Who Let Him Cultivate？

Chapter 19: The Demon Bird’s True Form!

Tao Yaoye asked, “Since the Demon Beast is looking for Zhang Guanjia, have you tried letting the Demon Beast and Zhang Guanjia meet?”

The township head let out a long sigh. “We didn’t need to arrange a meeting. A few days ago, that Demon Beast flew directly to Zhang Guanjia’s house, shouted ‘Monster! Monster!’ at him, then flew out the window, and we don’t know which household it flew to next.”

“We were at a loss for what to do when you two Daoist Masters arrived.”

Tao Yaoye pondered for a moment before speculating, “Is Zhang Guanjia a monster? Is the Demon Beast trying to warn you to be careful of Zhang Guanjia?”

Among the demon race, there were many benevolent beings. Some would take human form, while others would reveal their true forms to warn people of impending disaster.

For example, the Great Demon King Zhu Yan. In folk legends, wherever Zhu Yan appeared, it signified great chaos in the world, so Zhu Yan was regarded as an inauspicious Demon Beast.

The immortal sects knew the exact opposite was true. It wasn’t that Zhu Yan brought chaos, but rather that Zhu Yan knew chaos was coming in advance. It would travel from the Demon Domain to the Central Continent specifically to warn humanity, acting out of pure goodwill.

Of course, Zhu Yan bore some responsibility for this misunderstanding among the common people—it had social anxiety and didn’t dare speak.

A silent demon race member, coupled with a ferocious appearance, made it difficult for people to believe it was a benevolent Demon Beast.

Perhaps this Demon Bird was the same, coming to warn the people of Taiping Township that Zhang Guanjia was a shape-shifting Great Demon.

Speaking of this, the township head looked troubled. He didn’t want to contradict this beautiful fairy from the immortal sect, but he also couldn’t ignore the facts and insist that Zhang Guanjia was a demon.

“Zhang Guanjia grew up in Taiping Township. The elders can all confirm this. He also has two younger brothers, Zhang Guanyi and Zhang Guanbing. The three brothers have a deep bond. He now runs a private school, teaching children Confucianism and Cultivation. He is one of the few teachers in Taiping Township.”

“To say he’s a monster… I’m afraid…”

Tao Yaoye didn’t agree with the township head’s view. “The demon race is long-lived. Many long-lived species will stay in one place for decades, slowly aging themselves to appear no different from mortals. Once they’ve seen all the scenery in that place, they fake their deaths, emerge from their graves, and go to a new place to start over.”

The township head opened his mouth, then closed it. His knowledge was inferior to Tao Yaoye’s, and he didn’t know how to respond.

Lu Yang gently shook his head, pointing out the flaw in Tao Yaoye’s conjecture. “If Zhang Guanjia were a monster, he would have to be a shape-shifting Great Demon. How could a shape-shifting Great Demon tolerate a mere Demon Beast spouting nonsense? The Demon Bird would likely be exterminated by Zhang Guanjia before it could even speak.”

Tao Yaoye didn’t refute this; what Lu Yang said was indeed true.

Lu Yang stood up. “Even so, we still need to meet this Zhang Guanjia.”

The township head quickly led the way. “This way, you two Daoist Masters.”

On the way, Lu Yang pointed out the error in the township head’s address. “We are all Cultivators, aiming for immortality. Not to mention that we are only at the Foundation Establishment stage, even Body Integration True Lords or Tribulation Transcendence Venerables—those supreme Cultivators closest to immortality—are not qualified to be called ‘Immortal Elders’.”

“You may address us as Daoist Masters.”

The township head smiled apologetically, not daring to treat Lu Yang and Tao Yaoye as ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivators. Among ordinary Cultivators, less than one in ten Foundation Establishment Cultivators advance to the Golden Core stage. But disciples of the Dao Seeking Sect were practically guaranteed to reach the Golden Core stage, and their future achievements were beyond his imagination.

“It’s just that no one has achieved immortality. There are only rumors and legends of immortals.”

