Chapter 426: The Deadly Ground

At this moment, Duan Rong's gaze suddenly shifted; he noticed a patch of deep grass not far under the trees trembling, the blades of grass swaying and emitting a rustling sound.

Duan Rong's breathing tightened; he turned his head to glance at Fan Hongjiao beside him, only to see that Fan Hongjiao's expression was calm, showing no reaction at all.

Not long after, a black shadow was seen emerging from that patch of deep grass, shaking its body as it crawled out.

Once he saw the little thing clearly, Duan Rong couldn't help but chuckle; he had already encountered this creature once on the way here—it was a juvenile Arrow Boar.

An adult Arrow Boar is still somewhat troublesome for a single Martial Artist in the Qi Refining Realm.

After an Arrow Boar reaches adulthood, its skin becomes keratinized, making its defensive capabilities very formidable, and the rain of arrows it shoots from its back can also leave one in a frantic scramble.

But as long as three Martial Artists in the Qi Refining Realm join forces, even an adult Arrow Boar can be slowly worn down to death.

The lethality of an Arrow Boar is not very high, which greatly reduces the danger of hunting this Origin Beast; furthermore, its meat is thick and fatty, so adult Arrow Boars are still quite popular targets for hunting in the Dark Forest.

Some teams without a powerhouse in the Qi Cyclone Realm often choose adult Arrow Boars as their hunting targets.

But Fan Hongjiao and her group rarely hunt adult Arrow Boars because it takes too much time; it often takes a long while of grinding to wear one to death.

After the adult Arrow Boars are hunted, these remaining juvenile Arrow Boars wander about in the Dark Forest.

This juvenile Arrow Boar was clearly passing through the grass to come to the stream to drink water.

The Arrow Boar crawled out of the grass, its pair of dark, beady little eyes darting around, and it sniffed with its chubby nose; seemingly feeling there was no danger nearby, it then mustered its strength and rushed to the edge of the stream.

The juvenile Arrow Boar was only about the size of a wild cat; as soon as it reached the stream, it lay there and began to drink with a gulping sound, clearly parched.

But just at this moment, a cold light flashed, and Wang Yue, holding the Butterfly Twin Blades, slashed the juvenile Arrow Boar in two at the waist with a single strike.

Wang Yue smiled slightly and said, "Got another little Arrow Boar."

Behind Wang Yue, Lu Geng was also standing there. Lu Geng said, "It's just a little Arrow Boar; you had to come down for this?"

Wang Yue said, "You truly are a full man who doesn't know the hunger of a starving one..."

Before Wang Yue could finish speaking, he suddenly saw a whip shadow flash, striking not far from his feet; with a *bang*, a puff of smoke erupted, shattering a fist-sized bluestone into powder, and then Wang Yue heard a voice come from the dense tree canopy not far away.

"Get back up the tree already! A juvenile Arrow Boar, and you come out to make a fool of yourself?!"

Fan Hongjiao gripped the Python Whip in her hand, her gaze filled with anger.

Wang Yue shrank his head; he and Lu Geng split the juvenile Arrow Boar, half each, and then hid back up in the tree canopy.

Duan Rong, at Fan Hongjiao's side, could clearly feel her heaving chest rising and falling; she was evidently still angry at Wang Yue and Lu Geng for exposing their tracks over a juvenile Arrow Boar.

Wang Yue and Lu Geng scrambled back into the canopy, and the rustling of the leaves ceased. Not long after, another black shadow slowly walked out from the grass where the juvenile Arrow Boar had emerged.

Unlike the juvenile Arrow Boar, this shadow walked very slowly; through the gaps in the leaves, Duan Rong even felt that its gait had a somewhat leisurely air to it.

This is the Dark Forest, full of dangers everywhere; what kind of thing is this, to walk with such a leisurely, unhurried air?

Just as Duan Rong was puzzled, Fan Hongjiao had already turned to look at him, and she pressed her fair fingertips to her red lips, making a gesture for him to be silent.

At this moment, Duan Rong saw a trace of fear in the gaze Fan Hongjiao directed at him.

What kind of thing could make Fan Hongjiao, a powerhouse at the Third Layer of the Qi Cyclone Realm, so wary?

