Chapter Eight: Harvest

That night, Ji Xun gazed at the Hundred Beast Insect not far away. He moved swiftly, reaching out with his right hand to grab it. Just as he was about to succeed, a Blue-feathered Sparrow swooped down from the sky, snatching the insect up before him. The bird’s claws slashed, leaving a bloody mark on the back of Ji Xun’s hand.

Hovering in the air, the Blue-feathered Sparrow devoured the Hundred Beast Insect and then issued a sharp, mocking cry, as if ridiculing Ji Xun. Despite having his prey stolen, his hand wounded, and being mocked, Ji Xun showed not the slightest anger.

With a thought, a drop of pure Hundred Beast blood appeared in his palm. At its emergence, the sparrow’s eyes widened, transfixed. Its body transformed into a dart, its sharp beak brimming with monstrous energy, shooting straight toward Ji Xun.

Just as the beak was about to pierce the blood, a large hand pressed down hard on the bird's body. In that instant, the hand burned with fiery vitality, thick Yang energy forming an ethereal beast claw. Ji Xun gripped the bird tightly, his force making its bones creak and groan. At the same time, he withdrew the Hundred Beast blood with his left hand, and with a sharp crack, snapped the bird demon’s neck.

Man dies for wealth, bird dies for food.

"This bird demon is low in intelligence and quite ferocious, likely a savage beast," Ji Xun mused.

He then placed the bird demon into the Demon Refining Vessel, where profound energies swirled around the bird’s body, refining it. Ji Xun sprang lightly away from the scene.

This was a neighboring village to Ji Xun’s own. He had hunted so many Hundred Beast Insects that the local supply had dwindled, forcing him to seek them elsewhere.

Upon returning to his thatched hut, the big yellow dog came out to greet him.

"Guard the door. Whoever comes, warn me," Ji Xun said, rubbing the dog's head.

The yellow dog was sharp-eared and quick-eyed, and with all the blood ginseng it had consumed lately, it was only a step away from becoming a demon itself. Yet Ji Xun dared not let it consume the refined blood from the Demon Refining Vessel—it was simply too rare and pure. Should an accident occur and someone discover it, he’d surely be seized for study.

Inside, Ji Xun’s consciousness entered the Demon Refining Vessel. Within it lay a single drop of Hundred Beast blood, a bird corpse, and a drop of intricately patterned blood.

[Blood of the Ba Serpent: Profound-grade superior, impure yet potent, capable of optimizing Ba Serpent lineage.]

Ji Xun swallowed the Ba Serpent blood directly, circulating part of the Celestial Demon Transformation Method to refine it.

By dawn, he had fully assimilated the Ba Serpent blood and gained a new innate ability.

Profound-grade intermediate ability: Ba Serpent Swallows Elephant.

Lines of mysterious runes manifested in Ji Xun’s stomach, followed by an overwhelming sensation of hunger.

Starved and dizzy, Ji Xun took out a blood ginseng root, biting off half and swallowing it. As it slid down his throat, his stomach’s terrifying digestive power broke it down swiftly, releasing waves of pure vital energy throughout his body.

"This ability is truly fierce. Before, eating a few ginseng rootlets would take a day or two to digest. Now, my digestive power must be dozens of times greater," Ji Xun thought.

Now, he could consume stones, bones, even beasts of his own rank without trouble—only the speed of digestion would vary.

"But one must not overindulge in innate abilities. Yi Xuan’s fate is a cautionary tale," he reminded himself.

He recalled when Yi Xuan slew the Ying Dragon—meat from sky, earth, and sea, enough for a dozen imperial banquets.

"Refining abilities and demon blood must always be approached with utmost caution."

[Ba Serpent Swallows Elephant: Profound-grade intermediate. An ancestral ability of the Ba Serpent clan, able to swallow prey many times its own size, with extreme digestion.]

It wasn’t that the ability itself was fixed at this grade; rather, its strength depended on the Ba Serpent blood consumed, and could grow with it. Serpent demons with Ba Serpent lineage might awaken abilities of varying grades, depending on the purity of their bloodline.

With a thought, Ji Xun withdrew the Ba Serpent Swallows Elephant ability from his body, sending it into the Demon Refining Vessel. At this moment, Ji Xun’s entire being was devoid of demonic aura, indistinguishable from an ordinary human.

"It seems I can freely shift between demon hybrid and pureblood human form—how convenient."

"In a while, when the serpent demons’ notoriety fades, I’ll relocate and apply for a noble title as Lord Serpent. That would make many things easier."

The origins of demon hybrids were widely debated. Some said it was due to ancestors from other demon clans. Others claimed it came from excessive refining of demon blood, altering the lineage of later generations. Still others thought exposure to rare materials and treasures could cause new bloodlines to emerge.

Yet most demon clan bloodlines became diluted over generations, even disappearing entirely. So even if an ancestor had great demon lineage, descendants could still be pureblood humans. The same held true for other demon clans.

Ji Xun opened the door to find the yellow dog still guarding the entrance. He waved it inside, signaling it to stay in the hut.

He himself was about to begin his final day of work.

Hundred Beast Grass was harvested monthly—planted at the start, reaped at the end. Today was the last day of October, the village’s day of bounty.

In November, December, and January, due to the cold and fallow fields, there was no need to plant. But in these three months, farm laborers could be drafted for other tasks, and many would freeze or die from exhaustion.

Ji Xun pulled up the Hundred Beast Grass within his assigned plot, releasing a thick, lingering fishy odor from the roots that would not dissipate for days. This was one reason why laborers avoided the grass—once uprooted, its scent clung stubbornly.

During this process, supervisors patrolled, and laborers could even report each other for rewards.

By noon, Ji Xun had finished organizing his grass and loaded it onto a wooden cart. This month, his harvest was fifty percent higher than usual, just enough to meet the village head’s requirements—a result of irrigating with Hundred Beast blood.

Watching the supervisors haul the grass away, Ji Xun let out a sigh of relief. The next three months, he could focus on quietly improving himself.

...

The evening of the last day of each month was a major event for the farm laborers. On this day, the village head distributed demon coins—about thirty a person.

Copper, silver, and gold in this world were all special minerals capable of carrying spiritual and demonic energy. Thus, the mints of all great demon nations infused these minerals with demon energy for use as currency.

A thousand copper demon coins made a string, equal to one tael of demon silver. One hundred taels of demon silver equaled one tael of demon gold. In practice, however, there were fluctuations: a tael of demon gold was often worth more than a hundred taels of demon silver.

There were also spirit stones, though rarely used in the Serpent Kingdom; typically, a low-grade spirit stone equaled one demon silver.

Thirty demon coins were hardly enough for a family to survive the three winter months, so everyone stocked up on food before the cold set in.

As the sun was about to set, the farm laborers gathered early, eagerly awaiting their reward.

The village head arrived late, his belly protruding, followed by seven or eight burly men. Upon arrival, he barked, "A bunch of lowly mongrels, hurry up and collect your coins. If night falls, none of you will get a single demon coin."