Wow! The item-dropping rate is really high!

"They might really not be lying," the psychic now harbored a shred of belief in the face of the soldiers' resolve.

"Should we really notify the people from the Arbitration Place?" hesitation still lingered in the heart of the officer who had left the room.

The individuals there were paranoid lunatics, among whom the "Purist Faction" proclaimed that any human who knew even the slightest bit about demon knowledge should be completely eradicated.

And now, the soldiers who had faced the demon…

"Armored battalion." The psychic pointed in a particular direction.

Ever since the last combat with the Bug Race, the city had arranged for the enforcers from the Arbitration Place to come and help train the Mecha pilots of the armored battalion to withstand spiritual energy blasts.

This plan had been underway for some time now, and the enforcers selected as training instructors might not be so fanatical in temperament; privately inviting them for an appraisal shouldn't be an issue.

"That could work!" The officer nodded in agreement.

Such an approach would at least keep the matter quiet, as initiating cross-departmental applications was a complicated affair.

It was now evening, and there were no training tasks.

The enforcer who had been invited, upon hearing it might be related to demons, allowed professional ethics to immediately take control of their body.

"Let's go!"

No matter where they were, eradicating anything related to demons was a duty they had to fulfill as enforcers.

"We invited you here today to examine if there is any demonic residue posing a threat on them," said the officer and psychic, both avoiding too much detail due to their stereotype of the enforcers from the Arbitration Place, not wanting these enforcers to get too involved in this matter.

Internal matters of the military camp were not for the enforcers to decide.

"Hmm," the stout and imposing enforcer responded briefly, "Where are the people?"

"Inside."

They lifted the tent flap and entered the room.

The soldiers from the joint squad were still waiting quietly.

The enforcer reached out to grab an orb-like object from thin air and, after injecting spiritual energy into it for a moment, he firmly declared.

"No."

Each enforcer had their unique ways of discerning the scent of demons, a fundamental skill for battling demons.

Yet, there was nothing.

"Nothing?" The psychic was a bit taken aback, finding it hard to believe that, after an encounter with a demon, there was not a trace of demonic threat lingering on them.

A perfect battle against a demon?

"Really nothing?" The officer was also somewhat stupefied, incredulously repeating the question.

Now that he had somewhat accepted the fact that these soldiers had truly encountered a demon, he was already thinking about how to arrange follow-up actions.

Having encountered a demon, maybe not everyone was problematic, but surely one or two couldn't escape suspicion, right?

Such people definitely couldn't just be handed over to the enforcers for an on-the-spot resolution; the fate of those under the military's jurisdiction had to be decided by high-ranking officers.

But now… nothing?

The plans that had been swirling in his head came to nothing, and the absurd supposition that had temporarily subsided now surged back—

The joint squad repelled a higher-dimensional demon, leaving no evidence behind—is this military achievement acknowledged or not? How should it be recorded?

"Sir… are you certain?" the officer murmured in disbelief, almost without thinking.

"It is our duty; they are merely perfectly normal people, untainted by demons," the enforcer glanced at him, his boiling blood now cooling down gradually.

It turned out to be a false alarm that caused unnecessary excitement.

Chasing after anything related to demons was his duty, as well as his lifelong pursuit.

Having his expectations dashed, he was the one who felt the most distressed.

"All right then… thank you for your trouble, sir," the officer sighed.

"What exactly happened?" Yet the enforcer was in no rush to leave.

Not a single clue related to demons could be overlooked; even if these soldiers themselves were not problematic, they might lead to something truly related to demons.

"It's like this, sir…" Since their own people were clean, the officer didn't hesitate to relay the information they had, "They were dispatched for a mission to meet some refugees, but in the area where the refugees had settled, they encountered a real demon… and then…"

"So…" The enforcer's mood darkened with each word he heard, and his emotional state grew noticeably agitated. He looked at the officer like one would look at an idiot and then turned his gaze towards the psychic, "You believe what they said?"

"…" Feeling pierced by his gaze, the psychic softly retorted, "At first, we didn't believe either..."

"Do you know what level a demon that is only repelled but not killed falls into?" The enforcer eyed the psychic with scorn.

"I know… A Source Demon, right?"

"A Source Demon!" The enforcer laughed bitterly. "A Source Demon, you say... If you know about Source Demons, then you should understand how troublesome such creatures are. Do you think they could defeat a Source Demon with just their power?"n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Those were beings even a group of enforcers had to carefully handle together. Was it possible that a single one—no, just a simple soldier with hardly any knowledge of demons—could repel a Source Demon?

What need would there be for enforcers at all then?

He initially thought that, even if the soldiers were fine, they might have clues about the demon, but now it seemed to be a complete false alarm.

"Furthermore…" The enforcer intended to educate the psychic of the military camp a bit, to prevent similar false alarms in the future, "one more thing you must understand—how many refugees did they say there were?"