At this time, the black shadow that had emerged from the grass had already walked leisurely to a spot not far from the stream; the greenish-dark light radiating from the stream illuminated the shadow quite clearly.

Duan Rong, hiding in the canopy, felt his scalp tingle after seeing the true appearance of the shadow.

The thing actually had three greenish-black heads; as it walked, the three heads looked in different directions, and its four slender hooves made a faint *ticking* sound as they walked under the trees.

Duan Rong couldn't help but feel some doubt; although this thing looked ugly and had three heads, its build was not large, and it seemed to lack sharp claws or teeth, so why could it make Fan Hongjiao so wary?

The three-headed beast had already passed under the tree where Duan Rong and the others were hiding and arrived at the side of the stream, lowering one head to drink water from the stream.

The moment the three-headed beast drank, the water near where it drank began to bubble with greenish-black foam.

Duan Rong's brows instantly furrowed. Poisonous creature!?

This thing was clearly poisonous!

Seeing the floating vegetation on the surface of the stream rot instantly, it was evident that the poison it carried was extremely potent.

The thing drank its fill, its belly slightly distended. Just as it raised its head, the one of its three heads facing the canopy where Duan Rong and the others were hiding suddenly let out a burp, and a cloud of black gas was subsequently sprayed out.

A patch of branches not far from Fan Hongjiao instantly withered, and dead leaves drifted to the ground. Fan Hongjiao dared not move, fearing that making a sound would alert the poisonous creature.

Fan Hongjiao was tense all over, clearly very afraid; she had only a thin layer of leaves in front of her, barely concealing her figure, and the slightest carelessness could lead to exposure.

However, the three-headed poisonous creature clearly had not discovered Duan Rong and Fan Hongjiao in the tree beside it; it sniffed its nose, seemingly having detected some scent, and headed toward the edge of the stream not far away.

There was a patch of bloodstains there, left behind just moments ago by Wang Yue when he killed the juvenile Arrow Boar.

The three-headed poisonous creature sniffed at the bloodstains, and all three heads revealed a look of doubt and contemplation almost simultaneously. It looked around with its three heads, then stepped on its slender hooves and walked under a tree not far away.

Although the three heads of this poisonous creature were a terrifying greenish-black color, its walking posture and gait had a rather elegant charm.

It stopped under a tree not far away; that tree was exactly where Wang Yue and Lu Geng were hiding.

The two were hiding in the canopy at this moment, very nervous. The cloth bag at Wang Yue's side contained quite a few small Origin Beast carcasses; although the mouth of the bag was tied tight, it still couldn't block the faint smell of blood.

At this moment, a drop of blood suddenly dripped from the bottom of the bag.

The instant that drop of blood fell, Lu Geng, with quick eyes and fast hands, suddenly extended his foot and caught the drop of blood with the top of his foot. Otherwise, that drop of blood would have passed through the gaps in the branches below and landed exactly on one of the three-headed poisonous creature's heads.

Fan Hongjiao, using her Divine Sense to investigate, saw everything that happened here clearly; she gritted her teeth, wishing she could lash Wang Yue's backside with a few whips to vent her anger.

The three-headed poisonous creature wandered under the tree for a while, and seemingly finding nothing, it walked away with an elegant gait.

Being so ugly and terrifying, yet walking with such an elegant gait, it was like an ugly monster walking a runway show.

Using her Divine Sense to detect that the three-headed poisonous creature had already gone far away, Fan Hongjiao finally let out a secret sigh of relief, and at this moment, a layer of cold sweat had already seeped from her forehead.

Fan Hongjiao wiped the fine sweat from her forehead and said to Duan Rong, "That thing is called a Three-Headed Green Musk Deer; its toxicity is fierce and can erode Qi. Even for a Martial Artist in the Qi Cyclone Realm, it is very troublesome once struck, and if it were a Martial Artist in the Qi Refining Realm, they would die upon contact!"

"Die upon contact?" Duan Rong heard this, his gaze filled with astonishment, and his heart felt a lingering fear; he had just walked a circle outside the gates of hell.

Fan Hongjiao looked at Duan Rong's astonished gaze and continued, "This is a poisonous creature bred in the complex environment of the Dark Forest, where the Qi is dense and the laws are chaotic; it is far more terrifying than the poisonous creatures of the mundane world!"

