Demonic Beast Eggs!

Demonic Beast Eggs!

Gu Shaoshang naturally had no idea that someone had seen through him completely and concluded that he lacked the potential to become strong.

Carrying firewood on his back, he walked into his family's courtyard. "Dad, I'm back."

Gu Jiu was pasting lanterns in the yard. He did not even raise his head when he saw Gu Shaoshang return. "The food's on the table. Go eat."

"Got it!" Gu Shaoshang went to a corner of the yard, picked up a dipper from the water bucket, and drank a few mouthfuls. Entering the house, he found a bowl of braised wild boar and radish on the table.

Gu Shaoshang wolfed it down as the Primordial Python Star Devourer Record, which he had already begun cultivating, activated. His stomach and intestines grew hot, and his astonishing digestive ability, more than ten times that of an ordinary person, began to operate. As Gu Shaoshang devoured the food in huge mouthfuls, streams of heat spread from his stomach throughout his body, making his bones and muscles tremble faintly.

"Whew."

He swallowed several pounds of meat and broth, bones included. Gu Shaoshang returned to his room, sat cross-legged on the bed, and entered the Mirror World.

To the southeast of Gu Family Village stood an old courtyard. Having been unoccupied for years, many parts of it had already collapsed.

The old man's group stood outside the gate. Gu Ji rubbed his bald head. "Uncle Zhen, this old courtyard of yours is no longer fit for people to live in! You should stay at my house instead!" Gu Yu lowered his head awkwardly. "You haven't returned in many years, Elder. No one has cleaned this courtyard either."

The old man did not mind. "No matter. A simple cleaning will do."

Before the old man could give any instructions, a group of servants had already hurried inside to clean.

"Ah!"

A cry rang out! A guard clad in red-scaled armor sprang up and leaped into the courtyard. Before long, he came out carrying a corpse.

The corpse wore short armor and clutched a curved saber. Even in the depths of winter, waves of stench drifted from it.

"Elder Gu, this man had likely reached the completion of the Five Stages of Foundation Establishment before his death! His chest and abdomen were pierced through by a massive claw!" The guard who had entered earlier reported in a low voice. He casually turned the corpse over, revealing a huge claw mark on its back that had pierced through the short armor. Blood like mercury paste had already dried.

Gu Ji and Gu Yu's faces flushed red. They stammered, too afraid to speak, never having expected something like this to happen.

The young girl, Lianxing, stepped out from behind the old man without the slightest fear on her face.

"Judging from this claw mark, it should have been a Golden-Eyed Eagle diving down from the sky. But how could a martial artist at the Five Stages of Foundation Establishment have escaped a Golden-Eyed Eagle's aerial hunt? Zhao He, did you find anything else?" The girl glanced at the guard who had entered earlier.

Zhao He opened a hide pouch in his hand, revealing three silvery-white bird eggs the size of fists. He spoke respectfully, "This hide pouch was tightly clutched in the corpse's hand. There are three Demonic Beast Eggs inside!"

"These are Golden-Eyed Eagle eggs!" The girl took one look and recognized them.

"Ah! So that's what happened!" Gu Ji cried out!

"Uncle Zhen, three months ago, I shot and killed a Demonic Beast Golden-Eyed Eagle! I had wondered why that Demonic Beast lingered endlessly above the village. So someone had raided its nest!" Gu Ji stepped forward to explain. A Golden-Eyed Eagle could only lay eggs once in its life, usually only one or two. That explained why it had risked being shot dead by human experts to circle low in the sky without leaving!

The old man nodded. "Zhao He, give these three eggs to the Gu Village Master!" He was completely unconcerned with the three priceless eggs!

"Yes!"

Zhao He reluctantly glanced at the hide pouch before handing it to Gu Yu at the side. A Golden-Eyed Eagle could fly fifty thousand li in a single day! It was an ideal mount, while adult Golden-Eyed Eagles were extremely difficult to capture. The value of their eggs was easy to imagine! Even experts of the Qi Sect Realm could not simply ignore them!

Gu Yu accepted the eggs. His expression changed several times before he finally spoke.

"Uncle Zhen! You should keep these eggs. I'm afraid Gu Family Village can't protect them—they might bring us disaster instead!" Gu Yu sighed inwardly. If something that could attract even experts of the Qi Sect Realm remained in Gu Family Village, one wrong move could lead to the entire village dying!

