The Black Inn

In the pitch-black night sky, the moon hung alone, casting a faint and chilly light that gently bathed the earth.

In the sky above the forest, four figures flashed by at low altitude. Various sounds of wildlife interwove in the air, surrounding them. Ning Lang furrowed his brows, glanced at Jiang Chen, then turned his head again, noticing the not-so-good expressions on their faces. Suddenly, Ning Lang spoke up, "Gao Qianshou, considering we've been on the road for three days, even if we can endure it, my two disciples might not. How about finding an inn to rest for the night?"

Gao Qianshou surveyed the surroundings and said, "This area is remote, and finding an inn might be challenging." After releasing his divine sense, Ning Lang whispered, "There's an inn about five miles to the southeast."

With that, Ning Lang placed his left hand on Jiang Chen's shoulder, held Gan Tang with his right hand, and headed southeast.

Gao Qianshou frowned and muttered, "Five miles to the southeast?" He suddenly looked up and chased after them.

When he truly saw an old inn in the desolate sandy area, Gao Qianshou was surprised. Could Ning Lang have broken through his divine sense range again?

Suppressing his shock, Gao Qianshou followed Ning Lang back to the ground.

Creak.

They pushed open the wooden door covered in spider webs, producing a harsh scraping sound. In the courtyard of the inn, there were a few damaged water tanks on the left, and on the right was a stable with two brown old horses happily grazing on hay.

Stepping inside, aside from a small man dozing off behind the counter, the inn was empty.

"Innkeeper, we need a place to stay."

Jiang Chen shouted, but as the man showed no response, he prepared to raise his voice.

Suddenly, hurried footsteps echoed from above the stairs. Before long, a young woman in her thirties descended. She wore a light green silk dress, revealing delicate skin. She glanced at the four individuals, subtly furrowing her brows, and then smiled, "Are you all here to stay?"

"Yes."

Ning Lang added, "Do you have any wine and food?"

"Yes, please wait a moment." The young woman, acting like the innkeeper, gracefully walked to the counter, pinched the ear of the man who was napping, and scolded in a low voice, "Useless thing, you're always sleeping. Can't you see we have guests?"

The man woke up in confusion, saw Gan Tang and the others, and hastily exclaimed, "Madam, spare me, spare me."

Madam?

Jiang Chen looked curious. Even though he was young, he felt the innkeeper shouldn't have such a husband.

"Go to the kitchen and prepare some wine and dishes."

"Yes, yes." The man rubbed his ears, grinned, and opened the curtain to run into the kitchen.

Gao Qianshou, waved his hand. "You all eat; I'll go rest first."

With that, he went upstairs.

The innkeeper shouted, "Guest, the third-floor rooms are all vacant. Feel free to choose any."

Pretending to be profound, Gao Qianshou didn't respond and went to the third floor.

Seeing Ning Lang looking at the innkeeper's figure, Gan Tang felt displeased. She said, "So, Master likes women with a voluptuous figure."

Ning Lang scolded in a low voice, "Nonsense."

Gan Tang felt jealous. "Master, don't deny it. You were looking at her the whole time."

Jiang Chen sighed inwardly, "Only my junior sister dares to talk back to Master like this."

Ning Lang didn't bother to explain. After a while, the innkeeper brought a jug of wine and two cold dishes. She said with a charming voice, "In this rural place, there's not much to eat. Please forgive us, dear guests."

"No problem."

As the innkeeper approached, placing the wine and dishes on the table, Ning Lang distinctly smelled the fragrance of honeysuckle flowers.

"Innkeeper, can you really make a living opening an inn at a place like this?"

The woman hesitated and then smiled, "Well, we can make some money. Getting rich is impossible, but it's enough to support the family."

Ning Lang didn't inquire further, picked up the wine jug, sniffed it, and silently started drinking.

The innkeeper gazed at Ning Lang's profile, asking softly, "Sir, where did you come from?"

"From the west."

"Oh, and what does Sir do?"

"A scholar."

"That's wonderful." The innkeeper smiled and returned to the counter. Her gaze remained on Ning Lang, and under her skirt, her feet kept entwining, turning into a shimmering snake tail.

In the kitchen, the small man took off his tight clothes, gradually shrinking, revealing his true form. He picked up a bone-cutting knife from the cutting board, placed it on the whetstone, and began sharpening it. Finally, he removed the human skin mask from his face.

Having eaten and drunk their fill, Ning Lang led Jiang Chen and Gan Tang back to their room.

Midnight.

Ning Lang sat cross-legged on the bed, rhythmically tapping his knees with the index and middle fingers of his right hand, as if counting time.

After a while, the window was pried open, and a bamboo tube extended, emitting strands of green smoke. Soon, the room was filled with a miasma.

Ning Lang released his divine sense, confirming the voices of the innkeeper and the man downstairs.

"Wait a little longer. These four individuals are not simple."

As the words fell, another wisp of green smoke spewed from the bamboo tube.

"As usual, I'll take the man's essence, and the flesh will be yours."

A series of rustling sounds echoed in their ears. Shortly after, the room door was pushed open. The innkeeper walked in, and Gao Qianshou, holding the neck of a third-rank demon beast, Yellow Weasel, appeared, saying, "Heh, I really underestimated it. Unexpectedly, in such a place, we encounter a demonic beast."

Seeing the woman kneeling in front of the bed, Gao Qianshou threw the lifeless Yellow Weasel to the ground. Turning to her, he asked, "Tell us how you hid your demonic aura."

The woman trembled all over, her head knocked tightly against the ground, and she said in a miserable tone, "Immortal, spare me, spare me."

Ning Lang had long sensed that something was amiss with the inn.

Why were there no other guests? Why were there two horses in such a desolate place?

In such a remote location, where few guests came throughout the year, why open an inn here?

How could such a beautiful innkeeper have such an ugly and short husband?

"Speak, how do you hide your demonic aura?"

Ning Lang was also very curious about this question.

The innkeeper shivered and said, "He... he feeds on human flesh and bathes in human blood every day. Over time, the demonic aura on his body is concealed."

"What about you?"

"I... my mother is a snake demon, and my... my father is human, so..."

Mother is a snake demon.

Father is human.

Isn't this...

Jiang Chen slapped his thigh, suddenly stood up, and said, "Is your dad Xu Xian?"

...