With more people, the speed of their journey slowed down.
The thirty-odd bandits, starting from Mado, all had smiles on their faces. It was as though they had seen hope and happiness. Their needs were actually very simple. They just wanted to be able to eat their fill and be safe.
Mado felt that he had done the right thing. By bringing them along, at least everyone could eat their fill for the next few days. In just five days, the originally sallow and emaciated children now had rosy complexions and seemed to have gained some weight. The same went for the women. They could eat their fill every day and looked better than before.
They originally had six children, but unfortunately, the other three were too young and did not survive. In a poor bandit nest like theirs, the survival rate of children was even lower. Those who survived were all very lucky.
With so many people in the group, Gu Zheng had no way of lodging in the homes of other villagers. With so many people, the villagers did not dare to let them in. They could only stay with them and eat and sleep in the open every day.
Fortunately, five days later, they encountered a large market and exchanged for two horses. Gu Zheng also made two simple carriages. This way, the children and the emaciated women could travel in the carriages. They could also carry more food.
Gu Zheng and company traveled a thousand miles from Wujia Town for twenty days. They traveled an average of twenty-five miles a day. It was more than twice as slow as when they left. Regardless, they had finally returned to Huiyuan Village.
"How could this be? Where are the villagers?"
Aunt Cui happily entered the village, but she soon became alarmed. There was no sound or any signs of life in the village. Aunt Cui entered a few houses, but there was no one. There was dust everywhere. It was obvious that no one had lived there for a long time.
Not only that, but some of the houses were in a mess. It was obvious what had happened.
"Wu You, Mado!"
Gu Zheng's expression sank as he immediately called out. Wu You and Mado went forward together and looked at Gu Zheng.
"The two of you, ride those two horses and immediately check the surrounding villages. If there's anyone, ask them what's going on!"
Gu Zheng instructed them. The two immediately obeyed. They had three horses, but the little white dragon absolutely did not allow anyone to ride it. They could only ride the other two. Wu You was familiar with the area, and Mado was a smart person. It was best for the two of them to scout the area.
"Aunt Cui, let's go home first!"
Gu Zheng called out to Aunt Cui. Aunt Cui was already crying. In fact, Gu Zheng also knew that the village was in trouble.. and all of this had something to do with him.
Back then, he was weak and could only escape. Otherwise, it would have been useless for him to stay. For the sake of the villagers, he spread the news, hoping that the villagers would go into hiding. However, he didn't know how many people would believe him and how many people would really go into hiding.
Now, it seemed that the monster was definitely here for revenge. He just did not know how much damage they had suffered.
This could not be helped. From the moment Gu Zheng entered the preaching site, it was already destined. Unless he was willing to be captured and let the two people take him away. However, this was impossible. Although Gu Zheng did not kill indiscriminately, he was not a pedantic person who would sacrifice himself for others.
To put it bluntly, he was responsible. However, the monster was the one who killed and ate people. It did not make sense to put all the blame on him.
The root of all this was still the monster. The monster had been eating the hearts of children like them for a long time and deceiving them. As the monster continued to grow and become stronger, their losses would only increase. Sooner or later, such a day would come.
Aunt Cui returned to her house. Her house was already in a mess. It was obvious that it had been searched.
Thankfully, Gu Zheng had taken her away. If she had stayed, the outcome would have been obvious. The monster would not show mercy to anyone. Unless it was someone like the two people from before who had helped him harm others, he would not have spared them.
Wu You and Mado soon returned. The two of them found a nearby village. There were people in the village and they asked about the situation.
Back then, the monster had indeed come to find the person who had killed his subordinates. After capturing them, the captured people quickly told him who had killed his subordinates. Therefore, he came to Hui Yuan Village.
Only half of the people in Hui Yuan Village hid. This was because they knew that Gu Zheng and Aunt Cui were in their village. Therefore, they chose to believe it and hide first. The remaining half who did not hide were almost all cruelly killed by the monster.
The monster even said that if Gu Zheng did not return the treasure to him within a year, he would return and continue slaughtering the village.
As such, the people in Hui Yuan Village naturally did not dare return. The remaining half of the people moved collectively. No one knew where they went. At least, the nearby villagers did not know. No one in the vicinity dared to take them in. All they could do was send them far away.
