The Rat Cultivator

Led by the Demon Rat elites—Big Old Black and One Ear—the battlefield line pushed relentlessly deeper into Snake Valley.

Big Old Black was a juggernaut of destruction. He charged recklessly, his massive body acting like a living war chariot. With a casual swipe of claws infused with Demon Power, he severed the heads of multiple pythons in a single stroke.

One Ear, however, was a portrait of pure brutality.

He didn’t just kill; he feasted. He would clamp his jaws onto a snake’s head, chewing rhythmically while the serpent’s body thrashed and coiled around him. Finally, with a wet gulp, he would swallow the head whole, his face painted in fresh blood and his eyes shining with maniacal excitement.

Wu Yuan watched his subordinates with satisfaction. Recently, he had successfully cultivated seven Rat Demons, but his favorites remained the original trio: Big Old Black, One Ear, and Gray Skin.

Big Old Black was the muscle and the marshal, strong enough to crush enemies and capable of managing the expanding swarm.

One Ear was the mad dog—fierce and unquestioningly loyal.

Wu Yuan recalled the encounter with the Cat King. He had ordered One Ear to hold the corrosive Poison Orb in the shadows as a threat. Even as the toxins melted the flesh from his paws down to the white bone, One Ear had never let go. It had cost Wu Yuan a fortune in spirit plants to restore him, but that loyalty was priceless. When ordered to prepare for a suicide attack, One Ear hadn’t hesitated for a second.

Gray Skin, on the other hand, was intelligent and sharp, though somewhat cowardly. He was the perfect scout and logistics officer, invaluable for mining and resource exploration. Today, Wu Yuan had left him behind to manage the excavation at the base.

These three had overcome the inherent defects of their species. They possessed sentience.

The other Rat Demons? They were still dominated by bestial instinct. To Wu Yuan, they were merely higher-grade expendables—tools for fighting and filling mine shafts.

As for Little Yellow? She was a pet. Pets were different from subordinates.

Wu Yuan focused his gaze on the depths of the valley. The scent of blood was thick, mixing with an unmaskable, pungent toxicity.

I wonder how much longer you can endure, Wu Yuan thought coldly. Once my swarm wipes out your kin, you two will be nothing more than meat on the chopping block.

Suddenly, a deafening hiss erupted from the valley depths, shaking the air.

Hearing the command, the chaotic mass of snakes immediately disengaged, retreating toward the rear of the valley without caring for their own casualties.

The sudden roar terrified a portion of the rat swarm, freezing them in their tracks. However, the bloodlust induced by the [Voice of Berserk] still held sway over many; they chased the retreating serpents relentlessly, leaving a trail of mangled snake corpses in their wake.

“Note the cowards,” Wu Yuan muttered. “When we return, have Big Old Black throw them into the mine shafts to fill the gaps.”

Wu Yuan’s eyes narrowed as two massive shapes wound their way out of the darkness.

The sound of heavy scales scraping against rock—shhh, shhh—echoed ominously, causing the rat swarm to ripple with unease.

The first was a giant male Snake Demon, fully two zhang (approx. 6.6m) in length. Its palm-sized scales were a dull, iron-gray.

Most striking was the deformity atop its head: a fleshy red tumor that pulsed with a dark crimson luster. Blood vessels writhed across its surface like living earthworms, forming a grotesque mockery of a crown.

Judging by the size of that growth, this was a spirit monster that had Awakened the [Flesh-Crowned Snake King] bloodline.

The [Flesh-Crowned Snake King] was a species renowned for poison and physical might. Unlike normal vipers, its venom was stored not in fangs, but in the cranial tumor. Upon reaching adulthood, such a beast would typically possess mid-stage Qi Refining cultivation.

However, sensing its aura, Wu Yuan realized this King was far weaker than expected—it only possessed six or seven strands of Demon Power.

The second demon was a female, slightly over one zhang long. Her black scales were fine and dense like fish scales, and she lacked the crown. She was a fresh demon, having just cultivated Demon Power without awakening a bloodline.

“Retreat!”

Wu Yuan emitted a high-frequency chirp, signaling the general swarm to pull back.

The Snake Demons had surfaced. The swarm’s mission was complete; there was no need to waste fodder on a battle they couldn’t win.

The tide of rats, many still gnawing on severed snake segments, flooded back toward the tunnel entrance. Only six elite Demon Rats remained on the battlefield.

Their combined Demon Power fluctuated, creating a specific resonance frequency that sent visible ripples through the air, briefly jamming the snakes’ sensory perception.

“Attack!”

