"SKREEE—!!!"
The Vine-Tailed Giant Ape's shriek choked off mid-screech.
Its massive body stiffened—frozen for three heartbeats—
—then crashed to the cavern floor.
"THUD!!!"
The impact shook the mountain. Dust rained from the ceiling.
Lin Feng watched, unblinking, for ten full seconds.
No movement.
His knuckles whitened around the Crimson Soul Sword's hilt. Not enough.
True essence surged. He flicked his wrist.
"SHINK!"
The sword embedded in the ape's chest tore free.
A second flash—
"THWACK!"
The beast's head rolled away.
Final.
Lin Feng's shoulders slumped. A long, shuddering breath escaped him.
"Haaah… Too close."
He scanned the scorched cavern. Wisps of smoke curled from charred patches on the floor where stray Lava Flame embers still smoldered, eating tiny craters into the stone.
A gesture. The embers drifted upward, coalescing into a dark-crimson flame above his palm.
Fwoomp.
It vanished into his core.
Swallowing a Qi-Restoring Pill, Lin Feng approached the carcass.
Tier-3 beasts were treasure troves. Core. Fur. Bones. All priceless.
He swept the headless corpse into his storage ring. Deal with it later.
"Chirp!!"
A fluffy brown head popped from Lin Feng's collar. Little Qiu's nose twitched frantically.
Sniff-sniff-sniff.
Eyes sparkling, it pointed deeper into the cave, claws paddling the air.
"Treasure?"
Hope flickered in Lin Feng's weary eyes. He strode forward.
Fifty meters in, the tunnel opened into a circular chamber—the ape's den.
A crude bed of woven vines dominated the center. Piles of wild fruits and half-eaten beast carcasses lay nearby.
In one corner: bones.
Dozens of scattered skeletons, some so old their robes had disintegrated into dust.
Lin Feng clasped his hands, bowing briefly.
Storage rings, dulled swords, cracked talismans—he collected what remained usable.
With swift strokes of his sword, he carved a pit in the cavern floor, gently covering the bones with earth.
Rest now.
He scanned the chamber again. Nothing.
"Qiu? Are you sure?"
"Chirp!!" Indignant, the mouse yanked Lin Feng's hair, leapt down, and scurried to the vine-bed. It jabbed a tiny claw repeatedly at the packed earth beneath.
Dig. Down.
Understanding dawned.
"Below? Underground?"
"Chirp-chirp!!" Finally!
"Swoosh! Swoosh! SWISH!"
Lin Feng became a whirlwind of steel.
The Crimson Soul Sword sliced through rock like wet paper. Debris vanished into a spare storage ring.
Down. Down. Down.
One hundred meters.
The mountain's base? He examined the surrounding stone. Still ordinary.
Qiu chirped insistently. More.
"Ugh… If only I knew Earth Glide…"
Lin Feng grumbled, envying the effortless tunneling of Golden Core cultivators. His Earthwalking Talismans were useless for sustained digging.
He kept going.
Three hundred meters deep. The shaft above was a pinprick of light.
"Clank."
Not rock. Hollow space.
Lin Feng widened the hole and dropped down.
A tunnel stretched before him. Five meters wide. Walls unnaturally smooth, polished like glass.
No tool marks. No seams.
"Not man-made… This is…" His blood ran cold. "A serpent's burrow."
"Holy hell! If this is a snake's tunnel…" He eyed the immense diameter. "…how big is the snake?!"
A shiver traced his spine. He peered into the darkness, half-expecting jaws to snap shut.
"Chirp!!" Qiu tugged his ear, pointing deeper into the tunnel. Its tiny body vibrated with excitement.
"Keep going? Qiu, is the treasure really worth a snake big enough to swallow houses?"
"Chirp-chirp!!" Yes! Hurry!
"And you're sure there's no guardian beast?"
"Chirp!" Sure! Probably!
"…Fine. But scream at the first whiff of danger, got it?"
"Chirp…" Maybe.
They descended. The tunnel sloped downward, twisting like a colossal serpent's coil.
Lin Feng paused.
"Hmm?"
He pressed a palm against the tunnel wall. A faint vibration hummed through the stone.
Qiu perked up, ears twitching.
Its eyes bulged. Fur stood on end.
"CHIIIIIRP—!!!!"
Panic ripped through its tiny voice.
Lin Feng didn't hesitate. He kicked backward—
"CRASH!!!"
The spot where he'd stood exploded upward.
Stone shattered. Dust billowed.
A head erupted from the floor.
Five meters wide.
Gaping jaws—large enough to swallow a wagon whole—snapped shut on empty air. The force blasted grit into Lin Feng's face.
"HISSSSS!!!"
The colossal snake's silver eyes—each the size of a shield—snapped toward Lin Feng. Its forked tongue flicked, a whip cracking the dusty gloom.
"TOLD YOU IT WAS A SNAKE HOLE!!" Lin Feng yelled, already spinning.
"RUN!!!"
He fled, Qiu clinging to his shoulder, screaming.
The silver eyes narrowed.
The serpent surged after them.