Proficiency Maxed Out, Liver Become Mortal Sword Immortal — Section 5

He did not make a move right away, merely observing from the rear.

With his "Body Refinement Second Layer" strength, it looked like he would not be much help anyway.

It was not that he was slacking off, but fighting a snake demon required skill. Charging in headfirst gave them little Chance of Winning. Even if they exhausted everyone to death, they might not be able to break the demonic snake's defenses.

The Menial Disciples' handbook recorded that the Azure Scale Demon Snake was not venomous, but it could command water through its demon bloodline. Its entire body was covered in hard azure scales, save for the softer scales beneath its jaw. That was its weak point, the only place where it could truly be threatened.

Senior Brother Lin knew this as well, but striking that spot was exceedingly difficult.

After the first round of attacks, the two Body Refinement Third Layer Menial Disciples had spent some of their strength dealing with the earlier ice arrows.

Now that they were once again charging at the front, they had already sustained some injuries. They looked like beggars, their clean Menial Disciple robes shredded by ice arrows. Though their wounds were not too severe, they were streaked with blood, and this latest assault had shaken them further.

From the rear, Yun Shu symbolically punched the demon snake's back.

The impact made his palm ache as though he had struck an iron plate.

They were Body Temperers, true enough, but they still could not compare to the demon snake's inborn defensive strength!

Heaven had not granted them great wisdom from the start, but it had given them enough defense to adapt to the changing world. Survival of the fittest—there was nothing more to say about that.

Still, it was said that some powerful members of the Demon Race were born with intelligence surpassing that of the Human Race, along with tremendous power. That was truly being favored by heaven.

Senior Brother Lin at the very front was forced back dozens of steps. Though he had blocked the demon snake's attack, both his fists were trembling.

At this moment, Senior Brother Lin was already considering retreat.

He had obtained the Snake Orchid Grass. If he left now and the demon snake turned its attention to these Menial Disciples, perhaps he really could escape?

But after taking only a few steps, Senior Brother Lin gave up on the idea.

Because of the Snake Orchid Grass, the demon snake had already fixed its eyes on him.

If this group of Menial Disciples could hold the demon snake back for him, he could leave. But with life and death on the line, who would be willing to help him restrain it?

Senior Brother Lin's thoughts raced. Sensing the demon snake's fury surging toward him once more, he could only meet it in battle with helpless resignation.

After the second round of attacks, Senior Brother Lin suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood. His blood and qi churned violently within him.

The others had not reached the Mid Body Refining Stage and could not withstand the demon snake's attacks. They could only assist and restrain it from the side. The gap between the Body Refinement Early Three Layers and the mid stage was enormous.

Was he going to give up the Snake Orchid Grass?

Senior Brother Lin's face was filled with difficulty.

"Lure it over for a moment." A young voice rang out.

The voice was gentle, inspiring an inexplicable sense of trust.

Senior Brother Lin had just turned to see who had spoken when the demon snake's massive head came crashing toward him.

Senior Brother Lin leaped up sharply, trying to evade it.

For some reason, he thought of what that person had just said.

After dodging the attack, he did not immediately leap away. Instead, as he descended, he seemed possessed as he smashed toward the demon snake's eyes.

The demon snake had not expected this insect-like human not only to steal its treasure, but to actually dare strike back. The blow hurt it, further igniting the fury in its mind.

It opened its enormous maw, streams of foul-smelling snake saliva dripping down as it swallowed toward Senior Brother Lin.

It was so fast that escape was nearly impossible. Senior Brother Lin could only grit his teeth and prepare to throw out the Snake Orchid Grass.

But at that moment, a figure as swift as lightning appeared directly before him like a ghost. A fist carrying boundless blood and qi swung out to meet the Azure Scale Demon Snake beneath its jaw.

The Azure Scale Demon Snake had no time to react. The punch landed squarely, blasting straight through it.

A cloud of Blood Mist nearly exploded from the Azure Scale Demon Snake's enormous head.

A mournful cry rang out, and its massive body crashed heavily to the ground.

All the disciples, including Senior Brother Lin, were nearly dumbfounded. What kind of strength was that?

For a long while, no one spoke.

Blood Mist splattered all over Yun Shu. He had not had time to dodge, but fortunately, the Azure Scale Snake was not venomous. Otherwise, he would never have taken such a risk.

There were only five bottles of Hundred Herbs Liquid in total. Why would he gamble with his life?

"Ding. Energy Substance detected—Demon Snake Heart. Absorb?"

The system's voice sounded almost at the same instant.

Before these demon creatures underwent true Demonic Transformation, they stored their power within their hearts, using them to contain their blood and qi. The demon snake's heart was the source of its entire body.

