"Master, what is a Buddha?"
"People are Buddhas yet to awaken, while Buddhas are people who have awakened."
"What does awakening mean?"
"The human world is like a prison, and all living beings suffer. Those who can stand upon the shore and ferry others from the sea of suffering are awakened."
"..."
Remembering a conversation he had once had with his master as a child, Renguang could not help but feel dazed.
And now.
His master was gone.
Renguang raised his head. The moonlit giant serpent was reflected in his clear pupils. The formless Buddha and the tangible giant serpent seemed to gradually overlap within his eyes.
"How... beautiful. How... powerful..."
Within the tiny shrine of Shenjian Village, the Shrine Maiden, dressed in a pure white feathered robe, sat cross-legged by the window, gazing foolishly at the view outside.
Creak.
The shrine doors were gently pushed open.
Tsukimi Sakura's armor was torn and battered, and her once-fair face was stained with blood.
"Rinzi, are you all right..."
Her voice suddenly caught.
Hearing her, the girl sitting by the window turned around, a heart-wrenching smile on her face.
Two faint patches of Golden Serpent Scales had appeared on the girl's cheeks, which should have been clean and fresh. Her lively black eyes had also turned into burning golden vertical pupils, identical to those of the giant serpent Tsukimi Sakura had seen earlier.
"Big Sister... I'm sorry. I shouldn't have looked, but Lord Snake God, He really is... so beautiful!"
At the same time.
More than ten thousand meters overhead, a satellite emitting a dim glow sped through the night sky.
On another continent far away, inside a laboratory filled with sophisticated instruments.
Masked staff in white lab coats detected the anomaly occurring within the primeval forest and swiftly recorded the information relayed by the satellite.
"Sample No. 3-170 has died. Cause of death: killed by external force."
"A new sample, characterized by a gigantic golden anaconda. It is suspected to possess immense growth potential and extraordinary power.
Temporary designation: 2-079.
Recommended action: collect sample materials for research."
After the vast amount of information was reorganized, it was entered into the computer before them.
Only after spending half an hour finishing his work did the observer remove his mask, revealing the somewhat aged face of a white man.
His bloated body leaned against the back of his chair as he lifted the black tea beside him and took a sip. Yet his cloudy eyes never left the screen for even a moment.
"Dispersing clouds, altering the terrain... There are more and more Monsters in this world."
"Lok! Vah! Koor!"
Beneath the clear sky, Su Heng casually shouted the dragon shout from The Elder Scrolls.
Of course, those words themselves possessed no supernatural power when spoken by Gamia. Even so, bolstered by the lung capacity granted by Gamia's enormous body—
That deafening roar still scattered the clouds across a radius of nearly ten kilometers, achieving an effect even more exaggerated than in the game.
Thinking back to when he had first met Gamia.
She had merely been a Little Snake less than half a meter long. Yet now, in less than a month, she had grown into a terrifying beast capable of changing the weather.
What astonished Su Heng even more than her current strength was Gamia's almost cheat-like rate of growth.
If she continued developing at this pace.
It would not be long before humanity's modern weapons completely ceased to pose any threat to Gamia.
Fatigue surged over him like a tide. Waves of tingling sensations spread densely from every part of his body and flooded into his mind.
His refined limit-breaking talent began to take effect.
This was the highest-grade talent that a Tier 2 Lifeform could currently come into contact with, and the changes it brought to Gamia would naturally be nothing short of transformative.
However.
Su Heng had a feeling that this transformation would likely take quite some time.
Fortunately, when he had purged the forest in the past, Su Heng had already prepared for what would happen today.
Hiss...
The fine sounds of mutant beasts moving through the forest rang out beneath the bright moonlight.
"My lord."
Four extraordinary Monsters that had already reached Tier 2 Lifeform stood before Gamia. Leading them was a gigantic anaconda over thirty meters long, with beautiful azure stripes.
The other three were a massive Fierce Tiger, a heavily muscled brown bear, and a smaller but more agile-looking leopard cat.
These creatures were already fairly powerful among Tier 2 Monsters. It was precisely because of that that they had survived Gamia's Venomous Fangs.
Death or submission.
They had chosen the latter.
If they had still harbored thoughts of rebellion and resentment deep down before.
Then after witnessing how Gamia had torn the Hundred-Foot Centipede to pieces and dispersed the Red Moon, nothing remained in their minds except fear and loyalty.
"Your power has grown even stronger."
The azure anaconda prostrated itself on the ground, its ruby-bright serpent eyes filled with fervor as they gazed upon Gamia.
"Darkness follows you, and even light longs for you."
"Enough!"
A majestic voice echoed through the forest.
The four enormous beasts, each like a small mountain, shuddered in unison. Their breathing grew so faint it was nearly impossible to discern.
A satisfied look flashed through Su Heng's eyes.
"Next, I will cultivate in the hot spring valley for some time. During that time, no one is allowed to approach."
"Within the forest, none of you may kill those who believe in me and recite my true name.
"You must also restrain those Monsters that were just born beneath the Red Moon. Let them know who the true master of this forest is."
"As you command!"
The four enormous figures exchanged glances, then crawled backward and silently dispersed, vanishing from sight before long.
After making all the necessary arrangements.
Su Heng finally dragged Gamia's enormous body toward the familiar valley. Her excessive weight left a winding, deep trench in the ground.
She silently sank into the warm pool.
He felt the nutrients that had once belonged to the Hundred-Foot Centipede being consumed in great quantities, transformed into all manner of near-supernatural organs.
Beside Gamia's beating heart, streams of red warmth gathered together, forming an energy heart that existed somewhere between illusion and reality.
Within Gamia's muscles and bones, glands also began secreting special hormones, further promoting the growth of her already immensely powerful body.
The changes brought by the limit-breaking talent proceeded steadily and methodically.
Su Heng raised his head one last time and looked at the bright full moon in the sky through the clear spring water and its rippling surface.
"Truly beautiful..."
He murmured softly, then closed his eyes and logged out from Gamia Great Serpent's body.
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