This was the prompt given by the [Demon-Slaying and Exorcising] system.
It was also the foundation that allowed Lu Yuan to carve out a reputation in Fengtian City within just a single year.
The most useful aspect of this system was not its ability to analyze the weaknesses of evil entities so one could prepare in advance—
but rather the bright red "Danger Level" displayed at the bottom.
That was Lu Yuan's true lifeline.
Whenever he accepted a job, the first thing he did was go take a look at the client's location.
If the danger level was high, he would bring along several more disciples from the True Dragon Temple.If the danger level was low, he would bring fewer.
Relying on this one-of-a-kind intelligence, he was always able to remain undefeated.
After a year of trial and error, Lu Yuan had already thoroughly understood what the star ratings meant.
※ represented one star, * represented two stars.
Five stars—***—meant a level of power already capable of standing toe-to-toe with a human Celestial Master.
At this moment, Lu Yuan stood atop a hill, gazing into the distance.
He carefully counted them once more.
Around the firelight on the opposite hill, there were seven evil entities of this level!
What made his scalp go numb was that he also saw a hanging ghost marked [*]**.
Six stars!
...
What the hell were they doing over there?!
This… had they already started fighting?
Yet the scene before his eyes showed people sitting peacefully around a bonfire, calm and undisturbed.
Those evil entities were also lying in wait, completely motionless, as if waiting for a specific moment—
much like how Old Madam Xu on his side was waiting for the exact time to rise from her coffin.
The difference was—
Old Madam Xu had a fixed time.
The things on the opposite hill were already free-roaming monsters!
This?!
After a brief moment of shock, Lu Yuan quickly walked toward the opposite hill.
Leaving everything else aside, just among the dozen or so people from Wu Qing Temple—
how many Celestial Masters could there be?
Judging from what he saw at noon today…
Lu Yuan felt that there were none at all.
The strongest among them was likely the leader—
the very man who had been loudly cursed earlier by Xu Erxiao and Wang Cheng'an.
But even his strength…
At best, he was only a seasoned Daoist, still far from the threshold of becoming a Celestial Master.
Or was this merely the advance team, with the real experts still behind them?
That kind of situation was actually quite common.
After all, tasks like setting up formations and preparations were dirty, exhausting work.
Celestial Masters naturally disdained such labor, usually arriving right before things began and leaving immediately after.
Inside a spacious tent—
A stunningly beautiful, mature woman smiled warmly as she looked at Lu Yuan walking in, her eyes flowing with charm.
"Did you finish eating?""Was it good? I specifically brought a chef from Fengtian City."
There was more than just her inside the tent.
The steward Wang Fu stood respectfully to the side, along with the Wu Qing Temple Daoist who had been scolded earlier and that clever little junior sister.
"Delicious—really delicious. Thank you, Madam."
Lu Yuan set down two large food boxes, grinning broadly and revealing a row of white teeth.
The moment he stepped onto this hill, Lu Yuan had already noticed that the evil entities he'd seen earlier were all hiding within the surrounding forest, their auras cold and sinister.
They had clearly been drawn here by something.
At first, Lu Yuan had been puzzled about what could possibly attract so many evil entities—
but upon entering the main tent, he immediately understood.
The tent was filled to the brim with spirit meat!
What exactly was spirit meat?
Simply put—it was something that both humans and ghosts in this world desperately desired.
Evil entities and spirits could increase their cultivation by consuming it.Humans could prolong their lifespan, ward off disasters, and cure illnesses.For cultivators like Lu Yuan, spirit meat could enhance technique power and accelerate cultivation speed.
These things were outrageously valuable.
The most ordinary white spirit meat—one jin in weight—cost ten silver coins.
And in Fengtian City, an average laborer would only earn seven or eight silver coins a month after working themselves to exhaustion.
Yet here, there were hundreds of jin of it.
And not just white spirit meat—there was also higher-grade green spirit meat, and even three pieces of blue spirit meat in the center.
Those three pieces alone were worth at least three thousand silver coins.
With that much spirit meat piled here, it was only natural that every evil entity within ten miles would be drawn over.
"Tsk~"
"And you're still calling me Madam~"
The beautiful mature woman raised her jade hand, covering her red lips as she shot Lu Yuan a teasing glare.
Good heavens!
Such a breathtaking beauty, overflowing with charm, acting so coquettishly—
what man could withstand that?
Lu Yuan truly couldn't.
The senior brother from Wu Qing Temple was outright staring, practically having his soul stolen.
The little junior sister beside him stomped her foot in anger, glaring daggers at her senior brother.
Lu Yuan quickly regained his composure, scratched his head, and smiled honestly.
"Well… I didn't know your name yet, so…"
Lu Yuan was reliable at work, and his way with words was never lacking.
Make the client happy—get paid more.
Sure enough, the beautiful woman burst into laughter, her figure trembling.
"Oh my~""My dear nephew~"
"You call me 'sister,' and you call your Aunt Meiqin 'aunt'—doesn't that mess up the generations~?"
Lu Yuan replied with a clear, sincere expression.
"You just look too young, Sister. I misspoke."
Half flattery—half truth.
The woman before him was indeed exceptionally well-preserved. Standing beside Song Meiqin, no one would doubt they were sisters.
Calling her "sister" or "aunt" wouldn't feel strange.
But since she was the same generation as Aunt Qin, calling her "sister" was clearly the more flattering choice.
After enjoying someone's hospitality, being sweet with words cost nothing.
