Lin Feng's heart burned with reluctance.
To abandon a supreme treasure like the Spirit Spring Pool? Unthinkable.
Frustration gnawed at him.
Yet, no treasure outweighed survival.
The chilling brush with death moments ago still echoed in his bones. Fear lingered, sapping his courage to challenge the serpent again.
He met the Swordsman's gaze, a bitter smile twisting his lips.
"Of course it's hard to give up. But what choice do we have? It's too dangerous…"
The Swordsman nodded slowly, his eyes sharp.
"True. Danger is undeniable. But fortune favors the bold, does it not? If even a sliver of opportunity remains… shouldn't we seize it?"
"Huh?" Lin Feng blinked, surprised. "You think there's still a chance?"
"A chance? Definitely." The Swordsman tapped the small pagoda in his palm. "It hinges on luck… and my little friend's capabilities. Remember its power? If the moment is right… we slip in unseen, grab the spring essence, and vanish. Simple."
Simple? Lin Feng scoffed inwardly. The reality was daunting.
"Your artifact is formidable. But can you guarantee it will fully cloak us from a Tier-4 Ice-Eye Serpent's senses?"
The Swordsman's confidence faltered slightly.
"Well… likely not. My cultivation is too low; I barely tap its potential. Earlier, its focus was entirely on you and the Loong group. That distraction allowed me to reach you. Under normal vigilance? Getting within a hundred meters… probably impossible."
"Then it's even more hopeless!" Lin Feng's shoulders slumped. "That beast won't stray far from its prize. Avoiding it to steal the spring essence? Practically a fantasy."
"Never say never." The Swordsman leaned back, adopting a watchful posture. "We wait. Observe. If the situation proves truly impossible… we leave. With my artifact, escaping unseen past the surface chaos? Easy. Minimal risk."
Lin Feng weighed the words. Alone, he'd flee instantly. With the Swordsman's Earth Escape Treasure? Caution felt viable.
"...Alright. We'll wait and see."
A question surfaced, prompted by the Swordsman's earlier admission of his cultivation level.
"Speaking of cultivation, Brother Swordsman… what is your true realm?" Lin Feng recalled using Soul Sight earlier, pegging him at Foundation Establishment late stage. Clearly, that had been masked.
A grin spread across the Swordsman's face, tinged with unmistakable pride despite his words.
"Heh, nothing impressive. Just Golden Core… third layer."
"Golden Core third layer?!" Lin Feng's eyebrows shot up. Shock reverberated through him. This surpassed his highest estimates. Could he be older than he looks?
The Swordsman instantly read his suspicion.
"Don't doubt my age! I'm a genuine twenty-five-year-old youth! No middle-aged disguise here."
"Twenty-five?!" Lin Feng's astonishment deepened. A Golden Core third layer at twenty-five? This was true genius. The Young Master of the Absolute Sword Sect, hailed as Star City's prodigy at twenty-four or five, was merely Foundation Establishment ninth layer. Compared to the Swordsman? Utterly eclipsed.
"BOOM!!!"
A deep, resonant thud erupted from the earth's depths, cutting short their conversation.
The ground beneath their feet trembled faintly. Both men tensed instantly.
The Swordsman closed his eyes, focusing his senses. When he opened them, his expression was grave.
"The Loong group… they're breaking. I wonder how many will escape."
Despite two Golden Core cultivators—one mid-stage, one early-stage—they stood no chance against a Tier-4 beast. Escape was their only option, likely at a terrible cost. The strongest might make it… but not unscathed.
And if they do emerge…
A cold glint flashed in Lin Feng's eyes.
The Swordsman caught the subtle shift, his own eyebrow quirking.
"Oh? Bad blood with the Loong clan, Brother Lin?"
Lin Feng's voice turned icy.
"They nearly killed me. Then used me as cannon fodder. Without you… I'd be dead. Now, if they crawl out wounded… would you expect me to offer mercy?"
The Swordsman's grin widened, predatory.
"Then we wait right here. Beating a drowning dog? Heh… that's a pastime I quite enjoy…"
Deep underground, within the serpent's winding tunnels.
The remnants of the Loong group fled in utter disarray.
Only three figures remained. The triplet Foundation Establishment cultivators and another late-stager were gone. The survivors bore the marks of desperate flight.
"SWISH!! CRACK!!"
Loong Qing, the purple-robed Patriarch of the Loong clan, spun mid-stride. A peak Tier-3 Wind Blade Talisman flew from his hand.
A streak of cyan light shot backward, striking the tunnel ceiling twenty meters behind.
