On the other side, inside the cellar.

Shortly after Liou Yuan left, the village elder, leaning on his cane, spoke some flattering words to Qiu Ming with a smile.

"So you’re a disciple from a family of cultivators, no wonder you have such an extraordinary demeanor."

The village elder also noticed that Qiu Ming didn’t seem to want the crowd and children to get too close, so since there was a high disciple of the Five Extremes Immortal Sect around, he found an excuse and led the people away from the cellar to return to their homes.

Leaving only Qiu Ming and the group of children in the cellar.

With fewer people, Qiu Ming relaxed, picked up a jar of aged wine from the cellar, and began drinking it straight from the mouth.

In front of him were side dishes to go with the wine, specially prepared by skillful women from the town on the elder’s order.

Qiu Ming devoured the wine and dishes, ending up with a greasy face.

The children watched him eagerly.

Qiu Ming took a closer look at these little ones, noticing each of them appeared emaciated.

Thinking that life in the mountains is mostly hard, the table full of wine and dishes might have been gathered from several households in Yongquan Town.

"What are you staring at? Come and eat!"

Qiu Ming waved his hand broadly, gesturing at the table full of dishes.

Most of the children, probably warned by their parents, just swallowed their saliva but didn’t approach.

Only a bold six-year-old boy came over with a smile, sat next to Qiu Ming, and spoke sweetly: "Big brother, the immortals from the Five Extremes Mountain flying high in the sky all day are so enviable. Do you think I am suitable for cultivation?"

Qiu Ming was drinking the wine with his head down, without raising, he replied casually.

"Didn’t the guide from the Five Extremes Mountain come to your town this year?"

The boy was already less than three feet away from Qiu Ming.

Just at that moment, a loud blast sounded from above the cellar.

"Fool, the Baby-eating Mink is right next to you."

Qiu Ming’s expression instantly became solemn, and he quickly turned his head towards the boy who was less than three feet away.

None of the children in the cellar dared to come forward except for this boy after just one sentence from him.

Combining Liou Yuan’s shouted warning, even without thinking, Qiu Ming already had some suspicion towards this child.

Sure enough, just as he shifted his gaze, he saw the boy leap high, his young knee, with a force no human could exert, smashed towards his face.

A gray mist swirled around the knee.

As soon as the knee moved, a gust of wind was stirred up in the cellar, blowing out the oil lamps.

"You little beast!"

Qiu Ming cursed angrily. At such close range and caught off guard, he was seemingly unable to dodge this attack.

In a moment of crisis, a brownish glow erupted from his body.

It happened just in time to cover his entire body before the boy’s attack landed on him.

Boom! A dull thud echoed in the cellar.

Qiu Ming’s head was struck to the side by the knee, causing his neck to tilt off slightly.

Given his robust flesh, had it been anyone else at the Qi Cultivation Fourth Layer, even if their head wasn’t smashed, their neck would be snapped.

Qiu Ming was visibly enraged, his hair standing on end, and he roared furiously: "Die!"

Without hesitation, he lifted his fist, wrapped in a brown spiritual light, and punched the boy in the abdomen.

Boom! The boy’s body was lifted by Qiu Ming’s punch, floating briefly.

After the punch, Qiu Ming’s expression darkened.

Because after his punch, the boy’s body deflated like a punctured balloon, slumping into an eerie position.

In the end, only a glossy, elastic human skin remained, hanging from Qiu Ming’s fist.

Before he could even comprehend this strange event.

A beast claw covered in gray fur tore through the human skin, attacking towards his lower body.

The claw was wrapped in pale gray mist, its cold claws reflecting a chilling light under the cellar’s candlelight.

Qiu Ming didn’t dodge at all, charging forward like a bull, ignoring the beast claw’s attack.

Boom!

The thing hiding behind the human skin was forcibly knocked out by Qiu Ming’s brute force charge.

Then fell harshly against the earthen wall of the cellar, creating a dent.

Meanwhile, the creature’s appearance was revealed to Qiu Ming.

It was small in stature, only the height of an adult woman.

Its gray fur was like a fog-stained, varied in shades, covering its body. Each hair exuded a cold, hard texture, like finely forged steel needles.

Its whiskers twitched slightly atop a pointed mouth, and its eyes, like two ghostly green flames, glanced at Qiu Ming with a flash of surprise and malice.

It was the Baby-eating Mink.

Qiu Ming’s full-force charge hadn’t caused it much harm, since the demonic creatures are renowned for their sturdy bodies.

What surprised it was that the big guy in front of it had a physical strength not less than its own.

Clearly, he was only at Qi Cultivation Fourth Layer, yet, even after a sneak attack, it hadn’t succeeded.

The cunning Baby-eating Mink, failing to gain the upper hand with its first strike.

The first reaction was to retreat.

"Squeak!" After a cry, without looking back, it leapt up from the cellar.

It tore open the fragile cellar roof, attempting to escape into the night.

"Where do you think you’re going!" Qiu Ming shouted, taking down the Yellow Jade Axe from his back, ready to pursue.

Suddenly, above the large hole destroyed by the Baby-eating Mink, a spry young figure descended from the sky.

In his hand, he held a bright, glowing longsword, which emitted a silver sword aura, slashing toward the Baby-eating Mink’s rising form.

