Demons And Demon Hunters.

Suddenly, the crowd halted as if held back by a strong opposing force. Amidst them was a four-year-old girl, expressionless, her face cold. She held up her hand in front of her, and that simple gesture alone was enough to keep the entire crowd motionless.

Gregory, upon seeing the child, wiped a drop of blood from the boy's recent wound and flicked it towards the girl.

The girl didn't dodge; she stood still, waiting. Unexpectedly, as the drop of blood neared her, it accelerated in both speed and force. A flash of surprise crossed the girl's eyes, but she couldn't avoid it in time. The blood hit her forehead, throwing her backward.

With her control lost, the crowd continued to be drawn towards the Pure Yang Beacon, turning into ashes and hair. When there was no one left, Gregory took the boy's hand and walked away, flinging the Pure Yang Beacon back into the village. The flame, encountering the overflowing demonic energy, blazed fiercely. The hair in the air caught fire quickly, spreading rapidly, eventually engulfing the entire village in flames.

Confluence Village ceased to exist. In the midst of the raging inferno, the girl reappeared, watching the old man and child walking away. A faint smile flickered across her face.

The young man, upon hearing Dominic's story, was agape: "Incredible, is Confluence Village far from here?"

Dominic nodded: "Not close."

The young man speculated: "So, the past lives of Aubrey and Allison have reincarnated in those two children, one continuing as a demon, the other continuing to fight them. What about me, with my past life, being reborn as a person with three legs? Could it be that I was just a normal person, and someone else reincarnated as the leg on my buttocks?"

Dominic wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead and shook his head: "I don't think anyone would want to grow on someone else's buttocks."

The young man nodded: "That makes sense, perhaps my past life was as a three-legged person."

"Past lives can be complicated and not easy to decipher. Let me inquire for you, and if I find anything interesting, I'll let you know."

The young man's eyes brightened: "Thank you, mountain goat elder."

"What's your name? And where can I find you next time?"

"Just call me Lotus Shoes. Next time you come to this forest, just ask any snake to call Lotus Shoes, and I'll appear."

As the sun began to peek through the first clouds on the horizon, Dominic finished his story and his jug of wine. The moonlit night faded away, and Lotus had a large snake carry Dominic back to the forest edge. He thanked the snake: "Thank you, little snake."

The snake, paying no heed to his words, turned and slithered away, disappearing into the forest.

Dominic returned home, climbed into bed, and fell asleep, oblivious to the world.

Waking up to find the sky still dark, he wondered: "Strange, have I woken up after just a short sleep?"

Suddenly, he heard a creaking noise, someone opening the door and entering his house. He sat up and went to see. It was Aurora, carrying a tray of food. Surprised, he asked: "Why are you bringing food so early in the morning?"

Aurora appeared even more surprised than him: “Are you still dreaming? You've been asleep since morning, and only now you wake up, thinking it's early dawn!”

Ah, so it was dusk. The twilight moment when the sun sets can be slightly confusing, similar to the early dawn when it rises. Waking up at this time in a deserted place could indeed be misleading.

While having dinner, Dominic recounted the previous night's events to Aurora, from the dancing chickens to the Lustrous King Lotus. When he mentioned the man with the third leg growing from his back, she furrowed her brow in thought, then suggested: "If you want answers, perhaps you could try asking Purple King Ginseng?”

“Who is Purple King Ginseng?”

“He's a ginseng that's lived for about three thousand years, so he might have heard about many things happening in the world.”

“How can we meet him?”

“This ginseng enjoys moon gazing. On full moon nights, he’s often visible, and tonight happens to be the sixteenth.”

“But do you know where he usually watches the moon?”

“He used to roam around the base of Ethereal Mountain, but it was too exposed, so he later chose a place more inaccessible to ordinary people.”

“And where is that?”

“Moon Lagoon Peak.”

After dinner, as night fully set in, Aurora asked Dominic to wait outside while she went inside the house. She returned holding two elephant figurines. Taking out a brush and a small bottle containing a black liquid, she dipped the brush into the bottle and drew eyes on the figurines.

