Chapter 28: Python Attack
In the darkness before dawn, the forest was eerily silent.
"Sister Lan, please don't tell Brother Qing or the others, or it will be hard for me to explain," Yang Xie said quietly.
"No problem. That's how it should be. We spent the night peacefully, and nothing happened," Nangong Lan reassured him.
"Thank you, Sister Lan."
Yang Xie smiled slightly. Sister Lan was really easy to talk to.
"Sister Lan, do you have any way to open these people's warrior terminals?"
Nangong Lan shook her head. "There's no way to open them. You could sell them on the black market, and someone might buy them, or you could try finding a hacker to see if they can be unlocked."
"I have no experience with that."
Nangong Lan glanced at Yang Xie, her expression complicated. This was his first time in the wild, and yet he was already making a lot of money.
"It's still early. Sister Lan, please go rest for a bit. I'll keep watch," Yang Xie offered.
"No, I'll stay up. This is your first time in the wild. You saved everyone in the team. You should rest."
"Sister Lan, you're too exposed. Let's keep watch together. It's almost dawn anyway."
"...Alright."
"It's boring anyway. Sister Lan, let's chat."
"Okay."
"Sister Lan, how old are you?"
Yang Xie asked as he glanced at her, unintentionally looking at her towering figure.
"I'm 20, a sophomore at Qingshan Wuhan University," she answered.
"Is Qingshan Wuhan University fun?"
"Qingshan..."
The night was cold, but the two chatted around the campfire, enjoying each other's company.
The first light of dawn broke, casting a soft glow on the group.
Nangong Qing and the others woke up one by one, but Yang Xie and Nangong Lan were still talking.
"Good morning," Nangong Qing greeted, stretching.
He suddenly felt something was off.
Wasn't it supposed to be him who had the last shift?
Why did he fall asleep?
Something was strange.
Nangong Qing quickly looked around. Everyone was unharmed, and there were no signs of danger, just some knife marks on the trees. But why had he slept through his turn?
"Good morning, Brother Qing," Yang Xie greeted.
"Brother Qing, come over for breakfast. I grilled meat again."
Yang Xie's words broke Nangong Qing's chain of thought. When he saw the sizzling skewers, his stomach growled.
Forget it. As long as everything is fine, I'll deal with the rest later.
Nangong Qing grabbed a skewer and dug in.
Nangong Ya had just woken up and saw Nangong Lan and Yang Xie chatting. She couldn't help but feel a bit annoyed.
"Sister Lan, did you and Yang Xie wake up so early?"
"We woke up and couldn't sleep, so we made breakfast together."
"You idiot, Yang Xie, grill me ten more skewers."
"Okay, Miss Yaya," Yang Xie replied, rolling his eyes with a grin.
Soon, everyone else, including Nangong Wei, Nangong Gou, and Nangong Xiuqin, had joined the barbecue group.
Though the group felt a bit confused, they didn't press the matter. As long as the outcome was good, some things didn't need to be questioned.
After eating, the group set off in the direction of Tianxinglan.
Tian Xing Lan, a second-level top-grade elixir, was the main goal of Nangong Qing's team on this trip.
The formation was the same as the day before, with Nangong Wei at the front, Nangong Gou second, Yang Xie and Nangong Ya in the middle, and Nangong Xiuqin and Nangong Lan at the back. Nangong Qing brought up the rear.
Although Yang Xie was still part of the team, he had sent Yang Yi and the others ahead to hunt. Currently, there were only 100 shadow soldiers in his divine court.
After devouring the shadows of the pig-headed masked men the day before, Yang Xie had broken through to the sixth level of warrior strength, and the shadow soldiers had also reached the same level, allowing them to hunt strange beasts more efficiently.
He had also obtained a talent for rapid growth, though he wasn't sure how to utilize it yet. It was hard to say how he could use it—perhaps not by imitating a pig and gaining weight quickly.
That would have to be put on hold for now.
They encountered piranhas and bloodthirsty vines on the road again. This time, Nangong Wei quickly chopped them into pieces, and Yang Xie quietly released shadow soldiers to devour their shadows.
This gave him the talent "Bloodthirsty," an unexpected bonus.
It wasn't long before they arrived at a giant waterfall. Below the waterfall was a large pool.
"Brother Qing, we're here. It's right behind the waterfall," Nangong Gou called out excitedly.
"Gouzi, your sense of smell is amazing. Even though you're a newcomer warrior, your tracking ability is remarkable."
"Hey, I might not be great at fighting, but I'm excellent at finding things."
"Still, we have to be cautious. There are often strange beasts guarding spiritual treasures. I wonder if there are high-level beasts near the Tianxing Orchid."
"Yes, everyone be careful."
"There's space behind this waterfall, but it's difficult to get through from here. We should also be wary of any strange creatures."
"No problem, I'll blow it up first."
Nangong Xiuqin pulled out a few grenades and threw them into the pool.
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
The water splashed high, and the once-calm pool turned chaotic.
"Whoa!"
"Whoa!"
A massive python leaped out of the pool, mouth wide open, roaring at the group in anger.
It seemed furious at being disturbed.
"This thing just exploded, but is this something we can deal with?" Nangong Gou swallowed nervously. The python was huge, more than 20 meters long and nearly a meter in diameter.
"It's just a live target. I've got more bombs in my backpack. You all take a few. I don't need to explain how to use them!" Nangong Xiuqin said confidently.
The group quickly opened their backpacks and took a few grenades each.
The bombs had just enough power to cause significant damage. Even if they couldn't kill the giant python, they could weaken it and cause enough interference.
"Pull back, let's use ranged weapons to wear it down first."
"Bang bang bang!"
"Bang!"
The sound of sniper rifles and grenades rang out in unison.
Despite the explosions, the giant python was still relentless. Nangong Wei used his knife skills to attack, but only made a small cut. The python retaliated by slamming him into a rock wall, sending him into a dazed state.
Nangong Qing took a shot at the python's head, but as soon as his gun made contact, the snake's tail struck him, knocking him back.
The battle wasn't looking good, and Yang Xie grew anxious.
Wait! The eyes are more vulnerable than the body!
"Sister Xiuqin, aim for its eyes!"
Sister Xiuqin's sharpshooting skills were spot-on. She took careful aim with her sniper rifle and shot out one of the python's eyes, causing it to roar in pain.
In just moments, two people from the team were injured, one of whom was still alive.
Yang Xie immediately pulled Nangong Wei from the battlefield, checking his breathing to make sure he wasn't dead. Once he confirmed he was alive, he let out a sigh of relief.
"Sister Lan, Brother Wei is injured. Please treat him quickly," Yang Xie called out.
Nangong Lan rushed over immediately to tend to his injuries.
Yang Yi and the others soon returned.