"Human ant, how did you manage to find me?"
"You also carry the Golden Condor's aura. Looks like the Golden Condor died at your hands."
A soft snort came from tens of thousands of miles away. Boundless waves surged up once more, and from the swamp's foul depths sprang a thousand-zhang-long green serpent. Its bloodthirsty fangs glinted coldly as it flicked its tongue at Lin Changqing and the others.
"You're the one who outdoes me, Fellow Daoist—driving the wolf to swallow the tiger, killing with a borrowed blade, and waiting to reap the rewards."
Lin Changqing looked toward the thousand-zhang green serpent and gave a soft snort.
A cold glint shone in his eyes, and killing intent stirred within him.
No wonder the Dragon Clan's secret realm had appeared so conveniently in the memories he'd obtained.
Now that this great serpent of the Demon Clan had shown itself, it all made sense.
Could the Dragon Clan's secret realm really have appeared so easily?
The Golden Condor great demon had merely been used by this snake demon to hunt down the Dragon Clan and bring them here.
"Hahaha! That's right, human ant. I must admit, you're somewhat perceptive. The two of you managed to kill the Golden Condor, so you must have relied on someone else's help."
"Come out, Fellow Daoist. Whether you're from the Dragon Clan or someone else, your chance is right before you. Why hide?"
"I am Green Vine, lord of this swamp stretching a trillion miles. Since you've come to my territory, Fellow Daoist, won't you come out and meet me?"
The green serpent laughed heartily. Its thousand-zhang-long body rapidly transformed, and amid flashes of mystical light, it turned into an elegant scholar in a green robe.
The human race possessed an Innate Dao Body, modeled after Pangu's divine form. When living beings of the Primordial World took human shape, they all looked like this.
This did not surprise Lin Changqing, but Green Vine was actually at the mid-stage of the Golden Immortal realm.
He glanced at Ao Ying beside him. Her expression was grave, and she slowly nodded.
It seemed this green serpent also possessed Dragon Clan blood.
Unfortunately, the Dragon Clan was now in decline. These demons with Dragon Clan blood weren't thinking about submitting to and serving the Dragon Clan—they wanted to devour them and evolve.
Driving the wolf to swallow the tiger—the green serpent's target was likely Ao Ying.
But for now, he had clearly been intimidated by the two of them. A great demon like the Golden Condor could never have been killed by a Dragon Clan member in the early stage of the Golden Immortal realm and a human in the Mystic Immortal realm.
If Green Vine hadn't been wary of the powerful allies the two might have behind them, he would have attacked already.
"Don't bother calling. There's no one else here. That little bird didn't die at someone else's hands. I killed it."
Lin Changqing looked at Green Vine and gave a soft snort.
The latter looked at Lin Changqing with even greater contempt.
A human in the Mystic Immortal realm, talking so brazenly about killing the Golden Condor, a mid-stage Golden Immortal?
Hmph! With the human race's feeble abilities, they'd probably be utterly crushed even by opponents of the same level. Besides, the strongest humans were still nothing but ants.
"Ant, you're probably the strongest human alive, aren't you?"
"You're still making such outrageous claims. If not for the Daoist behind you, you'd already be dead!"
"Won't come out? Hmph! If you want to sit back and reap the rewards, go ahead and try!"
Green Vine snorted coldly, then transformed back into his thousand-zhang form. He churned up the swamp around him and lunged toward Lin Changqing and Ao Ying.
"I'll kill you two first and see if your friend makes a move!"
In an instant, a streak of green divine light shot out from within the countless waves of mud. The green serpent's tongue had transformed into a giant sword dozens of meters long, thrusting toward Lin Changqing and Ao Ying.
"Die!"
"Dragon Clan blood! I can still open this secret realm by devouring you!"
Green Vine roared. The green sword-light cleaved through layers of mud and shattered the countless sand dunes in the swamp, raising boundless clouds of dark-green poisonous mist that surged toward them.
"Roar!"
Lin Changqing and Ao Ying weren't about to sit back and await their deaths. They exchanged a glance, and Ao Ying abruptly transformed into a thousand-zhang Azure Dragon and roared.
