Stop it, Taoist, Your Fight almost Ruins the DAO!

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Time, like a wild donkey, runs without stopping once it starts.

Before anyone knew it, another night had passed, and sunlight began to bathe the earth, colliding with the early risers.

It was unclear whether the old Madam Wang's vitality was tenacious or if it was due to the abundance of treasures like ginseng within the Wang residence, but despite the fuss that the old Madam Wang was on the brink of passing away, tranquility still prevailed in the mansion.

When Yi Chen returned to the Wang residence from outside, he unexpectedly learned from Xiu'er that this morning, the old Madam Wang had broken her usual routine and had a bowl of porridge...

He was genuinely happy for the old lady... ah.

However, regardless of what happened, he wasn't going to return the five hundred taels of silver deposit that Family Head Wang had given him the day before.

After all, Taoist Yi Chengzi's lost work time had to be accounted for.

Today, the Wang residence was tranquil, with everyone fulfilling their duties as usual.

This kind of day had been repeated by the servants for many days, and they were already accustomed to it, or rather, they had become numb to it.

Those who were supposed to chop wood did so, those who were meant to move bricks did so, those who were to cook did so, and those who were to wash clothes did so.

But when Yi Chen returned from the outside, the servants found that today was a bit different from the usual days.

That was because the tall Daoist who claimed to be Yi Chengzi, invited by the second master and who wandered around with a huge sword on his back, had his eyes bulging like copper bells today, catching whoever he saw to boast and shoot the breeze about all sorts of things from heaven and earth.

Sometimes he would ask repetitive questions, and sometimes, like a ghost, he would suddenly appear out of nowhere, pat your shoulder abruptly, and stare at your face with intense eyes as he spoke, not even sparing the maidservants of the mansion.

The wolfhounds raised in the residence for guarding the house were constantly sniffed around by a strange black cat; if their tails weren't tightly clamped, they would get a swipe from the cat. Strangely, the previously ferocious wolfhounds were submissive like little chicks and didn't dare to resist at all.

"Steward Wang, how old are you this year?" A large face suddenly appeared next to Steward Wang—it was none other than Yi Chen.

He held a glass tumbler in his hand and sneakily squeezed next to Steward Wang to ask.

Wutong Demon felt a bit numb beneath his skin.

"Taoist Yi, you've already asked this for the third time."

"Ah? Is that so, my memory seems a bit poor today~ sorry, haha."

Yi Chen chuckled awkwardly and turned to leave.

Just as Wutong Demon was about to heave a sigh of relief and return to his room to continue reading, away from this pest, another large face suddenly appeared at the corner.

"Taoist Yi, I'm seventy, seventy, seventy already~" Wutong Demon couldn't help but feel a rush of irritation, growling lowly.

"Ah? You're answering preemptively now?"

"I didn't ask you that, I suddenly remembered something, and I wanted to tell you about it."

"I've planted two trees in the courtyard of my temple!"

"What kind of trees?" Wutong Demon, compelled by an inexplicable force, asked reluctantly.

"One is a date tree~"

"And the other one?"

"Um... also a date tree~"

At that moment, Wutong Demon wished he could slap himself.

I deserve to die.

Why the hell did I ask~

He lowered his head, failing to suppress the fleeting glint of murderous intent in his eyes.

"Taoist Yi, why do you jest with this old man? I cannot compare to you young people, I want to return to my room for a rest. Do you need anything else, Taoist Yi?"

"Your strange behavior today, teasing and disturbing the order of our Wang residence, I will report to the Family Head in full detail. Please be mindful of your actions, Taoist Yi."

Wutong Demon suppressed the anger in his heart and turned to leave.

"Steward Wang, one last thing, I want to ask you, truly the last thing."

With a swift movement, Yi Chen once again blocked his path.

"What is it?"

"How about, you guess?"

At this moment, a myriad of raging thoughts stormed through Wutong Demon's mind, but before he could lash out, Yi Chen's following words chilled him to the bone.

Yi Chen suddenly grabbed his hand, dropping his previous frivolous guise, and said coldly, "Steward Wang, one last question."

"Is Madame Wang beautiful?"

"Tao... Taoist, what strange talk is this~"

"I... I am an old man..."

Crash!

Before Steward Wang could continue to evade the topic, Yi Chen abruptly smashed the glass tumbler he was holding against the wall, producing a crisp sound.

Wutong Demon felt a tremendous force along his arm, and in an instant, Yi Chen pulled him into the front yard.

"Audacious evil spirit, I saw at a glance that you are not human~"

"Now reveal your true form!"

Yi Chen bellowed.

As the sound of the shattering glass tumbler against the wall echoed, five officials from the Zhen'an Division dressed in flying fish attire suddenly appeared outside the Wang residence.

The leading man was none other than Lin Zhengyi, Lin Baihu.

Each person was holding a banner, positioning themselves meticulously in five different directions of the courtyard, plunging their banners into the ground forcefully.

"Summon the golden light, Reverse Small Five Elements Sky-Sealing Formation, activate!"

Lin Baihu stomped one foot and shouted loudly before pulling out a Bagua mirror from his chest and tossing it into the sky.

The Bagua mirror froze mid-air, catching a streak of sunlight and reflecting it onto the gold-character banner, followed by the wood, water, fire, and earth banners.

A golden light formation facing downward instantly formed.

"Haha, Taoist, how about this formation?"

