By the East Lan River, in one of the many residences of Gu Mountain Prefecture City, there was an additional family. The neighbors knew that the household’s owner had Meng as their surname, and he was quite friendly.
Creak.
The door opened, and a guard said respectfully, “Madam.”
Liu Qiyue smiled and nodded as she walked into the compound. The compound wasn’t large, so the couple only hired two servants. One was an elderly man in his fifties—who had served on the battlefield only to have his Quintessential Energy crippled. He was still quite fit, so he was hired by Meng Chuan to watch over the house and clean it. The other was a middle-aged woman—who was in charge of washing clothes and cooking. The two servants were enough to manage all household matters.
These ordinary compounds usually had several servants. Some people—who were middle-class citizens—didn’t hire servants. They did the household chores themselves.
“Ah Chuan, Ah Chuan.” Liu Qiyue came to the study and pushed open the door. She could see Meng Chuan painting seriously.
Liu Qiyue didn’t say anything. Instead, she stood to the side and watched.
He was working on a long scroll—the rightmost part of the painting. With a glance, Liu Qiyue could tell that it was depicting North River Pass. The Godfiends led a large number of soldiers to guard the city pass and fend off the demons.
It’s drawn so well. Liu Qiyue was somewhat shocked. The heavily injured soldiers on the outer city wall fought the demons ferociously. This seemed to play out before her eyes.
Liu Qiyue had experienced many demon invasions at North River Pass. Every invasion led to a large number of soldiers dying or becoming crippled… Meng Chuan only drew a small portion of them, but he brought out the tragedy in those scenes.
She could tell that Meng Chuan had put a lot of effort into the painting. The eyes of a soldier were exquisitely drawn. He was extremely patient. He probably spent an hour painting that soldier—which he put more effort in.
“You’re back?” Meng Chuan smiled and lowered his brush.
“Not painting any longer?” Liu Qiyue asked in surprise. “It’s not finished yet.”
“I won’t finish that quickly,” said Meng Chuan with a smile. “This painting will probably take a month or two to complete. There’s no rush.”
“Why did you suddenly paint the battles at North River Pass?” Liu Qiyue asked curiously, “I’ve never seen you painting so seriously for the past few years.”
Meng Chuan felt a little wistful. For the past three years, he had been fighting demons almost all the time.
“Having been down the mountain for the past three years, I’ve encountered a lot. There are things I wish to depict in paintings.” After saying that, Meng Chuan smiled and asked, “How do you feel after going out shopping around Gu Mountain Prefecture City?”
“Gu Mountain Prefecture City is quite similar to our Eastcalm Prefecture City. They are all prefecture cities of Wu State, and the weather is similar. At first glance, I thought I was in Eastcalm Prefecture,” Liu Qiyue said.
Meng Chuan nodded. “This place is only 300 kilometers away from Eastcalm, so it won’t take us long if we wish to return.”
With his speed, he could reach Eastcalm Prefecture City and rush back very quickly.
Liu Qiyue continued, “I went shopping in the city today. The entire city is now talking about military conscription. They are currently conscripting soldiers on a large scale.”
“Yes.” Meng Chuan nodded. “Right now, serving in the military is much safer than before. Mandatory service now lasts three years, but many still serve in the military.”
“That’s right. From the age of 20 to 25, everyone needs to serve in the military,” said Liu Qiyue. “No matter how strong they are, they will have to serve in the military. It will naturally affect the city.”
“I remember there are some exceptions,” said Meng Chuan.
“Those who are only sons can delay their military service. They can start their military service any time within five years,” said Liu Qiyue. “Those who get married and have children can also delay their mandatory service for up to five years. There are other situations where one doesn’t need to serve the military, but they are rather special cases. Ninety-nine percent of the youth population will serve in the military. The only advantage is that military service isn’t as terrible as it used to be. Furthermore, they are serving in their own prefecture.”
Meng Chuan nodded slightly.
The people from Gu Mountain Prefecture completed their mandatory service within Gu Mountain Prefecture. Archean Mountain had set the rules, and the goal of conscripting mortals was to create a massive net! Any demons that appeared would be discovered as soon as possible.
