Purple Gold Vine

Swish!

A rat monster fled in terror. Just as it was about to burrow into its hole, a long spear violently shot forth, piercing straight through its body and firmly nailing it to the cave entrance.

No matter how the rat monster struggled, the long spear stood as firm as a boulder, without trembling in the slightest.

After all, this long spear was a Magical Artifact. Unlike a small sword or shield that could unleash explosive power in an instant, it was a close-combat weapon.

Every swing carried tremendous physical force, enough that even an Awakened cultivator could not withstand it. More importantly, it was still a complete Magical Artifact. Though the passage of time had eroded much of its might, it could barely be considered a Low Grade Magical Artifact.

With this spear in hand, Zhou Xuanya felt confident he could slaughter his way out even if besieged by dozens of men.

He stepped forward cautiously and finally took a close look at the rat monster.

The beast was a full four chi long and as massive as a hound. Its body was filthy and pitch-black, its visage hideous. Its sharp claws had left deep gouges in the earth, and its piercing shrieks made the burly men standing in the distance tremble with fear, none daring to approach.

Seeing Zhou Xuanya approach, the rat monster struggled frantically, trying to break free and bite the human before it. However, the spear had pierced far too deeply. No matter how much it rolled and thrashed, it could not escape.

Zhou Xuanya formed a hand seal, conjuring the Golden Light Technique, and cleanly chopped off the rat monster's head. A torrent of foul, black blood gushed forth. The massive body twisted and convulsed, but soon fell dead and still.

It was, after all, merely an unranked demonic creature. Once its head was severed, survival was impossible.

Only then did he pull out the long spear and call out to the people behind him.

"Come over. I have killed the rat demon."

Niu Zhou and Wang Feng finally led their group of men over, still eyeing the rat monster with lingering dread.

Wang Feng could not help but marvel, "Good heavens. In all my years, I've never seen a rat this large."

"Back in my old home, there was a rat that became a demon too. It was only a third of this size, and it was already terrifying enough. How did this thing grow so massive?" Niu Zhou exclaimed in shock beside him.

"This thing ate the entire Tian family of three. How could it not grow?"

A man in the crowd spat with furious resentment. He snatched up a heavy wooden club and smashed it against the rat monster's corpse several times to vent his anger.

The East Village had chosen an abandoned village site to rebuild their settlement. Before they could enjoy even half a month of peace, this man-eating beast had struck in the night, terrifying every household so utterly that none dared to wander outside.

Wang Feng and Niu Zhou had dispatched many men to hunt it down. In the end, not only did they fail to capture the creature, but one of the men had been severely clawed, leaving half his hand rotting away.

It was precisely because the rat monster was so dreadful that they had been forced to travel to Zhou Family Town and beg Zhou Changhe for aid, leading to today's events.

Niu Zhou stepped forward and bowed low. "Many thanks to the Fifth Young Master for saving our East Village. If not for your great display of might, who knows how many more of our people would have fallen prey to this vile beast."

Wang Feng curled his lip in disdain, then pushed his way forward and smiled at Zhou Xuanya.

"Xuanya, I have already arranged for men to prepare wine and food. Why don't we head down and eat first?"

In the East Village, the rivalry between Wang Feng and Niu Zhou was like a needle against an awl-completely irreconcilable.

After all, to Wang Feng, even though his granddaughter was merely Zhou Minghu's concubine, the two had been deeply in love. Though she bore the title of a concubine, they shared the affection of a true husband and wife, and she was already with child. As long as he managed things well, his Wang family could firmly establish their footing alongside the Zhou clan.

But this dog-shit Niu Zhou was truly shameless. A month ago, the man had eagerly rushed to offer his own unwed youngest daughter to Zhou Minghu, a move that naturally threatened the Wang family's position.

Especially now that the Wang girl was pregnant, she could not keep Zhou Minghu in her bed at night, leaving him to be seduced away by the Niu girl. How could Wang Feng not be anxious?

With the rise of the Zhou family, the attitudes of these allied, intermarried clans had undergone an earth-shattering shift.

Had the Zhou family been weak, these powerful clans would have naturally schemed to swallow their foundation. But now, the Zhou family had become an immortal cultivator clan with capable heirs and deep marital ties to them all. Thus, they naturally chose to submit and attach themselves, following the Zhou family to eat meat and drink soup.

