Swallow Silt to Transform Origin! Let the Whole Village Feast on Demon Meat!

"Nothing much."

Yang Xiao glanced at Li Tie, his expression calm.

"That Pig Demon tried to enter the village and abduct people. I stopped him."

"He begged for mercy before he died. Said he was willing to submit, and even tried to trade a secret about Three-Demon Mountain for his life."

Li Tie's pupils contracted slightly.

A secret about Three-Demon Mountain... He forced down his panic, keeping his face impassive.

"Oh? A secret about Three-Demon Mountain?"

"Mm." Yang Xiao nodded. "But I ignored him and killed him."

Li Tie breathed a silent sigh of relief.

Thankfully, Yang Xiao did not seem to know about his collusion with the Pig Demon. But a deep fear soon rose within him.

Yang Xiao was a monster. He had killed a Pig Demon in the Qi Gathering Realm just like that, and from his unruffled manner, it seemed to have taken little effort.

If he finds out I've been colluding with Demons...

Li Tie did not dare think any further.

"Head Constable Yang did the right thing." He forced out a smile. "A man-eating Demon like that certainly shouldn't have been left alive."

Yang Xiao nodded faintly, then turned and called Zhao Tieniu and the others over to help carry the Pig Demon's massive corpse back.

The other Yamen Runners followed slowly behind, carrying the villagers the Pig Demon had snatched away.

Li Tie walked last, watching Yang Xiao's back with a dark gaze.

That Pig Demon was utterly useless. A great Demon that had lived for over a hundred years couldn't even handle a greenhorn.

And now I have to explain this to Three-Demon Mountain...

The boy's barely arrived, and he's already caused me a huge problem. I don't even know whether calling him here to test him was a good idea or a bad one.

Moonlight spilled like water across the bluestone ground.

Yang Xiao stayed alone in the courtyard and took the Pig Demon's Inner Core from his robes.

The dark-red Inner Core radiated dense Demonic Qi. It was the size of a fist and still warm to the touch.

[Usable equipment detected: Qi Gathering Demonic Core (single-use)]

[Effect One: Replenishes the spiritual energy of three Apertures.]

[Effect Two: Gain trait (Green) Purifying Silt to Transform Origin: Digest filth, impurities, and Demon flesh to squeeze a small amount of spiritual energy from them and increase cultivation.]

[Equip "Qi Gathering Demonic Core" in an Equipment Slot?]

Both slots in the Equipment Slot were empty, so Yang Xiao placed it straight in.

A vast surge of Demon Power poured from the Demon Core into his body.

Yang Xiao grunted as the meridians throughout his body shuddered violently.

Perhaps because this Pig Demon was still fairly young, this Demon Power was stronger and more violent than the Dog Demon's Inner Core!

The Origin-Guiding Qi Gathering Art began circulating on its own, finding suitable vacant Apertures in his body to contain the power.

The Demon Power coursed through him, absorbed by his Apertures one after another.

The fifth Aperture... the sixth Aperture... the seventh Aperture... opened!

A powerful aura erupted from Yang Xiao.

Qi Gathering Seven Apertures!

[Solidification successful!]

[Trait gained: Purifying Silt to Transform Origin (Green). Digest filth, impurities, and Demon flesh to squeeze a small amount of spiritual energy from them and increase cultivation.]

Yang Xiao slowly opened his eyes. Feeling the abundant power within him, he smiled with satisfaction.

At Qi Gathering Seven Apertures, with his perfected martial arts and various traits, he was confident he could fight even a warrior with seven or eight Apertures.

He stood and looked at the Pig Demon's enormous corpse, which had been dragged into the courtyard.

Under the moonlight, the corpse gave off a fishy stench. Its black bristles were caked with blood, and its huge body rose like a small hill.

An unexpected thought stirred in him.

This thing...

Can't go to waste.

The next morning.

The villagers of Li Family Hamlet woke to a strange fragrance.

It was rich and mellow, like some rare delicacy, and it made their stomachs growl.

"What's that smell?"

"It smells so good..."

"Where's it coming from?"

The villagers pushed open their doors and followed the scent.

White, fragrant steam drifted above the village entrance. Through it, they could make out a huge shape.

The villagers drew closer out of curiosity, then froze at the sight before them.

A huge iron pot stood at the village entrance. Firewood blazed beneath it, and the broth inside bubbled, releasing a mouthwatering aroma.

Beside the pot, the Head Constable who had arrived yesterday had set up a huge worktable.

He held a sharp boning knife and was carving something on the table.

"Head... Head Constable Yang?"

A villager ventured the question.

Yang Xiao looked up and gave the villagers a slight nod.

"Come over. I'm handing out meat."

The villagers exchanged baffled looks.

No one dared move first. They just stood there, watching several Yamen Runners bustle about before them.

Zhao Tieniu crouched beneath the worktable, feeding more wood into the firebox, sweat covering his face.

Sun Ming stood on a wooden stool beside the pot, stirring the meat soup with a long wooden pole.

The brothers Zhou Qiang and Zhou Gang had gathered bowls and chopsticks from empty courtyards and arranged them neatly to one side.

"What... what are you doing?"

A middle-aged woman could not help asking.

Yang Xiao set down the boning knife and pointed to the Pig Demon's corpse nearby.

"That's the man-eating Pig Demon."

"I killed him last night."

The villagers followed his finger and only then noticed the enormous black corpse.

"A... a Demon!"

"That's the man-eating Demon?"

"Heavens, it's huge!"

The villagers cried out in alarm, their eyes full of fear.

Yang Xiao waved a hand.

"He's dead. Come over. One portion each."

The villagers paused, then realized he meant to give each of them a share of the food.

Could they eat a Demon?

"Can we really eat it?"

"What if it's poisonous?"

Yang Xiao said evenly, "Eat it or don't. It'll go to waste otherwise."

With that, he picked up the boning knife, cut a piece of meat from the worktable, and chewed it.

He felt a tiny portion of the warmth in his stomach turn into spiritual energy, and his brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.

This trait isn't very efficient. No wonder it's green. It's not even as fast as circulating the Origin-Guiding Qi Gathering Art.

The villagers looked from one another to the next. After a moment, someone finally stepped forward, unable to resist.

"I... I'll have a portion."

It was a young man. He stared at the Demon meat with a trace of fear and resolve.

Yang Xiao put meat in a bowl and ladled in a spoonful of broth. The young man hurriedly took it.

Holding the bowl, the young man hesitantly took a bite.

His eyes lit up at once.

"It's... it's delicious!"

"The meat's so tender! So fragrant!"

Seeing this, the other villagers surged forward.

"Me too!"

"Give me a portion!"

"Head Constable Yang, I'd like some too!"

Yang Xiao handed out the meat in an orderly fashion, and the villagers formed a long line.

"Head Constable Yang, we're running low on firewood." Zhao Tieniu crawled out from under the worktable and wiped his sweat.

"Go get some more." Without looking back, Yang Xiao kept cutting meat at the table.

"Right away!" Zhao Tieniu turned and ran off.

An hour later.

Every scrap of the Pig Demon's flesh had been handed out.

The villagers of Li Family Hamlet held their bowls, squatting or sitting as they ate with relish.

"This meat smells wonderful!"

"I feel warm all over after eating it!"

"Head Constable Yang truly is our benefactor!"

"Bet that damned beast never imagined we'd be the ones eating him..."

The villagers' gratitude toward Yang Xiao showed plainly as they praised him again and again.

Not far away, Li Tie stepped out of his room. When he saw the scene at the village entrance, his face darkened.