Chapter 136: Entering Shaozhou Prefecture

Song Mu and the others were absolutely certain that they were not mistaken about the presence of that *Jinshi*-level aura.

That coercive pressure was far too formidable; the terrifying aura of a *Jinshi* had left everyone momentarily breathless.

Yet, looking back now, that presence seemed to have lasted only for an instant—as if it had suddenly erupted before being swiftly and obscurely retracted.

"Could that *Jinshi*... have been Lord Fengming?"

At that moment, one of the *Xiucai* scholars spoke up, but the others immediately shook their heads. Song Mu, in particular, wore a resolute expression, certain that it definitely was not Tao Fengming.

Having spent so much time with Tao Fengming, he knew that whenever his mentor guided him to open up a realm of illusions, he would employ both literary power and spiritual will.

Of all people, Song Mu was the most familiar with it.

Furthermore, just last night, Tao Fengming had unleashed a surge of literary power right before a large crowd to drive away the demonic beasts that had come to harass them.

Everyone present had experienced it firsthand and should have been able to make the comparison.

This realization left them all the more baffled. If a *Jinshi* had merely passed by and witnessed people fighting bitterly against demonic beasts—especially enchanted ones—how could he not have intervened?

Assuming he was pressed for time on urgent business, why would that same beast follow him closely afterwards, to the point where he did not even wish to reveal his presence to the crowd and quietly slipped away?

Everyone's minds were shrouded in a thick fog of confusion at this point. Fu Zefeng simply gave up pondering the question and hurriedly asked the scholars who had descended from the mountain just after them.

"How are the instructors?"

That scholar let out a breath and replied calmly, "They are fine. That giant eagle didn't cause any harm to anyone, but..."

Here, the scholar hesitated for a moment, cast his gaze toward the corpses of the two demon-tainted monkeys at Song Mu and the others' feet, and then looked back up at them.

"However, when we were leaving, Instructor Xiao mentioned that the demon commander seemed to have just fallen under demonic corruption."

"Just fallen under demonic corruption?"

The group froze, and Song Mu's gaze also paused. At that moment, a calm voice resonated around them.

"Indeed, there is something fishy about this place."

As that gentle voice drifted into their ears, the eyebrows on Song Mu's face twitched. A look of delight immediately surfaced on his face. Turning his head, he saw Tao Fengming standing not far away.

"Master!" Song Mu called out, and the others also turned around to bow in salute.

"My lord."

Tao Fengming waved his hand, paying no heed to their formalities. He simply stepped forward to inspect the condition of the two dead monkey demons before looking up at the group.

"Let's head back first. We're going to Shaozhou Prefecture City, and we can discuss this matter then."

With Tao Fengming giving the order, the others readily agreed. Song Mu hurriedly turned and asked him, "Master, how is the village?"

As Song Mu spoke, his eyes swept across the scorched fields before him, tinged with a measure of concern. Tao Fengming maintained his customary, exceptionally calm expression as he replied,

"It's fine. Early this morning, I had the village chief and the others harvest the crops in the fields and bring them back into the village. The village was not harassed by these fiends either."

Hearing this, the group exchanged glances, their faces etched with astonishment.

The scene before them had felt so apocalyptic, yet the matter had already been resolved by Tao Fengming in advance?

Inwardly, Song Mu clicked his tongue in admiration. Tao Fengming's handling of the situation possessed the true demeanor of a powerhouse.

He had seemingly done nothing at all, yet he had quietly taken care of everything right under their noses.

A sense of relief washed over Song Mu's face. Together with the others, he helped carry away the corpses of the two monkeys. They would need to bring them to the prefectural city and present them to the Prefect of Shaozhou, urging him to dispatch troops for a swift clearance operation.

After all, the emergence of demon-tainted beasts within their jurisdiction—with an exceptionally powerful one having vanished without a trace—was alarming.

Such news, if spread, would undoubtedly send chills down anyone's spine.

Furthermore, although Shaozhou Prefecture was located in the northern part of Yuezhou and lay at a considerable distance from the Southern Frontier battlefield, it bore the heavy burden of processing a massive influx of refugees.

It was safe to say that if this matter were not handled properly, it would not simply be a case of dereliction of duty; it could potentially result in widespread civilian casualties.

They would undoubtedly treat this matter with the utmost gravity.

When Song Mu and the others returned to the village, they discovered that Tao Fengming seemed to have cast some kind of barrier around the settlement. This barrier had completely blocked out the billowing smoke and grey fog rolling down from the surrounding mountains and fields.

