Don't Cause Trouble Chapter 105: Demon-Luring Array

Although Lu Chenhan had the Demon Compass, it was completely useless. No matter where he went, he could sense demonic energy, as if the entire array was made of it.

What made it worse was that the others who entered with him were using trickery and deception to determine who in the city might be demons, which made Lu Chenhan feel even more dissatisfied with the compass in his hand.

Daoist Fengchen once said the Demon Compass was a treasured artifact from Penglai, but now it just seemed worthless to him.

"Brother Lu." Ning Qianyao walked over from the side and looked at the object in his hand. "What’s that?"

Lu Chenhan looked up and, seeing it was her, replied, "A Demon Compass."

Ning Qianyao didn’t know what that was, but from the name alone, it was clearly related to demons. "Can it locate demons?"

"It seems to be broken." Lu Chenhan pointed to the constantly spinning needle. "It used to point in the direction of demonic energy."

"Can I take a look?" Ning Qianyao tilted her head, eyes bright like a deer’s. "I’m not ranked on the Baiqing List, but I do know a thing or two about magical tools."

Lu Chenhan handed her the Demon Compass.

Ning Qianyao lowered her head and studied it for a moment, then suddenly bit her finger and let a drop of blood fall onto the surface of the compass.

Lu Chenhan’s eyes flickered as he watched the blood get fully absorbed before finally asking, "What are you doing?"

"I’m trying to see if I can fix it." Ning Qianyao looked up at him with a proud expression. "My blood can enhance magical tools."

Lu Chenhan suddenly moved. He leaned closer, raised his hand to cover the lower half of her face, though without touching her and looked down into her eyes. "Don’t say things like that in public."

Ning Qianyao smiled with her eyes. "I know. Master already warned me. But it’s fine telling you."

Lu Chenhan lowered his hand. "Don’t let anyone else find out about your blood."

"Okay." Ning Qianyao nodded, then lifted the Demon Compass. "Brother Lu, look, it’s stopping."

The Demon Compass slowly came to a halt and pointed in one direction.

"Let’s go," Lu Chenhan said.

……

As the birthday banquet approached, the number of demons listed on the access records also decreased, until the night before the massacre, there were still more than thirty demons left undiscovered.

At the banquet, guests raised their cups and offered blessings to the City Lord’s wife’s younger brother, most of them wishing him a long life and good health.

"In the cultivation world, wishing someone to live a hundred years is basically an insult," Zhou Yun muttered under his breath.

"To mortals, a hundred years is already a long life." Xu Chengyu looked up at the thin, pale young man on the stage, pity flashing in his eyes, this youth would remain forever frozen at this age.

As the banquet neared its end, night had already fallen, and lanterns were lit all around.

The City Lord’s wife turned and asked Yu Chengyue, "Chengyue, do you have a wish this year?"

Under the glow of the lanterns, half of Yu Chengyue’s face was hidden in shadow. He slightly raised his head and gazed into the night. "I’d like to see what the City Lord’s residence looks like from above."

The City Lord’s wife immediately understood. "You want to learn sword flight?"

Yu Chengyue shook his head. His delicate, pale face showed a trace of longing. "It’s enough if they just take me around for a flight."

The City Lord’s wife hesitated for a moment and was about to instruct a cultivator to take him, but Yu Chengyue stopped her, saying he wanted to choose someone himself.

"…Go on, then." The City Lord’s wife adjusted his cloak and added, "Come back right away if you feel unwell."

Yu Chengyue slowly walked down and approached You Fushi, taking out a qiankun bag of spirit stones. "Can you fly me around the City Lord’s estate?"

He had grown up in the residence, yet never seen it in full.

You Fushi took the qiankun bag, peeked inside, and frowned slightly at the poor quality of the spirit stones. Still, he handed the qiankun bag to a mortal nearby. "Ye Su, the basket."

The senior sister pulled out a long-unused basket from her qiankun bag and handed it to her junior brother. He fiddled with it for a bit, stuffed Yu Chengyue into it, then summoned the Chongming Sword into the air.