It was none other than the timely arrival of Liou Yuan.

Suddenly ambushed, the Baby-eating Mink’s eyes flashed viciously. Without thinking, it spat a large mouthful of gray mist toward Liou Yuan.

The surrounding snow and ceiling, once touched by the mist, instantly corroded into a foul-smelling liquid.

"Watch out, it’s poisonous!" Qiu Ming shouted.

Liou Yuan clearly saw the approaching gray mist and was about to employ the Lion’s Roar Spell to shatter the gray fog with his voice.

However, from the corner of his eye, he spotted more than ten terrified children hiding in the cellar.

If he used the Lion’s Roar Spell, these children would have no chance of survival.

"Such restraints!" Liou Yuan cursed under his breath and forcibly retracted the spell already forming in his mouth, opting instead to activate the Yellow Jade Buddhist Beads on his wrist.

Buzz! A bright yellow barrier covered Liou Yuan’s body.

The demon aura from the Baby-eating Mink could not penetrate a bit through the barrier.

While resisting the demon aura, Liou Yuan’s actions didn’t halt.

Spiritual Power from within surged into the Profound Brilliance Sword he held.

The Profound Brilliance Sword emitted its sword aura, and its artifact trait, as heavy as tens of thousands of pounds, was activated, fiercely slashing down toward the Baby-eating Mink below.

The Baby-eating Mink, seeing its means thwarted, could only summon its own defensive measure mid-air, with each hair like a steel needle standing upright like a hedgehog, forming a layer of armor.

It shrank entirely under those steel needles.

Though it couldn’t use magical artifacts, the physical body of the demon beast was itself the best magical artifact.

"Heh!" Seeing this scene, Liou Yuan sneered, his expression mocking.

He hadn’t yet tested the power of the Profound Brilliance Sword.

This Baby-eating Mink was the best test subject.

The heavy Profound Brilliance Sword fell upon the steel needle-like fur of the Baby-eating Mink at that moment.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The hedgehog-like fur of the Baby-eating Mink shattered into countless pieces.

The sword aura emitted from the Profound Brilliance Sword inherently had the power to break through defensive magical artifacts and defense skills.

Even though the Baby-eating Mink’s cultivation was higher than Liou Yuan’s, it was futile.

However, the advantage of high cultivation was apparent.

After breaking the Baby-eating Mink’s defense, the sword aura attached to the Profound Brilliance Sword dimmed.

Just as the Baby-eating Mink was showing a mocking expression.

Suddenly, its eyes bulged.

Although the Profound Brilliance Sword lost its sword aura, the blade still landed on its flesh.

The powerful force pressed the Baby-eating Mink’s body, giving a feeling of suffocation.

It was as if a massive stone weighing a thousand pounds had smashed into its body.

Its body twisted under the weight of ten thousand forces, with who knows how many bones broken.

Then, it was wrapped by that unstoppable force, falling harshly onto the snowy ground.

Bang! Snow mixed with soil splattered.

The Baby-eating Mink’s body was embedded directly into the ground, with blood oozing from its mouth and nose.

Perhaps it was shocked by Liou Yuan’s sword, or maybe knowing there was also Qiu Ming in the cellar, it felt it couldn’t win against two.

It struggled to stand and was about to run from the pit.

"Trying to run!" Liou Yuan shouted, determined to thwart its escape.

As soon as he landed, he sprinted toward the Baby-eating Mink with the Profound Brilliance Sword.

His Five Mansions shook in unison, his physical strength increasing several times, and the Yunwu Prefecture was pushed to its limit.

He didn’t have sword techniques, only absolute power.

The Baby-eating Mink, wary, glanced at the Profound Brilliance in Liou Yuan’s hand, not daring to face the sword, and with its limbs digging into the ground, it sped away at a pace countless times faster than Liou Yuan, its body skimming the surface like sliding, darting toward the dense houses of Yongquan Town.

If it hid among those densely-packed buildings, with its ability to conceal, no one would be able to find it.

"This treacherous beast has quite the cunning mind." Liou Yuan saw through its intentions, cursing angrily.

Speed was indeed his weakness.

While the Baby-eating Mink excelled in speed.

The only reason it was at a disadvantage and passive just now was due to the small space in the cellar, suffering greatly under Qiu Ming and Liou Yuan’s hands.

If they fought in an open area, Liou Yuan’s cumbersome Profound Brilliance Sword would be extremely hard-pressed to hit it.

Just when Liou Yuan almost thought the Baby-eating Mink would escape this time.

Oddly enough, after gaining some distance, the Baby-eating Mink suddenly turned its head, its blood-stained beast face showing resentment, glaring at Liou Yuan’s face as if to remember his features.

"Ha!" Liou Yuan’s expression, which was rather grim before, suddenly became filled with mockery.

"Aren’t you courting death?" 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

His pupils suddenly emitted a purple hue, and the purple radiance surged under Liou Yuan’s Spiritual Power.

Evil Eyes!

Although the gap between the Baby-eating Mink and Liou Yuan extended several zhang.

Yet in the instant Liou Yuan’s gaze changed.

It seemed to see something terrifying, those human-like eyes filled with fear, and its entire body stiffened.