At the side, Gu Ji also sighed inwardly. Big Brother was right. If we keep these things, the whole village may lose their lives! This world was ruled by the strong devouring the weak! Even if the weak obtained a treasure, a single careless leak of information could result in their entire family being exterminated! Gu Ji had heard of many such things!

The old man did not refuse. Only after Zhao He took back the eggs did he slowly speak. "I'll accept the eggs. After the year-end sacrifice, I'll choose three youngsters from the village and bring them back to Yan Capital as compensation."

Gu Ji and the others were overjoyed, all dropping to their knees.

"Thank you, Uncle Zhen!"

The old man nodded. His purpose in coming out this time had been to select promising followers for his family. Obtaining three Golden-Eyed Eagle eggs was killing two birds with one stone!

"You're saying that old man is Gu Xuanzhen, the Minister of War of Great Yan?"

"He'll choose the three most outstanding youngsters during the year-end sacrifice and bring them back to Yan Capital?"

"How could we possibly have a chance? He'll definitely choose Gu Shaoze, Gu Shaoshang, and the others!"

"Not necessarily! I heard he'll inspect their Talent Physiques!"

For a time, all sorts of news spread throughout Gu Family Village. Everyone discussed it, filled with envy and jealousy toward Gu Shaoshang and the other two.

Gu Shaoshang looked speechlessly at his flushed-faced cousin and his father, Gu Jiu, who swayed as though drunk.

"Stop getting excited! You've been pacing in front of me forever!" Gu Shaoshang slapped the table, startling the two awake.

"Shaoshang! That's Yan Capital! Right beneath the Emperor's feet! And your granduncle is an elder of Great Yan's three major sects, the Divine Blade Sect! If you join the Divine Blade Sect, you might even have a chance of advancing to the Qi Sect Realm!" Gu Jiu shouted excitedly, so worked up that his words became incoherent.

Great Yan's three major sects—the Divine Blade Sect, Hanging Temple, and Mount Tai Sword Sect—were great sects with inheritances spanning more than three thousand years! Their sects contained countless experts and possessed unfathomable foundations! Even the overbearing Martial Arts Hall was unwilling to provoke them lightly!

"Exactly! That's the Divine Blade Sect! Even Chen Ang, the Grand Governor of the Martial Arts Hall, studied martial arts at the Divine Blade Sect in his youth!" Gu Shaoze was practically dancing with excitement.

"The Grand Governor studied there for only three years, yet he slew three great elders of the Divine Blade Sect with a single slash! Three Great Masters of the Qi Sect Realm—truly peerless and invincible! If I, Gu Shaoze, could follow in his footsteps..." Gu Shaoze looked possessed. Not a trace remained of the calm, composed genius he usually was.

Gu Shaoshang could not bear it any longer and fled the house as though escaping.

"Hey, you!" A crisp female voice rang out, as clear as jade falling onto a silver plate, as melodious as an oriole's song.

Gu Shaoshang raised his head. On the distant street, a girl draped in a fox-fur cloak and dressed in silver-white, like a sprite amid the snow, slowly approached him with two maidservants. A faint smile rested on her delicate face.

"My name is Gu Shaoshang!" Gu Shaoshang frowned. Young ladies from wealthy families were the hardest to deal with; they were usually trouble incarnate.

"I'm going into the mountains to gather herbs tomorrow. You'll take me there!" The moment this young lady spoke, Gu Shaoshang knew he was in trouble. Sure enough, disaster had fallen from the sky while he sat safely at home! Gu Shaoshang groaned inwardly.

"Miss, there are plenty of experienced elders in the village. I still need to care for my father, so I don't have time to enter the mountains." Gu Shaoshang lowered his eyelids, determined not to agree. But in the next instant, his eyes widened!

"That is..."

A pale, crystalline palm held a pale-red pill the size of a longan, which immediately caught Gu Shaoshang's eye. A faint medicinal fragrance wafted out. After inhaling a wisp of it, Gu Shaoshang was instantly invigorated!

"This is a Replenishing Pill. It can make up for deficiencies in the body and regulate the five viscera." Gu Lianxing spoke slowly, a smile appearing on her delicate face.

The book has passed review, and the contract will be mailed soon. Please feel free to add it to your collection!