Chapter 223: The Hero of the World
Zhuzhou now looked slightly different from the one he remembered, but Mu Yi’s mind was burdened with far more pressing matters to care about such differences.
He had been reborn only ten days ago, and his memories were dominated by the deaths of his loved ones. He couldn’t afford to wait. Gathering his belongings, he had traveled to Zhuzhou almost without rest.
He was desperate to see his still-living loved ones: his partner, his friends, and his mentors.
Although Mu Yi was born in Chazhou, nearly everyone he cared about was in Zhuzhou.
So was the enemy he hated most.
With his worn bundle slung over his back, Mu Yi slipped quietly into the southern part of Zhuzhou, arriving at Honglou Street. He hid in the shadows at a street corner, staring toward the brightly lit Qiyun Tower in the distance. His eyes gleamed with hatred.
At this point in time, the demon Silk Nest should already have seized control of Qiyun Tower and the entirety of Honglou Street, secretly transforming it into his lair.
By now, he should have been gradually preparing to seize control over the largest families in Zhuzhou.
It didn’t matter—there was still time to stop him.
In his previous life, Mu Yi had arrived in Zhuzhou at the age of thirteen to join the Divine Academy and entered the Exorcism Bureau at sixteen. There, he accidentally discovered that the bureau was secretly controlled by a sinister force. This marked the beginning of his years-long battle with the demon Silk Nest.
The demon Silk Nest was cunning and deeply hidden. It was only several years after joining the Exorcism Bureau that Mu Yi and his companions finally uncovered its true identity and the location of its lair.
By then, one member of their four-person team had already died, leaving only him, Ban Xi, and Chu Shi.
They were besieged on all sides—not only did they have to fight the terrifying demon Silk Nest, but they also faced oppression from the powerful families and betrayal from within the bureau itself.
Only a few teachers and classmates from the Divine Academy stood by their side. In the end, they too were drawn into the whirlpool of conflict, suffering devastating losses—some dead, others gravely injured.
Even Mu Yi himself ultimately met his end at the hands of the Silk Nest.
In the final battle against the demon Silk Nest, he was the only one left standing. Bloodied from head to toe, he dragged himself to confront that accursed demon face-to-face.
The demon, draped in human skin, had spindly limbs like those of a spider. It sat pale and sickly in the dimly lit room on the top floor of Qiyun Tower, flashing him a sinister and mocking grin.
Beside it hung dozens of puppets suspended by silk threads, each frozen in lifelike poses, their faces painted beautifully but devoid of life—like dolls from a theatrical stage.
The demon Silk Nest’s hands dangled with the threads, its dazzling exterior exuding a rotting stench that no amount of overpowering incense in the room could mask.
Mu Yi would never forget that moment. When he stormed into the tightly sealed room, drenched in his companions’ blood, all the puppets simultaneously turned to look at him.
And through the mouths of those puppets, his greatest enemy spoke his first words to him:
“You’re so filthy. You’ve dirtied my lair as well.”
Such casual, dismissive words, mocking and belittling all the life-and-death struggles and unwavering resolve he and his friends had endured.
Mu Yi’s eyes burned with rage as he vowed to himself: I must kill him! Even if it means dying with him!
But he failed.
It must have been because of his intense unwillingness to accept defeat that he was granted the chance to start over.
This time, he had the advantage. He would unite every possible force to prevent the tragedies of his past life.
From now on, he would dismantle the claws and puppets of the demon Silk Nest, piece by piece, refusing to give it any opportunity to control the families or infiltrate the Exorcism Bureau.
He would never again allow Zhuzhou to become the demon Silk Nest’s hunting web, nor let its people become helpless prey caught in its strands.
Taking one last look at the Qiyun Tower, now turned into the demon’s lair, Mu Yi turned to step into the darkness.
“Hey, kid! You don’t look old enough to be here. You shouldn’t be hanging around Honglou Street.”
Two boys carrying lanterns, red armbands pinned to their sleeves, passed by and called out to him.
