Chapter 407: Chapter 403: The Dangerous Old Man
The area where Tu Xiao’an currently found himself was the detention zone for Rank Two Spirit Monsters.
But the prison extended much deeper, which meant that it also held quite a few Rank Three Demon Spirits.
This time, however, Tu Xiao’an’s situation was an emergency. He couldn’t afford to stroll through it like a zoo. He had to get out of there, and fast.
The Crow landed on Tu Xiao’an’s shoulder and looked all around, appearing quite relaxed.
"Blackbird, how much do you weigh? You weigh a ton," Tu Xiao’an couldn’t help but complain.
The Crow replied shamelessly, "I, Uncle Hei, am all lean muscle."
Tu Xiao’an rolled his eyes and hurried on his way. As he passed another section, a series of utterly miserable roars echoed from one of the cages.
The sound was so ghastly it would send a chill down anyone’s spine, like someone being brutally assaulted by a dozen burly men.
Tu Xiao’an stopped in his tracks, and the sight that met his eyes left him utterly stunned.
A grotesque old man was savagely perched on a fierce tiger, violently sucking its blood. The tiger’s aura steadily weakened, as if its very lifespan was being stripped away.
A man riding a tiger and sucking its blood—it was a sight rarely seen in the world, and utterly terrifying.
Even Tu Xiao’an was rattled by the sight. The Crow stared, dumbfounded, and fell silent for once.
’Who the hell is this old man? So damn powerful?’
The creature having its blood so cruelly drained was no ordinary tiger, but a Tiger Spirit on the verge of apotheosis—a being that should have been mighty enough to shake the world.
But now, its fate was utterly tragic. Its desperate roars made all the other Spirit Monsters in the area tremble in terror.
Tu Xiao’an felt as if his feet were rooted to the spot. As he watched in horror, he saw the old man begin to undergo a shocking transformation after drinking the Tiger Spirit’s blood.
His Life Force surged and his aura intensified. Most shocking of all, his face began to grow younger, reversing his age at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Just then, with a THUD, the Tiger Spirit let out a final, choked gasp and collapsed, unmoving. The now-younger old man slowly turned, and his gaze swept lightly over to land on Tu Xiao’an and the Crow.
That one glance was incredibly sinister. It felt as if time had frozen. A suffocating sense of death washed over them, as if they had been plunged into the Hell Abyss.
"Stop staring and run! This old man is extremely dangerous!" the Crow hissed urgently in Tu Xiao’an’s ear.
Tu Xiao’an was already aware of the danger, but it was too late. The old man had spotted them.
If he ran now, it would be a dead giveaway—a clear admission of guilt.
Suddenly, a memory surfaced. Tu Xiao’an stiffened—he now knew the identity of this bizarre old man.
He was the director of the Demon Management Bureau, the man in charge of the entire Wencheng branch.
"Xiaodu, what brings you here?"
The now-younger old man chuckled as he looked at Tu Xiao’an.
Tu Xiao’an forced himself to remain calm. "Director, I’m here to take this Crow for interrogation. Many people have been afflicted by its Curse Power, and we need it to lift the curse."
He had cleverly fabricated an excuse.
"This Crow is no ordinary bird. Be careful not to let it escape." The grotesque old man glanced at the Crow, making it shudder.
"Understood, sir."
Tu Xiao’an breathed an inward sigh of relief. ’Looks like he hasn’t seen through my disguise.’
"Xiaodu, you seem a little different today," the grotesque old man remarked, seemingly at random. His eyes, though somewhat cloudy, held a gaze that no one dared to meet directly.
Tu Xiao’an’s heart skipped a beat, but he replied calmly, "Different how?"
"Your aura is off." With that, the grotesque old man stared intently at Tu Xiao’an, his gaze like a sharp blade trying to pierce right through him.
’He could tell?’ Tu Xiao’an was shocked. ’I’ve already concealed my aura, but he can still sense it? Just how perceptive is he?’
