Li Wei ordered the burning of the Rakshasa corpses.

  There were almost a thousand of them. Grotesque, misshapen monsters. Man-eaters that had burned, pillaged, and raped their way through the countryside. An entire clan of Rakshasas. A threat eliminated.

  "Most villagers are alive," Mei Lin reported, wiping soot from her cheek. "You arrived just in time. They had already run out of supplies. One more day, and the wooden wall would have been broken. One more day and they would all..."

  She paused, eyes dark. It did not need to be said. The villagers would have been killed, tortured, raped, burned, and eaten.

  "Li Wei! Li Wei! Li Wei!"

  He was hailed as a hero. The beastslayer who killed the Rakshasa warmaster Hidimba and saved the peasants.

  It felt nice to be appreciated.

  In his father’s estates, Li Wei had always been neglected and forgotten. He was the son of a lower-ranked, long-dead concubine. His position too low in the family ledger and the line of inheritance for him to be treated with respect.

  But here, standing among grateful peasants, he felt something different.

  Respect.

  He was not a ghost hidden in the corner of a corrupt nobleman's household. He was a hero. Someone who brought hope to this broken world. And this was only the first step in his plan.

  In the place between his first life and the afterlife, he had chosen this world willingly. Not because he was a glutton for pain, but because the grim reaper had promised him power. A cheat system. He intended to use it to fix a broken world. This world.

  The mountain of Rakshasa corpses crackled with fire.

  All of them were burning, turning into foul-smelling ash.

  The men killed by the monsters were given more dignified burials.

  A wandering monk named Brother Fatong said the prayers. He also performed cleansing rites on the Rakshasa corpses, just as Master Chen had once described.

  "Are you from this village?" Li Wei asked the monk.

  "No, young master, I was merely passing through when the Rakshasas attacked," the monk replied. He was a fat, bald, jolly man who laughed and joked even in this grim place. "I was lucky to have been inside the walls before they barred the gates."

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  "Would you like to come with us?" Li Wei offered. "It will be safer to travel with armed men, especially with the possibility of stragglers. Rakshasas that may have escaped. We would also benefit from your cleansing rituals."

  "That would be splendid, young master," Fatong said gratefully.

  After resting and recovering at Yanshan, Li Wei and his men resumed their quest. This time, they searched for the Rakshasa den to ensure the threat was truly eradicated. However, their pace was slower. There was no urgent battle looming. They took their time.

  Mei Lin, the scout from Yanshan, joined them. Li Wei had decided to recruit her. She had proven herself competent, a skilled tracker who could help locate the Rakshasa lair.

  That night, as campfires flickered and soldiers settled into rest, a different kind of sound filled the air.

  Grunts. Moans. Rhythmic, unmistakable.

  Drakon and Thalassa going at it.

  "Are they really doing it out in the open?" Mei Lin asked, scandalized. Her cheeks flushed. She was a village girl, unaccustomed to such open carnal displays, not even between husband and wife.

  "It is an ancient Virexian tradition," Brother Fatong said, chuckling as he ladled more soup into his bowl. He smiled in contentment, unfazed. "They celebrate each victory in battle with vigorous coupling. I think it makes sense. What better way to celebrate a triumph over death, one more day of being alive, than with the incredibly pleasurable act that brings us into the world? It is beautiful in its own way."

  "It is not always so beautiful," Li Wei said quietly. He listened to Thalassa shouting at Drakon to go harder, Drakon grunting in response, flesh slapping against flesh in rhythm. "The Virexian celebration is not always consensual. Sometimes, it involves captives taken in war, who have little say in such matters. What is a celebration for Virexian mercenaries can become something far uglier for the women they capture."

  "The Rakshasas are fortunate then, that none of them are alive for Master Drakon to celebrate with, he is truly a massive man, and I'm sure in more ways than one." Fatong chuckled. His good mood remained unshaken. "There are tales of female Rakshasas, you know. Shape-shifters who appear as beautiful women to seduce human men, only to kill and eat them after coupling."

  "Like spiders," Mei Lin murmured, eyes wide.

  "Let us pray we never come across such creatures," Li Wei whispered.

  "Yes! Yes! Yes!" Thalassa’s screams pierced the camp, louder than the chants on the battlefield. Loud enough for every living soldier to hear.

  "How long are they going to go at it?" Mei Lin groaned, her voice somewhere between scandal and awe.

  "The Virexians are known for their incredible athleticism and great stamina. I would not be surprised if they are still at it by morning," Fatong said, laughing as he took a third serving of soup. "But I cannot blame Master Drakon. If I had a wife like Mistress Thalassa, I would be so deep inside her that the man who pulled me out would be crowned the emperor of Jinlong."

  "Should a monk really be making such lewd jokes?" Li Wei raised an eyebrow, surprised by the monk's jokes.

  "We should try to laugh more, young master. Try to be happy," the monk replied without shame. "Look at the bright side of things. The lights in the darkness. That is how we survive in this world."

  "I understand," Li Wei said with a nod, though Mei Lin still looked scandalized. "Be careful what you dream of, though. I have sparred with Thalassa, wrestled with her. She is a strong woman. She could crush you between her thighs if she wanted."

  "If she did, it would be a worthy death," Fatong said with another hearty laugh, just as the moans and grunts reached another crescendo.

  Li Wei finished his meal and tried to sleep.

  They had a long day tomorrow. The hunt for the Rakshasa den would resume. He wondered what awaited him there.