Mu Yi: “…”
“I’m just passing through,” Mu Yi replied.
Before he could finish, a loud growl came from his stomach, far louder than his words.
The two boys froze, then burst out laughing.
They glanced at the boy before them, who looked no older than eleven or twelve. He carried a shabby gray bundle in one hand, his patched-up clothes worn thin with age.
His shoes had two large holes, with deformed toes poking out, and his hair was a tangled mess like a nest of straw. His face was pale and gaunt.
Ever since the big brother cleaned up Zhuzhou City and established orphanages two years ago, children in such dire conditions had rarely been seen on the streets.
“Kid, you’re not from around here, are you?” one of the boys asked, waving Mu Yi over. “Hungry? Come with us and grab a bite to eat.”
Mu Yi noticed the clarity in the two boys’ eyes, which didn’t seem malicious. After a moment’s hesitation, he decided to follow them.
Though his current appearance was shabby, anyone who thought he was weak and easy to bully would be sorely mistaken.
With a decade of experience from his past life, he wouldn’t fear these two boys—or even a few more, if they showed hostility.
The two boys, naturally warm and friendly, tugged at the red cloth tied around their arms and said, “Don’t worry, we’re not bad people—we’re from the Exorcism Bureau.”
They explained that they were assigned shifts to patrol the city daily, dealing with evil spirits and handling mundane crimes like burglary, robbery, and street fights.
Mu Yi hadn’t expected them to be cultivators from the Exorcism Bureau, especially since they weren’t wearing the signature gray robes of the bureau.
His feelings about the Exorcism Bureau were complicated.
He and his companions had once joined the bureau. There, he had made friends he could fight alongside, but he had also experienced betrayal and a bitter falling out with the organization.
“We’re here. This place has tons of small eateries, and the food’s amazing,” one of the boys said cheerfully.
Mu Yi, lost in his thoughts, looked up and stopped in his tracks, stunned.
This… wasn’t this the Exorcism Bureau on Lower Dongyu Street?
What a coincidence—his team in his past life had been assigned to this very branch of the Exorcism Bureau. He still remembered the overseer telling them that this branch had been established decades ago and was one of the oldest and most experienced.
But now, how had it turned into a row of food stalls?!
Mu Yi looked carefully and noticed faint remnants of the carved decorations where the bureau’s signboard had once hung. The sign itself was gone, and the grand entrance had been replaced by a widened archway.
The spacious, brightly lit hall he remembered was now converted into something resembling a massive food court.
Dozens of small partitions were scattered along three sides, while the central hall was filled with tables for customers who bought food from the stalls in the partitions.
In the past, only cultivators had come and gone, and the grand hall, which was always cold and imposing, now reeked of the chaotic scents of food, the smoke of cooking oil, and the sounds of bustling voices shouting orders.
Even so late at night, there were still so many people here.
Mu Yi stood there in a daze, following the two boys to a stall to order some noodles. Afterward, they sat at an empty table nearby.
It took a long time before Mu Yi finally asked, “This… this isn’t the Exorcism Bureau, is it?”
“You mean the old Exorcism Bureau? That’s from a few years ago. It was torn down by our big brother and the elders!”
“Torn down?!” Mu Yi was stunned. How did he not know about this?
“Yeah. Later, our big brother thought the old building of the Bureau was just sitting there empty, and he saw the street vendors pushing their carts in the wind and rain every day, working so hard. So he decided to bring them all here.”
“It’s spacious here, with spots marked for the stalls, and plenty of space in the middle for people to sit and eat. It’s also a good place for people to rest and shelter from the rain. Everyone in the Bureau loves to come here and eat.”
“Big Brother is really smart. The Bureau on Upper Dongyu Street has even more space, so he had it turned into a small marketplace. Now it’s really lively.”
…
Mu Yi was utterly confused, and it took a long while for him to process the information. His eyes widened in shock.
“So you’re saying… the old Exorcism Bureau is gone! Now there’s only one new Exorcism Bureau in Zhuzhou?!”
