"Grand Marshal" is the breeding pig raised by Zhang Kui.
The reason his pig farm can monopolize the pork market in Yutang County is not just because he's ruthless, but also because of this treasure with wild boar blood.
At this time, the streets of the county were already in chaos.
The people were screaming and fleeing, carrying poles and baskets flying everywhere, while diners on the second floor of the street tavern were peeking out to watch...
In the rolling dust, a thousand-pound black pig was rampaging through the street.
A snotty little child was so scared he stood frozen in the street, clutching a candied fruit stick, unable to move.
Seeing the big black pig snorting and charging over, a loud shout suddenly erupted on the street.
"Beast, looking for death?"
The voice was so loud it made people's ears hurt!
The onlookers turned their heads and saw Zhang Kui leading a group of strong men running straight ahead.
He was two heads taller than the big men beside him, wielding a large slaughtering knife three palms wide, exuding an invincible aura.
"Wow, Official Zhang is here, now we're safe."
"Official Zhang took a trip to the Underworld, he seems even more terrifying now..."
The townspeople were talking among themselves.
Even the breeding pig "Grand Marshal" was startled, slipping with its hooves and falling face down to the ground.
Zhang Kui rushed forward, shielding the child behind him, while a woman from afar came crying and quickly took the child away.
Zhang Kui snorted, carefully sizing up the big black pig in front of him, and immediately frowned.
Generally speaking, breeding pigs are usually plump and strong, unable to walk due to their meat, even for breeding, they're afraid of crushing the sows.
This "Grand Marshal" was different, with strong and powerful hooves, muscles bulging at the shoulders, looking fiercer than a wild boar.
Most terrifying of all were its tusks, with as many as five rows, sharp and menacing, making one shudder at a glance.
Zhang Kui chuckled coldly,
"So that's it, living a good life with plenty to eat and drink and sows to mate with, it turns out you've become a demon!"
An ancient saying goes: When things are out of the ordinary, there must be a demon.
This world is much the same, and really, it has become a demon.
This breeding pig "Grand Marshal," having stumbled upon some opportunity, went unnoticed by the careless ones under him, causing such trouble.
The "Grand Marshal" had unwittingly developed a sliver of spiritual wisdom. It was clearly a bit afraid of Zhang Kui, but soon its vicious gleam emerged, snorting while scraping its front hooves.
"Wanting to bite the hand that feeds you, it looks like you can't be kept!"
Zhang Kui snorted coldly, lifting his knife and stepping forward.
The "Grand Marshal" also screeched, charging forward with its head down, tusks lowered, intending to impale Zhang Kui.
"Big brother, watch out!"
"This beast is not right!"
The strong men behind him urgently reminded him.
Zhang Kui, however, disregarded it, the corner of his mouth lifting in a sinister grin, as he intended to test the foundation of this body.
Facing the charging "Grand Marshal," he assumed the Yin Yang Stance, let out a "hum" to snort out the air, a whirlwind arose from the ground, and his thick iron elbow smashed down ferociously.
Bang!
Meeting force with force, a direct confrontation, the surrounding ground suddenly sank two inches, and the "Grand Marshal" also broke its nasal bone and fell heavily to the ground.
"Hahaha, satisfying!"
Zhang Kui laughed heartily. This body's innate extraordinary ability could truly bring out the unrivaled ferocity of Baji.
The surrounding townspeople widened their eyes in terror,
"Is this... is this still a man?"
The big men behind him shouted passionately,
"Big brother, good job!"
"Big brother, invincible!"
The breeding pig "Grand Marshal," having acquired a demonic nature, was spurting blood from its nose, staggering in place but not yet dead.
Zhang Kui stepped forward and stomped it over,
twirling his wide slaughtering knife in his hand.
In the pleading gaze of the "Grand Marshal," Zhang Kui's face remained expressionless, the white knife went in, the red knife came out, the pungent blood spraying several meters.
