Chapter 008: The Demonic Cultivator

Four months later.

Spring had passed, autumn had arrived, and time hurried by. In the blink of an eye, Song Ye had now spent half a year in Qiuyu Village.

His level had reached forty.

At this stage, not even slaying a wolf king would yield him any experience points; he could only gain negligible experience from novice village quests. He could only hope that one day a high-level demon beast would wander by Qiuyu Village, so he could defeat it and earn some experience.

His current attributes were as follows:

[Vitality]: 288.

[Spirit]: 50.

With such a formidable vitality, slaying ordinary demon beasts posed no problem for him.

Even now, Song Ye still found it hard to believe he had been trapped in this fantastical world for half a year.

Over these past months, Qin Xiyi had never reappeared.

She had likely long forgotten him.

Song Ye was forced to admit that, in her eyes, he was as insignificant as an ant.

Moreover, he had discovered that the name Qin Xuanxi had risen one more place on the Demonic Path rankings, now standing at fourth.

If Qin Xuanxi and Qin Xiyi were indeed the same person, that would mean she had been wholeheartedly pursuing her ambitions since leaving Qiuyu Village, and it was impossible that she would spare a thought for him.

This, too, was within Song Ye’s expectations.

After all, though he had brought her home when she was gravely wounded, that was all—there was truly no bond between them.

Besides, if Qin Xiyi was indeed Qin Xuanxi, then she was one of the Demonic Path, and such people would hardly be moved by sentiment.

That afternoon, Constable Zhao arrived.

From a distance, Song Ye noticed his troubled expression, his face clouded with worry.

Once Constable Zhao had sat down, Song Ye served him a bowl of tea as usual.

Zhao downed the tea in a single gulp, then sighed deeply. “Ye, I’m afraid Dan City won’t hold much longer. If it falls, it’ll be only a matter of months before the Yan Kingdom’s iron cavalry reaches here.”

“In our Cheng County, several prominent families have already caught wind of the change and left ahead of time.”

“If Yan’s troops really do invade, you and the villagers must escape at once!”

Song Ye shook his head. “No matter whether Yan’s army comes or not, I will remain here in this village. I’m not going anywhere.”

After all, even if he wished to leave, he couldn’t.

Constable Zhao gave a bitter laugh. “Ye, you’re still young, and you haven’t seen the savagery of Yan’s cavalry. They are bloodthirsty fiends, addicted to slaughter. Few survive the villages they plunder.”

“If you truly stay here, you’ll only end up a corpse beneath their blades, with not even a soul left to bury you!”

Song Ye smiled faintly and said nothing more.

After all, he could hardly explain to an NPC that he was bound to Qiuyu Village by a secret he could not share.

“By the way, there’s another important matter today,” Constable Zhao continued. “Recently, a demonic cultivator has appeared in Cheng County, committing murders throughout the area. There have already been three victims in the county alone.”

“They say this demonic cultivator was once a disciple of the Xuanqing Palace, and his cultivation is formidable. For reasons unknown, he betrayed the Immortal Sect and turned to the Demonic Path.”

“The county magistrate has already written a letter to Xuanqing Palace, hoping they’ll send someone down the mountain soon to eliminate this traitor and restore peace to the people.”

“Ye, help remind the villagers to be vigilant, lock their doors and windows at night.”

“I’m going to make a round of the village myself and see if I can spot any trace of this demonic cultivator.”

Once again, it was tied to Xuanqing Palace. It seemed that this was the only Immortal sect in the vicinity.

After finishing his tea, Zhao Zhigao began his patrol, though it was little more than a show of duty. Should he truly encounter the demonic cultivator, he could do nothing but flee.

Not long after Zhao Zhigao departed, a new quest appeared in Song Ye’s task list: [Find the Dog].

[Find the Dog]: The village chief’s little yellow dog has gone missing. Please help bring it back.

He had been waiting for this task—once he completed it, he would have fulfilled his daily quota of three quests.

Song Ye said to the old man sitting at the tea stand, “Uncle Tai, please watch the stall for me. I have something to take care of.”

Uncle Tai nodded woodenly.

Song Ye quickly located the little yellow dog and was carrying it back toward the village chief’s house.

Suddenly, a burly, bearded man appeared before him, blocking his path.

“What a tender little dog! Just what I need to fill my belly!” The burly man hefted a heavy-backed broadsword. “Boy, put down the dog and I’ll spare your life!”

Song Ye shook his head. The dog was the “item” he needed to complete his quest; he could hardly hand it over.

“Foolish boy!”

No sooner had the bearded man spoken than a dark, sinister energy coiled about his blade.

In a flash, he vanished from where he stood.

When he reappeared, it was right in front of Song Ye, and the broadsword came slashing down.

Song Ye had no time to evade and instinctively raised his arm to block.

It hurt!

Song Ye winced in pain as the thick-backed blade struck his right forearm, cutting the skin and drawing blood, but leaving no serious injury.

Seeing this, the bearded man’s face registered shock.

He had poured his demonic energy into that strike; even a boulder would have been split in two. Yet, he hadn’t even managed to sever Song Ye’s arm—he had only broken the skin.

How could he have known that Song Ye’s vitality now surpassed that of an ordinary person a hundredfold? His body was like steel.

That was why Song Ye had dared to block the blade barehanded.

At this point, Song Ye guessed that this burly, bearded man must be the Xuanqing Palace traitor.

He set down the little yellow dog, ready to draw his novice iron sword and strike him down.

Just then, Constable Zhao suddenly sprang out from somewhere, gripping his sword hilt, and shouted at the bearded man, “Who are you, villain? Cease your wickedness at once! I am Zhao Zhigao, constable of Cheng County! Surrender your weapon and yield!”

As he spoke, his legs were trembling, for he too suspected this man to be the murderous demonic cultivator.

For a demonic cultivator to kill a mere county constable would be effortless.

Yet the bearded man was clearly unsettled by Song Ye’s display of strength and, for the moment, dared not attack again.