I transmigrated to a chaotic world and became the sole player.

"Huff...huff..."

Lu Zhao knelt on one knee, supporting himself with a wood-chopping knife, breathing heavily, each breath accompanied by excruciating pain in his chest and abdomen. Cold sweat, blood, and dirt mingled, rolling down his forehead and cheeks, dripping onto the ground beneath his feet. Several deep, bone-revealing wounds, swirling with black energy, from his left shoulder to his chest, were still gushing blood. The negative effects of [Yin Sha Invasion] gnawed at his life force like maggots clinging to his bones. His health had plummeted to a dangerously low 15%, his physical strength was nearly exhausted, and his mental energy was almost gone.

"Success...finally..." He struggled to lift his head, looking at the demonic corpse lying on the ground, rapidly decaying and turning into black liquid that seeped into the earth. The hideous snake head had withered, the eerie green ghost fire had been completely extinguished, leaving only twisted bones and a tattered black robe. The nauseatingly sweet and pungent stench and the chilling oppressive aura in the air were rapidly dissipating.

The relief of surviving the ordeal and the intense thrill of defeating a powerful foe washed over his taut nerves like a cold tide. But he had no time to rest. This place was not safe to linger; the battle had been quite loud, and he didn't want to attract anything else...

Struggling to his feet, he quickly scanned the battlefield. Beside the demon's corpse lay a fist-sized, now dull black soul bead, several pieces of snake slough that shone with a dim black light and resembled leather, a tattered scroll made of some kind of animal hide, and several pigeon-egg-sized black crystals with black mist flowing inside, scattered on the ground.

Despite his weakness, Lu Zhao quickly picked them up and stuffed them into his robes. He didn't examine them closely, his gaze instead falling on the destroyed array and the scattered children's skulls. The lingering resentment in the skulls' eye sockets had long been absorbed by the demon, leaving only empty shells. He silently stepped forward, used a woodcutter's knife to dig a shallow pit in the nearby soil, carefully moved the skulls into it, and hastily buried them—a silent form of remembrance.

Having done all this, he dared not linger any longer and quickly left the depression, heading towards Li Family Village. He staggered along, barely managing to reach the outskirts of the village only thanks to the slight recovery from his level-up and the forced activation of the [Turtle Breathing Technique].

Instead of entering the village, he found a secluded mountain hollow, barely concealed himself with withered branches and leaves, sat cross-legged, and fully activated the [Turtle Breathing Technique]. The warm current from the upgrade combined with the restorative effect of the [Turtle Breathing Technique], causing his health and stamina to slowly but steadily recover. At the same time, he took out the scroll of the [Snake Shedding Transformation Technique] fragment, concentrated his remaining mental energy, and carefully deciphered and analyzed it.

[Forbidden knowledge discovered: "The Serpent's Metamorphosis Technique" (fragment). Warning: This is an evil cultivation method, containing strong risks of contamination and mental distortion. Do you wish to consume 300 experience points for a preliminary interpretation, only obtaining information on its power principles, operational pathways, and weaknesses, without delving into specific cultivation methods? (Strongly discouraged from learning directly!)]

"Analyze it!" Lu Zhao said without hesitation. He didn't practice evil arts, but he needed to understand his enemy. Knowing yourself and your enemy is the key to victory. He needed to know the origins of this demon, the characteristics of its cultivation method, and its weaknesses.

[Consuming 300 experience points. Decoding in progress...]

A deluge of information flooded his mind, mostly distorted, sinister, and filled with blood and pain. Lu Zhao suppressed his discomfort and focused his mind to filter it. The fragment described an extremely insidious, unorthodox method that combined the bloodline of demonic beasts with evil soul-refining techniques. The cultivator needed to find a snake containing a trace of the bloodline of an ancient demonic serpent. When the snake was molting and weakened, the cultivator would extract its soul and refine its spirit, using the molted skin as a catalyst and the souls of young boys and girls as a "medicinal ingredient." Using evil magic, the cultivator would forcibly fuse the serpent's soul with their own, then use the molted skin as a "new skin" to rebuild their body, in order to gain some of the serpent's abilities and a long lifespan.

