Demon or a Monster

The north wind is as chaotic as a knife, and the cold snow cuts off people's souls.

"The bustling market was swiftly emptied by the winter's first heavy snowfall, with only a few hurried pedestrians occasionally passing through.

The small vendors lining both sides of the street shrunk their heads listlessly, and put their hands into their sleeves for warmth.

The business of the winery and tea-house suddenly improved because of the sudden heavy snowfall, and, and the sounds of revelry and applause echoed from a distance.

Clack... A crimson-painted carriage approached slowly."

In the carriage, the warmth continued to emanate from the small stove, making the entire carriage as warm as spring.

Shen Lian yawned, looking out of the swaying carriage, seeing several children kneading snowballs and having a snowball fight. Their cheerful laughter kept coming and going, which made him grin. "Oh, I can't go back to that happy time." Shen Lian remembered something and sighed deeply.

"Seven days ago, he was a socialist successor working from 7 am to 9 pm daily at a private enterprise, striving to buy a house and a car. After sharing a bottle of 52-degree liquor with his leader and getting drunk, he awoke in a completely different world. This place was very similar to ancient times, but it was not any dynasty or region that he knew.

The climate and environment were also different. Winters and summers lasted an exceptionally long time, whereas spring and autumn were abnormally short, not to mention very different customs and habits.

The carriage stopped slowly. Shen Lian got off the carriage and looked up at the ancient temple in front of him.

A rectangular plaque was placed across the top of the head, with three powerful characters written in fine art: Cold Moon Temple.

"Young Master Shen is here! Please come inside! Young Master Wang and the others have been waiting for you for a long time!" A servant came out with a smile on his face.

"Shen Lian nodded, adjusting the thick velvet coat adorned with gold and jade. He unfurled a paper fan, its surface painted with scenes of spring trees, autumn frost, mountains, and rivers, complemented by a finishing touch of elegant calligraphy. With grace, he followed the servant boy into the ancient temple."

"This place had been abandoned for many years. After investing a lot of money, Wang Fugui meticulously restored it, transforming it into a haven of joy. He held a poetry meeting every three days to meet friends through literature. In the hall burning with fragrant wood, the flames danced, warm and very comfortable, making people forget that it was cold outside.

A young beauty in a green skirt was playing the piano in the middle. The sound of the piano was rustling, quiet and lofty.

Eight tables were neatly set on both sides, and they were occupied by elegantly dressed intellectuals. They sat in quiet appreciation of the music, their gazes fixated on the women playing the piano. Most were admirers, and a few couldn't help but show their interest.

Shen Lian came in casually, and glanced at the woman playing the piano, feeling amazed. The hefty man, Wang Fugui, had a sly grin on his face.  . When he saw Shen Lian, he hurriedly waved at him. Shen Lian walked to him and sat down, and asked in a low voice, "Who is this beauty?" Wang Fugui laughed and said, "The new oiran of Drunk Flower House, Li Chengcheng.

I spent a thousand taels to invite her here." Shen Lian smiled, did not speak, but was filled with emotion in his heart.

The wealthy sons present here were all born in the richest families in Snow Cliff City. Shen family and Wang family were among the most wealthy and powerful families. The family background made these young masters spend a lot of money without feeling sorry for a second.

"Beautiful clothing, fine food, noble status, and the ability to invite oirans to perform at any time, this kind of life is really too corrupt." Shen Lian took a sip of wine as if in a dream.

Wasn't this kind of luxurious life exactly what he pursued so hard in his previous life? After the song was over, Li Chengcheng was immediately applauded. Shen Lian also applauded. At this moment, he suddenly noticed a person who was drinking wine quietly without looking sideways, as if everything around him had nothing to do with him.

"Who is that person sitting next to Zhu Yu?" Shen Lian asked Wang Fugui. "This person is not simple, he is not the same kind of person as us." Wang Fugui replied mysteriously.

"Why isn't it simple?"

"Do you still remember the tragedy two months ago? The time when the Zhu family was almost massacred…"

Shen Lian searched her mind carefully and suddenly remembered. The Zhu family ran an escort agency. They received a big order two months ago. Zhu Yu's father personally escorted the goods. On the way, he encountered a terrifying robber who killed people like hemp, causing heavy casualties to the escort agency, and even lost the goods!

As a result, the Zhu family was almost devastated. "Of course, I remember this, what's wrong?" Shen Lian looked at Wang Fugui suspiciously. "You only know one thing and don't know the other thing." Wang Fugui suddenly became serious,

"Actually, that terrifying robber is not a human, but… a demon!" Shen Lian's heart shook, and his face changed! Ever since he came to this world, he has often heard strange things, but he didn't know whether it was true or not.

This time, he seemed to have encountered a real one! "Could it be that there are demons in this world?!" Shen Lian still couldn't believe it. "That demon is one foot tall, with a green face and fangs, tearing up living people, eating raw meat, and drinking human blood, it's terrifying." Wang Fugui said seriously.

Shen Lian appeared skeptical, and he sneered, saying, You continue to make up stories. If I believed you, I will be the only one to blame. "Darn it, if I'm lying to you, I'm a puppy,"  Wang Fugui pointed at the stranger excitedly as if he had been wronged. 

