The Demons Fall into a Collapsing Pit

The man muttered to himself and slowly rose to his feet.

He was not short, but he was skin and bones—tall yet gaunt, the flesh over his body stretched taut. His nose was especially prominent, bulging out in an utterly bizarre way.

His nose twitched, drawing in the air and catching the faint scents mixed within it.

With a low, heh-heh chuckle, the man with the bulbous nose flipped into the Mountain God Temple.

"Let's see what happened to Crow, that he actually died here. That mortal... Hm? Crow's scent vanished inside this temple!"

He froze slightly, then swept his gaze around and inspected the temple, confusion written across his face.

"What could there be in such a ruined temple? Dust everywhere, no signs of a fight. Could some secret be hidden here?" As he thought, his gaze landed on the pile of broken earth.

"These clumps of dirt seem to have fallen recently. Though the outer layer is dusty, the scent coming from within is clearly that of something long sealed away and suddenly exposed."

He stepped closer and examined it carefully. After several twitches of his nose, the bulbous-nosed man's eyes abruptly narrowed.

"This is covered in the scent of a mortal. Crow's soul was extinguished, leaving behind not the slightest trace, yet this human is still alive. If I catch him, I'll learn what happened. Reporting it to the general will be a great merit! I might even receive some Living Souls as a reward!"

At the thrilling thought, he let out a low bark and swiftly followed the scent, leaving the Mountain God Temple in the blink of an eye.

Rustle, rustle, rustle...

He moved through the woods, branches and leaves whispering around him.

"Soon! Soon! He's right ahead!"

The faster he pursued, the more excited he became. His tongue gradually hung out as he bent lower and lower, using both hands to rake the ground.

Crash!

He burst through a patch of brush, and the view ahead suddenly opened up. A figure glowing with faint white light leaped into sight. Without a second thought, he pounced!

"Got you!"

He cheered inwardly, but then froze.

"Why is it so small?"

Puzzled, the bulbous-nosed man looked down. Only then did he realize that what he had caught was not a "person" at all, but clearly a wild rabbit!

The rabbit was clutched tightly in his grasp and could not break free. Terror showed in its round, tea-colored eyes.

"What is going on? I clearly followed that mortal's scent all the way here. How did it turn into a rabbit? Could that person not be human at all, but someone who has condensed a Power Soul and taken human form?"

Staring at the rabbit in his hand, the man stood dumbfounded. Looking closer, he discovered that the rabbit was blackish-gray all over, its body covered in a faint layer of white light. The scent his nose had caught was emanating from that very light.

"This light, could it be..."

As uncertainty filled him, his ears suddenly twitched. He heard bursts of movement coming from the surrounding grass. Looking toward the sound, he saw figures of varying heights—more than a dozen of them—approaching from all directions.

"Eh? Why are they here?"

The newcomers came tall and short, some fat as barrels, others thin as poles. Their appearances were even more grotesquely varied. They looked human at first glance, but each possessed some strange trait: some were covered in fur, some had hands hanging below their knees, some bared fangs from their mouths, some had long ears but no noses...

If they ran into the streets, they would immediately frighten people into screaming and scattering.

"Why are you here?"

The "people" emerged from the brush and trees. Noticing the bulbous-nosed man clutching a wild rabbit, they spoke in confusion.

"You all..."

Of course, the bulbous-nosed man knew this group. Including himself, they were all demon soldiers under Wolf General. They had refined only one soul and could not conceal their demon forms, so they could not become personal guards and had instead been sent to search the mountains and forests.

"We were ordered to search Mingyuan Mountain and spread out everywhere. Why have most of us gathered here?"

The bulbous-nosed man's confusion did not last long. As the others drew nearer, small animals began revealing themselves in the grass.

Rabbits, pheasants, wildcats, rats, even weasels.

Every one of those small animals was covered in faint white light.

At the sight, the bulbous-nosed man's pupils suddenly contracted.

"Could this be..."

Bait?

Before the thought could settle, the light on every small animal—including the wild rabbit in his hand—flashed, and the white radiance surged!

"Not good!"

Cries of alarm rose one after another. The white light spread, covering a hundred zhang in an instant. Light also shone up from the ground, answering the glow above.

Crack! Crack!

Rocks shattered and the earth caved in, forming a massive hollow in the blink of an eye!