The two boys didn’t understand why he was so agitated. They scratched the back of their heads.
“Yeah, our big brother thought the old Bureau wasn’t doing any good. He defeated everyone there, then brought the elders and built a new Bureau.”
“You didn’t see it when you came through the city gate? Right outside the gate, on a big stone, there are two words—‘Exorcism Bureau’—as big as that!”
Mu Yi was stunned, murmuring, “I didn’t see…”
He had been so preoccupied with his thoughts that he probably hadn’t noticed.
But how could that be? How could things have changed so drastically?
Lost in thought, he absentmindedly finished a bowl of noodles. Seeing that he still seemed dazed, the two boys decided he might still be hungry and ordered another bowl for him.
Mu Yi, still in a trance, finished eating. The boys laughed, saying, “You look skinny, but you can eat just like our big brother.”
“No, wait, compared to our big brother, your appetite is still a little smaller.”
Finally, Mu Yi snapped back to reality. Wiping his mouth, he said firmly, “Please take me to your Exorcism Bureau. I want to meet the big brother you mentioned!”
He then pulled out a few coins from his torn bundle, adding, “Also, here’s the payment for the noodles. Thank you.”
Mu Yi wanted to see for himself who this ‘big brother’ was, the one who had changed everything.
Carrying an even heavier heart than when he arrived, Mu Yi followed the two boys back to the city gate.
This time, he looked more carefully. There were indeed many tea stalls near the entrance, and there was a large, unusual black-tiled building.
When he passed by earlier, he had thought it was just an inn.
Now, he saw a slightly plump young man standing at the entrance, hands on his hips, angrily shouting, “Who put their blankets up here to dry again? How many times have I told you, no drying blankets here! And it’s already dark—why haven’t you taken them down?!”
He yanked a blanket off a large stone nearby and stormed into the building, revealing the words “Exorcism Bureau” carved into the stone.
It was indeed very conspicuous.
Mu Yi: “…” No wonder he hadn’t noticed it when he arrived.
The two boys, familiar with the place, followed the slightly plump young man inside.
Mu Yi hurried to catch up, hearing the two boys cheerfully ask, “Senior Wu, has big brother come back from the wedding yet?”
“He’s back. It’s rare that everyone’s gathered today.” Wu Shan noticed Mu Yi following the two boys. “What’s this? You picked up someone on the street?”
“Oh! We found him on the street. The kid said he admired big brother and insisted on coming to see him, so we brought him along.”
Wu Shan chuckled, puffing out his chest proudly. “There are so many people who admire big brother!”
Inside the spacious yet simple hall, over twenty people were sprawled about in disarray, the air thick with the smell of alcohol.
As Mu Yi entered, he heard someone shout, “Who’s gonna get me a spittoon? Shi Bai, little brother, good brother, I’m gonna puke—ugh!”
“Ah! Get away, don’t puke on me!”
“Hang in there, big brother said he’d make you some hangover soup.” Shi Bai, holding the spittoon, responded.
The room fell silent for a moment, even the drunken ones starting to sober up a bit.
“No, no, no, someone stop big brother!”
“I don’t want the hangover soup! I don’t want it!”
A group of drunkards started howling, and amid the noise, Mu Yi stood at the door, his gaze fixed intently on Shi Bai.
The familiar face of his old comrade made Mu Yi’s eyes redden.
It was Chu Shi! The thought of Chu Shi being killed and then turned into a puppet made Mu Yi’s heart ache with an overwhelming pain. A scream nearly escaped his lips.
At that moment, the curtain to the back room shifted, and Yu Yin appeared, his face dark with anger.
He collided with a drunk young man shouting, “I’m going to tell Big Brother to stop making hangover soup!”
The mask on Yu Yin’s face fell to the ground with a sharp ‘clink’.
As Yu Yin bent down to pick it up, he suddenly heard an angry, shocked voice from the door: “What are you doing here?!”
