On the shores of Mirror Lake, Ye Chen, Lin Jing, and their three companions watched the giant silver-striped snake rise from the lake's center, their expressions subtly tremoring before a fiery zeal surged within their eyes.
This silver-striped demon beast indeed dwelled within Mirror Lake!
"Burn more 'Aixiong Grass' to lure the snake monster onto the shore, then we'll join forces to slay it," Lin Jing's beautiful eyes glittered as she spoke in a low voice.
"Mhm." Hong Man and Fang Shan nodded, carrying another large bundle of dry grass and tossing it into the fire.
The dry grass ignited upon contact, and thick smoke billowed anew, blanketing the area over Mirror Lake.
This smoke seemed to greatly agitate the silver-striped snake, and the moment the billowing gray plume drifted toward where the serpent hovered, it swung its triangular head fiercely toward the direction of Ye Chen and his group.
Then, with a heaven-shocking shriek, the silver-striped snake slapped the lake water violently, and its fifteen to sixteen-meter-long body shot crazily out of Mirror Lake.
Like a dragon soaring out of the water, the leaping demon beast possessed an incredibly formidable presence.
In an instant, the snake monster shot onto the shore, following which, with a swing of its gigantic tail, it fiercely struck the pile of burning dry grass.
Its tail, akin to a giant club, brimming with immense True Qi, tore the earth asunder with its impact, extinguishing the raging fire of the dry grass with several sweeps.
Afterward, the silver-striped snake turned its head, setting its sights on Ye Chen and his companions who had retreated several dozen meters, its green eyes ablaze with a provoked fury.
"Silver-striped snake monster."
Ye Chen and his group of five, faced with this enormous creature ashore, appeared exceptionally diminutive beneath the fifteen to sixteen-meter-long serpentine leviathan.
Now, they were to challenge this colossal beast with their modest statures, aiming to slay it!
"Prepare for the encirclement and kill!"
Ye Chen's cool voice had just fallen when the enraged snake monster let out a fierce roar, its massive shape whistling out like a small mountain, sweeping toward Ye Chen and his group anew.
A flick of its tail struck the spot where the five had previously stood, fracturing the ground to pieces.
Those who had dashed aside roared in unison, and then massive True Qi erupted from them, their silhouettes accompanied by tremendous power, launching attacks from all directions toward the central body of the snake beast.
Ye Chen wielded a stainless steel sword, while Lin Jing held a snow-white soft sword, the pair shooting directly toward the snake's rear. Not only were they the main force responsible for slaying the silver-striped snake, but they also aimed to cut off its retreat back to Mirror Lake.
On the other three sides, Zhou Mo wielded his sword, Hong Man wielded a meter-long iron rod, and Fang Shan brandished a Mystic Iron Heavy Saber.
All five burst forth simultaneously, their powerful True Qi reinforcing their martial skills, creating a tempest of sword glows and shadowed strikes that swept up toward the massive serpent at their center.
The silver-striped snake monster, besieged by the five, roared skyward, its shriek more akin to a colossal beast than a serpent. Engulfed in surging True Qi, the beast collided violently with the onslaught of the five.
The clash of immense True Qi forces tore the air with thunderous sounds, the resulting shockwaves gouging out several-meter-deep craters in the earth.
This silver-striped snake monster, a creature of sixth-order pinnacle strength, remained unharmed under the five's encirclement and even managed to send Zhou Mo, Hong Man, and Fang Shan flying five or six zhang (approximately 50 to 60 meters) with a single strike.
"Attack with full force!"
Ye Chen and Lin Jing were the only two not repelled by the snake monster. Ye Chen's gaze grew colder as he watched the snake beast, and after issuing a chilling shout, he launched another assault.
The five major True Qi swirls within Ye Chen's body pulsed wildly, his massive True Qi sweeping his entire body like flames, wrapping him whole.
His sword issued a clear ringing hum, and then blinding sword light burst forth, slashing like lightning at the snake's massive tail.
Clad in fiery red leather armor, her slender and alluring figure on full display, Lin Jing also demonstrated mighty combat prowess. With a sharp cry, her snow-white soft sword emitted a three-meter-long Sword Qi, slashing toward the body of the snake.
The pair, undoubtedly the strongest among the five, teamed up in their attack, splitting the thick Protective True Qi of the fifteen to sixteen-meter-long snake, leaving sword marks all over its body. Numerous scales were blown off, revealing trickles of blood.
Injured by the tiny humans, the silver-striped snake grew even more furious. Spinning its body around, roaring ferociously, it opened its massive maw and lunged at Ye Chen and Lin Jing.
Unfazed by the gaping mouth larger than his entire body, Ye Chen planted his toes on the ground and leaped into the air. With a flick of his sword, the Cross Quickkill Sword Move shot straight for the snake's eyes.
Meanwhile, Lin Jing also unleashed her own mid-rank Yellow tier martial skill "Thunderclap Sword Skills," thrusting from below toward the snake demon's neck.