"So that's how it is... Its cultivation level wasn't high; perhaps it was a rogue cultivator from an evil path who obtained this evil technique by chance. Setting up the Yin-Gathering Serpent Formation here, extracting children's souls to nourish that 'Evil Cultivator Soul Pearl,' was its attempt to complete the final step of shedding its skin and transforming into a demon... Unfortunately, it failed at the last hurdle." Lu Zhao understood the demon's origin and purpose. No wonder it valued the Soul Pearl so much; it was its core, the key to its ability to "transform into a demon."

"Weaknesses... The fusion with a demonic soul has caused mental confusion, making him vulnerable to the power of pure Yang and the ability to dispel evil. While the snake's shed skin is tough, the joints connecting the old and new 'membranes' and the vital points are weak points. The soul-refining process is perilous, and his mental resistance is actually inferior to that of orthodox cultivators of the same level..." He extracted information on these weaknesses one by one. This detoxification, though costly, was invaluable. If he encounters similar evil entities again in the future, he will be able to handle them with ease.

Having completed the detoxification, Lu Zhao's spirits had recovered considerably. He took out the [Broken Evil Cultivator Soul Bead]. The bead was icy cold to the touch, its interior a deathly darkness, within which countless tiny, twisted, struggling faces could be vaguely seen—fragments of the devoured souls. The demon was dead, and the soul bead had lost its sentience, but the immense source of soul power and Yin energy it contained remained astonishing.

[Damaged Evil Cultivator's Soul Bead (Special Item)]

[Note: This is the core of the cultivation practiced by the evil snake-headed demon, containing a large amount of pure but impure soul power, demonic power, and resentment. It is extremely dangerous; direct absorption will lead to mental derangement, demonization, or transformation into an evil being. It can be slowly purified and refined using special methods, or used as the energy core of certain special formations.]

[WARNING: Extremely high pollution levels!]

"I can't use it for now, but it's very valuable and needs to be carefully preserved." Lu Zhao carefully wrapped it in cloth and put it in his pocket. This thing might be able to be exchanged for something good in the future, or it might come in handy under certain conditions.

Then there were the few pieces of [Black Snake Skin], tough in texture and containing faint traces of demonic energy, seemingly materials for crafting leather armor or some kind of special talisman. The [Yin Sha Crystal (Mid-Grade)] contained much purer Yin Sha energy, an excellent material for crafting Yin-attribute magical artifacts. It was useless to him, but he could sell it for money.

Finally, he checked his status. He had reached level 7, all his attributes had improved, especially his divine attribute, which had increased to 3.3. His health and stamina had also fully recovered. However, his injuries remained and required time to heal. But the biggest gain was the new title—[Demon Slayer]! Although the bonus wasn't high, it was highly targeted and a genuine improvement.

"The matter of Li Family Village is considered resolved. With that sorcerer dead and the formation broken, the gathered yin energy will gradually dissipate, and there shouldn't be any more missing children." Lu Zhao pondered, "But this matter can't just end like this. I need to find a way to let the people of Li Family Village and the garrison know that I'm the one who solved the problem, so I can get the reward and make a name for myself."

He rested for about an hour, and as dawn broke, his injuries stabilized considerably under the influence of the [Turtle Breathing Technique], before he got up and headed towards Li Family Village.

At dawn, when Lu Zhao reappeared in front of the village chief's house, the old village chief could hardly believe his eyes. The boy before him was dressed in tattered clothes, stained with blood in many places, and his face was pale, but his eyes were bright, and he carried a faint smell of blood and... an indescribable, unsettling calmness.

"It's...it's you..." The village chief trembled as he looked at the tattered black robe Lu Zhao was carrying, and a grotesque snake-head jawbone covered in scales that rolled out of the robe.