As for why the voice had only appeared after the demon snake was killed, Yun Shu figured the system probably would not directly swallow living creatures. Otherwise, he could simply find powerful members of the Demon Race and absorb them directly. Just thinking about it made advancement seem ridiculously fast.

Unfortunately, there was no bug to exploit.

"Absorb!"

This was an unexpected gain. There was no reason not to take it. Still, if he had to collect the entire snake corpse, Yun Shu most likely would not do so in broad daylight. Revealing one's trump card was the behavior of an idiot.

"Ding. Absorption successful. Energy Points obtained: *3."

A fortune!

Those three points were enough to cultivate to the Body Refining Fifth Level.

This gave Yun Shu a pleasant little surprise.

Three Energy Points were equivalent to more than a dozen bottles of Hundred Herbs Liquid!

He had worked himself to the bone running missions outside, only to earn five bottles.

If he relied on the meager dead wages of a Menial Disciple, it might take half a year to save up this much.

He could not help but sigh. He really needed to get out more. Only by killing monsters could he get equipment drops and stockpile supplies.

At that moment, he could see that the area around the snake's heart had already shriveled somewhat.

Lin Yang's expression shifted for a while before he finally stepped forward.

"My name is Lin Yang. I never expected Junior Brother to possess such methods. I was narrow-minded before." Lin Yang walked over as he spoke.

At this moment, he understood.

At this level of strength, setting everything else aside, he himself was not confident he could directly blow apart the Azure Scale Demon Snake's head, even by striking the soft scales beneath its jaw.

There was actually such an expert among the Menial Disciples. It truly was a place of Hidden Dragon, Crouching Tiger.

He had nothing to be proud of anymore. With strength like this, if nothing else, Yun Shu would certainly become an Outer Sect Disciple in the next assessment. By then, it was hard to say who would be stronger than whom.

If this man had not acted today, they might not have been able to leave safely. They might not even have been able to complete the mission at all.

It was not that they had underestimated the Azure Scale Demon Snake, but it was their first time facing one, so they inevitably lacked experience and had not made comprehensive preparations.

But if one's strength was sufficient, it was another matter entirely.

Just like now—their combined strength was enough to deal with this Azure Scale Demon Snake.

"Senior Brother is too polite. I merely happened to strike its weak point." Yun Shu still smiled kindly. Other than the unsettling blood stains covering him, there seemed to be nothing out of place.

Lin Yang nodded slightly.

He did not see it that way, but since Yun Shu was unwilling to say more, he would not expose anything.

As for Li Jian, he came running over from afar.

He had practically taken a trip through the gates of hell. When the giant snake attacked, he had been on the front line as well. But such a powerful demon snake had been smashed apart with a single punch. It had utterly overturned everything he knew.

The person before him had to be at least at the Mid Body Refining Stage, right?

He stepped forward in delight. "Brother Yun, I never knew you were this strong. I remember when you were tested some time ago—"

Before Li Jian could finish, Yun Shu interrupted him. "This demon snake's body should be worth a fair amount as well, shouldn't it?"

Though his words had been cut off, Li Jian did not mind. Instead, his attention shifted to the demon snake's corpse Yun Shu had mentioned.

Lin Yang nodded and stepped forward to inspect the demon snake. His brows furrowed slightly as he said in puzzlement, "Logically speaking, the demon snake's most important organ should be its heart. But looking at it now, it seems the heart is missing quite a bit?"

"What do you mean, missing quite a bit? Isn't it completely gone?" A Menial Disciple came over and kicked the demon snake's body. Sure enough, the area where its heart should have been was utterly shriveled.

"It really seems to have vanished without a trace? Could this demon snake have been born without a heart?"

"Nonsense. The demon snake's essence, qi, and vitality are all stored in its heart. Only when it truly undergoes Demonic Transformation, survives the Heavenly Tribulation, and reaches the Golden Core Stage will its essence, qi, and spirit merge into the Golden Core. How could it have been born without a heart?"

Everyone gathered around.

Yun Shu merely watched from the side without saying a word, letting the others puzzle over it slowly.

In any case, he had absorbed the heart. With the evidence dead and buried, the only conclusion could be that it had vanished without a trace. They could rack their brains until their skulls split and still never guess the truth.

"Do you think it could have been..." Li Jian mused from the side, then said with grave seriousness, "blown apart by Brother Yun's punch?"

The moment those words came out, even Senior Brother Lin, who had been examining the demon snake, could not help turning to look at Yun Shu.

At the same time, everyone could be heard drawing sharp breaths.

Directly blasting apart the source of a demon snake's power—was that something a Menial Disciple could do?

Would that not make him the strongest Menial Disciple of the current generation?

No matter what, everyone looked at Yun Shu with a measure of awe.