Seeing everyone return safe and sound, the villagers wore apprehensive expressions at first.

However, upon noticing that Song Mu and his companions had indeed slain the fiends—especially the most detested monkeys from the mountains—the villagers visibly relaxed.

Before long, the rest of the *Xiucai* and *Juren* scholars who had gone up the mountain converged on the village. Seeing that everyone was unharmed, their expressions also eased considerably.

Tao Fengming instructed several *Juren* scholars to put out the fires raging across the fields. Five *Juren* composed a few cloud-traveling poems on the spot, summoning howling gales and torrential rain. In mere moments, the smoke lingering around the village was completely dispersed.

Song Mu and his group did not linger in the village any longer. They busied themselves with packing up their belongings, loaded the corpses of the two monkey demons onto a cart, and set off southward along the official highway.

Shaozhou Prefecture City lay several dozen miles further south. By accelerating their pace, they might just be able to arrive by dusk.

Along the way, the group began discussing the hunt. The perilous situations encountered by Song Mu and the others, in particular, left everyone feeling a lingering sense of terror—especially the fact that two demon generals could fall to corruption in such a short span of time, accompanied by a massive surge in combat prowess.

Aside from that, the giant eagle that had blotted out the sun and soared across the sky with outstretched wings had also filled them with dread.

Though they had slain two demon generals and a number of minor demon soldiers and beasts on the mountain today, fortunately, only a few people had sustained minor injuries without any serious consequence.

Having encountered such a dramatic scenario so soon after setting out on the hunt left everyone both shocked and exhilarated, and they chattered animatedly along the way.

Song Mu felt much more integrated into the group by now. Although he had joined at Tao Fengming's behest and had even penned a literary work like the *Three Character Classic*, it had not disrupted the expedition.

Throughout the journey, the others could tell that Song Mu and Tao Fengming shared a master-disciple bond, and they treated him with superficial courtesy. In their hearts, however, they still harbored a slight lingering concern that Song Mu, having newly attained the rank of *Xiucai*, might become a burden.

Yet, perhaps due to his commendable performance today, their attitude toward him had improved significantly.

Song Mu remained quite modest about it. After all, when all was said and done, what he had truly slain today were merely a few minor demon soldiers and beasts; the eventual elimination of the monkey king had relied entirely on the collective strength of the group.

As the group hurried along the official highway at a brisk pace, they noticed that the further south they traveled, the greater the number of families fleeing with their belongings became. Although government runners were maintaining order, the crowds remained a chaotic, sprawling mass.

Seeing Song Mu and his companions traveling swiftly in the opposite direction, and noting that their leader Tao Fengming wore scholar's robes while the two dozen or so young men were all robust and possessed extraordinary demeanors, the refugees immediately understood that these were no ordinary people.

"Grandpa, who are these people?"

By the roadside, a white-haired elder was urging his family to make way. A little boy sitting on a wooden handcart stared with wide eyes as Song Mu and the others hurried past, asking the question aloud.

The deeply wrinkled, weathered elder glanced at them, a look of envy flickering across his face. He spoke earnestly to his young grandson,

"Those are scholars."

"Scholars?"

"That's right. In this Great Wen Dynasty, we rely entirely on scholars like them."

Pushing onward with all haste, Song Mu and the others finally arrived outside the walls of Shaozhou Prefecture City just before sunset. A vast sea of humanity awaited them there; outside the towering city walls, hordes of refugees had temporarily set up camp, leaving the ground in utter disarray amidst the ceaseless wailing of children.

A pang of unbearable sympathy stirred in Song Mu's heart at this sight, but he could only quicken his pace.

Even with a heart broad enough to embrace the world, and a genuine desire to do something, his current strength was merely a drop in the bucket.

As the group reached the city gates, guards were just about to bar them. Seeing a party of scholars approach, a garrison officer stepped forward to interrogate them. Tao Fengming, walking at the very front, casually tossed out a waist token.

The shimmering light dazzled the soldiers. The commanding officer leaped up from his stool in a start, hurriedly bowing as he made way for Song Mu and the others to enter.

"May I ask what brings a respected *Jinshi* lord to Shaozhou Prefecture?"

As the officer spoke, Tao Fengming lifted the ragged cloth covering the demonic carcasses, revealing their ferocious appearances. The officer drew in a sharp breath of cold air.

Tao Fengming said calmly, "I wish to see the Prefect."