A Waste of Time-Chapter 29: Solitary Watch

"Are you sure you won’t join us? Old man Lou sent a lot of meat!" Auntie Fan called from her doorstep as she and Uncle Zhou waved Daemon and Ru off.
"No need," Daemon said. "I’ll send my guard to collect Mei and Xia in the morning."
Auntie Fan nodded, sly smile on her lips. "I’ll speak with Ming tonight. If all goes well, expect two pretty helpers on your doorstep tomorrow—Mei and Xia both. Double Mei’s pay for Ming’s girl, of course!"
Daemon only chuckled, waving goodbye. He and Ru slipped into the dusk.
Back at camp, Jia was setting bowls out while Ippo hovered at her elbow.
"Welcome back, young master!" Jia hugged Daemon tight, pressing his head to her chest. He squeezed her backside shamelessly before slipping away to wash up at the creek.
Ru only grinned, ignoring Jia’s blush. Ippo pouted and kept brushing her fingers on purpose,
desperate for her warmth.
Daemon ate well, thanked Jia with a kiss on her cheek, then ducked into his tent to check on his other world.
Tak Bam Bam
Daemon sat once more on his Iron Throne. Grunt worked nearby, logs and beams slotting into place as he built the house.
[Summoning Circle: Indestructible]
[Summons Available: 1]
[Type: Hero Summon]
[Nature: Two-Way Summon]
Daemon eyed the Circle’s glow.
So when Asura is summoned outside, he leaves here. Good to know.
He checked the pile of Spider corpses he’d dragged away—already buzzing with bugs.
Better far than near.
"Maybe I’ll scout... nah, too dark," he muttered.
Better to help Grunt finish this house.
"Lord Asura!" Grunt dropped his tools and knelt when Daemon approached.
"Stop that," Daemon grumbled. "I’m here to help. What’s next?"
"I-I couldn’t, my Lord—" Grunt stammered.
Daemon hauled him up by one thick arm. "You’re wasting time. Tell me."
"I must wedge these logs together and brace the beams." Grunt pointed.
In moments, Daemon lifted him up in one massive hand, extra arms passing logs and planks like toys. What would’ve taken Grunt hours took minutes.
By the end of an hour, the small homestead was nearly finished. Daemon couldn’t fit inside to help with the last touches, so he watched Grunt place the final windows and hang the sturdy door.
"It’s done, Lord Asura," Grunt declared, pride swelling in his broad chest.
[House]
[Capacity: +20]
[Current: 6/20]
So it counts Grunt as one and me as five,
Daemon mused, scratching one chin.
[Achievement: Fresh Start]
[Reward: Female Orc]
The Summoning Circle stirred. A green-skinned female stepped out—lean, toned, fur wrapped tight around chest and hips, a bone pinning up coarse hair, a necklace of fangs resting on strong collarbones.
[Runa: Tier-0]
[Race: Orc (Female)]
[Faction: Horde]
[Role: Crafter/Hunter/Fertile]
[Strength: 2.5]
[Agility: 3.5]
[Vitality: 2.4]
[Endurance: 2.5]
[Intelligence: 2.5]
[Magic: 1.5]
[Skills]
Sharp: Focus senses 30s.
Power Shot: Damage+5%
She knelt. "Greetings, Lord Asura."
Grunt nearly fainted from joy.
Finally.
"You two are married now," Daemon said dryly. "You have my blessing—go mate."
Runa looked up at him, deadpan. "Here, my Lord?" She patted the dirt beside her.
Daemon choked. "No—inside!" He turned away as the Orc pair slipped into the house, chuckling at the rumbles that would soon echo behind him.
The woods were alive by day but stifling at night—especially under a moonless sky.
Scree.
"Piss off! I didn’t knock over your nest on purpose," Daemon growled, glaring at the eagle-like beast swooping at his heads. "Scram before I get mad."
It shrieked back. He flashed it six middle fingers. "Right back at you!"
When its mate joined in, flanking him with sharp talons, Daemon’s patience ran dry.
They’re trying to chase me out of the forest?
The slope grew steeper, trees sparser, the east sky paling. He wanted a better view of the rugged ridges, valleys, and how far the forest reached—but a new sound cut him short.
Screech.
The boulder above him shifted—stone wings unfurled, a grotesque monkey-dog face emerged, obsidian claws scraped stone as it drummed its chest like a gorilla and hissed.
When the whole slope shifted, Daemon realized the "mountain" was coated in them—thousands of stone gargoyles rousing from slumber.