"After the Zhu family had an accident, he was invited to kill the demon and retrieve the bodyguard. This is how we got over the crisis. Zhu Yu told me this personally." Shen Lian's eyes flashed: "Who is this person? How can he kill demons?"

"Zhu Yu refuses to say, and he doesn't seem to know. He only knows that this person is called Lin Xiuping." Wang Fugui also looked curious. At this time, someone suggested that everyone take turns to write poems, one poem per person, and if they failed to do so, they would be punished with alcohol.

Wang Fugui was the first one. He readily punished himself with three cups. After going around for a while, many people wrote poems, both refined and popular. Finally, it was Shen Lian's turn. He thought for a while and said loudly:

"Green Ant's new fermented wine, red clay small stove. It's going to snow in the evening, can you have a glass?" This poem was very suitable for the occasion, and everyone was silent. After savoring it carefully, all of them praised the poem.

Even Lin Xiuping, who was ignoring everything, turned his head to look at Shen Lian and applauded accordingly. Next, they started the second round of poetry writing. Basically, not everyone couldn't do it. They mainly drank, ate, and had fun. That's what they play.

"Fuck, why are there still mosquitoes in this cold weather?" Shen Lian suddenly heard Wang Fugui complain, and turned his head to look, only to see a blood spot on his palm, which was a mosquito that had been swatted to death. Where do mosquitoes come from in the cold and snowy winter? Shen Lian was also puzzled. Suddenly, a miserable scream came! The servant boy who greeted him before ran in from outside.

Strangely, he was shrouded in a cloud of black clouds. "Buzzing…" The black cloud made a strong noise like mosquitoes flapping their wings. Shen Lian looked intently, and couldn't help but constrict his pupils. That black cloud was made of mosquitoes!!! Countless mosquitoes gathered into a cloud, biting wildly around the servant. The poor boy fell to the ground and rolled around, screaming again and again. In just a moment, he stopped moving, and the black cloud dispersed, revealing a skinny body that had been sucked dry! Everyone gasped in horror!

The oiran Li Chengcheng's eyes darkened, and she fainted on the ground. Shen Lian also felt a chill run down his spine. He has never seen mosquitoes move in a group, let alone a person was sucked blood to death by them.

It's too infiltrating! "No! Something happened to Zhu's family!" Lin Xiuping suddenly yelled, pulled Zhu Yu, and ran outside. Everyone didn't know if it would be dangerous to stay here, so they rushed out with Lin Xiuping. After running to the gate of the ancient temple, Lin Xiuping suddenly stopped and looked up in a certain direction.

Shen Lian then stared and saw a huge black cloud entrenched in the sky in the distance, and there was a faint thunderous humming noise. "… My god, that black cloud is not full of mosquitoes, is it?" Wang Fugui was terrified, swallowed his saliva, and exclaimed.

"It's too abnormal, there must be demons in abnormalities!" "Look, that direction seems to be the Zhu family." "I've heard that the Zhu family provoked demons a long time ago. Now something big has happened."

"Hey, where's Zhu Yu?" Just as everyone stretched their necks to look at the black clouds, Lin Xiuping and Zhu Yu had already run away, heading straight for Zhu's house. "Let's go and have a look." Someone suggested. "Go, go and have a look!" There were so many people who were courageous, and they would not be so afraid when they gathered together to act. They braved the heavy snow to chase Lin and Zhu.

However, when Shen Lian and the others rushed to the gate of Zhu's mansion, they found that the government's army had already arrived. Moreover, even the county magistrate and the heads of the four major families came, looking at the black clouds above their heads, all of them had solemn expressions.

Shen Lian saw his father, Shen Wanquan, at a glance. The next thing that came into view was a hellish scene. The officers and soldiers carried out corpses one after another from the Zhu Mansion and placed them on the open space in front of the door, covered with white cloth. Shen Lian clearly saw that the dead were all skin and bones that had been sucked dry, exactly the same as the dead servant. In Zhu's mansion, apart from the Zhu family, there were usually many bodyguards, servants, and handymen living there. There were more than a hundred people, men and women, old and young. In the huge Zhu family, only Zhu Yu was left alive. The world was as quiet as death, and the unspeakable panic lingered in everyone's heart. Shen Lian walked up to his father.

"Dad…" "Go home first, let's talk later." Shen Wanquan waved his hands and only sighed heavily. Shen Lian looked up at the sky. The black clouds were gradually dissipating, and the heavy snow became even more frenzied. The crystal snowflakes had hints of a bewitching red. "Demon, demon…Monster"

He murmured and suddenly realized that this world didn't seem to be as safe as he imagined. On the contrary, it was very dangerous, even unpredictable, and good days might come and go at any time.

Even a strong force like the Zhu family, with many bodyguards with outstanding martial arts guarding them, was destroyed in such a short time. Shen Lian took a deep breath before heading back home. Shen Wanquan didn't come back until dark, with a tired look on his face.

Seeing that Shen Lian was waiting for him, Shen Wanquan hesitated for a while and said in a deep voice: "A vicious plague broke out in Zhu's residence, and the whole family died. The county magistrate personally handled this matter. Don't meddle in business that isn't your own, understand?" Shen Lian said speechlessly: "Vicious plague? Dad…" Shen Wanquan interrupted before finishing speaking. "Lian'er, you are seventeen this year, right? It's not right to wander around all day. I want to send you to study with your uncle. What do you think?"