The Rat Cultivator

Wu Yuan withdrew the second goat horn from the storage bag.

Unlike the smooth, jade-like texture of the first, this one was rugged and heavy. Its surface resembled rough gray granite, encircled by bands of dark green markings. It felt dense in his grip, radiating a silent, oppressive weight.

Wu Yuan pulsed his Demon Power, branding the artifact with his spiritual signature.

[Stone Wood Horn Arrow].

Information flooded his mind. It was a Low-Grade Magical Artifact, but its specialization was extreme: terrifying piercing power and blistering flight speed. A sniper’s bullet in the form of a horn.

Wu Yuan weighed the heavy horn in his hand, a newfound respect for his deceased enemy rising within him.

If I look at this objectively, that goat demon was terrifyingly well-equipped.

Qi Condensation Perfection cultivation. Two top-tier Low-Grade artifacts. A mastery of bizarre, potent spells. And a sustainable farming setup to boot.

In gaming terms, the goat was a fully geared “whale” crushing newbies in a starter zone. If the goat had been content to occupy a Middle-Grade spiritual land and develop slowly, no one on Little Green Mountain could have touched him.

Even I would have found him impossible to handle in a fair fight.

“But he was greedy,” Wu Yuan mused, his eyes narrowing. “He wanted to monopolize the entire mountain.”

The goat’s strategy wasn’t inherently wrong—Bibo was the only visible threat. The goat’s fatal flaw was his excessive caution. He feared injury so much that he resorted to schemes instead of brute force, giving Wu Yuan the window to outmaneuver him.

If he had just suppressed his aura and rushed the valley at the start, killing Bibo instantly, I never would have stood a chance.

Wu Yuan sighed, internalizing the lesson.

“To be a demon is to walk a razor’s edge. Hesitation leads to trouble!”

He looked down at the two artifacts, the [Wood Calling Spirit Horn] and the [Stone Wood Horn Arrow]. A surge of satisfaction washed over him.

“My first true Magical Artifacts.”

The Poison Orb didn’t count; that was a biological byproduct. These were weapons of war and cultivation.

“They are the goat’s Life-Bound Magical Artifacts. Normally, my control over them would be imperfect, their power diminished in my hands. But…” Wu Yuan’s eyes flashed with golden light. “I have a method.”

He channeled his innate talent.

[Spirit Awakening]!

Golden radiance flowed from his palms, seeping into the dense material of the horns. A tremor ran through his heart—a sudden, visceral snap of connection.

It was as if invisible nerves had extended from his fingertips into the artifacts. The sensation of the horn’s texture vanished, replaced by the feeling of his own limb. He could sense the microscopic flow of Qi within them, the structure of the spiritual patterns, the very grain of the material.

He controlled them as easily as moving his own limbs.

“Incredible,” Wu Yuan whispered. “I understand these tools better than the goat ever did.”

There was a tinge of regret in his voice as he analyzed the feedback. “Pity. Their essence isn’t as high-tier as the [Blood-Binding Spirit Mulberry]. They haven’t birthed a consciousness. I’ll have to refine and upgrade them manually later.”

He opened his mouth and inhaled sharply.

Two streaks of light shot into his body. The artifacts vanished, settling into his dantian.

He circulated the [Spirit Gathering] technique, washing the artifacts in a bath of Lunar Essence and Demon Power. This method of internal nurturing was exponentially more efficient than merely channeling power through them externally.

Normally, only a Life-Bound Magical Artifact could be stored within the body. But after [Spirit Awakening], these foreign objects behaved exactly like Life-Bound artifacts—without occupying the precious, limited slot for a true Life-Bound item.

“I’ll call this category… Awakened Spirit Artifacts.”

Wu Yuan closed his eyes, sensing the hum of power within him. “The more I explore my talents, the more defying of natural law they seem.”

Is it you helping me, Little Green Mountain?

He cast a deep, thoughtful glance toward the distant giant green rock, the mystery of his rebirth lingering in the air.

One month later.

Wu Yuan lay prone in the treehouse, the ambient Spiritual Qi swirling around him like a vortex.

Inside his body, 74 strands of Demon Power coiled and surged.

Contrary to every cultivation manual and the rabbit spirit’s lectures, his speed hadn’t slowed down as he progressed. There were no diminishing returns. In fact, his cultivation speed was accelerating.

He didn’t question it. In this dog-eat-dog world, strength was the foundation of his existence. The why mattered less than the result.

“Wah wah wah! Boss! Boss, help! Little White is bullying me again!”

The shrill, pathetic crying of a rodent shattered Wu Yuan’s meditation.

Wu Yuan’s brow twitched. He tried to ignore it. This had happened at least a dozen times this month.

