Returning from the abyss

Chapter 1290 Humans and Demons

"The Great Wilderness Book: The Golden Path" states: There was a wealthy family that used a silver jade ball as a lock and put it on a full-term baby to pray for longevity, ward off evil spirits, and protect the baby until adulthood. However, things in the world are unpredictable, and people of all backgrounds will encounter disasters regardless of their wealth. A young child died suddenly, and his blood fell on the lock, giving birth to a demon. His nature was metal, he hated change, and he was always constant. He locked up hatred and was called the Taiping Lock. When the fate of the Great Derivation was determined, he became the demon king.

  =

Lu Ning's hearing was still very strong under the blessing of her inner strength, but she found that she could not understand the words spoken by the demon at all. And the three humans also said the same thing - Lu Ning dared to conclude that this was not normal human language, because its pronunciation pattern was chaotic.

The demon was wrapped in a large white cloth, so Lu Ning couldn't see its appearance clearly. The demon seemed to be questioning the three people, and the attitude of the three people was not like they were submissive under the demon, but rather like they were arguing with the demon.

Lu Ning couldn't tell their relationship clearly, but that didn't stop her from turning the leaves at hand into a culture medium for bacteria, which would float away with the forest wind and leave a small mark on the other party.

Since she couldn't understand, she just memorized the faces of the three people and left early. Hiding here for a long time is a very risky thing, she didn't think she could stay undetected.

When she left the back mountain, she saw a man standing at the intersection.

It was Ning Ke. Her arm seemed to have recovered a lot, but her expression was still serious. She stared at Lu Ning who walked out of the back mountain, but did not scold her. She just said, "Did you find out?"

"What did you find?"

"There are multiple demons gathered here. Normally, demons will not act in groups of more than two. Once the number exceeds this, a leader demon will be born. A minor one will be a demon commander, and a major one will be a demon king."

"What is the evil star in the northern frontier?" Lu Ning asked.

"There is no end to the low-level demons, but there is a certain number of demon stars in existence." Ning Ke said, "If you are interested, you might as well find a copy of "Dream Records of Mountains and Seas" to read. It should not be difficult for Lu Qingxu. The records in the book are about 60% to 70% credible."

"I will." Lu Ning recalled, but unfortunately "Lu Ning" didn't like reading, even books like this one with some strange stories had no impression on her at all.

"What did you see in the mountains?"

"In human form, from what the demon's eyes can see, it's a gold-element demon." Lu Ning said.

Ning Ke nodded: "The demons haven't caused any trouble yet, so they probably have other plans. Zhenjian Villa is a dangerous place right now, and I should ask you to leave as soon as possible, but you probably won't listen to me."

"We've worked together once, and I don't mind a second time."

"Hunting a Drowned Shadow alone is a different level of danger than dealing with a demon that is at least a demon commander. I cannot involve civilians this time, and I will not take you with me."

"You won't stop me then?"

"I don't do meaningless things. Although protecting civilians is one of the duties of the Demon Suppression Bureau, the task of eliminating demons comes before that." Ning Ke said, "Life and death are determined by fate."

"Of course, I still need to thank you." Lu Ning bowed slightly to Ning Ke.

Ning Ke just shook his head and asked Lu Ning to return to Zhenjian Villa.

Lu Qingxu, Han Younian and Wen Rong were still in the garden. They seemed to have discussed a lot of things during the time Lu Ning was away. When Lu Ning came back, they still seemed to be talking happily.

"A Ning is back? Is there any danger?" Lu Qingxu asked.

"We found the man. There were others beside him. The one he met was a demon wrapped in cloth. I heard them talking in a confusing language. I am sure it was not any foreign language."

"Demon?" Han Younian's eyes widened.

"So it's a demon..." Wen Rong had a look of sudden enlightenment on her face.

"By the way, someone told me... that I can find some records related to monsters in a book called "Dream Records of Mountains and Seas". Do you know anything about it?"

"My father said that I can only touch you after my martial arts skills have reached a certain level." Han Younian smiled bitterly.

Wen Rong laughed: "When I was hiding in a big sect to learn from them, I peeked a little in their library."

"Okay, then I'll tell you..."

