Good Taste

Rumble!

The massive evil ghost leader shot out like a cannonball, leaving behind a yellowish trail of dust amid the collapsed houses.

Not even the vital signs of a Supernatural Being could stop life from slipping away.

However, the evil ghost leader did not take long to die.

Before it even hit the ground, the impatient Anaconda had already rushed after it. From above, it swallowed the creature whole, along with a large section of collapsed beams and bricks.

Gulp.

Another slightly muffled swallowing sound rang out.

A warm sensation spread from its belly. More than a dozen evil ghosts, along with an evil ghost leader that was very likely at the supernatural level—

provided the Anaconda, which had reached the peak of Tier-One Lifeform and stored enough energy, with an opportunity to evolve.

After eating its fill, the Anaconda became sluggish and drowsy. Su Heng, who was currently controlling the Anaconda's consciousness, also felt his eyelids growing heavier and heavier.

It was like that sudden wave of sleepiness during a morning math class—simply impossible to resist.

However...

Fortunately, Su Heng's willpower was fairly strong. He knew this was not a safe place, and there were more important things he needed to do.

Meanwhile,

the survivors in the village gathered together.

The elderly village chief, his hair completely white and his back hunched, looked around. A relieved expression appeared on his wrinkled face.

Although some villagers had still been killed by the invading evil ghosts, most had survived.

Compared to losing the land they depended on for survival, or even having the entire village devoured by evil ghosts, the current situation was incomparably better.

It was just that...

the people who had survived the disaster wore somewhat complicated expressions.

On the one hand, they had survived the evil ghosts and did not need to abandon their land and become wanderers again.

That was naturally a tremendous blessing.

But on the other hand, the villagers raised their heads and looked at the majestic dark-golden giant serpent standing at the village entrance, as though it had stepped out of a myth.

They only felt mountain-like pressure bearing down on them. Their legs trembled, and they did not even dare breathe loudly.

The evil ghosts had been killed.

But a Golden Giant Serpent even fiercer than the evil ghosts had arrived in the village.

And what exactly did this giant serpent intend to do? Would it bring harm to the village...

Just as everyone was filled with worry, the seemingly lazy Anaconda suddenly moved.

The giant serpent slowly lowered its body, stretched out its head, and approached the villagers.

"Good heavens, is that a Monster?"

The Anaconda was over twenty meters long. Its head alone was nearly half the size of a house, and it could easily swallow evil ghosts far larger than humans.

That enormous snake head was only a few meters away from the villagers.

If the villagers had not spent their lives in the wilderness beneath Red Moon radiation and seen all manner of strange horrors, they would have long since collapsed in terror.

Hisss~

The Anaconda flicked its crimson tongue, its dark-golden pupils settling on a girl of about thirteen or fourteen among the crowd.

"It's Rinzi."

"Is the Snake God going to eat Rinzi?"

"If eating Rinzi alone can save the entire village, that actually seems like a pretty good deal."

"But Rinzi is that lord's younger sister. If word of this gets out..."

Quiet discussions rose from the crowd.

Seeing that the unlucky one was not themselves, some people clearly relaxed considerably.

But others were still deeply worried.

This girl named Rinzi was the younger sister of the village's only Supernatural Being.

If anything happened to her, how would they face that lord?

"Gods..."

Though she was already middle-aged and dressed in plain clothing, the woman's beautiful features could not be concealed. She reached out and tightly held her daughter in her arms.

"If possible, please eat me instead... Rinzi is still young. She's so thin, there isn't much flesh on her."

The woman trembled all over, her eyes red, yet she still endured her fear and spoke in a quavering voice.

In comparison,

the girl named Rinzi appeared much calmer.

The girl's clear eyes reflected the giant serpent before her. For some reason, Rinzi did not feel much fear when she looked at it.

Instead, she felt an indescribable sense of closeness.

She even

slowly stretched out her hand and gently rubbed her soft palm against the Anaconda's smooth scales.

"Hiss..."

Such a bold action stunned everyone.

Even the village chief, the oldest man in the village and the one who had experienced the most, was frightened out of his wits.

"Rinzi, what are you doing?! Is the Snake God someone a mere mortal like you can touch and profane?!"

The old man frowned, fiercely slammed his cane against the ground, and spoke sternly.

However,

the touched Anaconda did not fly into a rage as the villagers expected. Instead, it let out a soft hissing sound.

It flicked its tongue, then stared at the girl's palm.

"My lord, do you want this?"

Rinzi seemed to think of something. She removed the strange rope she had always worn on her hand and held it up in her palm.

A string of peculiar stones hung from the straw rope woven from stalks.

"This is a Shimenawa. My older sister gave it to me. If you like it, my lord, please take it."

Rinzi raised her head and spoke loudly.

Congratulations, Host. You have discovered the second True Relic.

True Relic absorbed. You have obtained fifty True Points. Two hundred points are still required to unlock the next template.

As long as he touched a True Relic, he could absorb the points within it. The process would not affect the True Relic in any way.

However, considering that this was only the second True Relic Su Heng had ever encountered,

he thought about it and decided to take it with him. Once he returned, he could compare the two relics and see what they had in common.

It was a pity he could not speak right now.

Otherwise, he could have asked where this bracelet had come from.

But judging from what the little girl had said earlier, Su Heng felt that even if he asked, he probably would not get a useful answer.

As for the older sister the girl had mentioned, for some reason, she did not seem to be in this mountain village.

Had something already happened to her, or had she gone elsewhere?

The first possibility would be fine, but if it was the second...

Anyone capable of traveling long distances through a dangerous primeval forest was obviously no ordinary person.

Even an inconspicuous little mountain village might have countless ties to some unknown expert.

Sure enough...

this world was even more dangerous than he had imagined.

Still, after taking the risk of Devouring those evil ghosts this time, the Little Boa should be able to successfully advance to a new Life Level. Then it could continue hunting and growing in the wilderness far from human settlements.

Nature was dangerous, but compared to cunning humans, it was still much safer.

Su Heng silently pondered to himself. His tongue flicked out, carrying away the knot of rope from the girl's hand, and he left without looking back.

"Little Boa, you seemed rather fond of that little girl just now."

As he swiftly moved through the forest, Su Heng sent a message to the Little Boa in the Consciousness Space.

To his surprise, the usually muddleheaded Little Boa responded this time.

"You mean human cubs taste good?"