You Fushi didn’t stand on the sword himself, he had Ye Su follow and carry him. Flying on a sword was tiring, so he let the mortal do it.

"Ye Su," You Fushi tugged on his senior sister’s robe from behind and whispered, "Make me a new basket later."

He wouldn’t use something others had already used.

Ye Su glanced back at him. "You can ride the sword yourself. No need for a basket."

You Fushi didn’t care. "Make one anyway."

It wasn’t a big deal, and it was rare for her junior brother to show this much interest in making money, so Ye Su played along. "Alright, I’ll make one when we go out."

The wind blew across Yu Chengyue’s face, ruffling his hair. He turned and asked the two of them, "Is this what sword riding feels like for cultivators?"

Since he hadn’t managed to bring out more spirit stones from the realm earlier, You Fushi was focused only on earning them. He didn’t bother responding to idle questions like that, too preoccupied thinking about what kind of basket he wanted Ye Su to make.

Ye Su flicked her finger, forming a shield of spiritual energy around Yu Chengyue to block the wind. "There. That’s better."

Yu Chengyue looked at the solid-looking spiritual shield, reached out to touch it, and a hint of envy flashed in his eyes. "Is this spiritual energy?"

Ye Su’s gaze dropped to the City Lord’s estate below. Every corner of the residence was brightly lit tonight, and they could clearly see what everyone below was doing.

"They said I have the aptitude for cultivation," Yu Chengyue murmured, "but unfortunately, my body can’t handle it. If I could cultivate, I wouldn’t get sick, and I wouldn’t feel pain."

"Cultivators still feel pain," Ye Su replied, turning to look at him. "And they still die."

Yu Chengyue’s pale face looked almost translucent in the moonlight. His eyes quietly watched the people moving about below in the estate. "Really?"

Ye Su casually said, "Once a cultivator reaches a certain level, every breakthrough comes with a lightning tribulation. Sometimes, inner demons also arise."

"Then… if someone became a demon, would it be easier?" Yu Chengyue suddenly asked.

"Maybe?" Ye Su replied. "Demons seem to cultivate faster than regular cultivators."

"Don’t you think demons deserve to die?" Yu Chengyue asked softly as he leaned against the basket’s edge.

That question made Ye Su look at him a few times. "Depends on the kind of demon."

"Is that so?" Yu Chengyue’s voice grew so faint it was almost inaudible and in the next moment, it vanished into the wind.

……

When they returned after circling the City Lord’s mansion with Yu Chengyue, something seemed to have happened below, a commotion had broken out.

As the three of them landed, they saw over a dozen corpses on the ground. All of them were bleeding black blood from their seven orifices. The blood dripped onto the stone pavement and even made a sizzling sound. Judging by their clothes, they were city guards and cultivators.

"Chengyue, come here."

The City Lord’s wife immediately grabbed Yu Chengyue’s hand when she saw her. "Something’s happened here. I’ve arranged for someone to take you back first."

"What happened to them?" Yu Chengyue asked as she looked at the bodies on the ground.

"They were demons killed and dumped in the street," Li Yaoming said grimly, then gave orders. "Put the entire city on alert. Call for the city defense officer."

Standing at the edge, Ye Su swept her gaze across everyone nearby. Lu Chenhan, Ning Qianyao, and Jian Hu still hadn’t shown up.

Those people with Xu Chengyu would usually cover up the deaths of demons by fabricating reasons, making others think those who disappeared had left for personal reasons. They would never openly dump demon corpses like this.

Ye Su wasn’t wrong.

Those dead demons had been killed by Lu Chenhan, Ning Qianyao, and Jian Hu. Thanks to Ning Qianyao’s blood, the Demon Compass finally worked and led them to their targets. In just one day, they had already slain over a dozen demons. Now that they had secured their spot to pass the trial, they were still hunting the remaining demons.

