"The Awakening of the Man-Eating Snake in Chapter 1"

The Snake Ancestor"

The old snake couldn't remember when it first gained consciousness. It only remembered that it was the notorious Snake King from the Snake Village, having devoured over twenty human lives. Despite being besieged by the government and pursued by Taoist exorcists, no one could capture it.

In the village, legends of the old Snake King consuming humans spread, scaring children indoors at night and keeping snake catchers on high alert.

The old snake didn't recall the exact number of people it had eaten, but it remembered the last two individuals vividly.

The first was a young man named Rendan, who was being chased by an old Taoist into the mountains. Exhausted and injured after running for a day and a night, Rendan knelt before a dilapidated temple's Bodhisattva statue, crying and praying for protection.

Feeling pity for the young man, the old snake swallowed him, ending his suffering. Witnessing this, the Taoist screamed in despair. "No! My elixir!" he cried out. The Taoist had spent ten years refining the elixir and demanded the snake regurgitate it. Unable to bear the Taoist's anguish, the old snake swallowed him as well, reuniting him with Rendan inside its belly.

These were the only memories the old snake retained. From then on, it started to gain intelligence, absorbing various knowledge from the human world. It learned about snake catchers, Taoists practicing magic, Rendan as a humanoid elixir for longevity and cultivation, as well as stories and classics from the human realm.

Deciding to adopt a human-like name, it chose Xuhei, inspired by the tale of Xu Xian from the human world. While others called it the Old Black Snake, it settled for Xuhei.

Envious of humans' inherent consciousness, Xuhei realized the value of life and became fearful of death. Determined to survive, it decided to distance itself from humans and ferocious beasts, targeting safer prey like eggs, poultry, and livestock.

As days passed, the tales of the Old Snake King devouring humans faded, replaced by reports of missing livestock and reduced fish stocks in ponds. Residents refrained from letting their poultry roam freely, fearing Xuhei's voracious appetite.

After a month without food, Xuhei's body grew to six meters in length, developing a demonic core in its abdomen. Delighted by this transformation, it embraced its newfound status as a demon beast. However, its excessive thievery led to a scarcity of food sources, forcing Xuhei to seek sustenance in the town.

Having roamed for years, Xuhei knew the layout of the town well, especially the Chen family's abundant food supplies. Stealthily infiltrating the backyard, it detected the scent of pigs, its favorite meal. Ignoring the risks, Xuhei climbed onto the roof beams, creeping into the dark pigsty.

Despite the pigs' initial curiosity, they soon realized the danger as Xuhei seized a young pig and swallowed it whole. The panicked squeals alerted the other pigs, but Xuhei's massive form easily subdued them. Consuming the pig, Xuhei felt the urge to indulge further, knowing its enhanced digestion would quickly process the meal.

Observing the silent Chen household, Xuhei contemplated taking more, rationalizing its actions due to the increased metabolism from the demonic core. With caution, it decided to feast a bit more before slipping away, confident in its ability to evade detection even if someone woke in the middle of the night.

With these thoughts in mind, Xuhu once again coiled around a fat pig, swallowed it whole, and this time, it took a full five minutes to devour it. His body swelled completely, resembling a small hill.

In this pigsty, there were only five pigs in total, with three remaining. Xuhu couldn't move anymore, so he curled up in a dark corner to digest on the spot.

It was estimated that by the time it was barely dawn, he would have digested most of it.

About an hour passed.

"Bang!"

Suddenly, the door of the pigsty was kicked open, startling Xuhu. He quickly shrank into a small ball, hiding behind the wall.

"Thud!"

A bloody figure was thrown into the pigsty, a young man with a somewhat handsome face but covered in injuries, his breath like a thread of air.

"Could this waste have been beaten to death?"

"So what if he's dead? Daring to snatch a woman from Young Master Qiu, this is the consequence!"

The two men at the door clapped their hands and left the pigsty.

The young man, with his eyes tightly closed, that last trace of breath, after lingering for a moment, disappeared without a trace.

Dead!

Under Xuhu's eyelids, a human died.

This person seemed somewhat familiar, perhaps the young master from Chen Village that Xuhu had seen before.