Zhang Zongnian left his own cell and made his way toward the dungeon entrance.
A path that was barely a hundred paces long now felt endlessly long, all because his shrunken body made each step a struggle.
Inside the guard’s hut at the entrance, Laifu and several little demons were chatting idly, their conversation rambling from one topic to the next.
Outside, in the lower level of the cave, the little demons who usually bustled about were nowhere to be seen.
Only swarms of rats emerged from every corner, all scurrying toward the circular passage.
A squad of Rat Guards patrolled back and forth inside the cave.
They had long grown accustomed to the rats covering the floor and paid them little mind.
Each rat, with bloodshot eyes, darted past them.
Zhang Zongnian glanced at Laifu, then dashed out of the dungeon and melted into the rolling tide of rats outside.
Clamping the Gongfa tightly in his mouth, he skirted around the patrol, following the other rats as they crossed the cave and entered the circular passage, scrambling up the stairs.
The passage echoed with the piercing squeaks of rats.
Rats that would ordinarily seem insignificant now, from Zhang Zongnian’s perspective, appeared as large as full-grown cattle or horses.
Even the stairs had become towering walls blocking his small frame.
Dragging his tiny body, Zhang Zongnian exerted all his strength to clamber up the steps, striving with all his might.
Watching his own stubby legs struggle over the stairs so miserably, Zhang Zongnian suddenly thought of a problem:
Once he saw Lin Xue and handed her the Gongfa, what was he supposed to do?
According to Lin Xue’s plan, after he possessed a Spirit Beast, she would help him find a <Serpent Core>, and use the <Beast Refinement Codex> to assist him in absorbing it, letting him immediately reach the Mid Body Refining Stage and gain human form. Then, he could cultivate on his own.
But in his haste, he had no other choice but to possess this rat.
A plain, randomly caught rat—having a Spiritual Vein and the possibility to absorb demon power and become a demon—was as good as impossible.
Zhang Zongnian understood very well that for the rest of his life, he was likely to remain in this ugly form.
Would he still be able to stay by Lin Xue’s side, now that he was just a very ordinary little rat?
Did he even want to stay by her side like this?
In this state, she would probably find him repulsive.
What girl would be willing to bring along a dirty, ugly, grey rat every day?
If he stayed with her, maybe she could tolerate it for a day or two.
But after a while, she’d inevitably grow sick of a hideous rat that couldn’t speak, only squeak mindlessly.
Zhang Zongnian imagined Lin Xue looking at him with eyes full of disgust and disdain, and his heart twisted in agony.
He did not want that to happen.
He thought: Maybe after giving her the Gongfa, he should take the initiative and leave.
Clinging to Lin Xue would only erode what little affection might remain between them.
He’d rather be remembered by Lin Xue as the human cultivator named Zhang Zongnian, not an ugly rat that did nothing but squeak.
He would just find a shadowy hole somewhere and spend the rest of his life alone, holding onto his longing for her.
Struggling up the steps, his heart filled with sorrow.
Suddenly, a powerful surge of spiritual force crashed straight into his mind, as if piercing his very soul.
Zhang Zongnian’s head spun, his vision went black, and he stumbled, tumbling down the steps.
He fell with a sharp “squeak” of pain, and the Gongfa he’d been holding in his mouth dropped to the ground.
It seemed the surrounding rats were also affected by this wave of spiritual force. They grew agitated, their eyes even redder, and their scurrying sped up significantly.
Zhang Zongnian felt an extremely domineering will trying to seize control of his little body, summoning him with overwhelming power to hurry to a certain place.
The force was so strong, it felt like it was a primal instinct in his very body, calling and urging him to stop resisting, to surrender himself to this will, to think of nothing, and simply follow its guidance—running as fast as he could to that destination.
Caught off guard, his mind grew muddled under the impact, and his body was taken over by that powerful will.
Zhang Zongnian’s eyes began to turn red.
He rose to his feet uncontrollably, staring ahead, ready to join the other rats in running to that place.
He took a step forward, and his paw pressed down on something.
The strange sensation underfoot made Zhang Zongnian look down.
He saw that he was stepping on a stack of papers.
A faint trace of consciousness in his muddled mind told him that this stack of papers was very important, and he had to deliver it as soon as possible to someone who was extremely important to him.
He stopped in his tracks.
What were these papers?
Why were they so important?
And who was that important person?
Standing in place, Zhang Zongnian frowned, trying hard to remember.
His mind was still muddled, all a blur inside his head, nothing coming to him.
Rats rushed past, bumping him left and right.
It was as if a voice in his head was saying, “What’s a little rat like you thinking so much for? Just follow everyone and run, isn’t that enough?”
“Everyone’s running—why are you just standing there in a daze?”
“Hurry up, go with everyone! There’s something wonderful waiting for you!”
That voice was full of temptation.
Zhang Zongnian wanted so badly to give up thinking, to follow the voice and run with the other rats.
But he was unwilling to let go.
A faint feeling lingered in his heart: If he gave up, something extremely bad would happen to that person so important to him, and he would regret it for the rest of his life.
I can’t give up!
I have to remember who she is!
Zhang Zongnian squeezed his eyes shut, wracking his brain.
Suddenly, an image appeared in his mind.
In an old ancestral hall, a breathtakingly beautiful girl tilted her head, shaking a tiny bottle in her hand, smiling at him and asking, “Do you want this?”
One scene after another flashed through his mind.
In a forest at night, on the official road outside Stone Plate Town, he and the girl were both captured and at the enemy’s mercy.
Her clothes were in disarray, her face pale as she looked at him, pleading to the black-clad man:
“This man has helped me before. I do not wish to see him die. Young master, your family is wealthy—you don’t need his small bounty. Could you please let him go first?”
On the flying boat, the girl turned to look at him and said, “I’ll take you to save your mother.”
In the storage room of the lower cave, she saw the paper crane in his hand, her eyes bright with excitement, happily grabbing his hand to lead him out of the cave.
Outside Luoyun Cave, as the Bird Demon self-destructed before dying, she threw herself in front of him, shielding him from the devastating blast.
……
In an instant, Zhang Zongnian remembered everything.
It was Lin Xue!
That important person was Miss Lin Xue!
The stack of papers under his feet was the Gongfa that could help her achieve Foundation Establishment, save her from Shu Er’s humiliation, and let her escape from this demon lair.
I must give her the Gongfa!
He bit down hard on his tongue, jolting himself fully awake.
His consciousness returned to his body.
Clarity returned to his eyes.
Zhang Zongnian broke out in a cold sweat.
That was close!
Thinking back on that perilous moment, he was filled with lingering fear.
That powerful spiritual force had nearly taken complete control of him.
He understood: this must be Shu Da’s doing.
The reason Shu Da could rise to the rank of great demon was undoubtedly connected to this ability to control the rat swarm.
Now that he himself was a rat, he too had fallen under Shu Da’s influence.
Cold sweat drenched Zhang Zongnian.
He warned himself: he must never fall under Shu Da’s control again!
Otherwise, all would be lost.
He lowered his head, grabbed the Gongfa in his mouth again, and continued struggling up the stairs.
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