Chapter 535: Sword Slays the Giant Serpent

Gunfire rang on without end, like thunder roaring.

The sun‑spotted viper let out a painful hiss.

Its scaled armor was nowhere intact, blood poured out, yet the damage from the Bolt Gun was not enough to be fatal to its massive body in a single strike.

The Lightning‑forged Colossus was entangled by it, its mechanical body not at risk of being torn apart, but its limbs could not fully extend to exert power; a thunderous heavy punch struck the giant snake, barely breaking the holy light barrier, but could not inflict a serious wound.

The battle was at a stalemate, but Lei En was not in the slightest hurry.

Dejiko leapt back from beneath the platform, his armor half corroded away, his rotting flesh being slowly healed by holy light. Seeing this, he calmly refrained from charging again, retrieved his shield, and rejoined the Sunwalkers.

The Minotaurs could all see that the monster was already doomed.

Even if its vitality were extremely tenacious and its flesh thick, it could not hold out long; within minutes it would be shot dead by the Extreme Warriors' Bolt Guns.

Therefore there was no need to risk going up.

"This monster!"

A Minotaur, seeing the sun‑spotted viper's holy light barrier and the golden blood flowing from it, sensed a familiar aura and asked in puzzlement, "How can a poisonous snake wield holy light?"

"And it has grown so massive!"

Dejiko wore a grim expression and did not explain anything to his tribe.

The Sunwalkers quickly caught on, recalling the chief's earlier words, their faces turning pale one by one. The legendary female Sunwalker shouted in hatred, "It must be it! This monster stole our lord's divine power!"

"A lowly poisonous snake dares to defile our lord's tomb; it shall die!"

"I will kill it with my own hands!"

The Minotaurs, inflamed with collective fury as if suffering a grave humiliation, glowed with golden light and, disregarding danger, rushed to slay the sun‑spotted viper.

"All of you, stand still! Don't act rashly!"

Dejiko halted the Minotaurs, scolding, "Do not cause trouble for the lord; this monster cannot escape."

While soothing his people, he kept his eyes on the sun‑spotted viper, his gaze sweeping over the wide-open gate, then stopping abruptly, filled with curiosity and awe.

The Minotaurs also noticed the chief's look and couldn't help asking, "Should we go inside and take a look?"

"Are you mad?"

Someone immediately objected fiercely, "What if we disrupt our lord's resurrection plan?"

They argued for a few sentences without resolution, all turning to Dejiko, awaiting the chief's decision.

Dejiko was deeply hesitant; from the bottom of his heart he wanted to see with his own eyes the state of the deity they had worshipped for years. Yet he feared disappointment: Anse's divine power had been stolen by this monster, the resurrection plan shattered, likely doomed to fail forever.

That would be a crushing blow to the Sun‑seeking tribe!

The tribe's faith could easily waver, unable to endure; within a few generations the clan would fragment, turning to the Mother Goddess, and the Sunwalkers would vanish.

Some Minotaurs also contemplated this, their faces clouded with worry and burning hatred toward the sun‑spotted viper.

"I will personally kill this monster to avenge our lord!" At last, the legendary Mid-stage Sunwalker, second only to Dejiko, a Minotaur named Atomo, raised his double‑handed hammer, eyes reddened, charging like a maddened bull.

His massive hooves struck the stone slabs, the heavy footfalls drowning out even the gunfire.

A few Minotaurs also surged forward.

Lei En's brows twitched slightly.

At this moment, Reslin, in stealth mode, had reached the pyramid entrance gate and was attempting to close it. The Lightning‑forged Colossus lay not far from the doorway, tangled with the sun‑spotted viper; the Minotaurs charged in to fight, their sight piercing the corridor to glimpse the true interior of the pyramid.

Even the Sunwalkers might detect Reslin while he was hidden.

That conflicted with his own plan.

Lei En's thoughts shifted rapidly; he instantly flashed forward and sealed the Lightning‑forged Colossus into the Nebula Ring.

The Extreme Warriors hurriedly ceased fire, fearing they might harm the proximate original entity.

The sun‑spotted viper, having lost its tangled target, found its body hanging empty; in its confusion it spotted Lei En in a striking blood‑red cloak, recalling that he was the one who stole the divine fire, and it opened its jaws to bite without hesitation.

Lei En's figure turned into lightning to dodge, then instantly reversed, landing atop its head and hammering down.

Bang!

Even without full force, the viper's head was driven into the ground, yet its massive divinity granted defenses and regeneration comparable to an Undying Body; using the impact's rebound, it launched back toward the airborne Lei En, its tail sweeping, flinging several Minotaurs away.