"Over four hundred," the officer replied without hesitation.

"Over four hundred!" The enforcer snorted with derision, "How could over four hundred refugees summon a Source Demon? And its true form at that! The stronger the demon, the harder it is for them to manifest in the material world; ordinary demons can hardly descend to the material world, even if it's just as a willful possession, let alone a Source Demon!

If over four hundred people could summon the true form of a Source Demon, this world would already belong to the demons!"

He waved his hand dismissively and turned to leave, "They are definitely making it all up; this is an issue for your military to handle, I'm out of here."

"Safe travels, sir…"

The officer's voice of respectful farewell had not completely faded when a calm voice abruptly broke the silence, "But sir, why didn't you ask about the details of the combat process?"

It was Bai E.

He didn't actually care much about the military merit of repelling demons; personally, he would rather have less trouble than more.

But the fact had already occurred, and you can't wrap fire in paper; it was absolutely impossible to suppress what so many people knew.

In the future, when asked why he concealed it, how would he answer?

Moreover, after confronting demons himself, Bai E had personally experienced the affliction of having a seed planted by a demon.

He could only be sure that he was unaffected, but what about the other soldiers? What about those refugees?

Could there be hidden dangers in their souls as the Spiritual Energy users in the military camp said? Was there potential for demons to exploit these weaknesses in the future?

Deep down, he hoped the military would take this matter more seriously.

So he might as well stand his ground now. If they still thought he was faking it... then let them think he was faking it.

Bai E's statement made the enforcer, who had already taken a step out, pause and turn his head sharply toward Bai E, his gaze sharp as a knife.

"You've got some nerve!"

"I only hope that sir will take this seriously. We may be fine, but there is no guarantee that those refugees are as well... and those few scouts who survived."

On the way here, Bai E had noticed that their mental state wasn't quite right, and their spirit, energy, and mind were definitely not what one would expect from a soldier.

Was it truly because they were disheartened by defeat? Or was it because the seeds planted by the demons were still rooted in the corners of their souls?

"Are you teaching me how to do my job?" The enforcer narrowed his eyes slightly, with a glint of cold light flashing.

"If I have offended, it was not my intention."

"..." The enforcer didn't speak again but stared at Bai E with a somewhat gloomy look in his eyes.

Cacophonous whispers from higher dimensions kept whispering in his ear incessantly.

At this moment, it was as if they had substance, saying—

"Kill him!"

"Kill him!"

"Kill this insolent fool who affronts your authority!"

A daunting Spiritual Energy pressure surged through the room, the airflow stumbled slowly, and the chilling breath even spilled out of the door.

No one spoke.

No one dared to break the silence at that moment.

It wasn't until a series of rapid footsteps approached from afar, accompanied by the familiar voice of Marshal Weslin, "The briefing room is this way. The joint squad that went out on a mission just returned not long ago, I've already questioned them, and now they're registering their operation records here."

"Whoosh~"

The door curtain was flung open, and Aglaya, who had not yet stepped into the room, sensed the pervasive Spiritual Energy pressure in the air.

So, right after entering, she turned her attention to the only enforcer in the room.

"What are you doing?!"

The Spiritual Energy pressure from the higher-ranking Spiritual Energy user immediately took control of the scene, and the imposing female voice resonated deep within the souls of everyone present.

Spiritual Energy users' core abilities vary, but most of them are actually quite astute.

To sustain strong Spiritual Energy powers, a sensitive and intelligent brain is essential.

Aglaya, one of the few A-rank managers of the Administration Bureau, is almost certainly one of the most outstanding individuals among all the Spiritual Energy users in the entire city.

She excels in both strength and wisdom.

She didn't even need anyone to explain; by just sensing the atmosphere, she could roughly guess the reason for the tension.

After all, the truth may indeed overturn the understanding of ordinary people... including ordinary enforcers or Spiritual Energy users.

Aglaya's voice was like a bucket of ice water in summer, instantly clearing the enforcer's mind.

The noisy whispers in his mind also dispersed in an instant.

"Lady Aglaya..."

He bowed his head and stepped back, beginning to repent.

Every enforcer of the Arbitration Place faced the constant erosion of those unclean whispers from higher dimensions while battling demons.

Just now, he had nearly fallen.

During his time at the military camp, the silent superiority and irritability he felt while teaching the armored battalion's soldiers had made him lose himself.

Perhaps it was time to consider returning to his career of hunting demons...

Aglaya glanced at him and looked away.

She then turned to Bai E, who was at the center of the oppressive atmosphere just moments ago.

Without needing any introductions, she had already identified her target.

"You're Bai E?"

The tall figure stood before him, even a few centimeters taller than himself, making her approach seem all the more imposing.

Bai E looked up and met her eyes calmly, his voice exhibiting not a single ripple, "Yes, it's me."

"Good that it's you," Aglaya said, her lips curling slightly, seemingly satisfied with the soldier's reaction.