’It seems that to become the director of the Demon Management Bureau, you have to be the most terrifying existence in all of Wencheng.’
Tu Xiao’an hurriedly activated Du Tianyi’s Gold Elemental Attribute Ability.
The grotesque old man suddenly looked confused. He studied him again and muttered to himself, "Could I have been mistaken?"
"Xiaodu, go on about your business," the old man said, waving his hand dismissively.
"Yes, Director."
Feeling as if a heavy weight had been lifted from his shoulders, Tu Xiao’an turned and left immediately. This old man was far too dangerous; he couldn’t wait for him to come to his senses.
"Hehe, you’re really something else. You actually fooled that old man,"
the Crow chirped nonchalantly a moment later.
"Stop with the snide remarks. If he’d seen through my disguise, I’d probably be rotting in here with you."
Tu Xiao’an rarely felt such heart-pounding fear. While he felt he could have put up a fight against the Bai Family’s Snake Demon, he knew he stood absolutely no chance against that old man.
It was like an expert’s sixth sense—the disparity in power was instantly clear.
Tu Xiao’an fled with the Crow, and before long, they were out of the Demon Prison.
Meanwhile, back in the prison, the grotesque old man pondered for a moment in confusion before shaking his head. He glanced at the fallen Tiger Spirit and said, "I’ll have to find another Supreme Yang Spirit Monster. This Tiger Spirit’s blood only restored my body to the age of forty or fifty."
"I’ll have to drain another one today. Otherwise, this appearance and vitality won’t last more than a few days."
With that, the grotesque old man walked toward another cage. An unnatural silence fell over the area as he moved.
The imprisoned Spirit Monsters didn’t dare make a sound, terrified of becoming his next target.
Tu Xiao’an left the Demon Prison, preparing to exit the Demon Management Bureau for good. But, as luck would have it, Du Tianyi’s trusted subordinate, Gao Feng, appeared.
"Group Leader, why did you bring out that freakish Crow from Group Two?"
Any criminal creature captured by a group officially belonged to that group; other groups were not allowed to interfere.
"This Crow is useful to me," Tu Xiao’an said flatly.
Gao Feng said, "Group Leader, isn’t this against regulations? I’m worried the people from Group Two will object."
"Hmph. Even Group Two’s leader is dead. Who would dare object?" Tu Xiao’an said, putting on an air of authority. "Do a good job, and I’ll talk to the director about promoting you to Group Leader of Group Two."
At these words, Gao Feng was instantly overjoyed. "Thank you for the promotion, Group Leader! Even if I become the leader of Group Two, I’ll still be your subordinate. I’ll follow your every command."
"Mm, very good. I’m heading out for a bit. You don’t need to follow me."
Tu Xiao’an was secretly delighted. ’Looks like I have a real talent for acting.’
"Take care, Group Leader."
Gao Feng was beaming. The benefits that came with being a Group Leader in the Demon Management Bureau were incredible; it instantly put a person a cut above the rest.
After watching Du Tianyi leave, he headed for the main office hall on the first floor. When he arrived, however, the hall was in chaos, and everyone looked as if their world had ended.
"What’s wrong? What happened?"
One of the staff members stammered, "Someone just came to report... that Group Leader Du’s Life Lamp went out."
"His Life Lamp went out?" Gao Feng was stunned for a second, then slapped the staff member across the face. "Bullshit! I was just talking with the Group Leader! We just parted ways a moment ago!"
The staff member clutched his face, aggrieved. "Why did you hit me? I don’t believe it either! We all saw Group Leader Du come back earlier!"
"Who said it? Get him over here! I’ll beat the shit out of him for daring to curse our Group Leader!"
Gao Feng was Du Tianyi’s right-hand man, and he was about to become the leader of Group Two.
Before long, a shattered Life Lamp was brought into the first-floor office hall. Instantly, everyone in the group was utterly floored.
Group Leader Du Tianyi’s Life Lamp had truly been extinguished.