"I have exorcised the evil spirits from the cemetery behind the mountain. These are some of its remains," Lu Zhao said calmly, his voice hoarse from blood loss and exhaustion. "Please trouble the village chief to inform the garrison and verify the reward. Also, the calamity of the missing children in the village should be resolved, but we still need to be wary of any lingering poison. Keep everyone away from the back mountain in the near future."

The village chief stood there stunned for a long time, tears streaming down his face, then knelt down with a thud: "Thank you, brave warrior! Thank you for saving my whole village from this disaster! I will never forget your great kindness!"

The news spread like wildfire throughout Li Family Village. Villagers, young and old, flocked to the village chief's house. Seeing the gruesome remains, and then at Lu Zhao's calm yet blood-soaked body, they all knelt down, weeping uncontrollably. The shadow of fear dissipated, and the hope of life returned to their hearts.

In the afternoon, several constables from the garrison and Wang, the clerk, accompanied by Li Gang and a team of skilled镖局 (bodyguard agencies) members who had rushed to the scene upon hearing the news, hurriedly arrived at Li Family Village. Led by Lu Zhao, they went to the cemetery on the back mountain to investigate.

In the depression, the remaining array diagrams, the buried skull pit, the scattered black powder, and the half-rotted but still terrifying skeleton of the demon all testified to the perilous and brutal battle of the previous night. The dense, lingering aura of malevolent energy further solemnized the faces of the Changfeng Escort Agency members traveling with them, giving them a new, awe-inspiring understanding of Lu Zhao's strength and courage.

"Brother Lu... truly a hero among young men!" Li Gang looked at the ravaged battlefield, then at Lu Zhao beside him, whose face was pale but whose back was straight. He patted Lu Zhao's shoulder forcefully, his eyes filled with complex emotions—amazement, admiration, and a touch of indescribable emotion. He had initially thought the young man was skilled and courageous, but he hadn't expected him to possess such demon-slaying abilities! This was beyond the capabilities of ordinary martial artists.

"Master Wang, the investigation here is complete, and it can be confirmed that the evil spirits have been eliminated. As for the reward..." Li Gang looked at Master Wang beside him.

At this moment, Master Wang also abandoned his usual arrogance, his expression solemn. He cupped his hands to Lu Zhao and said, "Hero Lu, you have rid the people of a scourge, your merit is immeasurable! The garrison will provide the full thirty taels of silver reward. In addition, there is an extra twenty taels of silver, a gift from the government in recognition of your righteous act, to help you with your journey. Furthermore," he paused, then took out a palm-sized wooden tablet, neither gold nor wood, engraved with simple runes, from his robes and handed it to Lu Zhao, "This is the 'Azure Wood Token,' issued by the garrison. With this token, you can enjoy many conveniences in Azure Wood Town and its villages. If you need anything, Hero Lu, you can come to the government office with this token."

Lu Zhao accepted the wooden plaque and the heavy money bag, and clasped his hands in thanks. This "Qingmu Token" may seem like just a wooden plaque, but in the small town of Qingmu, it holds great significance, representing official recognition and certain privileges, making it more valuable than silver.

"Furthermore," said Wang, the clerk, "the government will issue a proclamation announcing the hero Lu's slaying of the demon to reassure the people. Would the hero be so kind as to leave his name?"

Lu Zhao pondered for a moment and said, "I am Lu Zhao, a mere hermit. This matter is merely a coincidence."

"A freelancer?" A glint flashed in Wang Shiye's eyes, but he didn't ask any more questions. He just gave Lu Zhao a deep look and nodded.

That evening, carrying fifty taels of silver and the "Qingmu Token," and under countless grateful and awe-inspiring gazes, Lu Zhao declined the repeated entreaties of Li Family Village and, together with Li Gang and the others, embarked on the journey back to Qingmu Town. He knew that after this incident, his "reputation" in Qingmu Town had been thoroughly established. This was both an opportunity and a reminder that more trouble and attention were about to follow.

But he was not afraid. Because he knew that the path to becoming stronger that he had chosen, a path filled with thorns and bloodshed, had only just begun.