One more catty, one more attribute point
Chapter 54: Chapter 52: Gods and Buddhas

"Huff..."

The mountain wind blew past, bringing with it the wailing sounds accompanied by the long howls of wild beasts.

Xu Ziyi's muscles tightened, her facial expression rigid. Xu Baixia, on the other hand, covered his mouth, his pupils trembling slightly, as if he dared not breathe.

It wasn't until Su Heng's figure had completely disappeared and some time had passed.

That Xu Baixia slowly lowered his hand, gasping for air greedily.

"You damned wretch, what are you doing!?" Xu Baixia's face contorted with anger as he hissed furiously, "Do you realize you nearly got us both killed just now? That woman was already suspicious, and you still dare to do such things? Do you have a death wish? If you want to die, don't drag me down with you!"

Slap!

Xu Ziyi slapped Xu Baixia hard across the face.

"Scum!" she shouted fiercely, "I am your sister, how dare you curse me like that!"

"I did this for your sake!" Xu Ziyi said, "Using Demon Summoning Powder to make them lead the pursuers away. Once we get to Baihua County and the Demon Suppression Bureau is in charge, we'll be safe."

"You useless thing."

Xu Ziyi clenched her fist and cursed angrily, "If only you had half the strength of that person, we wouldn't need to live in fear every day."

Xu Baixia's face turned ashen, his chest heaving violently.

He forcefully suppressed the anger in his heart, swearing that once he reached Baihua County and found the family's legacy artifacts,

he would immediately part ways with that foolish woman Xu Ziyi.

Never to meet again for the rest of their lives.

Otherwise...

He had a premonition that he would sooner or later be doomed by her, to die without a place for his corpse!

"We should hurry and leave this place too, the stench of blood is too strong here, it might attract some evil spirits," Xu Baixia said indifferently.

Xu Ziyi snorted, following behind her brother at a distance that was neither too close nor too far.

As they walked,

Xu Ziyi suddenly widened her eyes, "Why is there fog here?"

The mountain wind howled, the night was clear, such weather was impossible to produce fog. Yet strands of grey-white mist appeared within Xu Ziyi's sight, weaving through the branches like ghostly white ribbons on a mission to claim lives.

She wrapped her clothes tighter around herself, shivering from an inexplicable chill.

She quickened her pace, wanting to leave.

"Cough, cough!"

Xu Ziyi suddenly started coughing violently, her eyes bulging.

She put her hand over her mouth, feeling the sticky, metallic taste filling her mouth.

As her fingers spread, Xu Ziyi's face showed horror as she screamed—the blood!

A strong sensation of itchiness spread from her throat to her lungs, Xu Ziyi stumbled and fell to her knees, reaching into her throat. Thick blood gushed from her mouth like a terrifying, blood-red waterfall.

The blood drenched the woman's full chest, soaking her clothes.

Xu Ziyi's vision began to blur, her consciousness quickly fading, intense pain shooting through every nerve ending in her body.

"Help..."

She reached out, trying to call for help from her brother.

But upon seeing this, Xu Baixia's face turned to horror, and he instantly turned and ran.

But he hadn't gotten far before he collapsed, convulsing just like his sister, with blood pouring from his mouth.

"You bitch, this is all your fault!"

In his final moments,

Xu Baixia was still cursing furiously, eyes bulging, veins on his face throbbing, filled with resentment and poison.

Through his distorted and blurred vision, Su Heng's tall and burly figure slowly emerged, with Xiao Qing and Su Li behind him.

Xiao Qing's expression was emotionless.

Whereas Su Li's face held a slight trace of reluctance.

"Spare me..." Xu Baixia reached out, attempting to touch Su Heng's pant leg.

But Su Heng lifted his leg and stomped on Xu Baixia's neck, a crisp snapping sound following. Xu Baixia's head, which he struggled to raise, drooped, his spine shattered, and just like his sister, he fell still, lifeless.

Su Heng squatted down.

He searched the bodies.

Among their belongings, he found several sets of clothes for changing, a number of conveniently portable weapons and hidden weapons, a booklet that seemed old, and a sachet.

Su Heng opened the sachet to replace some light purple powder inside, but it had no scent.

"Remember the time you were suddenly attacked?" Xiao Qing turned to Su Li, "This powder likely has the effect of attracting demons and sinister entities, though it is hard to detect by ordinary people."

Xiao Qing had already died once.

She was resurrected by one of the Demon Suppression Bureau's elders using a secret technique, which made her a being no longer human.

Therefore, compared to Su Heng and Su Li, she was much more sensitive to this kind of dust.

"I see," Su Li nodded, her expression complex.

If it hadn't been for Su Heng, just the two of them encircled and alone, might indeed have met disaster. Thinking of Jin Yu's frenzied and paranoid expression, the outcome was truly unthinkable. But now that the two were dead, Su Li felt nothing beyond a lingering fear.

"This powder might be useful in the future," Su Heng said as he carefully put the sachet aside.

He picked up the yellowed booklet in his hand, and by the bright moonlight, he skimmed through it, his brows gradually knitting together.

"These two, they must have come from a demon-suppressing force similar to that of Qingmao Mountain. Sadly, their clan encountered a disaster, wiped out by demons, leaving only these two to flee in disarray. They wanted to go to Baihua County to replace something left behind by their family," Su Heng surmised based on the contents of the booklet.

"Also, those who were chasing them seem to be part of an organized pursuit," said Su Heng, looking at Jin Yu's head lying nearby, his eyes open in death.

This person was neither a demon nor a demon-shaped warrior like Su Li.

He seemed to be something in between, which piqued Su Heng's curiosity.

"Do you remember what I told you before, about Baihua County, where demons, noble families, and the Demon Suppression Bureau form a three-way standoff?" Fortunately, Su Li knew the answer and she patiently explained, "Not only noble families and the Demon Suppression Bureau are organized, but demons have similar structures."

"Hmm, that's normal," acknowledged Su Heng with a nod, "Some demons are as intelligent as humans, so it's not surprising that they'd form loose organizations."

"Among these organizations, the largest one is the Sky Demon Alliance," Su Li said.

"Sky Demon Alliance..." Su Heng noted the name.

"Do you know why, with so many demons around Baihua County, the Demon Suppression Bureau regards the Sky Demon Alliance as a major threat?" Su Li asked pensively.

"The strength of the demons is formidable, their abilities bizarre, what other reason could there be?" Su Heng replied without hesitation.

"You're wrong," Su Li said. "If it was just strength, the vast kingdom would always be able to replace an existence stronger than them. Even if the abilities were bizarre, through continuous probing, they would replace a way to counter them."

"Then what is the real reason?" Su Heng asked, curious.

"Hope," Su Li said. "The big demons of the Sky Demon Alliance offered hope to those gang members and commoners at the bottom. Whoever is willing to do their bidding, they teach them martial arts. They even cut off their own flesh to share with them, or use demon talents to enhance their bodies beyond the mundane."

"In our eyes, there is no doubt they are demons. But in the eyes of others, they have become hardly any different from gods and Buddhas."