At that moment, Gu Liangtian, who had been sitting below, suddenly stood up. He closed his eyes, turned his prayer beads, and floated into the air. The lotus platform atop his staff glowed with golden light.

Instantly, formation lights appeared from all corners of Hui City, connecting and converging onto the lotus platform on his staff.

In that moment, it was as if a veil of darkness shrouding Hui City had been ripped apart, revealing a rolling wave of evil energy.

"Buddhist's disciple?" The City Lord quickly shielded his wife and brother behind him and looked at Gu Liangtian, unsure of what he was doing.

"A Demon-Luring Array?" Mei Chouren, who had been dancing, suddenly stopped and looked up at the formation in the sky.

Yan Hao was shocked. "What’s Gu Liangtian doing?"

Once a Demon-Luring Array is activated, demons will definitely appear within an hour. But this massive array would require many disciples from the Wanfo Sect to exhaust their spiritual power, while disciples from other sects could simply swoop in to reap the rewards.

"A Demon-Luring Array that covers the entire city," Cheng Huaian said, staring at the lights of the array. "The Wanfo Sect has been preparing this from the moment they entered the city."

Lian Lian folded her arms. "To wait until tonight to act... Buddhist's disciple sure has patience."

……

"What’s going on?"

The mortals of Hui City were shaken at the sight of this massive formation. Even the cultivators in the city came out to investigate the commotion.

"The formation’s core is at the City Lord’s mansion," some cultivators noticed the clue.

Late at night, windows along the streets kept opening as fear spread in the darkness. Mortals shut their doors tightly, huddling together with their families.

But then, chaos erupted in an instant.

"Demons! It’s a demon!"

A cultivator on the street screamed wildly. His abdomen had been slashed open, intestines spilling out, yet he didn’t even notice. He was just trying desperately to run away.

He tried to run into one of the shops, but before he could get close, the doors slammed shut one after another. The people inside all hid and activated defensive barriers.

"Open the door, help me!"

He struggled, banging on the door of the Gui Fu Inn. This inn had the most cultivators; if someone helped, he might still survive. But the Gui Fu Inn never opened its door.

He turned around and tried to open his blurry eyes. Clutching his stomach, he collapsed: The demons are here!

"It’s a demon."

Some disciples from the Kunlun Sect inside the inn wanted to go help, but hesitated when they saw the others standing still.

"Let’s wait and see."

"There are only about thirty demons left. If we wait too long, others will take the credit."

"Didn’t you see the clothes on that guy at the door? He’s a city guard. His level isn’t any lower than ours."

For a while, no one in the inn moved. They simply watched through their communication mirrors as a black figure outside came closer and closer, reeking of blood and rot. It grabbed the man at the door, opened its mouth wide, aiming for his neck.

"Over here!"

Suddenly, a sword hum echoed from the street. Disciples from the Sword Sect rushed out from the courtyard behind and flew in to block the demon’s move.

Human demons were stronger than Golden Core cultivators. This demon was originally at the Golden Core stage, and after being demonized, was even more powerful. The first disciple to reach him was knocked away after only two moves and slammed into the ground.

Through the corner of his eye, the disciple saw other guards being taken away by his companions. He quickly got up: "Form the Sword Array!"

All the Sword Sect disciples formed the array and surrounded the demon. The brilliant blue sword light illuminated the street, finally letting everyone see the demon’s true face.

It was actually a city guard. But now his eyes were blood red, the corners of his mouth torn open, revealing two sharp fangs.

These disciples had never seen a demon up close before. Even just a shadow from twenty years ago was enough to strike fear into their hearts.

Thankfully, they were disciples from a major sect. They quickly calmed themselves and focused on the formation, joining swords to strike the demon.

It wasn’t smooth at first. Facing a new kind of enemy, the formation kept faltering. Several disciples were injured by the human demon. But as time went on, they regained the coordination they had honed in training.

"Sword Slash!"

The lead disciple seized an opening, gathered all the sword energy, and slashed at the demon. The sword’s intent roared.