The beautiful mature woman smiled brightly and waved her hand.
"Alright, alright—call me Auntie instead. Otherwise, I'd end up a whole generation younger than your Aunt Meiqin~"
"Auntie's name is Zhao Qiao'er. Ever heard of it?"
Zhao Qiao'er!
The moment the name reached his ears, Lu Yuan's heart trembled.
He really should have guessed earlier.
In the entirety of Fengtian City, Zhao Qiao'er was a name known by all.
President of the White Deer Merchant Guild, the largest merchant guild beyond the passes.
Rumor had it that even the floor tiles in her home were made of gold.
More famously, her beauty was said to rival Chang'e of the Moon Palace.
Seeing her in person, the rumors were not exaggerated—in fact, they fell short.
Lu Yuan suddenly understood and sincerely praised:
"So you're the legendary Guild President Zhao, said to rival Chang'e herself~"
Zhao Qiao'er smiled sweetly, utterly delighted.
"You really do have a sweet mouth~"
"Had enough lamb soup? We still have plenty—don't be shy with Auntie~"
She found herself liking Lu Yuan more and more.
Perhaps it was affection by association—Song Meiqin often spoke highly of this nephew.
Zhao Qiao'er hadn't fully believed it at first, but she trusted Song Meiqin's character.
She had never praised a man so highly before.
Now that she saw him in person, setting everything else aside, just Lu Yuan's handsome yet honest appearance made her feel close to him.
Lu Yuan quickly waved his hands—he truly couldn't drink any more soup.
Pleasantries aside, it was time for business.
He straightened his expression and spoke directly.
"Auntie Qiao'er, this is quite a big setup. On my way here, I noticed quite a few powerful… unclean things gathering around."
Lu Yuan couldn't directly ask what they were doing.
Nor could he outright say there were many evil entities around and ask whether they could handle it.
After all, the people from Wu Qing Temple were right there.
That would be extremely impolite—like doubting their abilities.
And with that sharp-tongued junior sister present, an argument might break out again.
Lu Yuan was mainly worried about Zhao Qiao'er's safety.
Whether due to her relationship with Aunt Qin or simply because he had eaten her food and worn her sheepskin coat—
he couldn't just pretend he'd seen nothing.
So he chose to probe indirectly.
This way, he could test the situation.
If the Wu Qing Temple Daoists could detect the surrounding evil entities, it meant they had cultivation.
If they knew, they would be prepared—and Lu Yuan wouldn't need to worry.
But if they didn't know…
Then they were in serious trouble.
As soon as he finished speaking, Lu Yuan's gaze swept toward the Wu Qing Temple siblings.
Their reaction eased his heart.
There was no surprise or confusion on their faces.
Which meant—they were aware.
In that case…
Only one final question remained.
Zhao Qiao'er nodded lightly and said,
"Indeed… my matter is rather troublesome, so I invited the Daoists of Wu Qing Temple to dispel the delusion."
She didn't mind telling Lu Yuan a bit.
But since she had already entrusted Wu Qing Temple with the matter, it wouldn't be appropriate to discuss details with outsiders.
So she kept it brief.
Lu Yuan immediately followed up:
"From the looks of it, it truly is troublesome. Will there be more Daoists from Wu Qing Temple arriving later?"
"The evil entities around here are already at a terrifying level. If there aren't—"
Before he could finish, the Wu Qing Temple's senior brother interrupted loudly, displeased:
"Of course there will be!"
"In less than an hour, our Martial Uncle will arrive!"
"Junior Brother Lu, if you have nothing else, please leave. Do not disturb our ritual!"
He then turned toward Zhao Qiao'er and cupped his hands.
"Madam, rest assured. With me, Huang Guanmin, here, you will suffer no harm!"
Lu Yuan glanced at the clearly agitated senior brother.
He hadn't even said much—why such anger?
But seeing the man's flushed face and infatuated gaze toward Zhao Qiao'er, eager to show off—
Lu Yuan understood.
Quite possessive, huh.
Since that was the case, he said no more.
He cupped his hands toward Zhao Qiao'er, who looked slightly conflicted.
"Then Auntie Qiao'er, I'll take my leave."
"When the New Year comes, if I have time, I'll visit your residence to pay my respects."
With that, Lu Yuan turned and left decisively, not lingering to become a nuisance.
From the current situation, they knew everything, were fully prepared, and reinforcements were on the way.
There was no need for him to stay.
As Lu Yuan departed, Huang Guanmin confidently declared to Zhao Qiao'er:
"Madam, with Wu Qing Temple here, you can rest easy!"
"Don't listen to those insignificant small-school practitioners!"
"There are only a few low-level ghosts around—look how scared he was!"
"Don't worry! The one arriving soon is my Martial Uncle Heng Min. He's only twenty-seven and already close to becoming a Celestial Master! With him here, nothing can go wrong!"
Zhao Qiao'er gazed calmly at the young Daoist before her, whose blood was boiling and whose eyes were filled with adoration.
Her lips curved slightly.
In an instant, she transformed into a helpless, delicate figure, her voice soft enough to melt water.
"With young Daoist here, I feel completely at ease~"
Huang Guanmin was so excited he could hardly contain himself, pounding his chest as if he'd gladly die for her on the spot.
The clever junior sister beside him was furious beyond belief.
Inside her heart, she cursed endlessly—
Slut fox!! Slut fox!! Slut fox!! Slut fox!! Slut fox!!