Chapter Forty-Eight: The Hypocritical River God! May Hope Not Perish!

It was entirely composed of the waters of the river.

The old man had kindly, benevolent features, looking exactly as he did in the grayish image from the “God-Slaying Sutra.”

He was, without a doubt, the River God of the Lingtian River.

“Fellow Daoist, please wait.”

The River God spoke.

Lin Yi realized instantly why the readings from the “God-Slaying Sutra” and the energy detector didn’t match up: this was only an avatar of the Lingtian River God.

The true form of the River God was a black python, but now he was entirely made of water. This meant that the River God had manifested himself by controlling a portion of the river, which was why he could appear here.

“Fellow Daoist, I am the River God of this realm’s Lingtian River. I hold the River God’s Seal, which is why I can command the river’s waters to manifest my true form. This is my incarnation of water. I rarely show myself in the mortal world, but I see that you possess a treasure fated to be with me. Show it to me, and I will grant you one wish.”

As Lin Yi listened to the old man’s apparently kind words, he couldn’t help but sneer inwardly.

You think you can wield the River God’s Seal? You’re full of nonsense. With a demon seed inside you, you’re clearly an evil god!

And you’ll grant me a wish? What is this, the fairy tale of the golden, silver, and iron axes?

Unable to hold it in, Lin Yi burst out laughing.

The kindly old man’s face darkened at Lin Yi’s reaction, but he restrained his anger and spoke again, “I don’t have much time in this form. Hand over that item quickly.”

As he spoke, he pointed toward Lin Yi’s pocket—where the Water-Repelling Pill was hidden.

Only then did Lin Yi understand!

He realized why this so-called Lingtian River God, or rather the evil god, had appeared!

It was after his Water-Repelling Pill!

The Water-Repelling Pill was, after all, the shattered inner core of a Blue Water Dragon, and no matter how broken, it was still the inner core of a water dragon!

It was far more powerful than the Flood Dragon Core the Lingtian River God had once consumed!

So it was no wonder he was drawn here.

Still, Lin Yi was surprised—maybe the river gods and lords in those old stories truly existed!

And if that was the case, did it mean mountain gods and earth gods were real too?

This River God could even produce the River God’s Seal of the previous generation.

Did that mean that somewhere in the waters of the Lingtian River, the former River God really existed?

And did it also mean the Four Dragon Kings of the Seas might truly exist?

While Lin Yi pondered these questions, the avatar of the Lingtian River God suddenly charged at him, paying no heed to anything else.

Water vapor surged, waves towered, and surging billows crashed toward Lin Yi.

However, thanks to the Water-Repelling Pill, all the violent waves calmed instantly as they neared Lin Yi.

Lin Yi only needed to pour a little more energy into the Water-Repelling Pill.

None of the attacks could harm him, and a deep, resonant voice echoed through the water.

“Mine, mine! Such a fine treasure is mine! Damn you, just wait! I am the Lingtian River God—any treasure should be mine!”

With these words, all became calm again.

On Lin Yi’s energy detector, the readings showed the energy dissipating gradually.

He realized that, having failed, the water avatar of the Lingtian River God was out of time.

He couldn’t fully control the River God’s Seal, so his water incarnation was naturally imperfect.

But what exactly was this River God’s Seal?

Lin Yi resolved to research it further.

Unfortunately, the River God’s Seal hadn’t truly appeared, and the “God-Slaying Sutra” seemed to provide no further information.

“This world is truly bizarre—monsters and demons everywhere, even the River God has emerged! I bet it won’t be long before the Earth God and Dragon Kings show up too. What a mess—just stepping out of the Paranormal Investigation Bureau lands me in trouble. I’d better stay in as much as possible…”

“Damn, that River God’s water avatar ran off pretty quickly—I didn’t even get a chance to benefit from it before it fled!”

Once ashore, Lin Yi, a bit annoyed, put away the Water-Repelling Pill and resolved to stay away from the Lingtian River in the future.

That evil old god had his eye on him!

Such a miser, running away the moment he realized something was amiss—definitely a sly old fox!

Time to lay low!

Back at the Paranormal Investigation Bureau, Lin Yi decided to put his worries aside and get to work.

As for Zhao Kaishan, he’d left after dinner to enjoy his vacation.

Which was just as well—with no tagalong, Lin Yi could act freely.

Arriving at the World Trade Building, Lin Yi let out a breath.

Inside the lobby, An Miaoyi and Mu Yuqing had already seen Lin Yi arrive through the surveillance cameras and hurried over to wait for him.

Upon seeing Lin Yi, the two women immediately surrounded him.

“Hey, Lin Yi, I support your decision to train in the Demon Prison. I waited here just to tell you…”

Before An Miaoyi could finish, Mu Yuqing nodded enthusiastically, a smile in her eyes and at the corners of her mouth.