Lu Ning told the three of them what she had seen and heard, as well as all her speculations. The three of them were a little surprised to hear that there seemed to be an equal relationship between humans and demons.

"I don't know much about demons." Han Younian frowned and said, "But based on the rumors I've heard, it's impossible for this demon to associate with humans..."

"Ha, as long as there is benefit, demons can also use their brains, right?" Wen Rong was very accepting of this. "A temporary alliance is normal. The group of assassins wants to stir up unrest, and the demons probably have their own plans. Both have bad intentions, so of course they hit it off and have similar tastes."

"However, if this is the case, I'm afraid the situation is not as simple as dealing with a few assassins." Lu Qingxu said in a deep voice, "Mr. Han, I'm afraid we need to gather your friends together, or at least inform them that the situation has changed."

"This is natural."

"Miss Wen, the most urgent task now is to find out the true identities of the assassins. Since we already know that the assassins have joined forces with the demons, then causing chaos at tonight's banquet is almost a must for them. Even if we can't fight against the demons, we should still try to deal with the assassins."

"Then how do I find it? It takes time for me to observe people." Wen Rong shook his head.

"We have found three." Lu Ning held up three fingers. "If we follow the clues, the number of assassins is indeed nine as Mr. Han said, then it is not impossible."

She could feel that among the bacteria she had attached herself to, the group that was attached to the demon had disappeared, but those on the three people were still there. As long as they did not leave the range of Zhenjian Villa, she would definitely be able to catch these people.

"Okay, then I'll go with this... Lu Ning? Let's find out what the assassin here is disguised as." Wen Rong looked at Lu Ning with a smile, an inviting look on his face.

"Uh……"

"Master Han and I will not contact dangerous people. We will only find people that Master Han knows to explain the danger of the situation." Lu Qingxu said, "No matter what the result is, I will wait for an hour and come back here, how about that?"

Lu Ning agreed reluctantly. She should have stayed by Lu Qingxu's side all the time, but as her nature dictated - it would be better to nip the danger in the bud.

"Come with me."

Lu Ning took Wen Rong out of the garden again. She followed the traces she had left behind and chased after one of them at the fastest speed possible while trying not to attract attention.

However, when she was walking through a small courtyard, Wen Rong suddenly said, "Wait a moment, Lu Ning."

"Hmm?" Lu Ning's footsteps paused slightly, and she suddenly felt Wen Rong approaching her from behind a little faster. She subconsciously moved to the side and felt something piercing her arm.

Instantly, Lu Ning turned her demonic eyes to Wen Rong, and drew her sword with her backhand. She heard a click in her ear. "Don't panic, Lu Ning." Wen Rong's other hand happened to be on her wrist, preventing Lu Ning from chopping her with the sword. "I'm just verifying an idea - the same kind."

Lu Ning narrowed her eyes and looked at Wen Rong. She almost exploded the icy Qi in her body to freeze Wen Rong first and then ask questions. But at this time, she saw clearly that Wen Rong used a golden key to pierce her arm, and she felt no pain and no blood flowed out.

"Crow." Lu Ning whispered a word that he hadn't used for a long time.

"Yes, Crow... It's been a long time since I last heard that. Lu Ning, I'm not going to attack you by surprise, but I just think that in the face of unknown threats like demons, we need to prepare some more means."

"What is that?" Lu Ning pointed to the golden key on his arm, but he didn't put down the sword in his hand.

"It's a key used to open a lock. Unfortunately, I can't use it on myself, and I can't explain it to others before using it. It's very inconvenient. I almost got hacked last time." Wen Rong said helplessly, "I don't know which lock it opens, but you can try it. I guarantee it's worth it."

Lu Ning frowned and tried, but neither the abilities brought by the "Giant Knuckles" nor the "Wild Plague" improved, and the Senluo Nine Transformations Heart Sutra in her body did not break through. Even the Demon Eyes did not improve at all.

"I don't feel anything."

"Ah? How is this possible?" Wen Rong pulled out the key in surprise and looked at the mark on Lu Ning's arm. "The keyhole has been engraved. You should have a hidden power that has been revealed again..."

"What hidden power?" Lu Ning felt it again in confusion, and there was indeed no special change. However, the key did pierce her arm and left a keyhole-like mark. She had never seen such a special property in this scene before, and it probably had some strange effect.

