Chapter Seventeen: The Pacifying Barbarian Commandant and the Black Tiger Demon King

“What should we do next? Will the corpse of Lady Yu rise from her grave?”
There was a long silence before Cold Moon murmured softly.
“That corpse consort could traverse the skies; she must have reached the early stage of the Spirit Transformation realm—far beyond what we can handle.
Even so, I doubt she would easily leave the tomb.
The priority now is to relocate the surviving villagers down the mountain and seek reinforcements to investigate this tomb again.
I suspect the White Jade Serpent Demon covets the treasures buried here.
This time, it failed to reach an agreement with the corpse consort, which led to the great battle. But having failed, it surely won’t give up so easily!”
Han Chong pondered briefly before speaking solemnly.
“Agreed. Stay here and don’t move. I’ll gather the surviving villagers.”
Cold Moon turned and headed toward the village.
An hour later, she had assembled all the villagers who remained alive, instructed them to bury the dead, and hurriedly move away from the area.
She found four sturdy men to carry Han Chong on a stretcher toward Shiqu Town.
The next day, in an inn in Shiqu Town—
“This Yunnan White Powder is truly effective. The wound is almost healed already.”
Han Chong had endured an itchy night, but by morning, as Cold Moon removed his bandages and applied fresh medicine, the injury was more than half restored.
“Yes, this medicine is a tribute from the imperial household. But judging by your thick skin, you’d probably heal in a few days even without it.
I’ve already sent out the Black Tiger Arrow; my superior should arrive tomorrow.”
“Your superior? What rank?”
Han Chong’s eyes lit up. Cold Moon was late in the Energy Refinement stage—her superior must be at the Spirit Transformation level!
“A fifth-rank Pacification Officer, in charge of the Demon Slaying Department in Peijun Prefecture. Under his command are four sixth-rank Martial Captains and ten Banner Lieutenants.”
Cold Moon’s voice was indifferent, as if she cared little for rank.
Han Chong’s eyes gleamed. Fifth rank was already a high post, enough for a seat at court.
“I bought you new clothes. Change into them.”
With a tap of her storage pouch, a set of brand-new black attire appeared in her hand, which she handed over.
“Thank you.” Han Chong pulled open his old shirt with both hands, tearing it apart with a rip.
“Can’t you wait until I leave?”
She turned away, her expression frosty.
He froze, thinking that ancient notions of propriety between men and women were rather strict—it was only his upper body, after all.
That night, Han Chong suddenly sensed movement in Cold Moon’s adjoining room. He immediately rose and listened, but all went quiet.
He silently activated his concealment technique, stepped into the corridor, and peered through the lattice. Cold Moon leapt from her window and landed on the street below.
He saw her follow a man at great speed toward the outskirts of town.
Han Chong followed at a distance until they reached the mass grave, where she finally stopped.
He watched as Cold Moon clasped her hands in salute before six demon slayers standing ahead!
Four wore black, one was in gray, and at their center stood a man in a purple robe. He had thick brows, large eyes, a bronze complexion, and a hawk-like nose. With hands behind his back, he listened quietly as Cold Moon reported.
Drawing near, Han Chong strained to catch their conversation.
“Oh? You say the Tomb of Lady Yu holds untold treasures? How strange. Why would these fiends and ghosts covet such gold and silver?”
Cold Moon bowed her head, so the expression of the purple-robed man was hidden.
But Han Chong saw it clearly—a flash of greed in the man’s eyes!
Could it be that, despite his cultivation, this man was also driven by avarice?
“I know not, my lord. But the bodyguard I recruited this time is Han Chong.
He is formidable, able to spit flames and slay fiends. He helped me dispatch several monsters and ghosts. I hope you will permit him to join the Demon Slaying Department as a lieutenant.”
Cold Moon deftly shifted the topic to Han Chong, recommending him highly.
“Hmm! Our bureau is indeed in need of such talent. Very well, give him this token.
As for his official registration, I’ll see to it when we return.
For now, let us proceed to the Tomb of Lady Yu and investigate the matter of the corpse consort.”
The hawk-nosed man tossed a Black Tiger Token to Cold Moon and signaled her to lead the way.
“Yes, sir!”
Cold Moon glanced hesitantly back toward Shiqu Town, but clasped her hands and set off for the mountain village.
There’s something wrong here! Han Chong’s instincts told him that, though the Pacification Officer held high rank, he was not immune to greed.
If he truly coveted the treasures, Cold Moon might be in grave danger!
Once the seven left, Han Chong dropped his concealment and followed from afar.
...
“Hm?”
“What’s wrong, Captain Cold?”
“Reporting, sir, when Han Chong and I left, I filled this thief tunnel with earth and stones.
