Not Immortal, Not Demon, Nor Human

Chen Hu sneered when he saw the refugee die, "Useless, already given up..."

Forced to absorb and activate the power, he wouldn't have lived long anyway, and the key to maintaining that power was blood. As a result, that fool bled out too much and died on the spot.

"Is that monster dead? It can't be that simple, can it?"

He hesitated for a moment, then decided to show himself.

"My grandson, my grandson!" Old Man Jiang cried, crawling towards the Demon Infant, which was motionless.

The Demon Infant was barely breathing, and the old man's heart ached, but he didn't know how to save it and dared not touch it.

The injuries looked too horrific, covered in blood, with a gash on its belly and several internal injuries visible through the skin as blood clots.

Any ordinary infant would have died long ago.

At the same time, the cries of the Female Infant echoed across the field...

Old Man Jiang's face was filled with grief. He crawled over to check on the Female Infant. Fortunately, she was unharmed, just left in the snow for too long and was about to freeze.

He quickly scooped the Female Infant into his arms and turned back, only to be startled.

A burly man in a fur coat, a steel saber hanging from his waist, had appeared out of nowhere and was now standing twenty paces away, his expression grim.

"Who are you now!"

"Ah! You did all this!"

Old Man Jiang wasn't stupid. Recalling how the refugees had shouted in one direction earlier, he realized that the man before him was responsible for everything.

"I am Jining's Heavenly Tiger! A third-generation disciple of the Heaven Swallowing Sect... Monster! I know you're not dead! Show yourself!" Chen Hu ignored the old man, staring at the Demon Infant, whose eyes were rolled back and who was motionless. He placed his hand on his saber's hilt and introduced himself seriously.

The Demon Infant remained limp, but its breathing had regained its strength.

"Villain! The authorities will not let you go!" Old Man Jiang, at a loss for words, could only resort to threats.

Chen Hu had intended to ignore him, but hearing this, he chuckled, "Old man, Qingzhou is covered in heavy snow, and over ten thousand have starved to death. Have you seen a single official out here to help?"

Old Man Jiang was speechless, tears welling up in his eyes, "What do you want? What exactly do you want?"

"Tch! None of your business!" Chen Hu scoffed, drawing his steel saber with lightning speed, intending to unleash a blade energy to kill the old man.

But just then, the unconscious Demon Infant suddenly sat up.

Its cute, large eyes looked at him.

"Ah!" Chen Hu immediately drew his saber defensively, channeling True Qi into it, holding back his attack as a precaution.

The Demon Infant looked at him curiously and then retreated from the refugee's corpse.

"Monster, I know you have Spiritual Sense. Stop hiding and show it!" Chen Hu said defiantly, though he was terrified inside.

He was bluffing. If the Demon Infant truly possessed Spiritual Sense, Chen Hu would run away immediately!

However, after a long wait, the Demon Infant showed no Spiritual Sense. Instead, it lay on the snow, grabbing its feet and wobbling.

It even propped its foot up to its face and stuffed its toes into its mouth.

"..." Chen Hu was stunned. I'm a top expert of Three Essences Body Tempering, here to slay demons, and I've even drawn my saber, and you're here eating your feet?

"Beast, he's just a child! If you want to kill, kill me!" Old Man Jiang cried, crawling. He had already reached the refugee's corpse and, using it for cover, had secretly reached for his cleaver.

Chen Hu ignored him, his eyes blazing, his breath steady, his state at its peak. All his attention was focused on the Demon Infant.

Even though the Demon Infant appeared clueless, it was precisely this that made Chen Hu wary.

From the beginning, he felt this monster was extremely sinister. If it had openly attacked like the Dog Demon last year, with real weapons and a direct confrontation, it would have been better. But the Demon Infant had yet to display any magic that could threaten him.

Damn it, it didn't even have any Demonic Aura!

"Monster, speak! Don't you understand human language?" Chen Hu blustered, circling the Demon Infant from twenty paces away.

Unsure of its strength, he moved behind the Demon Infant.

