Yuan Ming's pupils suddenly contracted, and his body quickly arched backward.
The next instant, a splash erupted on the surface of the river, and a gigantic, ferocious snakehead burst forth from the water, opening its gaping mouth and snapping down at Yuan Ming.
Fortunately, Yuan Ming evaded in time and wasn't bitten. The snakehead was followed by a thirty-foot-long python body that shot straight up, reaching into mid-air. The tail that emerged from the water then swept across ferociously, smashing into Yuan Ming's abdomen.
With a "bang"!
A searing pain emanated from Yuan Ming's abdomen, and he was flung sideways by the tremendous force, only coming to a halt after crashing through three old trees.
He struggled to stand, tasting a sweet, fishy flavor in his throat, and immediately realized that the water python that had ambushed him was far more powerful than the jungle boa he had encountered earlier.
When facing the jungle boa, he had been somewhat confident and, considering the drawbacks of using the Fur Cloak Skill, Yuan Ming had refrained from transforming. He wanted to rely solely on his human body's strength to try and slay the beast, but now that wouldn't be enough.
With one hand forming a spell, he activated the mana within his body and transformed into a ferocious White Ape.
After steadying himself, he saw that the water python which had surged from the river was pitch black, its body covered in diamond-shaped scales. On its proudly raised head was a spiral black horn. Its eyes, shimmering scarlet, were filled with a bloodthirsty glow.
"Is this... a Single-Horned Viper Python?" Yuan Ming said with slight hesitation.
He had only seen a drawing of this creature in the "Common Beast Atlas" Zhao Tong had given him. The resemblance was about fifty percent, but the written description and comparative features matched almost exactly.
If it truly was that creature, then trouble was indeed brewing, Yuan Ming sighed to himself.
At that moment, the black viper python launched its attack, its body meandering forward while maintaining its haughty head posture, tilting downward to spray a torrent at Yuan Ming.
A stream of purple smoke immediately spewed out of its mouth, quickly engulfing the ten-zhang area around it. Flowers and grass within withered instantly, displaying signs of drought.
"Poison Liquid in the belly can wither Hundred Herbs, damage Qi-Blood, and fire velvet frog poison can counter it." Yuan Ming silently recalled the description from the book and immediately made the connection.
Even if this creature wasn't quite yet a Level 1 Intermediate-stage Fierce Beast, it wasn't far off and was much more troublesome to deal with than an ordinary jungle boa.
Yuan Ming swiftly backed away to avoid the spreading poison smoke.
"Roar..."
But at that moment, a potent bellow roared through the air, accompanied by a strong gale that accelerated the spread of the purple poison smoke, soon shrouding an area of a hundred zhang around it.
Even at his swiftest, Yuan Ming couldn't outpace the wind and found himself enveloped by it.
He instinctively held his breath and quickly fled toward the periphery. However, the pervading purple smoke not only obscured his vision but also corroded the hanging vines from the trees.
Even the branches of ancient trees became dry and withered, causing Yuan Ming to fall several times as they crumbled and broke when he tried to climb them.
"This is troublesome," Yuan Ming frowned tightly and could only grip his long sword, closely watching his surroundings.
Just then, the ground beneath him suddenly trembled, and a dark shadow moved sideways, bringing with it a gust of wind.
Yuan Ming sensed danger and quickly raised his sword to block.
With a "clang"!
The blade of the Green Fish Treasure Sword struck the Single-Horned Viper Python's scale armor, sparking a trail of fire.
The enormous force pushed Yuan Ming back again. Although not as embarrassingly as before, it forced him to inadvertently inhale the purple poison smoke as the air he'd been holding in was expelled.
The moment the poison smoke entered his mouth, Yuan Ming felt an intense burning and dryness in his mouth and throat, as if he had swallowed a lump of hot coal. The pain and discomfort were unbearable.
Yuan Ming quickly held his breath again and concentrated on his surroundings.
Amidst the spreading poison smoke, the black silhouette struck once more. Lit by two red lantern-like eyes, it wasn't the python's body but its head charging towards Yuan Ming.
Yuan Ming, seeing this, immediately tensed his arm, muscles bulging, as mana from his Dantian surged out, pouring into the Green Fish Sword.
As the horned head neared, Yuan Ming lifted his arm high, the long sword glowing with a bright green light, and swung it down at the center between the two bright red eyes.
The Single-Horned Viper Python's massive head seemed recklessly charging, but its movements were precisely controlled.
The spiral horn on its head, like a spear thrusting forward, collided squarely with the edge of Yuan Ming's sword.
A metallic clash echoed, rippling with vibrations.
The sword in Yuan Ming's hand nearly flew from his grip due to the rebound, while the Viper Python was struck such that its momentum was interrupted, forcing it to shake its head to offset the force.
At this moment, Yuan Ming recovered faster, stabilizing his stance with a few hefty strides and closing in. Gripping the Green Fish Sword with both hands, he swung it in a wide arc, chopping forcefully at the Viper Python's belly.
"Clang, clang, clang"
As sparks flew, a streak of Blood Light appeared.
The Single-Horned Viper Python's scale armor was sliced open by Yuan Ming's strong and heavy blow.
"If I can injure it, then there's still a fight," Yuan Ming thought with a surge of joy.
