Fatal Ambush

He couldn't afford to provoke them. He truly couldn't afford to provoke them.

Just as Wang Wu was scared out of his wits and prepared to flee for his life, abandoning his lair and never daring to return—

The Golden Holy Mantis swung its great blade, and more than a hundred Wandering Mantis Swordsmen charged forward howling, like a surging green tide.

Wang Wu nearly pissed himself, okay?

But he soon realized this had nothing to do with him at all. The target of the Mantis Swordsman Legion was not him. The Mantis Swordsmen beat their wings and soared high, scaling walls and traversing cliffs as if walking on level ground. They were actually headed for the Black Snake Clan above the cliff.

Oh my!

This was turning heaven and earth upside down.

Although the Black Snake Clan had suffered repeated blows—their leader had been carried off by a Giant Eagle, while the Flame Scorpions and Gray Rats had attacked them again and again—leaving the Black Snake Clan battered and bruised, as the saying went, a starved camel was still bigger than a horse. Mantis brother, were you sure you didn't want to think this through?

The cliff occupied by the Black Snake Clan was one of the top three blessed lands among all the Sprites clans in the valley. If you wanted to commit suicide, there was no need to go this far, was there?

Wang Wu found it very difficult to understand.

Even if they captured it and turned the Wandering Mantis Clan into the Mantis Clan, they still wouldn't be able to hold it.

While lamenting inwardly, he continued to wait. Violet Gold Three Minutes was about to begin, and that Golden Holy Mantis had clearly come prepared.

The battle on the cliff was probably fierce. From time to time, the corpse of a Wandering Mantis Swordsman fell down, and Wang Wu quietly collected them all before swiftly eating them.

Before long, just as Violet Gold Three Minutes ended and Golden Three Minutes began, the Golden Holy Mantis suddenly led forty or fifty Wandering Mantis Swordsmen down the cliff. Together, they dragged away a Black Snake that resembled a Black Snake Assassin but was a full size thicker and longer. It was likely a Black Snake Elite, one of the second-tier members of the Black Snake Clan.

Well damn, so you hadn't come to seize the Black Snake territory. You were a nomadic valley tribe here to plunder!

Awesome!

Wang Wu immediately understood the Golden Holy Mantis's intention: toxins and Snake Venom Resistance.

Only then could this raid be considered hugely profitable.

Sure enough, no clan lacked wise minds.

With that thought, Wang Wu suddenly hardened his heart. He had originally planned to bask beneath the cliff and absorb Golden Particles, but now he wanted to take advantage of the chaos and see if he could sneak up above the cliff to pick up a few scraps?

The cliff looked steep, but it was actually riddled with cracks and uneven protrusions. Overall, it resembled a flight of stairs.

Wang Wu had observed it from afar before.

The top of the cliff was about thirty meters above the ground. That was the Violet Gold Three Minutes area. More than ten meters below that, near the cliff's edge, was the Golden Three Minutes area. Beneath that zone was the lowest level, about eight meters up.

So he had no need to show off in the Violet Gold Three Minutes area. As long as he could leech a few benefits from the Golden Three Minutes area, that would be enough.

It was only around eight meters up and down. At worst, he could just jump down.

Climbing was exhausting. In fact, Wang Wu had not even reached the edge of the cliff. After climbing only about eight meters, bright sunlight already spilled down upon him. Golden Three Minutes was more than halfway over, and Silver Three Minutes would begin soon.

Yet after climbing those eight meters, it truly felt as if Wang Wu had stepped one foot into the middle class.

Golden sunlight shone over him, warm and cozy. His level-one Spiritual Resonance Talent activated automatically, and in the blink of an eye, it was as though he had donned a suit of golden armor.

Golden Particles danced within several meters of him before being absorbed into his body.

In barely half a minute, he absorbed 124 Golden Particles in one breath, converting them into 12.4 points of Spiritual Qi.

It was too exhilarating, too rich, too extravagant.

