Human Clan Defender

"Lord Jiang, you worry too much. Since we eat the Emperor's grain, we have long been prepared to dedicate our lives to the Imperial Court. If there truly is a Demon Evil waiting there, we'll just fight it out!" the arrest officer said in a deep voice.

Jiang Zuo shook his head. "There's no need for that. The fewer who die, the better. If there's truly a powerful Demon Evil, then even a multitude of martial artists below the Pulse Condensation Realm would be useless."

Being afraid of death is one thing. But whether it's a senseless sacrifice is quite another.

Seeing that the other was about to say more, Jiang Zuo's expression darkened. "Are my words not to be heeded?"

"Not at all!" The man hurriedly bowed his head.

Jiang Zuo's stern face softened slightly. "I am merely speculating. Fengyun Village may not necessarily be as dire as I imagine. However, everyone must be mentally prepared. The moment you see my command or signal, retreat quickly. Then, we can return to the Demon-Subduing Division to report and call for stronger reinforcements if needed!"

"Yes!"

"Alright, let's continue on our way!" Jiang Zuo squeezed his legs, and his mount immediately galloped forward.

Seeing this, the others hurriedly followed. Before long, Fengyun Village was already within sight.

"Lord Jiang, Fengyun Village is just ahead!" the arrest officer pointed to the settlement in the distance.

"Be cautious." Jiang Zuo looked at the village ahead, his brows tightly knitted. He didn't sense any Demon Evil Aura from within, but that didn't mean Fengyun Village was without problems.

After this word of caution, Jiang Zuo reined his horse to a slow walk as they approached the village. The rest of the constables also slowed their pace.

Upon reaching the village entrance, they saw a stone stele inscribed with three large characters: Fengyun Village. The characters were painted with red pigment. Despite years of exposure to sun and wind, this pigment hadn't faded in the slightest. Instead, it seemed even more scarlet, as if freshly daubed with blood.

Seeing this, Jiang Zuo felt a sense of unease. This detail alone was enough to indicate that something was indeed wrong with Fengyun Village.

Looking past the stele and into the village, he saw children frolicking and elderly folk chatting under the shade of trees—a perfectly idyllic rural scene.

"Lord Jiang, Fengyun Village seems to have no issues at all!" the lead arrest officer couldn't help but whisper upon seeing this.

The other constables also breathed an inward sigh of relief. If Fengyun Village were deserted, one might assume its inhabitants had been wiped out by Demon Evil. But with so many people around, it clearly seemed there was no problem. If there truly were an issue, all these villagers would have fled.

"Don't let your guard down." Jiang Zuo shook his head, his gaze sweeping over each person, yet he could discern no problems. Furthermore, he detected no Yin Evil Aura from any of these villagers. Logically, this should have been completely normal. But his years of experience dealing with Demon Evil kept Jiang Zuo inwardly vigilant.

The Demon Evil impersonating a villager of Fengyun Village implies it had definitely visited before. Yet now, all the villagers seem untroubled by any Demon Evil. There are only two possibilities for such a scenario. One, the Demon Evil never came to Fengyun Village and simply fabricated the story. Two, there's something wrong with the current villagers of Fengyun Village—

As he spoke, Jiang Zuo continued to observe the villagers but could find nothing amiss.

At this moment, he dismounted. The others, seeing this, also dismounted.

"Lord Jiang, what should we do now?"

"Arrest Officer Wang, you and a few others in the Pulse Condensation Realm will stay. The rest of you, return for now. If you don't see us by nightfall, immediately go to the Demon-Subduing Division for help. Report that we have been trapped by Demon Evil in Fengyun Village," Jiang Zuo ordered calmly.

He couldn't discern the problem, but he couldn't simply retreat either. No matter what, he had to enter Fengyun Village. Although confident in his own strength, Jiang Zuo didn't dare to venture in alone. Taking a few men from the Prefecture Yamen would at least provide some mutual support.

The Capital City Prefecture Yamen was different from those in other places. Even the lowest-ranking constables in the Capital City Prefecture Yamen were martial artists at the Body Tempering Realm. It wasn't a major issue for some of the more senior ones to reach the Pulse Condensation Realm. A dozen constables had accompanied him, several of whom were Pulse Condensation Realm martial artists.

Hearing this, Arrest Officer Wang nodded and turned to issue orders to the others. "Old Liu, you and a few others will stay with me. The rest, go back immediately! Do as Lord Jiang said, without any delay!"

Having been an arrest officer at the Prefecture Yamen for many years, he understood the gravity of matters involving Demon Evil. Compared to the people from the Demon-Subduing Division, their experience in dealing with Demon Evil was far more limited. Therefore, when Jiang Zuo gave an order, they just had to follow it. If they failed to comply with the Demon-Subduing Division's orders at a time like this, they could very well bring disaster upon themselves.