Stone shattered violently, collapsing the passage, momentarily blocking the pursuing Ice-Eye Serpent.
"GO!!"
Loong Qing didn't wait, grabbing his son Loong Xiao and sprinting. Anguish filled him. Barely a hundred meters fled, yet four clan experts lay dead—annihilated by the serpent's chilling energy blasts. His Mixed Gold Umbrella, a powerful offense-defense artifact, was useless for attack against such a foe. Defense was barely adequate, and he couldn't shield everyone. Those Foundation Establishment cultivators? Merely grazed by the attacks' residual force… instantly frozen and shattered. No resistance possible.
Three precious peak Tier-3 attack talismans already spent buying precious seconds. His entire stock, gone. Like Lin Feng before him, collapsing the tunnel was his only tactic. Yet the serpent bored through the rubble effortlessly each time, gaining mere moments. Lin Feng had been close to an exit. They were deep within the labyrinth. The path out stretched agonizingly long.
"HISSSS!!!"
They'd covered barely thirty meters when the serpent's hiss echoed again. Its massive head burst through the fresh rubble. Its maw gaped. A beam of frigid white light lanced out!
"AHHH!!"
Too slow. The trailing Foundation Establishment ninth layer cultivator, lagging behind, took the blast full on. His agonized scream cut short as his entire body flash-froze into a block of ice. Then… CRACK! It shattered into countless pieces.
"BASTARD!!"
Loong Xiao, the Golden Core early-stage cultivator and Loong Qing's son, roared in fury as another clan expert perished. He whirled, hurling his own peak Tier-3 Golden Blade Talisman towards the serpent.
"HSSS!!"
The Ice-Eye Serpent responded instantly. Another icy beam spat forth.
The two energies collided mid-tunnel.
"KABOOM!!!"
A violent explosion ripped through the confined space. Shockwaves tore at the walls. The tunnel convulsed violently. Another massive section collapsed.
"MOVE!!"
Loong Qing saw the collapse surging towards them. Face pale, he yanked Loong Xiao violently forward. They plunged deeper into the shuddering darkness.
Scarcely two seconds later, rubble exploded outward.
The relentless serpent surged through, its baleful gaze fixed on the fleeing Loong father and son. The hunt continued.
While Lin Feng and the Swordsman watched and waited within the mountain's heart, and the Loong remnants fought for survival below… turmoil reigned on the surface.
Over half an hour had passed since the celestial Phenomenon illuminated the night.
Now, Python Mountain's secondary peak swarmed with activity. Nearly two to three hundred cultivators crowded its slopes – virtually every soul searching the mountain range had converged here.
Initially, with fewer arrivals, a tense peace held. Early arrivals staked claims on different sectors, systematically searching. The secondary peak, though smaller than the main Python Mountain, still spanned hundreds of meters and rose over three hundred meters high. Space seemed sufficient.
But as more and more cultivators poured in…
Every patch of ground became contested territory.
The area each individual or group could claim shrank rapidly.
Conflict became inevitable.
First, isolated skirmishes sparked.
Then more.
And more.
The clashes grew in number… and in ferocity.
Until… it exploded into a sprawling, chaotic melee.
The mountainside became a cacophony of battle cries, spell detonations, and death screams.
Casualties mounted. Blood slicked the rocks.
Frenzy took hold. Many forgot the original purpose – the Phenomenon, the treasure. They fought savagely, driven by bloodlust and greed, plundering the fallen.
In two separate locations, Golden Core cultivators clashed directly.
The collateral devastation was immense. Foundation Establishment cultivators caught in the crossfire died like ants.
Simultaneously, unknown to the chaos above or the struggles below…
Deep beneath the mountain, in a different subterranean passage…
Two figures moved with practiced stealth and speed.
Wei Wuyi of the Absolute Sword Sect.
And Loong Tian'ao.
The Ice-Eye Serpent claimed the Spirit Spring Pool as its lair, but its domain extended through a network of tunnels. While Lin Feng's group found one entrance, others existed. Wei Wuyi and Loong Tian'ao navigated one such forgotten path.
Darkness enveloped them initially.
But soon, a faint, pervasive white light began to glow, intensifying as they descended.
Wei Wuyi inhaled deeply, the increasingly potent spiritual energy washing over him. A fierce, triumphant light ignited in his eyes.
"The Phenomenon treasure… it is deep below!" A contemptuous sneer curled his lip. "Fools! All those idiots scrambling on the surface like blind rats… Hah! Heaven's will is clear! The treasure… it is destined for the Absolute Sword Sect!"