Apocalyptic Era: Starting from picking up a Bishoujo

The battle that had previously erupted within the residential complex was exceptionally loud, not just from the shockwave formed by my flames but also from the Demon pulling out and hurling streetlights. In terms of noise pollution per decibel, even mundane construction work had never been this disruptive to the peace.

Therefore, it wasn't long before some residents appeared on their balconies and by their windows, craning their necks for a look.

To avoid being stopped by anyone, I quickly left the complex.

At the same time, I kept a close watch on the movements of the Demon, about a kilometer away.

After the Demon plunged into the river, it soon became aware of the anomaly clinging to its body. Like a chemical reaction from a middle school experiment demonstrating underwater combustion, the flames wrapped around its body refused to be extinguished.

That terrifying goat-face twisted into an expression of absolute fear and despair, and under the hellish burning pain, it released a series of frantic bubbles. Then, struggling, it crawled to the deserted shore of the river, once again letting out a heart-wrenching howl of agony.

It was clear that it wanted to do something but didn't know what to do. Escaping from my sight and diving into the water did nothing to quench the flames. Trying to think calmly was out of the question too; the burning pain was likely boiling its brain to mush.

Its only way out was the cave in the fifteenth-floor room—reaching the cave below could have severed the connection between me and the flames. But it seemed it hadn't thought of this, or maybe it didn't know how to open the cave and its special properties?

After its moment of agonized howling, it picked up a sliver of rationality and dashed off again, heading further away from the residential complex.

Such resilience in its body and such a strong will to survive. Under normal circumstances, a person would have been drained of all their spiritual power if burned to this degree, not that I had ever actually tried it.

To be honest, I was somewhat disappointed with the Demon's actual performance.

Since the battle started, it had only shown me physical attacks in my presence. Those shadow strikes too—despite being a mysterious and enigmatic Shadow Power visually, they ultimately transformed into physical blades to attack me. Isn't this a bit dull? Are there no other more bizarre abilities?

Is that the common way of combat in their world, or is it just a low-level nobody?

Judging from its current course of action, it must suspect it still isn't far enough from me, hence the continued burning. Even if it flees to the ends of the earth, it would be of no use, but since I need to retrieve it later, I can't let it get too far.

For the time being, I came to a halt, raised my right hand toward the far-off direction a kilometer away, and squeezed hard.

The flames wrapped around its body, particularly those on the outside of its legs, under my manipulation suddenly burrowed into the muscle tissue as if alive in a fierce competition.

With a thunderous explosion, its legs detonated on the spot, and its body, unable to halt in time, crashed embarrassingly into the roadside trees and rolled out a considerable distance before coming to a stop.

It pressed its hands into the leaf-covered dirt to prop up its body. I had no intention of harming the environment around me, so although engulfed in fire, it fell in a place saturated with combustibles, and the flames didn't spread at all. It looked back at its exploded, severed legs and suddenly let out a deranged laugh.

"Zhuang Cheng, you're watching me, aren't you?!" It lifted its head towards the empty night sky and let out a mad howl, "If you've got the guts... if you've got the guts, then grant me a quick death! Kill me!"

"That's not possible." Knowing it couldn't hear me, I still responded from a kilometer away, "You're still of use to me."

Shortly after, I arrived in the woods where the Demon lay.

It was on the ground, motionless; its charred body resembled coal with residual fire. It appeared dead, but I knew it was alive. Aside from its legs, I had only allowed the flames to destroy its skin and muscles, intentionally not penetrating the internal organs. I could even sense its deliberately suppressed breathing through the flames.

Perhaps the burning had killed off most of its pain receptors. Out of some curiosity, I had looked this up on the internet before (let's not discuss why I was researching this), since human pain receptors are primarily located in the epidermis and dermis, so the depth of a burn and the level of pain don't always correlate. Some severe burn victims might not feel much pain. I wonder if this Demon's physiological structure regarding pain is similar to that of humans.

"You're still conscious." I initiated conversation, "I have some questions for you. If you're willing to answer, I can stop burning you for the time being."

The Demon didn't respond. I took a few more steps forward. And when I closed the gap to just four or five meters, it suddenly propped itself up on its arms and lunged at me.

"Zhuang Cheng—!!" From its severely burned throat, it uttered a muddy roar so full of hatred that even I could barely discern the exact words.

