Demon, come and cultivate for me.

Having found Xu Yao, Zhou Chu's anxiety finally subsided.

But then a new problem arose: what should be done with Xu Yao?

Sending her back to Baishi Village is absolutely out of the question; she has no relatives left in the world.

As a woman returning alone to Baishi Village, she would surely be targeted by villains; being devoured and leaving no descendants would be the least of her worries.

Zhou Chu promised Xu Kun that he would take good care of Xu Yao for him.

When entrusted with a task, one should faithfully fulfill it.

They couldn't abandon Xu Yao, but they also couldn't keep her by their side forever.

What to do? Zhou Chu was at a loss.

"Is my brother... alright?" Xu Yao's voice trembled slightly. When she was kidnapped by the wolf demon, she saw Xu Kun being seriously injured by the wolf demon.

"Uh..." Zhou Chu was speechless for a moment, not knowing how to tell her the bad news.

Xu Yuan took the initiative to speak, "Girl, is your brother's name Xu Kun?"

Xu Yao nodded in response.

"Sigh~" Xu Yuan sighed, "Your brother was too badly injured and didn't make it. I was the one who found a coffin for him."

To Zhou Chu's surprise, Xu Yao did not break down emotionally upon hearing the news.

She hummed in response and then remained silent, continuing on her way with her head down.

The sun was high in the sky, and the mountain road was so hot and humid that it was hard to breathe.

Suddenly a strong wind arose, and large swaths of dark clouds swept in, darkening the sky instantly. Then came lightning and thunder, followed by a torrential downpour.

There was no village in sight, no shop in sight. With nowhere to shelter from the wind and rain, they had no choice but to run under a big tree for shelter.

Xu Yao's thin clothes were torn in several places. When the cold wind blew in, she could only hug her arms and squat there shivering.

Seeing this, Zhou Chu stepped forward, took off his brocade robe, and draped it over Xu Yao.

Xu Yao felt the lingering warmth of Zhou Chu's body on the robe, and her body gradually stopped trembling.

"Oh my~ Tsk tsk tsk" Xu Yuan made a strange sound at Zhou Chu when he saw this.

Xie Ning nudged Zhou Chu's side with her elbow and whispered:

"I didn't realize the great hero was so chivalrous. Tell me, what's your relationship with her?"

Zhou Chu said in a serious tone:

"From the same village, we grew up together, practically naked."

"Oh, really?" Xie Ning continued, "And now?"

"Now that we're all grown up, we don't go around naked anymore."

Hearing Zhou Chu's words, Xu Yuan, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Xie Ning glanced at Xu Yuan and continued to ask Zhou Chu:

"I'm asking what your relationship is now."

Zhou Chu countered:

"What is our relationship now?"

"I asked you first, so you go first."

"I asked you later, so you go first."

"Hmph!" Xie Ning snorted and turned her head away, no longer speaking.

Like a passing cloud, rain can come and go as it pleases.

In less than fifteen minutes, the rain stopped and the sky cleared.

The group continued their journey.

After two days of hard work, Zhou Chu safely returned most of the villagers.

The group arrived at their last stop, Baishi Village.

Only seven or eight villagers remained in the group, all of whom were from Baishizhai.

The villagers of Baishizhai had been waiting at the village entrance since they heard the news that their loved ones had been rescued from the wolf den.

Dozens of torches illuminated the village entrance as brightly as day.

The villagers who escaped were overjoyed to see their loved ones again and wept with joy.

Only Xu Yao stood behind Zhou Chu, head down, without saying a word.

After everyone had left, Xu Yao asked Xu Yuan, "Brother Xu, where is my brother's grave?"

Xu Yuan said, "It was arranged by the wealthy Zhou family. They said it would be located in the same place as your parents' graves."

Xu Yao nodded and walked out of the village.

Seeing that she wasn't in good condition, Zhou Chu was afraid she might do something foolish, so he wanted to go with her.

Xie Ning stopped him and said, "I'll go with her."

At this moment, Zhou the wealthy man strode across the path:

"Nephew Zhou Chuxian, what are you still doing here? I've been looking for you everywhere. The food and wine are all prepared, and the martial arts masters from the city are waiting for you."

Zhou Chu instructed Xie Ning, "It's good that you're going, but be sure to protect her well..."

"I understand, you can go and have your drink." Before Zhou Chu could finish speaking, Xie Ning turned around and chased after Xu Yao.

