A statement that stopped the room.

Even Chen Qiankun’s expression had gone slightly cold.

Zhang Hengzhou had already caused considerable harm to Linjiang Prefecture — and now the person he’d recommended was being described as another Zhang Hengzhou. One more step and they’d be pointing a finger at him for being a blind old fool.

And yet the old general said nothing in rebuttal.

Because he had nothing to say. He couldn’t argue on behalf of someone he’d only met twice.

Besides — the reason he’d raised this at all, beyond wanting to show off his judgment, was that someone else had already provided a guarantee.

Aqian settled back in her seat.

This was either left alone and not raised — given Qingzhou’s situation, if a powerful practitioner was willing to help, did the manner of their growth really matter — or once the window was opened, it couldn’t be ignored.

She asked with minimal interest: “Evidence?”

“No evidence. But he grew too quickly.”

“That’s a joke — at minimum there should be a reason.” Aqian shook her head with open contempt. “Even the White Deer died at his hands. And you think he’s a major demon? What’s his goal?”

“His goal?” The Yangyang Prefecture General wasn’t intimidated by a gold-bell demon-hunter. His gaze was flat. “Gaining the Division’s trust. At the moment when the General and the Howling Moon Demon King are in direct confrontation — moving close to the General’s side and landing a decisive blow. Who here is prepared to bear that consequence?”

He let the gaze travel around the room. His voice was cold.

“I’d genuinely like to know — which of you will accept that responsibility.”

Lin Baixi had entirely lost the thread of what the Demon Suppression Generals were discussing. She’d only wanted to recommend Shen Yi to her teacher — and in the space of a few sentences, he’d gone from acting General to a major demon capable of threatening her teacher’s life.

Into the silence—

A cool, quiet voice from the first seat on the left.

“I will.”

Jiang Qiulan, in the dark gleaming armor, had been sitting in the dim of the hall from the beginning without saying a word — easy to unconsciously overlook. But now, under that smooth dark hair, those clear eyes held extraordinary depth.

She stood without hurry and said evenly: “Any other concerns?”

Jiang Yuanhua’s eyelid moved twice. He said nothing.

The Demon Suppression Generals looked at each other. No one spoke. The Yangyang General exhaled quietly and tucked the case file back at his waist.

“If there are no further concerns, then we’re done.”

Jiang Qiulan gave a small nod and moved toward the hall’s great doors.

The tall figure in black armor. The crimson cape stirring slightly.

“…”

The Demon Suppression Generals instinctively began to rise — and then remembered the General was still sitting, and caught themselves awkwardly.

Jiang Yuanhua waved a resigned hand. “Don’t look at me. She said we’re done, then we’re done.”

He watched his second disciple’s retreating figure, and the complexity in his expression deepened. Then his curiosity about the repeatedly-mentioned name sharpened.

What kind of person could make this room full of practitioners who normally showed nothing on their faces have a genuine argument — and even draw Qiulan into it?

“Aah.”

You Longtao had apparently grown used to his martial sister’s particular manner of operating. He shook his head gently.

As expected — the two young ones had met after all. The Solar-Splitting Bow might as well have been given away.

The Yangyang General felt the weight of it. Every additional argument he could make amounted to nothing against a single offhand sentence from Jiang Qiulan.

The logic was simple. She was Qingzhou’s only real hope.

If she was displeased, whether Shen Yi was a demon or not stopped mattering.

Then Lin Baixi stepped forward, cheeks flushed, barely contained.

“Shen Yi is not a demon! He learned the Four Harmonies True Astral Force in a matter of days! If demons had that kind of aptitude, they would have leveled all twelve Qingzhou prefectures long ago!”

“I sent Martial Elder Sister a letter, and she read it. Her coming forward just now — that’s not her using her position to pressure everyone here.” She gripped her hands tight.

Fang Heng stepped out as well. There was some nervousness facing this assembly, but he steadied himself.

“He learned the Meridian-Severing Dragon Capture in five days. Commander Shen is a genuine talent.”

Demons preferred divine abilities and innate gifts. If they also had this kind of aptitude for cultivating human martial arts — that would be terrifying to consider.

Zhang Hengzhou had spent over a hundred years learning Qingfeng Mountain’s techniques — clearly relying on accumulated demonic cultivation to build his reputation.

But Shen Yi was different. He’d been learning one of the General’s own five signature techniques — something that couldn’t have been obtained in advance or leaked beforehand.

He’d read through the manuscript with his own eyes right there, and been using it a few days later.

Because it was too monstrous, it was actually impossible for it to be an actual monster.

If someone argued he was a demon — the only logical conclusion was that the General had been performing an elaborate act for everyone’s benefit.

“…”

Jiang Yuanhua became aware that the Demon Suppression Generals were looking at him with a degree of suspicion.

He cleared his throat, quietly.

“Enough. Someone should share the burden with General Chen. Open the interior armory. Have a set of black-gleaming armor sent to our new General.”

At those words, Lin Baixi settled — and then immediately felt something wrong.

Wait. Wasn’t she recommending Shen Yi as her teacher’s disciple?

When did this become Demon Suppression General?

She stared.

And also—

Had Martial Elder Sister Jiang just personally vouched for Shen Yi?

Why?

Fang Heng looked at Lin Baixi with quiet sympathy. Even he — who had seen Commander Shen regularly — still felt something faintly dizzying when learning what the man had been doing. For his martial elder sister, receiving three months of news all at once — she was going to need time.

“…”

About one incense stick’s worth of time later — the Division compound, noticeably emptied compared to before, suddenly erupted with noise.

Nearly every Commander and Deputy Commander came rushing out.

Fixed on the opened interior armory doors, they then saw it — more than twenty personal attendant Deputy Commanders, each with different gold-thread patterns at the collar, moving in unified formation around the old General Chen Qiankun in their center.

In his hands: a set of new black heavy armor, a cold gleam on the dark surface, a crimson cape hanging from it like a blood-soaked banner.

That kind of dress existed in all of Qingzhou in exactly twelve sets.

Chen Qiankun took two steps forward, then paused.

“Come to think of it — where is my personal attendant?”

He’d just remembered the young man was supposed to be on door duty today, and hadn’t been seen since.

“…”

Everyone who had gathered looked at each other blankly.

Qingzhou had just appointed an acting General — and no one knew where the General was?

Aqian stood with her hands clasped behind her back, faint displeasure in her expression. She’d always felt that a capable practitioner had been taken from the demon-hunters. What made it harder to accept was that before being taken, the young man had also used up all of Qingzhou’s demon-hunter War Temple allocations.

How was that fair? What exactly did demon-hunters have that Demon Suppression Generals didn’t?

She shook her head and looked elsewhere.

Something quieter moved in her eyes.

In the distance, under a tree — Jiang Yuanhua stood with a faint smile, talking with a gracious, dignified woman — full-figured, poised, unmistakably striking.

The subject of their conversation was the young woman standing nearby in heavy armor.

Jiang Qiulan looked evenly at the sky. Across those exquisite, effortlessly composed features — a barely-visible thread of tiredness.

(End of Chapter)