Yutai County, located south of Jiaxiang County, was a considerable distance away and situated on a vital artery of the Grand Canal.
At the crack of dawn, the county magistrate was startled awake by the commotion outside. Countless citizens rushed to the yamen, reporting sightings of "yin soldiers" passing through. The magistrate, taken aback, initially suspected a spectral calamity.
He promptly summoned the local Daoist association's "cai gou" (literally "vegetable dog," likely a low-ranking or novice practitioner) pháp sư, along with temple priests, and gathered the county constables and the reporting citizens. Together, they hurried to the scene of the alleged sightings.
If this were indeed a spectral event, it would be troublesome. A ghostly incident along the Grand Canal could disrupt north-south trade and potentially delay the transport of grain for certain regions. If a large-scale invasion by demons or monsters were to occur, this supply point would become deserted.
Ships unable to resupply mid-journey would have to sail for longer periods, increasing risks. Yutai County would consequently lose its vital economic pillar, leading to its decline.
The magistrate was thus anxious. However, upon witnessing the situation, he was once again stunned.
It was no spectral event at all!
These were clearly living people! But they were covered in blood and dust, their clothes tattered and showing signs of fierce fighting. This throng of over ten thousand people, having traveled from afar, was clearly fleeing disaster.
Had a great famine erupted?
Along the way, they had eaten much bark and grass roots, leaving them gaunt and pale, but thankfully, all were still alive.
At this point, someone from within the crowd stepped forward, their expression stiff, and said:
"Our Cult Master ordered us to surrender ourselves to the neighboring county."
"Along the way, we were punished, eating bark and grass roots when hungry. Now, upon meeting the county magistrate, we implore you to imprison us and report to the imperial court."
The magistrate's jaw dropped.
These ten thousand people were here to surrender?
They were here for a free meal, weren't they!
"No, what exactly is going on? You're not truly refugees, are you? Who are you people? You say you've come to surrender, give me a moment to process this."
"We are from the Wenxiang Cult, Your Excellency. You can treat us like the White Lotus Society. Every one of us has killed people and fought against monsters."
"Ah???"
...
"Mei Zhu is so effective. Just a whiff of its fragrance in their nostrils, and they become obedient. It seems to last a long time."
The little fox sat on the boat, admiring the small pearl in her hand.
After all, she couldn't truly travel with these countless murderers. So, at Ji Xiang's suggestion, the little fox used Mei Zhu to guide them all to Yutai County, near the Grand Canal. Along the way, to avoid disturbing the populace and also as a form of punishment, she made them eat bark and grass roots, just enough to keep them alive but not strong enough to resist capture.
As for how the magistrate would handle them, the jail could certainly not accommodate ten thousand people. If they weren't eating bark and grass roots, the government of that era would have to prepare rice gruel as "disaster relief." Afterward, they would await troops from other regions to come and mete out punishment.
"They are all destined to die. I originally intended to kill them all on the spot, but considering they helped the Celestial Fox fight the Nine-Lotus Fox Demon, I will let the authorities deal with them."
Ji Xiang spoke, his words invariably turning to killing, without any psychological burden. However, the Wenxiang Cult members were, in the first place, executioners with blood on their hands, not benevolent souls. All present felt that killing them was justified.
Stories of turning over a new leaf were not that common.
Many more, however, remained unrepentant even when facing death.
Yutai County had many boatmen, as it was an important port on the canal. At the Jiaxiang County dock, the boatmen had indeed fled. Given the severity of the county town being set ablaze, it was natural to assume a great disaster was unfolding, and fleeing was a sensible course of action. No one would risk their life for a mere two taels of silver. However, unexpectedly, they encountered the same boatmen again in Yutai County. It turned out that these boatmen, upon hearing the shouts and seeing the flames engulfing the town, had assumed it was an attack by demons or bandits. But then they recognized many of the killers as familiar faces, even their own suppliers. In their terror, they rowed downstream, intending to wait a few days for the situation in Jiaxiang County to resolve before returning to investigate further.
They hadn't expected to encounter Ji Xiang and his group so soon in Yutai County.
Thus, the boatmen rejoined the group, and the journey of fleeing resumed. After passing this stretch of territory, they would reach the Huai River region. Ji Xiang began to sort through several sacks along the way, commencing his daily treasure appraisal.
The treasures from the Milong Casino were indeed plentiful. To assemble the Seven Treasures Terraces, the important belongings of the demons, monsters, monks, and Daoists from the casinos had been gathered through deception. Even members of the Quanzhen Sect were lured in, a truly lamentable situation.
However, most of them were low-grade magical artifacts, consumables. There were also inner elixirs of demon kings, which astonished Ji Xiang. He eventually tossed the inner elixirs to the little fox.
Gambling away one's own inner elixir – truly a case of being possessed by a demon.
There were even clothes belonging to female Daoists, though clearly unworn. It was unknown who had stolen them from which palace or temple. They were called "Li Tian Huang Luo Pi" (Yellow Gauze Robe for Honoring Heaven) and "Yun Diao Bai Yu Guan" (Cloud Carved White Jade Crown), and they were quite beautiful.
Feng Menglong took a fancy to them and asked to have them. Ji Xiang readily gave them to him without hesitation.
"Thank you, Brother Ji! These clothes, let me think about which sister I should give them to..."
Feng Menglong looked at the attire, his affection growing with each glance. Ji Xiang then told him:
"When these clothes are worn, smoke rises from the sleeves, making one appear like a celestial being. They can also dispel wind, conjure mist, purify the surrounding atmosphere, drive away turbid qi, and allow for aerial flight for about a hundred breaths. They also possess a certain defensive capability, able to withstand attacks from ordinary magical artifacts and cultivators below the seventh realm. Furthermore, they enhance the wearer's charm, instantly transforming an ordinary woman into a celestial being."
"As for the White Jade Crown, it ensures that the wearer remains untainted by any dust or filth, always maintaining a state of cleanliness."
"In summary, for women, they are indeed good items, but not particularly practical."
Feng Menglong expressed his gratitude to Daoist Ji for the product introduction.
Ji Xiang snorted and began to select magical artifacts that he could use. There were many consumables, such as the flowing beads that Liu Zhu had to wear on his hands, three on each arm, ranging from twelve to thirty-two beads. Tokens hung all around his waist, bells were arranged in a semi-circle, and banners were tied in bunches and placed inside the barrels of the meteor cannons.
There were also large Buddhist prayer beads, which Ji Xiang unceremoniously draped around his neck. There were also wooden fish, cloud boards, banners, canopies, and umbrellas...
As for the treasures of the demon kings, they were even more bizarre. There were items like fox fur scarves that increased charm, elm wood canes with built-in pathfinding abilities, snake bone soft whips with potent qi-dispersing poison, golden pipa that could capture souls, night-shining pearls, fire-spewing pearls, and ox horn divine lamps that could chant spells and replicate techniques... There was even a black bear demon's paw, apparently belonging to a member of the "chopping hands" (online shopping) community.