Serpent Ancestor

The two birds were plump and large, their feathers a dazzling array of colors. They had a faint trace of spiritual power within them, clearly demonic beasts of a high level.

"Demonic beasts at the late Spirit Communion Stage?"

Xu Hei was startled. He had searched within a radius of twenty miles but hadn't found any beasts of this level. Even if he had, he wouldn't dare provoke them.

At this moment, the old black dog was drenched in sweat, panting heavily, clearly exhausted from catching these two chickens.

He sat on the ground, grinning.

"Hehe! These things are called Spirit-Tail Chickens, raised by a nearby sect specifically for eating. They taste way better than wild beasts. I happened to pass by and snatched two." The old dog said with a sly smile.

Hearing this, Xu Hei quickly used the Earth Escape Technique to burrow underground, scanning the area with his divine sense to check for any human trackers.

"Relax, I did it cleanly. No one in this world can track me, the Heavenly Demon... Hmph, no one's following, so don't worry."

The old dog was quite proud, and as he spoke, he used his paws like hands to start plucking the Spirit-Tail Chickens.

Seeing his calm expression, Xu Hei emerged from the ground.

The old dog plucked the feathers swiftly, and in no time, the chickens were bare.

The old dog touched the ground with his paw, and a pile of charcoal appeared. Right in front of Xu Hei, he set up a grill and began roasting the chickens.

The charcoal heated up, and the Spirit-Tail Chickens sizzled, their spiritual qi wafting out with a mouth-watering aroma.

Midway through, the old dog pulled out some salt, cumin, and spiritual herbs from who knows where, sprinkling them on the chickens, making the aroma even richer.

Xu Hei tried hard not to look, but the scent was too strong, and it even had a hint of spiritual resonance that could aid in cultivation, making Xu Hei swallow his saliva.

The aroma not only attracted a little white snake but also drew the wolf king from outside into the cave.

The wolf king stood behind Xu Hei, staring eagerly, drooling.

Before long, the Spirit-Tail Chickens were done. The old black dog tore off a drumstick and started gnawing on it happily.

He tossed the chicken bones aside. The wolf king glanced at Xu Hei, and seeing no reaction, darted forward, grabbed the bones, and crunched them down.

Xu Hei, annoyed, turned and walked away.

The old black dog followed behind, eating as he walked, deliberately making loud crunching noises, driving Xu Hei crazy.

"Get lost!"

Xu Hei couldn't take it anymore and shot a Fireball Technique back.

The old black dog dodged quickly, laughing, "Don't be mad. I'm your master, after all. Giving you a chicken is no big deal."

"Just give me that spirit stone, and we're even."

Xu Hei was surprised, but the old dog's next words made him choke.

So it was all for that spirit stone.

"Don't be so quick to refuse. This Spirit-Tail Chicken could sell for at least three spirit stones. You're getting a great deal." The old black dog laughed.

Xu Hei ignored him, but the old dog kept chattering away.

After a long while, Xu Hei couldn't take it anymore and reluctantly agreed.

"Give me the chicken first," Xu Hei said.

Without a word, the old black dog tossed the whole Spirit-Tail Chicken over.

Xu Hei inspected it carefully, then took out the spirit stone and tossed it to the old black dog.

"That's more like it!" The old black dog nodded in satisfaction.

With the spirit stone in paw, the old black dog threw the chicken bones to the wolf king and the little white snake, then sat down to absorb the spirit stone.

Xu Hei looked at the Spirit-Tail Chicken in front of him, took a deep sniff, and swallowed it whole.

The Spirit-Tail Chicken wasn't large, easy to swallow, but it digested much slower than wild beasts.

Xu Hei fully activated the Demon God Cauldron. From the Spirit-Tail Chicken's body, a thin line of blood energy was absorbed into the cauldron, where the spiritual qi droplets visibly increased.

Before long, the cauldron was filled.

Xu Hei was already at the peak of the fourth layer of the Spirit Communion Stage, and now, he reached a bottleneck.

"Breakthrough!"

Xu Hei focused, compressing all the spiritual qi droplets into a single point. At that moment, he felt a new power surge through his body.

Black-gold scales appeared one by one on his tail, continuously increasing.

An old snake skin shed from his body.

Xu Hei had broken through to the fifth layer of the Spirit Communion Stage!

The Spirit-Tail Chicken wasn't fully digested yet, still being absorbed, and new spiritual qi droplets formed in the Demon God Cauldron.

Seeing this, Xu Hei took out a bottle of Qi Condensation Pills and swallowed it whole.

These pills aided in cultivation but couldn't be used for breakthroughs. They sped up daily cultivation.

As the pills entered his body, the accumulation of spiritual qi droplets accelerated, dotting the Demon God Cauldron.

One-tenth, two-tenths, three-tenths... Finally, it stopped at nine-tenths.

Xu Hei had reached the peak of the fifth layer of the Spirit Communion Stage.

Only then was the Spirit-Tail Chicken fully digested, bringing Xu Hei to this level, leaving him quite shocked.

That spirit stone was well spent!

The old dog was right; this chicken could indeed sell for three spirit stones.

By now, three days had passed since Xu Hei's breakthrough.

The little white snake and the wolf king were both in a state of cultivation, seemingly having gained something too.

The old black dog was the first to open his eyes, the spirit stone in his paw turned to waste. He glanced at Xu Hei, slightly surprised.

"Only three days to refine a Spirit-Tail Chicken and a whole bottle of Qi Condensation Pills, breaking through to the peak of the fifth layer."

"Such cultivation speed suggests this snake must be practicing a powerful technique, not weaker than my Heavenly Demon Technique."

The old black dog had been observing Xu Hei secretly. From the way Xu Hei digested wild beasts in just a few breaths, he had a suspicion.

He had considered teaching Xu Hei a cultivation technique, but now it seemed unnecessary.

"Disciple, how does the Spirit-Tail Chicken taste?" the old black dog asked with a smile.

"Not bad," Xu Hei nodded honestly.

"Then go catch a few more. We'll work together, split fifty-fifty. I guarantee you'll reach the late Spirit Communion Stage in a month and the Great Perfection in a year!" the old black dog laughed.

Xu Hei's eyes widened, and he shook his head repeatedly, "No way, those are late Spirit Communion Stage demonic beasts, too dangerous. If you want to go, go yourself."

A month to late stage, a year to Great Perfection—such speed would tempt anyone, human or beast!

But Xu Hei wouldn't fall for it. There's no such thing as a free lunch.

"Hmph! These Spirit-Tail Chickens dare call themselves demonic beasts? Raised by humans, they've long lost their combat ability, not even as strong as mid-stage demonic beasts. I can catch two with one hand."

The old black dog snorted disdainfully.

Xu Hei remained silent. Last time he stole a human's pig, he almost died. He didn't want to do it again.

Seeing Xu Hei still hesitating, the old black dog sneered, "If you don't go, I'll go alone. If humans chase me, I'll run to you."

Xu Hei's face turned dark, veins bulging, and he cursed, "I've never seen anyone as shameless as you!"

The old black dog laughed triumphantly, "Haha! Don't worry, follow me, and you'll eat well and live well. If there's danger, I'll sense it immediately. Would I lie to you?"