Ge Xian also has a bad habit?

He sensed the White Jade Daoist howling as he charged over.

Ge Xian flipped through several more pages and indeed saw that he himself had written about the storage treasure pouch being successfully refined, even gleefully sketching its appearance and form.

So, Ge Xian recalled the attire of the White Jade Daoist he had seen on the ground, quickly pinpointing a personal item. At the same time, he resumed his human appearance as the Young Peddler, ignoring the bloodstains all over the ground and directly lying down beside the old mother rat that had already turned into a pool of rotten flesh.

After all, there was a pile of blood food and scattered corpses there; he wouldn't stand out among them at all.

Not long after, accompanied by the howling of rat demons.

A rat monster with a terrifying appearance crashed into the nest.

Its Demonic Body was about the size of a millstone. Although it was far from comparable to its so-called "old wife," the malevolent aura it exuded was far stronger than the old mother rat's.

Its entire body was like white jade, but it was quite wrinkled and covered in rotten sores. As it ran, pus splattered everywhere.

The aftereffects of refining a treasure!

Ge Xian knew that the White Jade Daoist originally had snow-white rat fur, which had now transformed into an exquisite treasure pouch, adorned with golden threads and hanging from his waist.

"Orchid, Orchid, what's wrong with you?"

"My Empress, my old Empress... You're dead. Where will I find another mother rat as fertile as you, my dear Orchid."

The White Jade Daoist seemed to have suffered too much damage, injuring his brain. At this moment, he had lost all the cunning he displayed on the ground, and even his vigilance seemed gone.

He charged forward recklessly, shaking his ugly rat head, occasionally slipping and stumbling on the bloody ground.

Before the corpse of the old mother rat, he began to wail loudly, even lowering his rat head to nudge his old wife, trying to wake her up.

This "performance" lasted for at least ten breaths!

Ge Xian was not fooled.

He wished he could be fooled, but in his senses, there was always a restless, dangerous demonic energy within the old scoundrel. How could he not know that the old scoundrel was brewing a final blow?

However, that demonic energy was unstable and could dissipate at any moment. Ge Xian just had to wait patiently.

As for the Ghoul General and the other Evil Cultivators, they were frantically "harvesting" the townspeople during this time and did not bother him for the moment.

As expected, after another three breaths, the demonic energy gradually dissipated.

The White Jade Daoist suddenly raised his head, his expression returning to normal:

"Huh?"

"It actually left. Judging from the residual energy, it should be a dragon. Could it be the [Dragon Earthworm] thirty miles away that attacked?"

"But if it were, why would it be able to resist eating my old wife and stealing my treasures?"

"Forget it, I'll take out the [Son God Ring] first. I'll find a fertile demon rat to marry later..."

With this muttering, the White Jade Daoist suddenly opened his mouth and bit into his old wife's abdomen, gnawing his way inside.

After a rustling sound that made Ge Xian's teeth ache, the fellow emerged from a special orifice.

At this moment, he was already holding a strange, dark red iron ring in his mouth. This item had originally been completely fused with the flesh and demonic energy of the "White Jade Old Wife," which was why Ge Xian had overlooked it.

Now that it was pulled out, its true form was revealed.

A wisp of visible, dark red demonic energy emanated from within. It looked bizarre, yet it gave Ge Xian a feeling of surging vitality.

Without needing to examine it closely, he could guess the reason: "The reason that old mother rat mutated into a house-sized creature must be the effect of this [Son God Ring], including the fluids that were constantly secreted. Good heavens, the White Jade Daoist is more than just a scumbag, he's a beast... No, this fellow was a beast to begin with."

Ge Xian didn't continue guessing, as outside the nest, the sounds of the rat tide scattering and the evil cultivators charging forward suddenly erupted.

Immediately, the White Jade Daoist "strangely" did not put the Son God Ring into his treasure pouch, but instead swallowed it into his stomach.

Then, with a face full of reluctance, he looked at his own treasure, and while looking, he roared anxiously:

"What to do, what to do? Damn Ghoul, damn human cultivators, how dare you destroy my foundation..."

"Ah?"

"Where are my Myriad Laws History Book Fragments? Where are my Son God Logs? Where are my Myriad Laws Jade Talismans?"

The rat demon's pupils dilated, and he stared intently at the empty jade stone table, issuing the three fatal questions.

Just as he was about to ponder the answers, he, as a demon monster infinitely close to the Foundation Establishment Realm, finally sensed a terrifying danger at this moment.

Unfortunately, it was too late.

ROAR!

A Dragon's Roar exploded. He watched with his own eyes as a human corpse lying in a pool of blood beside him instantly transformed into an extremely ferocious "Dragonman."

This Dragonman did not announce his name, nor did he utter any threats. He lunged forward without a sound, one deadly dragon claw smashing towards his rotting rat head, while the other dragon claw, under his terrified gaze, reached for the treasure pouch hanging at his waist.

Who is this monster?

Why does he want to kill me?

How does he know where my treasure pouch is?

The White Jade Daoist had enough intelligence. If he were given time, he could calmly ponder, struggle with all his might, and even counter-kill.

Even though he was at the end of his strength, he still had the power to fight.

But he could never have imagined an anomaly like Ge Xian, who was cunning and shameless on one hand, and even more astonishingly, possessed an anti-species nature.

It should be known that no matter who they were originally, as long as they cultivated the Dragon Clan Secret Technique, they would become arrogant, disdainful of mingling with inferior races, and even less likely to wallow in blood and filth.

Yet Ge Xian was willing to lie in the filth, feigning death. He chose the most opportune moment to strike, moving like lightning. Not only that, but he deliberately made the White Jade Daoist fall into deep thought, his mind nearly burning out, leaving him with no time to mount any effective counterattack.