Wu Yuan commanded the six elites to engage both targets simultaneously while he circled the perimeter, projecting a lethal threat toward the Snake King.

One Ear was the first to break formation.

With zero hesitation and zero regard for the power gap, he launched himself at the Snake King. His hind legs exploded with force, shooting his scrawny body like an arrow straight toward the serpent’s vital “seven-inch” point.

Big Old Black, who had initially charged the female, saw his comrade’s reckless dive. With a tearful mental groan, he was forced to drift his momentum and redirect toward the King to cover the berserker.

The Snake King’s crimson forked tongue flickered. It opened a maw wide enough to swallow a calf, snapping directly at the airborne One Ear.

Mid-air, One Ear had no way to dodge.

Clang!

A metallic ring echoed through the valley.

Big Old Black had slammed into the King from the left flank, his massive incisors flashing with a yellow copper glow as they impacted the serpent’s scales.

The heavy blow sent Big Old Black tumbling through the air, but the distraction worked. One Ear slipped past the snapping jaws, latched onto the Snake King’s flank, and began to tear madly at flesh and scale.

Meanwhile, the other four Rat Demons swarmed the female.

She stood no chance. Overwhelmed by numbers, her body was quickly bathed in blood. She emitted a ragged hiss—like sandpaper rubbing against stone—calling desperately for her mate. Her tail whipped frantically, cracking the earth but failing to dislodge the attackers.

Hearing her distress, the Snake King roared in agitation, thrashing to break free and rescue her.

“Harass the King! Focus fire on the female!” Wu Yuan commanded from the periphery.

He finally stepped into the fray, his figure blurring as he intercepted the King’s path. His claws flashed, leaving several deep, bone-exposing gashes along the serpent’s flank in a single pass.

“Damn rat! I will swallow you whole!”

The Snake King realized the tactical reality: as long as this powerful gray rat existed, he could never reach his mate.

He turned his full fury on Wu Yuan, deciding to eliminate the greatest threat first.

Although enraged, the King wasn’t stupid—he knew Wu Yuan was stronger. So, he opened with his ultimate move.

[Malicious Poison Light]!

The blood vessels on the King’s fleshy crown suddenly engorged, pulsing violently before erupting with a cloud of ink-green toxic mist.

Wu Yuan’s pupils contracted.

Now.

[Poison Guiding Art]!

Wu Yuan opened his mouth and spat the Poison Orb directly into the path of the oncoming fog.

It looked ridiculous—a tiny bead against a tidal wave of gas. Yet, as the mist collided with the orb, it halted.

Wu Yuan channeled his Demon Power, activating the spell’s absorption properties. The Poison Orb acted like a black hole for toxins, sucking the Snake King’s lethal mist into its swirling core.

The attack was completely nullified. A perfect hard counter.

Meeting the Snake King’s shocked gaze, Wu Yuan opened his mouth again. This time, he spat a streak of dark, condensed energy.

[Dark Spirit Thorn]!

The spell crossed the distance instantly, striking the Snake King’s pulsing red crown before he could even blink.

“Arrgh!”

The Snake King shrieked in agony. “Why?! You are a rat of Little Green Mountain… how do you know a second spell?!”

It defied all logic.

This enemy was clearly just a common Rat Demon—no bloodline anomaly, no mutations. Yet, even the King, with his noble heritage, only possessed one innate ability.

Dark red blood geysered from the ruptured crown. The King tried to circulate his Demon Power to knit the wound, but the damage was catastrophic. His strength evaporated, and his massive body collapsed onto the rocks, limp.

For an early-stage Qi Refining Snake King, the crown was a fatal weak point. Had he reached the mid-stage, it would have hardened into his strongest weapon.

Fate, however, did not grant him that time.

Wu Yuan moved like a ghost, appearing instantly at the paralyzed King’s neck. His claws found the “reverse scale”—the soft, inverted scale under the jaw—and sliced through with surgical precision.

The massive head rolled free.

Witnessing her mate’s death, the female Snake Demon’s eyes turned bloodshot. She screamed, abandoning defense to charge madly at Wu Yuan.

Wu Yuan didn’t even look at her.

He calmly began dissecting the King’s crown, swallowing the spilled blood to avoid waste.

“The gallbladder, heart, and prime cuts will go to the Cat King,” he muttered to himself, slicing away the prize. “But this fleshy crown… this is mine.”

Behind him, a wet tearing sound echoed.

Big Old Black and One Ear had intercepted the female’s suicide charge. Pinning her broken body to the ground, they grabbed opposite ends and heaved.

With a final, agonizing hiss, she was torn in half, showering the valley floor in a fresh rain of blood.