Chapter 3: Murder (Part 1)

Guo Shier didn’t expect Zhu Juan to actually break a bench made of extremely hard wood that was supposed to be very sturdy. Zhu Juan simply sat down and broke it, and he did so slowly—indicating just how heavy he must be.
The shop owner’s face turned red. He had just said the bench was sturdy when something went wrong; the bench really let him down. He hurried over to help, but Zhu Juan had already gotten up quickly, his movements unbelievably agile. He wasn’t angry but rather puzzled, saying, “I was right to worry. How can someone sit on such a thin bench?”
Guo Shier didn’t dare ask how heavy Zhu Juan was. He said, “Shop owner, there’s a stone bench over there. Just move it here.”
The shop owner was stunned. As an ordinary person, he knew that wasn’t a stone bench at all—it was a vertical stone mill that even an adult couldn’t lift. He stammered, not knowing what to say.
Eagle Demon said, “Let me do it. This stone… the shop owner probably can’t lift it.” He stood up and went to the stone mill. There was a hole in the middle, large enough for a fist, used to insert a wooden shaft. Eagle Demon reached in, spread his fingers to support the walls of the hole, and easily lifted it. As a high-level martial artist, such weight was nothing to him.
After placing the stone mill beside the long table, Eagle Demon said, “Sitting on this should be fine.”
Only then was Zhu Juan satisfied enough to sit down. However, the stone mill was quite tall, almost as high as the long table. With his tall and bulky frame, Zhu Juan looked like a mountain of flesh when sitting there. He sighed, “Sigh, even sitting here can lead to trouble.”
The shop owner called his employees to serve Eagle Demon and the others roasted meat, boiled meat in plain water, baskets of flatbreads, and a large bowl of meat soup filled with fresh wild vegetables.
Zhu Juan took out a small knife, cut off a piece of roasted meat, put it in his mouth, and praised it, “Great! This roasted meat tastes excellent. Mu Wu, try it… really good work!”
Kumu didn’t care much about food; as long as it filled his stomach, he would eat it. But Monier was upset. She rarely ate roasted or boiled meat and usually preferred magical foods, not being very interested in meat. She asked the shop owner for a copper bowl, poured some soup in, added some wild vegetables, torn up the flatbreads, and soaked them in the soup before eating them politely, one bite at a time.

Guo Shier was extremely hungry; he couldn’t do without food, especially since he was in a stage of growth and needed a large amount of nourishment. He didn’t even need a knife—he grabbed a bowl-sized piece of roasted meat with his hands, ignoring the heat, and bit into it with his small mouth, eating like a wolf that hadn’t eaten in days. Though his mouth was small, his chewing speed was astonishingly fast; in just a few minutes, he devoured a large piece of roasted meat.

The Eagle Demon was even more terrifying—he directly grabbed a piece of cooked meat from the scalding soup and ate it quickly. A piece of meat the size of a fat goose was gone in less than a minute.

Monier kept watching Guo Shier, utterly stunned. She had never seen such ferocious eating before. Thinking of how gracefully Guo Shier used to eat talismanic food with her before, it was completely different from now. She couldn’t help but say, “Baby, eat slowly, or you’ll choke!”

Guo Shier mumbled in response and grabbed another piece of roasted meat. Unlike the Eagle Demon, he preferred roasted meat over cooked meat. Roasted meat had a delicious aroma, and he loved foods with strong flavors.

Both the Eagle Demon and Guo Shier ate like wolves. The shop owner, used to customers with big bellies, had never seen such aggressive eating before. Although five people were eating, more than half of the food was consumed by these two. The Eagle Demon, happy with his meal, said, “Shop owner, bring two more bowls of cooked meat!”

Guo Shier also raised his little hand: “Shop owner, bring one more bowl of roasted meat!”

Monier was both surprised and amused. She took out a white silk handkerchief and wiped Guo Shier’s mouth. The shop owner agreed loudly and immediately sent a worker to get the cooked and roasted meat, constantly exclaiming, “This kid is amazing! He eats more than I do!”

Zhu Juan also ate quite a lot, but his speed was much slower, and his eating manner was much more polite.

Finally, Guo Shier felt full, his little belly swelling. He burped and patted his stomach. Monier said, “Shop owner, bring a basin of hot water. Baby, wash your face. Hehe, your face is all smudged from eating.”

After washing his face, Guo Shier said contentedly, “I’m finally full. I’ve been hungry for several meals. Sigh, kids shouldn’t go hungry…” He then turned his attention to the people in the courtyard.

In the open courtyard, many people sat around dozens of long tables—clearly caravan workers and low-level professionals.

The Eagle Demon also washed his face and hands. He waved for the shop owner, paid with large talisman coins, and asked, “Shop owner, your business is doing well. Are there many caravans these days?”

