Demonic Beast [Gold-Eating Rat]

Half an hour later, Zhou Yang and Elder Zhou Quan, who had received the alarm, arrived outside the mine where the incident occurred.

Dozens of miners had already gathered outside the mine. These people seemed greatly frightened, their faces filled with terror. They barely reacted even when Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan, two cultivators, arrived.

Zhou Yang frowned at the sight.

Although they were mortal miners, they were all clansmen of the Zhou Clan. They had grown up listening to tales of cultivators and demonic beasts. For years, cultivators from the Zhou Clan would bring back various demonic beast corpses to broaden the horizons and bolster the courage of these mortals. Furthermore, teachers at the mortal schools and village officials frequently educated them about the various low-level demonic beasts in the desert. So why were they so terrified by a mere demonic beast?

Moreover, during his years stationed at Qingping Mountain, Zhou Yang had responded to several alarms at the mines to eliminate demonic beasts. While the miners had been frightened then, they had never been as terrified as today, so much so that they had forgotten to pay their respects upon his arrival.

At this moment, his gaze swept around, and he couldn't find the miner who had sounded the alarm. His gaze then sharpened.

"What's going on? What demonic beast attacked the mine? Where is your supervisor?"

Realizing something was amiss, Zhou Yang slightly mobilized his mana and released his unique cultivator's aura. His voice, clear and cold, boomed as he inquired about the situation.

Under the pressure of the mana aura emanating from him, the mortal miners present felt their bodies sink, and many buckled at the knees, collapsing onto the ground.

However, this had the effect Zhou Yang desired, quickly helping the mortal miners recover from their fear of the demonic beast and realize the presence of their "Immortal Master."

"Ah, the Immortal Master has arrived!"

"Immortal Master, save us! There's a demonic beast, a demonic beast killed someone!"

"Save my child, Immortal Master, please save my child! He's still inside the mine and hasn't come out!"

As if waking from a dream, the miners, regardless of whether they had been affected by Zhou Yang's aura earlier, now all knelt on the ground, kowtowing and begging for his help.

If it were Zhou Yang just after descending the mountain, seeing dozens of people kneeling before him might have made him uncomfortable. However, he was very calm now. He didn't even ask them to rise, knowing that for these mortals, kneeling while speaking to a cultivator made them feel more at ease.

He looked at the chattering miners, mobilized some mana, and cast a first-tier support spell, the Bewitching Sound Technique. His voice carried a trace of special charm as he said, "Don't panic. Since I'm here, I will definitely eliminate the demonic beast. Now, answer my questions honestly: Where is your supervisor? What did the demonic beast that killed people look like?"

The miners were merely mortals, and even a first-tier spell was something they couldn't resist.

With the help of the Bewitching Sound Technique, Zhou Yang quickly obtained the information he wanted.

"Replying to the Immortal Master, the supervisor was discovered and eaten by the demonic beast after issuing the distress call. When we heard screams from inside, we fled. None of us saw what the demonic beast looked like. Those who saw it are dead!"

After hearing the miners' account, Zhou Yang turned his gaze to Elder Zhou Quan, who had accompanied him.

The elder, being wise from age, understood his meaning with just a look. He smiled slightly and said, "I'm just here to help. You are the cultivator stationed here, so everything depends on your decision."

Zhou Yang understood. The elder's intention was clear: this was his trial. Unless he couldn't handle it, the elder would certainly not intervene actively.

"Nephew understands. Then, please, Third Grandfather, help escort these miners back. Nephew will go into the mine to eliminate the demonic beast."

He nodded and immediately cupped his hands, stating his decision.

Unexpectedly, upon hearing his words, Zhou Quan's smile vanished, and he glared at Zhou Yang, his face displeased, and roared, "What? Are you implying I'm old and useless? Do you think I'll drag you down if I go with you?"

"Third Grandfather, you misunderstand. Your nephew doesn't mean that. Your nephew is just worried..."

"Worried about what nonsense! Although I'm old, when it comes to combat ability, ten of you youngsters aren't a match for me. Instead of worrying about me, you should worry about yourself. If something happens to you, how can I face the Old Clan Leader back in the clan with any dignity? Do you want me to become a sinner in the eyes of the entire clan?"

Although Elder Zhou Quan was over a hundred years old, his temper hadn't diminished one bit. He appreciated Zhou Yang's good intentions, but he was furious about Zhou Yang's arrangement and berated him on the spot.

Zhou Yang was left speechless by the scolding and could only offer a wry smile and admit his mistake honestly, "Third Grandfather, please calm your anger. Your nephew knows he was wrong. Then, please, Third Grandfather, act as my guardian. We will go into the mine together to eliminate the demonic beast."

"That's more like it!"

The old man's anger subsided slightly, and he accepted his apology.

Thus, they each took out their respective artifact weapons from their storage bags and simultaneously cast the second-tier defensive spell, the Golden Light Body Protection Art, to envelop themselves in a layer of golden protective light before entering the mine entrance one after the other.

The Fine Iron Ore Vein at Qingping Mountain had been mined for decades. The mine tunnels, expanded and reinforced over the years, were now wide enough for two people to pass through simultaneously.

Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan descended along the mine tunnel. Their eyes, enhanced by the Heavenly Eye Technique, gleamed with golden light as they scanned their surroundings. The darkness within the cave did not impede their vision at all.

They moved quickly. In a short while, they reached the initial site of the massacre. In a mining area, they found the discarded clothing and bloodstains of the deceased miners. Then, following the bloodstains and the residual demonic energy from the demonic beast, they quickly found the beast in another mine tunnel, gnawing on a miner's corpse.

It was a rat as large as a wolfdog. Its fur was like steel needles, shimmering coldly. Beneath the fur, its skin faintly reflected a metallic sheen. When Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan discovered it, it was hunched over the stomach of a fallen miner, devouring the corpse.

"Be careful, it's a second-tier high-grade demonic beast, the Gold-Eating Rat!"

Elder Zhou Quan had another identity: the only second-tier Beast Tamer in the Zhou Clan. As soon as he saw the demonic beast, he recognized its origin and warned Zhou Yang.

While cautioning Zhou Yang, he quickly explained the beast's strengths and weaknesses: "The Gold-Eating Rat is named for its fondness for devouring various metals. It becomes a second-tier high-grade demonic beast upon reaching adulthood. Its primary attacks are its teeth and claws, which can even bite through second-tier artifact weapons. In critical moments, it can also launch its fur to injure enemies. The power of its fur is equivalent to a second-tier low-grade flying needle artifact. Furthermore, this beast is skilled in burrowing and likes to attack enemies from behind."

"Moreover, due to its consumption of various metals, the Gold-Eating Rat's fur and bones have extremely strong defenses. Only second-tier high-grade artifact weapons can injure it, or burning it with true fire is also very effective. Additionally, its eyes are its weak points."

While Elder Zhou Quan was speaking, the demonic beast, the Gold-Eating Rat, startled by their presence, stopped feeding and revealed a pair of crimson eyes, looking at them with icy killing intent.

Seeing this, Elder Zhou Quan seemed to have forgotten his earlier statement that everything would depend on Zhou Yang's decision. He directly ordered Zhou Yang in an irrefutable tone, "The Old Clan Leader mentioned that he bestowed that Silver Gang Shield artifact upon you. From now on, you will control this artifact to protect yourself. I happen to have a second-tier high-grade artifact, the Mountain Shaker Hammer, in my hand. I will deal with this demonic beast."

Zhou Yang did not try to be brave. Upon hearing this, he immediately nodded and replied, "Nephew understands. Third Grandfather, you must also be careful. If it's too difficult, we can retreat first and gather more people to deal with this beast later!"

After speaking, he summoned the Silver Gang Shield artifact, enlarged it several times, and made it spin around him, ready to block any attacks from any direction.

Seeing Zhou Yang's obedience, Elder Zhou Quan breathed a sigh of relief. He had been afraid that Zhou Yang, being young and impetuous, would try to be brave and reject such an arrangement, which would have caused him a lot of trouble.

With his worries gone, he waved his hand, released a small, dark green shield artifact to spin around him for protection, then reached out and patted his storage bag, taking out another golden melon-shaped hammer artifact and striking at the Gold-Eating Rat.

Rumble.

Following a deafening roar, the entire mine tunnel shook violently.

Zhou Yang looked over. The area where the Gold-Eating Rat was located had been struck by the golden hammer, creating a pit about ten feet in diameter, but there was no sign of blood.

"Careful, it's coming for you!"

As Zhou Yang's eyes widened, staring into the deep pit, the elder Zhou Quan's shout suddenly rang out from beside him.

Before he could react, a black shadow lunged out from the cave wall next to him, slamming forcefully into the Silver Gang Shield artifact, which had automatically protected its master upon sensing danger.

The Silver Gang Shield, a finely crafted artifact meticulously refined by the Old Clan Leader Zhou Minghan, lived up to its reputation. Although it couldn't unleash its full power without Zhou Yang, its master, directing it, the charge from the second-tier high-grade Demonic Beast, the Gold-Eating Rat, was nonetheless blocked.

However, this single blow had exhausted the mana Zhou Yang had previously infused into the artifact, causing it to fall to the ground after blocking the attack.

"Damn it!"

Zhou Yang cursed inwardly. Snapping back to reality, he quickly mobilized his divine sense to re-establish a connection with the artifact, infusing it with mana again to make it fly up and protect him.

Meanwhile, the Gold-Eating Rat, having missed its strike, cunningly vanished from Zhou Yang and Zhou Quan's sight using its earth-escape technique. This caused the hammer strike Zhou Quan unleashed to miss its mark.

Still too young!

Seeing this, the elder Zhou Quan shook his head inwardly but didn't blame Zhou Yang.

When he was Zhou Yang's age, his reaction to a sudden demonic beast attack was even worse than Zhou Yang's. At least Zhou Yang hadn't screamed in panic and had managed to make a recovery.

Only after Zhou Yang had re-established his defenses did he speak, reminding him, "Little Nine, be alert. When it appears again, I will cast the Finger Points to Steel spell to seal its earth-evasion technique. You must be fully focused then and prevent it from desperately lashing out in its corner!"

"Third Grandfather, rest assured. Your grandnephew will not make the same mistake again!"

Zhou Yang nodded earnestly, his face flushed with shame, and he now maintained a vigilant guard with all his attention.

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