World (Please Bookmark)

"So that's how it is."

Su Heng thought for a moment. "How about the name Gamia? The World-encircling Serpent, the legendary great snake that coils around the earth."

"It sounds tasty, even though I don't really understand it."

Little Boa—or rather, Gamia now—seemed quite pleased with its new name.

After thinking for a moment, it asked, "Then how should I address you? Should I call you Father? Or should I just call you by your name?"

"That wouldn't be impossible, but it would feel kind of strange."

Though he had indeed raised it with his own hands, their relationship was not particularly formal.

Especially after Little Boa entered the Extraordinary Life Class and accepted faith.

Its intelligence had grown rapidly.

The relationship between man and snake now felt more like that of friends or family, rather than ruler and ruled.

"Hehe, is that so?"

Gamia nodded as if it understood, then seemed to ponder seriously for a while.

"Is it because I'm a snake rather than a human girl?"

"Damn!"

Hearing that out of nowhere, Su Heng nearly choked on his own saliva. "Moral decay, public corruption... What kind of nonsense have you been hearing from your followers?"

"No!"

When it came to such matters, Gamia displayed an unexpected seriousness.

"I obtained this knowledge from you before."

Little Boa said it in a prim, matter-of-fact tone.

"Forget it, forget it! Forget all of that!" Su Heng's old face flushed red.

He searched his conscience and found that he had never had any such preferences.

But he had transmigrated from an age of information explosion, so he could not guarantee that some unhealthy things had not lingered in his subconscious, only to be unconsciously seen by Little Boa.

"Sigh, just call me World."

Su Heng had no intention of revealing his real name, not because he distrusted Little Boa.

Rather, he feared their relationship might be discovered. This world was vast and dangerous; who knew what unimaginable horrors might be hiding in the darkness, silently laying their plans?

Under such circumstances, putting on an alias and adding another layer of protection was necessary.

"World?"

Gamia did not quite understand the meaning behind the name.

"That's right, World." Su Heng explained half-jokingly, "If you ever run into danger, shout 'Za Warudo.' Then I'll appear and fight by your side."

"Mhm."

Not getting to the bottom of things was one of Little Boa's good habits—or rather, it was simply too lazy to think too much.

"Tonight's moon seems especially bright."

As the apex predator of the food chain, snakes had poor eyesight, but with the help of various chemical and physical senses that were practically superhuman, nothing happening within nearly ten kilometers could escape Little Boa's perception.

He could sense it.

Under the influence of the Red Moon, ordinary beasts throughout the forest were mutating one after another.

Most beasts affected by the Red Moon either went mad or died outright, but a small number of lucky ones endured and became monsters that wielded supernatural power.

Those beasts that were already monsters took advantage of this opportunity to elevate their strength to a new level.

"Hiss, what a shame."

Gamia's voice suddenly rang out. Su Heng paused. "What's a shame?"

"If I'd known earlier, I would have waited until after the Red Moon to eat those monsters."

"Hehe, aren't you afraid you might not be able to beat them by then?"

During the earlier hunts, Su Heng had mostly watched from the sidelines. It had been Little Boa's own consciousness that truly fought those monsters.

"I won't."

Gamia's voice was soft and gentle, yet filled with unquestionable confidence. "It's different. We are the hunters, while they are only prey."

"Is that so?"

Su Heng fell silent for a moment.

According to the information he had gathered from the news, most mutated beasts were connected to the Red Moon, but Little Boa seemed to be an exception.

The Red Moon hung high in the sky, growing brighter with the passage of time.

A faint red glow shrouded the entire forest. Thin mist rose among the dense trees, beautiful and eerie.

Rumble!

Suddenly, about ten kilometers away on the western side of the valley.

A plume of dark green smoke rose into the air. At the same time, the Red Moon shone at its brightest, vast swathes of moonlight condensing and drifting down from the sky like blood.

"Hiss..."

A Life Signature as bright as a torch appeared within Little Boa's senses.

Su Heng's expression turned solemn, while Little Boa was far more relaxed.

It raised itself up, its enormous body climbing straight out from the top of the valley. Its blazing gaze fixed on the place where the moonlight was thickest as it let out excited hisses.

"That big guy is coming for us."

Deep within the western forest.

Broken limbs littered the ground. Dozens of ancient trees, each thick enough to require several people to encircle, had been snapped apart. The surroundings were a complete mess.

A wild boar seven or eight meters long, as large as a house, lay on the ground.

Its head had been crushed flat, as though it had been struck head-on by a massive meteor. Its two razor-sharp tusks had been sent flying, embedding themselves twenty or thirty centimeters deep into the earth.

Grand Master Taiyi, gaunt and sallow-faced, stood atop the head of this Supernatural wild boar Great Yokai. His monk's robes fluttered in the crimson moonlight.

Several monks stood nearby, along with dozens of armored warriors wielding weapons.

"As expected of Grand Master Taiyi, the strongest in Moon Country. These Great Yokai were no match for him at all."

"So this is a true Supernatural Being? You really can't judge someone by their appearance."

"I heard this Grand Master is nearly a hundred years old, yet he still possesses such terrifying strength."

Amid the Crimson Tide.

The last Great Yokai had been suppressed by Moon Country's eminent monk. Everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief and could not help discussing it among themselves.

Not only the warriors—even the monks from Xuanming Temple looked at Grand Master Taiyi with admiration on their faces.

Though Master Taiyi was elderly, he remained very active in Moon Country.

He often appeared before the public and never put on airs. Sometimes, he would even joke and play around with the younger monks, earning their deep respect and affection.

There had been rumors that this Grand Master had been competitive in his youth and exceptionally powerful in actual combat.

But no one could truly connect Master Taiyi's current appearance with those legendary accounts, so they had never taken such stories to heart.

Who would have thought.

During this Crimson Tide, Master Taiyi would personally act and display such astonishing strength.

It came as a huge shock to many.

Unlike the delighted young monks, Master Taiyi felt that something about the surrounding environment was off.

Moon Country's monks were extremely sensitive to yokai aura, let alone an old relic like Taiyi, who had remained at the Supernatural level for decades.

To put it bluntly.

With himself at the center, no trace of even the faintest yokai aura within a radius of ten thousand meters could escape his senses.

The yokai beasts nearby had clearly been wiped out just moments ago, yet that needle-pricking sense of danger had not weakened in the slightest.

Instead, it was growing stronger and sharper by the moment.

It made him feel as though he were sitting on pins and needles, cold sweat trickling down his back.

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