A beast is still a beast, having tasted blood, the next step would be to want to eat people, it cannot be kept.
The surrounding townspeople cheered loudly.
Zhang Kui waved indifferently,
"Take it back and slaughter it, and... keep it for me, also butcher the few dead sows, and give five pounds to each injured or lost family as compensation."
"Yes, big brother!"
The strong men nodded in response.
They were a bit puzzled, although their pig had harmed someone, they reckoned no one would dare make trouble, why was the big brother suddenly so generous?
Zhang Kui stared left and right at the "Grand Marshal."
At this moment, his mind was full of wondering what the taste of demon meat was different, and as he thought, his mouth began to water.
It turned out he was wrong...
The "Grand Marshal" hadn't been castrated in the first place, plus it had gained a demonic nature, that pungent stench filled the whole street, while the strong men cooking the meat with a large pot were squatting on the ground vomiting furiously.
Zhang Kui found it uninteresting and directly ordered his men to bury the meat, then returned to his bedroom and closed the door.
Right after slaughtering the Pig Demon, a blank small strip in the interface of his mind suddenly had 1/5 more, crimson and somewhat eerie.
This is the progress bar, every time it's filled a slot, it grants a skill point, which can be used to upgrade the Guiding skill or unlock new skills.
Of course, upgrading the Guiding skill to level two requires two skill points, and so on upwards.
Zhang Kui stroked his big beard and chuckled,
"Is this asking me to become a Demon-Subduing Celestial Master?"
"This big beard is somewhat like Yan Chixia, ha, Dao... Dao Dao... the Dao that can be spoken is not the eternal Dao..."
He hummed a tune, feeling elated, his nature was already violent, only feeling that this world is where his heart belongs.
Of course, before that, he had to nourish his body well.
Zhang Kui abruptly pulled open the window,
"Niu Er, quickly go to Huichun Hall and get Doctor Wang, my kidneys are about to fail!"
...
At the same time, two Government Officials on the county street were squatting in front of the deep pit Zhang Kui had blasted, clicking their tongues in praise.
"Goodness, the strength..."
"How should we report to the master?"
"Say what you need to say, the victims don't dare to report it, and after receiving benefits, they keep their mouths shut even tighter. Do you dare to go find Official Zhang?"
"I'm not out of my mind, let's go, let's go..."
The two Government Officials returned to the county office hall, bowed their heads and said, "Reporting to you, sir, that Butcher Zhang has personally killed the mad pig, and no one was killed on site."
The Yutang County Magistrate, a fair-skinned scholar with a long beard named Liu Changfeng, squinted slightly upon hearing this,
"Has anyone reported a complaint?"
"No one has filed a complaint."
The two Government Officials quickly shook their heads.
"Damn it!"
County Magistrate Liu slammed the table, exuding an aura of righteousness.
"This Butcher Zhang bullies the market, making the people suffer endlessly. Even I have to eat pigs with hair."
"One day, I will rid the people of this menace and deal with this scoundrel!"
The two Government Officials rolled their eyes intensely while bowing their heads.
Even Chief Clerk Li beside them looked exasperated.
You might be able to walk away easy, but Butcher Zhang has deep roots here, with a gang of ruffians under him. Who can endure the reckoning come autumn?
It's just eating a pig with some hair,
Can't you just scrape it off at home...
The previous County Magistrate was corrupt, after finally sending him off, came a naïve scholar.
Alas, when will Yutang County ever have a normal County Magistrate...
...
In the blink of an eye, a month swiftly passed by.
Zhang Kui nourished himself diligently every day, coupled with the twenty-four-seven passive application of the Guiding Skill, his kidney deficiency had long recovered.
During these days, he practiced martial arts intensely every morning and evening, his True Qi circulating continuously within, his skills growing deeper by the day. When still, he was as steady as an iron statue; when moving, as fierce as a tiger devouring people.
Zhang Kui didn't know what level he had reached, in his previous life, there was no such thing as True Qi.
