Chương 32: No Appetite

Fang Cheng's words didn't match his heart. He'd told many lies tonight. Whether that aligned with being a good person, he wasn't sure. He went to the cliff where Dagou had jumped and looked up at the moon. Moonlight spilled down like golden silk, draping over the shattered soil at the cliff's base like a golden kasaya. The three Li brothers were smashed into pulps. Their bodies had crushed several boulders on impact. Even their skulls had shattered, white brain matter oozing out and mixing with blood.

Fang Cheng had come from a village too. He understood the Li brothers' struggles. They had done evil, and they deserved to die. But looking at their bodies, Fang Cheng felt no satisfaction. The demon sword, having eaten its fill, returned to Fang Cheng's side. It circled him a few times, then settled at his feet, nudging his leg affectionately with its tip, like a child who'd just finished a sweet candy, content and pleased.

"Heh." Fang Cheng let out a dry laugh and withdrew the sword into his body. For some reason, the bloodlust in his heart had faded. He looked again at the corpses at the cliff's base. Two large eyeballs stared out from the white brain matter, Xiaogou's, it seemed. They stared straight at him, wide open. Fear. A strange fear rose in Fang Cheng's heart. Nausea. He wanted to vomit. Desperately. He bent over, opened his mouth, and stuck his fingers down his throat, but nothing came up.

Helpless, he straightened up and returned to the cavern. The tiger penis had been boiling for hours. The broth had turned thick and golden. Fang Cheng ladled out a bowl, carried it to the stone table, and sat down to drink. He took one sip, then put the bowl down. It tasted good, but he felt full. His stomach couldn't hold another bite. He picked up the wine jar with the snake gallbladder soaking inside and took a small sip. Slightly bitter, the bile had dissolved into the wine.

But the bitterness wasn't unpleasant. He took another sip. Strangely, he could taste a hint of sweetness beneath the bitterness. Not bad.

"Ugh!" The plump man on the stone table woke up. He opened his eyes and saw a cavern splattered with blood. A hundred-meter-long headless python with a gaping hole in its belly. A mountain-like tiger with a gaping hole between its legs. And between the two massive corpses, a tiny figure, Fang Cheng.

"Don't eat me!" The plump man was terrified. He sprang off the table and scrambled into a corner of the cavern, screaming in panic. He thought Fang Cheng was another mountain demon.

"Have you ever done anything evil?" Fang Cheng asked from his seat, his voice carrying clearly across the cavern.

"Evil? I... I once peeked at the village widow bathing when I was six. I didn't want to, I was just curious! Please, spare me!" The plump man thought for a long moment before answering, trembling, afraid Fang Cheng would eat him for that reason. Fang Cheng could tell the plump man was an idiot. Look at him, too scared to do real harm.

"I'm not interested in eating you. I'm a good person. Why would I eat a living human?" Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. The plump man was half-convinced but still hid in the corner. He'd been in the fortress for days. He'd seen the demons eat people, some raw, some roasted. A wolf captain had even fed him while patting his belly, saying, "Eat up, fill those intestines nice and full." And after feeding him, he'd ordered the little demons to plug his rear. Terrifying!

Seeing the plump man's disbelief, Fang Cheng pointed at the massive corpses and explained, "I came to save you. Look, King Tiger is dead. Every other demon is dead too. I killed them all." The plump man glanced at King Tiger's corpse. He'd never seen King Tiger's true form, but the sheer size convinced him. He got up, ran outside the cavern, and saw the bodies of the minor demons everywhere. Then he went outside the fortress and saw the wolf captain's severed head. Finally, he believed.

He quickly pulled out the plug from his rear, found a clean spot, and relieved himself. Then he returned to the cavern and knelt before Fang Cheng, ready to kowtow.

"Thank you, senior, for saving my life! Please accept my deepest bow!"

"Get up." Fang Cheng quickly pulled the plump man to his feet.

"We cultivators should uphold justice, help the weak, and fight evil. It's only right. You don't need to do this." The plump man was moved to tears.