"After receiving your message last night, I immediately contacted the four flag-bearers under me and pulled out the five hidden flags from my father's collection, ensuring a foolproof setup."

Lin Zhengyi laughed heartily, his laughter both sunny and open like that of a big boy.

"Baihu, well done~ Beautiful!"

Seeing Lin Zhengyi appear, Yi Chen was naturally overjoyed.

After a long chat with Xiu'er last night, Yi Chen had basically confirmed that there was indeed an evil spirit in the manor with an extraordinarily strong ability to hide. To be extra cautious, Yi Chen chose to visit the peacekeepers at night directly.

After all, it was perfectly normal for his Hidden Dragon Temple, being an upright sect, to call upon the peacekeepers, wasn't it?

As a righteous partner, he didn't need to talk about any chivalry with these demonic heretics; they just stood shoulder to shoulder and got it done.

That's how we, the orthodox sects, operate.

If we can team up to outnumber the enemy, we avoid playing the lone hero.

If the evil spirit were to escape and wreak havoc, Yi Chen himself would not care much, but his fellow disciples, especially Qing Feng and Ming Yue, would suffer greatly.

They might just have to start the funeral preparations.

After all, there's no such thing as a thief who can hide for a thousand days against a vigilant guard.

Last night, after his long talk with Xiu'er, Yi Chen visited the peacekeepers under the cover of darkness, and it just so happened that Lin Baihu was in the office; they hit it off right away. With the crash of a cup as the signal, they would burst in and take down the culprit.

This led to the current scene.

Considering the lady's unusual behavior, her uncharacteristic red attire, the strange act of sending away her personal maids, the peculiar flush on her face, and the odd noises in the room, Yi Chen quickly pinpointed the few people who had been intimately involved with the lady these past few days.

As a Daoist skilled in human nature, in his previous life, he once convinced a wealthy investor to pour fifty million into his PowerPoint presentation with just three sentences.

Manipulating the suspects on his list was as easy as clapping his hands.

To ensure justice, to not wrong a good person, and definitely not to let a bad person off, he must investigate thoroughly and fairly.

After casting a wide net and careful verification, Yi Chen had only sensed a needle-like killing intent from the house steward at a certain moment.

Although the methods he used were a bit rough, they were very effective.

The steward's malevolence was so thick it didn't seem human.

Now it was a certainty.

Malicious detection, how truly useful it was.

Yesterday, when he crossed the river, the bearded knight who led the way didn't even make him feel as much evil intent when drawing his sword as this decrepit old man had emitted, far surpassing that of the bearded knight. If this wasn't an evil spirit, what was?

"House Steward, show your true form."

Yi Chen looked at the steward whose left arm he had grabbed and couldn't help but reveal a fierce smile.

"You've hidden yourself well, young one~ You made the Taoist look hard."

At this moment, the Five-Pass Demon's mind was in turmoil, having no clue how Yi Chen had seen through his disguise and so confident in his own judgment.

But given the current situation, he had no choice but to stubbornly refuse to give in. He didn't believe that without any evidence, the peacekeepers could do anything to him.

"Yi Taoist, you're accusing an innocent man. How could an old fellow like me be an evil spirit?"

"Still not admitting it, hm? Won't shed a tear until you see the coffin, huh? My Hidden Dragon Temple is famous for identifying evil spirits. I'll pass a wave of Pure Yang Inner Qi through your body, and you're sure to reveal your true form~"

Yi Chen's sinister smile was unrelenting as he dangled the house steward like a big wolf carrying a little chick.

With a thought, he swept Pure Yang Inner Qi towards the steward~

Yi Chen: "....." Five hundred crows flew across the sky.

The atmosphere suddenly became awkward.

None the less, there was no abnormal reaction; the steward was still trembling and cowering in his grasp.

This…

Doubt also started to flicker in Lin Baihu's eyes. With a frown, he threw a demon-expelling talisman at the steward, but still, there was no reaction.

A smug grin began to form inside the Five-Pass Demon~

"Hehe, Taoist, today I will ruin your reputation."

"If my skill in hiding my form were so easily detected, I would have been reduced to ashes a hundred years ago."

"Just wait, Taoist, after today, await my endless revenge~"

The Five-Pass Demon's inner self began to roar.

Yi Chen fell silent for a moment. As whispers from the increasingly gathering crowd around him grew, he waved his hand and drew the Dragon-Slaying Sword from behind him.

Dark purple Pure Yang Inner Qi suddenly enveloped his whole body. His stature seemed to grow taller, the veins on his neck stood out like a dragon's sinews, and the deep purple Inner Qi on the Dragon-Slaying Sword flickered uncertainly, scorching the ground to a charred black.

He snorted coldly.

"Everyone, do not be afraid!"

"This evil spirit is extremely tolerant, managing even to keep its composure against my Pure Yang Inner Qi."

"This is no ordinary evil spirit, we must use our full force!!!"

"Take this, Mountain-splitting Strike~"

In an instant, Yi Chen's sword slashed horizontally.

This move was inspired by King Nie Ren~

Confronted with such a forceful and powerful strike, the Five-Pass Demon could no longer maintain his composure. To keep up the pretense would mean death!

"Yi Chengzi, I curse your mother~"

With this cry, the Five-Pass Demon's voice even broke from strain.

He quickly retreated, his body swelling with Yin Qi, narrowly escaping Yi Chen's ferocious strike.