So this was what having money felt like? It was amazing!

Wang Wu let out a contented sigh in his heart, but his mind did not dare slacken in the slightest. He did not dare climb any higher. Instead, he quickly climbed down, not daring to provoke his already battered good neighbors, the Black Snake Clan.

It would be bad if they misunderstood.

A minute later, Wang Wu absorbed another 6.5 points of Spiritual Qi. Combined, his total Spiritual Qi had reached 22.9 points again.

He could add more points now.

Without hesitation, he continued strengthening his Stealth Talent, upgrading it to level-four Stealth.

Next, he took off running. Even though Silver Three Minutes still had two minutes left, he abandoned it and charged straight into the bushes, racing for the stream. He drank his fill first, then went to the Berry Plains to fill his belly until his Satiety reached its upper limit of 300 points.

Neither more nor less—exactly two minutes.

But there was clearly no way he could return to the rock crevice today, because the Gray Rat Knights had long since prepared themselves and were circling in from that direction.

There was nothing he could do. Wang Wu could only burrow into the grass again.

In just three seconds, his level-four Stealth Talent activated, and the effect was excellent.

"Because you have remained motionless for over three seconds, you have activated level-four Passive Concealment. You can now blend closely into your surroundings. All insects and the vast majority of wild beasts will turn a blind eye to you. A small number of careless demons will also overlook you, unless you are right under their noses."

Well damn, even at level-four Stealth, I still wasn't good enough in front of demons?

Wang Wu's heart turned cold. He suddenly understood why that Giant Eagle had been able to see through and lock onto him so easily a few days ago. It was probably like how humans looked at opossums playing dead.

But what exactly counted as a demon?

That Golden Holy Mantis, the Black Snake Leader, the Flame Scorpions, the White-Haired Rats, the Black-faced Centipede?

As he thought this, Wang Wu grew worried again. Would that Giant Eagle come today? Or would some other Great Demon come swaggering in to flaunt its might?

The valley was lively for a while. This was unique to the morning hours. Aside from the Gray Rat Knights, squeaking and charging about wildly, countless other insects and small animals were busy as well. This included the Little Red Birds, which swept over the bushes like little red fire sprites, occasionally snatching up an insect in a flash.

But they rarely flew farther away. Of course, perhaps Wang Wu simply could not see that far.

To the east and south of the valley stood towering Snow Mountains. To the north stretched layers of dark blue-green mountains. To the west, no mountain ridges could be seen. Instead, giant trees soared into the sky, suggesting an endless forest.

The stream in the valley flowed in that direction.

After about an hour, the valley rapidly fell silent. The most dangerous time of the day had arrived. Even the sun in the sky seemed to become strange.

Including Wang Wu, every living Sprite in the valley was probably trembling with fear.

Fortunately, the long day passed and nothing happened. The Giant Eagle did not come, nor did any other Great Demon appear, but that was no reason to let down his guard.

At dusk, the valley became lively once more. Wang Wu also set out again for the rock crevice. He felt like a migratory bear, constantly moving at dawn and dusk.

Along the way, he avoided the places where the spider girl appeared and ignored the Gray Rat Knights' encirclement. Like a lucky bear charging around recklessly with luck overflowing from his very bones, he smoothly burst out of the bushes and plunged headfirst into the familiar rock crevice.

But in the very next second, a black shadow flashed through the pitch-dark rock crevice. A Black Snake sprang up like lightning and bit down on his neck.

Fuck, that hurt!

He could clearly feel those sharp venom fangs piercing through his skin and flesh.

A wave of numbness flashed through him in an instant, but quickly faded away.

"You have fallen into a trap set by the Black Snake Clan. You have been ambushed by an elite Black Snake Priest. Because your Bloodline Talent level is too low, your Danger Sense Talent has been suppressed!"

"Because of your Defense level, you have suffered 80 points of piercing damage. Because you possess Snake Venom Resistance, you have suffered 1 point of toxin damage."