Chapter 1319: The Might of the Wood Demon

Half an hour later, Wang Changsheng emerged from the dark, dense forest. Before him lay an open area. Several hundred feet away, a black lake spanning several acres stretched out. On its surface floated several entirely emerald green lotus flowers with blooming buds. The lake water itself was black.

Wang Changsheng's spiritual sense swept across the black lake, but he detected no abnormalities.

These Jade Moon Lotuses were over six hundred years old. For them to have grown for so long, they must be guarded by a demonic beast; otherwise, other beasts would have consumed them long ago.

It appeared the demonic beast in the lake knew how to conceal its aura, which was quite rare.

The Twin-Eyed Rat stopped five hundred feet from the lake, emitting a series of squeaks, as if trying to convey something.

The Twin-Eyed Rat's keen sense of smell likely detected the scent of a high-tier demonic beast, preventing it from approaching. Otherwise, it would have charged forward already.

Wang Changsheng's right fist glowed with specks of blue light. He punched the air towards the lake, and a large surge of water vapor erupted, forming a blue, fist-shaped shadow several tens of feet wide that slammed towards the lake.

Boom! The blue fist-shaped shadow struck the lake's surface, instantly splashing water waves several tens of feet high. Still, no demonic beast emerged.

Wang Changsheng flicked his wide sleeves, and a glittering golden metal orb shot out. Amidst a whirring of gears, the golden orb transformed into a twenty-foot-tall golden giant eagle.

A clear bird cry rang out as the golden giant eagle flapped its wings and flew towards the black lake. It circled erratically above the lake, yet still, nothing seemed amiss.

Wang Changsheng's thoughts stirred, and the golden giant eagle swooped down from high above, its claws reaching for the Jade Moon Lotuses.

As the golden giant eagle approached within thirty feet of the Jade Moon Lotuses, dozens of black water arrows shot out from the lake bottom without warning. They struck the golden giant eagle accurately, eliciting muffled thuds. Suddenly, a black shadow shot out from the lake bottom.

A resounding clang! With a muffled thud of metal on metal, the golden giant eagle's right wing was seized by a black giant python.

The portion of the black giant python's body visible above the water was over fifty feet long. Its entire body was covered in palm-sized black scales, and its eyes were golden. A black, foot-long horn protruded from its head. Judging by its aura, it was clearly a top-grade third-tier demonic beast.

The golden giant eagle twisted its head, opening its beak to unleash a torrent of fine golden light. This light struck the black giant python, producing a series of clinking thuds, and causing a large area of tiny cracks to appear on the python's body.

The Wood Demon rooted itself deeply underground, causing a long crack to appear on the surface. Before long, a massive stone, a hundred feet in diameter, burst forth from the ground. Dozens of thick green thorns, part of the Wood Demon, wrapped around the yellow boulder, with one end still deeply rooted while the other brandished the boulder, slamming it towards the black giant python.

The black horn on the black giant python's head suddenly shone brightly, and a black light shot out, accurately striking the yellow boulder.

Boom! The yellow boulder suddenly exploded, sending dust flying everywhere.

Dozens of green thorns, as thick as an adult's arm, took the opportunity to entangle the black giant python's abdomen, pulling it towards the ground.

The black giant python was tightly bound by dozens of thick green thorns, with one end of the thorns embedded in the ground. The python released its gaping maw and struggled violently, attempting to break free from the binding thorns.

Wang Changsheng flicked his wrist, and the Kylin Turtle flew out.

The Kylin Turtle was already a top-grade second-tier creature. Wang Changsheng had raised it for over fifty years, investing significant cultivation resources and regularly feeding it water-attribute demonic cores and spiritual items, which was why it had grown so rapidly.

The Kylin Turtle stretched its neck long and let out a strange hiss. A blue lightning bolt, as thick as a baby's arm, shot out from its mouth, striking the black giant python's abdomen. The python let out a pained hiss, and a cloud of black smoke rose from its abdomen.

The black giant python opened its gaping maw and bit at one of the thick green thorns, attempting to tear it off. However, a large cloud of purple poisonous mist soon surged from its mouth. Its pupils contracted, it let out a pained hiss, and released its bite.

The thorn flowers on the surface of dozens of green thorns bloomed one after another, releasing a large cloud of purple poisonous mist that swept towards the black giant python.

With a whooshing sound, countless sharp thorns shot out from the surface of the green thorns, striking the black giant python's body with muffled thuds.

The Kylin Turtle continuously spat out thick blue lightning bolts, striking the black giant python's body.

The black giant python was like a sitting duck, its body tightly bound by the Wood Demon. It couldn't escape back into the lake, suffering attacks from both the Kylin Turtle and the Wood Demon.

After inhaling a significant amount of purple poisonous mist, the black giant python's eyes turned blood red. It became extremely agitated, thrashing its body frantically. It either spat out black water arrows that struck the ground, blasting out huge pits several tens of feet wide, or its black horn continuously unleashed black light that struck the lake surface, blasting up water waves several tens of feet high.

Wang Changsheng was smiling broadly. The Wood Demon's toxicity far surpassed that of ordinary mid-grade third-tier poisonous insects; even a top-grade third-tier demonic beast couldn't resist it. No wonder the fourth-tier Bloodthirsty Thorn of yesteryear was so infamous.

If the Wood Demon were to advance to the fourth tier, its strength should surpass that of ordinary Nascent Soul cultivators.

Dozens of green thorns shook violently, suddenly releasing the black giant python and flinging it onto the ground. The python's massive body slammed into the earth, instantly creating a large crater.

Countless streams of water vapor appeared above its head, coalescing into a blue giant hand over a hundred feet wide that slammed down hard.

A scream echoed, and the black giant python's body twisted incessantly.

A muffled thud came from the ground as a house-sized yellow orb flew over, smashing directly onto the black giant python's head.

The black horn on the black giant python's head shot out a black light, striking the yellow orb and blasting a pit about ten feet in size into it.

It tried to escape back into the lake, but dozens of thick green thorns suddenly emerged from the ground, tightly entangling its body. The black giant python was firmly pressed to the ground by the dense green thorns, unable even to open its mouth.

A large amount of yellow light surged from the yellow orb, which then slammed hard onto the black giant python's head.

A muffled thud came from the ground as the yellow orb rolled away, revealing a massive crater. The black giant python's head had been pulverized into a bloody mess, and it breathed its last.

With a flash of yellow light, the yellow orb suddenly shattered. The Twin-Eyed Rat burrowed out from inside, emitting squeaking sounds as it scurried towards the black giant python's head to feast heartily.

The Twin-Eyed Rat had few offensive methods. It could freely change its size, and enlarging itself to smash opponents was currently its only means of attack.

In slaying this top-grade third-tier demonic beast, the Wood Demon's contribution was indispensable; the Twin-Eyed Rat and the Kylin Turtle had only provided minor assistance.

Wisps of water vapor emerged above the Jade Moon Lotuses, and the Kylin Turtle's figure appeared. The Kylin Turtle opened its mouth and bit into one of the Jade Moon Lotuses.

Not long after, the Kylin Turtle finished eating one Jade Moon Lotus, and Wang Changsheng collected the remaining ones.

He then put away the Kylin Turtle and the black giant python's corpse, gave the Twin-Eyed Rat a large portion of python meat, and allowed it to continue leading the way. The Wood Demon followed closely behind, with Wang Changsheng bringing up the rear.