The giant worm's body was wrapped in deep brown patterns, as thick as the waist of an eight or nine-year-old child, coiled round and round a large banyan tree, its yellow vertical pupils coldly staring at Li Tongya and the others.
"What a huge worm!"
Exclaiming in astonishment, Li Tongya's hands moved quickly through incantation gestures, and no sooner had his voice faded than a faint golden light had already appeared in his hands.
The worm "hissed," spitting out a bright red tongue, opened its mouth wide, and forcefully expelled a thick black fog.
However, the golden glow struck first, shooting straight at the worm's chin, causing the worm's head to twist, and the black fog instantly poured onto a nearby tree.
That large banyan tree immediately began creaking, its lush branches and leaves were all rapidly corroded, turning into black droplets that fell on the soil, even the thick main trunk was heavily corroded.
"Hiss."
Seeing this, Li Yesheng and the others were so frightened that they kept retreating, nearly turning to run.
"Keep your eyes on it, and retreat slowly."
Having rescued Li Yesheng and several villagers from the worm, Li Tongya shook his head gravely and said in a low voice.
As the group slowly backed away, the worm did not pursue but remained coiled on the banyan tree, coldly watching everyone.
It wasn't until the banyan tree was out of sight that Li Qiuyang finally spoke up timidly,
"The fruit is behind that tree!"
"There's no rush."
Li Tongya waved his hand and instructed Li Yesheng,
"Call up the village's able-bodied men to bring all the long staves and iron shovels from each household. If there are bows, bring those too along with arrows, and come up the mountain together."
"Yes."
Li Yesheng agreed and hurriedly led the men down the mountain.
Li Xiangping then clapped Li Qiuyang on the shoulder and said,
"You must have encountered this worm searching for food. Not only did you escape with your life, but you also gained an opportunity! Go back to the courtyard and cultivate, there's nothing for you here now."
Seeing Li Qiuyang sweating profusely and obediently descending the mountain, Li Xiangping found a piece of bluestone to sit on and said to Li Tongya,
"This worm's scales are so tough that even the Golden Light Technique only managed to shatter a few scales on its chin."
"Judging by its looks, it is but a minor demon of the Fetal Breathing Realm, with undeveloped spirit and intelligence. What use is a beast's tough scales?"
Li Tongya replied indifferently, carefully observing the terrain.
Soon, the stout men of Lijing Village came up the mountain one after another. Hearing they were to kill a monster, they were both nervous and excited, tiptoeing after Li Yesheng.
After surveying the terrain, Li Tongya sought Liu Linfeng and asked,
"Uncle, I heard that the Liu Family used traps to kill wild boars last year. I wonder, for such a large worm, how big should the trap be?"
Liu Linfeng hesitated for a moment and carefully asked,
"I've heard this worm is a monster and cannot be judged by common sense; what if it can fly...?"
"Naturally, it cannot fly. Just go by past experience and double it."
Li Xiangping interjected, silently muttering to himself,
"If this worm could fly, where would we be alive at this moment?"
"Then it will be easy!"
Hearing Li Xiangping's words, Liu Linfeng readily agreed, directing people to dig a hole with a remarkable air of authority as he pointed and commanded.
Liu Linfeng had been holding his breath for quite some time. Although the Li Family had been powerful, they at least used to give the Liu Family some face and would consult them on village matters.
Now that the Li Family had unified the various villages, Liu Linfeng dared not to instruct or direct others so freely. These days he felt quite stifled, but finally, there was something for him to do, and Liu Linfeng instantly found his vigor returning.
"Continuing like this isn't a solution, my Liu Family must find its own niche under the shelter of the Li Family, or else we will inevitably decline!"
As he directed the work, Liu Linfeng thought to himself in secret.
Li Tongya had no idea of the many thoughts going through Liu Linfeng's mind; he was busy with Li Xiangping, applying the Golden Light Technique to the arrows. If not used, the spell could last six to seven hours, more than enough to kill the long worm.
Both of their mana could each manage about a dozen applications of the technique. Once their mana was depleted, they sat down to meditate and recover. By the time the villagers had finished digging the pit and had covered all traces of the fresh soil, disguising it with dry leaves, the two were just about finished with their meditation.
The village militiamen set up their positions, those with long poles stood at the front while those with bows took the rear, each holding an arrow imbued with the Golden Light Technique, cautiously moving toward the long worm.
The people in the front had just reached the big banyan tree when they couldn't help but exclaim in unison,
"What a terrifying long worm!"
The long worm coiled around a large banyan tree, its bright yellow vertical pupils sending chills down everyone's spine as it spewed a dense black mist from its mouth.
However, the front few had been warned in advance and dropped their poles to retreat in time. The black mist only managed to corrode some dry leaves and a few long poles.
Streaks of faint golden light—one after another, arching faster than they were released—clung onto the brown-patterned scales of the worm. These arrows, imbued with the Golden Light Technique, were exceptionally sharp.
After being disturbed three times, the long worm finally grew angry, hissing and flicking its tongue as it abandoned the banyan tree and slithered towards the crowd.
Those in front scattered instantly, and Li Tongya and Li Xiangping quickly performed hand seals to launch successive golden beams of the Golden Light Technique, causing the worm to scream in pain. Rearing with its Golden Eyes, it swiftly charged towards them.
The two were not alarmed but excited, watching as the long worm followed the slope of the mountain side and came forward. They shouted,
"Get ready!"
The long worm kept advancing but suddenly felt the ground beneath it give way, nearly crashing headfirst into the large pit hidden under the layer of dry leaves.
But with its lengthy body, it didn't fall into the trap immediately. Its head swiftly rose, resting on the other side of the pit, as it seemed about to pull itself up.
From the top of the cliff, however, came a group of village militiamen, pushing a large boulder together and shouting in unison,
"Now!"
The boulder plummeted down, striking the long worm's back precisely, breaking its body. The worm hissed, instantly pinned to the bottom of the pit with its head and half body bent into a U-shape, unable to move.
"Hahahaha!"
Liu Linfeng laughed heartily from behind the crowd, satisfied with the success of his plan as he nodded approvingly.
"Go!"
Li Yesheng shouted loudly, and everyone began jabbing into the pit with sharpened bamboo stakes, relentlessly thrusting.
The long worm's scales were tough, but they couldn't withstand the assault of more than a dozen men. After a relentless half an hour, they ceased only when the spears they pulled out were completely soaked red.
Once they were certain the worm was dead, cheers erupted from the crowd, each person brimming with pride as they discussed how to haul the worm back to the village.
Liu Linfeng stayed behind to oversee the arrangements, while Li Tongya and Li Xiangping, along with Li Yesheng and a few other confidants, quietly made their way to the rear of the big banyan tree.
Seeing the dense underbrush littered with white bones, Li Yesheng sighed and said,
"Li Yesheng disappeared into the mountains a few years ago and never returned; presumably, he encountered the worm while it was hunting and was eaten."
Li Xiangping nodded naturally, but Li Tongya, looking at a small tree hanging with five glowing red fruits, was grave and turned to Li Yesheng,
"Keep watch over this place, don't let anyone near."