"Another village that has been harmed by a monster. If the monster isn't eliminated, our lives won't be peaceful!"
Mado hammered the tree beside him so hard that the skin on his hand broke. He hated demons the most. His home had been harmed by demons. In the end, only the four of them escaped. The four of them were lucky; otherwise, they would not have been able to escape.
This village had also been harmed by demons. It resonated with him.
"Aunt Cui, don't worry. I'm partly responsible for this matter. I'll definitely avenge you!"
Gu Zheng comforted Aunt Cui. Half of the villagers had been harmed, and he had seen most of them. He did not feel good about it.
However, this was the Primeval Age. Not to mention now, even in the Primeval Age where the human race ruled in the future, there would still be phenomena of demons harming people. However, at that time, the demons were not so rampant. The smart ones did not dare to harm people. Only a few foolish demons would harm people. Once they were discovered, they would be quickly eliminated.
Unfortunately, this was not the time. At this time, the human race was still very weak. Even if some immortals could help the villagers take revenge, the number was limited. Most of the villagers who had been harmed could not be redressed.
"Mado, Wu You, lead everyone to the prefectural city first!"
Gu Zheng suddenly said. His original plan was to go to Aunt Cui's house and let everyone settle down. Now, it seemed impossible. There was no one in the village. Even if they stayed, it would not be safe.
Gu Zheng had previously planned to go to the prefectural city. Later, he changed his plan because of the demons. Now, he was just bringing his original plan forward.
"Young Master, what about you?"
Mado looked at Gu Zheng worriedly. Although he looked rough, he was smarter than Wu You. When Gu Zheng said that, he already understood what Gu Zheng meant.
"I'll take revenge for everyone. Don't worry. I have the confidence to deal with that demon!"
Gu Zheng's eyes flashed with sharpness. He originally did not plan to find the demon so quickly. Although he had the Immortal-Slaying Gourd, it was not omnipotent. It was best to let him cultivate to the fourth level and reach the Heaven Immortal Realm before he went.
However, the fate of the villagers in Hui Yuan Village made it impossible for him to continue waiting. If he continued waiting, he would only blame himself. Regardless, he was partly responsible. If he had not exposed everything, the demon would not have come looking for him, nor would it have harmed so many people in Hui Yuan Village.
He had to take revenge. And he had to do it now.
"I'll go too!"
Taotie suddenly said. Although he only knew how to play and didn't speak much, he understood the danger Gu Zheng was in at critical moments. Therefore, he wanted to follow.
"You can't go. Little White Dragon and I will go. You will go to the prefectural city with everyone. We will set off early tomorrow morning!"
Gu Zheng immediately shook his head. If Taotie had cultivated to the Heaven Immortal Realm, it would have been fine for him to go. However, he had yet to do so. At that moment, Taotie was only one step away from the Heaven Immortal Realm. He could break through at any time.
If Taotie cultivated like him, he would probably have broken through long ago. Unfortunately, their personalities were completely different. It was impossible for Taotie to be like him. There was no need to talk about such hypotheticals.
"I'm more confident if I'm alone. You have to follow Aunt Cui and the rest. If anyone bullies them along the way, they won't be bullied with you around!"
Seeing Taotie staring at him, Gu Zheng coaxed him again. Aunt Cui and the rest were with so many people. The possibility of them being bullied along the way was not high. Gu Zheng said that to coax Taotie so that he could leave with him.
If Taotie followed him, he would not be a helper. Instead, he would be a burden. At this time, they could only separate.
"Remember, protect Aunt Cui and the rest. Wait for me to join you!"
Gu Zheng said to Taotie. Taotie nodded reluctantly. Since arriving in Untainted Land, Gu Zheng and Taotie had never been separated. Usually, they would be separated occasionally to play. However, this time, they had to be separated for several days. Gu Zheng did not feel good.
But it had to be like this. He was going to take revenge, not to play.
However, he was indeed confident. According to the information that Wu You and Mado had inquired, Gu Zheng had a rough guess about this monster.
