It seems this Holy River Village is hiding a big secret.
Xu Zimo chuckled lightly, glanced around, and saw no one following him.
The heavily rotting corpses had turned to ash in an instant, not even bones remained.
Xu Zimo walked back into the village.
Late at night, Holy River Village was eerily quiet.
All the houses had their lights out, and only a few dead leaves were swept by the autumn wind through the cold night.
At the east end of the village, that same house sat in silence, almost unnervingly so.
"The wild boar wasn’t ordinary."
"The people we sent are all dead?"
"Yes. Should we continue?"
"No. Pointless deaths only show my ignorance as the one in charge. Let Tidewatch test him instead."
The night passed without words. Xu Zimo yawned as he watched the morning sun rise in the east.
Under the tree, Gu Muyu had already prepared breakfast, leftover roasted meat and some porridge.
During breakfast, Gu’s mother asked Xu Zimo some basic questions.
The main point was really to ask when Xu Zimo would be leaving Holy River Village.
“Mom, are you trying to drive Brother away?” Gu Muyu asked, unhappy.
“I didn’t mean that,” her mother shook her head. “It’s just that Little Mo must have his own life. He can’t stay here with you forever.”
“I’ll leave in a few days,” Xu Zimo said with a smile.
After breakfast, Gu Muyu seemed a little down, probably because she was thinking about him leaving.
She took the laundry to the river at the village entrance and washed it.
She seemed in better spirits when she came back.
“Brother, they’re recruiting disciples outside. It’s really lively. Want to check it out?”
Gu Muyu said to Xu Zimo, who was leaning on a tree branch.
“You’re so good with a blade, you’ll definitely be chosen. If you join an immortal sect and learn cultivation, your future path will be much better.”
“Recruiting disciples?” Xu Zimo asked curiously.
“Yeah, it’s the people from the Tidewatch Sect. They’re the only sect near Holy River Village,” Gu Muyu explained.
“Normally, people have to go to the mountain to seek a master. It’s rare for them to come down here themselves.”
“I’m not going. Maybe they’ll come find me instead,” Xu Zimo laughed.
This Holy River Village really had some depth to it.
By noon, a commotion was heard outside the door.
A group of people pushed the door open and came in.
“Muyu,” the leading young man called out loudly upon entering.
Gu Muyu ran out from the house, curious when she saw them.
“Brother Zhao Feng, what are you doing here?”
“The Immortal Master is recruiting personal disciples in our village. Dozens have already been eliminated, and he hasn’t found a satisfactory one yet.”
The young man named Zhao Feng replied.
“You said your brother killed a wild boar with one strike. He must be strong. So we recommended him to the Immortal Master.”
“Really?” Gu Muyu asked happily.
“Why would I lie? The Immortal Master will be here any moment,” Zhao Feng said.
“Where’s your brother?”
“Up there,” Gu Muyu pointed to a nearby tree and shouted at Xu Zimo, who was lounging on a branch.
“Brother, come down! The Immortal Master’s almost here. It’ll leave a bad impression if he sees you like that.”
“Standing high helps you see far,” Xu Zimo said with a laugh and jumped down from the tree.
“You’re Muyu’s newly recognized brother?” Zhao Feng looked Xu Zimo up and down. “Doesn’t look like much.”
“So unless someone’s ten feet tall and covered in muscles, they’re not impressive to you?” Xu Zimo asked with a smile.
As they spoke, a group of people entered from outside the door.
Leading them was a middle-aged man in a purple robe with long hair.
There was a purple six-pointed mark on his forehead.
Wearing a Daoist robe, he looked ethereal and had the demeanor of an immortal.
“The Immortal Master from Tidewatch is here,” Zhao Feng quickly stepped aside.
The crowd grew noisy instantly.
“Brother,” Gu Muyu tugged at Xu Zimo’s sleeve nervously.
“It’s fine,” Xu Zimo waved and looked directly at the purple-robed man.
“You must be the Immortal Master from Tidewatch,” he stepped forward and asked.
The Immortal Master looked at Xu Zimo with a hint of doubt.
“This is the young man we mentioned earlier, the one we recommended. His name is Xu Zimo,” someone explained.
The Immortal Master nodded slightly and asked Xu Zimo,
“You should already know the situation. Would you be willing to become my personal disciple?”
“No,” Xu Zimo shook his head.
He said calmly, “There doesn’t seem to be any grudge between us. I just don’t understand why you people won’t leave me alone.”
“I don’t understand what you’re talking about,” the Immortal Master replied coldly.
“Fine, let me put it in a way you’ll understand,” Xu Zimo smiled. “I think with your ability, you’re not qualified to teach me.”
As soon as he said that, the place erupted.
“This guy’s full of himself. How dare he challenge the Immortal Master!”
“We should kick him out of the village. He’s not even one of us!”
The Immortal Master raised his hand to quiet the crowd.
“Since you’ve said so, and the prestige of an Immortal Master must not be insulted, I have no choice but to subdue you and wait for judgment,” he said coldly.
“You?” Xu Zimo narrowed his eyes.
The Immortal Master snorted and released the pressure of an Empyrean Meridian Realm cultivator.
Light blue spiritforce rippled around him as he struck with one palm, the force pressing down heavily.
It was clear he wasn’t holding back.
“This little mortal village really is full of surprises,” Xu Zimo smiled.
The sound of Shadow Tyrant being unsheathed echoed through the sky. Thunder surged across the blade, and Xu Zimo didn’t retreat.
He struck with his blade directly.
Shadow Tyrant slashed through the void, heading straight for the Immortal Master’s palm.
At that moment, sensing the sharpness of Xu Zimo’s blade,
the Immortal Master’s expression changed, and he took several steps back, not daring to meet it head-on.
“Dodging all the time won’t work,” Xu Zimo laughed.
He burst forward and slashed again with full power.
Seeing he couldn’t dodge in time, the Immortal Master joined his hands together and formed a sky-blue sphere.
He released it from his hands, and the sphere quickly expanded, enveloping his entire body.
“Interesting,” Xu Zimo chuckled.
Shadow Tyrant landed on the sphere, sparks flying everywhere.
In that moment, Xu Zimo increased his strength, switching from spiritforce to the power of Creation.
The blue sphere shattered instantly.
The Immortal Master's face changed drastically. In a panic, two wings suddenly grew from his back, and he quickly flew away.
“You’re from the Shadow Race,” Xu Zimo said in surprise.