Little Yellow stood at the entrance of the cavern, his beady eyes wide with shock. The new home was massive, the terrain ruggedly beautiful, and the air thick with rich Spiritual Qi.

With a squeak of delight, he darted inside, running a celebratory lap around the perimeter of the cave.

Watching the chubby rat pant for breath, Wu Yuan spoke up. “Stop running. Find a suitable spot to plant the [Lunar Essence Grass].”

Hearing the command, Little Yellow stopped instantly. He dropped to his belly, sniffing the rocky ground intently. He crawled along the floor, whiskers twitching, until he reached the vicinity of the dead Spider Demon’s nest.

He raised his head, scanning the area. Satisfied, he dug a small hole in a patch of earth overflowing with spiritual energy and carefully planted the precious herb.

Just then, a dark shape emerged from a nearby tunnel. Big Old Black squeezed his bulk out of the hole, dusting off his fur.

He looked up and froze. His eyes locked onto Wu Yuan, who was staring at Little Yellow with a look of approval.

A cold chill of jealousy struck Big Old Black’s heart. Bad news. Someone is here to compete for favor!

He glared at Little Yellow’s back, his teeth grinding together audibly. He wanted nothing more than to sink his fangs into that fat, yellow neck and snap it.

Wu Yuan didn’t even turn his head. “If anything happens to Little Yellow… I will skin you alive.”

Big Old Black shuddered violently. The murderous intent in the air cleared his mind instantly.

His expression shifted from homicidal to sycophantic in the blink of an eye. “Boss! What are you saying? From now on, he is my Second Brother Huang! I will take care of him like my own kin. I won’t let him lose a single ounce of fat!”

Wu Yuan ignored the theatrics. “How is the excavation going?”

Big Old Black straightened up, adopting a serious tone. “Everything is arranged. The mining operation has already begun. I also plan to scout the surrounding mountains soon to recruit other rat colonies.”

“Well done,” Wu Yuan nodded. “Tonight is the full moon. Gather the swarm in the valley.”

He paused, his voice echoing in the cavern. “I keep my promises. Tonight, I will reward you all with Lunar Essence!”

It had been a full month since the White Fox worshipped the moon.

Wu Yuan had been eagerly awaiting this night, hoping the [Karma Pearl] would provide new intelligence on the elusive Fox Immortal. But the pearl remained silent.

“I thought I might see the White Fox again,” Wu Yuan mused, disappointment weighing on him. “It seems I overthought it. That last full moon must have been a special occasion.”

Night fell.

Wu Yuan stood atop a massive boulder, looking down at the valley floor.

Over 300 rats lay prostrate on the ground. These were not ordinary vermin; after feeding on spiritual ore and Lunar Essence, they had grown massive and strong. Any single one of them could have killed Wu Yuan back when he was just a normal rat.

But now, before him, they were as silent as cicadas in winter.

A surge of high spirits filled Wu Yuan’s chest. In his past life as a human, he never had the ability to manage over 100 people. Now, he was a king.

A flame of ambition flickered in his eyes. “Today, rats. Tomorrow, demons. And after that…”

“Foundation Establishment… transforming into human form… these are just steps. They are definitely not my final destination!”

Below, Big Old Black looked up at the Rat King. He could feel the imposing aura rolling off his boss, growing stronger by the day.

If only I could be as powerful as the Boss, Big Old Black thought with envy. Then I could serve him even better!

High above, the bright moon hung in the void. Wu Yuan closed his eyes and circulated the [Fox Immortal Qi Condensation Technique].

Invisible strands of Lunar Essence drifted down from the sky, drawn by his cultivation. But Wu Yuan did not absorb them into his own body. Instead, he used the [Spirit Awakening Technique] to refract the moonlight, scattering it like a fine mist over the swarm below.

“I never break my word!” Wu Yuan’s voice boomed. “This Lunar Essence is yours!”

The swarm, already intoxicated by the scent of the moonlight, went into a frenzy. They gazed up at their King with fanatical devotion, chittering wildly. The valley erupted in a cacophony of squeaks, shedding the caution of the wild for the celebration of their clan.

Later that night, inside the Vein Cave.

Crunch. Crunch.