In an instant? Or perhaps even less time, accompanied by a "bang."

That not-so-pleasant, ugly, rotting White Jade Rat Head shattered.

The underground emperor's dream of this rat demon enfeoffing officials and marrying a hundred consorts was shattered along with it.

As he crushed the rat demon's head with one claw, Ge Xian's other claw snatched the Scenery Treasure Pouch.

The moment it landed in his grasp, he understood why the demon hadn't placed the treasures and the item called the Son God Ring into a storage treasure despite possessing one.

The pouch was full!

Although Ge Xian desperately wanted to open the pouch at this moment to see what was inside, as there wasn't even a sliver of empty space, the danger he sensed now made his head ring.

Two Ghoul Generals and a horde of Evil Cultivators were swarming from various tunnels toward the nest. They were extremely close, as if they would break in the next moment.

The expressions of "reluctance," "hesitation," and "distress" that had appeared on the White Jade Daoist's face not long ago now manifested on Ge Xian's.

He had no time to think, no time to search the treasures for rare items.

He could only stomp his foot fiercely, then use his senses to find the safest tunnel. A Dragon Shadow fled, vanishing from the nest in the blink of an eye.

Just as Ge Xian escaped, two ferocious ghostly figures and dozens of Evil Cultivators' figures successively darted into the rat's nest.

After a meticulous investigation, the cultivators each drew their conclusions:

"Someone beat us to it. They first killed the White Jade Old Thief's wife, lured him here, and then used a sneak attack to kill the old Daoist."

"They killed two demons with just two strikes, without any hesitation. Although the White Jade Old Thief was crippled by our two senior brothers, such ruthless methods mean they must be no ordinary person."

"Is it a Dragon Species? Or a human cultivator who has cultivated the Dragon Clan Secret Technique."

"Huh? If it's a Dragon Species, why didn't they snatch those treasures? You know, among the bad habits of most Dragon Species and Dragon Cultivators, there's 'hoarding treasures,' which they find almost unbearable."

"I suppose they were disturbed by us and only killed the demons, unable to take the spoils of war in time."

"In that case, won't we benefit?"

"Excellent!"

"Let's split it, let's split it! We brothers won't go back on our word. We'll divide all the money, grain, and treasures the rat demon hid equally."

After a few exchanges, the Ghoul Generals and the group of cultivators all chuckled and unceremoniously began dividing the loot.

At the same moment, on the ground.

Ge Xian had quietly reverted to his human form, emerged from the ground, and rejoined the Propaganda Team without a trace. He began to comfort the frightened townspeople alongside the Peddlers and Foot Merchants.

While comforting them, he himself felt immense distress.

Of the White Jade Old Thief's treasures, he had taken four items. The rest had gone to the Ghoul General and the Evil Cultivators.

Logically, Ge Xian should have been content. After all, he wasn't the "main force" in the fighting. He was merely a profiteer who took advantage of the situation from the sidelines. Since he had already obtained the four most valuable items among the treasures, why would he have any objections? Did he want to swallow them all?

That's right, Ge Xian examined himself. He truly did want to swallow them all.

Back in the Rat's Nest, if he hadn't been awakened by the crisis, he would have found a way to take all the treasures with him.

This realization startled Ge Xian, and he thought to himself:

"This shouldn't be. I should be content, even happy."

"Could it be that I've also developed a bad habit?"

"A collecting habit? A hoarding habit?"

As this thought arose, Ge Xian tested himself, trying his best to think clearly and discern the pros and cons to suppress the itch in his heart. He quickly returned to normal.

He couldn't help but relax slightly. As far as he knew, if a cultivator forcibly suppressed a "bad habit," they would suffer a backlash, and in severe cases, their soul would split.

Judging by his current state, he should be fine. Even if he had developed a habit, it was extremely mild. Moreover, a collecting habit couldn't really be considered a bad habit.

Ge Xian didn't have time to ponder further. Soon, the two ghosts, Zhang Buzu and Zhao Wuyou, led a group of Evil Cultivators, all beaming with joy, back to the surface from underground.

He glanced at the sky. Without giving the thousands of surviving townspeople any chance to struggle, he immediately gave the order:

"Quickly pack your belongings and head to Nantai Town to rendezvous. Then, we will all proceed to Qiantang County together."

"You only have half an incense stick's time. Do not be late."

Nantai Town, Anle Town. Although the demons that occupied them and the methods of subjugation were different, the outcome was the same.

The mortal townspeople were completely unable to resist the Guard Team.

They obediently packed their belongings and merged into a migration team of seven to eight thousand people, heading towards Qiantang County.

Even with the Guard Team's best efforts to protect them and Ge Xian's Supernatural Perception guiding them, it was inevitable that some of the old and weak would get lost or fall behind, only to be snatched away by some opportunistic Demonic Creatures.

As the sky darkened, the journey finally came to a successful conclusion.

Just like yesterday, the Propaganda Team received rewards, and the Guard Team members each gained considerable spoils.

The residents of Nantai and Anle towns, who had been quite reluctant at first, cheered up upon seeing the money, grain, and land deeds.

If one were to be completely honest, this was a great thing.

Not only were they given food, but they also received free housing and land.

This allowed them to transition from villagers and townspeople to become County Residents of Qiantang.

Under normal circumstances, for these people from the countryside outside the city to own property and land deeds within Qiantang County, those who were unmarried would definitely not be able to achieve it. Even for those who were married and had established families, they would need the bride's dowry and to empty the coffers of both families to have even a slim chance.

With such a great opportunity delivered to their doorstep, how could they not be happy?