After being chosen by the Ice Queen

As the sun rose higher, there were more pedestrians in the town. Gu Yan changed into an inconspicuous gray cloth outfit, wrapped Huiming up, and quietly left through the back door of the inn.

The earth god shrine in the northwest corner was more dilapidated than I had imagined. Most of the surrounding wall had collapsed, and sunlight leaked through the roof of the main hall. The gold paint on the earth god statue had peeled off, exposing the clay body, and the expression on its face was blurred. The incense table was covered in dust, with only a few burnt incense sticks stuck in a chipped bowl in the corner.

As soon as Gu Yan stepped into the temple, the demonic aura became clear.

He walked to the statue, cleaned the altar, added a few more sticks of incense, bowed several times, and said, "Since you have received incense offerings, why not show yourself? I have no ill intentions."

The temple was completely silent, save for the mournful sound of the wind blowing through the broken windows.

Hey, why isn't anything happening? Isn't this how it is in novels? Gu Yan thought to himself: Is the local earth god ineffective?

Gu Yan's gaze swept across the dusty ground. In some corners, there were signs that the dust had been carefully wiped away, especially around the base of the statue, which was exceptionally clean. He flicked a wisp of candlelight from his fingertip, which moved lightly through the temple like a gossamer thread, finally stopping at a very hidden crack behind the statue.

"If you don't come out now, I'll ask you to leave." Gu Yan's voice was slightly deep.

"No! Immortal Master, spare me! This little demon will come out right now!" A weak voice rang out from behind the statue.

With a rustling sound, a small figure, no more than a foot tall, trembled as it crawled out from behind the base of the statue. It resembled a rat, but its fur was a rare pale gold. Its eyes were large and round, like black grapes, and were now brimming with tears. It clutched a furry tail that was longer than its body, and its whole body trembled like a leaf falling in the wind.

This is... a golden velvet rat? Gu Yan made a judgment. This kind of little demon is probably timid and cowardly. It usually feeds on the seeds of spiritual herbs and should be harmless. It is also difficult for it to cultivate to any great extent.

"Little...little demon Jinbao greets the Immortal Master!" The little demon knelt down with a thud, kowtowing repeatedly. "This little demon has never harmed anyone! I've been hiding here, helping the Earth God clean and offer incense, just asking for a safe place to live! Please, Immortal Master, spare my life!"

Its demonic aura was pure and faint, truly lacking any bloodthirsty or malevolent energy. Gu Yan concealed his presence and said, "Stand up and speak. You said your name is Jinbao? Why are you hiding here? Do you have any family?"

Seeing that Gu Yan didn't intend to act immediately, Jinbao breathed a sigh of relief, but remained kneeling, too afraid to rise. He sobbed, "Reporting to the Immortal Master, this little demon...this little demon originally lived with my parents, brothers, and sisters in the Cuiwei Ridge in the south. The spiritual energy there was decent, and although life was hard, it was peaceful. But...but three months ago, an evil demon claiming to be the 'Black Water King' came to the ridge!"

As it spoke, deep fear and hatred welled up in its eyes: "That evil demon is said to be a monstrous snake-dragon, who has taken over the icy pool deep within Cuiwei Ridge, forcing us lesser demons to offer him spiritual herbs, and even... even demanding that we offer him the inner cores of our own kind for his cultivation! My parents led us to escape, but that evil demon caught up with us..." Jinbao's tears fell in large drops. "My parents were killed by that evil demon while protecting me... I ran for my life, for a long time, before finally hiding here. I've been hiding here, cleaning and burning incense every day, hoping that the Earth God will protect me and prevent that evil demon from finding me..."

A serpent-dragon hybrid? Gu Yan's heart stirred. This Blackwater King, judging from the description, was exactly the target he needed to find—a demon related to serpents and dragons, whose demonic power should be beneficial to the Orochi inheritance.

"What exactly does the Blackwater King look like? What is his strength? Where in Cuiwei Ridge does he reside?" Gu Yan pressed.

Jinbao wiped away his tears and tried hard to recall: "I only saw the demon once from afar. That evil demon could transform into part of a human form, had a single horn on its head, black scales on its body, and its arms could extend like snakes. Its eyes were yellow, and it was very frightening! It had a strong demonic aura, and you could smell a fishy stench from a great distance. It also had several large, black-scaled snakes under its command that had become spirits, and they were also very powerful. Cuiwei Ridge is about a hundred miles south of here, and its lair is in the deep pool below the highest peak in the ridge, Luoying Peak."

A little over a hundred li isn't too far. Gu Yan calculated in his mind. If he were to go to investigate and hunt, he would need to be well-prepared.

"Do you want revenge?" Gu Yan asked Jin Bao suddenly.

Jinbao froze, a glint of light appearing in his eyes, but it quickly dimmed again: "I want to... I dream about it! But I'm too weak, I can't even beat one of that evil demon's giant snakes..."

"What if I help you?" Gu Yan asked calmly. "I'm somewhat interested in that Blackwater King. You lead me to his lair, and if I succeed, it will be avenging your parents. How about it?"

Jinbao trembled, looking up at Gu Yan in disbelief. It could sense an aura emanating from the person before it that instinctively instilled fear in it, but it seemed... there was no malice in it. Moreover, it had heard rumors in the town that the other party could kill the Black Wind Dog Demon with a single strike.

"Immortal Master... are you really willing to help this little demon avenge herself?" Jinbao's voice trembled, filled with disbelief and hope.

"It's a mutually beneficial arrangement," Gu Yan said frankly. "I need something from that monster. But the condition is that you can provide accurate information and obey my orders."

Jinbao kowtowed again without hesitation, saying, "This humble demon is willing! This humble demon is willing to lead the way for the Immortal Master! As long as revenge can be achieved, this humble demon will listen to whatever the Immortal Master says! Although this humble demon's abilities are meager, I am quite familiar with the Cuiwei Ridge area and know some paths to avoid other dangerous demons!"

"Very good." Gu Yan nodded. "You stay here for now and don't expose yourself. I'll come find you after I've dealt with things in town. In the meantime, if you hear any new news about the Blackwater King, keep it in mind."

"Yes! I understand!" Jinbao was so excited that his tail stood up straight.

Gu Yan said no more and turned to leave. As he reached the temple gate, he seemed to sense something and turned back to look at the mottled statue of the local earth god.

Whether it was an illusion or not, the corners of the mouth on the blurry face of the clay and wood sculpture seemed to be curved upwards a little more than before, in the dappled light and shadow filtering through the broken roof.

Gu Yan's eyes narrowed slightly. The statue remained lifeless, devoid of any spiritual energy. He withdrew his gaze, no longer lingering, and his figure quickly disappeared beyond the ruins.

Inside the dilapidated temple, Jinbao carefully climbed onto the incense table, bowed again to the statue of the Earth God, and whispered, "Grandpa Earth God, you heard it too! A powerful immortal master is going to help this little demon take revenge! Please bless the immortal master so that he can successfully eliminate that evil demon!"

The statue remained silent, its smile unchanged, gazing quietly into the distance.