Violet Village.
This was a small and peaceful village famous for the countless violet flowers that grew around it. When spring arrived, the hillsides would transform into a sea of purple. The village had even taken its name from these flowers.
The sweet scent of violets drifted through the air with the wind, spreading across the entire village.
On the hills behind the village, two young people were playfully chasing each other through the fields of purple flowers.
The girl's hair flowed with the wind as her laughter echoed across the hillside.
"Lin Yuxuan, stop it!"
The girl looked back at him while laughing.
"What if someone from the village sees us?"
But Lin Yuxuan had no intention of stopping.
With long strides, he chased after her and finally caught up among the violet flowers.
He stepped in front of her, blocking her path.
There was a deeply loving expression on his face.
"Xun'er…"
The young girl took a small step back, but she couldn't hide the faint blush spreading across her face.
"What is it?"
Lin Yuxuan looked at her for a few seconds without saying anything.
"I can't hold it in any longer."
Xun'er blinked in surprise.
"What do you mean?"
Lin Yuxuan stepped a little closer.
"We grew up together since we were children… we played together… we trained together."
He never took his eyes off her.
"And now every time I see you, my heart starts beating faster."
Xun'er's face turned completely red.
She turned her head slightly to the side, but a small smile appeared on her lips.
"Lin Yuxuan… you really…"
Lin Yuxuan took a deep breath.
"Xun'er… I love you."
For a moment, everything became silent.
On the hillside, the only sound was the wind gently moving through the violet flowers.
Xun'er slowly lifted her head and looked at him.
Then she smiled softly.
"Why did it take you so long to say that?"
Lin Yuxuan was just about to respond.
He opened his mouth.
But no words came out.
Because at that moment…
a fast shadow dropped from above.
The violet flowers scattered violently.
SNAP!
A crimson serpent shot forward like lightning and sank its fangs directly into Lin Yuxuan's throat.
His eyes widened instantly.
He didn't understand what had just happened.
One second ago, he had been confessing his love…
The next second, burning venom was spreading through his body.
As he collapsed, the only sound that escaped him was a faint choking noise.
Xun'er froze for a moment.
Her mind needed a few seconds to understand what she had just seen.
"Li..
She didn't even have time to scream.
Aethryon's tail whipped through the air.
CRACK!
The venomous spike pierced directly into her neck.
Xun'er's eyes widened in shock.
Then her legs gave out.
She slowly collapsed onto the violet flowers.
The hillside became silent again.
Where a romantic confession had just taken place…
two bodies now lay motionless.
Among the grass, crimson scales glimmered faintly.
Aethryon lifted his head and tasted the air.
Then he looked at the two bodies on the ground.
He paused for a moment.
"…So this is what humans call a romantic moment."
His tail flicked lightly.
"…My timing might have been a little unfortunate."
Aethryon stared at the two bodies lying on the ground for a few seconds.
Then he tilted his head slightly.
"…Anyway."
He flicked his tail lightly.
"Let's just pretend this never happened, alright?"
The wind gently moved the violet flowers on the hillside.
But…
no one answered.
Because they were no longer in a condition to respond.
Aethryon nodded as if he understood.
"I see. You've chosen to remain silent."
With a very serious expression, he slowly slithered away through the grass as if nothing had happened at all.
…
One minute later
A crimson head slowly appeared from the grass again.
Aethryon had returned.
He looked around carefully.
Then he looked at the two bodies on the ground.
"Oh?"
He lowered his head slightly.
"What happened here?"
He moved a little closer.
"Someone killed these two young people…"
He sighed deeply.
"What a tragedy…"
He silently observed them for a moment.
Then his tail tapped lightly on the ground.
"…But since they're already dead."
Without the slightest bit of shame, Aethryon leaned forward.
And began eating them with great satisfaction.
"Waste would be unacceptable."
Two hours later…
Aethryon had finished eating the two of them with great satisfaction.
Perhaps in life they could never spend their future together…
But at least now, they were together inside Aethryon's stomach.
The crimson serpent coiled within the grass and flicked his tongue through the air with quiet satisfaction.
At that moment, the system notification appeared in his mind.
Beep…
[Level 5 Spirit Student consumed: +0.6 System Points]
Beep…
[Level 3 Spirit Student consumed: +0.5 System Points]
Aethryon stared at the panel for a few seconds.
Then he tilted his head slightly.
"…That's quite low."
The points were far lower than he expected.
But then he remembered the observations he had made earlier.
Each village had at least 250 to 300 people.
And the villages were located quite close to each other.
Which meant…
if he acted carefully…
serial hunting was possible.
Aethryon lightly tapped his tail against the ground.
Then he looked toward Violet Village again.
"…Not bad."
After a brief pause, he added quietly.
"…Quite a crowded restaurant."
Aethryon raised his head and looked at the sky.
The sun was slowly descending behind the horizon, painting the village in shades of violet and orange.
"…Almost time."
The small crimson serpent waited patiently.
One by one, the villagers returned to their homes.
Lanterns were lit…
Then as the hours passed, they began to go out one by one.
Night completely fell.
Silence covered the village.
Aethryon flicked his tongue into the air, separating the scent of humans from the sweet fragrance of violets.
His eyes gleamed faintly.
"…Time to begin."
The crimson shadow slipped through the grass and entered the village.
Aethryon moved with incredible silence.
He slid beneath a wooden fence.
Then slipped through a small opening in the wall of a house.
Inside, three people were sleeping.
A man…
A woman…
And a child.
Aethryon didn't hesitate.
SNAP!
One bite.
Then another.
Within seconds, the room became silent again.
System notifications began appearing rapidly in his mind.
[Level 1 Spirit Student consumed: System Points +0.3]
[Level 4 Spirit Student consumed: System Points +0.4]
[Level 0 Ordinary Human consumed: System Points +0.2]
Aethryon moved to the next house.
Then the next.
And the next.
The village remained quiet through the night.
But within the shadows, a crimson serpent was methodically hunting.
Two villagers in one house.
Four in another.
In another house, a hunter.
[Level 0 Ordinary Human consumed: +0.2]
[Level 0 Ordinary Human consumed: +0.2]
[Level 0 Ordinary Human consumed: +0.2]
At one point he encountered someone slightly stronger.
Even while sleeping, a trace of spirit power could be sensed.
A village guard.
But the result was the same.
[Level 10.5 Spirit Master consumed: +2 System Points]
In another house, there was someone stronger.
Perhaps one of the village hunters.
But it made no difference to Aethryon.
[Level 11 Spirit Master consumed: +2 System Points]
Throughout the night…
Aethryon never stopped.
One village…
Then the second…
Then the third.
By the time dawn approached, he had consumed most of the population of the three villages.
About half of the villagers had no spirit power at all.
Most of the rest only possessed extremely weak cultivation.
At most 25 to 30 people were actual Spirit Masters, and even they were at the lowest levels.
But the population of the villages was so large that this low strength didn't bother Aethryon at all.
In fact…
he had just achieved the highest system point record of the past months.
But there was a price.
Aethryon was now completely full.
His body was almost swollen.
If it weren't for the Large Stomach ability and the system's digestion conversion…
he might have literally exploded.
Aethryon slowly left the villages behind.
Sliding through the grass, he returned to the forest.
Right now, he only wanted one thing…
to find a quiet place and digest the enormous feast.
Eventually, he coiled himself between the roots of a large tree deep in the forest.
He let out a long breath.
"…Turns out I was right."
His eyes slowly closed.
"In the future, I definitely need to start a human farm."
After thinking for a moment, he added quietly.
"…But first, I might need a **diet.