After completing the eyes, she drew complex, unintelligible characters on the elephants’ bodies, then placed them on the ground. The eyes sparkled, and suddenly the figurines transformed into two large elephants, resembling real ones. They wrapped their trunks around Aurora and Dominic, lifting each onto an elephant, and then they started moving.

Curious about the black liquid in the bottle, Dominic asked: "Is that… human blood?”

Aurora glanced at him: "It's black ink.”

“What if it wasn’t ink?”

“The power and level of the figurines depend on the spiritual energy of the eyes and the activating script. The most basic material is ink, a bit higher is cinnabar, and even higher is human blood. We just need to travel, so ink is sufficient.”

Dominic, noticing the elephant moving quite fast, asked: "Do you like riding elephants?”

“The path to Moon Lagoon Peak is unmarked and overgrown. It's safer to sit high on an elephant's back, and since I control the figurines, they move much faster than real elephants.”

“Where did you learn all this?”

“My father taught me.”

“Was your father a Taoist priest or something? What did he do? Where is he now? Is he still alive?”

Aurora snapped: "Why are you asking so many questions?”

Hearing the sharpness in Aurora’s voice, sensing she didn’t want to talk about her father, Dominic changed the subject: "What about that hanging figure in your living room?”

Surprised, Aurora asked: "You saw it?”

He explained how he had erased the lingering image, and she remarked: "You surprise me.”

“Can you tell me why he had to die?”

Aurora replied tersely: "Those who deserve death must die.”

Dominic became cautious: "You didn’t kill him, did you?”

Aurora’s tone turned cold: "What if I did?”

“You’re a vegetarian, you shouldn’t be killing.”

“I told you, those who deserve to die must die.”

“Why did he deserve to die?”

“He tried to violate me. I live alone, I have to be strong to survive.”

Dominic opened his mouth in shock: "So, did he… manage to?”

Aurora glanced at him, then said: “His name was Sandy, another tenant here. Initially, there was no issue, but one night he broke into my house. Not knowing anything other than doll sorcery, I could only defend myself with a knife, injuring him and driving him out. The next day, he drugged the well behind the house with a potent sedative, odorless and tasteless, so I unwittingly drank it and became drowsy. I managed to grab the nearest doll, a two-horned demon figurine, before collapsing.”

Dominic, who had been listening with his mouth agape, quickly swallowed his saliva and asked anxiously: "What happened next?”

Aurora continued: “He then appeared, smirking maliciously at me. In my semi-conscious state, I heard him gloating about how he drugged me, then he recounted his past. He had a penchant for toying with women; most recently, he kidnapped a singer and brought her along with him. When he got bored of her here, he planned to abandon her. But when she reacted violently, he killed her, mutilated her face to prevent identification, and dumped her body in White Bone Well, which was just an ordinary dry well back then.”

“He sensed I was alone, so he came here to rent a room, seeking an opportunity to approach me. After finishing his story, he slashed my throat, saying it was payback for the injury I inflicted on him. But the pain momentarily brought me to my senses. I dipped my fingers in my blood, anointed the demon doll’s eyes, and drew activating runes. The doll transformed into a fierce demon and dealt with him, as you saw, then brought his body back to hang in the rental house. The next day, I had the doll dispose of his corpse in the same well where he killed the singer. Perhaps his wicked spirit turned her into a bloodthirsty ghost, and he became her first meal. I lack the ability to exorcise, so there was nothing I could do about her.”

Hearing this, Dominic recounted how he had vanquished the ghost in the well. Aurora, sounding surprised, then fell silent.

The silence lingered until Dominic broke it: "How’s the wound on your neck now?”

Aurora pushed back her hair to reveal a faint scar running from her ear down her neck, a long-healed injury.

Dominic nodded, affirming: "You were right; those who deserve death must die.” 

Changing the subject, he asked: "You mentioned Purple King Ginseng strolls on Moon Lagoon Peak, away from human paths. How do you know that?”

“I use a bird doll anointed with my blood and activated with runes. My blood allows the doll to operate over long distances, and I can see through its eyes. When the bird flew over Moon Lagoon Peak, I saw Purple King Ginseng wandering there. Since then, every full moon, I’ve spotted him. Hopefully, he still keeps this habit.”