Chapter 39 The Fire Demon Part 1

Guozhao Zhiqiang opened his eyes, the acrid smell of smoke burning his nostrils, and saw people screaming in pain, their cries sharp and desperate. He saw his medic juniors, their faces grim and determined, working tirelessly to help the wounded, their hands stained with soot and blood. The village in front of him was engulfed in roaring flames, a hellish inferno, and the fire continued to spread relentlessly from one house to another, consuming everything in its path. He saw desperate villagers trying to put out the fire, throwing buckets of water, but their efforts seemed futile against the monstrous blaze.

Guozhao Zhiqiang ran to one of the medic juniors, his voice urgent, "What about the rest of you? Where are they?"

The female medic junior, her face streaked with soot, raised her head, her eyes wide with exhaustion and fear. "Senior Brother, they chased the fire demon that way," she said, pointing a trembling finger to her left, towards the deeper woods.

"How many fire demons, Junior Sister?" Guozhao Zhiqiang asked, his voice sharp, assessing the threat.

"I only saw one, Senior Brother," the female medic junior replied, her voice strained.

"If you see more, send a signal immediately," Guozhao Zhiqiang instructed, his gaze intense.

The female medic nodded, her eyes resolute, and Guozhao Zhiqiang, a blur of black, ran to the left of the village, following the direction she indicated. When he arrived at the scene, his heart sank; he did not see his juniors fighting the fire demon but instead saw his juniors tending to the villagers' injuries, their faces weary.

Guozhao Shaquan, one of the leading juniors, stood up as soon as he saw Guozhao Zhiqiang, his face lighting up with relief. He waved his hand frantically. "Senior Brother, over here! We're safe, for now!"

Guozhao Zhiqiang knew that the sun was about to set, casting long shadows, and it was not good for them to fight the elusive fire demon in the encroaching darkness. He looked at the juniors, his voice firm and authoritative. "You don't need to look for the fire demon now. Everyone leaves here first, and we will continue to look for the fire demon tomorrow, in the daylight."

The injured villagers, supported by twenty-three weary hunters, walked slowly along the mountain road towards the main village. As soon as they arrived in the village, the grateful villagers welcomed them with open arms and immediately took away the injured villagers, offering comfort and aid.

When the hunters were sitting and resting, their bodies aching, Guozhao Zhiqiang asked, looking at Guozhao Shaquan and Guozhao Bolin, "Why are you two together? I thought you were with different groups."

Guozhao Shaquan answered, a slight shrug, "I was supposed to be here with the other ten juniors, Senior Brother, but I met Brother Bolin on my way here, so we decided to come together. Two heads are better than one."

Guozhao Bolin said, a sigh escaping him, "I thought that we would join forces to capture the fire demon earlier, and everyone would be able to go home safely for the Mid-Autumn Festival. Who knew that the fire demon was so tricky, so cunning?"

Guozhao Shaquan said, his voice grim, "It led us into the woods, deeper and deeper, and then it suddenly rushed out of nowhere and spit fire at us, a terrifying inferno."

"This is its territory, then," Guozhao Zhiqiang mused, his eyes narrowing. "Maybe it doesn't want us here, doesn't want its home disturbed."

Guozhao Bolin said, his voice filled with frustration, "We thought we were dealing with a ghost, a simple spirit, but when the villagers took us to the mountain, it was not a ghost, but a terrifying fire demon. It suddenly got angry at us, chased us down the mountain, and then started to burn houses, a path of destruction. Once it knows it can't defeat us, it takes us into the woods and tries to burn us alive, a cruel trap." He looked at Guozhao Zhiqiang, a hint of surprise in his voice. "Heh, why are you here, Senior Brother? You were summoned?"

"I was summoned," Guozhao Zhiqiang replied, his voice flat.

Just then, Zheng Yaozu came over from the left, his face weary but determined. "I've summoned you, Senior Brother," he said, throwing his bag down next to Guozhao Bolin. Following behind him were Zheng Tingfeng and the four juniors, their faces tired.

Guozhao Zhiqiang, his gaze distant, "That's the fire demon. I thought Snow Sector and Golden Gate Sector had captured it thirteen years ago. They claimed they did."

Zheng Yaozu mocked, a sneer on his lips, "If they really caught it..." He sneered again, a bitter sound. "Then why that fire demon is still here, causing chaos?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang, recalling the past, "At that time, I saw it with my own eyes that Hu Jianguo demanded the spiritual pouch from Hu Dingxiang. It seemed legitimate."

Zheng Yaozu smirked, a cynical glint in his eye. "I bet you saw Hu Dingxiang hand the bag to Hu Jianguo, didn't you?" Guozhao Zhiqiang nodded slowly. Zheng Yaozu smiled, a cold, knowing smile. "I figured as much..."

Guozhao Shaquan, his voice filled with disdain, "Otherwise you may not see the fire demon they claim to have caught, Senior Brother. It was a charade."

"I must agree with Shaquan," Guozhao Bolin added, his voice grim. "It makes perfect sense."

Zheng Tingfeng looked at his fellow brothers, his brow furrowed in thought. "The question is, why do they lie and claim that they have captured and destroyed the fire demon? What's their motive?"

Guozhao Zhiqiang, his voice low, "I only saw the pouch, not the real fire demon, so I have no concrete evidence to support our theory, only suspicion."

Zheng Yaozu scoffed, a short, bitter laugh. "I understand now." He looked at Guozhao Shaquan, a knowing look.

Guozhao Shaquan smiled, a grim understanding. "That's the perfect way to create a witness, isn't it? A false one."

Zheng Yaozu nodded in agreement with Guozhao Shaquan, their minds in sync.