Huff…

Lei En vaulted backward; the constant flight technique made him move like a bird, and in an instant he was a hundred meters away.

The viper's gaze fixed solely on Lei En, pursuing relentlessly on the ground; its upper body rose upright, spitting a hundred‑meter‑long stream of lethal venom.

The breath's range was vast, covering every direction Lei En occupied, leaving no escape.

Lei En intentionally lured it away from the pyramid entrance, so he did not use a portal to evade; with a thought, he activated the rarely used Five‑ring Prism Light Shield, and simultaneously raised his hand to cast, his palm glowing with a sphere of colored light.

The green toxic breath engulfed Lei En in midair, but the shield held it at bay.

Whoosh— a sharp crack.

A thick rainbow‑colored beam pierced the lethal breath, shot into the viper's mouth, passing straight through, and triggered "Burning"; a layer of violet Arcane fire spread from its mouth across its body, scorching it to the point of skin and flesh tearing, writhing in pain on the ground.

Seizing the chance, Lei En flew out of the toxic breath's range; the Prism Light Shield remained, leaving him completely unharmed.

He swung his arm and threw the Lightning‑forged Colossus again.

The hundreds‑of‑thousands‑pound colossus slammed down with a booming crash, like a meteor striking the viper; its massive body was flattened, its spine nearly crushed.

The Lightning‑forged Colossus rode atop the giant snake, its fists alternating in barrage.

Boom! Boom! Boom…

The fists forged from Titan blue‑iron weighed tens of thousands of pounds; driven by the Titan Furnace, their force could split mountains and crack stone. Each fist bore a thunderous heavy strike, unleashing bolts of lightning, its power equivalent to a Six‑ring spell.

The Lightning‑forged Colossus launched heavy punches, hammering the viper's head repeatedly, causing it to see stars and thrash its tail wildly.

Without the massive divinity supporting it, it could not withstand even a few blows.

By now, the viper had moved far from the pyramid entrance, landing on the open sand beneath the platform; the Minotaurs surrounded it, and upon seeing it being savagely beaten, they halted.

"Continue firing."

Lei En calmly gave the order.

One team of Extreme Warriors was on the platform, the other beneath it; seeing Lei En leave the Sun‑spotted Viper, they fired recklessly from both directions.

At once, clusters of blood blossoms erupted on the Sun‑spotted Viper's body.

From time to time two or three Explosive Shells struck the Thunder‑forged Colossus, clanging and sparking, but fortunately it was so hard it was not harmed.

The entire tomb trembled.

The Thunder‑forged Colossus pressed down on the Sun‑spotted Viper, refusing its escape, ignoring its counterattack, swinging its fists mindlessly. Each punch first shattered the Viper's Holy Light Barrier, then struck its head, scattering scales and flesh, crushing the whole head into the pit.

The Minotaurs' faces turned pale; they had never heard of such a powerful mechanical colossus, and if they rushed forward and took a single punch, they would instantly turn to mush.

The clash of the two massive beings lasted over a minute.

The Thunder‑forged Colossus had hammered countless punches, and the Extreme Warrior's Bolt Gun had already overheated, forcing them to fire alternately.

Yet the Sun‑spotted Viper stubbornly withstood the assault, refusing to die.

Even Lei En was amazed by its tenacious vitality; he glanced at the entrance by the pyramid, where Reslin had already slipped into the gap behind the door, ready to close it.

"It's time."

Lei En knew that if he delayed any longer, the Minotaurs would inevitably doubt him.

To deal with such thick‑skinned, fast‑regenerating monsters, a single lethal strike is best; the Rainbow Beam and Electric Blast Orb are unsuitable, and the newly mastered Rending Sky Sword is the most fitting.

He spread his arms, his soul energy surging.

One second later, he summoned two Rending Sky Swords, one left and one right, each hovering beside him. The more‑than‑three‑meter‑long translucent great swords were weightless, radiating blue light, instantly drawing the Minotaurs' gazes.

"What spell is that?" a Minotaur asked curiously.

Most Minotaurs shook their heads in ignorance, but Dejike's pupils narrowed; having lived over four hundred years and heard of many Holy Soul Wizards of the Empire, he recognized it as one of the two signature spells created by Tim*Kenan Master, and whispered, "Lord Lei En is wielding the Rending Sky Sword!"

He had just finished speaking when the two great swords shot out like lightning, moving so fast that even the eye could not clearly follow.