The Demon Infant, with a look of innocence and curiosity, followed his gaze and turned around, crawling.

Then... then it realized it could crawl. With its small hands and feet, it clumsily crawled towards Chen Hu.

Chen Hu's temples throbbed. He had already pushed his Cultivation to its limit and could no longer hold back.

"Whoosh!" He slashed his saber horizontally with lightning speed. A torrent of True Qi erupted, transforming into a blade energy like a fleeting rainbow, instantly slicing past the Demon Infant!

"Pfft!"

The Demon Infant rolled to the side. Its eyes went blank, its face turned pale, and blood flowed onto the ground.

Old Man Jiang's eyes widened in fury, "You beast!"

Chen Hu did not retort, for he was stunned by his own strike... How could the destructive power be so low?

He had used all his strength for this strike, consuming eighty percent of his True Qi! And he had used his signature skill, 'Startling Rainbow Shattering Moon'!

As the name suggested, the rainbow-like blade energy had a tearing effect. If it struck an enemy at the waist, it could rip through the chest, abdomen, or even the upper thigh.

If it struck a boulder, it wouldn't just split it in half; the stone would explode!

Since it could cut the Demon Infant just now, it meant the Demon Infant's defense was not that strong. If that were the case, it should have been minced into meat and bone fragments!

The Demon Infant was too small, a tiny thing lying on the ground! How could such a powerful blade energy only cut a single line without tearing it into shredded meat?

Chen Hu hesitated for a moment before slowly approaching to examine it.

Strange, truly strange. The cross-section at the Demon Infant's waist was completely smooth, as if severed by an executioner's blade, leaving no trace of True Qi tearing.

This... this wasn't the intended effect of his technique!

If he couldn't cut it at all, Chen Hu would have felt better, but what was going on now? It was cut, but not entirely?

"It didn't tear apart... Huh?" Chen Hu suddenly remembered that the refugees had also tried to tear the Demon Infant apart with True Qi before, but they couldn't manage it even with all their strength.

Could this actually be a demonic art?

One that could reinforce skin and bone, making them resistant to external forces?

But it only resisted tearing, not blade energy? What kind of useless demonic art was that?

Chen Hu examined it carefully and found that the Demon Infant had no breath, its heartbeat had stopped, and only its pupils were still trembling slightly. Finally, his face lit up with joy, and he stopped worrying.

"Perhaps its cultivation is too shallow, and its demonic power is insufficient? The greatest power of Startling Rainbow Shattering Moon lies in the concentrated line of blade energy; it's normal that it couldn't withstand it."

Chen Hu couldn't suppress his excitement and quickly picked up the Demon Infant's torso, searching everywhere for the Demon Bone.

He sliced open its arms with another continuous circular strike, but still found nothing.

"Could it be the rare... Heavenly Spirit Bone!" Chen Hu looked at the Demon Infant's head, ecstatic.

Heavenly Spirit Jade Bones were extremely rare, and their possessors were all prodigies! Favored by the Heavenly Dao, their cultivation speed was more than ten times faster than ordinary cultivators!

He was about to carve out the Demon Infant's skull when he discovered that the severed Demon Infant began to writhe on its own, slithering and converging on the snow, its severed ends joining together, reconnecting its upper and lower halves.

"What!" Chen Hu was startled. The Demon Infant was still alive?

He instantly retreated several yards, performing a backflip to increase the distance.

"I was careless! Fortunately, it didn't attack me..." Chen Hu felt a pang of fear, secretly relieved.

"You're quite the abomination! Truly extraordinary! What kind of demon are you!"

As Chen Hu spoke, he bolstered his cultivation, his steel saber emitting a cold glint.

Seeing the two halves of the Demon Infant's body slowly pulling closer on the snow, he decided to strike first, unleashing a move called 'Life Hanging by a Thread'!

The essence of this move was its 'thread-like' blade energy, which could even split a strand of hair vertically! It was a desperate move from his Heaven Swallowing Sect's saber techniques, consuming little energy and killing quickly.

