The Demonic Cultivator slowly walked toward Chen Gou's house.
"Ah," he said in a slow and loud voice, with an evil smile on his face, "I can feel you."
"You mortals, why do you think you can hide from us cultivators?" he mockingly said, his voice full of sarcasm.
The cultivator then moved his hand forward, his fingers bending quickly. The atmosphere roared all around him as he casted a strong wind spell,
A strong, sharp wind blew toward the home. The roof tiles flew like leaves in a storm and the walls creaked before they broke into fragments.
Inside, Chen Gou and his mother, Chen Mei, could feel their house collapsing above their hiding place.
Their house was tearing apart, and the sound was loud, a noise of destruction that was harsh and unpleasant.
Their hearts racing & they could hear the wood creaking and feel the walls being torn apart, as well as feel the floor trembling beneath him. His mother's hold grew more tightly around him.
They then heard low but more and more clearly now: the footsteps. The footsteps reverberated through above the floor. The demon cultivator was getting closer to where they were hiding.
As the sound came closer Chen Mei's body trembled and her breath stopped in her throat.
The footsteps stopped just outside their hiding place, and her mind raced, fear taking over.
Though she knew they were stuck, she tried to protect her kid by holding him close. The cultivator's fingers suddenly flicked again.
The floors above them cracked with snap as he moved his hand in the air. The hiding place was exposed when the wind spell tore through the wood like a blade, sending fragments flying everywhere.
The little room was packed with dust and dirt, and Chen Gou could feel his mother shiver as light flowed in.
The cultivator said in a low , smiling voice , "Come out, or I'll burn this whole place to the ground."
Che Mei's Heart beating hard against chest. Her Eyes pleading, she forced herself to swallow her fear and pushed Chen Gou back. "Remain inside. "Don't move," she muttered, her voice trembling.
She had no idea that, despite her quiet voice, the cultivator could clearly hear every word she had said.
In her nervousness, she thought perhaps the cultivator could only detect one of them. Maybe Chen Gou would be saved if she gave herself up.
With a shaky body, Chen Mei emerged slowly from the broken floorboards and stood up. Her clothes hung to her thin body.
She was a plain rural woman with a black hair and a normal looking face full of hardship and age.There was nothing striking about her.
The demon cultivator was in front of her, a horrific mask covering his face. The mask seemed to be mocking her own life as it was twisted into a cruel smile with sharp teeth cut into it.
Beneath the mask, his flashing red eyes stared into her with a cruel enjoyment. His dark red hair flowed wildly about his shoulders, resembling flames flickering in the wind.
The roof and walls of their smoking, shattered house lay in destruction behind him.
Chen Mei could see the surrounding houses burning fiercely or laying in rubble from where she was standing. The havoc that the demonic cultivators had brought with them had left the village in ruins.
The cultivator gave her a disdainful look and curled his lips into a sneer. "Do you really think I can't sense the other one hiding?" he sighed, his voice filled with disappointment as to how foolish these Mortals are.
The cultivator's words stuck in Chen Mei's chest, causing her heart to race. Panicked, her mind raced with ideas. As she realized there was no way out, despair overcame her. Her weight was barely supported by her trembling legs, is this the end?"
"And you, old women, you probably have No spiritual roots," he shook his head in disappointment and "you dared to show up in front of me even though you are not beautiful. How stupid."
He said in a calm voice. "Well, no need to waste more time." With a wave of his palm, the cultivator summoned another gust of wind.
The spell attacked Chen Mei before she could reply. In an instant, the wind struck her head perfectly.
Her head and body then rolled back into the storage area where Chen Gou was still hiding.
With his breath held in his throat, Chen Gou watched in fear. His eyes went wide when he watched his mother's lifeless figure fall down through the broken wooden floors, her headless body collapsing to the ground.
Her head rolled in his direction and came to a rest near him. Her eyes, dead now, stared blankly into the darkness as blood gathered on the floor. Everything inside Chen Gou paused for a split second.
The fear poured over him like a tsunami as his mind tried to comprehend what had just happened.
He cried out, "Mother!" his voice shaking with pain. His whole body trembled with rage and sorrow.
Chen Gou's eyes grew angry. His fists tightened, he rushed out of the hiding area without thinking. He screamed charging blindly at the cultivator, "I'll kill you!"
The demon cultivator hardly gave a thought. He casually flicked his wrist, sending the boy's body flying backward, slamming him against the broken ruins of the entrance to the basement area.
With a horrible crack, his back hit the broken wood, causing him to scream, knocking him unconscious.
Chen Gou collapsed to the ground, his eyes clouded by pain, and the cultivator moved forward, grabbing the kid by the collar to prevent him from falling back into the basement. The cultivator easily lifted him up and smiled under his mask.
With a sneer, the demonic cultivator reached into his storage bag and took out the spiritual root testing ball, a small glowing orb, "Let's see if you're worth keeping,"
With an evil smile, he said, "Better hope you have spiritual roots. Otherwise, you're next."