Niu Zhou threw a sidelong glance at Wang Feng, cursing the man continuously in his heart.

This old bastard really knows how to curry favor. If only my family had joined the Zhou clan earlier, I could have called him 'Xuanya' too, instead of 'Fifth Young Master.'

Zhou Xuanya shook his head. Pointing at the deep, dark burrow, he ordered, "Find some men to dig open this cave. Let us see if there are any other rat monsters hiding inside."

"Right away!" Wang Feng's weathered face bloomed with a brilliant smile. Soon after, a dozen burly men from the Wang family stepped forward.

Because Wang Feng and Wang Hui had been separated into two different villages, the Wang family had naturally split into two branches, each with only twenty-some members.

Among the refugees that the Zhou family had assimilated, there were several households with robust numbers. This ensured that the Wang family could merely maintain the peace in their respective village, but could never rise to become the absolute overlords.

This deliberate balance of power existed across the other three villages as well. Zhou Changhe had purposefully scattered the households so that, while the village stewards held authority, there were always three or four formidable families in each village capable of keeping them in check.

Furthermore, the Zhou clan had purchased a number of young children from slave traders. They raised these orphans alongside the children of their own household servants, bestowing the surname 'Zhou' upon them all. The intent was to cultivate their absolute loyalty from a young age, before gradually planting them into the various villages.

Once Zhou Family Town was fully constructed and these loyal Zhou members were embedded in all four villages, the clan would never again have to worry about internal strife or rebellion.

Watching the Wang men work, Niu Zhou cursed even harder in his heart. This old bastard really came prepared.

The Wang family men did not slack off. Grabbing their picks and hoes, they dug into the earth with fervent energy.

However, the excavation revealed something truly astonishing.

The burrow wound underground for over ten zhang, sinking deep enough to stack three grown men, and the network of tunnels inside was incredibly complex. If they had not focused their digging directly around the entrance, it would have taken them at least a day or two to uncover it all.

Niu Zhou offered an apologetic smile. "Fifth Young Master, we did send men to dig previously, but this cave seemed bottomless, and we had no idea how many exits it possessed."

"Moreover, every time we dug, the rat demon would retaliate by attacking a household that very night. Everyone was simply too terrified to continue."

Zhou Xuanya gave no response, merely watching in silence as the robust men continued to dig.

"There's a rat!"

A man cried out in alarm, hefting his pickaxe and bringing it down hard. A pitch-black rat the size of a watermelon let out a shrill scream as the heavy iron pierced its body, leaving a mangled, bloody hole.

Even with such a grievous wound, the rat desperately scrambled outward, moving as fast as lightning. The men swung their tools wildly in a frenzy, but every strike met empty air.

In the end, it was Wang Feng-still vigorous despite his age-who hefted a heavy stone and smashed the rat mid-flight. The creature's entire body was crushed into a bloody mass, leaving it barely clinging to life.

Zhou Xuanya only cast it a brief glance before looking away.

This rat was merely larger than usual; it had not transformed into a demon like the previous one.

Birds and beasts were just like humans-not every creature possessed the aptitude to cultivate and become a demon. Those capable of stepping onto the path of cultivation were the favored children of heaven and earth, and those who ultimately achieved the realm of true demons were exceptionally rare.

As for the truly powerful demon clans, they only came to be after a great ancestor achieved immense power, granting their descendants stronger bloodlines and a higher chance of attaining enlightenment, thus gradually multiplying into a formidable demonic faction.

After digging down another three zhang, a cavern roughly one zhang wide was exposed to the crowd. Dozens of ordinary-sized black rats poured out from within, only to be systematically beaten to death by the surrounding men.

Wang Feng instructed the men beside him, "Organize a rat extermination later. We cannot leave any hidden dangers."

"So much money!"

Suddenly, a gasp of surprise rang out. Around the inner edges of the cavern were numerous smaller alcoves. They were packed with hoarded grains and cereals, alongside scattered copper coins, silver pieces, and even women's jewelry.

The eyes of the burly men burned with blazing greed, every one of them itching to leap down and gather the wealth.

Zhou Xuanya, however, was drawn to a single object resting atop the pile of grain. It was a purplish-black seed the size of a chicken egg. It looked like a precious gemstone, yet its surface bore the faint, intricate textures of ancient wood. Under the daylight, it reflected a dim, dark luster.

"Purple Gold Vine?"

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