Hearing this, Lu Yang merely smiled and said nothing more.

Before long, the three arrived at Zhang Guanjia’s residence.

“Old Zhang, you have visitors. Open the door.”

The wooden door creaked open, revealing Zhang Guanjia standing behind it with a wooden expression.

“Let me introduce you. These two are disciples of the Dao Seeking Sect, here to help us eliminate the Demon Bird.”

Hearing the words “Dao Seeking Sect,” Zhang Guanjia’s expression changed. He said helplessly, “I’m really not a monster. You can’t just believe whatever the Demon Bird shouts. The Demon Bird also shouts ‘Come play, handsome!’ Why don’t you get a few handsome men to go play with the Demon Bird?”

The township head laughed awkwardly. “We were just wandering around and happened to come to your place.”

The township head was diligent and hardworking, and everyone said he was a good official. Since he had put it this way, Zhang Guanjia could only open the door and invite the three inside.

Zhang Guanjia’s home was a two-courtyard estate. With only one person living there, it felt empty.

Zhang Guanjia was over forty and still unmarried.

The conversation inevitably returned to the Demon Bird. Zhang Guanjia said angrily, “I’ve never seen that Demon Bird before. Who knows why it’s calling my name?”

“I’ve never left Taiping Township in my life. The farthest I’ve been is Quhe County. Where would I have met a Demon Bird?”

“Every day, students ask me, ‘Teacher, teacher, are you a monster?’ Some students are so afraid I’ll eat them that they finish their homework on time!”

“Even my neighbor came to me, saying he has a Foundation Establishment stage enemy in Quhe County, and asked if I could secretly kill him for a negotiable price!” Zhang Guanjia spoke through gritted teeth, wishing he could fight the Demon Bird to the death to clear his name.

As an ordinary person, just because the Demon Bird opened its mouth, he became a demon. There was no justice!

After the conversation, the three gained no useful information, only listening to Zhang Guanjia complain for two hours about how much the Demon Bird had affected his life.

Fortunately, Lu Yang and Tao Yaoye quickly stated that they would definitely slay demons, eliminate evil, destroy the Demon Bird, and restore fairness to Zhang Guanjia. Only then did Zhang Guanjia stop complaining.

“The Demon Bird is back!” someone outside the estate shouted, fleeing for their life, staying away from the Demon Bird.

Hearing the commotion, Lu Yang and Tao Yaoye immediately put away their casual attitudes, picked up their Dharma Treasures, left the courtyard, and prepared to face the Demon Bird.

“You two Daoist Masters, be careful!” The township head told the villagers to be quiet and stay away from where the Demon Bird appeared.

Lu Yang gripped his sword hilt. If the Demon Bird showed the slightest intention of attacking, it would face a flash of cold light and be split in two.

Tao Yaoye took out her red paper umbrella. This was her life-bound Dharma Treasure, the Thousand Illusions Umbrella. When the paper umbrella opened, it was dreamlike and illusory, causing enemies to drown in illusions without realizing it.

Lu Yang carefully gestured, indicating he would scout ahead. Tao Yaoye nodded.

The Demon Bird landed on a civilian house. Lu Yang moved like a cat, walking silently, tiptoeing, quietly approaching his prey.

Lu Yang was on high alert, muscles tense, ready to draw his sword and fight at any moment.

Optimistically estimating, the Demon Bird was at the seventh layer of Qi Refining. This was the best-case scenario. The worst-case scenario was that the Demon Bird was a late-stage Foundation Establishment monster. Fighting it wouldn’t be easy, and winning would require some effort.

Finally, he saw the Demon Bird that had troubled Taiping Township for twenty days.

Its deep green feathers were incredibly vibrant and glossy. From the corners of its eyes to its neck was a large patch of red. The combination of red and green was quite eye-catching.

Lu Yang immediately recognized the Demon Bird’s origin. It came from the depths of dense jungles, fed on figs and berries, and was skilled at imitating human speech.

It was a parrot.