At the very instant the giant serpent lunged, Quinn Shepherd sprang into action. His pig‑slaughter saber danced like wind and rain, furiously hacking at the vulnerable spot between the snake’s head and body!
Butcher’s Saber Art: Sun Over the Eastern Sea, Thousand‑Fold Waves!
This move, created by Butcher, carries the force of the rising sun over the Eastern Sea—a thousand waves stacked atop each other, a peerless saber momentum that cuts through everything!
Quinn’s mind was blank, filled with only one thought—strike, cut! Cut! Cut! Cut! Cut!
He had to sever that head!
Shhh—
Snake blood sprayed out. The giant serpent’s table‑sized triangular head separated from its body, yet its jaws still gaped wide, lunging toward the family of three ahead as if unaware it was already dead.
Just as the massive snake head was about to reach the family, Quinn suddenly leaped onto it midair. With both feet, he landed and crouched, stomping the jaws shut.
The snake’s head, with Quinn atop it, crashed down like a giant iron weight, slamming into the ground in front of the petrified family with a thunderous boom.
The three stood frozen, staring blankly at the young man before them.
Quinn bent down, grinned at the little girl, flashing his white teeth. "Little sister, it’s all right now."
Just then, a baby’s cry rang out. A woman rushed out of the house the serpent had smashed, laughing, "Congratulations, congratulations—mother and child are safe!"
Quinn hurriedly sheathed his pig‑slaughter saber in its leather scabbard, turned, and ran back to the courtyard. He saw the young man already rushing excitedly into the house, while Granny Sue came out, washed her hands, and looked back at the loving couple and their child inside.
"Quinn, you feel satisfied, don’t you?" Granny Sue smiled.
Watching the loving family, Quinn nodded gently, his hand unconsciously rising to clutch the Jade Pendant at his chest.
Granny Sue noticed his hand and sighed inwardly.
Grandpa Blind walked over, yawning. "Now that things are settled, it’s time to sleep. Granny, there aren’t many rooms here—how about you and I squeeze in together…"
Granny Sue turned, her gaze icy. Grandpa Blind shivered, tapped his cane, and turned to leave. "These days even blind men get bullied. People aren’t what they used to be—I’ll sleep in the street…"
"Granny, how come no one in this village ever noticed that giant serpent?" Quinn wondered as he saw villagers crowding into the courtyard, struggling to drag the serpent’s tail from the tree hollow.
He’d grown up in Oldridge Village, where every villager was disabled in some way—even Granny Sue was hunchbacked—but in his heart, all the elders were capable of anything, able to traverse heaven and earth.
But most of this village’s people were just ordinary folk. There were martial artists, but their skills weren’t high, which puzzled Quinn.
"Oldridge Village is the only one like it in the Great Ruins."
Granny Sue’s gaze was deep. "Here, most people are just ordinary. Some couldn’t escape the Great Ruins’ disaster in time, others fled here from the outside world—driven by harsh taxes and landlords—hoping to survive."
"The outside world?" Quinn’s eyes lit up.
"The outside world is even more dangerous than the Great Ruins!"
Granny Sue snorted. "Otherwise, why would Grandpa Blind and the rest of us be forced to hide in the Great Ruins? Stop dreaming about the outside world!"
Quinn scratched his head, wondering why Granny Sue, usually so kind, suddenly lost her temper.
Granny Sue lowered her voice. "That serpent is strange. Normally, no beast could enter the village, but this one hid here for years. I suspect someone deliberately brought it in… That method of raising snakes—it looks like the Cult of the Heavenly Demon’s handiwork. Heh, tonight, there may be more excitement…"
"Someone put the serpent here on purpose to harm the village?"
Quinn’s heart chilled. Wasn’t that too wicked?
That snake had clearly devoured several newborns. Using babies to raise a serpent—what benefit did that bring him?
"Quinn, tonight some strange things may come for you. If you see anything, don’t move, don’t make a sound—wait for dawn and all will be resolved."
