Chapter 663: Retreat

The black forked tongue of the python turned to the left, and Xia Qing's heart clenched tight.

Although a python's eyesight is poor, its sense of smell is extremely keen.

Although the protective suit Black Wolf was wearing had been dyed, it was made from python skin!

Of course, Xia Qing was also wearing a snakeskin garment. But hers was worn beneath her protective suit, not as conspicuous as Black Wolf's.

This black python was staring at Black Wolf—could it have smelled something?!

Black Wolf, hidden in the dense forest on the left, sensed the danger. After glancing at Xia Qing, he turned and quickly retreated from this hazardous area.

It was obvious that Black Wolf judged this giant python was beyond what he and Xia Qing could handle together.

Can't win? Then retreat!

Xia Qing understood Black Wolf's meaning, but she stood rooted, still holding the damp herbs in her hands and staring at the giant python.

After noticing Black Wolf flee, the python's forked black tongue and slit pupils turned toward Xia Qing and Yang Jin.

Xia Qing kept holding up the aquatic plants, her gaze steady as she stared at the towering giant python in the pool.

Not because she was certain this black giant python wouldn't harm her, but because as a human, Xia Qing could not retreat. This black python was clearly smarter than the three mottled ones from before. If she retreated now, it might follow the waterway and scent all the way to the human territory in Northern Zone One.

The evolved wolf pack numbered only a few dozen, most of them able to run and fight, and could survive by simply moving to another mountain. But the human territory held more than a thousand mu of farmland, vast supplies, and over two hundred ordinary people without combat ability. If they retreated now, they would very likely lead this snake back to the territory.

So Xia Qing stood here, signaling to the giant python that the humans had only come to gather a few herbs. Whether or not it understood her meaning, if it crawled out of the pool and attacked, there would be a fight.

If the herbs Xia Qing held were a gesture of goodwill toward the black python, then the sharp dagger in Yang Jin's hand and his fierce killing intent were a display of humanity's combat power. Two humans in matching protective suits waited, waiting for the black python to make its choice.

Humans were not incapable of fighting, nor afraid to fight—but to create a better living environment, they were unwilling to fight.

In the water, Xia Qing and Yang Jin truly were no match for this black python. But on land, with their abilities, killing it would only be a matter of time.

The two sides began their standoff. The birds in the valley had long been startled away, leaving only the roar of the waterfall striking the rocks like war drums.

A minute later, the black python's body began to sink slowly, submerging into the pool. Whatever was going on in its dining-table-sized brain, it retreated.

After another minute of waiting, the little birds of the evolved forest began to sing cheerfully. Xia Qing lowered her raised arm and looked up at Yang Jin beside her.

Both wore protective masks and night-vision goggles, unable to see each other's expressions, but they knew the other was smiling.

This time, Xia Qing was the first to raise her fist, and Yang Jin clenched his and bumped it against hers.

"We won!"

Xia Qing's voice carried a smile, and Yang Jin felt a pleasant tingling in his heart. He struggled to rein in his emotions, glanced at the snake-catching net a dozen meters away that had caught no qiang snakes, only a few frogs, and lowered his voice: "It's been over two hours since any qiang snake swam over. Our mission is done; we need to retreat quickly. The three pythons that were trapped are about to come back."

Yang Jin had Xia Qing take a detour back to the rocks above the waterfall. He carefully approached the python pool, quickly gathered up the snake-catching net, and returned to the rocks. There he saw the three pythons trapped by the evolved carnivorous plants, furiously slithering back, flicking their tongues as they searched for their target.

Having just seen that black giant python up close, now standing above the waterfall looking down at these three pythons under ten meters long, Xia Qing immediately felt they were a bit childish.

Mountain Fifty-Five was surrounded by water and marshes. Crossing the evolved forest back to the territory, she was very likely to be ambushed by pythons—the danger coefficient was too high for Xia Qing. Yang Jin asked, "Can your personal flight device still be used?"

"There's enough fuel for one more flight." When Xia Qing had set out from the territory toward Mountain Fifty, she had not only filled the personal flight device's tank but also carried an extra can of fuel. Because the device had a limited payload, she couldn't bring more supplies or fuel.

Yang Jin handed the cloth bag of herbs to Xia Qing. "You fly the herbs straight back; I'll cross the evolved forest on foot."

Between flying the herbs back to the territory as quickly as possible and walking through the evolved forest to train her magnetic energy, Xia Qing quickly made her choice. "Alright. Be careful."

Yang Jin said, "If you run into a large flock of raptors, land immediately. I'll cover you from below."

Yang Jin's running speed was far faster than that of the personal flight device.

Xia Qing looked around but didn't see Black Wolf. Afraid of attracting pythons, she didn't dare call out loudly. She started the personal flight device on the rocks beside the waterfall and rose slowly.

The noise of Xia Qing's takeoff startled the three giant pythons that had been lured out of the python pool by the bait. They leapt from the pool, coiled around the big trees on the stone wall, and rapidly climbed upward, trying to grab the loudly humming Xia Qing.

Yang Jin grabbed a rock and hurled it at a tree trunk. The three pythons immediately shifted targets and slithered toward Yang Jin. Within seconds, Xia Qing had risen sixty meters, above the height of Shanfeng, and flew westward.

She didn't dare fly directly north, afraid the giant python in the pool was still watching her.

Yang Jin also went all-out, vanishing from the pythons' sensing range in an instant. The three giant pythons lost their target and began slamming their bodies wildly against the rocks and trees. Rocks tumbled into the python pool, sending up huge splashes. The black python surfaced again, raised its head, and looked toward the western mountain peak.

On the peak of the western mountain stood an evolved wolf wearing a snakeskin protective suit, head lowered, gazing thoughtfully at the black python in the pool.

The straight-line distance from the python pool on Mountain Fifty-Five to the human territory was 30 li. With a full tank of fuel, the personal flight device's maximum single-flight range was also exactly 30 li. Because Xia Qing had taken a detour, she couldn't fly straight back to the territory and instead landed on the Third Peak of Mountain Fifty.

"Xia Qing, out of fuel?" Yang Jin's voice came through the earpiece communicator, slightly breathless, sounding a bit harsh on the ears.

"Yeah, no fuel left." Seeing Yang Jin emerge from the evolved forest so quickly, Xia Qing was already calm. No wonder Broken-Waist looked down on the personal flight device—this thing really was useless.

Speed evolution—I want speed evolution!

Yang Jin didn't understand Xia Qing's grievance. He was in high spirits right now. "No more qiang snakes have appeared in the territory or on Mountain Forty-Nine, and the water source hasn't been polluted. Once we hand in the qiang snakes, the disaster emergency can be lifted. Should we head straight back, or patrol Mountain Fifty first to check for dangers?"

"Head back and turn in the mission first, then I'll come back to patrol Mountain Fifty." Besides turning in the mission, the herbs they had gathered also needed to be delivered to Zhang San as soon as possible to verify their efficacy. Also, Xia Qing hadn't returned to the territory all night—Boss Yang was surely worried. She needed to hurry back.