Those feathery bastards set me up.
The horde stirred. He twisted, back to the cliff, sliding down with two arms while four readied Spider Spears.
Rocks flew. He smacked one aside. "Oh, you wanna cheat now?" Another barrage—Lone Tower flashed on. Spears blurred, deflecting stone after stone as the mountain roared to life.
He hit the forest floor running, trees swallowing him and breaking the swarm’s line of sight. Most gargoyles lost interest. A stubborn hundred circled above.
Fine.
He braced beside a giant tree, hacked its roots with six arms until it toppled. The clearing was bait.
The gargoyles dove, shrieking. Daemon’s grin showed too many teeth. "Eat shit."
Lone Tower triggered—Battle Cry roared. Spider Spears blurred, deflecting claws and wings. Their stone hides resisted—but when he flung one into another, they cracked.
He stomped two to rubble.
[Eliminated Level-5 Stone Gargoyle : Experience+37]
That message chimed twice. He grabbed their bodies by wing joints, swinging them like clubs. Gargoyles howled under the blunt force.
Rush. Critical Blow. Lone Tower again. Claws bit his flesh but he pressed forward, piling corpses until only thirty remained. One final sweep, one final roar—and silence.
Daemon breathed hard, scooping up carcasses half his height, wings spanning eight meters wide.
Too many for one trip. Soak first, haul later.
He hefted the biggest ones, activated Rush, and vanished into the trees—back toward camp and his waiting fountain.
Daemon dumped the last load of gargoyle carcasses beside the spider pile, then limped straight for the fountain. He needed its healing—his petrified wounds refused to close, half his health bar gone, recovery crawling.
Petrification, huh. These gargoyle claws could make weapons that petrify... not bad.
His stats flickered in his mind:
[Asura : Tier-0]
[Race : Fiend]
[Faction : Horde]
[Hero/Leader/Warrior/Spellcaster]
[Strength : 15]
[Agility : 26.7]
[Vitality : 17.2]
[Endurance : 18.6]
[Intelligence : 22.1]
[Magic : 19]
[Health : 142/330]
[Stamina : 26/385]
[Mana : 85/420]]
Slow but steady.
The clearing ahead held more trouble—a whole wolf pack lounging at his fountain. Browns, greys, hulking black ones. And in the basin itself: two massive white wolves mating.
Veins pulsed on all three of Daemon’s foreheads.
My fountain is not a damn love hotel.
With six arms, he cracked branches and whipped them at the snarling ring of brown wolves. They yelped, scattered. He bared his teeth at the four black wolves standing guard. “Move. Or limp.”
He strode through them, seized the amorous pair by the scruffs, and flung them onto the grass. The white male lunged, teeth flashing. Daemon caught him mid-pounce and forced him to sit, three hands locking jaws and limbs.
“Good boy. You can swim. No more sex in my tub.”
He scratched its ears until the tail wagged. A single pointed finger sent the white wolf slinking off with its mate to a secluded patch of forest.
Daemon eased into the fountain’s warmth. Stamina returned. Health ticked upward. The pack sat. A few brave pups nosed closer; he ruffled their fur.
They’re smart. Even the animals here have brains.
When his bar filled, Daemon rose, shook off, reclaimed his weapons, and returned to camp—trailing a dozen brown wolves behind him.
Grunt and Runa were still busy in their hut. Daemon ignored them, dropped onto his iron throne, and slipped back to the real world.
Outside the tent, Jia waited. She hugged him, soft and warm, scolding him gently: “Welcome back, young master. No trouble this time?”
He just grunted. “Bed.”
Jia laughed, pulled her mattress next to his, and slipped in behind him. He felt her warmth, her quiet heartbeat, and for once let it lull him to sleep.
Deep in the Qi family’s main hall, news spread—Qi Ying, ninth son of Patriarch Qi Yuan, had just returned from the Ten-Thousand Beast Mountain after ten years as an Outer-Sect disciple. When the spy finished ing how Daemon hunted elk, visited Nie’s Smithy, Qi Ying ignored the Patriarch’s authority and face in front of Clan Elders, dismissed the servant and sneered. "Leave it to me. I’ll handle this matter"
.
Confident, he thought:
The boy's guard is a Water Cultivator, but I, Qi Ying, am a Cultivator of the Earth element, a Peak Third-Stage, nearly at the Middle-Ranks of the Qi-Gathering Realm.
And Earth counter Water
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