However, before he could even rejoice for a moment, the situation suddenly took a nosedive.
The ground beneath Yuan Ming shook violently, splitting open to reveal a crevice.
Before he could react, he plunged downward, falling into the fissure.
Right after that, the slit in the ground revealed the half of the Viper Python's body that had already coiled in place, awaiting Yuan Ming's descent to immediately constrict its body around him.
Yuan Ming's heart chilled. Had the Viper Python actually set a trap for him?
His body tensed, and powerful forces squeezed in from all directions, making the bones in his chest "click" and "clack," bile rose in his stomach, and his throat suddenly tasted bitter.
"Such strength," Yuan Ming thought to himself, unleashing all his strength in an attempt to pry open the Viper Python's body.
However, as soon as he tried to resist, the Viper Python's strength seemed to double. The friction of his rib cage suddenly became more intense, the oppressive feeling in his chest grew worse, and his breathing became labored.
He forcibly pulled his sword arm free, channeling his power with one arm in an attempt to cut with his sword.
But by then, the poison he had inhaled earlier began to take effect; the flow of Qi-Blood in his body suddenly became sluggish. Although he could still maneuver his Mana, his body's strength began to rapidly weaken.
As the Single-Horned Viper Python constricted once again, Yuan Ming felt his arm go weak; he could no longer grip the sword, and with a twist of his wrist, it fell to the ground with a "snap."
In the face of overwhelming power, Yuan Ming felt despair for the first time.
Seeing that Yuan Ming had been disarmed and was showing signs of fatigue, the Single-Horned Viper Python stopped tightening its body. Instead, it raised its head and circled around to face Yuan Ming.
A pair of crimson eyes looked down on him, displaying emotions resembling those of a human.
Yuan Ming read hatred, resentment, contempt, and cruelty in those eyes.
Clearly, this Single-Horned Viper Python was unlike the Fierce Beasts he had encountered before. Not only did it possess tremendous strength, but it also had high spiritual intelligence.
Yuan Ming's Qi-Blood stagnated severely, and his strength was fading alarmingly. He struggled to control his arm, fumbling around his body.
The Single-Horned Viper Python thought he had some trick up his sleeve and constricted its body once again.
"Ugh..."
Yuan Ming could not help but let out a painful wail, his body involuntarily stiffening.
The Viper Python hesitated no longer; its massive head darted toward Yuan Ming, ready to gulp down the tasty morsel before it.
Bound as he was by the Viper Python, Yuan Ming had no way to dodge. He could only clench a spell with one hand, and he muttered, "Rise."
The next instant, a blue glow illuminated in front of the Single-Horned Viper Python. Enormous Wooden Thorns suddenly rose from the ground, thrusting upwards.
Having advanced to the Qi Refining Third Level, his Wood Stabbing Technique had also improved significantly. Now he could trigger the technique without touching the ground, and the speed of deployment had also significantly increased.
However, the Wood Stabbing Technique was limited in power and could not penetrate the Single-Horned Viper Python's Scale Armor. It merely pushed its body up, doing no actual harm.
The Single-Horned Viper Python's body was suddenly lifted, losing its balance momentarily, and its head brushed past Yuan Ming's side, failing to bite him.
But Yuan Ming's hand had already accurately pierced the wound on its belly.
Pained, the Single-Horned Viper Python threw its body backwards and Yuan Ming's impaled hand was yanked out.
Blood spattered, and the Single-Horned Viper Python flew into a rage, once more opening its bloody maw to bite down on Yuan Ming.
This time, Yuan Ming did not use the Wood Stabbing Technique. He did not even try to dodge, but instead locked eyes with the Single-Horned Viper Python and silently counted to himself, "Three, two, one."
As he finished counting, the Viper Python's descending head suddenly froze mid-air.
Its crimson eyes flickered, showing first a brief pause, then began to express struggle. Soon after, it let go of Yuan Ming's constricted body and flipped over onto the ground, writhing violently.
Yuan Ming fell to the ground, coughing dryly, and quickly rolled forward to pick up the Green Fish Sword from the ground, turning back to look at the Single-Horned Viper Python.
It twisted its body, rolling madly on the ground, while its tail lashed out chaotically, sweeping in all directions and throwing up clouds of dust and broken tree limbs.
Scattered stones and flying splinters dispersed much of the poison smoke around them.
Despite the intense pain, Yuan Ming forcefully circulated a stream of Mana, stimulating the flow of his Qi-Blood, and charged toward the still-struggling Single-Horned Viper Python with his sword in hand.
Ducking the python's wildly sweeping tail, he leapt up to its body.
With a quick glance, Yuan Ming saw that the wound on the Viper Python's belly had widened substantially. Inside, black vine-like tendrils were appearing, furiously sprouting and burrowing into the python's flesh.
"Thank goodness I didn't throw that away on a whim," Yuan Ming thought, relieved.
Just moments before, as he had brushed past the Single-Horned Viper Python, he had stuffed the meat lump that had once parasitized the Black Bear into the python's wound.
That thing looked like a stone, but when it contacted fresh blood, it would madly absorb and revive, competing with the host for control over the body.
And now, it was the critical moment of the battle for the body between the Single-Horned Viper Python and the Blood Soul Vine.