Turns Out I'm the Real Monster?!

Hearing the man’s mockery, Zhang Xiaokui drew his saber in a rage:

"How dare you insult Master Du?!"

"Insult?"

The short, stout man sneered, his eyes brimming with mockery and contempt.

"He’s fooled all of you!

Others might not know his true story, but how could I not? That Du Yuanfei is nothing but a running dog for the demons!

He was scared out of his mind by the demons long ago!

To save his own skin, he knelt at the feet of demon fiends and groveled.

How many of the Yan City Demon-slaying Bureau’s operations have failed? How many brothers have inexplicably walked into ambushes? It was all him, secretly leaking intelligence!"

At this, he recalled what Zhang Xiaokui had just said, and a strange smile spread across his face:

"Right, you just said... he took his subordinates to White Deer Peak to hunt a demon, and a lot of people ended up dead?"

Zhang Xiaokui’s heart sank.

The short, stout man grinned, his voice turning sinister:

"I never would’ve thought... he finally turned on his own men.

If I’m not mistaken, this so-called ’demon hunt’ was just him personally luring his men into a demon’s den, selling them out to the demon fiends as snacks.

All in exchange for his own wealth and glory, for a chance to keep living his wretched life!"

Jiang Mu and the two brothers exchanged a look as a terrible premonition crept into their hearts.

"Are you telling the truth?"

Jiang Mu asked coldly.

In his heart, he knew the man had no reason to lie at a time like this.

The short, stout man laughed bitterly:

"When Yan City fell, I saw him with my own eyes, kneeling before the demon fiends like a dog. I didn’t dare say anything afterward because I sold out a friend, too. I had no right to expose him.

That’s why I came to this small town. I was hiding from him, terrified he’d find me and silence me for good..."

Jiang Mu closed his eyes, thinking back carefully.

’It hadn’t seemed strange at the time, but in hindsight, some things were definitely off. Especially the timing of the Horse Demon’s attack...’

’But no matter what, I have to go confirm this for myself.’

SLICE—

Jiang Mu swung his saber, lopping off the short, stout man’s head, and said to the Zhang Daxie brothers, "You two find a carriage. I’m going on ahead!"

’If Du Yuanfei really is a traitor, then Xu Fu, Aunt Tang, and the others are in grave danger right now.’

...

...

However, his worst fears came true.

When Jiang Mu rushed to Li family Village, he could hear the sounds of battle mixed with bloodcurdling screams from a great distance.

He sped up, leaping onto a high slope in a few bounds to look down on the village below.

He saw that the once-peaceful village had been turned into a living hell.

A dense tide of demons swarmed below, besieging Xu Fu and the others, who were holed up in a few dilapidated farmhouses.

A quick scan revealed there were two to three hundred of them!

Amidst this army reeking of Demonic Qi, Jiang Mu’s keen senses detected at least four Tier Five auras.

Strangely, these demons didn’t seem to be killing indiscriminately.

They herded the panicked villagers into an open area in the center of the village and erected a crude barrier with Demonic Power, penning them in like livestock, but they hadn’t started the slaughter yet.

A few massive Wolf Demons stood guard.

Jiang Mu’s heart sank as he recalled something Tang Guixin had once said.

This faction of demon fiends from Yan City had grand ambitions; they weren’t just killing machines but sought to establish a new order and replace the old one.

To build a new nation of demon fiends.

If all the common people were dead, who would grow food for them?

Who would be their slaves?

Besides, living people were also the best strategic reserve.

If they were ever cornered by the Demon-slaying Bureau, these commoners could be corrupted by Demonic Qi and turned into painless Corpse Puppet cannon fodder, or they could serve as "two-legged sheep" to be devoured at any time to replenish Demonic Power.

Jiang Mu’s gaze passed over the horde of demons, finally settling on the very center of the swarm.

There, a "mountain of flesh" sat imposingly.

It was a wild Pig Demon of astonishing size, nearly thirty feet tall. Its body was covered in black bristles as stiff as steel needles, and its tusks jutted out like a pair of curved greatswords.

It wasn’t completely bestial but had a half-human, half-demon form. Its corpulent body was clad in crude leather armor.

The fluctuations of Demonic Power radiating from it were as heavy as a mountain.

It clearly had a Cultivation Level at the Great Perfection of Tier Five!

At this moment, it sat like a king on a makeshift throne of massive stones, watching the battlefield with cold indifference.

As if sensing the prying eyes, the Pig Demon Leader narrowed its small eyes, which were squeezed into slits by fat, and abruptly looked toward Jiang Mu.

Then, its mouth split into a grin, and it raised a fat finger, as thick as a carrot and adorned with a bone ring, pointing it from afar at Jiang Mu on the high slope.

"ROAR!"

In an instant, dozens of demons received the command, roaring as they changed direction and charged madly toward Jiang Mu.

These demons were of all shapes and sizes—jackals, wolves, tigers, and leopards among them.

"Shit!"

Jiang Mu cursed under his breath, his figure blurring as he shot toward the demon pack.

A snowy light flared from his saber, splashing outwards.

The ones at the front were mostly Tier One and Tier Two cannon fodder, as fragile as paper before Jiang Mu’s Saber Skill.

With each swing of his saber, he cut down a wide swath of them, sending severed limbs flying.

Seeing this, a flash of surprise crossed the Pig Demon Leader’s eyes. It then whispered something to a pitch-black dog demon at its feet.

"WOOF!"

The dog demon kicked off with its hind legs, shooting toward Jiang Mu like a lightning bolt.

In mid-air, its body suddenly doubled in size, transforming into a giant hound as large as a calf. Its muscles bulged, its fangs were terrifyingly sharp, and its speed was astonishing.

Early-stage Tier Five!

Jiang Mu thrust his left hand downward.

"Suppress!"

A massive, golden seal, an illusion formed from Star Power, materialized out of thin air and crashed down with the force of a collapsing mountain.

"AWOOO—!"

The dog demon, still in mid-air, froze for a moment before letting out a wretched howl as it was viciously slapped to the ground.

It was slammed directly into a deep crater, the sound of its bones shattering clearly audible.