The bulbous-nosed man and all the others who had gathered there did not even have time to react. As the soil beneath them gave way, they lost their balance and plunged down, their figures vanishing into the depths of the pit.

Rocks and dirt poured down like water bursting through a breached dam.

Smack! Smack! Smack!

In another howling mountain village, Wolf General was standing still when his expression abruptly changed. He reached into his robes, and when he withdrew his hand, a rustling clatter rang out as a heap of jade fragments fell like dense rain.

"What happened? What happened! Who has such audacity? To actually... actually..."

Wolf General's eyes suddenly turned bloodshot, and veins as thick as fingers bulged across his face.

The veins spread like old trees putting down roots, extending throughout his entire body.

Shatter!

The clothes over his body burst apart, revealing a burly physique, every cord of muscle sharply defined.

Tremble!

Every muscle quivered faintly, rippling with vibrations.

The next instant, fur burst through his skin and spread across his entire body.

"Awooo!"

A long howl erupted from his gradually swelling, bloodthirsty maw, his exhalation shooting forth in a concentrated stream!

Rumble, rumble, rumble!

From within Mingyuan Mountain, the sound of collapse carried far into the distance, spreading through the surrounding area. It could be heard clearly even at the edge of the forest.

"I have been in these mountains for decades and hold the rank of Mountain God. Though no one worships me and I cannot gather Incense and Fire Prayer Power, my perception is joined with the divine seal, and I know every part of this mountain like the back of my hand. Naturally, I knew a massive fissure lay hidden within, leading straight into the depths."

At the forest's edge, Qiu Yan stopped and listened closely. Two cold glints shone in his eyes, standing in stark contrast to his refined, slightly pale face.

"I am merely a Lesser God. Once I leave the temple altar, I lose my foundation and support. And this newly acquired body is faintly independent of me; I cannot wield Divine Power through it. Forget a group of demons—even against one demon alone, victory or defeat would be hard to predict. Yet human strength is sometimes exhausted, while the strength of heaven and earth is endless. Within this Mingyuan Mountain, to destroy an enemy, one does not necessarily have to face them head-on."

The distant rumbling gradually ceased. Qiu Yan lowered his head and looked at his right hand, which gripped a green robe rolled into a bundle.

The green robe had originally been shrouded in white light, but it had now dimmed.

"After decades without worship, I could not gather prayer power. Relying only on the fear hunters entering the mountain and forest beasts held for these woods, I condensed ten Divine Power Stars. In less than half a day, they have nearly been depleted. Just now, controlling the forest animals and sinking the earth used another two and a half. Only the last two remain, but..."

With that thought in mind, he started walking.

"Since I have borne this Karma, I cannot pretend that the dozens of lives throughout that village never happened. For now, I am merely collecting some interest."

The cold gleam remained in his eyes, but Qiu Yan staggered and nearly fell. He had yet to gain full control over this body. Fortunately, after absorbing that drop of Blood Essence, his flesh, bones, and muscles had become more than three times tougher, greatly increasing his strength and keeping him from falling easily.

Stumbling along, Qiu Yan left the bounds of Mingyuan Mountain. The instant he crossed out of it, the divine true body attached to the green robe suddenly sank, feeling its bond with Mingyuan Mountain—like milk blending with water—cut off at once.

He paused briefly, thoughts turning in his mind.

"Though I was forced into taking this step, if I remained, my future would be uncertain. Even if I could drag out a miserable existence, I would only be trapped in that temple, silently rotting away. From what the Crow Demon said, Mountain-Passing Great King seemed to be searching for mountain earth deities. He surely meant no good. If I stayed in the mountains, he would sooner or later discover me, and the consequences would be dire. Mingyuan Mountain belongs to the Nine Spirits Mountain Range, yet I have never sensed the presence of the Great Mountain God of the Nine Spirits. There must be some reason behind that as well. Going into the human world will be a good chance to investigate from many sides."

Having reached this decision, Qiu Yan hesitated no longer and staggered northward.

Half an hour later, amid booming thunder, a gigantic wolf one zhang tall burst through the forest and charged straight into the mountain.

The forest shook, and flocks of birds took flight in panic.

By then, the sun had set, the moon hung over the treetops, and night had blanketed all of Mingyuan Mountain.