CHAPTER 380: CHAPTER 25: THE MYSTERIOUS VISITOR

On the Dragon East Continent, the Xuan Beast Ridge serves as a natural barrier, dividing the two great powers, the Dragon War Empire and the Rui Song Federation.

Apart from the relatively independent Shang Kingdom, there are many small vassal Duchies scattered between the two powers, most of which were formed through the continuous development of their domains by the Nobles and high officials of the two major nations.

The Saimier Duchy spoken of by Old Kuru is one of these small Duchies. It takes two days to travel from Mazaro Mountain to the Saimier Duchy, passing through the dense forest and pinewoods, and the magnificent Mei Yin River.

According to Granny Madan, Old Kuru has an old comrade living there. Every year in March and April, Old Kuru would drive a herd of Snowflake Cattle to the Saimier Duchy, leaving the Mazaro Farm to be managed temporarily by Granny Madan and Ah Zad.

"That old fellow Kuru, at the bottom of his heart, he’s quite fond of you, child," said Granny Madan, prattling as she watched Kuru herd the cattle with their snowflake patterns down the mountain.

If he didn’t like and trust Yue Jinghua, he would never have left the breeding farm in her hands.

During the day, all was peaceful. Yue Jinghua, as always, herded the cattle up the mountain. Taking advantage of the time when the cattle were grazing, she leaned against a large rock on the mountain and pondered over the moves Old Kuru used that night.

Turning Dark Energy into a sharpened weapon, Yue Jinghua had also tried a few times, but could never quite grasp the trick. Could it be that her Cultivation was insufficient, and only a Dark Heavenly Master could understand the true mysteries of Dark Energy applications?

Lost in thought, the daylight slipped quietly through her fingers like grains of sand.

When night fell, Granny Madan took out the Blue Snow Candle that Yue Jinghua had given her, praising the convenience of this new light while swiftly cutting the fodder.

With the cooperation of the two, the Snowflake Cattle lazily settled inside the barn not long after dark.

Before leaving, Old Kuru set up two Defensive Dark Arrays outside the farm. After nightfall, Yue Jinghua activated the two arrays at the front and back of the farm.

It must be said that Old Kuru’s preparations were thorough. These were two high-level Dark Arrays; with just these arrays, as long as no High-level Dark Beasts attacked, the farm would not be disturbed in the slightest.

Inside Mazaro Mountain, only the Centipede Worm at the mountain’s peak counts as a true High-level Dark Beast, but that creature had just been taught a lesson by Old Kuru.

A Peak of Eighth Rank Dark Beast already possesses a certain level of human intelligence, and it wouldn’t dare to harass the farm again in a short period, which is why Kuru could leave the mountain with peace of mind.

As for the other Low-level Dark Beasts, they probably aren’t as formidable as the Monster Snowflake Bulls in the barn.

After cleaning up, Yue Jinghua chatted with Granny Madan for a while before they each returned to their own houses.

Granny Madan fell asleep, quickly entering dreamland.

Yue Jinghua sat cross-legged, sweeping over the farm with her spiritual power to ensure everything was normal, before she entered meditation and entered Mo Xi’s Sea of Consciousness.

In these past few days, apart from focusing on methods to mystically transform artifacts, Yue Jinghua also had to find a way to use the Chaos Green Lotus Fire to modify Qin Dongting’s Mountain and River Fan.

With the extinguishing of the Blue Snow Candle inside the wooden hut, the night on Mazaro Mountain returned to its quiet serenity.

In the sky, a cluster of stars blinked, gazing down at the grass and trees between the mountains.

The mountain breeze, as usual, bent the pasture grass that was more than half a person tall.

Suddenly, a series of ’clatter clatter clatter’ sounds came from the mountain path, reminiscent of galloping horse hooves.

The grass abruptly collapsed in swathes, and after a moment, it uprighted itself, yet the blades of grass were now stained with blood.

On the mountain path, no trace of people could be seen, however, drop by drop, blood continued to drip along the grass beside the path.

The blood trailed upwards toward the mountain, leading to the Mazaro Farm, where it abruptly stopped.

There was a "thud," as if something extremely heavy had just crashed to the ground.

Moments later, bloodstains on the ground began to spread, their faint scent dispersing in the wind.

"Moo moo--"

From the direction of Mazaro Breeding Farm, a burst of cow moos could be heard.

Following the cow moos, a pained groan came from the ground.

Struggling through the blood, something began to rise.

It? took step by step towards the breeding farm.

When it reached the front of the breeding farm, a defensive Xuan Light Defense Array in the shape of a passport enveloped the entire farm.

In the air, a hand appeared out of nowhere; pale and slender, it reached nonchalantly into the Xuan Light Shield as if unaware of the formidable Dark Array ahead.

As the hand made contact with the Xuan Light Shield, the originally impenetrable shield rippled like water.

The hand, stirring up waves, formed numerous complex fingerprints.

"Poof," like a spark igniting paper, the shield began to exhibit a hole as the hand’s motions continued, enlarging, until a gap big enough for a person to pass through appeared.

Immediately after, a figure walked into the Xuan Light Shield.

After it? entered the Xuan Light Shield, the shield miraculously restored itself to its original state, despite having been breached.

From beginning to end, aside from the gradually changing bloodstains on the ground as evidence that someone had been here, the outside of Mazaro Breeding Farm seemed as if it had remained unchanged.

Daylight began to grow; as the sun lit up the tall poplar tree outside Mazaro Breeding Farm, a new day started for Granny Madan of the breeding farm.

Granny Madan had always been in good health, and in the days since Old Kuru’s absence, like always, she prepared breakfast early, then carried a tin milking pail towards the cowshed.

The milk from Mazaro Farm’s Snowflake Cattle was highly nutritious, but due to transportation considerations, it had never been sold down the mountain.

Each morning, the freshly-squeezed milk was used for breakfast, or Granny Madan would personally turn the surplus into cheese and uniquely flavored sour milk.

As usual, Granny Madan habitually walked towards the left side of the first cowshed, where a mother cow that had recently given birth to a calf and was producing plenty of milk was kept.

But approaching the cow pen, Granny Madan looked inside and was startled.

Inside the cowshed, there was only a little calf that could barely stagger around, crying out in hunger due to the mysterious disappearance of its mother.

The mother cow, originally inside the cowshed and taller than a person with elegant lines, was gone.

Could it have been forgotten during yesterday’s cattle grazing and not brought back?

Granny Madan recalled and then felt something was amiss, as the mother cow had not gone out to graze for the past while due to having calved recently and had always been kept in the cowshed.

Quickly, another thought intruded into Granny Madan’s mind?

Could it be that the breeding farm had been robbed? A cattle thief!