Her dragon's roar scattered the surging waves. Countless clouds and mists billowed around them, and amid flashes of lightning and peals of thunder, the poisonous mist was blasted apart.
"Green Vine, I am the Dragon Princess of the East Sea. How dare you!"
"Hahaha! The Dragon Clan? A joke of the Primordial World! Would that old dragon Ao Guang dare leave the East Sea?"
"Hmph! For tens of millions of years, the Dragon Clan has ignored those of us with its bloodline. Now I belong to the Demon Clan. If I kill you, I can strengthen my bloodline and reach the Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm. Then I can live in the celestial court of the Nine Heavens!"
Green Vine roared again. The long sword arrived in an instant, shattering the countless clouds and bolts of lightning around Ao Ying.
Ao Ying roared again and swung down her dragon claw. A flash of dark light appeared, and she knocked the sword flying with a single swipe.
But the countless clouds of poison had already seeped in, drawing close to Ao Ying and corroding the scales and flesh of her dragon body with a sizzling hiss.
"Hmph! You're only a mid-stage Golden Immortal, yet you dare fight me? Die!"
Green Vine sneered. His body, even larger than the Azure Dragon's, bore down on Ao Ying. His darkly gleaming maw opened wide, revealing two clear fangs as he bit down at her.
At that moment, a streak of blood-red light flashed and vanished like an aurora. The two fangs, glowing with dark light, fell away in an instant and shattered into countless fragments.
"Roar!!!"
A furious roar burst from Green Vine. His thousand-zhang-long serpent body writhed and churned the countless pools of mud around him.
This was Green Vine's stronghold. Lin Changqing had already agreed with Ao Ying that she would attack first to kill the green serpent.
That way, Green Vine would underestimate him and wouldn't pay him any attention. No one would know that he was the powerful one who had killed the Golden Condor!
Behind him, blood-red wings beat, and the scenery rushed backward like streaks of light.
In his hand, a spear shimmered with divine markings, its boundless sharpness flowing along its length.
Blood-red scales covered his body, forming armor that shielded him.
Green Vine's fangs were no different from the Golden Condor's beak: incredibly hard and infused with Golden Immortal poison.
Yet before the Spear of Divine Demons, they were no better than clay chickens and pottery dogs. They shattered at the slightest touch.
Lin Changqing sneered.
You underestimated me? Called me a human ant?
Now you'd tried to bite this human ant to death and ended up breaking your own teeth. Let's see who's stronger!
"Damn it! You're that human! How is this possible? How can a human in the Mystic Immortal realm be this powerful?"
"Impossible! It's that spear. What kind of treasure is it? How can it be so powerful?"
"Human, you've angered me. You deserve to die! Die!"
Green Vine was now utterly enraged, his fangs shattered. His enormous maw opened wide, ready to devour anything in his path, and he snapped down at Lin Changqing.
A wave of bloodlust shot straight up to the heavens and enveloped Lin Changqing. Countless clouds of dark-green poison surged in like raging waves, completely surrounding him.
Sizzle...
The blood-red scales were constantly corroded, then rapidly restored. Lin Changqing furrowed his brow.
At this rate, he'd be expending his strength too quickly.
The blood-red scales needed a constant supply of power, and his Divine Demon Wings also consumed a great deal.
He had to end this quickly!
Just as well. Green Vine had lost his reason. He'd kill him first and think about it later!
"Roar!"
But the instant Green Vine lunged at Lin Changqing, as Lin Changqing thrust his spear, the thousand-zhang green serpent abruptly disappeared from sight.
Waves surged through the swamp. Green Vine had plunged straight into the mire.
"Hahaha! Human, you want to kill me?"
"You think you can?"
"Looks like the Golden Condor really did die at your hands, but I'm not that brainless fool. Just let my boundless poisonous mist devour you!"
Lin Changqing furrowed his brow. This really was troublesome.
A great demon who had plotted against the Golden Condor, driving the wolf to swallow the tiger and killing with a borrowed blade, certainly wouldn't lose his head like that birdbrain.
But Lin Changqing had made preparations too.
"Roar! What is this? Damn it, how can this be?!"
"Human, you actually laid a trap here!"
Before you continue