Do Not Overestimate

With Zi Di, Zhen Jin returned to the Eight-Legged Spiders' hunting ground once more.

"My lord, you came! You really didn't abandon me, thank the heavens!" Huang Zao's voice was filled with surprise and gratitude.

But his spirits soon sank again. Unable to hide his disappointment, he asked, "My lord, it's just the two of you? Where are the others?"

"There are only the two of us," Zhen Jin said.

"M-my lord, are you sure about this?" Huang Zao stammered. His life was at stake, and he was extremely nervous. "Maybe we should bring more people."

Zi Di snorted. "If there were more people, would they be here to save you or to die? Right now, all you can do is trust us."

Huang Zao choked up, then finally squeezed out, "My lord, you must be careful!"

Zi Di took out bottle after bottle of potion from her small leather bag and handed them to Zhen Jin.

Zhen Jin threw them one after another. The bottles traced arcs through the air, striking tree trunks or rocks and shattering, their contents quickly spreading in all directions.

A strange, foul smell filled the air, like burnt chicken feathers, dog droppings, and dried squid mixed together.

If magic could be used, rescuing Huang Zao from high in the air would have been easy with the Light Body Technique or Flight Technique.

But in this environment, Zhen Jin and Zi Di had chosen a potion-based strategy.

They were all Combustion Potions, and Zhen Jin had thrown them with flawless precision at key locations.

After recovering from his injuries, Zhen Jin had discovered that his strength had increased significantly.

After discussing it with Zi Di, she believed that it might have been the effect of the improvised mixture made with Monkey-Tailed Brown Bear blood.

Potions of this type were not rare.

The most well-known was the Strength Potion.

After drinking such a potion, a person's strength could be permanently enhanced.

Of course, repeated use greatly diminished its effects.

Another possibility was that the life-and-death battle had awakened Zhen Jin's bloodline to some extent.

Nobles were among the groups with the finest bloodlines in the world.

That was why they possessed exceptional talent and brilliance.

The Hundred Needles Family had once been a great noble house of the south, so its bloodline was naturally outstanding. It was said that its lineage could be traced back to the Legendary-level magical beast, the Golden Needle Bee Queen.

Those with this bloodline were swift and steady in their movements, and exceptionally precise in their attacks.

This bloodline was not known for strength, but perhaps Zhen Jin carried other hidden bloodlines as well.

The most common bloodlines included the Dragon Blood Meridian, giant bloodline, Ogre bloodline, and even Demon bloodline.

Because nobles frequently married among themselves and led extravagant, promiscuous private lives, bloodlines intermingled. Sometimes a bloodline could remain hidden for an entire lifetime, and without effective methods of identification, it was difficult to determine exactly how many bloodlines a person possessed.

Cases like Zhen Jin's, where someone endured life-and-death trials and erupted with hidden potential in desperate circumstances, awakening a dormant bloodline, were not uncommon in the histories of every race.

There was also the possibility Zi Di had previously guessed at.

Zhen Jin's true cultivation was not merely Silver-level, but Gold-level.

At Silver-level, one could reach the limits of human ability. Gold-level cultivation, however, surpassed those limits, bringing extraordinary qualitative changes in speed, strength, recovery, and more.

If Zhen Jin was Gold-level, then he was unlikely to be a veteran Gold-level powerhouse. Given his age, he had to be in his period of growth.

Therefore, the increase in his strength could have been the result of Gold-level Battle Qi constantly and secretly nourishing his body.

Regardless of the answer, Zhen Jin's increased strength was a good thing.

After nearly exhausting Zi Di's stock of Combustion Potions, Zhen Jin finally took out a Spark Stone and struck bright blue sparks from it.

The sparks fell onto the potions, and with a whoosh, a fierce flame burst forth.

The flames spread rapidly, igniting the Combustion Potions along their path in an instant. In the blink of an eye, they formed a blazing wall of fire!

The wall of fire burned fiercely, climbing the surrounding trees and rising ever higher.

From the towering canopy came a chorus of shrill chittering. The Eight-Legged Spiders had been thrown into a frenzy.

Huang Zao felt the air beneath him heat up rapidly. His heart pounded wildly as he never expected the young man and woman to create such a huge commotion so quickly.

So this girl is an alchemist. But how are they going to save me?

As Huang Zao guessed, Zhen Jin made another move.

He drew a short spear from his back. Its tip had been coated with Combustion Potion. Holding the spear, Zhen Jin lightly passed its tip through the flames by his feet, and the front of the weapon easily caught fire.

The next moment, Zhen Jin drew his arm back slightly before hurling it with all his might.

The short spear traced a brilliant arc through the air before accurately embedding itself in a piece of prey.

It was a panther-shaped creature that had long since suffocated to death in the spider web.

Once the spear struck it, the flames immediately spread, burning the spider web away completely.

The panther-shaped prey fell to the ground almost instantly.

Just as Zhen Jin had expected, it was a Scaled Horn Black Panther. Thanks to its scale-like armor, the small flames clinging to its body quickly went out.

Short spears flew from Zhen Jin's hand one after another, and one piece of prey after another fell to the ground.

Some continued burning, while the flames on others went out.

"They're coming." Zi Di's heart trembled as she watched Eight-Legged Spiders descend rapidly to the ground on their silk threads, beginning to weave new webs around the fallen prey.

For prey that was still burning, the Eight-Legged Spiders sprayed thick green fluid from their mouthparts, extinguishing the flames before weaving their webs.

Clearly, they were not entirely helpless against fire.

Soon, no more Eight-Legged Spiders descended.

A total of twenty-six Bronze-level ferocious beasts stood revealed before the young man and woman.

Most of the Eight-Legged Spiders were busy retrieving their provisions. Only three lunged at Zhen Jin and Zi Di.