"Senior, your kindness is beyond words. I'm only a First Level cultivator, and you've slain an Eighth Realm great demon. I want to repay you, but I'm powerless."

"No need for repayment." Fang Cheng waved his hand.

"The cultivation world has lost its way. Everyone only cares about immortality. They've forgotten our true purpose as cultivators: Slay demons. Exterminate evil. Brother, you must learn from this. Tell your friends, family, everyone you know. I, Fang Cheng, don't cultivate for immortality. I cultivate to uphold justice and walk the righteous path."

"Fang Cheng... that name sounds familiar. Like that demon wanted by the Great Sheng court..."

"Demon what?"

"Nothing, nothing. I must be mistaken." The plump man scratched his head, then said, "Senior, you're absolutely right. We, cultivators, should slay demons and uphold justice. I don't know many people, but I'll spread the word of your great deeds. Especially your fire-based techniques, they're truly sublime.

The corpses of those minor demons showed no signs of flame on the surface, yet not a single drop of moisture remained inside them; they were all roasted into dried husks, as if something had drained them completely. Impressive – truly impressive."

"Ah... let's not talk about my fire techniques. That's part of my cultivation system. If the demons find out, they'll figure out how to counter it." Fang Cheng replied awkwardly.

"Good point." The plump man nodded in agreement, his face full of envy.

"If only I had your strength, senior, I'd slay demons wherever I found them." Fang Cheng decided to change the subject before they talked too much about cultivation.

"How did you end up captured in the mountains?" The plump man sighed and began his tragic tale. His name was Qin Hao. He'd been a Land God in a village, but after losing contact with his immortal superior, he'd been abandoned. To make a living, he'd joined a merchant caravan as a guard. They passed through the Everlasting Mountains. They were supposed to go around, but the leader took a shortcut to save time. Unfortunately, they ran into King Tiger. Everyone else had been eaten.

He'd survived because he was a cultivator. King Tiger had kept him to entertain his guests.

"Senior, thank goodness you arrived." Qin Hao expressed his gratitude again.

"We're both lost souls." Fang Cheng sighed. This plump man was like him, an abandoned cultivator. Fang Cheng's gaze softened.

"We're around the same age. You don't have to call me senior. Just call me Brother Fang."

"How can I? I'm just a First Level cultivator!" Qin Hao shook his head frantically. Fang Cheng wanted to say he was only Second Level himself, but he knew the other man wouldn't believe him. So he dropped it.

"As a cultivator, why did you join a mortal's caravan? Was it really necessary?" Fang Cheng asked. Qin Hao explained, "I eat too much. I love good food. The counties under Lianshan Prefecture have been booming with silk textiles. There's good money there. My pay as a caravan guard, converted to inferior Immortal Crystals, was better than what I got as a Land God." As he spoke, Qin Hao caught the aroma from the cauldron. His stomach growled. He snuck a glance. The meat inside looked like a grown man's thigh.

Oh, no, eating people was wrong. Fang Cheng laughed and told him it was King Tiger's appendage. He was welcome to eat it. Qin Hao's eyes lit up. That was good stuff! He grabbed a bowl and chopsticks and rushed to the cauldron, scooping out the meat as he ate.

"It's so tender, just how I like it!"...

"There's so much meat, as expected of King Tiger, an Eighth Realm great demon."...

"Senior, there are two big balls in here. Want to split them?"

"No thanks."...

"Phew, spicy! Who put in so much chili?" Qin Hao complained about the heat but kept eating. He even cut two large chunks of meat from King Tiger's thigh and threw them into the pot. He also finished the entire jar of snake-gallbladder wine. After he'd eaten his fill, he asked Fang Cheng where he was going.

"Lianshan Prefecture City. To meet Patrol Envoy Pei Tang." Qin Hao perked up. He knew the city well and could guide the way. Fang Cheng didn't want to abandon the plump man in the Everlasting Mountains, only for him to get caught by another demon and miss out on spreading Fang Cheng's good deeds.

"Good. You lead the way. Time is tight. Let's move."