Chapter 6 Chapter Six — The Ancient Village in the Wild Mountains

The instant this man appeared, a chill ran down Li Daoxuan's spine, and gooseflesh rose all over his skin.

The fire itself seemed to grow cold, robbed of its heat.

He noticed the pale-faced youth wore fine robes — and here in these barren mountains, the white shoes on his feet bore not a speck of dust.

The finely-dressed man sat by the fire, and the once-steady flames began to dance, the blaze dwindling sharply.

Li Daoxuan's whole body went taut.

The finely-dressed man took the roast pheasant from Li Daoxuan's hand, stretched his neck, and sniffed. A look of rapture crossed his face — then…

Li Daoxuan witnessed a scene most terrible.

The man's mouth kept widening, until even his nose split open into the maw; the whole mouth swelled to the size of a bucket, and swallowed the roast pheasant whole in a single gulp.

No chewing — he simply swallowed it down. The stretched throat was thick as an elephant's leg, and Li Daoxuan truly wondered it did not burst.

Yet in fact the finely-dressed man swallowed with ease. He licked his lips and said, "Not bad skill. Only…"

He fixed his gaze on Li Daoxuan. All around, a sudden clamor rose — the sound of a rattlesnake's tail, the signal of an attack.

The finely-dressed man's pupils turned blood-red, and he said, word by word, "Why did you kill my fifth brother?"

Li Daoxuan swallowed. "Er… you must still be hungry. Shall I catch you another chicken?"

The finely-dressed man sneered, gave no answer.

Li Daoxuan's heart hardened; he snapped, "You snake demon, you push too far! Do you truly think this Daoist cannot kill you?"

So saying, he pinched a Five-Thunder Talisman and formed the thunder seal.

A dark cloud swiftly drifted across the sky.

The serpent demon's pupils narrowed — a Daoist who could call down heavenly thunder was not to be slighted!

Yet in the next breath…

Li Daoxuan spun on his heel, one step, and with Shrinking the Earth, Divine Striding his figure flickered away, gone with practiced, seamless ease.

The serpent demon actually blinked.

This Daoist, who could slay his fifth brother and summon heavenly thunder… had fled?

…

Beneath the moon, Li Daoxuan moved like a ghost. One stride carried him several yards; whether a sheer cliff face or brambles studded with thorns, nothing could bar his path.

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Such speed would make any common man gasp as at a celestial being, and worship him as immortal — yet this "immortal" was panic-stricken, drenched in sweat.

Li Daoxuan could not fathom how the serpent demon had tracked him.

Could someone from Xiaosha Village have betrayed him?

No — the villagers hadn't known where he meant to go!

He did not believe his present self could best this fearsome serpent demon. The higher a yaoguai's cultivation, the more it resembled a man.

The bat demon, able to walk upright with a human contour to its face, had already been formidable — Li Daoxuan had nearly failed to cope.

And this serpent demon not only looked almost wholly human, but could even speak and converse, clear and articulate. Terrifying.

Its cultivation was far beyond what the bat demon could match.

His only road to life was flight!

Li Daoxuan ran he knew not how long before, catching sight of a small cave, he ducked inside, curled his body, and held his breath as best he could.

He had not waited long when the rattling sound rose again, and outside came the noise of a python slithering.

Li Daoxuan's heart leapt to his throat. He peeked out cautiously, a sidelong glance.

In the wilds, a figure moved slowly — the finely-dressed man. But horribly, his feet had become a serpent's tail, dragging and rasping as he walked.

"I rather enjoyed a game, back before I had cultivated a human form," the serpent demon called from outside.

"When I caught a mouse, I would not kill it at once, but let it run — and watching it struggle, trembling in terror, excited me all the more."

"Later I caught it again. The little mouse begged me, pleaded to become my servant. Seeing its frightened eyes, I was moved to mercy."

He drew nearer and nearer the cave where Li Daoxuan hid; his scarlet forked tongue flickered ceaselessly, plainly thrilled.

"I imagine you think I set the mouse free. Heh. In truth I swallowed it in one bite — I made it part of my body. That was my greatest gift to it."

He spied the little cave, and a ferocious smile curled his lips.

"So, little mouse — will you become part of me?"

With that he lunged into the cave, his whole body turning serpent, near ten yards long, jaws gaping wide…

The cave was empty. Only the scent of Li Daoxuan lingered, slow to fade.

…

The starlight tonight was already dim, and with the mountains' thick growth, the fleeing Li Daoxuan was nearly swallowed by darkness.

Fortunately, once he poured mana into his eyes, he could see somewhat clearer.

He ran he knew not how long, drenched in sweat, his heart hammering like a war drum.

Continuous use of Shrinking the Earth, Divine Striding had burned through more than half his mana — yet Li Daoxuan had an intuition: he had still not shaken the serpent demon!

At the edge of hearing, it seemed he could still catch the sound of the serpent demon crawling, and the rattle of its tail.

Despair welled in Li Daoxuan's heart, along with an impulse to stop and fight to the bitter end.

The serpent demon seemed to possess some means of tracing his location. Since he could not flee, he might as well make a stand.

At least he would die with more dignity.

Just as Li Daoxuan wavered on whether to keep running, he saw a light in the distance.

How could there be lamplight in the wild mountains?

But he cared no longer. He ran toward the light by instinct. After perhaps a quarter-hour, the light grew brighter — a dark-red glow, thick as congealed blood.

Pushing aside grass and branches, Li Daoxuan saw a narrow path ahead, leading to a dim, secluded village.

The village was shrouded in a thin mist, and the red light that had drawn him leaked out through that mist.

In barren mountains, how could such a village appear so suddenly?

And the longer he looked, the eerier it seemed, suffused with an inexplicable, chilling air.

Li Daoxuan found himself at a loss — forward or back. But when behind him came the faint sound of the rattlesnake's tail, he clenched his teeth and chose the narrow path, running toward the village.

To fight the serpent demon was certain death; better to gamble ahead!

Li Daoxuan stepped onto the narrow path, and his figure was quickly swallowed by the mist, vanishing without a trace.

…

A moment later, the serpent demon arrived as well. Gazing at the mist-shrouded village, a flicker of wariness crossed his eyes.

He lingered long, but in the end did not enter.

Reverting to the finely-dressed man, he gave a cold snort. "Careless of me — I let you run into that one's territory. A pity. I shan't taste the Daoist myself."

"Heh. Inside that one's domain, you little mouse will only die a more wretched death!"