yes!"

He hurried back into the house and told his wife, Li Xiu, who was standing by the window, to find the salt and red string.

Li Xiu and Fang E also came cautiously to the doorway. The family of three fixed their gazes on this unfamiliar Official.

Wu Ma and Ugly Ox watched Bai Yuan with great interest.

Even Yue Xiaobai, the master of staring into space, showed a rare look of interest.

They watched as Bai Yuan first sprinkled salt around Fang Jie, drawing a circle on the ground, before tying the red string to the pinky finger of Fang Jie’s right hand.

"By the Ancestor’s decree, the Vajra Guardians stand arrayed. A soul captured from a thousand li, quickly return to your true self!"

The chanting slowly rose from Bai Yuan’s lips, ethereal and illusory, like the music of immortals.

After chanting for an unknown number of repetitions, Bai Yuan suddenly roared, "Return at once!"

A scene that astonished everyone in the courtyard unfolded.

The pinky finger of Fang Jie’s right hand, tied with the red string, began to tremble slightly. Then, his eyelids started to flutter.

After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Fang Jie abruptly shot up, gasping for breath.

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