Guozhao Bolin asked confusedly, "What are you two talking about? We can't read minds! Explain it to us!"

Zheng Yaozu explained, his voice patient, "The pouch at that time was just an empty pouch, Bolin. I don't believe that Snow Sector and Golden Gate Sector had the ability to capture the fire demon at that time, let alone destroy it. They were too weak."

Guozhao Shaquan added, "In order to ensure that their plans are foolproof, they have senior brothers to witness when they communicate, to provide a false alibi."

Zheng Yaozu continued, his voice filled with contempt, "If someone says they didn't kill the fire demon in the future, if the truth comes out..." He looked at Guozhao Zhiqiang, his gaze pointed. "They will have Senior Brother to testify on their behalf, to swear he saw the pouch. He was their unwitting pawn."

Guozhao Shaquan said, his voice laced with bitterness, "At that time, Senior Brother was just a teenager, innocent and trusting, and he had no experience in the outside world. With an innocent face who just entered the hunter world, he would be the easiest target to attack, to manipulate."

Zheng Yaozu, his voice cold, "They created the perfect witness for their alibi, a flawless deception."

Guozhao Zhiqiang knew that what his juniors said was true, a painful realization. At that time, he didn't know that the evilest people were those who stood behind the scenes and watched the play from a distance, pulling the strings. He was indeed an easy target, naive and trusting. He has long since admitted; he may be the strongest of all Guozhao hunters in sheer power, but compared to his juniors, he is not the smartest, not the most cunning. It was very true; at that time, he had not yet had the experience of reading the evil deeds of others, of seeing through deception. His biggest mistake was letting love blind him, allowing his affection for Hu Dingxiang to obscure the truth. But this mistake also made him understand that the bad guys who openly stand in front of you to beat you and spit on you are not truly evil people. They are just selfish people, driven by greed or anger. Those who smile at you innocently and stab you when you are not careful are the truly evil people, the insidious ones.

Guozhao Zhiqiang said coldly, his voice filled with grim determination, "Then let us brothers kill it. I don't want this monster to continue to cause trouble for the villagers living here or nearby. It's time to end this deception."

Guozhao Bolin, his brow furrowed, "How are we going to kill this fire demon, Senior Brother? We can't even get close to the fire demon, it burns everything!"

Zheng Yaozu said, his eyes narrowed in thought, "We need something to restrain the demon, something to bind its power."

Guozhao Zhiqiang threw a talisman paper on the ground, and a white mist emerged, swirling. From the mist, Shan slowly walked towards the brothers, his ethereal form shimmering. Shan asked expressionless, his voice flat, "What do you need, Zhiqiang? Why have you summoned me again?"

"Shan, I want you to go to Waterfall City and ask Junjie to bring the golden string here," Guozhao Zhiqiang instructed, his voice firm.

Shan vanished with the fog, disappearing instantly.

Guozhao Zhiqiang, his gaze resolute, "We're going to use the golden string to capture and kill the fire demon. It's the only way."

Zheng Tingfeng complained, a hint of annoyance in his voice, "Just have Shan bring the golden string here, Senior Brother, why do you want Junjie here? It's a long trip."

Guozhao Zhiqiang looked at his brothers, a subtle smirk on his face. "Does any of you know how to use the golden string? It's not a simple weapon."

Guozhao Bolin, a knowing smile playing on his lips, "You know, people who don't like each other eventually like each other, but they don't want others to know. It's a common tale." He smiled widely. "So, they pretended to hate each other to avoid suspicion, a clever ruse."

Zheng Yaozu grinned, a mischievous glint in his eye. "There is a saying, 'the more you hate, the deeper the love is'."

The four brothers laughed, a hearty, shared amusement.

Guozhao Bolin added, his voice teasing, "Since the two countries are close friends now, and to further develop their friendship bond, the two countries should consolidate the friendship bond through marriage, shouldn't they? A political alliance!"

The four brothers continued to laugh, their teasing growing louder. Immediately afterwards, a magic circle appeared, pulsating with light, and it was Lim Junjie who stood in the magic circle, his face confused.

"Taaa..daaa…The groom is here!" Zheng Yaozu announced happily, a grand flourish of his hand.

Lim Junjie was confused, looking around. "What are you laughing at, you fools?" His face then lit up when he saw Guozhao Zhiqiang, a profound relief and joy in his eyes. He ran to Guozhao Zhiqiang and hugged Guozhao Zhiqiang tightly, burying his face in his shoulder.

Zheng Tingfeng was annoyed by Lim Junjie's open affection and stood up, his face grim. "Tell me when you are ready to discuss how to defeat the fire demon. I'll be over here."

"Love triangle is very painful, isn't it, Tingfeng?" Zheng Yaozu teased, enjoying the discomfort.

"Love triangle? Who?" Lim Junjie was confused, pulling away from Guozhao Zhiqiang slightly.

The four brothers laughed again, their mirth echoing.

"Stop the fussing around," Guozhao Zhiqiang said, his voice firm, a hint of amusement in his eyes. Zheng Tingfeng sat back down, grumbling. He looked at his brothers. "Since it's a fire demon, we can't defeat it on land, it's too dangerous. So, we are going to fight the demon in the water."

"It makes sense, Senior Brother. How are we going to lure the fire demon into the water?" Zheng Yaozu asked, his voice serious now.

Guozhao Zhiqiang, his gaze resolute, "I will lure the demon out. Let us set the traps before the sun goes down. Everyone should have a good rest tonight to restore your energy for tomorrow's mission. We'll need it."

The five brothers nodded at Guozhao Zhiqiang, their faces grim, ready for the battle ahead.