This monster flew and was still wrapped in black smoke, indicating that this monster's realm was Refining Essence into Qi. When one reached the Apotheosis Realm, there was no need to fly wrapped in smoke. A monster wrapped in smoke was similar to an immortal riding a sword. Only at the stage of Refining Essence into Qi would it be necessary.
Of course, this was not absolute, but this monster was definitely not Jin Xian. Jin Xian's strength would not do this. For example, an immortal with Jin Xian's strength would never fly on a sword. It was very embarrassing for them.
Even the Sword Immortals of Mount Shu did not fly on a sword when they reached the Jin Xian Realm. However, some disciples of Apotheosis Realm and even Void Return Realm liked to fly on a sword. It was just a habit. Anyway, when they reached the Jin Xian Realm, they basically would not do it.
Jin Xian's flying on a sword would affect their speed.
It was good that the other party had the strength of a Celestial Immortal. This way, Gu Zheng would be more confident. If it was at the Qi Transformation Realm, Gu Zheng would be more confident. He now had the strength of the middle stage of the fifth level. Coupled with his Gokusen Immortal Art, even a monster in the Qi Transformation Realm would not be able to kill him in one blow.
As long as he was given a chance, that monster would definitely be killed by him.
Early the next morning, Wu You, Mado, and the others left with Aunt Cui and the others. Taotie was also among them. When Taotie left, he looked back three times with every step he took. He had promised Gu Zheng that he would come as soon as possible.
Although Taotie was young, it was not that he did not know anything. After such a long time, his spiritual wisdom had grown rapidly. At this time, he was definitely much stronger than an ordinary four-year-old child.
After waiting for Wu You and the others to leave for three days, Gu Zheng rode on the little white dragon and headed towards the monster's lair.
When he was interrogating the two human subordinates of the monster, Gu Zheng asked where the monster's cave was. It was more than a thousand miles away from here. It was a place called the Dragon Transformation Mountain. Gu Zheng could travel about two to three hundred miles a day by riding the little white dragon alone. The little white dragon's endurance was very strong, so he could reach it in five days.
Gu Zheng was also worried that if he failed, the monster would come back for revenge. Therefore, he deliberately set off a few days later. This way, Wu You and the others would be far away, and it would be much safer.
Five days later, Gu Zheng's small body was riding on a horse. He looked at a towering mountain in the distance. This was the Dragon Transformation Mountain. There was no one within a hundred miles. People outside the hundred miles had heard that there was a monster here, but the monster had never come out to do evil, so they did not care. They only treated it as a rumor.
The reason why the monster did not do evil was that he had two smart human subordinates who helped him catch human children. He used deception to make the humans take the initiative to send them over and be grateful to them. Now that the two humans had been eliminated by Gu Zheng, the monster did not have such a method. It would not be long before he came out to harm the world again.
However, Gu Zheng would not give him this chance again. No matter what, he had to eliminate him today.
For Gu Zheng, the biggest problem now was that he was not well-informed. When he interrogated the two people previously, he did not interrogate them in detail.
He knew that there was more than one monster, but Gu Zheng wasn't sure how many had reached the Qi Transformation Realm. He hadn't asked before, but from the two's answers, he could tell that this monster was a man of his word. He was the biggest leader, and all the other monsters had to call him King.
Looking at it this way, the possibility of him being the only monster at the Qi Transformation Realm was the highest.
As long as they had not reached the Qi Transformation Realm, Gu Zheng did not care about those Little Goblin that had intelligence. Now that he had the strength of the middle stage of the fifth layer, these Little Goblin were definitely not his match.
However, Gu Zheng was still prepared for the worst. If there was more than one monster at the Qi Transformation Realm, then after he killed one, the other would definitely be on guard. He would then have to think of a way to escape.
In order to escape from a monster at the Celestial Immortal Realm, he had to make arrangements in advance.
At the foot of the mountain, Gu Zheng began to arrange simple formations. These formations were not very powerful, but they could obstruct the Celestial Immortal Realm for a period of time, giving him enough time to escape. Gu Zheng arranged more than one formation to ensure that he could escape or give himself enough time to activate the Immortal Beheading Gourd.
