CHAPTER 227: CHAPTER 25 RETURN

After a night’s rest, just as the sky was beginning to brighten, Shen Changqing had drawn in the first strand of celestial energy between Heaven and Earth. He was about to call Wei Lan to return with him when he was stopped by a message from Zhang Hongyuan.

"Lord Shen, there’s been a change at Minor Hillock Mountain!"

"What exactly has happened?"

Looking at the person before him, Shen Changqing couldn’t help but frown, his heart also skipped a beat. He had become a lot more sensitive to matters concerning Minor Hillock Mountain.

"Lord Shen, you’ll understand once you come with me to see it," Zhang Hongyuan said, not answering directly. He then led the way, prompting Shen Changqing to step out of the tent.

Outside, Wei Lan, dressed in a sturdy outfit, was already waiting.

Seeing the Steward, Shen Changqing asked, "Does Steward Wei know what happened?"

"I’m not sure yet," Wei Lan shook her head. Like Shen Changqing, she too had been summoned by Zhang Hongyuan; the only difference was that she had come out a little earlier.

Zhang Hongyuan said, "It’s hard for me to explain right now. If you both follow me, you’ll see."

Seeing how secretive he was being, Shen Changqing and Wei Lan exchanged a glance before following Zhang Hongyuan’s lead.

Standing on a relatively elevated slope, Zhang Hongyuan pointed at the view ahead. "Both of you, take a look!"

Following his direction, Shen Changqing and Wei Lan cast their eyes toward the scene.

Inside Minor Hillock Mountain, at some point, nearly half a town had appeared, complete with streets and houses. It was indistinguishable from an ordinary town except for its utter lack of inhabitants.

In an instant, both their expressions turned grave.

With a solemn face, Wei Lan spoke, "Having completely shed the constraints of specific times and locations, the power of this Calamity, even if it hasn’t reached its growth phase, is definitely close!"

The most significant characteristic of a Calamity in its juvenile phase is the need for specific times and locations for its Domain to appear. Once a Calamity sheds these constraints and can display its Domain without restriction, it indicates it is about to leave its juvenile phase, or perhaps has already successfully entered its growth phase.

"According to information from the Demon-Subduing Division, this Calamity hasn’t been around for long. It couldn’t possibly have broken through to the growth phase so soon. There’s only one possibility: it consumed something that caused its power to skyrocket in a short period. And as Lord Shen mentioned last night, that Calamity had devoured a Demon Evil that intruded into Minor Hillock Mountain. To penetrate Minor Hillock Mountain even with two Earth Rank Demon Hunters guarding it, the infiltrator must have possessed at least Grandmaster Realm strength. That Calamity must have already amassed considerable power. With a Grandmaster’s energy to supplement it, reaching this state is not impossible," Wei Lan analyzed calmly.

Of those present, she was the one most familiar with information about Calamities.

Hearing her explanation, the expressions on Shen Changqing and Zhang Hongyuan’s faces changed slightly.

Wei Lan continued, "Fortunately, the Calamity Domain has not completely engulfed Minor Hillock Mountain yet. Otherwise, news of the Calamity would be impossible to keep secret. We will report back to the Capital City immediately. Demon Hunter Zhang, you should also send a message to the Lingcheng Demon-Subduing Division."

"No problem," Zhang Hongyuan nodded, aware of the severity of the situation.

The stronger the Calamity became, the more dangerous his role as Defender of Minor Hillock Mountain became. If one day he overslept and woke up to find himself within the Calamity Domain, he would be doomed. Against a Calamity that was about to progress to the growth phase, Zhang Hongyuan knew he stood no chance.

Immediately, Shen Changqing and Wei Lan didn’t dare to delay. They quickly bade farewell to Zhang Hongyuan, mounted their steeds which had been cared for by the guards for a day, and then set out towards the Capital City.

On the other side, Zhang Hongyuan also promptly reported the news back. An increase in the strength of the Calamity was no trivial matter.

「Lingcheng.」

「Inside the Demon-Subduing Division.」

By just the second day, the Defender Envoy based in Lingcheng’s Demon-Subduing Division received the message promptly.

"The Calamity at Minor Hillock Mountain is about to break through!" Guo Sheng’s face was somber as he held the message from Zhang Hongyuan.

To his left sat another female Defender Envoy. Her name was Ding Feng!

The Lingcheng Demon-Subduing Division was merely one among several within Guangyuan Prefecture, not particularly strong, and hence only had two Defender Envoys.

After carefully reading the document passed to her, Ding Feng said with a stern expression, "It’s truly unexpected that the Calamity has grown to such an extent. I doubt even the Demon Evil Clan anticipated they would one day become nourishment for a Calamity!"

Consuming Demon Evils, thereby greatly increasing its strength. Frankly, she found it rather unexpected.

Previously, even if Calamities didn’t ally with the Demon Evil Clan, they wouldn’t casually kill members of the Clan. After all, the Demon Evil Clan was powerful. Killing a member of the Demon Evil Clan could invite their enmity, and even for a Calamity, provoking the Demon Evil Clan was a significant problem.

Guo Sheng said, "This Calamity is completely different from what we’ve known before. Based on Zhang Hongyuan’s report, despite its apparent conflict with the Demon Evil Clan, it might be far more frenzied than any other Calamity we have encountered!"