Zi Di secretly let out a breath of relief.

These Eight-Legged Spiders were beasts after all. They did not possess the Blue-haired Dire Wolf's cunning and treachery. It gave the girl renewed confidence in humanity's superiority.

The three Eight-Legged Spiders closed in, while Zhen Jin remained motionless.

Once they reached the ideal distance, Zhen Jin calmly ignited the Combustion Potion by his left foot.

A second wall of fire rose with a roar, trapping the three attacking spiders within it.

The spiders let out horrifying cries and began trying to shoot Spider Web into the canopy, hoping to hang themselves away.

But the Spider Web melted as soon as it shot above the flames.

The fire wall gradually spread, easily driving the three spiders into a dead end.

With no other choice, the three spiders had to lower their heads and force their way through.

They successfully charged through the fire wall, with small flames clinging to their bodies.

Chitter, chitter, chitter...

They let out a series of frantic cries, terrified and panicked.

The spiders working hard to retrieve their prey saw their three burning companions rushing toward them and immediately fell into chaos.

"Now!"

A sharp gleam flashed through Zhen Jin's eyes.

He threw three short spears in quick succession. The flaming spears accurately struck the Spider Web above Huang Zao's head.

Four strands of Spider Web held him up, like four thick white hemp ropes. The moment the webs met the flames, they nearly instantly burned through.

With only one strand of Spider Web left supporting him, Huang Zao immediately lost his balance. He swung through the air in an arc and slammed into a tree trunk with a bang.

Then Zhen Jin's fourth short spear shot forth, burning through the final strand of Spider Web.

Huang Zao cried out softly as his whole body crashed to the ground.

Though it hurt badly, he was not injured.

The highly adhesive Spider Web was also remarkably elastic. After he hit the tree trunk, the web stretched, leaving him only two meters above the ground.

Unfortunately, an Eight-Legged Spider that had just successfully hoisted up some prey noticed the commotion and immediately pounced on Huang Zao.

Seeing this, Huang Zao's eyes widened in terror. Then, with a sudden low roar, he actually rolled into the wall of fire on his own initiative.

The flames instantly burned away the Spider Web covering his body, then began scorching his flesh and hair.

But in that moment, Huang Zao displayed the toughness and ruthlessness of a man of the sea. Without making a sound, he continued running through the fire wall until he emerged through another section of it.

He successfully escaped that Eight-Legged Spider, but now his entire body was aflame, and he could very well be burned to death on the spot.

"Good!" Zi Di blurted out in praise. "Come here, quickly!"

He did not need her call. Huang Zao had already instinctively run toward Zhen Jin and Zi Di.

The distance between them quickly closed. Zi Di flicked her arm, scattering a bottle of potion.

Specks of blue powder scattered over Huang Zao's body.

Huang Zao immediately let out a piercing scream.

The flames covering him strangely drew inward before the blue powder suppressed them into nothingness.

Huang Zao trembled all over.

In just a short time, he had become unrecognizable. Only a small clump of his hair remained, giving off thick smoke. His face, exposed hands, and arms were all charred black.

He sucked in cold breaths, then quickly rushed past Zhen Jin and Zi Di. "Run, run! There's a bigger one!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the overwhelming aura of a ferocious beast descended from above.

Zhen Jin and Zi Di both changed expression.

It was a Silver-level Eight-Legged Spider leader.

It was larger, its blue fur denser, and its eight spider legs longer.

It tore through the air with a piercing shriek, charging at Zhen Jin, Zi Di, and Huang Zao at astonishing speed.

"You two go first!" At the critical moment, Zhen Jin was the first to react. He glared furiously at Huang Zao, then stepped forward with a grim expression.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.

He hurled short spear after short spear at high speed.

But the Eight-Legged Spider was swift as the wind, easily evading every spear.

Very soon, Zhen Jin had used up all his short spears. Gritting his teeth, he raised his long spear high and charged back at the spider leader.

"My lord!" Zi Di cried out behind him.

"Go! Don't let us become a burden!" Huang Zao shouted as well.

But in their hesitation, they had already missed their chance.

The spider leader suddenly fired three strands of Spider Web, accurately striking all three of them.

Zhen Jin's long spear and both hands were bound by Spider Web, leaving him able only to wrestle against the spider leader's strength.

Zi Di's cloak was caught by Spider Web. At that moment, the girl fully displayed the agility and flexibility of her young body. She quickly slipped out of her cloak and bent down to pull the dagger strapped to her calf.

"My lord, catch!" Zi Di had just been about to throw the dagger to Zhen Jin when a mass of Spider Web flew toward her.

The Spider Web rapidly expanded in midair, forming an exquisite hunting net. It struck Zi Di, covering her chest and waist, knocking her to the ground and sticking her firmly there.

The impact badly disrupted Zi Di's grip on the dagger. Though she threw it, it did not land near Zhen Jin, instead falling right beside Huang Zao.

Huang Zao's right foot was tangled in Spider Web. Lying on the ground, he struggled wildly, but he could not match the spider leader's strength and was dragged toward it.

Huang Zao instinctively reached out and grabbed the dagger.

He pulled out the dagger and swung it with all his strength. In his panic, he missed twice before finally cutting through the Spider Web.

Huang Zao escaped by sheer luck and hurriedly retreated.

"Throw the dagger to my lord!" Zi Di screamed.

"No, no! I don't want to die! I don't want to die!!" Huang Zao acted as though he had not heard her. He screamed madly and fled like a lunatic.

The spider leader did not trouble him further, allowing him to vanish into the forest.

"Damn it!" Zi Di was both furious and alarmed. At this critical moment, Huang Zao had actually fled with the only cutting weapon!

Zhen Jin and Zi Di had done everything they could to rescue him, yet he had abandoned them and chosen to flee alone.