End

It was over!

Looking at the Crocodile Demon not far ahead, sprawled limply on the ground without the slightest trace of life,

Shen Changchuan let out a long breath,

and the tension that had gripped his mind finally eased.

Shen Changchuan might have appeared at ease throughout the battle, as though he had toyed with the Crocodile Demon in the palm of his hand and never given it a chance to touch him.

But in truth,

he had not been relaxed in the slightest during the fight.

If the Crocodile Demon's attacks missed, that was one thing,

but if even one of them landed, it would mean severe injury!

Shen Changchuan had neither defensive spells nor defensive Dharma Artifacts.

And the Crocodile Demon's realm exceeded his by an entire level, while its Innate Spells were incomparably powerful.

One careless mistake,

and he could have died on the spot!

Under such circumstances, he could only keep his mind taut at all times, not daring to relax for even an instant.

The strain on his mind had been simply unimaginable!

"My methods are still too few."

"Although I ultimately killed this Crocodile Demon through the coordination of the Perfect Spirit Eye Technique and Light Body Technique,"

"the enemies I may encounter in the future will not necessarily be like this one today—an opponent whose speed and agility I could suppress."

"If I encounter an enemy faster than me, or one who possesses some spell capable of restricting agile movement techniques, then I'll be in serious trouble!"

Though he had killed the Crocodile Demon across realms, Shen Changchuan did not become carried away with pride.

Instead, he carefully recalled the course of the battle

and sorted through and reflected on the problems he had encountered.

"I need to learn more spells and master more methods! Defensive spells or defensive Dharma Artifacts in particular—this is undoubtedly my greatest weakness."

"If I can make up for that weakness, then having more methods at my disposal during battle will give me a far greater margin for error."

"After all, I have the Progress Bar Panel. I can cultivate according to the progress bar until it reaches 100% perfection. And after a spell reaches Perfect, it will bring me Trait enhancements as well. That is my advantage!"

"Leveraging my strengths and avoiding my weaknesses, using my advantages as fully as possible—that is the Righteous Path."

Shen Changchuan stared at the Crocodile Demon's enormous body before him, his thoughts drifting.

He had gained a rough idea of how to improve his strength in the future.

However,

Shen Changchuan soon realized something.

The area around Great Bay Village was extremely remote.

Immortal cultivation forces here were exceedingly weak!

There was not even an ordinary Marketplace around here,

so no matter how he looked at it, obtaining new spells or similar methods nearby would be difficult!

"Alas."

"Though the struggle for power in the rear courtyard of Shen Family Manor is dangerous, if one can display some aptitude for immortal cultivation, then cultivation Dharma Gates, spells, and the like will not be a problem."

"Great Bay Village may be safer than Shen Family Manor, but acquiring spell techniques here is also incomparably difficult."

"Fortune rests upon misfortune, and misfortune leans upon fortune!"

"I only hope that when Wu Family Market opens in two months, I can find some suitable methods to shore up my weaknesses."

At the thought of this cold reality,

Shen Changchuan could not help but sigh deeply.

Forget it.

There was no rushing the matter of reinforcing his methods.

He should raise his Cultivation Realm first.

Either way, it was an increase in strength.

They were all the same.

"But speaking of which, don't ordinary low- and mid-level Demon Beasts generally possess only one Innate Spell? What is going on with this Crocodile Demon?"

The thought of spells made Shen Changchuan recall something else.

His gaze fell upon the Crocodile Demon's enormous body before him,

and a puzzled look appeared in his eyes.

The defensive spell that turned its body to stone,

the Water Arrow Technique that spat out water arrows as thick as buckets,

and the dense barrage of arrows like a sky full of hidden weapons when it feinted before fleeing.

These methods

had all been used by the Crocodile Demon during the battle.

The spells this Demon Beast possessed

seemed a little too numerous.

It was somewhat abnormal.

"Besides, this thing seems far too intelligent!"

Shen Changchuan recalled the battle just now.

It had looked as though it wanted to fight him to the death, only to make a feint in the end and turn around to flee.

If the Perfect Level Light Body Technique had not granted Shen Changchuan such significant improvements in speed and agility, it might truly have escaped back into the river.

Such intelligence

was not something an ordinary Demon Beast could possess!

"Could it possess some formidable bloodline inheritance, or did it encounter some Heavenly Treasure capable of enlightening wisdom?"

Such a thought arose in Shen Changchuan's heart.

He looked into the distance,

at the river that had turned muddy beneath the Rainy Season, its waters surging onward as it now flowed quietly.

Shen Changchuan fell into thought.

Perhaps I can go take a look. There may be other gains to be had.

Shen Changchuan thought to himself.

However,

he was cautious by nature.

After such a fierce battle, more than half of the spiritual power in his body had been expended. He was not in good condition, and this was not the best time to enter the river and investigate.

After all,

if there was one Crocodile Demon in the river,

who could say there was not a second or a third?

Shen Changchuan was steady by nature and would not take such a risk so lightly.

At the very least,

he needed to wait a few days,

until he had recovered and confirmed that there were no other Demon Beasts in the river.

As Shen Changchuan pondered,

not far behind him,

Han Qinhu had already led the village's patrol members cautiously forward.

"Changchuan, how is it? Is it dealt with?"

Han Qinhu asked, his gaze fixed on the Crocodile Demon's massive body wrapped in countless vines.