Thus, the locals naturally held the upper hand.
Those who served in the military would have annual leave too, so they could often head home for visits.
“Now, all small and medium-sized city passes in the world have been abandoned. The demons are flooding in. It may be calm in Gu Mountain Prefecture, but many other places are engaged in battle,” said Meng Chuan softly. “When Godfiends fight, they need to find the demon monarchs first. Mortals are the eyes of us Godfiends.”
Liu Qiyue nodded. “Yes. Birds are watching the small and medium-sized World Entrances from the sky. Once the demons enter, powerful Godfiends will be sent in pursuit. This is the first stage of the humans’ interception plan.”
“Those demon monarchs who survive might lurk in the darkness and probably attack many prefecture cities whenever they can,” said Meng Chuan with a frown.
…
The days in Gu Mountain Prefecture were peaceful. No demon monarchs came to stir up trouble. The changes in the military were completely enacted within a month, and Gu Mountain Prefecture City was restored to its normal operations. After all, the prefecture city could still maintain its former bustle even when youths—between the ages of 20 and 25—served in the military.
In the blink of an eye, it was a new year.
In an underground palace—about a hundred kilometers away from Gu Mountain Prefecture City.
“Come, have a drink.”
“Great wine.”
“Everyone, have a taste of this food. It’s made by the humans I abducted. Although these humans are weak, the food they make is very exquisite and delicious. It’s much better than our demons’ crude food,” said Demon Monarch White Fox, who was sitting in the seat of honor. The demon monarchs were rather obedient. After all, Demon Monarch White Fox was a descendant of a demon sage and had high status.
A wolf demon monarch held pieces of roasted meat and ate. He shook his head and praised, “It’s delicious. One piece of meat is sliced and roasted. They even used plenty of seasonings. Why doesn’t our Demon Realm have something similar?”
“Those lesser demons are clumsy. How are they capable of this?”
“Human clothing and buildings are all very exquisite.”
These demon monarchs were extremely intelligent and knew how to appreciate such exquisiteness.
After the meal was almost over, Demon Monarch White Fox finally got down to business. “It’s not easy for everyone to gather here alive after entering the human world.”
“Yes, yes, yes.”
“It really wasn’t easy!”
“The humans say that they have abandoned the small and middle-sized city passes, but in reality, they are watching them in secret. The demon monarchs that enter will be swiftly killed by them. Only half of us can survive after fleeing in all directions.”
“I came from Two World Island’s Great Yue Dynasty territory. The security there is a little weaker. They have even more World Entrances, and there are even fewer powerful Godfiends. After I entered a jungle, I traveled 500 kilometers north to enter the Great Zhou Dynasty.”
“This won’t do. For the past two weeks, Two World Island transferred 29 medium-sized city passes to Archean Mountain and Black Sand Grotto-Heaven. Their net has become much tighter. The Demon Realm can only send demon monarchs through the various entrances in the world.”
The demon monarchs discussed.
Demon Monarch White Fox smiled as her eyes glowed red. “We came here because we wanted to earn credit! Now, the Demon Realm has given orders for all demon monarchs to scatter across the world and attack the humans! All demon monarchs are to take action alone.”
The demon monarchs present listened carefully.
“Our branch is in charge of attacking Gu Mountain Prefecture,” said Demon Monarch White Fox. “All demon monarchs will take action alone. You can attack village forts or county cities as you please. Those who are bold enough can attack prefecture cities! I have to mention that there will definitely be powerful Godfiends guarding prefecture cities. County cities and village forts will be safer. You’ll earn credit from probing the human’s defenses. If you can kill a Godfiend, the credit will be even greater,” said Demon Monarch White Fox.
“I’ll give Gu Mountain Prefecture’s Chang Valley County a try.”
“I’m going to Gu Mountain Prefecture’s Guchou County.”
The demon monarchs decided their targets one by one.
Some even said, “All of you are going to county cities. I’ll attack the village forts and see if any Godfiends stop me.”
“I’ll attack Gu Mountain Prefecture City!” said an eight-armed demon monarch with a smile as he drank his alcohol. He immediately caused the other demon monarchs to look over.
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