This immortal was clearly ordinary, yet he was unusually confident.

"Thank you for your trouble, old man!"

"Sir, you're too kind. We live in a remote and impoverished area, and it's been a long time since any outsiders have visited. Are you sure you're not mistaken?"

Zheng Zhuang took an earthen bowl from the old man's hand, took a sip, and said:

"That doesn't make sense! I clearly followed the map; it said this was the direction. Hmm, this water tastes really sweet!"

"Ah, this well in our village is quite old. The roads in the mountains are complicated. Perhaps you took the wrong turn at one of the forks?"

"Maybe so. I'll go back to the village and ask other people. Thank you, old man."

"It's alright, it's alright, please take care, sir!"

After bidding farewell to the old man, Zheng Zhuang wandered around the village.

To avoid alerting the enemy, Zheng Zhuang did not release his spiritual sense. Besides, he felt that it would be more interesting to discover the truth slowly.

Zheng Zhuang walked along, stopping frequently, when suddenly he saw a familiar figure ahead and couldn't help but smile slightly:

"This is interesting!"

Zhou's injuries had mostly healed, but Ah Xiu still wouldn't let him work. Bored, he couldn't help but come out to stretch his muscles.

He estimated that he should be fully recovered in another half month, and his marriage to Ah Xiu should be on the agenda.

So he planned to visit Old Wang's house. After all, this was his first time doing something like this, and he had no experience. Even though the villagers didn't have many complicated etiquettes, some necessary procedures still had to be followed.

Suddenly, Zhou Quan felt a figure approaching him. Upon closer inspection, his eyes widened in surprise.

"you you you……"

"It seems you still remember me."

Zhou Quan will never forget that night at the mountain god temple, that monster, and the immortal who killed the monster with a single sword.

"The immortal's life-saving grace will never be forgotten by Zhou Quan."

"How did you end up like this?" Zheng Zhuang raised an eyebrow.

Zhou Quan then recounted his encounter with the soldiers and bandits.

Zheng Zhuang sighed: "Sometimes humans are more ferocious than demons!"

Zhou Quan nodded somewhat sadly: "Why has the immortal come here?"

"I...I will go with you to find Old Wang, but you must not mention my identity. Just say that I am a distant relative of yours and that I have come here specifically to attend your wedding."

Zheng Zhuang initially wanted to tell Zhou Quan the truth, but then thought it best to let him see for himself.

Zhou Quan was very puzzled. Old Wang must also know the immortals. He really couldn't understand why he would do this.

But Zheng Zhuang didn't explain, so he naturally didn't dare to ask. He could only nod in agreement and then went with Zheng Zhuang to Old Wang's residence.

Old Wang's house was much larger than Zhou Quan's, and his family was quite well-off, considered one of the wealthiest households in the village.

Upon seeing Zhou Quan, Old Wang happily came out to greet him:

"What brings you here? Come in and have a seat."

He noticed Zheng Zhuang behind Zhou Quan and said with slight surprise:

"Who is this?"

“A distant relative of mine.”

Zhou Quan answered as Zheng Zhuang instructed, but his heart was filled with turmoil.

We were talking about immortals just a few days ago!

How come you suddenly don't recognize me?

He swallowed hard. "Brother Wang, are you alright?"

Old Wang was stunned for a moment, then said irritably:

"What could be wrong with me? Quan'er, something's not right with you! By the way, what brings you here? Is it about your marriage to A-Xiu? Don't worry, everyone will help you."

Zhou Quan suddenly remembered that Old Wang had told him last time that something was wrong in the village, but he hadn't taken it seriously. But now it seemed that he had overlooked something.

"No...nothing, just came over to chat for a bit," Zhou Quan said, trying to sound calm.

"Alright, alright, you've been out for so long, Ah Xiu must be worried. Go back now." Old Wang nodded.

After leaving Old Wang's house, Zhou Quan wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and bowed to Zheng Zhuang, saying:

"What's going on? Please enlighten me, immortal!"

Zheng Zhuang did not answer, but instead strode forward:

"Let's look around. If we're lucky, we might find it."

Zhou Quan didn't know what "it" was, so he could only follow closely behind Zheng Zhuang.

The surrounding villagers still greeted Zhou Quan warmly, asking who Zheng Zhuang was, when he was getting married, and so on.

The scene was the same, but for some reason, Zhou Quan felt a chill run down his spine and silently took two steps closer to Zheng Zhuang.

Before he knew it, he was back home. When Zhou Quan saw that familiar figure, he immediately breathed a sigh of relief. For some reason, Ah Xiu always gave him an inexplicable sense of security.

"Axiu!"

This time, Ah Xiu didn't respond with her usual cheerfulness; instead, she stared warily at Zheng Zhuang.

"who are you?"

Zheng Zhuang glanced around the room and nodded slightly.

"So you're here. This room may be small, but it does look a bit like a bridal chamber. So you're planning to take him on your wedding night?"

"Eat...who? Immortal, what are you saying? How could Ah Xiu..." Zhou Quan was shocked.

"An immortal? You're the cultivator who killed Qin Ming?" A sinister glint flashed in Ah Xiu's eyes.

Zheng Zhuang did not answer directly, but asked:

"I'm a little curious. You're clearly human, so why can you wield demonic power?"

Ah Xiu seemed to have heard a funny joke, and her laughter trembled slightly:

"Yes, how could you cultivators possibly understand? Do you know how many people want to embark on the path to immortality but fail to find the right method? Why should someone without the aptitude for immortality be unable to cultivate?"

"Since Heaven is unjust, then we will defy it! Don't you cultivators always shout about slaying demons and monsters? What's wrong with us seizing the power of demons for our own use?"

"Then why did you kill these innocent villagers?" Zheng Zhuang sneered.

“Because they all deserve to die! Everyone in this village deserves to die!” Ah Xiu said through gritted teeth.

"Then why did you bring them back to life?" Zheng Zhuang asked.

"Of course it's for my dear Ah Quan!" Ah Xiu licked her lips.

Zhou Quan felt a chill run down his spine and said in disbelief:

"Ah Xiu, you..."

Zheng Zhuang sighed: "Don't you understand? You're the only living person in this village. Everyone else is dead, including your Ah Xiu! The villagers you see are just putting on an act for you. Open your eyes wide and see clearly!"

Zheng Zhuang extended a finger and gently touched Zhou Quan's forehead.

When Zhou Quan opened his eyes again, he was immediately terrified and retreated to the corner of the wall.

Although Ah Xiu in front of me still maintained a human form, she was more like a giant spider, especially with her bulging belly covered in barbs!

No wonder I couldn't wrap my arms around its waist! And thankfully I couldn't!

Zhou Quan felt a chill run down his spine and couldn't help but feel a lingering fear!

What did you do to Ah Xiu?

"I am your Ah Xiu!"

"Ah Xiu is gentle and kind, how could she possibly be a monster like you? You even ruined the whole village!"

"The people of this village deserved to die; I was merely atoning for their sins!"

A series of footsteps approached, causing the ground to tremble slightly.

As Zhou Quan watched the crowd gradually approaching outside, he finally realized that he had been overlooking an important thing: these people had not been breathing all along!