Chapter 1: The Haunted Yōlin (Part 1)

  "They didn't even come after us?" Xia Xianyao was extremely puzzled.

  "This is natural, they originally saw the raging flames and their first thought was to put out the fire. If we don't go to rescue, now it's a dry season, there are many withered branches in the mountain forest, it's very likely to cause a bigger fire." Ding Lingshu said slowly while biting on a chicken leg.

  "What shall we do now? Just stand by and watch?" Xia Xianyao asked.

  "My original idea was the same as yours, to lure them out and catch another one to ask about their whereabouts. But now it seems that's not necessary. This fire is burning more fiercely than I imagined, and the human-faced tree must have seen it already. With just these dozen or so injured tree spirits, they can't put out a fire of this size, the human-faced tree will definitely come."

  "How can you be sure they won't put it out."

  "See?"

  Following the direction of Ding Lingxiu's finger, Xia Xianyao looked towards the raging flames and saw that these tree spirits were trying to use their huge claws to extinguish the fire, but their strength was like a drop in the ocean compared to the already unstoppable inferno. The flames that had been temporarily suppressed by the wind suddenly flared up even more fiercely after the gust passed. In less than ten minutes, the tree spirits who tried to put out the fire were covered in smoke, with red lights flickering on their bark, and five or six more large trees were ignited, instantly illuminating the sky with flames.

  "If this goes on, we won't become arsonists, will we? Looking at it like this, the big fire will swallow up the entire mountain forest!" Xia Xianyao said anxiously.

  "Don't worry, once the Human-Faced Tree has chosen a place to give birth, it won't easily change its mind. It will definitely appear to put out the fire. And even if it doesn't come, I have a way to put out the fire." Ding Lingyu had already gnawed the chicken leg down to the bone and was leisurely sucking the meat threads off the bone, savoring the flavor.

  "Alright, so we just wait like this?"

  "That's right."

  Ding Lingxiu finished speaking and sat down on a rock.

  Xia Xianyao suddenly thought of something and slapped her forehead.

  "No way, Ling Xiu, just now I used my Phoenix Sword, those tree spirits already know we're here to subdue the demon."

  "Do you know? This is the reason I changed my strategy and decided to lure him out myself." Ding Ling's long eyelashes trembled slightly, bringing out a warm smile in his icy blue eyes, which sparkled with bright light.

  "Huh? I didn't quite catch that. Earlier you told me to hide my spiritual power so that the Human-Faced Tree wouldn't discover our abilities, but now we've directly exposed our identities. How can you still say that we can lure out the Human-Faced Tree?" Xia Xianyao was somewhat perplexed.

  "Heh heh, the Man-faced Tree is extremely cunning. If it were to see us face-to-face without hiding our spiritual power, it would definitely run away. But when the tree spirit who went to report the situation told it about our identities, it wouldn't be afraid at all. Instead, it would swagger over to put out the fire."

  "Why is that?"

  "Because it knows we're using fire to capture the monsters, which is obviously a method of using the five elements to restrain each other, with fire restraining wood. Generally, only those with limited spiritual power would use such a method. If they have to rely on the five elements to deal with just a few small tree spirits, will it still be afraid of us?" Ding Ling sneered, watching the group of tree spirits who were at a loss in the firelight.

  "Heh heh, so that's how it is. It seems you've been saying that the human-faced tree is cunning and unparalleled, but in reality, it's actually you who's the most cunning." Xia Xianyao slightly tilted her head to look at Ding Lingxiu, and amidst the flames, her pale and delicate face had a pair of black pearl-like eyes that seemed to be sparkling with amusement.

  "Oh no... Don't say that, this is called wisdom, it's the monsters who are cunning."

  Ding Lingxiu threw away the chicken bones and wiped his hands.

  Xia Xianyao also sat down, looked at the chicken leg in her hand, and was attracted by the pungent aroma, and couldn't help but take a bite.

  The crispy chicken meat was just one bite, and the smooth and mellow flavor filled Xia Xianyao's mouth. Swallowing it down, not only did it not have a greasy taste of meat, but also had a faint fragrance, leaving a refreshing aftertaste.

