A Compendium of One Hundred Demons: My Path to Immortality in a World of Demons and Monsters

That night, just after midnight, Zhao San and his two companions quietly crept to the edge of the back mountain.

The pale moonlight illuminated the dark outline of the mountain behind, making it resemble a lurking beast.

The image of Xu Yuan carrying wild boar meat back to the village during the day was still lingering in the minds of the three of them; the glistening chunks of meat scratched at the most itchy spot in their hearts like cat claws.

"Third Brother, are we... really going in?" Guo Laizi's voice trembled.

"Enough with the nonsense." Zhao San gritted his teeth, his eyes bloodshot. "If Xu Yuan, an outsider, dares to come in, what are we, the natives, afraid of? Let's go!"

The three men, carrying homemade torches, trudged into the forest, one step at a time.

At first, things went smoothly, but the further we went, the denser the forest became, and the colder the wind grew. It felt as if a sinister aura was creeping up our spines.

"Third Brother, is that enough?" Wang Erma shrank his neck, feeling as if something was watching them from the darkness.

Just as Zhao San was about to call him a coward, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a white shadow flashing past in front of him out of the corner of his eye.

It was a goat!

"Quick, after it!" Zhao San's eyes immediately turned red. "If we catch it, it'll be enough to feed us for days!"

The three of them gave chase, but the goat moved at a moderate pace, always hovering at the edge of their sight, as if leading them deeper into the mountains.

Unfortunately, Zhao San and his companions were already blinded by greed and were completely unaware that they had strayed from the outer edge of the forest.

After chasing for an unknown amount of time, the goat suddenly stopped, and what came into view was a barren, rocky beach.

In the center of the rocky beach, nine stone pillars covered with runes formed a circle, as if they were suppressing something.

Zhao San looked over in horror and realized that it was actually a monster with a tiger's head and a human body!

The tiger demon's fur was mottled and peeling off, revealing dark blue-green scales underneath. Its head was ferocious, with fangs clashing in its mouth. But what was most terrifying were its blood-red eyes, which seemed to be filled with endless resentment and hunger.

The runes on the nine stone pillars flickered, extending into several red copper chains that pierced the tiger demon's limbs, chest, and abdomen, pinning it firmly to the center of the rocky beach.

Even so, the ferocious aura emanating from the tiger demon still made Zhao San and the others feel as if they had fallen into an ice cave.

"Run..." Zhao San wanted to escape, but his legs felt like they were filled with lead, and he couldn't move an inch.

The tiger demon's crimson eyes swept over the three of them, and a wide grin suddenly appeared on its lips.

"Fresh flesh and blood..." the tiger demon uttered in a hoarse, broken voice, "I... have been starving for far too long!"

It opened its blood-red maw and sucked hard. Before Zhao San and the other two could even scream, everything went black and they lost consciousness.

Moments later, the three mummified corpses collapsed to the ground.

The tiger demon licked its lips with satisfaction, turned its crimson eyes to the three corpses on the ground, and spewed out a thick stream of black gas.

The black mist seeped into the brows of the corpses, and before long, the three dried corpses actually stood up unsteadily.

"Go..." The tiger demon's weary voice was tinged with greed and longing, "Bring back more...fresh flesh and blood..."

…………

At three quarters past the hour of Chou (1-3 AM), the night was as dark as ink.

Inside Shuangshan Village, Xu Yuan, who was fast asleep, suddenly opened his eyes, his heart skipping a beat.

In my mind, the image of a hundred demons automatically appeared, and the second page of the encyclopedia began to flash continuously.

He silently scaled the courtyard wall, and his enhanced senses allowed Xu Yuan to quickly detect the unusual sound coming from his ears.

The sound was very soft, like someone walking on tiptoe, or like a withered leaf being slowly dragged. The sound came from the village entrance, and three stiff figures were walking unsteadily. The one in front was none other than Zhao San!

Their walking posture is extremely strange—their knees don't bend, their soles rub against the ground, and each step makes a "rustling" friction sound.

"Something's not right!" Xu Yuan's heart skipped a beat, and his pupils shrank sharply.

These three people were completely lifeless, exuding an aura of death; they were not living people at all!

They mechanically entered the village, their empty eyes scanning the closed houses before finally settling on the dilapidated wooden door of Aunt Zhang's house.