But now, it’s been dug out again. Very strange!”
Cold Moon stood before the stone hut’s secret entrance, a look of puzzlement on her face.
“Oh?”
The hawk-nosed officer walked to the edge of the tunnel and peered down.
He stretched out a finger, conjuring a white flame at its tip.
A flick, and the flame became a pigeon-egg-sized fireball, illuminating the tunnel.
As it floated downward, crackling sounds rose and blue and black lights flickered in turn.
“Several fiends and ghosts have been here within the last few hours—quite a few of them!”
The hawk-nosed man frowned in contemplation.
The other officers exchanged uneasy glances. The White Serpent Demon had fled, knowing the power of the corpse consort—yet it dared return. Had it brought powerful allies?
He shot a glance at the man in gray, who nodded and led Cold Moon and the others down on ropes, then followed himself.
Han Chong, hidden, slipped into the stone hut, wary but resolute, and descended as well.
The outer tomb passages were empty, save for a few side chambers filled with gold and bronze vessels.
But from the central chamber, fierce combat echoed—howls and roars of ghosts and demons.
At a corner, the hawk-nosed party peered inside and saw layer upon layer of fiends and spirits, numbering in the hundreds!
All were crowded in the corridor before the main burial chamber, where the battle raged deep within.
A quarter hour passed before a monstrous scream came from the burial chamber, and the horde of fiends surged inside in excitement, the officers following at a distance.
Han Chong, still concealed, reached the threshold of the main chamber and stopped, his expression changing.
Before him was an enormous stone hall, its dome set with gems and pearls.
Around the hall stood over a dozen brass columns, carved with rare birds and beasts. At their bases ran mercury channels like a moat.
At the center rested a black jade coffin, the floor paved with silver bricks, and eight golden pools brimming with treasures!
The corpse consort of Lady Yu stood before the coffin, flanked by six ghost generals in full battle array, facing the horde of fiends and ghosts.
On the other side clustered several great demons, among them the White Jade Serpent Demon!
But now, the serpent coiled in utter deference beside a towering figure—three zhang tall, with a human body, tiger’s head, clad in a black robe and crowned in black. It scarcely dared to breathe!
This was a battle of monstrous proportions—two armies, with corpses and bones piled between. Many ghost soldiers and demon warriors bore wounds.
The black-robed tiger-headed man was plainly a Black Tiger Demon King, whose strength had forced the corpse consort back to her coffin, though both sides bore wounds and their auras were unstable—a fierce battle had just been fought!
At that moment, the hawk-nosed officers arrived at the chamber’s entrance, drawing the attention of all three parties!
The Black Tiger Demon King’s pupils contracted at the sight of the purple robe, and he led his demons aside. The three sides stood in tense stalemate.
The hawk-nosed officer raised an eyebrow—the demon king recognized his uniform, clearly no ordinary foe!
Han Chong watched, his face grave. With three mighty leaders commanding great forces, the situation was far beyond his current strength.
“Human cultivator, why not join forces to destroy the corpse consort, and settle matters afterward?”
The tiger-headed man rumbled his proposal to the hawk-nosed officer.
“Hmph!”
The officer only snorted, his gaze mocking.
The demon king roared in fury, shaking with anger! He ruled the Tiger Fang Mountains for hundreds of miles—yet today, first humiliated by the corpse consort, now blocked by the indomitable demon slayer, his authority was trampled!
Caught between a rock and a hard place, his claws clenched and cracked with rage, but he dared not act rashly.
Were he to attack the corpse consort or the officer, the other would surely seize the advantage!
Time passed by the half-stick of incense, the three sides locked in stalemate. Han Chong grew anxious—each breath spent six points of energy to maintain his concealment, and he could not last much longer!
...
Suddenly, in the midst of the battling fiends, a blade of blue light shot forth—no one saw who launched it—and slashed toward the corpse consort!
With a furious howl, she tore the blade apart, but her claws were left battered and bloody.
Throwing back her head, the corpse consort led her six ghost generals in a furious assault on the Black Tiger Demon King!
“Damn it, what’s going on?”
The tiger demon cursed, bewildered, as he transformed into a five-zhang-tall jet-black beast, eyes blazing yellow, maw gaping wide as he met the attack head-on!
At the sight of the blue blade, Cold Moon’s pupils contracted. She covered her lips, her face stricken with shock.
“What is it?” The hawk-nosed officer immediately noticed her reaction.
“Nothing, sir. What should we do?”
She quickly suppressed her surprise and asked.
“Heh, just keep blocking the exit. Let them destroy each other.”
Though suspicious, the officer turned his attention back to the movements of the Black Tiger Demon and the corpse consort.