Little White, the rabbit spirit, loved to ‘play’ with Little Yellow, Wu Yuan’s mouse subordinate. Unfortunately, Little White was a tank who could knock out a Qi Condensation demon with a carrot. Little Yellow, on the other hand, was… squishy.

The crying outside grew louder, mixed with the manic, excited shouting of a hyperactive rabbit.

“Boss! She’s trying to make me fly again!”

Wu Yuan sighed. If I don’t go out, that mouse is going to develop permanent psychological trauma.

He darted out of the treehouse just in time to see Little White launch Little Yellow several zhang into the air. The mouse screamed, limbs flailing, before plummeting back down. Little White caught him with expert precision, only to prepare for another toss.

Little Yellow was terrified of heights. Ironically, so was Wu Yuan.

Watching the mouse arc through the sky made Wu Yuan’s teeth ache. He kicked off the branch, intercepted the falling mouse in mid-air, and landed gracefully.

“Little White!” Wu Yuan scolded, glaring at the rabbit. “Be gentler! If you want to play, play properly. If you keep using him as a juggling ball, I’ll kick you out of the valley!”

Little Yellow, burying his face in Wu Yuan’s fur, sobbed uncontrollably. “Yes, yes! Boss is right! Kick her out! She’s a monster!”

Little White’s long ears drooped instantly. She looked at Wu Yuan with wide, pitiful red eyes. “Okay, Boss… I won’t bully Little Yellow anymore.”

Wu Yuan raised an eyebrow. So you knew you were bullying him.

The rabbit’s depression lasted all of two seconds. She perked up, ears twitching.

“Oh, right! Boss, my brother said that Bibo and Big Old Black are fully healed! Their internal injuries are gone, so they can cultivate at full speed again!”

Wu Yuan nodded, his annoyance fading. This was exactly why he tolerated the rabbits. Their ability to enhance vitality and heal injuries was a strategic asset that money couldn’t buy.

“With them at full strength,” Wu Yuan thought, “my safety margin just increased significantly.”

Several days later.

Early morning sunlight pierced through the cloud layer, bathing the valley in gold.

The [Blood-Binding Spirit Mulberry] stood tall and proud, its leaves lush and verdant. It had feasted well. The beast tide had delivered a mountain of corpses, the rat army had provided sacrifices, and the body of the goat demon himself had served as the final, potent fertilizer.

Now, the harvest was ready.

Bibo had been guarding the tree since before dawn. He circled the trunk, his eyes wide with a mixture of reverence and neurotic anxiety. He looked like he wanted to wrap every individual berry in cotton wool.

When he saw Wu Yuan approach, the old spirit’s face lit up.

“Great King! Look! Based on the Qi fluctuations, the mulberries should ripen in one or two hours!”

Wu Yuan nodded calmly. “I know.”

Shared consciousness with the tree gave him precise telemetry. In exactly one hour, the cycle would be complete.

As the minutes ticked by, a transformation took hold of the valley.

A heavy, thick scent began to permeate the air. It was the smell of blood, yet it wasn’t repulsive. It was sweet, iron-rich, and intoxicating, weaving together with the fresh, fruity aroma of the mulberries to create a fragrance that triggered primal hunger.

On the branches, the [Blood Jade Spirit Silkworms] went into a frenzy, wriggling with delight as they gorged on the thickening ambient Qi.

Bibo panicked. “They need more energy! The final push!”

He rushed forward, pulling Spirit Stones from his pouch and crushing them near the roots, flooding the soil with pure essence. His movements were practiced and desperate.

Big Old Black, watching from the side, shook his huge head. “Look at him. Old Bibo really treats this tree as his heart and soul.”

Wu Yuan smiled. “Can you blame him? This tree is his path forward.”

For an aging spirit like Bibo, these berries weren’t just food; they were the key to breaking through his cultivation bottleneck and extending his lifespan. It was a matter of life and death.

Under the bombardment of Spirit Stone energy, the mulberries began to swell visibly.

They expanded from the size of a thumb to the size of a child’s fist. The skin pulled tight, glistening with a dark, rich purple hue that bordered on black. They looked heavy, engorged with juice and power.

When the ripening completed, the fragrance exploded, reaching its peak intensity.

Wu Yuan inhaled sharply.

Thump.

His heart hammered against his ribs. His blood began to race, heating up as if he had just sprinted a mile. A restless, primal energy surged through his limbs, making his skin prickle.

He gritted his teeth, forcing the physiological reaction down.

This was the first time since becoming a mouse that his body had reacted so violently to a stimulus.

“Potent,” Wu Yuan muttered, eyeing the heavy fruit. “Truly worthy of being a Spirit Mulberry specifically cultivated for nourishing Yin and replenishing blood!”