The Minotaurs saw two beautiful blue arcs, cutting toward the Sun‑spotted Viper from opposite directions.

The monster seemed to sense the danger.

It let out a frenzied roar, ignoring the Thunder‑forged Colossus's pounding fists; the few remaining scales hardened, a massive divinity surged within, and it exploded instantly.

This was one of the Sun‑spotted Viper's Elements, the Holy Light Impact.

Boom—!

Like a small sun rising inside the tomb, golden light filled the whole view, causing the Minotaurs to close their eyes or turn away; a terrifying shockwave erupted, flinging the Thunder‑forged Colossus off the snake, and the tomb's floor roared up a sandstorm.

"Raise shield!"

Dejike let out a roar, raised his shield and opened a Holy Light Shield, protecting his kin behind him. The Extreme Warriors, farther away, quickly crouched and nailed themselves firmly to the ground.

Amid the swirling sand, the Minotaurs heard a monster's wail but saw nothing happening.

Only Dejike vaguely saw the two Rending Sky Swords cutting the Holy Light Shockwave, crossing over the Sun‑spotted Viper's massive body.

Then, the twin swords each turned back nearby and slashed again!

The two Rending Sky Swords moved at ultimate speed, as if they were sentient beings.

They weaved back and forth, leaving faint blue trails like delicate threads, yet representing extreme sharpness, capable of cutting anything in their path.

The Viper's scales and flesh could not impede at all, as if cutting tofu.

Each strike of the Rending Sky Sword landed on the same spot; no matter how the Viper struggled, the blue great sword always adjusted its direction, cutting the wound with pinpoint precision, as if rehearsed countless times, the Viper automatically drove itself beneath the blade.

Clang clang clang!

The Minotaurs seemed to hear metallic clashing, like an invisible massive pair of scissors cutting a segment of metal dragonbone.

Each cut was accompanied by the Viper's wail.

Whether it was seven or eight cries, when the sand lifted by the Holy Light Impact settled, the Minotaurs saw the Viper's massive body cleaved in two.

Even the Thunder‑forged Colossus could not break its spine, but it was finally severed.

The break occurred near the monster's head; the Rending Sky Sword beheaded it, then looped around to pierce its eyes, stirring within.

The fallen snake head let out a final roar, and after hitting the ground it moved no more.

The Rending Sky Sword flew from the head, returned to the sky beside Lei En, gently hovering at his side, its pale blue blade untouched by blood; Lei En wore a relaxed expression, as if the slain foe were not a divine monster and he had exerted little effort.

"It's dead!"

The Minotaurs murmured.

They looked up at Lei En, awe evident on their faces, and chieftain Dejike was also shocked. He knew how terrifying the monster was— even the mighty colossus could not subdue it— and did not expect Lei En to slay it with a single strike.

Without Lei En and his Extreme Warriors, facing the Sun‑spotted Viper with only their own tribe, not even killing it— escaping with two or three people would be a miracle.

And half a month earlier, the memory of Lei En's flying mace crushing that sand worm remained vivid.

"What a hero!"

Dejike thought, "No wonder Habu esteems him so highly; truly remarkable!"

Boom!

A deafening roar came from behind, startling the shocked Minotaurs, who turned to see the pyramid's great doors closing.

"My lord!"

A group of Minotaurs shouted anxiously, sprinting to stop the doors, but they were too far, not even having finished the stairs to the platform; the stone doors, over twenty meters high, slammed shut with a boom, runes flashing as magical protection reactivated.

The legendary Mid‑stage Atuo Mo, the first to rush to the door, pushed it forcefully out of spite, instantly triggering the protection.

Beams of "Sunflare Light" struck, scorching Atuo Mo's whole body black, yet he would not release his grip.

Clenching his teeth, he glanced back at the slightly later Dejike, shouting, "Chieftain, hurry and help push it open, maybe there's hope!"

"Let go, Atuo Mo," Dejike shook his head, indicating he would not act.

"Chieftain?" Atuo Mo was stunned.

He saw the other tribe members with complicated gazes, staring at the sealed stone door in silence, sorrow on their faces and a hint of bewilderment.

Atuo Mo seemed to understand something and helplessly released his grip on the door.

His chest rose and fell continuously; suddenly he half‑kneelt before the stone door, calming his spirit and silently reciting prayers to the Sun God. The other Minotaurs likewise knelt and prayed, a wave of sorrow spreading, even their Holy Light could not dispel it.

Just when the ox‑headed people were feeling despair, suddenly a voice rang in their minds.

(End of chapter)