Duan Rong looked through the gaps in the branches toward the place where the Three-Headed Green Musk Deer had just been drinking, only to see that the bubbling black foam had long since been washed away by the babbling stream.

After the Three-Headed Green Musk Deer had gone far away, Fan Hongjiao grabbed Duan Rong and leaped, suddenly flying up and landing gracefully in the canopy of another large tree; some of the branches of the original tree had withered, and it was no longer safe to hide inside.

The two had just landed in the canopy, and Duan Rong was about to speak, but Fan Hongjiao suddenly covered his mouth and whispered, "It's here!"

Duan Rong did not know what "it" Fan Hongjiao was referring to, but from her eyes and tone, what he felt was not fear or nervousness, but a kind of excitement.

It seems the prey they were waiting for has arrived. Fan Hongjiao must have seen something through her Divine Sense to have such a reaction.

Sure enough, through the gaps in the branches, Duan Rong already saw a massive black shadow approaching the stream.

It was actually a giant lizard; the young Arrow Boar that Wang Yue had just killed was not even as big as one of its claws.

The giant lizard crawled to the stream, stretched its head into the water, and began to drink greedily.

Duan Rong was stunned to discover that on the lizard's back, there was actually an upright green eye. At this moment, as the giant lizard buried its head to drink, the eye on its back was darting left and right, observing the movements around it; the scene was indescribably eerie and terrifying.

A Green-Eyed Giant Lizard?!

Although this giant lizard, both in its physical form and the eerie green eye on its back, made fear rise in Duan Rong's heart, Fan Hongjiao was clearly very excited, not at all as tense as she had been when encountering the three Green Muntjacs.

"Come!"

Fan Hongjiao suddenly called out, then grabbed Duan Rong and jumped out.

When Duan Rong was grabbed by Fan Hongjiao and leaped out of the tree canopy, he saw Wu Shidao, Wang Yue, and Lu Geng jump out from the left and right sides almost simultaneously.

Several black shadows flashed across in a crisscross pattern, forming a triangular formation that surrounded the Green-Eyed Giant Lizard drinking by the stream.

Wu Shidao held his Iron Ruler, standing his ground.

Wang Yue and Lu Geng, each holding their weapons, guarded the other positions.

Fan Hongjiao, meanwhile, took Duan Rong to guard another side.

Just as they landed, Fan Hongjiao pulled Duan Rong behind her with a fluid motion. At this moment, Duan Rong looked over Fan Hongjiao's shoulder at the somewhat panicked Green-Eyed Giant Lizard by the stream.

Fan Hongjiao could not hide the joy in her eyes.

This Green-Eyed Giant Lizard was massive in size and its meat was succulent; furthermore, its movements were clumsy. Although it had considerable strength, it was still no match for two Qi Cyclone Realm experts like Fan Hongjiao and Wu Shidao.

But just then, water splashed at the stream, and a black shadow actually lunged out from within!

The event was so sudden that everyone was greatly shocked!

The moment the black shadow lunged out, Wu Shidao, who was standing by the stream, had his face contort as he screamed, "Two-Legged Mad Python?!"

Hearing Wu Shidao's scream and feeling the slight trembling of Fan Hongjiao's back in front of him, Duan Rong did not even think; his figure immediately retreated violently.

The thing that had suddenly lunged out of the stream was clearly extremely dangerous.

As Duan Rong retreated violently, he had already seen clearly that it was a giant python as thick as a human waist and about three meters long. Its massive mouth was full of fangs, and at the very front of its body, there were actually two long, protruding claws.

The moment the giant python lunged out of the stream, it used its two front claws to hug the giant lizard's head. Almost simultaneously, its fang-filled mouth bit down, tearing off half of the lizard's head.

The giant python killed the giant lizard in one bite. Wu Shidao was just about to retreat violently when his waist was coiled by the python's tail. Wu Shidao's eyes were filled with terror; he held his Iron Ruler and smashed it against the python's body. The python felt the pain and let out a wild roar, baring its fangs, but it endured the intense pain and coiled its entire body around Wu Shidao.

Wu Shidao had no choice but to mobilize the Heaven and Earth Qi to wrap around his body, struggling frantically to obstruct the python's constriction.