But perhaps due to his skills, no matter how much he circulated it, the True Qi within him didn't increase at all, unlike others who would gain some results by simply meditating.
As the saying goes, there is always gain for loss, and Zhang Kui accepted this easily. The miraculous abilities within the Earthly Demon 72 Transformations were beyond his comprehension, let alone practicing them.
For now, things were simple, as long as he leveled up.
He had already tried, no matter if it was pigs, horses, cows, or sheep, killing ordinary living beings was useless, and presumably, humans were the same.
Besides, from his past teachings, he wasn't so twisted as to want to kill easily, although unruly, he still had a heart for chivalry.
Looks like he still needs to slay demons.
Just as Zhang Kui was eager and Officials were making inquiries, the demon came looking for him on its own.
In the dead of night, as he slept soundly,
he suddenly awoke, reaching his right hand slowly under the bed for the slaughtering knife.
The level of his Guiding Skill was too low and couldn't achieve Inner Qi Projection. Among the Earthly Demon 72 Transformations, there is a Demon Slaying skill, capable of harming evil spirits and ghosts. He had long planned for his next step to upgrade.
His ancestral treasured knife, shrouded in malevolent aura, was just right for self-defense beforehand.
By the moonlight, a seductive figure swiftly leaped in from the windowsill, transforming into a young woman upon landing.
Her appearance was peerlessly beautiful, with alluring eyes, clad in fine silk, her graceful figure was accompanied by a fluffy large tail swaying back and forth.
"Again!"
Various enchanting memories surfaced in Zhang Kui's mind, making him furious. Was he being used as a cultivation partner again?
Bam!
In an instant, he exerted force, the bed board shattered and collapsed, knife light flashing fiercely towards the seductive figure.
Unfortunately, the slaughtering knife swung at empty air.
The opponent disappeared from sight in an instant.
Zhang Kui was horrified, turning instantly to strike behind him, swirling like a storm, slashing left and right, filling the room with knife light.
Unfortunately, as quick as he was, the opponent was quicker, circling him as if Shifting Form and Shadow, teasing his lower abdomen with the large tail from time to time.
Damn it!
Zhang Kui backed to the wall, holding the knife in front of him, his heart full of shock.
Was this a real demon?
"No need to fear, dear..."
The fox spirit also stopped, suddenly appearing by the window, slowly sitting on the chair, with a radiant smile,
"I mean you no harm. Hearing of your revival brought me so much joy."
"I truly liked you; otherwise, with my cultivation level, why would I have enjoyed myself with you for several months, daily gathering mountain essences and wild ginseng for your nourishment? I just lost control for a moment..."
"Nonsense!"
Zhang Kui was furious, swinging the slaughtering knife,
"Is that what you call liking? You just crave my body!"
"Hehehe..."
The fox spirit covered her mouth laughing like silver bells, eyes flowing downwards,
"That's right, I do crave your body."
"Uh..."
Zhang Kui was speechless, instinctively using the knife to cover his groin, "Don't come any closer!"
A trace of melancholy appeared in the fox spirit's eyes,
"Rest assured, dear, I am leaving. I came to bid farewell. Off to the deep mountains for cultivation, we shall meet again in a hundred years, by then you would have reincarnated, meeting yet not recognizing..."
As she spoke, she retreated, turning into a silver fox, leaping onto the windowsill, speaking under the moonlight:
"Yutang County is about to face disaster, dear should swiftly escape to the countryside to hide, also, remember my true name, Hu Meiniang..."
With that, she jumped out, seemingly blending into the moonlight disappearing, leaving a trace of fragrance within the room.
Zhang Kui panicked, running to the window,
"Explain yourself clear, what disaster?"
A voice came trailing with the night wind,
"General's Tomb..."
Zhang Kui looked towards the courtyard,
The cool wind blew under the full moon,
As if everything just now was a dream.
"Tsk, Hu Meiniang... I'm not Xu Shilin..."