Through the crowd, Henry Young and Quentin York could still see clearly: there were four ‘Earthwalk Beasts’, each over two meters tall and more than ten meters long, straining to pull the massive vehicle behind them.

Earthwalk Beasts are a type of demon beast tamed by humans. They possess incredible endurance, have gentle temperaments, are not good at running, but can easily haul thousands of kilograms, making them the most suitable beasts for transporting heavy loads.

Yet at this moment, even four Earthwalk Beasts were struggling to move a single large cart.

On the first cart, what was loaded was indeed a demon beast.

To be precise, it was the corpse of a demon beast.

On the open, enormous vehicle lay the body of a demon beast nearly twenty meters long. Its massive form was shocking to behold—clearly a giant serpent, but with four claws growing from its belly. The black scales covering the serpent’s body glimmered with a cold, metallic sheen, and under the dim moonlight, its limbs and sharp claws looked even more menacing.

Just by looking at its enormous size, one could tell how powerful this demon beast had been in life—far beyond what ordinary people could resist.

However—

On the giant beast’s head, there was a huge wound, as if some sharp weapon had pierced straight through the scales and skull, killing it instantly.

Now, the blood had already congealed.

Even in death, this enormous demon beast still made the surrounding onlookers’ hearts tremble; many people unconsciously lowered their voices when speaking.

“Brother Yun, this giant serpent is just too big, too terrifying. It’s clearly dead, there’s a huge hole in its head, all the blood’s drained out, but why am I still scared? I don’t even dare look it in the eyes.” Quentin York held his breath.

“This is a great demon, and it has already cultivated demon qi.” Henry Young was much calmer. “It hasn’t been dead for long, so the demon qi hasn’t dissipated yet. That’s why ordinary people feel fear when they encounter it.”

“A great demon?” A trace of fear flashed in Quentin York’s eyes.

He couldn’t help but ask, “This giant serpent demon beast—is it the kind of great demon our martial academy teachers talk about, the kind that only a martial grandmaster at the ninth level of body tempering can match?”

Ordinary demon beasts are only called minor demons.

Only the most formidable among demon beasts can be called great demons.

“Yes.” There was a heaviness in Henry Young’s eyes as well. “And this isn’t just any great demon. If the information I read in the martial canon is correct, this dead demon beast should be... one of the most terrifying types of aquatic demon beasts—a jiao.” Henry Young said softly.

“A jiaolong?” Quentin York was startled.

He wasn’t very interested in demon beast lore, but he had heard the famous name of the jiaolong.

“Jiao and jiaolong are two different things,” Henry Young said with a smile. “Jiao are not that rare; there are many in rivers and lakes. Weak jiao can be handled by ordinary martial artists, but powerful ones can rival martial grandmasters... Only when a jiao becomes a demon king does it qualify to be called a jiaolong.”

“Jiaolong are extremely rare, but every single one has the power to stir rivers and overturn seas. They are a huge threat to our human race. Even ten martial grandmasters together wouldn’t be a match for a jiaolong—only immortals can contend with them.” Henry Young said gravely.

“I know about that.” Quentin York nodded.

Quentin York recalled, “I heard from my father that the Black Dragon Lake, which stretches for thousands of miles, is occupied by a tremendously powerful jiaolong—the Black Dragon King. My father said that the great flood a few years ago was caused by the Black Dragon King stirring up the lake and destroying the Ningjiang dike. The flood ended up affecting several counties... At that time, the imperial court sent several immortals to hunt it down together, but the Black Dragon King still managed to escape into the depths of the lake.”

Henry Young listened quietly at the side.

When Quentin York mentioned the Black Dragon King, a faint trace of killing intent flickered deep in Henry Young’s eyes.

But soon, that trace of killing intent faded away.

“Hey, Brother Yun, I just remembered—only a jiao that grows five claws becomes a jiaolong.” Quentin York, staring at the slowly receding convoy and the dead jiao, said in shock, “This jiao already has four claws—doesn’t that mean it’s almost a jiaolong?”

“You just noticed?” Henry Young sighed. “Judging by its size, this jiao was already close to transforming into a dragon, fully capable of matching a martial grandmaster. An ordinary battalion of a thousand soldiers would probably be slaughtered to the last man.”

Quentin York listened in awe.

That jiao just now could match a martial grandmaster? You have to know, there are only a few martial grandmasters in all of Donghe County.

And a battalion of a thousand soldiers would be wiped out facing it? Donghe County has nine towns under its jurisdiction, and each town has a battalion stationed there. Does that mean this one jiao could wipe out an entire town?

“Actually, this jiao wasn’t even the most powerful one.” Henry Young took a deep breath and said in a low voice, “I just looked closely at the wound on its head. If I’m not mistaken, someone used a spear to pierce straight through its skull. Otherwise, there’s no way its scales would be completely undamaged.”

Quentin York could hardly believe it. “Such a powerful jiao, and someone pierced its head with a single spear? What kind of martial artist could do that?”

The skull is usually the toughest part.

“Even a grandmaster at the peak of the tenth level would find it hard to do.” Henry Young said softly. “I suspect this jiao was slain by a martial immortal.”

“A martial immortal?”

Quentin York’s eyes went wide.

As disciples of the martial academy, who hadn’t heard the legends of immortals?