The Grey Rat's Demon Path

It wasn’t the first time something like this had happened.

The Elixir Workshop was quiet today, so Xu Chang’an was in a leisurely mood.

He decided to stroll over to the temporary market area in the Outer City to try his luck.

With his panel’s detection ability, he might just stumble upon some treasure.

The temporary market area in the Outer City of Peacock Demon City was teeming with Demons.

Stall after stall lined both sides of a narrow path.

Demons milled about in the path, stopping and starting as they browsed the wares.

The calls of the Demon stall owners rang out from time to time, making the area feel exceptionally lively.

If it weren’t for the fact that every stall owner was a Demon, it would have felt just like a Human Race Cultivator’s Immortal City.

’So this is what they mean by learning the ways of the Human Race. They’ve really taken every aspect of human life to heart.’

Xu Chang’an wandered through the market area.

He stopped to look at nearly every stall.

On the surface, he was just browsing, but in reality, he was using his panel to sense for the fluctuations of Spiritual Items.

Demon Talismans, Magical Artifacts, Array Flags, Elixirs, cultivation miscellaneous, Cultivation Techniques, Magic, Ores, Spirit Plants, Puppets...

All sorts of items could be found at the stalls.

However, they weren’t very valuable. Most were Tier One Middle-Low Grade.

It was rare to even see a Tier One High Grade item.

Besides the usual cultivation materials, there were also some strange little trinkets.

Things like a small gourd that could blow wind, a long stone tube that spat fire, and a water jug that looked small but could hold several vats of water.

The items were all quite novel, and many Demons bought them just for the curiosity of it.

But for Xu Chang’an, they were all rather lacking.

He had already visited about twenty stalls without detecting any fluctuations from Spiritual Items.

"Come one, come all! Take a look! Mysterious Ore just unearthed from a Secret Realm, a truly rare sight!"

A slightly shrill voice rang out near Xu Chang’an, piercing through the surrounding din with exceptional clarity.

Hmm!?

Xu Chang’an followed the sound with his gaze.

It was a Black Chicken Spirit, over half a zhang tall, with black feathers all over its body, standing upright like a person.

’A Black Chicken Spirit!’

’It’s a Demon I know!’

Xu Chang’an walked forward and stopped in front of the stall.

"Friend, take a look at this..."

The Black Chicken Spirit smiled and was about to start his sales pitch when he suddenly stopped. His gaze flickered with surprise and doubt as he looked at Xu Chang’an, uncertain and hesitant to speak.

"Elder Hei Ji, it’s been a long time!"

Xu Chang’an said with a smile.

"You’re... Grey Rat!"

"That’s right."

Xu Chang’an had never expected to run into this Black Chicken Spirit here in Peacock Demon City.

Back then, after leaving Cyan Blade Town, he had fled to Cyan Mountain.

It was this very Black Chicken Spirit who had proclaimed himself the Mountain Patrol Envoy of Red Cloud Mountain, gathered the Cyan Mountain Demons, and led them on a ten-thousand-li journey to the foot of Red Cloud Mountain.

"It really is you! Grey Rat... Grey Rat."

The Black Chicken Spirit’s expression was one of surprise, and his tone was quite emotional.

Xu Chang’an wasn’t deliberately hiding his Cultivation, so the aura of the Qi Refining Seventh Layer was apparent.

The Black Chicken Spirit could never have imagined that the inconspicuous Gray Rat Demon from all those years ago had now become a Late-stage Qi Refining Old Demon!

If he remembered correctly, this Gray Rat Demon before him should have had an unranked Bloodline aptitude!

Xu Chang’an looked at the Black Chicken Spirit. They hadn’t seen each other in twenty-nine years, and the chicken demon was much older than before.

His once smooth and sleek black feathers had now become dry and withered.

His Cultivation hadn’t broken through to the Qi Refining Seventh Layer; he was still at the same Qi Refining Sixth Layer as before. His only progress was accumulating enough Demon Power to reach the Peak of Qi Refining Sixth Layer.

The Black Chicken Spirit’s Bloodline aptitude wasn’t high, and his species didn’t have a long lifespan.

He hadn’t been young back then, and now, almost thirty years later, he still hadn’t entered Late-stage Qi Refining. His lifespan was likely running short.

"Grey Rat, what are you... doing here in Peacock Demon City?"

the Black Chicken Spirit asked hesitantly.

Back then, he had been the one to guide the Gray Rat Demon, but if one were to dig deeper, the other party might hold a grudge.

After all, he had never mentioned beforehand that those with Middle-class Bloodlines could enter Red Cloud Mountain, while those with Lower-class Bloodlines had to be selected.

With the other’s unranked Bloodline, the ten-thousand-li journey from Cyan Mountain to Red Cloud Mountain had been a complete waste of his time.

Meeting again now, he never thought this Grey Rat would have become a Qi Refining Old Demon.

’Such a reversal of fortunes. It’s like a dream.’

"I didn’t enter Red Cloud Mountain back then. After a series of chance encounters and wanderings, I ended up here in Peacock Demon City."

The Black Chicken Spirit had led him on a ten-thousand-li journey and had even helped him out of a jam along the way. Xu Chang’an still cherished that camaraderie.

So now, Xu Chang’an spoke with a measure of goodwill.

’Seeing a Demon from the old days is quite a pleasant surprise!’

"I see."

During the three months they spent together back then, most of the interactions were between the Little Demons.

The Black Chicken Spirit, with his Qi Refining Sixth Layer Cultivation, was high and mighty and rarely interacted with them.

Meeting now, they found they didn’t have much to talk about.

It was Xu Chang’an who asked about the Black Chicken Spirit’s experiences over the years.

The Black Chicken Spirit’s Bloodline aptitude was average, so he hadn’t been able to join any major powers in his early years. He joined a local mountain faction but couldn’t get used to the atmosphere there.

He struck out on his own and became an Independent Cultivator Demon.

He made a living by doing some business introducing other Demons to entry-level cultivation, and life was more or less manageable.

But on one outing, he got involved in a fortuitous encounter and inexplicably made an enemy.

Although the enemy’s Cultivation was also average, he was backed by a Qi Refining Old Demon.

Left with no choice, he abandoned his foundation and fled to other regions.

Eventually, he ended up drifting here to Peacock Demon City.