The Tenacious Black Spirit Snake

Monster Mountain Range.

Liu Yun and He Qingfeng traveled onward, both treading carefully and not daring to let down their guard in the slightest.

In the original story, Xiao Yan had been able to travel through the Monster Mountain Range without restraint entirely because of Yao Chen's powerful soul perception. Xiao Yan could avoid powerful Magical Beasts in advance, but He Qingfeng did not possess Yao Chen's abilities.

Elder He was merely a Dou Ling and did not possess the powerful spiritual strength of an Alchemist. He could only rely on his sharp eyesight and hearing to make judgments.

Three more days passed. They encountered quite a few strange low-tier Magical Beasts along the way, but none were what Liu Yun wanted. He merely wounded them with his sword before continuing onward.

Just as Liu Yun was feeling somewhat lost and silently lamenting his plight, he noticed something odd about He Qingfeng's gaze. Following his line of sight, he saw a pitch-black object coiled around the trunk of a large tree ahead. It was an enormous python.

The python's entire body was wrapped around a tree thick enough to take three men to encircle. Its body was jet-black and covered in irregular patterns. Its length was impossible to gauge, but its bucket-thick body alone showed that it was no ordinary creature.

At that moment, the python flicked its tongue with hissing sounds, as though it were threatening the approaching pair.

"Elder He, this is?" Liu Yun swallowed and asked.

Perhaps because of the influence of his previous life, Liu Yun had always been afraid of things like snakes, spiders, and centipedes. Seeing such a massive black snake now inevitably made him uneasy.

"This is a Peak Tier 2 Black Spirit Snake. It has already grown a few scales. Although its defense is inferior to that of an Ironclad Savage Lion, it must not be underestimated. Once you are caught in its coils, without outside assistance, you can only accept the fate of death!" He Qingfeng said.

"Elder He, is it venomous?" Liu Yun asked.

In his subconscious mind, creatures such as snakes and insects were generally highly venomous. One bite could end him at any moment.

"Probably not. Black Spirit Snakes are Magical Beasts famous for their thick hides and great strength. Unless it has mutated, it generally isn't venomous," Elder He explained.

Liu Yun was speechless. In other words, Elder He could not completely guarantee that it was not venomous. He absolutely could not let it bite him in this battle.

Liu Yun did not hesitate any longer. Gripping his sword, he ignored everything else and slashed at the Black Spirit Snake's vital spot.

The Black Spirit Snake's enormous body was coiled around the tree, leaving it unable to dodge. It could only raise its tail and smash it toward Liu Yun.

With a muffled boom, sparks scattered everywhere. Liu Yun was sent staggering backward by the tremendous force, while the Black Spirit Snake's scaled tail also suffered some damage. A patch of scales was slightly dented, with a small amount of blood seeping out.

Liu Yun had already tested the Black Spirit Snake's defense. Though its scales were extremely hard, they were on an entirely different level from the Ironclad Savage Lion's iron armor. A full-force blow from him could break through them, making things much easier.

After its defense was broken by a single sword strike, the Black Spirit Snake let out a hiss and began to uncoil its enormous body from the tree trunk.

The opportunity was fleeting. If the Black Spirit Snake managed to leave the tree trunk, then given the agility of snake-type Magical Beasts, it would likely take a great deal more effort to deal with it. Liu Yun hesitated no longer and unleashed his ultimate move, the Wind Spirit Fractal Sword. A terrifying energy sword hacked viciously toward the snake's head.

Hiss!

A shriek rang out. At the critical moment, the Black Spirit Snake's head avoided the attack, but because part of its body was still wrapped around the tree trunk, its enormous body was cleaved in two by Liu Yun's powerful energy sword.

Blood splattered everywhere as the two halves of the snake's body thrashed wildly. The severed tail actually smashed toward Liu Yun, while the Black Spirit Snake's upper body leaped high into the air, its gaping, bloody maw blotting out the sky.

Liu Yun was greatly shocked, fear rising in his heart.

This Black Spirit Snake's vitality is far too tenacious! Fine, its upper body can still attack, but its tail has already been separated from its body. How are you controlling it?

At that critical instant, Liu Yun used the Flying Catkins Movement Technique. With a flash, he appeared above the snake's head. Grasping his sword with both hands, he drove it down into the massive head.

With a wet squelch, the sharpness of the Liu Yun Sword exceeded his expectations. The entire blade plunged into the Black Spirit Snake's skull, thoroughly shredding its brain.

However, what Liu Yun had not expected was that after smashing apart the Flying Catkins afterimage, the Black Spirit Snake's scaled tail rushed at him again and slammed viciously into his chest.

Liu Yun was sent flying three meters away. A sharp pain shot through his chest, and with a muffled groan, blood burst from his mouth. That single strike had injured him despite the Ironclad Savage Lion armor he wore.

Enduring the pain, Liu Yun immediately retreated and widened the distance between them.

At this time, the Black Spirit Snake's tail was still lashing about. Having lost its intelligence after its head was destroyed, the tail wildly smashed at its surroundings, knocking down several large trees.

Once the dust settled, the area was a complete mess. He Qingfeng hurried to Liu Yun's side and helped inspect his injuries.

"Ding! Congratulations, Host, for killing a Peak Tier 2 Black Spirit Snake. Current mission progress: (2/10)."

"Sure enough, I'm still too weak. This was nowhere near as easy as killing a First-order Peak Magical Beast back then!" Liu Yun muttered.

When he had fought First-order Peak Magical Beasts before, only the Spirit Rock Leopard and Blade Horn Tiger had given him some trouble. But now that he had advanced by an entire major realm, he did not have the same advantage as before. He had killed the Ironclad Savage Lion and the Black Spirit Snake only by exploiting openings. Thinking about it now, if his opponents had not revealed flaws, he would not have been able to kill them at all.

He Qingfeng, who overheard Liu Yun muttering to himself, was completely at a loss. He could only offer a silent moment of mourning for the two miserably slain Magical Beasts.

"Young Master, the difference between Tier 1 Magical Beasts and Tier 2 Magical Beasts is enormous. The greatest difference lies in their intelligence. Secondly, their Basic Attributes have been developed, so this is perfectly normal," He Qingfeng said.

"Mm. Let's continue searching for Peak Tier 2 Magical Beasts. We've been out here for two months already, so let's finish this trial as soon as possible," Liu Yun said blandly.

He Qingfeng agreed, and the two continued deeper into the mountain range. Only the two lifeless halves of the Black Spirit Snake's corpse remained behind.

Half a month later, they encountered their third target, a Peak Tier 2 Nether Wolf. Liu Yun was utterly dominated by the Nether Wolf's bizarre speed. In the end, he barely managed to finish it off while dragging his blood-soaked body.

A month later, their fourth target appeared: a Peak Tier 2 Wind Blade Leopard with the Wind Attribute. This time, the battle ended quickly. Because of his previous battle with the Nether Wolf, he had gained experience fighting speed-type Magical Beasts. Although it was still not easy, he was barely injured at all. His improvement was considerable.

Another two months passed. During this time, Liu Yun successively killed three Peak Tier 2 Magical Beasts: a Blood-Spotted Black Panther, an Ironback Bear, and a Lion Mastiff. The battles were all fierce.

During his battle against the Lion Mastiff, Liu Yun had even nearly died in its jaws. Elder He had ultimately stepped in to save him. After recovering from his injuries, Liu Yun studied his opponent for a long time before finally killing it in its den.

This was Liu Yun's fifth month in the Monster Mountain Range, and his kill mission progress had reached 7/10.