Great Demon 03

The entire team went together to apologize and compensate the woman—out of their own pockets, of course—before she finally left satisfied.

"You lot should stop acting so high and mighty! Using official authority to intimidate me, huh?" The woman shot them a disdainful glare. "Luckily, someone told me the truth—you’re just a bunch of trespassing scum!"

One of the teammates bristled with anger, but Mo Ran caught onto something. "Who told you that?"

The woman snorted, ready to leave—she was tired of arguing.

But Mo Ran grabbed her arm. "Who told you?!" His grip was tight.

The woman shrieked, "What are you doing? Help! Murder! Robbery!"

Her cries drew the attention of onlookers, and soon a crowd gathered. "Hey, you! That’s going too far!"

"Captain, let go, let go," someone whispered urgently.

Mo Ran stared at the woman, then slowly released her. A terrible suspicion had taken root in his mind. Without another word, he shoved through the crowd and ran. His teammates were stunned, left to apologize profusely to the bystanders.

Mo Ran rushed back to the residential building, took the elevator to Fang Zhiyi’s apartment, and fumbled for the light switch in the darkness.

Soon, his teammates caught up.

"Captain..." They had no idea why their usually composed leader was acting so erratically today. Their superiors had already chewed them out once for the earlier incident.

"He never left!" Mo Ran realized. The snake demon had watched them leave from the balcony, then calmly packed his belongings. Now, as Mo Ran searched the rooms, his suspicions were confirmed—the clothes and other items were gone.

Entering the bathroom, he found the floor still damp. On the wall was a message:

By the time you read this, I’ll be long gone. Don’t miss me.

Next to it was a drawn handprint—like a farewell.

He’d even had the audacity to take a leisurely shower!

The side of Mo Ran’s face where he’d been slapped earlier throbbed faintly. Now, the snake demon had humiliated him again. Staring at the message, he could almost see Fang Zhiyi’s mocking grin. That handprint wasn’t a goodbye—it was a reminder of the slap.

Rage surged through him. Mo Ran slammed his fist into the wall.

"Captain!" his teammates cried out.

The tiles cracked, several pieces clattering to the floor. On the other side, a female tenant—mid-shower—locked eyes with Mo Ran for a few awkward seconds.

"Ah! Pervert! Someone help!"

They fled, but not fast enough. The commotion drew curious residents into the hallway, and some recognized them immediately.

"These guys again?"

Mo Ran’s team faced another round of complaints. Their superiors managed to hush it up, but reprimands, suspension, and salary deductions to repair the wall were unavoidable.

Outside the office, the team stood uneasily as their leader was berated inside.

"That wall shouldn’t have been that flimsy," one teammate grumbled.

"The snake demon played us again," the only calm member, a girl, said. "He bet on the captain punching that wall."

"Captain’s face has been thoroughly slapped today," someone muttered. The girl shot him a glare.

Xiao Wu shrugged. "I’m just saying he shouldn’t have lost his temper."

The burly teammate shoved him. "Keep running your mouth, Xiao Wu, and I’ll shut it for you."

Xiao Wu fell silent, though resentment simmered inside. They’d been scolded repeatedly, and now their pay was cut. The others might not care, but he needed the money.

Still, he kept his complaints to himself.

---

Fang Zhiyi hopped off the bus and took a deep breath—then nearly choked.

He’d forgotten he was now a demon. Though in human form, his serpentine senses were sharp, and the station’s mix of odors overwhelmed him.

But soon, a sweet fragrance cut through the stench.

Following the scent, he spotted a boy selling flowers from a bucket, the blooms so fresh they might’ve been picked moments ago.

The boy was cheerfully pitching his wares when Fang Zhiyi slung an arm around his shoulders.

The boy’s smile vanished.

"Y-you want to buy flowers?"

Fang Zhiyi shook his head. "No. I need a favor."

The boy trembled. "I-I’m just a nobody, trying to scrape by..."

"Relax, I’m a snake, not a rabbit. I don’t eat plants." Fang Zhiyi knew how to comfort someone.

The boy looked ready to cry. "You’re going to eat me?"

After some explaining, Fang Zhiyi learned the flower-selling demon was named Hua Feifei, a flower spirit who’d lived here for a decade, making a humble living selling blooms in crowded areas.

"The big demon you mentioned—I haven’t heard of him. But the most powerful demon in this city is called Tiger Lord. No idea where he is, though. Word is, he’s elusive."

Fang Zhiyi nodded, then shoved a wad of cash into Hua Feifei’s hands. "Open a proper flower shop."

Hua Feifei gaped as Fang Zhiyi walked away. Demons of his stature really throw money around...

---

Fang Zhiyi wandered the streets, fascinated by the novelty of it all.

A deer demon, fleeing city inspectors, pulled his cart at breakneck speed. A spider demon deftly installed an AC unit outside a mall. Two ox demons unloaded furniture from a moving truck.

Observing them, Fang Zhiyi noticed a pattern: most demons here lived quietly, working human jobs, docile to a fault.

"To push these demons into war with humans… Mo Ran really is something else," Fang Zhiyi mused aloud.

He stopped to eat at a restaurant run by a dog demon. Worried about drool in his food, Fang Zhiyi kept glancing at the owner—who shrank under his gaze.

By the time Fang Zhiyi went to pay, the dog demon stammered, "It’s on the house."

"Do I look like someone who skips on bills?" Fang Zhiyi slapped the money onto the table.

The dog demon shook his head, but his eyes screamed Yes.

Fang Zhiyi left the cash and walked out, this time consciously suppressing his demonic aura to near-undetectable levels.

After exploring the city, he settled on a curb to wait for nightfall.

As the streets emptied, Fang Zhiyi’s sensitive nose struggled with the urban stench. One deep breath, and he’d ascend to the heavens—literally.

Just as he pondered this, a voice called from behind.

"Hey, handsome. Fancy a drink?"