Seeing Liu Xiulian's astonished gaze sweep over, Fang Yuan spoke again, "I don't want to say it a second time."
He had no time to perform any kind of questioning or face-slapping drama with this woman from the Chongwu Guard; right now, he only wanted the life of that catfish demon.
"Alright!" Liu Xiulian swallowed her saliva and immediately pointed in a direction. "The Youyu Pond is over there."
Fang Yuan nodded, tapping his toes in the air, and immediately flew towards it.
Liu Xiulian, putting aside any unnecessary thoughts, continued explaining to Fang Yuan:
"The catfish demon is at the peak of the Fourth Realm. With my strength, I could have barely defeated it."
"But that beast is crafty and cunning, and it occupies the cold and deep Youyu Pond. Once at a disadvantage, it will retreat into the pond."
"In the water, I can't do anything to it..."
After finishing this explanation, Liu Xiulian saw Fang Yuan frown.
He probably thinks that the catfish demon is quite troublesome...
"The catfish demon's realm is so low..." Fang Yuan thought to himself, a bit disappointed.
A Fourth Realm demon, not even considered a Demon Lord, still requires a dedicated person to guard it, and they can't even kill it.
The official combat power in Jianghai Prefecture is truly unimpressive.
But there's nothing to be done. After all, the highest leader here, Lord Chongwu, is nothing but a paper tiger, and on top of that, he's constantly being suppressed by the imperial court...
In such a situation, the fact that Jianghai Prefecture has remained relatively peaceful for over a century is a miracle, purely relying on the reputation Lord Chongwu had built in the past.
While lost in thought, a lake appeared in Fang Yuan's sight.
The lake was about fifty zhang in radius, displaying a frosty cold color, resembling stagnant water with no ripples.
"This is it," Liu Xiulian's voice sounded:
"This lake is the domain of the catfish demon. If it weren't for this Youyu Pond blocking the way, I would've roasted that fish and eaten it already!"
It's undeniable that demons possess inherent advantages that humans envy. With the same realm, demons with wings can fly, and those with fins can dive into rivers.
Liu Xiulian, feeling frustrated, added:
"Lord Fang, if you want to catch it, you'll need to find a way to lure it out first..."
Just as she suggested this, Liu Xiulian suddenly felt the pressure on the back of her neck lighten!
Then, she saw Fang Yuan, leaving a trail of afterimages in the air, rushing straight into the cold, silent lake, kicking up a wave!
She widened her eyes in shock—what was going on? He just dashed into the lake without saying a word?!
Fighting a fish demon in the water? That was an incredibly foolish choice!
Wait a minute, Liu Xiulian realized something—she might need to worry more about herself than Fang Yuan!
She was still hundreds of meters in the air!
She couldn't fly!
That kid just took off without a second thought—what was she supposed to do?!
Boom!!!
A strong feeling of weightlessness suddenly hit, and Liu Xiulian began plummeting toward the lake!
"Damn it!"
She adjusted her position mid-air, facing downward with her arms crossed in front of her, as the lake rapidly grew in her view.
A loud splash!
Liu Xiulian's body suddenly stopped, and that familiar pressure on her neck reappeared.
The icy, biting cold of the lake was still some distance away, and she had not fallen into the water.
In her panic, Liu Xiulian turned her head and saw that Fang Yuan had somehow returned to her side.
The young man stood above the lake, his left hand once again gripping her collar.
"Don't worry, you're already under my command, I won't let anything happen to you," Fang Yuan reassured her.
"Thank you..." Liu Xiulian instinctively said, but then realized it was strange—she was in this situation because of him, wasn't she?
As she was about to complain, Liu Xiulian's pupils suddenly shrank. She noticed that Fang Yuan was holding her by the neck with one hand, and with the other hand, he was carrying an enormous object.
The thing was even heavier than her, and she recognized it immediately. After guarding it for over a decade, she would recognize it even if it turned to dust!
The Catfish Demon!
The catfish demon's eyes, which had once seemed filled with provocation, now appeared like dead fish eyes, staring blankly—it was clearly dead beyond hope.
Liu Xiulian subconsciously opened her mouth, her expression becoming somewhat dazed. Was she hallucinating?
In the short time she was falling, the young man had already killed the catfish demon and even saved her?!
It was that easy?! That was the demon she had considered a great enemy!
If all of this was real, what had been the point of guarding this Youyu Pond for all those years?!
Liu Xiulian felt like her entire worldview had been overturned. This question lingered in her mind until Fang Yuan returned to the camp, and she still hadn't figured it out.
The young, small-framed boy, carrying two massive creatures in each hand, had his triumphant entrance into the camp, stunning the soldiers into silence.
Like Liu Xiulian, they had previously doubted Lord Chongwu's decision, but now... they realized how foolish that was!
Lord Chongwu wasn't as bad at judging people as they had thought, was he?!
"I knew it..." Qin Hai let out a bitter laugh. The moment Fang Yuan and Liu Xiulian disappeared, he knew exactly what Fang Yuan was up to.
He just didn't expect that Fang Yuan's speed would be this fast. It had only been a few minutes, and Fang Yuan was already back, carrying the dead catfish demon.
Looking at Liu Xiulian's expression of despair... well, clearly, she had learned her lesson from Fang Yuan.
Fang Yuan gently set Liu Xiulian down and asked, "Has the catfish demon eaten anyone in recent years?"
"Lord Fang, no!" one of the soldiers immediately responded.
"We've been keeping it under surveillance in the Youyu Pond. It hasn't had the chance to eat anyone."
"That's good..." Fang Yuan nodded in satisfaction, "Go get your pots, and bring several of them."
So, he was planning to eat...
The soldiers quickly realized what Fang Yuan intended to do and turned to carry out the task.
At this moment, Liu Xiulian finally snapped back to reality. She looked at Fang Yuan's white robe again. He had dived into the cold pond to kill the catfish demon, and his clothes hadn't even gotten wet.
Meanwhile, Liu Xiulian, a woman of great strength, felt like a young girl as she hesitated for a moment before walking up to ask:
"Lord Fang, how were you able to kill the catfish demon so easily?"
This time, when she addressed him as "Lord Fang," her tone was full of respect.
This question truly stumped Fang Yuan. After thinking for a moment, he replied:
"That's what geniuses are like. If you're not a genius, you wouldn't understand."
Liu Xiulian fell silent again. As expected, lies don't hurt people, but the truth is a sharp knife...
As they conversed, the soldiers came over carrying several pots:
"Lord Fang, the pots you requested are here!"
"Good," Fang Yuan nodded, casually tossing the catfish demon into the air!
A crackling sound!
A flash of lightning appeared in mid-air, and in that instant of thunder and lightning, the catfish demon was sliced into countless neatly shaped and similarly sized chunks of meat.
The meat pieces fell like fine raindrops, evenly dropping into each pot, making a light sound and releasing a gentle steam.
Then, an intense and rich smell of grilled fish filled the air.