The inn owner said with a smile, “Not bad. A caravan will arrive in about seven or eight days. But they’re all small caravans. This one… is heading from Qinguang City to Beifu Gate.”
Guo Shier asked, “Is this road safe now?”
The inn owner replied, “Safe. Hehe, I’ve been here for a while… and I’ve never heard of any caravans having problems.”
The members of the caravan watched the five of them warily. They found these five people extremely strange—their clothing was odd, their behavior was strange too. They didn’t seem like professional adventurers, but they weren’t ordinary people either. There was even a child with them. They really couldn’t figure out who they were.
This caravan had about 150 to 160 people, making it a relatively small caravan. With all those people filling the courtyard, it was quite noisy. Guo Shier, having eaten his fill and with nothing to do, simply stood up. Having eaten too much, he needed to move around a bit to digest his food.
Guo Shier became interested in the open trough nearby and walked over to take a look.
Just as he approached the trough where the horses were fed, a burly man blocked his path and shouted, “Kid, go play somewhere else! You’re not allowed to come here!” It was a clueless Fumu Warrior, also one of the caravan’s guards.
Guo Shier preferred gentle treatment over force. If people spoke to him politely, he was willing to cooperate. And right now, he hated it the most when people treated him like a child. So he acted as if he hadn’t heard anything and continued walking toward the trough.
The burly man immediately got angry. He reached out to grab Guo Shier’s neck, trying to drag him aside.
Bang!
The moment the man’s hand touched the edge of Guo Shier’s collar, Guo Shier turned around, twisted the man’s wrist, used his back strength, and threw him aside in one motion. He clapped his hands and said, “Speak if you have something to say. Using force… just asking for trouble!” With the strength of a beginner Fumu Master, his body was extremely tough. Dealing with a Fumu Warrior was a piece of cake for him.
The burly man fell to the ground, unable to believe that he had been thrown aside by a child. Fury surged in him. He roared, jumped up, drew the Fudao from his waist, and shouted, “I’ll kill you, you little brat!” Then he charged at Guo Shier with his sword.
Guo Shier frowned. Before he could speak or act, he heard a sharp cry: “How dare you!” Monier was furious.

Monier was about dozens of meters away from the two of them. She took off straight up and rushed at them like a whirlwind. Her fierce momentum sent the people sitting there flying off their seats, and several rows of long tables were also flung aside. In an instant, she was by Guo Shier’s side. Before anyone could see exactly how she moved, the man holding the talisman sword was sent flying.

There was a series of crackling sounds as if firecrackers had been lit on his body, with countless blood holes appearing all over him. By the time he fell, he had turned into a mess of flesh.

The members of the caravan were utterly shocked. It was the first time they had seen someone who could fly. What was even more terrifying was that they couldn’t even see how she had done it—just one Talisman Warrior had been reduced to a pile of mess. Then Monier asked, “Baby, are you hurt?”

Guo Shier replied, both moved and helpless, “Elder Sister, he can’t hurt me.”

Monier was momentarily stunned. Her concern had clouded her judgment. She then remembered that the little guy had the strength of a high-level Great Talisman Master. How could a Talisman Warrior hurt him? She said, “Whoever dares to swing a sword at my baby deserves to die!” She never cared about killing, even in the Chenxiao Sect. If anyone dared to swing a sword at Guo Shier, she would kill them without hesitation.

Zhu Juan continued eating her roasted meat and said with a smile, “Oh… Monier’s angry!”

Kumu glanced up briefly and said indifferently, “That man deserves to die!” Then he ignored it and continued eating.

The Eagle Demon stepped forward and shouted, “Who’s the leader of your caravan? Come out!”

The shop owner was on the verge of crying. He never expected that this seemingly gentle woman could kill so efficiently. He was so scared that his legs turned weak. Leaning against the wall, he murmured, “How did this happen? How did this happen…?”

The caravan members were well-trained as well. Though they were stunned by the killings, they quickly regained their composure and formed a formation. This was a skill developed from years of traveling outdoors—reacting quickly in case of an attack was the only way to survive.

Monier said coldly, “Good!” She squatted down and said, “Baby, be good and step aside… Watch your Elder Sister kill!”

Guo Shier felt a chill in his heart. He couldn’t let his Elder Sister kill. If she did, she could easily slaughter everyone in the town. He grabbed Monier’s hand and said, “Elder Sister, don’t… don’t kill them. I’ll handle it…” This was his hometown, and it was a town under the Northern Talisman Sect. How could he let his Elder Sister kill indiscriminately?

Monier said heartbrokenly, “Baby, but they’re going to bully you…”

Guo Shier forced a smile and said, “My wife, I can handle it. I’m already a senior grand talisman caster; this little matter… just watch me, my wife.”
Monier patted his head and said, “Alright, alright, baby. Don’t push yourself too hard.”
Their voices weren’t concealed, so the people in the caravan heard everything clearly. They were all puzzled—this child was actually a senior grand talisman caster? Most of them didn’t believe it. Come on, how could a child in his teens reach master level?
The Eagle Demon stood in front of the caravan, his expression grim as water, his eyes sharp like those of an eagle, fixed on the wary crowd before him.