The demon’s head was cut off. As it hit the ground, the ferocious features slowly faded, returning to the appearance of a normal cultivator.

—One fewer demon left with a pass token.

"The Sword Sect’s sword formation isn’t so impressive," one Kunlun disciple in the inn mocked.

"They just happened to strike first and kill the demon."

"Everyone, get out and hunt for demons."

After watching the fight, the Kunlun disciples inside the inn had a clearer understanding of the human demons in Hui City and felt somewhat reassured.

……

Similar incidents kept happening throughout the city.

Ever since the demon-drawing formation appeared, demons were forced out one after another, especially in the City Lord’s manor.

Most of them were celestial demons, and ordinary cultivators were no match for them. Even the disciples from various sects no longer cared about keeping a low profile and began openly attacking the demons, turning the battle into chaos.

The city guards had not yet arrived, and several guards who had been standing beside the City Lord suddenly reverted to their demonic forms. As a mere mortal, the City Lord didn’t even notice the change in those around him. He just pulled his wife close and shielded Yu Chengyue.

Ye Su moved quickly, flinging several talismans at the celestial demons to draw their attention.

"You all...?" The City Lord’s eyes widened. He could hardly process what was happening, all his familiar subordinates had turned into demons.

Yu Chengyue stood quietly beside the City Lord’s wife, holding his sister’s hand, calmly watching Ye Su and You Fushi fight the celestial demons.

The Chongming Sword didn’t even need You Fushi’s command, it flew out on its own to engage the demons. Whether it was demon blood or human blood, it craved both.

Celestial demons moved faster than ordinary Nascent Soul cultivators. The talismans Ye Su had drawn earlier had little effect. She recalled how Lian Lian and Cheng Huaian had fought that night, gathering spiritual energy at her fingertips and channeling it to draw a talisman in midair. A powerful and dense talismanic aura slowly took shape.

Once the talisman formed, Ye Su took a firm step back and sent it flying toward the celestial demon, restricting its movements.

Then, with her other hand hanging by her leg, she quickly drew another talisman and launched it upward, striking the demon again.

In the instant the demon struggled, she activated a speed talisman and suddenly appeared in front of it, stabbing a dagger straight into its heart.

The celestial demon dissolved into black demonic energy, and its clothing dropped to the ground.

Ye Su gathered spiritual power in her palm and, before the black mist could escape, she shattered it completely.

Another celestial demon lunged from behind, attempting to ambush Ye Su, but You Fushi, standing nearby, struck it with his "Mistflower Fang," biting through half its shoulder.

Ye Su turned her head, brought both hands together, aligned her thumbs and index fingers to form a seal, then spread them apart to trace a formation:

"By the Spirit-Linking Technique—Shred!"

A formation rose from the ground, binding the demon tightly and rapidly constricting, slicing it apart.

All the celestial demons were slain, but the birthday banquet was left in shambles. The guests trembled in fear and hid, but one guest suddenly had blood-red eyes and turned to bite the person next to him.

Gu Liangtian swiftly stepped in, threw out his prayer beads, and wrapped them around the possessed guest. While chanting an incantation, he eventually killed the demon.

……

"City Lord." After a while, the city’s guard commander arrived, covered in blood.

Li Yaoming looked terrible but remained composed. "Huicheng was invaded by demons?"

The guard commander gripped his sword. "Many cultivators are already fighting the demons in the city. Things are beginning to calm down."

"And inside the manor?"

"I’ve taken care of a group."

"Start counting casualties."

Seeing the commander had arrived, the City Lord finally felt a bit more at ease. He looked toward Gu Liangtian, his expression complicated.

"This matter... the Buddhist disciple should have warned us ahead of time."

Gu Liangtian retrieved his prayer beads. "I was afraid it would tip off someone with ill intentions."

On the other side, Ye Su looked down at the pass token in her hand.

The number of demon entries kept decreasing until it finally stopped at a number and didn’t move anymore: Two.