"This subordinate obeys!" The constables cupped their fists in salute, then remounted their horses and departed from the entrance of Fengyun Village.

The remaining group, including Jiang Zuo, tied their horses to one side and then walked into the village on foot.

Inside the village, the atmosphere was one of peace and harmony. Children played happily, and elders chatted joyfully under the shade of trees; smiles beamed from every face. As Jiang Zuo and his men arrived, it seemed these people didn't notice them, continuing their conversations and games as before.

"Go and inquire about the situation," Jiang Zuo instructed a few nearby constables, standing his ground.

Upon hearing the command, those constables approached the elders sitting under the shade of trees.

Jiang Zuo and Arrest Officer Wang stood in the center of the village. Observing the surroundings, Jiang Zuo's gaze didn't relax for a moment as he tried to find clues.

Wait! After looking for a long time, his heart suddenly jolted. I know where the problem is!

"What problem?" Arrest Officer Wang asked, astonished.

Just then, as the constables who had gone to gather information were making inquiries, one of them patted an old man on the shoulder. Suddenly, the old man's head fell off. No blood spurted out. The other elders didn't even turn to look. The fallen head rolled on the ground, its facial expression remaining a cheerful smile even as it gathered dust.

"AAH!" Witnessing the head fall, the constables finally cried out in alarm.

A single cry shattered the village's tranquility. Instantly, all the playing children and chatting elders froze, then slowly and uniformly turned their heads towards Jiang Zuo and his men. Some, due to their initial angle, twisted their necks even further, completing a full 180-degree turn. A smile was on everyone's face. However, these once seemingly warm smiles now appeared incredibly stiff, like those on puppets with pre-carved expressions.

At that instant, all the constables felt their hair stand on end as immense fear welled up within them. Only Jiang Zuo managed to remain calm. He shouted sharply, "Retreat!"

As his voice fell, he was the first to rush towards the village exit. The entrance wasn't far from their current position. With the strength of an Innate Martial Artist, a single burst of speed should have been enough to get them out.

But—as he was about to dash out of the village entrance, a dense fog had risen, seemingly from nowhere, completely obscuring the way out.

Jiang Zuo couldn't help but stop. He didn't recklessly charge into the thick fog. Anyone would understand that the fog must conceal danger; rushing in recklessly could lead to unforeseen consequences.

Meanwhile, the other constables and Arrest Officer Wang had rushed over to Jiang Zuo's side.

"Lord Jiang, what should we do now?"

"Lord Jiang!"

A hint of panic was evident on everyone's face. The eerie scene, combined with the sudden dense fog, made it clear even to a fool that something was terribly wrong.

Without a doubt, the original villagers of Fengyun Village must have all perished at the hands of Demon Evil. The 'people' they were seeing now were not truly people at all.

"Don't panic. Let's assess the situation first," Jiang Zuo said, turning around and taking a deep breath to compose himself. He was their pillar of support. If he lost his composure, the state of the others was easily imaginable.

Looking at the 'villagers' slowly closing in, Jiang Zuo couldn't help a wry smile.

Ever since he became the Steward of the Huang Department's Demon Hunting Court, his luck seemed to have taken a nosedive, with every mission plagued by unexpected incidents. Each time, he had narrowly escaped death. Jiang Zuo even began to suspect that some powerful Demon Evil had targeted him. But then he reconsidered. That couldn't be the case. After all, he was just a minor Profound Rank Demon Hunter, hardly worthy of being targeted by such powerful Demon Evils. Besides, if he truly had been targeted by a powerful Demon Evil, it likely would have struck directly, rather than repeatedly putting him in perilous situations only for him to escape by a hair's breadth.

"There's something in the fog!" a constable suddenly cried out in alarm.

Hearing this, Jiang Zuo snapped out of his reverie and turned to look towards the fog. Within the dense mist, something seemed to be stirring. With his vision obstructed, he couldn't see clearly at that moment.

"Let's pull back a bit first." Jiang Zuo glanced at the fog, then at the slowly encroaching 'villagers,' and quickly made a decision. Those 'villagers' moved very slowly, and there was still a large open space between them and his group. They needed to retreat from the fog to prepare for whatever might emerge from it.

With that, the men followed Jiang Zuo, retreating about ten feet.

Soon, the stirring presence within the fog gradually came into view.

It was—villagers from Fengyun Village. Just like those closing in from behind, their faces were also fixed in stiff smiles. Clearly, the figures emerging from the fog were not real people either.

"What do we do now!" Arrest Officer Wang, observing their surroundings, noted that the 'villagers' were about to completely encircle them.

Seeing this, Jiang Zuo drew the saber at his waist. His gaze was icy as he stared straight ahead. After a long moment, he uttered a single word.

"Kill!"