After doing all this, another day passed. In the morning of the second day, after Gu Zheng adjusted his breath and recuperated, he walked up the mountain.
He put Little White Dragon aside. Little White Dragon was a Horse King. Ordinary people couldn't rely on it. But this time, they were dealing with demons. Furthermore, there were demons in the Celestial Realm. Little White Dragon couldn't help much. It was better to let it wait outside.
If Gu Zheng could not go back, Little White Dragon could leave by itself. It was the Horse King. When the time came, it could go back to the place where it lived.
Gu Zheng was also prepared that he could not go back, including Taotie. However, these arrangements were made by Mado. Taotie did not know that except for Mado, no one knew these arrangements.
When he came to the foot of the mountain, Gu Zheng did not leave. Instead, he set up an incense table. After the incense table was set up, Gu Zheng took down the gourd that had been tied to his waist and placed it in the middle of the incense table.
Finally, he took out the box containing the Mirage Dragon Pearl and opened it.
As soon as the box was opened, the aura of the Dragon Pearl immediately spread out. After a while, a cloud of black smoke appeared on the mountain. Soon, the black smoke rolled up a monster with green scales all over its face and two small points on its head and flew down.
The monster probably still looked like a human, but it had not fully transformed into a human.
"Doll, the Mirage Dragon Pearl. Are you the doll who killed my man and robbed my Mirage Dragon Pearl?"
After the monster landed on the ground, it did not attack directly. Instead, it asked Gu Zheng. Gu Zheng smiled, suddenly bent down, and clasped his hands in front of the incense table.
His actions left the monster scratching its head in confusion. It looked at Gu Zheng in confusion, but soon, it began to laugh.
"You want to beg for mercy? It's no use. You dared to kill my man. I must eat you. You have tender skin and tender flesh, so your heart must be delicious. However, since you took the initiative to come to me, I won't kill your other people!"
"Baby, please turn around!"
Gu Zheng suddenly said. The monster frowned again, not understanding the meaning of Gu Zheng's words. As soon as Gu Zheng finished speaking, the gourd on the incense table suddenly turned and a yellow light emerged.
"Baby!"
The monster's eyes lit up, but before it could react, it suddenly felt that something was amiss. Why was it looking at the sky? Soon, it saw a headless body spewing blood.
This body was very familiar. It seemed to be him. It seemed to understand something and wanted to move, but soon, its vision turned black and it lost consciousness.
At this moment, there was no God roll that could protect its True Spirit. If it was killed by the Immortal-Slaying Gourd, it would be dead.
Gu Zheng exhaled softly. Everything had gone smoother than he had imagined. He did not waste his breath on the monster. He was here to take revenge and kill the monster. The monster had also admitted that he was the one who had done it.
The monster did not say that he had killed the people of Hui Yuan Village, but by saying that he would not kill them, it was equivalent to admitting it.
Gu Zheng was not as strong as him. It would be fine if they were in other realms, but the difference between immortals and non-immortals was too great. Moreover, he was too weak now and could not use many powerful immortal skills, so he had to be careful. The monster did not snatch the dragon pearl, but arrogantly asked, which was exactly what Gu Zheng wanted.
As the saying goes, bad people die because they talk too much. It was not without reason.
The monster died and soon, a round body appeared. It was a green python with dragon horns on its forehead. If it continued cultivating, it would probably have a high chance of transforming into a dragon.
It was no wonder that he had occupied Dragon Transformation Mountain. He probably wanted a good omen. It was also possible that he was the one who had named the mountain. However, all of this was not important to Gu Zheng. What was important was that he had avenged the villagers.
This was a monster at the Qi Transformation Realm. Although it was a snake monster, it had many treasures.
Gu Zheng did not stand on ceremony. He took a knife and went forward. He first dug out the snake's gallbladder, then peeled off the snake's skin. Gu Zheng did not want the snake meat. This monster already had intelligence. Gu Zheng would not eat its meat. It felt weird to eat its meat.
However, its snake tendon was good stuff. It could not be compared to dragon tendons, but it was much better than ordinary beast tendons. It could be made into a good bow. After cleaning up the monster's corpse, Gu Zheng sat there quietly. He did not go up the mountain, nor did he leave.
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