"Either it hasn't worked yet, or it's ineffective. Since you've already used it, don't try it again. I won't hold back next time." Lu Ning frowned, "In this direction."

After she crossed the yard, she saw a familiar building. Peng Yujian had introduced this place before when he took Lu Qingxu and her around Zhenjian Villa. Smoke was rising from here. Even in the afternoon, it was still in operation.

"Kitchen?" Wen Rong glanced at the place and said, "Are they really planning to poison us?"

"There are disciples guarding the door. Unless they make a big fuss, it won't be that easy for them to get in." Lu Ning looked outside the kitchen. At this time, besides some chores and outer disciples who were eating, there were only some gatekeepers. The person who was stained with her bacteria colony was unable to enter the kitchen, but was hiding under the wall outside, seemingly in the shade to cool off.

But the kitchen was hot and choking, so how could one cool down? No one around cared. Lu Ning gestured to Wen Rong, who immediately knew who it was and whispered, "Just watch me."

She walked along the wall lightly, her footsteps soundless, and then when she stepped into the shadow, it seemed as if her whole body merged into the shadow.

If Lu Ning hadn't been keeping an eye on her, Wen Rong would have been lost.

Wen Rong walked over with a low breath. If she wasn't paying special attention, she would hardly be noticed. The assassin waiting in the corner was obviously thinking about something and didn't pay much attention to Wen Rong's approach.

It was not until Wen Rong passed by closely that the assassin suddenly raised his head, but at this moment, the fragrance emanating from Wen Rong had already rushed into his nostrils.

"Who are you waiting for?" Wen Rong asked with a smile.

"Wait...my companion..." the man said in the Central Plains dialect which he was not very fluent in.

"Several people?"

"Four..."

"So many people come here, what do they want to do?"

"We need to bury the cracks in the places corresponding to the five elements here. We need to act at the same time, so we need to match the time."

"When is the time for you to act?"

"Two quarters past the hour of You, when the banquet begins."

"Are you here because the kitchen is the fire element here?"

"Yes."

“Where are the other four locations?”

"I don't know. We each know our respective positions."

Wen Rong snapped his fingers and left like a breeze. The man looked around, scratched his head in confusion, and continued to wait for someone.

After turning around, Wen Rong returned to Lu Ning and whispered to her everything he had just asked.

"What are you using?" Lu Ning was a little surprised.

"The commonly used incense for bewitching the underworld has been improved. I'm not kidding you, I'm really a thief." Wen Rong took out another paper bag from his arms, "Of course, for people with deep internal strength, it can only make them dazed for a while, but the profound internal strength is in the hands of major sects, and places like Miaojiang and Nanman have never been famous for their internal strength."

Lu Ning reached out to take the paper bag and stuffed it into her arms: "Very good, if the four who came are different from the two he met before, then we have mastered the whereabouts of the seven assassins, and we don't know where the other two are."

"It's indeed easier than we thought. How about we continue to capture the rest of them like this?"

"Let's catch these four first. It's still early before the hour of You. Also, what kind of crack are they trying to bury? This doesn't sound like a commonly used term in the martial arts world." Lu Ning said.

"From what I've seen, it's probably related to demons."

"Isn't it recorded in the book you read?"

"After all, Wen Rong is really a thief and his cultural level is not that high. Don't you have the opportunity to come into contact with these things when you follow a knowledgeable person like Mr. Lu?" Wen Rong asked back.

"Unfortunately, Lu Ning really doesn't like studying." Lu Ning also said.

The two looked at each other and smiled bitterly. Although the tourists who could reach the fifth level were all willing to learn, they could not stop the distribution center from directly assigning a semi-illiterate person to them, resulting in there being no useful clues in their memories.

The two found a place to hide, and soon they met the people they were meeting. These people were dressed in different clothes, and they were smart. They did not pretend to be disciples of famous sects, but some unknown small sects, or gangs with so many people that even the gang members did not know each other.

Lu Ning still marked these people with colony marks, and then sensed the two people. The person who was at the banquet first had found a room and stopped, seemingly resting. And the other person seemed to have gone underground?