Mo Fan didn’t linger long in the joy of his second transformation.
He looked at the bamboo basket in front of him, only to find a dozen or so silver dragon loaches still greedily nibbling on the spirit stones, while the others had already been scared off.
“You lot will do!” Mo Fan snorted coldly, swiftly covering the basket, trapping the remaining loaches inside.
“Two hundred or so spirit stones should keep you fed for a while. Wonder if you’ll evolve?” Mo Fan muttered to himself, but a critical issue soon struck him: what if these loaches chewed through the basket and escaped?
If they got out, it’d be like drawing water with a bamboo basket—nothing gained.
After all, these loaches could bite through and swallow hard spirit stones, proof of their impressive teeth.
With this in mind, Mo Fan opened the basket again and used his Devouring Heaven ability to retrieve most of the spirit stones.
“There, even if they escape, the loss won’t be too great. At least not all the spirit stones will go to waste!” Mo Fan thought.
In his view, the best solution would be to trap them in an iron container, but he doubted Black Wind Mountain had any. At least, none of the lesser demons he knew did.
So, he had to take a gamble.
Though the loaches could eat spirit stones, their speed was slow. A hundred or so stones would keep the dozen loaches occupied for a full day.
Mo Fan was betting on their greed keeping them from fleeing.
Next, he examined the hands he’d manifested. Though not as robust as Da Li’s, they were unmistakably human, with clear muscle lines visible when flexed.
These arms were far stronger than his previous toad legs, making tasks much easier.
He then turned inward, inspecting his inner space. The once one-zhang-square space had expanded to three zhang, a discovery that thrilled him.
This meant his inner space could grow with his cultivation.
Reflecting on the terrifying earlier scene, he concluded that Devouring Heaven was hostile to living beings but had little effect on inanimate objects like spirit stones.
To test this, he swallowed several ordinary fish into his inner space. As expected, they were quickly broken down by an invisible force, leaving nothing behind.
Yet, this time, no spiritual energy replenished his body—only a fleeting warmth.
Mo Fan wasn’t sure what this warmth was, but it left him feeling more spirited, likely harmless.
He didn’t know if other demons on Black Wind Mountain had such strange, powerful abilities, so he decided to keep his Devouring Heaven ability secret for now.
“Looks like I need to find time to ask Da Li for details,” Mo Fan murmured, glancing at the bamboo basket on the stone wall before dragging the others toward the surface.
Once out of the water, he transformed his hands back into toad legs.
For now, he didn’t want other demons knowing he’d achieved a second transformation—it’d be hard to explain.
“Lai Bao, you’re finally out! I’m starving!”
Not long after Mo Fan entered the cave, the dog demon Lai Fu, sniffing the air, bounded over. He opened a large bamboo basket, found it full of fish, and beamed.
“You’re the man, Lai Bao! When it comes to water skills, you’re the best in our patrol team—no, in all of Black Wind Mountain!”
Staring at the brimming basket, Lai Fu spared no praise, then began devouring the fish.
Watching Lai Fu gobble like a cow chewing peonies, Mo Fan frowned. “Brother Lai Fu, slow down. Eating fish like that isn’t tasty. Let me cook them properly for better flavour.”
“No need for the hassle. We’re demons! Why wait when we can finish it in one bite?” Lai Fu ignored him, continuing to scarf down fish, filling the cave with a fishy smell.
Seeing the dog demon’s impatience, Mo Fan said no more, gave a brief instruction, and headed to the hillside.
Soon, he returned with Bull Demon Da Li, Rabbit Demon Red Eye, and Sparrow Demon Cha Cha.
“Lai Bao, not bad! Catching so many fish—worthy of a toad demon!” Cha Cha, a loudmouth, spoke without filter, seeing nothing wrong with his words.
Mo Fan just rolled his eyes, unbothered. He knew the sparrow’s blunt nature wasn’t malicious.
“Lai Bao’s skills might not be top-notch, but his fish-catching is first-rate. Looks like we’re in for some good eats!” Red Eye hopped on Da Li’s head, excited.
“I don’t know about Lai Bao’s skills, but yours are definitely lacking,” Da Li said with a smirk, ready to dig in.
“Brothers, hold on. Let me whip up some boiled fish. I guarantee you’ll want seconds!” Mo Fan grinned, spitting out a large clay pot.
The demons weren’t surprised by this trick, knowing Mo Fan had awakened a storage ability, as they had similar minor skills.
More curious was how he’d cook fish with that pot.
Mo Fan chuckled. He’d visited Black Wind Mountain’s kitchen and acquired some seasonings.
The seasonings were simple—fruits, leaves, and roots of various plants, quite different from those in his memory but entirely natural, with no additives, which pleased him.
For demons like them, cleaning fish one by one wasn’t necessary. He dumped them all into boiling water, added the seasonings, and soon a mouthwatering aroma filled the air, making the demons drool.
“What smells so good? What are you lot up to?”
Even Lai Fu, roused from his nap by the boiled fish’s scent, rushed over, salivating at the pot.
Seeing their reactions, Mo Fan sneered inwardly. Boiled fish was a delicacy even in his past life, let alone for these inexperienced demons.
He had them hooked!
When Mo Fan signalled it was time to eat, the demons dove in, heedless of the scalding broth, moaning in delight at the flavour. Only Lai Fu grumbled, already stuffed and unable to eat more, fearing his stomach would burst.
As Mo Fan predicted, the demons, sated and content, refused to leave, clamouring for him to catch more fish for dinner.
Mo Fan didn’t refuse. Tonight, Black Wind Mountain was holding a cultivation gathering, and he hoped these demons would teach him how to absorb moonlight to refine his demon energy and learn techniques like body separation.
His strategy? Let them owe him a favour through their stomachs!
