Serpent Ancestor

"Something terrible has happened! The Old Snake King has eaten someone again!"

"The Old Snake King has eaten someone! Zhang the Pockmarked and Blacksmith Zhou were swallowed!"

"Right by the river, everyone hurry and report to the authorities!"

The villagers, faces filled with fear, ran off into the distance. Wang Daniu grabbed two children and hurriedly ran into the courtyard, shutting the gate behind him.

"From today onwards, you are not allowed to take a single step outside!"

Wang Daniu's face was stern, still showing traces of panic.

After half a year, the Old Snake King had reappeared. This was undoubtedly a major event.

"The Old Snake King... ate someone?" Wang Xiaoniu looked bewildered.

Just a moment ago, the Old Snake King was right under his nose, finishing off a bucket of fish. How could he have eaten someone in the blink of an eye?

"That's right! Just now, I saw it with my own eyes. A dark shadow emerged from the river and dragged Blacksmith Zhou and Zhang the Pockmarked under. In an instant, two living people were gone!"

Wang Daniu spoke in terror.

"That's not right! Just now, the Old Snake King nodded at us. How did he have time to eat someone?"

His sister, Wang Ya, interjected.

Wang Daniu immediately glared at her. "What nonsense are you spouting?"

Wang Xiaoniu quickly grabbed his sister's hand. "Sister, don't talk nonsense!"

***

At this moment, Xu Hei, who was in the mountains, also heard the villagers' cries of distress. He looked bewildered.

"I ate someone? How come I don't know about it?"

He hadn't even gone near the river. How could he have had the chance to dive in and eat someone?

He was being wronged.

Seeing the villagers running towards the authorities, Xu Hei knew this place was dangerous and it was best not to linger.

So, he made a quick escape.

Ordinary wild beasts eating people wouldn't attract the authorities' attention, let alone a manhunt. But Xu Hei was different. He was the Snake King of this area, and a Demon Subduing Daoist had personally issued a bounty on him. Anyone who discovered him would be heavily rewarded, which made him a priority.

The Demon Subduing Daoist was from the Imperial Court's Astrology Bureau, wielding great power. Local officials dared not disobey.

Snake Catchers were a civilian organization specializing in dealing with snake demons. They possessed many techniques for capturing snakes, and some of their experts had magical artifacts, making them formidable.

These were the two groups that posed the greatest threat to Xu Hei.

One official, one civilian.

Since he was already exposed, Xu Hei wouldn't stay in this area any longer. He planned to hide for at least half a year, until spring next year.

However, he was very curious about what kind of creature was eating people.

"To drag two men underwater in an instant, could it be a water-dwelling demonic beast?"

Xu Hei's eyes flickered as he made a guess.

All summer, apart from the initial Pig Demon, he hadn't encountered a second demonic beast.

His cultivation hadn't progressed much either, still stuck at the second layer of the Spirit Communion Stage. However, the Demon God Cauldron within him had accumulated more and more spiritual mist over time.

"Forget it, escaping is more important."

Xu Hei decided not to think too much about it. Even if it was a demonic beast, he had no intention of going to check it out. Demonic beast meat was good, but his own life was more important.

Not to mention whether he could defeat it, even if he could, the authorities and Snake Catchers weren't to be trifled with.

In the pouring rain and raging wind, Xu Hei arrived at the swollen riverbank. He dove in, swishing his tail as he swam downstream. Swimming was the fastest way to escape, and the river could mask his scent, preventing the Snake Catchers from tracking him.

Of course, Xu Hei wouldn't swim too far, at most fifty miles. That distance was enough to evade pursuit. The mountains were full of wild beasts, and going too deep would be courting death.

"First, I'll lay low for a while and come back next year."

Xu Hei had done the same thing last year.

***

Time passed, and as the sky darkened, Xu Hei crawled out of the river and onto the shore.

He was now fifty miles away from the village he had left, far enough that no one would chase him.

In this unfamiliar environment, Xu Hei spread out his Divine Sense, staying vigilant. He was the Snake King of Snake Village, but that didn't mean he was the Snake King elsewhere.

Every beast had a territorial instinct.

He would keep his activity range as small as possible, avoiding trouble with others.

...

Outside Snake Village, at the scene of the incident.

This was a river gully, newly formed after the heavy rain. A crowd had already gathered here.

A middle-aged man in a Daoist robe walked to the riverbank. His appearance was ordinary, but his steps carried an extraordinary aura. The officials immediately showed respectful expressions, making way for him.

This man was the Demon Subduing Daoist from the Astrology Bureau.

"Daoist Priest Chen, have you found any clues?" the County Magistrate asked.

Chen Pingzhi held a horsetail whisk, his eyes flashing as he stared at the water. "There is indeed a trace of demonic aura!"

As soon as he spoke, the villagers erupted in an uproar.

"It really is the Old Snake King! After half a year, it's out harming people again!"

"It's a scourge! Every year it eats several people before it stops. When will this end?"

The villagers wept and cursed in anguish.

Chen Pingzhi, however, frowned. This unfamiliar demonic aura didn't seem like the Old Snake King's!

He calculated with his fingers, and his face darkened.

"I am currently at the third layer of the Qi Refining stage, and this demonic aura is almost on par with mine. I just don't know what kind of demonic beast it is."

If it were a rat demon, cat demon, or other small demonic beast, he wouldn't be afraid. But if it were a snake demon or tiger demon, he would leave without hesitation.

An ordinary person could easily stomp a rat to death but couldn't fight a tiger or lion.

The same applied to cultivators. He could easily kill a third-layer Spirit Communion rat demon, but against a large demonic beast, his chances were slim.

Chen Pingzhi stared at the water. After a long while, his pupils suddenly contracted, and he shouted, "Everyone, retreat!"

"Whoosh!!!"

The water surface suddenly exploded, and a dark shadow shot into the sky, sending up a hundred-foot spray. The shadow pounced on a soldier.

Without hesitation, Chen Pingzhi waved his whisk, sending out a golden light. The shadow suddenly accelerated, grabbing a soldier and dragging him back into the water like lightning.

"Wretched beast!"

Chen Pingzhi was both shocked and furious. This beast had eaten someone and hadn't left, continuing to eat people in the same place. How audacious!

The villagers screamed in terror and scattered.

The County Magistrate cautiously asked, "Daoist Priest Chen, what should we do next?"

Chen Pingzhi replied, "Withdraw! Seal off this area. When the tide recedes, the water-dwelling demonic beast will leave on its own."

"What... we're not going to exterminate the demon?" The County Magistrate was surprised.

Chen Pingzhi didn't respond, merely giving him a look. The County Magistrate immediately fell silent.

Chen Pingzhi knew the water-dwelling demon wasn't the Old Snake King. With his strength, he could exterminate it, but it would be troublesome and require using some trump cards.

Those trump cards were reserved for the Old Snake King!

"My senior brother disappeared in this area, most likely swallowed by the Old Snake King. Along with him was the human elixir he had refined for ten years. Its medicinal power should still be in the Old Snake King's body.

I must capture it. This is the key to my breakthrough to the mid-stage of Qi Refining."

Chen Pingzhi's eyes flashed with determination, keeping his thoughts to himself.

Advancing from the third to the fourth layer of Qi Refining was a significant leap from the early to the mid-stage, a step he had been stuck on for ten years.

***

Soon, the officials sealed off the area.

As Chen Pingzhi was about to leave, his gaze fell on a young man at the village entrance. It was Wang Xiaoniu from the Wang Family.