  "Is it that delicious?" Xia Xianyao was shocked, this might be the most delicious chicken leg she had ever eaten so far.

  "Of course, I've told you the standards of a star-rated chef, do you think I'm joking?" Ding Lingxiu looked at Xia Xianyao's surprised expression and felt very happy in his heart. He liked it the most when others praised his craftsmanship.

  Ding Lingxiu continued to gaze through the dense branches at the burning flames, those tree spirits knew they couldn't extinguish the fire but still acted with great effort. They did this apparently out of fear for the human-faced tree, which made Ding Lingxiu even more certain that it would come over.

  They continued to wait for about twenty minutes, and the tree spirits' bodies were almost charred black, still desperately clinging to the fire source or weakly fanning the scorching air. But unfortunately, the wind was strong and the fire was fierce, with water splashing everywhere, and the raging flames cast a reddish glow across the sky. The flames danced like a long dragon, and the sound of crashing trees was incessant.

  Xia Xianyao anxiously watched the flames, occasionally licking her dry lips with her tongue.

  "Heh heh, don't worry, it will definitely come." Ding Lingxiu looked at Xia Xianyao and said with a smile.

  "Can't you hurry up? Look at how big the fire has gotten, all the tree spirits have retreated from the center of the flames. If this continues, it will be a disaster that can't be contained."

  Xia Xianyao pouted, looking very worried.

  "What's the hurry? Panic is what we demon hunters must avoid. There's no calamity that can't be overcome with one death, just wait patiently."

  Xia Xianyao didn't say a word, but her heart was still uneasy.

  Just as the fire was about to spread to their location, Ding Lingxu's demon-seeking compass reacted, and a "ding-dong" sound came from the stone mechanism on top of the compass. Ding Lingxu focused his attention and saw that the compass needle had locked onto a precise direction and was no longer spinning wildly.

  The square stone plate below the Luopan slowly opened, and inside was full of red **, and gradually black characters actually floated on top of the red **.

  Demon Name: Human-Faced Tree, Rank: Demoniac, Weakness: Flame.

  "It's appeared." Ding Lingyu pointed at the Xun Yao Luopan and looked at Xia Xianyao.

  "Really!" Xia Xianyao discovered that her own Demon-Seeking Bead had also reacted, and she was overjoyed.

  "What? It's said that its weakness is fire, but can it withstand such a huge flame?" Xia Xianyao gazed at the wildly dancing flames, still filled with worry.

  "You underestimate the power of the demon."

  Ding Lingxiu corrected his color and said, approaching the depths of the flames, but because the fire was too big, a piece of fiery light came out with dazzling sparks, and after walking a few steps, he still couldn't see the situation in front of him. Because of the rain girl's water attribute demon energy protecting her body, this degree of fire can't hurt Ding Lingxiu.

  "Hey, wait for me!" Xia Xianyao whirled her long sleeves, and the flames beside her scattered with a flick of her wrist.

  "Huh? This clothing of yours is really amazing! It's even fireproof?"

  Ding Lingxiu originally wanted to get closer and take a look at the situation, but he didn't expect Xia Xianyao to be able to move freely in the fire as well. Ding Lingxiu couldn't help but take another close look at her clothes.

  "That's for sure, this garment isn't an ordinary one, it's said that it can freely hide and release spiritual power." Xia Xianyao said.

  Ding Lingxiu looked at the faint blue color on her clothes and suddenly realized that she had released the water attribute spiritual power stored in her clothes, so the flames were repelled.

  In the fiery light, the red dress seemed even more stunning. Ding Lingxu looked at it carefully and felt that he had seen it somewhere before.

  "Don't stare, hurry up and prepare to catch the monster."

  "Your clothes seem familiar to me."

  "Hehe, I was wondering why you couldn't figure out what it was, turns out you just forgot."

  "Really?"

  Ding Lingxiu's blue eyes sparkled with a look of surprise, as if she had thought of something, but wasn't quite sure yet.

  "It's Jinlv Yī."

  Xia Xianyao smiled and said.

  "Golden Thread Clothes? Heaven, you...you're also a demon?"

  Ding Lingxiu's face turned pale with shock.