Rise of The Demon General-Chapter 370. Following a Mob

Melas Twich was a small town close to the border of Echos. That part of the country bordered a no-man-land populated by spirit beasts. It took Amon four days riding his Thunder Roc to reach the place.

On arrival, he walked around the streets to get a hang of the place. The town was sparsely populated. There were not many facilities. Only a few kingdom soldiers were seen guarding the town. Many shops were closed. This seemed to be a declining settlement. No wonder the kingdom didn’t bother sending people here to check the rumors about the demon cult.

As he was walking the streets, he heard rapid footsteps approaching. He recognized these footsteps.

He moved to the side just as someone tried to grab him from behind. Tuang Yin stumbled and almost fell forward for missing her mark.

"I still can’t surprise you," she laughed.

"With how loud you are, you never will. You should be glad about that. I could have killed you if you sneaked up on me properly," Amon replied. "And what are you doing here?"

"To aid you in your mission, of course," Tuang Yin answered.

Amon frowned at her response.

Seeing that frown, Tuang Yin said, "I thought that was what you want? That woman we met at Grimwich Village approached and informed me that you are on a mission in this town and need my help."

"Xin Lie...?" Amon asked.

"Yes, I believe that is her name. I didn’t believe her at first, of course, but when I went to the mission center, I saw that the mission in this town had already been taken. I thought she might be telling the truth. I knew about that mission because I still pay attention to missions with ties to demons. You liked taking those missions, after all. Anyway, I decided to trust her and come here. I’ve been here for half a day, looking for you."

"I have just arrived," Amon informed. "I ride my Thunder Roc."

"I see. I used the Great Eagle from the Sky Stable. It flew faster for long-range travel, so I arrived here first even when I departed later than you."

Amon didn’t like this. Calling him here was still okay, but why did Xin Lie also call Tuang Yin? Maybe he should ditch this mission and leave.

"Oh, that Xin Lie woman also asked me to pass a message to you," Tuang Yin said.

"What message?" Amon asked.

"Start your search on a man named Kui Chong," Tuang Yin answered.

Amon was silent after that. He was still contemplating whether to continue this mission. Going back without completing it would result in a penalty, but he was not too hung up on academic points anymore for these senior years.

"While looking for you, I have made an investigation of my own," Tuang Yin said. "I thought I would find you if I looked for clues on the demon cult. I checked the town hall and used my Royal Academy badge to get information about Kui Chong’s address. I was on my way there when I saw you."

When Amon didn’t answer, Tuang Yin urged, "What are we waiting for? Let’s go check out this Kui Chong fellow."

"Hm...," Amon saw the enthusiasm on Tuang Yin’s face. He hadn’t spent much time with her lately. Perhaps she saw this as the chance to spend some time together.

"Okay, but we will watch our target from afar. Do not engage for now," Amon told her.

Tuang Yin didn’t understand why they shouldn’t confront Kui Chong directly, but she had learned to follow Amon’s order. She agreed to his plan.

Tuang Yin told Amon the address, and the two went to the place. On the way, she informed him about Kui Chong’s description, which she learned at the town hall. This way, he could identify their target.

Arriving at the address, they learned it was a rather large residential house compared to the other houses in this town. This meant Kui Chong was among the upper-class of the town residents. Amon sent Tuang Yin to go around the neighborhood collecting information about their target. He reminded her to be discreet. As for him, he hid on the roof of a nearby building and watched their target’s house.

Tuang Yin came to his hiding place four hours later.

"What did you find?" Amon asked.

"Kui Chong came from a long line of family who has dwelled in this town since it was built," Tuang Yin informed. "Because of that, their clan is rather respected. They own a lot of businesses in this town and have a decent number of followers. The clan head is someone named Kui Mang. Kui Chong is his only son and successor."

"Kui Chong stays inside that house much?"

"His clan owns several other houses, but yes, he lives in there with his father."

"Does anyone know if he is inside the house right now?" Amon asked.

"Someone saw him leave this morning, but they said he always returns before the evening," Tuang Yin answered.

"We wait for him to return then. We will follow him from now on."

"I also asked around about the rumors of the demon cult," Tuang Yin informed. "No one seems to know much about it. Most seem to only hear about it for the first time."

"Most? So, some know about it?"

"Probably. The few who seemed aware of the rumors told me to leave it alone. They told me I might get into trouble if I kept digging."

"Do you remember the people who gave you that warning?" Amon asked.

"Yes, I should be able to identify them if I saw them," Tuang Yin answered.

"Pay attention and let me know if you see those people again while we are in this town. They could be following us."

Tuang Yin nodded.

The two continued watching Kui Chong’s house. It was after sunset when they saw their target.

"That should be him. He fit the description," Tuang Yin uttered.

Their target was a young man. He was with a group of other youngsters. They talked for some time at the door to Kui Chong’s house. They seemed like any common young people who had a good time. They chatted and laughed before saying goodbye to each other and split.

"Should I follow those others who were with him?" Tuang Yin asked.

"No... let’s focus on Kui Chong," Amon replied.

*

They spent the next few days surveilling Kui Chong. They didn’t find anything strange about him other than he was a bad successor to his clan. He was not a hard worker. He rarely trained or cultivated. From what Tuang Yin gathered, he was still at the Intermediate Strength Stage. He did what most young men like him did, which was having fun.

It was not until the day Kui Chong’s father, Kui Mang, returned to the house that they saw a development. Unlike the previous days, Kui Chong stayed cooped up inside his house when his father was around. They didn’t find this strange. This just showed that Kui Mang was a strict parent. It was the second night after Kui Mang’s return that they saw something unusual.

A few figures in black cloaks exited Kui Chong’s house from the back door at midnight. Amon and Tuang Yin surveilled the house from different directions, so they saw these cloaked figures coming out. Amon immediately decided to follow.

Amon jumped from roof to roof while trailing them. The info Tuang Yin gathered mentioned that Kui Mang was a cultivator at the Intermediate Mystic Stage. Mystic Stage cultivators needed conscious efforts to detect their surroundings. Amon played it safe and kept a sufficient distance to avoid detection.

Amon had taught Tuang Yin the Concealed Ghost Body like his other trusted aides. He also taught her to be stealthy while moving, so she had no problem keeping up.

As they moved, they saw more and more cloaked figures joining. The small group turned into a mob. They just walked on the street without any worry of being sighted. Amon noticed some people saw the proceeding from the windows of their houses. These people closed the drapes of the window after sighting the scene. Whatever these cloaked figures were doing, it seemed not the first time. It was probably this mob that caused the rumors about the demon cult.

The cloaked mob went outside the town and into nearby woods. Amon and Tuang Yin continued to follow while remaining quiet. They moved among the trees and bushes whilst paying attention not to lose the mob’s tail.

After some time, Amon suddenly stopped. He pulled Tuang Yin’s arm and ran in the opposite direction from the mob.

"We have been found out. Run!" He exclaimed.

Tuang Yin heard them then. The sounds of leaves shuffling. Some people were coming at them at high speed.

Amon and Tuang Yin got rid of stealth and used their movement arts to move as fast as possible. Amon used his crossbow and shot at their pursuers, slowing them down.

He suddenly sensed danger ahead of them. He threw his flying knives, but those knives were repelled by an invisible force. A strong pressure bore down at them as Kui Mang revealed himself.

"Spirit Stage...?" Amon uttered in surprise.