Demonic Beast Enters the Village

As the days gradually shifted from late spring toward midsummer, the sweltering heat grew increasingly oppressive.

Not a single drop of rain had fallen for months. Even the Baixi River had nearly run dry, retaining less than three-tenths of its original flow. This was only thanks to Zhou Changhe damming the water and digging channels to divert the flow; otherwise, there would be even less.

If this continued, it would not be long before the households of Baixi Village came to blows over water.

"This sun is scorching. I wonder if the crops in the fields will even survive." Two men from the Wang family sat in the shade of a field ridge, constantly fanning themselves with their hats to ward off the heat.

The man beside him spoke with worry, "Ah, if this keeps up, the land will be baked to death. I don't know what we'll do."

"Why won't this accursed heaven drop any rain? It's forcing us down a path to death!"

The man cursed, looking out at the rolling waves of heat that blurred and distorted the distant landscape.

But right at that moment, he suddenly squinted in confusion and pointed toward the foot of the distant mountain. "San'er, what is that over there?"

His companion, who had his eyes closed to rest from the heat, groggily opened them and followed the pointing finger. "There's nothing there. Are your eyes playing tricks on you?"

"San'er, there really is something moving!"

The two were instantly drenched in cold sweat, their bodies trembling uncontrollably. They grabbed their hoes and sprinted desperately toward the village. Just over a hundred zhang behind them, a massive black bear standing a full zhang tall was charging at them with savage fury!

Roar!

The black bear's blood-red eyes were locked onto the two men, its fangs hideous and terrifying. Its black fur was tinged with a bloody crimson, and its enormous body was like a small mountain, sending faint tremors through the earth with every step.

"Help! A black bear has entered the village!" The two men shrieked in terror, instantly alarming the entirety of Baixi Village.

"Where's a bear? Where is it?"

Someone rushed out brandishing a large pitchfork, but upon seeing the colossal beast, they lost their wits in fright and immediately fled toward the Zhou family estate.

The Zhou family had two Immortal Masters; they could surely subdue this creature.

Another man desperately dragged his family along in a terrified retreat, but the black bear easily caught up, its massive frame casting a suffocating shadow over them all.

"Ahhh!"

The children wailed in absolute horror. The middle-aged man, forcing down his terror, furiously swung a sickle at the giant bear.

"Damn beast! Keep away from my family!"

But the sickle struck the black bear's hide without leaving a scratch, only serving to completely enrage it. A horrifying bear paw slammed down, kicking up a foul wind of blood. With a sickening crunch, it smashed the man's head into pieces. His body fell stiffly to the dirt, crimson blood pooling everywhere.

The women and children had long been frozen in trembling shock. Now they screamed in sheer terror, only to be brutally torn apart by the giant bear. Shreds of flesh and severed limbs were scattered across the ground.

The giant bear madly devoured the flesh and blood, the murderous glint in its eyes turning even more violent. This was no ordinary beast-it was a demonic creature that had become a spirit!

The rest of Baixi Village had fallen deathly silent. Everyone else had used the time the beast spent feeding on that unfortunate family to flee to the Zhou estate in the east. The Wang and Sun families had gathered all their clansmen into their large courtyards, bolting their gates tight. Every person clutched a weapon, standing guard in fearful vigilance.

If the sky fell, the tallest would hold it up. The two families only cared about protecting themselves.

The world was strange like this. People did not dare draw their swords against a fierce tiger, yet they would openly and secretly scheme to drive the tiger-hunting experts to their deaths.

In the past, they had dared to scheme against the Zhou family with arrogant tyranny. But when faced with a demonic beast, they cowered and sought only to preserve their own lives. This was because the former were humans bound by rules, while the latter was a savage, ruthless beast.

Zhou Ping and Zhou Minghu moved like the wind. They quickly located the giant bear in the center of the village. It was currently tearing into an earthen house, and the desperate cries of children echoed from within.

"Ahhh! A monster!"

The earthen walls crumbled like tofu under the giant bear's might. The children trapped inside let out pitiful, miserable wails, screaming hysterically.

"Wahhh! Father, Mother, where are you..."

Zhou Minghu's eyes focused sharply. He dashed toward the giant beast, a small shield materializing at his fingertips as the Spiritual Qi within his body surged wildly.

In an instant, the shield swelled against the wind, transforming into a massive bulwark over a zhang wide. Exuding an ancient Pressure, it smashed brutally into the giant bear, sending the creature flying several zhang away.

"Wicked beast! You are Courting death!"

Although the giant bear possessed thick skin and tough flesh, the heavy impact of the shield still left it dizzy and disoriented.

But as it stared at Zhou Ping and Zhou Minghu, a greedy glint filled the giant bear's eyes. It could smell an incredibly fragrant scent coming from these two humans.

"Roar!"

The giant bear let out a furious roar. A pungent stench of blood washed over them, causing Zhou Ping and Zhou Minghu to frown and hold their breath.

Seeing the giant beast charge, Zhou Minghu advanced instead of retreating. Before the manifestation of the shield could dissipate, he drove it forward like a torrential storm, hammering it madly into the giant bear.

At first, the giant bear tried to resist the shield with its brute strength. But as the crushing blows rained down, each strike carrying hundreds of jin of heavy force, the relentless assault slowly battered the bear's huge paws into a bloody, mangled mess.

With a sickening crack, the giant bear let out an agonizing howl. Its spine had suddenly snapped, exposing stark white bone bursting through its back, dripping with fresh blood!

With its spine broken, the beast lost all support. Its colossal body crashed heavily into the dirt. Yet, it still thrashed its claws wildly at the two men, letting out miserable howls. Its blood-red eyes remained fixed on Zhou Ping and Zhou Minghu, eerie and terrifying.

The shield finally dissipated. Panting heavily, Zhou Minghu was about to step closer to inspect the bear's condition when Zhou Ping suddenly jerked him back.

"Minghu, remember this: never underestimate an opponent under any circumstances. Do not be fooled just because this bear demon's spine is broken. Until it is truly dead, you must never let your guard down." Zhou Ping pointed at the black bear with a grave expression. "Look at its hind legs. They seem limp and weak, but in truth, they are coiled and gathering strength. If we rashly approach, this beast will surely lash out in a final, desperate attack."

Zhou Minghu observed closely and indeed saw the black bear's claws subtly gripping the soil, secretly storing power.

If he had stepped closer just now, even from several zhang away, this beast would have undoubtedly dragged its broken body through the air to strike. Given the bear demon's sheer mass, he would have been pounced on and killed in an instant.

Demonic beasts were fundamentally different from human cultivators. Their physical bodies were brutally tough, their fangs and claws razor-sharp, capable of easily tearing a person apart. Even for a cultivator, it would only take a single swipe.

"Since its spine is already shattered, it cannot escape. We just need to sit and wait for it to die," Zhou Ping said slowly. "A cornered beast at the end of its rope will always fight back before death. Humans are exactly the same."

Seeing that the two men would not approach, the black bear went completely still, playing dead while occasionally letting out weak, low groans as if it were truly on the verge of expiring.

But Zhou Ping was not fooled in the slightest. Instead, he turned his gaze toward the distant mountains, a heavy shadow of worry settling over his brow.

Since the beginning of the year, wild beasts from the deep mountains had been continuously descending into the lowlands. At first, it was only wild boars, foxes, and wolves. Later on, tigers and black bears began to appear. And now, this black bear was already a fully realized demonic creature.

He did not know how many more wild beasts and demonic creatures would come crashing down from the mountains if this severe drought continued.

88.181.249.5

ns88.181.249.5da2