"Hungry..." Zhao San hissed hoarsely, "There...are alive inside..."

"Meat..." Wang Erma stiffly raised his arm.

The three of them slowly moved towards Aunt Zhang's house.

Xu Yuan's eyes turned cold. Without hesitation, he leaped off the wall, landing silently. His right hand was already gripping the woodcutter's knife that he had specially sharpened during the day, the blade gleaming coldly in the night.

"Zhao San!" Xu Yuan blocked the road, his voice icy.

The three of them turned around at the same time, and the moment they saw Xu Yuan, a mixture of resentment and greed flashed in their empty eyes.

"Blood...flesh..." A hoarse voice came from Zhao San's mouth, sounding inhuman.

They suddenly accelerated, their movements stiff yet swift, rushing straight at Xu Yuan!

With his woodcutter's knife in hand, Xu Yuan unleashed his full power as a first-level Blood Refinement cultivator. His blood and qi surged, and his skin faintly glowed with a light red luster. He slashed at Zhao San, who was charging at the front.

"clang!"

The woodcutter's knife struck Zhao San's shoulder, producing a metallic clang! The latter staggered from the blow, black energy dissipating from his shoulder, but the wound healed at a visible speed.

"What a tough body!" Xu Yuan's heart skipped a beat, and he dared not be careless in the slightest.

With a thought, the power of the Hungry Ghost within him spontaneously activated, a powerful aura surging from his limbs and bones, and his blood and qi surged dramatically. A faint, dark red light flickered on the blade of the woodcutter's knife.

"Again!"

Xu Yuan moved like a cheetah, dodging Guo Laizi's attack, and slashed at Zhao San's neck with a backhand.

This time, the blade pierced three-tenths of an inch into flesh, and black blood spurted out!

Zhao San let out a shrill shriek, and the black energy at the wound dissipated wildly, instantly slowing down the healing process.

However, this strike unleashed its ferocity, causing its fingernails to grow three inches long, turning as black as ink, and it stabbed straight into Xu Yuan's heart.

Xu Yuan dodged to the side, but felt a chill on his left arm—his sleeve was torn, and three bloody marks were clearly visible. Black energy swirled around the wounds, constantly eroding his flesh!

"Poisonous?!" Xu Yuan was shocked. He quickly activated his qi and blood, and a pale red light surged to his left arm, fiercely fighting against the black qi. At the same time, he slashed repeatedly with his right hand using a woodcutter's knife, forcing back Wang Erma who was rushing towards him.

The battle reached a stalemate for a time.

Zhao San and his companions felt no pain, were unafraid of death, and only attacked without defending. Although Xu Yuan had the advantage in strength, he was fighting three against one and had to be distracted by the Yin poison. After being injured, he gradually fell into a disadvantageous position.

"This can't go on!"

Xu Yuan's eyes sharpened, and he suddenly stepped back, biting his tongue and spitting a mouthful of blood onto the woodcutter's knife. This was the "exorcising evil" method he had seen in that book.

The Blood Refining Realm allows one to use their own essence and blood as a catalyst to unleash the power of qi and blood, specifically targeting yin and evil!

"cut!"

The woodcutter's knife instantly transformed into a dark red arc of light, first slaying Wang Erma, then chopping Li Gouzi, and finally aiming straight for Zhao San's brow!

Where the blade flashed, the black mist melted away instantly, like boiling water poured over snow.

Zhao San froze, his empty eyes fixed on Xu Yuan, and he let out a final, hoarse roar: "My lord... will... avenge us..."

Before the words were even finished, their bodies quickly shriveled up, and three extremely thin wisps of grayish-white mist drifted out.

Xu Yuan had a sudden inspiration. He opened his mouth and inhaled, and the three wisps of grayish-white mist were drawn into his body, instantly transforming into a cool, refreshing stream that flowed into his limbs and bones.

The image of a hundred ghosts unfolded in my mind on its own, and the light on the page of hungry ghosts was noticeably brighter, with the progress of lighting it up jumping from 19% to 22%!

To his even greater surprise, a blurry outline faintly appeared in the blank space of the second page—the image of a ghost with a deathly pale face and empty eyes, with two small characters slowly emerging beside it: 【伥鬼】 (Chang Gui).