The Demon Infant was not afraid of being torn apart by True Qi, but it couldn't withstand this kind of concentrated, thread-like slash. Therefore, in Chen Hu's opinion, this move was used perfectly!

"Open up for me!"

The blade energy struck the Demon Infant's head, but Chen Hu's expression froze. The upper body flew about ten feet away, completely unharmed!

Chen Hu looked closely. The Demon Infant's soft, smooth skin, which seemed as if it could be broken by a puff of air, was pressed inward by the blade energy, forming an indentation, and then... nothing more happened. Its skin didn't even break!

What kind of joke was this? The previous powerful blade energy, with its incidental cutting force, had severed the Demon Infant, but now, his ultimate technique specializing in thread-like cutting was useless?

"Did it use a demonic art? This time, a demonic art to resist slashes?"

Chen Hu's face darkened. This monster could still cast spells in this state? How wicked!

Unless... it was a Supernatural Ability!

The difference between a Supernatural Ability and a spell was that the former was essentially instinctual and could be used without performing any incantations.

The Dog Demon he encountered previously had the 'Steel Teeth' Supernatural Ability, allowing it to chew through steel. His treasured saber had been bitten to pieces by it. Such Supernatural Abilities didn't require casting; they were like innate talents, usable at any time.

But the problem was, if the Demon Infant's ability was a Supernatural Ability, why didn't it use it before?

"Hmph! This is truly wicked. Fortunately, my master taught me a saber technique that restrains demons!" Chen Hu bit his tongue hard and sprayed a large mouthful of vital blood onto his steel saber!

This wasn't ordinary tongue-in-cheek blood; it was Innate Vital Blood forced out by a secret technique, the very origin of blood that a person possessed from birth and which barely increased.

Every drop used meant one less! If too much was lost, his body would never be able to generate fresh blood again, and he would be plagued by illness and die!

There was no other way. He wasn't a cultivator and had no Magic Power. To restrain demons, he could only rely on his own vital blood for enhancement.

"Hah!"

Chen Hu leaped high, channeling all his True Qi and infusing it into the saber blade with a special technique, merging it with his vital blood. The steel saber flashed with blood-red light and unleashed a blade energy!

This move had the same power as an ordinary 'Life Hanging by a Thread,' but it dealt additional damage to cultivators and demonic creatures!

"Bang!"

His downward slash struck the Demon Infant's head fiercely, the residual force kicking up countless ice and snow.

However, when the dust settled, the Demon Infant's head was still completely unharmed!

"How is this possible!"

Chen Hu's eyes were vacant. Even with the enhancement of his vital blood, it didn't leave a single mark?

His master had said that this move was unbearable even for demons in the Spiritual Sense Stage; if it hit a vital spot, they would surely die.

How did this Demon Infant block it? The most sinister thing was that there wasn't even any fluctuation of Demonic Aura!

"Damn it, is it some kind of turtle demon?" Chen Hu rushed forward and fiercely grabbed it. It was still connected to its lower body.

He finally understood. Although this monster was incredibly wicked, it wouldn't fight back!

It likely didn't understand offensive demonic arts at all!

Since it can be hit or killed at will, he can always find a way to break open this head! Take out the Demon Bone!

"Shatter for me!"

Chen Hu exhaled True Qi and unleashed the Tablet Splitting Hand with a single palm.

However, the force vanished like mud flowing into the sea, disappearing without a trace!

"Huh? My palm strength is so powerful, it can split tablets and crack stones, and knead metal into mud!"

"The idiot before me only had five years of my cultivation, and one palm strike made the Demon Infant bleed all over. Am I actually worse than him?"

Chen Hu was completely dumbfounded. How embarrassing could this be? He suspected he had practiced a fake Tablet Splitting Hand!

Little did he know, the Red-eyed Refugee before him had suffered the same fate. However, this couldn't be seen from afar, so Chen Hu was unaware and fell into the same trap. All his True Qi was absorbed by the Demon Infant.

"It withstood my palm strike, yet it's not emitting any Demonic Aura?" Chen Hu was utterly confused.

