As dawn broke, with the sun yet to officially rise, the streets were already populated.
The daytime in this city was much shorter than the night, so few people would wait for sunrise to wake up.
Moreover, this time of day was actually safer than daytime.
Monsters that hunted at night generally appeared in the deep night, while monsters that hunted in the day usually slept until dawn before going out to have fun. Monsters with no fixed hunting times were dangerous whenever they appeared.
Although this city was terrifying and oppressive, life had to go on. Under the deliberate control of those monsters, the population of Yalan City had always remained relatively stable.
In front of the Yalan City government building, there was a tall flagpole. Every day, as dawn broke, a flag bearer would prepare to raise the flag.
The flag here was a blue and white triangular flag, which looked rather poorly shaped.
The flag-raising ceremony took place in Yalan City's most prosperous district. Many citizens occasionally returned to watch the ceremony, as it was one of the few remnants of their faith.
Today was like any other day. Two spirited soldiers carried the blue and white flag to the flagpole.
They were to raise the flag to the very top of the flagpole just as the first rays of the morning sun appeared.
Seeing that the time was almost up, the soldiers hung the flag on the rope and pulled another rope to hoist it up.
As they pulled, the soldiers heard the crowd below exclaim, but they paid no attention.
It was only when they found the flag stuck and unable to move higher that they realized something was wrong. According to their usual raising technique, there should still be at least two meters to the top.
He looked up and nearly fainted. A person was "strung" on the flagpole!
The person was bare-chested, with a smiley face brand burned onto their chest, and a large wooden board hanging behind them.
As the two soldiers discussed how to deal with this "person," the first rays of the morning sun shot through, illuminating the figure on top of the flagpole.
The figure thrashed violently, trying to avoid the sunlight, but it was inevitably scorched, emitting beast-like roars.
The citizens, startled by the roars, fled in all directions. However, a few did not run. They looked at the figure on the flagpole with grave and terrible expressions.
Gradually, the figure of Aid on the flagpole was roasted into a desiccated corpse by the sun, then turned into ashes and scattered in the air.
For low-level vampires, sunlight was the most potent poison. Even a mere brush of sunlight would cause burns, and prolonged exposure would lead to a tragic death like Aid's.
Burning Aid, a vampire, to ashes in front of all the citizens was a spectacle Wen Wen wanted to put on for the city.
He was announcing, in this way, that he, Detective Wen, was going to stir up trouble here!
Those few people who did not flee were monsters hidden among the crowd. The image of Aid being hanged on the flagpole was deeply etched into their minds.
Monsters had been killed by the city's security department before, but it had never had such a great impact on them.
After Aid dissipated, the board beneath him was revealed. On it, in red paint, was written a line of large characters.
"Next, it will be you!"
Several humanoid monsters exchanged glances and left the square.
They felt no fear, only boundless anger. They were the rulers of this city, and the person who had hung Aid on the flagpole was a provocation to them!
When they returned, they would investigate this mysterious person. This city was large but also small, and it wouldn't be difficult to find the troublemaker.
At that time, they would make that person suffer a death as tragic as Aid's, in full view of everyone. No, they would make him die even more miserably than Aid!
That way, they could deter these foolish citizens and prevent them from harboring any rebellious thoughts.
Unbeknownst to these monsters, not far away, a man with a strange smile on his face was watching the scene in the square with binoculars.
He observed the expressions of several monsters for a while, finally choosing the most arrogant one, and stealthily followed him, discovering his place of residence.
After returning home, the person immediately poured a bottle of alcohol into himself, causing white mist to emanate from his body, and his human skin rotted and fell to the ground, revealing a terrifying form.
This was a pale green monster, covered in a thick layer of mucus. Its skin had dense small pores, as if it had been gnawed by insects.
He was a shapeshifter, capable of using his own secretions to forge human skin and appear human.
Wen Wen, perched outside the shapeshifter's window, stared intently: "Shapeshifter, let me think of its weakness… this thing's skin is disgusting, I don't want to touch it."
"Tsk tsk, I remember now. Its weakness is salt. The shapeshifter's mucus decomposes into a high-temperature substance and water when it encounters salt. Also, like a snail, its skin dehydrates when exposed to salt."
"I'll deal with it tonight; I'll go prepare some things first."
Next, Wen Wen found the most outstanding fireworks artisan and glass artisan in Yalan City and 'bought' some necessary items from them. Afterward, Wen Wen returned to the shapeshifter's home and easily subdued it.
Wen Wen's strength wasn't great now, but his experience was enough to crush these low-level monsters. As long as it wasn't a direct confrontation, he had ten thousand ways to deal with these small monsters.
As dusk settled, the people of Yalan City were preparing for sleep.
This place used to have its night owls, but after they all died off, people learned to sleep on time.
However, tonight was destined to be restless. In the same square from the daytime, mountains of fireworks were piled on the ground, and one after another, they were launched into the air.
After launching into the sky, these fireworks exploded under the guidance of an unknown force, forming conspicuous text.
'I will find you.'
'You have nowhere to run.'
'Pray I don't find you first.'
'Your death is imminent.'
'You are all prey!'
In short, they were all threatening words.
Some monsters were alarmed. They discovered that no one was setting off fireworks here; the fireworks were already in place, their long fuses lit, ensuring they would be released in sequence.
And within the area surrounded by fireworks, there was a giant hourglass, more than two meters tall.
Below the hourglass, a shapeshifter, tied up with ropes, sat cross-legged. The shapeshifter's chest bore the mark of a frantic grinning face, and salt was continuously dripping from above.
This salt, sprinkled on the shapeshifter's body, caused white smoke to hiss from its body.
However, it was a monster, not a fragile slug, so it could continuously secrete mucus, barely maintaining a balance. Su Dan Novel Network.
"Save me, quickly save me…" The shapeshifter cried out to the monsters. The appearance of its companions rekindled its hope for survival.
One monster quickly transformed into a powerful wild boar and directly smashed through the giant hourglass, intending to escape with the shapeshifter.
With its speed, the entire process would prevent the shapeshifter from touching the salt above the hourglass.
But as soon as it broke through the glass, a rune array lit up below. Blinding currents surged from the array, causing the wild boar demon to pause for a few seconds.
In those few seconds, the massive amount of salt from above piled onto the shapeshifter.
The shapeshifter struggled violently. By the time the wild boar demon pulled it out, it had shrunk to the size of a basketball, completely devoid of life.
Upon witnessing this, the monsters present felt a chill run down their spines.
If their hearts had only held anger in the morning, now, they finally harbored a trace of fear.
Even though they were considered monsters by humans, they didn't want such a horrific fate to befall them.
And on a rooftop not far away, Wen Wen put away his binoculars. He had already chosen his next target, still the one among them who was the least afraid!