It seemed this was its last stand. Since it was expected, I was not surprised. However, what happened next was far beyond my expectations.

Just as I was about to counterattack, a streak of white light shot forth from behind me, grazed past me, and struck the Demon's torso straight on. The Demon flew back like a soccer ball kicked by an athlete, crashing into a nearby tree and bending it.

This time, the Demon wasn't just acting but seemed to have truly lost consciousness.

Who did this?

I immediately turned around to look.

On the other side of the woods, a figure holding a sword walked slowly towards me.

Dark clouds drifted across the night sky, finally revealing the moon. The moonlight cascaded into the bamboo forest, illuminating the figure of the person there.

Surprisingly, this person was dressed like an ancient swordsman, clad in a brown and black straw raincoat, with a matching conical hat, and carrying a sheath that was a mix of black and red. The long sword was held in hand, its tip angled towards the ground, exuding a readiness as if it could strike at any moment.

Judging by how this person had just intervened to help, they likely weren't an enemy. Honestly, I felt that their help was unnecessary, but the experience of being rescued by a mysterious stranger was novel to me, and I couldn't foster any negative feelings about it. Even though I didn't see them as a foe, they might not feel the same way about me. Perhaps I should introduce myself first, to show I meant no harm.

"Hello," I said first, "I am Zhuang..."

Suddenly, it seemed the stranger recognized my face and exclaimed, "Zhuang Cheng?"

It was a young woman's voice, and it sounded familiar.

"Do you know me?" I asked, surprised, "Who are you?"

She hesitated for a moment, then lifted her hand, removed her conical hat, and revealed her true face.

To my greater surprise, possibly even shock, the person in front of me was someone I knew.

In my memory, that face was always gentle and submissive, evoking imagery of streams, springs, and misty lakes, resembling a delicate ink wash painting. That person typically avoided conflicts in human relationships;

Yet now, although her face was unchanged, her temperament had completely transformed, resembling a valiant swordsman, ready to confront any dispute with a straightforward and bold attitude.

"...Zhu Shi?" I uttered her name.

The person before me was Changan's younger sister, Zhu Shi.

"What is this..." She hesitated while looking at me, then at the demon lying not far away, her voice filled with disbelief, "...did you defeat it?"

"No, weren't you the one who just defeated it?"

I understood what she meant, she was trying to gain some time to let the emotional waves within me settle.

"What I mean is, these burns on his body..." At first, her tone was somewhat incredulous.

But gradually, she regained her composure and her voice steadied a lot, "— did you do all this?"

Her way of speaking was drastically different from the Zhu Shi I remembered; even her tone seemed different. On reflection, her previous manner of speaking seemed somewhat feigned. Perhaps this appearance now was closer to her true character.

I had also managed to calm my emotions, and while analyzing the current her, I affirmed, "Yes, it was me."

She watched me for a moment, then sheathed her sword on her back, and asked tentatively, "Are you also a demon hunter?"

"Also?... I don't have that kind of job," I replied, "If I have to say, I might be considered a supernatural power user."

"That's also considered a demon hunter," she said.

Also considered? This wasn't the first time I'd heard the term demon hunter, which I presumed to be a profession. Just possessing extraordinary power made one a "demon hunter"? I felt a dissonance with that, and it prompted an association.

No wonder I found Zhu Shi's voice familiar—it was identical to the voice of the demon hunter woman who spoke with Agent Kong on the phone earlier.

Zhu Shi was that demon hunter woman!

Amidst the shock, I immediately realized a problem—

The demon hunter woman—Zhu Shi belonged to Luo Mountain's personnel, and Luo Mountain was likely an official supernatural organization. Didn't that mean it would be difficult for me to keep the demon to myself?

Is there any way to reclaim that demon... No, that was shortsighted. Now that the governmental supernatural organization had revealed hints of its existence, why was I still fixated on some unknown demon? If I wanted to know about the abnormal world, wouldn't it be better to go directly to them?

And since Zhu Shi was also my friend's sister, this relationship only seemed like a stroke of luck!

My attention immediately focused entirely on Zhu Shi.

"I forgot to reintroduce myself. I am a demon hunter from Luo Mountain, responsible for the security of this area," Zhu Shi spoke in a very formal tone, "Regarding your defeat of the Fallen Demon Hunter, I have many questions to ask you. Are you available now?"