Wu Yuan lay in his nest, a chunk of raw Spirit Copper ore clamped between his jaws. He bit down with terrifying force.

Snap!

The sound of metal shearing against bone echoed in the quiet cave.

Wu Yuan chewed methodically, ignoring the blood seeping from his gums and the cracking sound of his own teeth. He focused entirely on extracting the trace amounts of metallic Spiritual Qi trapped within the ore.

Nearby, Little Yellow watched in horror, his paws covering his mouth, his fur puffed out like a dandelion.

Rats needed to grind their teeth, yes. But Wu Yuan wasn’t grinding; he was eating rocks. It was a violent, self-destructive act that looked utterly terrifying.

But the results were undeniable.

Wu Yuan could feel the metallic Qi seeping into his jaw, repairing the damage instantly. His teeth were reforming, becoming denser, sharper, and infused with the hardness of the Spirit Copper. Even his skull felt like it was being reinforced with steel.

“As long as I can become stronger,” Wu Yuan thought, swallowing a mouthful of crushed ore, “eating a few stones is a small price to pay.”

Simultaneously, he activated his innate talent, [Spirit Gathering]. The spiritual energy from the stockpile of Spirit Stones around him surged into his body, converting rapidly into Demon Power.

Twelve strands of Demon Power.

It had been a month since he killed the Spider Demon.

Originally, it took him three months to cultivate a single strand. Now, with the Spirit Stones and the copper vein, he could cultivate a strand in just two months. His speed had increased by a third.

The raw Spirit Stone ore from the spider’s nest was enough to push him all the way to the mid-stage of Qi Condensation with resources to spare.

“No point in hoarding them,” Wu Yuan decided. “Spirit Stones are useless if you’re dead. Better to convert it all into cultivation base.”

“Besides, the Spirit Copper vein produces accompanying Spirit Stones. As long as the mining continues, I won’t run dry.”

Under Big Old Black’s whip, the swarm had recovered its numbers to over 300. The mortality rate in the mines was high, but the promise of power kept the rats working.

Wu Yuan had set a simple rule: One piece of Spirit Copper exchanges for one strand of Lunar Essence.

The rats went mad for it. Five of them had already successfully awakened their bloodlines, cultivating their first wisp of Demon Power. This success only drove the others to work harder, ignoring the dangers of the deep earth.

Speaking of dangers…

A gray rat scampered into the main cavern, holding a writhing yellow worm the size of two palms.

“Boss! We caught another [Earth Spirit Worm]!”

This rat, named “Gray Skin,” was one of the five awakened elites. He was small and scrawny, but his senses were razor-sharp and his intelligence high. He had earned his Lunar Essence by finding high-quality ore and now served as Wu Yuan’s scout and messenger.

Wu Yuan looked at the thick, fleshy worm with satisfaction.

The [Earth Spirit Worm] was a pest indigenous to copper veins, possessing a trace bloodline of the mythical Earth Spirit Earthworm. It could spit a corrosive mucus that melted fur and bone, making it a primary cause of death for the mining rats.

However, Wu Yuan had discovered that its bodily fluids made excellent fertilizer for the Lunar Essence Grass.

“Good work,” Wu Yuan praised.

Things were going smoothly. Too smoothly.

“With this fertilizer, the Lunar Essence Grass should mature in a few days,” Wu Yuan calculated. In the wild, it would take months. Under his care, it took weeks.

Yet, a thread of anxiety tightened in his chest.

“It’s been a month. Why hasn’t the Karma Pearl given me any new intelligence? I hope nothing fishy is going on out there.”

Just as the thought crossed his mind, Little Yellow burst into the cave.

The fat rat was panting heavily, panic written all over his face. He rushed up to Wu Yuan and held out a trembling paw.

In his grip was a single strand of fur.

“A hair?”

Wu Yuan leaned in and sniffed. His pupils contracted.

“Cat hair!”

Little Yellow nodded frantically. “Boss, I found this to the east of the valley. It wasn’t far from here. I think… I think we might have been discovered.”

Wu Yuan went rigid.

Little Yellow had awakened his bloodline, and his intuition for danger was supernatural. If he said they were close, they were close.