In autumn, the forest is a mix of green and yellow, with more leaves falling and unidentified wild fruits hanging down. Looking around, the abundance of fruit makes one's mouth water.

The scenery is also quite pleasing to the eye. The mountains and forests stretch as far as the eye can see, with the trees like pillars supporting a golden scroll. The mountain roads are easy to walk on at this time of year, unlike the dampness of spring or the high temperature and insects of summer. Autumn has good winds and good roads, and for hunters, animals that represent autumn fattening up are the best prey.

Unfortunately, what should have been a joyful scene turned into a source of sadness, with several hunters looking down at the empty traps and bamboo skewer holes.

"Old hunter, there's still no prey here. Is something wrong?"

Even in the worst years, there wouldn't be three days without any harvest at this time. Autumn is the time to stock up on meat for winter, and if this continues...

Some hunters were getting anxious; without meat, they would starve to death! Without hunting pelts, they might not be able to afford charcoal, oil, or even clothes!

"It's been three days. There are clear animal tracks, but we haven't caught any prey."

"It seems there might be a demon in the mountains."

Niu Shou parted the grass and looked around. There were traces of rabbits, roe deer, lynxes, and mixed foxes, some of which still had droppings on them.

Some traps were set off, but only left behind traces of blood and fur. The bloodstains quickly disappeared from the spot. After considering all the possibilities, the only answer finally emerged.

"A demon?!"

"Are there really demons?"

"Then hurry up and call the town officials to clean it up!"

"The big cleanup was only a year ago! How come there are demons again!"

Although the immortal demon gods of the past have been slain, their power still flows in every corner of the earth. Apart from naturally born alien species, there are always lucky animals that, like humans, absorb different kinds of flesh and embark on evolution.

The creatures that provide the seeds in Woniu Village are demons, but those demons are the lowest level, cultivated by humans. True demons emerge from slaughter and are comparable to martial artists.

Hunters, who live in the mountains and forests and are accompanied by wild animals, are well aware of the dangers that monsters in the mountains and forests pose to people. Let alone a martial artist, even three martial artists with twenty old hunters could be wiped out!

Because the demons in the mountains are carnivorous! They are demons who have inherited the power of those immortal demon gods! Even if a human has transformed into an animal, they are still just a demon!

"Shut up!"

The sound of the bull's cries, like thunder, silenced the chattering hunters around him. He stood up, picked up his machete, and made a mark on the nearest tree.

"Regardless of whether it's a real demon or not, the higher-ups won't send anyone down without evidence!"

The Xin Su court has a long-standing rule that a major cleanup is conducted once every ten years to eliminate mountain spirits and monsters. Within the specified period, according to the three and six points, if even one instance of a mountain demon appears, it indicates that the cleanup was inadequate and will result in a deduction of varying degrees of points.

Therefore, in Demon Hunting Mountain, unless more than a dozen people have died, unless you encounter a good leader or a chivalrous martial artist, you can forget about anyone coming to your aid.

Now, we're only a year away from reporting the demonic activity. Where does that leave the officials in charge of exterminating demons? Do they not want to live for the next few years?

"Let's go! Let's find out if it's a demon or not. If it's a half-demon, we'll be set for life and can marry any woman we want. If it's a demon, you'd better have some guts if you still want to be hunters!"

Niu Shou tugged at his clothes, a hint of longing in his eyes. As a martial artist who had mastered the second level of rubber band training, his next priority was to find a half-demon to devour.

The beef cattle in the village belong to the entire village. Except for the occasional festival when they might eat some meat, they can forget about it at other times. And the meat in the market is quite valuable. Now that he has the opportunity to own his own meat demon, Niu Shou decides to take the risk.

Seeing that even the great hunter Niu Shou was like this, the other hunters exchanged glances. Some wanted to leave, while others wanted to, but because they couldn't be sure if it was a demon and winter was approaching, they could only grit their teeth and persevere.

The group followed the animal tracks and searched the mountain. In addition to large animals, they also needed to be careful of traps left by people in the past and poisonous snakes and insects.

Of course, they would occasionally act as herb gatherers to collect herbs, but all the herbs that could be gathered in this area had already been harvested.

As they pressed on, a roc with wings as straight as swords, a slender figure, and a black and white body looked down upon them from above the mountains that belonged to humans.

Numerous insects crawled all over its body, most of them blood red, and fell to the ground like rain with the flapping of their wings.

This is the Blood Roc that was with the Blood Crow. It was poisoned by the Blood Bee and used by Dao Chengyi. It was specifically used to find Gu materials for Dao Chengyi in this mountain range and to spread Gu insects.

Similarly, Dao Chengyi's eyes and flesh were implanted. In any case, he could take the missing limbs from others. At most, Dao Chengyi would gouge out his own eyes five times a day.

But that was all. After all, slaves were hard to buy, and it was difficult to balance the bill if too much money was spent. However, after killing the dozen or so slaves he had bought, Dao Chengyi had achieved a good result and prevented them from entering the mountains.

This is Woniu Mountain, a mountain near Woniu Village. It is named for its resemblance to a reclining ox. Although it is called a mountain, it is actually a mountain range, divided into four areas based on the ox's four limbs. The ox's head is the innermost part, and the ox's tail leads all the way to Qingmang City's Linghu Lake.

It is a vast mountainous area that supplies the needs of people from three city regions to enter the mountains, and in the innermost part, the indigenous, uncivilized tribes also live and thrive.

The area near the cattle hunt below is considered far away by the people of Woniu Village, as the mountains and forests are treacherous and no one knows what might be inside.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!