Shortly after, the child began to cry from hunger, his instincts for consuming flesh and blood kicking in. Not long after, the child fell asleep again. This process repeated itself for a few months. If you observed closely, you could notice that the bloody core was slowly being absorbed until it became completely clear, resembling a vibrant ball. The core itself couldn't be easily absorbed, only the blood from its surface. Over time, the child absorbed almost all nutrients from the core.
The demon boy couldn't speak initially, but he felt someone communicating with him from the core. In this half-year period, he gained the ability to speak and read.
Eventually, after almost half a year, the young demon emerged from the basket, starting to explore the top of the snail. Unfortunately, the clever spider anticipated the child's actions. Before the child could harm itself by falling from the snail, the spider quickly wove a web around the top of the snail, preventing any accidents.
Not long after, the demon successfully explored the available parts of the snail and found a way inside its shell. Inside, there were different rooms, but unfortunately, only the first room was accessible to him. The room was filled with various books and other miscellaneous items. The first room after the entrance was a large living room with an elliptical shape. In the middle of the room was a big circle adorned with various symbols, resembling some kind of pattern. Inside the circle lay a crystal-made naked woman's body with different runes and symbols all over it. The room also contained a big table with a few chairs, all covered in books and scrolls.
The demon started looking around, but as a child, he couldn't reach anything high, only things that were on the floor. Thanks to the core, he grasped the basics of language and some basics of written words in the books. The books were mostly about rituals, arrays, and experiments. He quickly lost interest and fell asleep again.
Time flew by in the next half time demon started speaking to the spider and a big snail. Spider is smarter than snail so he plays with him but the spider can't answer to the child so the child tries to speak to sleeping beauty but without response.
After another half of the year, the snail found a mountain village. Villagers were dumbfounded when they saw a snail. They never saw cultivators and they feared the snail.
This village was very poor and depended on the animal farms to survive. When they saw a small child on top of the snail they immediately rushed near the snail.
They tried to save the child but the snail didn't stop and they were helpless. The old village leader saw this and tried to stop the snail. When he was young he saw cultivators and he knew that they were helpless if the snail tried to kill them they would all certainly die. At this moment snail stopped and the spider web that protected the child disappeared.
Demon child jumps down from the snail. In the instant beam of light shoots inside the old man's head. The old man instantly fell to the ground. It took him a while to recover and he instantly understood that the beam of lite was not meant to harm but help him. What he didn't know was that the beam helped him to break through 1 stage of Body Tempting cultivation. Against ordinary humans nothing drastic happens only their body is a little stronger and their health is better in the form of recovery. He took the child back to the village. Snail's body enters inside the shell.
In the village, the village chief adopted demon child questions. No one knew that the child was a demon thanks to some unknown spell that the deity cast on him before leaving the snail. His language was far better than ordinary children and thanks to it village chief discovered that the boy had no name so he named him Li Wei. Li Wei starts living with the chief and his family consists of a wife, one older son Han Sung, and an older daughter Han Ming.
*****
Half a year later a girl was born in the village. She was named Mei Lin. The girl has black hair and green eyes. Not long after the chief family went to visit the newborn girl.
At this moment Li Wei felt something very strange from the girl. Though she couldn't speak, only cry, he felt as if she was attempting to communicate something to him, akin to the core he possessed. Uncertain of what to do, he remained silent. Later that day, the girl fell ill.
In the following year, the boy experienced rapid growth. By the age of three, he began assisting his family at home, having fully mastered speaking and reading. However, his adoptive younger siblings weren't as quick, and their frustration towards him grew.
During this year, Mei Lin, the newborn girl, spent much of her time unwell and began to visibly deteriorate. Despite their efforts, her parents couldn't find a way to save her. In the same year, a cultivator from the Green Jade Sect visited the mountain village to identify potential cultivators to counter demon threats.
This proved fortunate for the village, as they had a QI Condensation cultivator. Such cultivators could sense the cultivation potential in normal humans, and if someone displayed such potential, they could contribute to the village's prosperity and generate income. After two days of examination, the cultivator identified an eleven-year-old child with cultivation potential and the ailing Mei Lin. Witnessing her plight, Mei Lin's parents implored the cultivator to save their daughter, agreeing that she would join the Green Jade Sect. The cultivator pledged to aid her health, though he couldn't cure her illness.
Upon the cultivator's departure, the village celebrated the prospect of a future cultivator and geared up for the autumn harvest. Each family prepared their crops and animals, ensuring the fields were ready for the next spring. This year's harvest was bountiful, with a significant surplus of crops and animals. Soon after the harvest, a portion of the food would be sold to cultivation sects and other villages in exchange for various goods.
*****
Time passed, and the next nine years flew by like water. The harvest season became particularly intriguing for Li Wei. He contributed significantly, showcasing his almost inhuman strength that rivaled that of a grown man. In contrast, his stepbrother was noticeably weaker.
His stepbrother, Han Sung, attempted to frame Li Wei in various situations to humiliate him, especially in front of the other girls in the village. Unbeknownst to Li Wei, he was not happy about it and tried helplessly to counter it. Soon after, Han Sung killed a few animals and framed Li Wei. Han Sung, cunning in such matters due to his tendency to steal and frame others, succeeded. As a consequence, Li Wei was punished and forced to work tirelessly in the fields while other children played in the village.
The village chief, aware that it wasn't Li Wei's fault but lacking evidence, didn't attempt to defend him. The fortune Li Wei received from the mysterious deity was long forgotten, and the chief did not regard the child as his own. After a few days of hard work, Han Sung and other children visited Li Wei, subjecting him to verbal bullying. The only one who refrained from bullying was Mei Lin, the weakest of the children, responsible for washing clothes and preparing food.
Soon after, another problem arose. With the harvest over, everyone began preparing supplies for winter. On a particular day, Li Wei and Mei Lin descended the mountain into the forests to find healing herbs for the village. Despite Li Wei's physical weakness, he had an affinity for herbs and nature. Mei Lin excelled at finding various herbs, and Li Wei was sent with her for protection.
This plan was carefully orchestrated by Han Sung and Han Ming. They were aware that, as summer ended, fierce wild animals migrated down the mountain to hibernate, providing an opportunity to harm Li Wei and Mei Lin. Li Wei's physical prowess was extraordinary, but he couldn't protect both of them. For the plan to succeed, they needed to steal herbs from the village storage, as herbs were typically collected in the summer or spring when dangerous animals were not around. Although no one suspected that the herbs were stolen, the village chief both of them to go even if this trip was very dangerous.