Zhou Mo, Hong Man, and Fang Shan flew back into the battle, their sabers and staffs creating flashes of light as they once again attacked the snake demon from behind.
The silver-striped snake demon, under attack by the five of them, truly became enraged. A surge of True Qi, like water from a fountain, suddenly swept through its body, turning its whole body a deep blue-green.
Then, its massive body became more agile, its aura even stronger, as it lashed out at Zhou Mo, Hong Man, and Fang Shan, sending all three flying with a flick of its tail. With another fierce coil, it then went after Lin Jing.
At the same time, its snake head suddenly leapt up, transforming the True Qi within its body into spears of Qi that shot toward Ye Chen, who was attacking it.
This snake demon, continuously dishing out strange moves, was determined to suppress all five opponents under its might.
Facing the suddenly explosive and terrifying offensive surge from the snake demon, the faces of all five, including Ye Chen, darkened; in their last encounter, it was this very surprise change in the demon's tactics that had caused them to be defeated.
Could it be that even now, they were still no match for this snake demon?
Through several days of grueling training, although Zhou Mo, Hong Man, and Fang Shan hadn't made significant progress, Lin Jing and Ye Chen had made substantial strides each day. Especially Ye Chen, who seemed like a completely different person compared to when he had first fought against the snake demon.
Would he let this silver-striped snake demon drive them back so easily again?
"Torrential Rain Sword Skills third move, Torrential Rain Filling the Skies!"
Ye Chen, soaring through the skies, tapped his toes and leaped up several dozen feet. His steel sword radiated an endless shower of Sword Qi. This deluge of Sword Qi enveloped the snake demon's large body, hammering furiously against it.
At the same time, Lin Jing, with her elusive movements, dodged the snake demon's entanglement, shouting sharply as she soared up like a nimble sparrow. Her Soft Sword emitted a bright blade light, within which arcs of electricity danced.
A high-rank Yellow tier Martial Skill, Purple Lightning Sword Skills!
This was the most powerful martial skill Lin Jing had mastered to an elementary level, and now she displayed it in full force.
With their three teammates flung away, Ye Chen and Lin Jing erupted with even greater power, charging together towards the silver-striped snake demon.
Above the ground and in the sky, everywhere was now a blaze of sword light as Ye Chen, Lin Jing, and the silver-striped snake demon fought a life-and-death battle within this storm of blades.
Zhou Mo, Hong Man, and Fang Shan, who had been sent flying, watched Ye Chen and Lin Jing taking on the sixth-stage pinnacle demon beast, the silver-striped snake demon without falling behind, and their eyes were full of shock.
"Sister Jing, Ye Chen; they are on the same fifth layer of True Qi as us, but they're able to directly confront a sixth-stage pinnacle silver-striped snake demon. In this short time, their strength has increased so much!"
"Without them, the three of us meeting this silver-striped snake demon could only think of running for our lives, how could we hope to hunt down that 'Innate Snake Gall'."
"They are the truly talented cultivators who will undoubtedly go much further in the future!"
In the sky, the frenzied True Qi sword moves continued to bombard; hundreds of exchanges later, the two people and one snake separated once again.
The silver-striped snake demon landed in one place, while Ye Chen and Lin Jing stood shoulder to shoulder.
At this moment, the body of the silver-striped snake demon was marked with numerous sword wounds, including three deep cuts that had reached its flesh, gushing out blood.
On the other hand, Lin Jing had a slight tear on the sleeve of her clothes, revealing a bit of her fair arm, but both of them suffered no other abnormalities.
Especially Ye Chen, who seemed just as he had at the start of the battle; even his breathing was incredibly steady.
Clearly, in this exchange, both Ye Chen and Lin Jing had taken the upper hand!
"Sister Jing, Ye Chen!"
Seeing such a result, Zhou Mo, Hong Man, and Fang Shan were overjoyed. This meant they had a good chance at killing the silver-striped snake demon.
However, at this moment, Ye Chen did not show the slightest hint of happiness. He stared at the silver-striped snake demon covered in bloodstains and suddenly furrowed his brows.
Suddenly, Ye Chen grabbed Lin Jing's fair wrist and shot back with her.
Startled by Ye Chen's sudden pull, a blush spread across Lin Jing's cheeks. She had just looked back at the snake demon, her beautiful eyes widening with shock.
In the very moment that Ye Chen pulled her to retreat, the silver-striped snake demon's huge body, marked by those silver patterns, erupted with intense light. In the midst of this radiance, the fifteen-to-sixteen-meter-long body of the snake demon began to swell furiously.
In an instant, it grew from fifteen-to-sixteen meters to twenty meters in length.
At the same time, a bizarre pattern appeared between the brows of the silver-striped snake demon, resembling a sword yet not a sword, shining even brighter than the silver stripes.
With the appearance of this mark, the now twenty-meter-long silver-striped snake demon's aura increased to an incredible level, its intense brightness even blasting deep holes into the ground all around it.
The silver-striped snake demon was undergoing a new transformation upon being wounded!