Chapter 355: Surprise Attack
A week later.
At the entrance of the Demon Cultivator’s Water Gate branch.
“Ah~”
Stretching lazily, Young Master Sang stood at the company entrance with hands on hips, feeling quite emotional.
“I’m back from vacation, and I still have to get into work mode!”
However, standing here, Young Master Sang even felt a vague sense of having survived a catastrophe.
…One against five was still a bit tough.
If it hadn’t been for the Original Immortal he’d collected earlier, he’d probably be done for by now.
This past week had been thoroughly enjoyable, washing away the exhaustion from months of business trips to the Holy Kingdom, so much so that as he walked into the company, he was humming a little tune with light footsteps.
“Chief Sang!”
“Hello, Chief!”
Demon Cultivator employees greeted him along the way, and Young Master Sang happily returned their greetings one by one.
He made his way back to his familiar office in the Punishment Department, plopped down happily in his chair, and casually called for Old Man Cheng.
“Old Cheng, how’s the work been in the Punishment Department while I was away?”
“Smooth! Of course it’s been smooth!” Old Man Cheng replied with a courteous smile. “With your renown establishing dominance, our Punishment Department has become the most feared and famous in the entire Demon Cult!”
“Good, good,” Young Master Sang said contentedly. “Today, I’m in a good mood and have an itch for some hands-on work. Let’s go take a stroll in the prison and randomly pick two celestial beings to interrogate. Remember, they need to be young and pretty.”
“Uh…”
Old Man Cheng’s face suddenly became conflicted.
Young Master Sang: “? What’s wrong? Didn’t you say our department’s work has been going smoothly?”
“Uh, smoothly is one thing…” Old Man Cheng chuckled bitterly. “But it’s exactly because it’s too smooth that…”
Young Master Sang: “?”
——
——
Inside the Punishment Department’s prison.
Looking at the empty prison that appeared almost abandoned, with only Aunty sweeping the floor leisurely, Young Master Sang fell into a short moment of confusion before finally turning to ask:
“What’s going on? Where are the prisoners?”
“Ahem, boss, we haven’t accepted any prisoners for almost half a month now.”
Old Man Cheng said awkwardly, “We’ve officially leveled up to sanctified status, and all the various sects and families within the surrounding jurisdictions are bowing to us, scared of provoking us.”
“Even the Chiyu Sect and the Floating Feather Palace, which used to give us trouble, have now aligned with us. As for anyone daring to oppose us, we can’t find a single one.”
“Now, let alone our branch’s prison being so idle it’s about to grow weeds, even the Punishment Department at headquarters is so desperate they’ve begun locking up regular civilians to keep busy.”
Young Master Sang couldn’t believe it: “Not a single job in all this time?”
“There have been a few jobs… However, once they hear it’s the Punishment Department under the famous Punishment Demon Lord, they generally plead guilty before even stepping inside the jail, so there’s no chance for interrogation.”
Hearing this, Young Master Sang felt somewhat wronged.
How was it that he finally became the head of the Punishment Department, only for the entire department to face becoming jobless?
While this seemed like good news for the company.
But for Young Master Sang, it brought an immense sense of emptiness.
“What do you all do at work every day now?” Young Master Sang asked gloomily.
“Well, basically just doing some small entertaining activities to kill time…”
Looking into Young Master Sang’s eyes, Old Man Cheng tentatively asked, “How about trying the new tabletop game activity from Fusa Pavilion? Want to play Mahjong, boss?”
A burst of unnamed anger surged through Young Master Sang.
“Great! I’m out there risking my life building our company’s legacy, and you guys are at home slacking off playing Mahjong, just bumming around, right?”
“That’s utterly detestable!”
Half an hour later.
“Self-drawn! Four Great Winds, tripled, sorry~”
“Again? Boss, did you cheat secretly?”
“Hey, can’t take a loss, huh? You look down on my Mahjong skills as the little sparrow saint of the Demon Cult? No excuses, cough up the money.”
“Ugh,” Old Man Cheng, looking miserable, could only pull out spirit stones and hand them over, heartbroken. “I was hoping the boss would be bad at Mahjong, so I could sneak some money off of you.”
“But isn’t this the newly promoted game project from Fusa Pavilion? How come you’re so proficient?”
“Hey hey.” Young Master Sang collected the money with pride, boasting, “Back in the day, I used to pay rent playing Mahjong with colleagues. You think you’ll catch up with me any time soon?”
“Want to go again?”
“Let’s go! Where will you find a child who cries every day, where will you find a gambler who loses every day! Watch me hit a heavenly draw this time!”
——
——
At the foot of the mountain, in the marketplace.
As dinner time approached, the marketplace was bustling with activity, filled with women preparing ingredients for dinner.
Zhang Xiaoying was pacing back and forth in the marketplace, seemingly pondering what to cook tonight, with Master Yu Xia following closely behind her with a basket.
“Aunt Yu, do you think we should eat something light tonight? It’s been a week of big fish and meat, and my husband might be getting tired of it?”
“What the lady says is right; how about we buy some mushrooms to make soup?”
“Yeah, that sounds good.”
Around this time each day, Zhang Xiaoying felt the most relaxed and unwound.
Just thinking about how to prepare a delicious feast at home, picturing Young Master Sang’s happy expression as he came home tired to a warm meal, imagining the joyful family dinner with laughter and joy.
Zhang Xiaoying felt very pleased.
“This reminds me.”
Zhang Xiaoying suddenly recalled, “The curtains at home got shredded by Jiao Jiao and Hei Xia. Let’s pick out some nice fabric to change them.”
“That’ll mean taking a detour to the next town.”
“It’s fine, there’s still time to make dinner; Aunt Yu will accompany me.” Zhang Xiaoying tugged at Master Yu Xia’s hand playfully.
“Your servant understands.” Master Yu Xia smiled.
Usually, there were only two or three towns at the foot of the branch of the Demon Cult. Now, thanks to the growing reputation of the Demon Cult, the towns were also becoming more prosperous and peaceful.
Walking along the woodland path, Zhang Xiaoying excitedly discussed the evening’s menu.
Master Yu Xia, respectfully lowering her head, quietly listened.
Suddenly, Master Yu Xia looked up, her aura surging explosively.
Before Zhang Xiaoying could realize what was happening, Master Yu Xia had already flashed in front of her, pouring her Crossing Tribulation Stage later-stage cultivation completely out.
However, even so, a barely noticeable black shadow shot straight into the right side of Master Yu Xia’s chest.
“…Mm.”
“Aunt Yu!”
As Zhang Xiaoying screamed, Master Yu Xia’s face turned slightly pale as she shook her head, signaling that she was okay.
Her beautiful eyes fixed fiercely on a shadow that flickered in the distance.
That shadow lingered for just a moment; seeming to see it hadn’t hit its target, it clicked its tongue before vanishing completely as if it had never appeared.
Then, a wave of dizziness washed over her mind.
Master Yu Xia felt the world spin and fainted into Zhang Xiaoying’s arms.
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