Even though the Crocodile Demon lay there without moving,

a trace of fear still lingered in Han Qinhu's eyes.

Clearly, the earlier battle

and the Crocodile Demon's terror had left a deep shadow in his heart.

"Thankfully, I managed to deal with it before it entered the river. Otherwise, we would have had trouble in the future."

From the intelligence the Crocodile Demon had displayed while fleeing at the end,

Shen Changchuan could foresee that if it had escaped, it would surely have become a great disaster for Great Bay Village.

"Maternal Grandfather, are you and Eldest Uncle all right?"

Seeing the faint trace of blood still at the corner of Han Qinhu's mouth,

Shen Changchuan could not help asking with concern.

"Don't worry, it's nothing serious. Most of the force was blocked by the iron shield. Dayong and I shared the small portion that remained, so we only suffered some internal injuries. A few days of rest will do."

Han Qinhu waved his hand dismissively.

But immediately afterward,

a string of coughs burst from him, and his face flushed red.

"Maternal Grandfather, don't force yourself. Hurry and rest. Leave the rest to them."

"When the Zhao Family Village Chief Zhao came to visit last time, he gave us a spirit ginseng. I already used the main root while cultivating, but there are still quite a few rootlets left. Later, you and Eldest Uncle can steep them in tea. It should help your bodies recover sooner."

Shen Changchuan hurriedly supported Han Qinhu

and gently patted his back.

It was not that Shen Changchuan was stingy,

but if mortals casually absorbed spiritual energy, they might be unable to withstand its violent power and suffer ruptured Dantians and meridians.

Though there was also a chance that they could successfully draw in qi in one stroke, cross the boundary between mortal and immortal, and become immortal cultivators.

The odds, however, clearly favored the former by a great deal.

To awaken one's spirit and draw in qi, stepping onto the road of immortal cultivation, the orthodox method was still to take a Qi Gathering Pill, or use spiritual food such as Spirit Grain porridge to draw in qi and temper the body until it could bear the refinement of spiritual energy.

Though the ginseng rootlets were part of the spirit ginseng and contained a faint trace of spiritual energy,

because the main body had been consumed, the small trace of spiritual energy they contained had already dissipated and would pose little threat.

Instead, having been nourished by spiritual energy, their medicinal potency had greatly increased.

For mortal martial men like Han Qinhu, they were excellent tonics.

"Cough, cough... Then, thank you, Changchuan!"

Han Qinhu coughed several times.

After catching his breath, he thanked him.

"Why say such things, Maternal Grandfather? You are one of the people closest to me. Without your help, managing Great Bay Village alone would have left me in a complete mess."

"It is only because the Spirit Grain has not yet been harvested. Otherwise, I would have had you awaken your spirit and draw in qi first, becoming an immortal cultivator."

Shen Changchuan spoke with him in a calm voice.

Hearing this, Han Qinhu's heart warmed, and he could not help feeling deeply moved.

In his lifetime,

the most correct decision he had ever made was probably finding a way through that Shen Family steward back then and sending his daughter into the Shen Family, wasn't it?

Though for his daughter, being drawn into the whirlpool of the Shen Family might not have been a good decision.

But in this world, countless things were beyond one's control. Where could there be anything utterly perfect?

As long as the final result was good,

that was enough.

Han Qinhu glanced at the enormous Crocodile Demon corpse in the distance.

He could not help feeling something in his heart.

His grandson's strength seemed to have improved again.

Thinking of how worried he had been earlier,

he could not help feeling somewhat embarrassed.

His grandson was a peerless genius with the potential for Becoming Immortal. How could he fail to deal with even one Demon Beast?

From now on,

he only needed to follow his grandson's decisions.

With the efforts of the village's mortal martial men, the Crocodile Demon's corpse was soon carried to the Half-Mountain Courtyard.

At the same time,

the dead were attended to one by one.

The houses that had collapsed due to the battle's aftermath were also repaired.

The various loose ends were all dealt with.

Great Bay Village gradually returned to peace.

Time quietly slipped by amid all this,

and five days passed in the blink of an eye.

Over those five days,

Shen Changchuan had already recovered himself to peak condition.

Moreover, during his life-and-death struggle with the Crocodile Demon, he had gained some faint insight. His cultivation had subtly improved, and he was already nearing the peak of the early Qi Gathering Fourth Level.

But he was in no hurry to break through.

Instead, every day he went to the riverbank

and used the Spirit Eye Technique to observe the river, whose waters had swelled during the Rainy Season and become muddy and turbulent.

After five consecutive days, the faint demon aura that had once permeated the river had completely dissipated.

Not even the slightest trace of demon aura remained.

"The faint trace of demonic aura that had risen has completely dispersed. It seems the only Demon Beast in the river was that Crocodile Demon!"

"It was time to take a look. Hopefully, my guess was right."

After confirming there was no more danger,

Shen Changchuan did not hesitate. He leaped straight into the river and dove deep toward the riverbed.

The dark, surging waters severely constricted his vision, making it difficult to see nearby.

But at this moment,

the light of the Spirit Eye Technique lit up within Shen Changchuan's pupils.

Relying on the Spirit Eye Technique's enhanced perception and vision, Shen Changchuan easily saw things eight or nine meters away through the muddy river water.

Thus,

he began searching through the murky, dim waters.