“Haha, Yi Yi, stop teasing. You know I understand this better! Uncle Lin Yi, the Demon Prison has three levels. The first holds monsters under A-rank martial strength; the second, mostly A-rank monsters and demons.”

“Below that, the third level houses only the true monsters—either those with special abilities or at least S-rank demons. The immortal monsters Grandpa Lin mentioned are all held there.”

“Each level of the Demon Prison is guarded by at least one Grandmaster, and the third level has even more.”

Mu Yuqing wanted to continue, but An Miaoyi, frustrated, gave her a hard shove.

With a smack, Mu Yuqing was jostled aside, and An Miaoyi quickly took over.

“The Demon Prison has been renovated and expanded several times. Over the years, not even the true wardens know exactly how many monsters are held in our Shengjing branch now… Oh, and Lin Yi, there’s a deputy director for the entire Demon Prison—Butcher Zhang. He has absolute authority there.”

Mu Yuqing squeezed An Miaoyi back aside.

“That’s right, Uncle Lin Yi… You have to be careful. In the Demon Prison, you’ll have to start from the bottom. Grandpa Lin originally arranged for you to start at a high level as a leader, but I heard Butcher Zhang insists everyone starts at the bottom. If you can’t handle it, just come out quickly—we can transfer you to fieldwork, or you could just hold a nominal position in the Demon Prison. The hierarchy there goes from level one to ten, and it used to be that only upon reaching level ten could you leave.”

An Miaoyi leaned in close to Mu Yuqing, the two of them squeezing together, drawing envious glances from passersby toward Lin Yi.

Damn it, how come I didn’t have goddesses like these to guide me when I was an intern?

Resentful stares from all around!

“That’s why people die often in the Demon Prison, and why it’s so hard to recruit—it’s a vicious cycle, and Director Zhang rarely lets anyone leave.”

“But don’t worry, Grandpa Lin is probably negotiating with Director Zhang, so you likely won’t have to climb from level one to ten, and you probably won’t be stuck until you reach level ten to be released…”

Obviously, the Demon Prison was immensely important—even Lin Tianming’s influence only went so far. At most, Lin Yi’s special status allowed him to freely transfer in and out this time.

This was because they valued Lin Yi’s potential and didn’t want him dying in the Demon Prison.

The more Lin Yi listened, the more excited he became. Even if that Butcher Zhang wanted him gone, he wasn’t leaving—he had come specifically for the Demon Prison!

But on the surface, Lin Yi remained modest, assuring the two women he would be careful, study hard, raise his cultivation, and switch to fieldwork if things became unbearable.

After a lengthy exchange, An Miaoyi eventually dragged a reluctant Mu Yuqing away at the lobby entrance.

But before leaving, Mu Yuqing’s actions stunned Lin Yi.

Truly thick-skinned, Mu Yuqing acted as though parting with Lin Yi was a matter of life and death, even hugging him before reluctantly turning away.

Her eyes lingered on him, full of longing and unspoken emotion.

At the entrance, six old men stood silent. Even after hearing the conversation between Lin Yi and An Miaoyi, they knew of Lin Yi’s unique status and his ability to move freely between the Demon Prison and fieldwork, but still checked his credentials with stern faces before finally letting him descend.

“Heh… This kid’s enmity with monsters runs deep—I like him, but I wonder how long he’ll last in the Demon Prison.”

“No one’s ever made it to level ten and left. It depends what kind of work he’s assigned. Patrol duty is one thing, but if he has to personally execute monsters and demons as a warden, in constant contact with them, surviving to level ten will be tough.”

“Let’s hope he doesn’t meet an early end—too many wardens have died…”

“Director Lin Tianming should have spoken to Director Zhang. Lin Yi’s a genius—no way he’ll be assigned the worst jobs. It’s unlikely he’ll die.”

“Exactly. Let’s see how long he lasts in the Demon Prison before switching to fieldwork.”

Lin Yi overheard every word of the old men’s conversation.

Was Director Zhang really all-powerful in the Demon Prison?

Is it true that you can’t leave unless you rise from level one to ten?

Well… he hoped so!

That way, even if he made mistakes, he wouldn’t be kicked out of the Demon Prison!

In fact, as Lin Yi listened to the old men, a fierce argument was erupting in Director Lin Tianming’s office.

Lin Tianming, holding his smartphone, glared at the red-nosed face on the screen, itching to punch it.

“Butcher Zhang, you’re really being difficult. Lin Yi is a genius of the Paranormal Investigation Bureau. Why can’t I arrange for him to transfer to fieldwork at will? Are we just selling him to your Demon Prison?”

On the video call, Butcher Zhang—the Director of the Demon Prison—looked at the furious Lin Tianming with a calm, expressionless face.