From Zhang Hongyuan’s report, it was clear that Mo Zijin was a Calamity with ideals and aspirations. Such Calamities are often the most terrifying. Calamities are fearsome, but those that are cultured and ambitious are even more so. Clearly, Mo Zijin belonged to the latter. If such a Calamity is allowed to develop unchecked, it could inflict catastrophic damage upon Great Qin.

"Such a hidden danger, it’s naturally best to eliminate him, but Calamities simply can’t be extinguished. What can we do to deal with it now!" Ding Feng’s face was icy. If a Calamity could be eliminated, she would have already made her way to Minor Hillock Mountain to forcefully put an end to Mo Zijin. But the problem was, Calamities simply cannot be extinguished. It’s these indestructible beings that are the most troublesome.

Guo Sheng said, "Extermination is impossible. We can only do our utmost to suppress his growth. Send a few more Earth Rank Demon Hunters, or even a Heaven Rank Demon Hunter. We must guard Minor Hillock Mountain well and not let Demon Evils enter again."

The Demon Evils nearly caused a catastrophe by feeding themselves to it just once. Now, even knowing that any Demon Evils going to Minor Hillock Mountain would just be feeding it, he wouldn’t dare let them enter again. Ultimately, it was also related to the geographical location of the Calamity. If the Demon Evil Clan really went mad, willing to sacrifice a group of powerful individuals just to let the Calamity grow, then that would be a huge problem for Great Qin.

Ding Feng shook her head. "Lingcheng doesn’t have that many Earth Rank and Heaven Rank Demon Hunters to spare for Minor Hillock Mountain. If we actually did this, we could ignore the Demon Evils in other places."

"If Lingcheng can’t provide them, then we’ll ask for help from the other Demon-Subduing Divisions. After all, they are all under the jurisdiction of Guangyuan Prefecture. They have no reason to stand idly by, do they?" Guo Sheng wasn’t too worried.

The Demon-Subduing Division wasn’t just in Lingcheng; there are several in Guangyuan Prefecture. If the Guangyuan Prefecture divisions can’t handle it, there are still divisions from other prefectures. In any case, the Calamity isn’t just Guangyuan Prefecture’s problem, nor is it solely the Lingcheng Demon-Subduing Division’s responsibility. If anything goes wrong, everyone will be implicated.

Ding Feng said, "You’re on better terms with those other Demon-Subduing Divisions, so you should contact them. If I were to go, a fight might break out."

"All right." Guo Sheng didn’t refuse, aware of Ding Feng’s volatile temper. If they couldn’t agree on something, a fight could indeed break out on the spot.

It took several days for Shen Changqing and Wei Lan to return to the Capital City from Minor Hillock Mountain.

Upon entering the vicinity of the Capital City, they could sense that the atmosphere was somewhat amiss. Only upon truly entering the Capital City did the worry on the faces of the common people become evident, and the voices they heard were vaguely related to Demon Evils.

"More Demon Evils have appeared!"

Making judgments from various aspects, Shen Changqing could fairly confidently confirm this guess.

Upon hearing this, Wei Lan gave a slight nod. "Demon Evils rarely caused trouble in the Capital City before. Now that it’s happening repeatedly, I fear true chaos is imminent!"

"Let’s report back first. We’ll deal with the rest later," Shen Changqing shook his head, not dwelling on it further.

The pressing matter at hand was to report the situation at Minor Hillock Mountain.

Demon Evils causing trouble within the Capital City was, in a way, beneficial for him. In this way, as long as he took action before others, he would have the chance to harvest a nearby wave of Slaughter Value.

After coming out of Minor Hillock Mountain, Shen Changqing understood even more the importance of strength.

With strength, one can control one’s own destiny. Mo Zijin’s words and past experiences clearly told him that no one could be relied upon; he could only truly rely on himself. Even with the backing of the Demon-Subduing Division, when choices had to be made, he himself could become expendable. It was like the people of Guangyuan Prefecture infected with the plague over two hundred years ago. To prevent more people from being infected, those who were infected became expendable, sealed within their city and left to fend for themselves. Although the Imperial Court didn’t personally kill those people, allowing them to struggle in desperation until death was just as cruel. Given a choice, Shen Changqing did not wish to become the next Mo Zijin, nor did he want to be one of the plague-infected people of Guangyuan Prefecture from over two hundred years ago. He didn’t want to repeat such mistakes. Therefore, he had to possess the strength to shatter all constraints.

Once in the Capital City, the two brought their horses to the post station. After their mounts were tended to, they headed towards the Demon-Subduing Division.

Inside the Council Hall, Dongfang Zhao sat there, silently listening to Shen Changqing’s report, while Wei Lan remained unobtrusive.

Gradually, as Shen Changqing reported more, this Defender Envoy’s expression grew increasingly grave.

When he finally finished speaking, Dongfang Zhao’s expression had become extremely stern.

"The events from over two hundred years ago are still documented. Indeed, the Imperial Court’s methods were rather harsh, but it was for the sake of the greater populace. Those actions were born of necessity. Who would have thought this incident would not only birth a Calamity in Guangyuan Prefecture but also instill such ambitions in him. If this isn’t handled properly, the repercussions will be immense!"