The giant python twisted its body, constricting with all its might. Wu Shidao hastily mobilized the surrounding Heaven and Earth Qi to squeeze around his body. This was a matter of life and death; a moment of carelessness would result in him being crushed into meat paste by this giant python.

Seeing Wu Shidao still struggling desperately, the giant python became even more furious and roared. In its wild, thrashing movements, a trace of emotion could be seen in its cold, inverted pupils.

At this time, Fan Hongjiao had already rushed over, and a whip shadow lashed against the giant python's roaring fangs. Fan Hongjiao also knew this was a life-or-death moment for Wu Shidao. Although they were on Yunfu Peak and didn't get along, they were, after all, from the same sect. Regardless, Wu Shidao had called her Senior Sister for over ten years. This was the moment to stand together against a common enemy.

At this time, Lu Geng and Wang Yue were standing far away, shivering and not daring to step forward.

After all, they only had the cultivation of the Qi Refining Realm; Wang Yue was only at the Second Layer of the Qi Refining Realm, and Lu Geng had only just advanced to the Fourth Layer of the Qi Refining Realm.

Even Wu Shidao, who was in the Qi Cyclone Realm, was holding on so arduously; they would likely be killed in a single encounter with the giant python.

Fan Hongjiao used her full strength the moment she attacked. With one whip, the giant python's mouth full of fangs snapped with a crisp sound, three of them breaking directly, and blood sprayed into the air.

The giant python felt the pain and became even more frantic, but it was constricting Wu Shidao with all its might, locked in a stalemate with the Heaven and Earth Qi that Wu Shidao was frantically mobilizing and churning around his body, making it impossible to attack Fan Hongjiao.

Fan Hongjiao made even better use of the reach of her long whip, her figure flickering incessantly as she harassed it from left and right. Moreover, every strike was ruthless. Before long, the giant python's mouth was full of blood, and even one of its eyeballs had been smashed.

Just as Wu Shidao was about to lose his ability to hold on, the giant python finally could no longer endure Fan Hongjiao's harassment; it released Wu Shidao and lunged toward Fan Hongjiao.

The giant python dug its two feet into the ground, its body scratching and circling on the ground, its speed as fast as a gale. Fan Hongjiao fought while retreating, nearly being coiled by the giant python several times, but each time, at the very last moment, she dodged it with movement techniques as nimble as a ghost.

Once Wu Shidao was freed, he spat out a mouthful of blood. His expression was listless; he immediately sat cross-legged and stuffed something that looked like flesh into his mouth, swallowing it.

Wu Shidao adjusted his breathing rapidly. Within the Dark Forest, there was already rich Heaven and Earth Qi, and experts of the Qi Cyclone Realm could mobilize the Heaven and Earth Qi in the surrounding space for their own use.

The Qi Cyclone within his dantian rotated frantically, like the center of a storm vortex. The Heaven and Earth Qi within a radius of several hundred meters seemed to be stirred up, converging toward him as the center.

At this moment, he sat cross-legged, his heart like still water, his technique fully deployed. After only a few breaths, Wu Shidao suddenly opened his eyes. The listlessness in his eyes was swept away, his gaze focused and sharp as a blade.

Wu Shidao leaped up, holding his Iron Ruler, and charged into the battle between Fan Hongjiao and the giant python.

Wherever the giant python passed, grass and branches were all broken and ruined. Fan Hongjiao was fighting more and more sluggishly, facing constant danger. Just then, the giant python suddenly whipped its tail toward Fan Hongjiao's waist. Seeing that there was no way to avoid it and that she was about to be struck by the tail, Fan Hongjiao suddenly heard a "clang." She saw that Wu Shidao had arrived, his figure flashing as he swung his Iron Ruler, blocking the tail whip.

Once Wu Shidao arrived, Fan Hongjiao's pressure was greatly reduced. She slowly caught her breath, and her attacks became increasingly fierce.

Fan Hongjiao looked at the flickering figure of Wu Shidao not far to her side, and her heart was slightly touched. When Wu Shidao first joined the sect, she had been the one to bring him up, but later their temperaments clashed, and they drifted apart. Yet, looking back at those years, the two of them had also fought side by side like this before.

(End of chapter)