Granny Sue grinned, showing her few remaining teeth. "He uses the serpent to absorb infants’ qi and souls, then takes the serpent’s essence for himself to reverse his fate—he’s been refining it for years, and his skills are formidable. But doing this outside would get him hunted down, so he came to the Great Ruins to stir up trouble. Quinn, you can’t handle the one coming tonight—just watch."
Quinn nodded, uneasy.
The family’s house bustled for a long time—tears and laughter mingled. Only after a while did they remember to arrange places for Granny Sue and Quinn to sleep. The couple gave up their main and inner rooms, inviting Granny Sue and Quinn to stay. Quinn felt awkward, but Granny Sue accepted, putting Quinn in the main room and herself in the inner room.
Soon, both lay down to sleep. Quinn tried to stay awake, but eventually his eyelids drooped. Around midnight, as all fell silent, Quinn suddenly shivered and snapped his eyes open—only to find he couldn’t move!
The main room’s door creaked open. Dim light spilled through the crack, casting a long shadow on the floor.
Quinn tried to call out, but no sound came—he couldn’t warn Granny Sue at all!
The shadow on the floor wavered, then moved—crawling up the wall, where it twisted and writhed, baring its fangs and claws, growing ever more monstrous.
Cold sweat broke out on Quinn’s brow as he watched the shadow crawl up to the ceiling, then hang down, staring at him with deadly intent.
Quinn’s eyes widened. Hanging down was a shadow—a real shadow, flat but impossibly agile, like a martial artist skilled in bone‑softening arts!
But it was just a shadow—how could it move so freely? And where was its master?
Whoosh—
A breeze blew through the door crack, carrying a tiny white triangle banner. The shadow caught it and waved it at Quinn.
Just then, the inner room’s door—where Granny Sue slept—creaked open a crack. From the gap floated a silvery bead, just like the silver pellet Quinn had seen in Granny Sue’s room. It hovered at Quinn’s brow, spinning silently, firing hair‑thin sword beams that were nearly invisible.
The shadow on the ceiling waved its white banner, drifting around the room. The banner flashed like lightning, striking at Quinn again and again, but the bead suddenly moved, colliding with the banner in utter silence, always blocking its attacks.
Though the two strange objects battled furiously across the room, not a single sound escaped. The eerie silence was unbroken, and nothing was damaged.
After a moment, the shadow suddenly shuddered and spat out a mouthful of blood. The banner fluttered away, and the shadow flowed out the door like water, vanishing.
The silver bead paused, then returned to the inner room and disappeared.
Quinn found he could move again. He gasped for breath, bewildered by what had just happened—but the bloodstain on the floor proved it was all real.
Outside, all was silent. After a while, the sound of a gong rang out—the village watchman marking the hour, so villagers wouldn’t be swallowed by the darkness if they rose too early.
The watchman struck the gong three times, then headed home. As he reached his door, he saw a blind man passing by, leaning on a cane.
"Brother, find a place to rest!"
The watchman quickly stopped Grandpa Blind, smiling. "It’s late—be careful not to leave the village, or the monsters will get you!"
Grandpa Blind smiled, tapped his cane on the watchman’s shadow, and said, "Thanks for the warning." With that, he walked away, tapping his cane as he went.
Thud, thud—
Two bloody holes burst open in the watchman’s chest, front and back. He staggered and collapsed.
"Such a swift spear—able to break my spell! Cough, cough… I know you. You’re blind, but even stronger now…"
The watchman spat his last breath and died.
A white triangle banner drifted down from the sky, covering his face.
—— Thanks to the hard work of our book group admins and A League’s sponsorship, the first round of the recommendation vote event went well. Thanks to all our readers for your enthusiastic participation and support!
The weekly event will continue, and there’s also a monthly event with even bigger prizes. Check the review section or group files for details—don’t miss out!
If you haven’t joined a group yet, you can choose one: Qidian Group 1 is 600290060, Group 2 is 624672265. Once I’m done with the new book, I’ll drop by and chat with everyone. Thanks again!