The wealthy Zhou family hosted a banquet in the village to entertain Zhou Chu and the martial artists stationed there.

Upon entering the village, a dozen or so wooden carts were parked along the street.

The wooden cart was loaded with the corpses of wolf demons and wild boar monsters, one of which was even larger than the humanoid wolf demon's body.

A single corpse filled the entire wooden cart, causing the wheels to tilt slightly.

Zhou, the wealthy man, explained, "Master Fan ordered each village to prepare wooden carts specifically for transporting the demon's corpse."

Zhou Chu nodded, thinking to himself that the old man Fan Li was quite efficient. In just two days, he had retrieved all the wolf demon corpses and killed quite a few wild boar monsters as well.

The banquet was held in the large courtyard of the Zhou family.

When Zhou Chu entered the courtyard, he saw that all the people at the banquet were dressed as martial artists, numbering at least forty.

Looking around, he only recognized Fan Li and two or three other people who came with him; the rest were unfamiliar faces.

These people sat at the table, but their expressions were not relaxed, and their weapons were kept close to their bodies.

Fan Li, who was sitting in the main seat, waved to Zhou Chu as he entered, gesturing for him to come and sit down.

Fan Li introduced himself to the group of martial artists:

"This is Zhou Chu, who single-handedly ventured into the wolf den and killed dozens of wolf demons."

Upon hearing this, all the martial artists stood up and raised their wine bowls to pay their respects to Zhou Chu.

The relationship between martial artists is simple: if you are strong, I will respect you.

Zhou Chu strode forward, picked up a bowl of wine, and drank it all in one gulp. Then he raised the bowl and showed everyone the empty bowl, not a drop left.

Everyone cheered and followed suit, drinking their wine in one gulp and showing off their empty bowls.

When everyone saw Zhou Chu's young and handsome face, they were all surprised.

Fan Li had only said that his cultivation level was comparable to Zhou Chu's, so they both instinctively assumed that Zhou Chu was also an old man.

Surprisingly, Zhou Chu was a young man who looked to be in his teens or twenties.

Most of the martial artists present were only beginners at the age of twenty, not even reaching the initial stage.

At twenty-five years old, Xu Yuan, with his cultivation level as a mid-stage martial artist, was already a rare find among them.

Most martial artists reach the middle stage only when they are over fifty years old.

Zhou Chu reached the peak of his cultivation at the young age of twenty, which means that he already has the potential to reach the Martial Saint realm, and his future is limitless.

The martial artists took turns offering Zhou Chu a toast.

Zhou Chu never refused anyone's drink, and he would drink it all in one gulp with everyone.

The fiery liquor went down my throat, relieving most of my fatigue.

From last night until now, Zhou Chu has traveled several miles and fought several battles. He has not eaten or drunk anything for more than ten hours and is already starving.

The wealthy Zhou family prepared a full range of dishes, including wine, chicken, duck, beef, and mutton, showing that they had spared no expense.

Based on Zhou Chu's understanding of this uncle, this banquet would cost him at least half a year's worth of heartache.

After all, even the most extravagant thing Zhou Da Hu did was eat white flour buns; he couldn't bear to eat meat at all.

Zhou Chu put down his wine bowl and glanced at the dishes. Although they were not as exquisite as the food and wine at Jinquelou, they were plentiful.

"Why aren't you eating?" Zhou Chu asked, enjoying his meal with a sip of wine and a bite of meat.

Under the astonished gazes of Fan Li and the other martial artists at the table, he quickly emptied the plates on the table.

Even so, I only ate until I was about 60-70% full.

When Zhou the landlord saw that the plates on the table were empty, he immediately ordered his men to clean them up and serve new dishes.

Just as the banquet was in full swing, an alarm bell rang at the village entrance.

Zhou the landlord's expression changed: "I wonder what kind of monster has attacked this time."

Zhou Chu, slightly drunk, stood up and said:

"Don't panic! Whatever kind of monster it is, one will die if it comes, two will die together if it comes."

Upon hearing this, Zhou the wealthy man felt relieved. Yes, with so many martial arts masters in the village, and his virtuous nephew with profound martial arts skills, what was there to be afraid of?

Fan Li remained calm, as if he had already anticipated the demonic attack that night.

He stood up and said, "Gentlemen, follow me to slay the demon!"