Suddenly, Chen Hu noticed the wound on the Demon Infant's arm that he had cut open with his saber, and enlightenment struck him!

"Blade Qi is ineffective, but brute force cutting works?"

It was still cutting, but when he had used his saber to cut open the Demon Infant's flesh and blood to find the Demon Bone earlier, it was easy. Yet, the body-splitting Blade Qi was ineffective.

This clearly meant the Demon Infant, in some way, was immune to his True Qi!

Although this seemed to be the case, Chen Hu still couldn't understand. What kind of spell was this? His True Qi's power didn't seem to be offset or weakened at all, and the Demon Infant didn't become as hard as steel, yet he couldn't injure it!

"Damn it, then I'll just cut it with my saber!"

Chen Hu threw the Demon Infant, which had absorbed his True Qi, onto the ground. He spun his steel saber and slashed down, not using any True Qi at all, just pure brute force cutting!

However, the delicate skin and flesh were pressed down by the saber edge, forming a deep indentation, yet it remained completely unharmed.

Even the Demon Infant woke up, looking at him blankly, and then reached out to touch the blood-stained saber edge.

Its tender fingers played with the saber edge, making a sound like rubbing strings... a squeaking sound.

"What!" Chen Hu was stunned. He had just cut open its flesh and blood with his saber moments ago, and now it didn't work?

The monster was even playing with it! This was simply mocking him!

"This doesn't work, and that doesn't work. I... I... I'll shoot you to death!" Chen Hu's mind was in a mess. Suddenly, he fumbled in his embrace and pulled out a copper coin, shooting it out.

This time he used his hidden weapon technique. With a poof, the copper coin embedded deeply into the Demon Infant.

The Demon Infant immediately stopped moving, and blood began to ooze from the wound on its head.

"Ah? Hidden weapons work?" Chen Hu was shocked, then overjoyed!

He quickly unleashed his Golden Coin Dart technique again, crossing his hands and scattering them. Coin after coin, imbued with powerful force, shot towards the Demon Infant's face like a barrage of pearls.

"Tuk tuk tuk!" The Demon Infant was knocked and bounced, but not a single coin had the same effect as the first one.

"What kind of supernatural ability is this?" Chen Hu retreated in shock.

He had seen it with his own eyes!

He saw the copper coin embed into the Demon Infant, and he also saw the Demon Infant ignore all subsequent copper coins!

Recalling the strange phenomena before, the Blade Qi had clearly cut it in two the first time, but the second strike was useless.

The palm strike infused with True Qi was the same! Because the refugee's True Qi was the same as his, even his own personal strike was ineffective.

Could this monster ignore the harm from the same move?

Even a True Immortal might not possess such a supernatural ability, right? He had never heard of anything like it!

"Strange... strange... it can cast spells, but has no Demonic Aura, and doesn't counterattack..."

"Huh? Could it be... not a demon?"

Only now did Chen Hu suddenly realize that he might have fallen into a misconception.

If this Demon Infant wasn't a monster, then the lack of Demonic Aura and its unchanged form would make sense.

Perhaps this infant was his true form! But if it's not a demon... what is it?

Suddenly, Chen Hu thought of a possibility: a rare treasure!

"Heavens! Could it be a rare treasure?"

Chen Hu's eyes widened in disbelief, his mind in a complete turmoil!

The treasure of his sect was a rare treasure, so precious that if he asked too many questions, his master would scold him.

As a result, he only knew that rare treasures were varied and strange, with divine abilities and peculiar characteristics. No one knew where they came from; they were born of heaven and earth! They were bizarre things that even Immortals feared and coveted!

Rare treasure, rare treasure. Aren't humans also things? So rare treasures could also be living beings. He had always imagined them as magical items or secret realms!

"My goodness, a living rare treasure!"

"It makes sense! Everything makes sense now!"

Chen Hu was utterly shocked, trembling with excitement!

The strange supernatural abilities like an evil spirit, the innocent and naive mind like an infant, it was neither a demon nor a human...

"This is a human form... an Innate Exotic Treasure!"

p.s: Sorry.