Dust Settles

The instant the Silver-Ringed Two-Headed Python opened its eyes, Shen Mo felt as if he had plunged into an ice cave!

Not good!

Retreat!

He shot backward, pushing Thunderbolt Quickstep to its utmost limit.

His blurred figure hurtled away like lightning.

But he was still too late.

When the demon serpent had feigned death to lure him closer, it had already gathered strength for a fatal strike!

How could it let him escape a hundred zhang away?

Bang!

It opened its cavernous maw, unleashing all the demon power within its body and turning it into one final Lingbo Water Bullet, which blasted toward Shen Mo.

"Bedrock Talisman!"

Facing the dying counterattack of a demon beast close to the Second Order, Shen Mo's heart turned cold. He immediately activated the talisman that could save his life.

Crack!

The talisman burned away, and the shadow of a mountain rose up to shield Shen Mo.

But this time, the talisman couldn't completely withstand the force of the Lingbo Water Bullet.

Cracks spread like a spiderweb, and under the crushing impact of the water bullet, it finally shattered into pieces.

Pfft!

Shen Mo was struck as if by lightning. He spat out a mouthful of blood, and his breath immediately grew weak.

Although the Bedrock Talisman had blocked most of the Lingbo Water Bullet's power, even what remained was more than someone at the eighth level of the Body Tempering Realm could easily endure.

"Good thing I was wearing an inner armor."

He touched the Heart-Protecting inner armor on his chest, feeling a little relieved.

The inner armor had already been damaged, and that blow had made it worse.

Still, it had taken a lot of the damage for him.

Otherwise, that strike would have done far more than just make him spit blood.

I'm not dead. Now it's your turn!

Suppressing the pain, he fixed a cold gaze on the Double-Headed Silver-Patterned Python and slowly raised his hand.

Two Separating Fire Talismans rose once more from his palm.

The beast had finally died.

Shen Mo used up all seven of his remaining Separating Fire Talismans.

Then he burned it for the time it took to finish another incense stick.

This time, the Double-Headed Silver-Patterned Python had truly breathed its last.

Rustle.

He drew his Green Edge Sword and cut an opening into each of its two heads.

Reaching into the brain matter, which was like a mass of rotten cotton, Shen Mo pulled out two smooth, translucent, pale-blue crystals.

"There really are demon cores."

Shen Mo looked at the two demon cores in his hands, his face brightening.

Demon cores were unique to demon beasts and served as the source of their power.

However, they usually formed inside the bodies of demon beasts only from the Second Order onward.

The Double-Headed Silver-Patterned Python's fighting strength lay on the boundary between the First and Second Orders.

Shen Mo hadn't known whether it had formed demon cores, but he'd decided to take a chance.

Now it seemed that this Double-Headed Silver-Patterned Python was closer to Second-Order strength than he'd imagined.

"These two demon cores should fetch at least ten Spirit Stones."

"And its gallbladder!"

He cut open the python's belly and removed its gallbladder, then put that into his Qiankun Pouch as well.

The gallbladders of serpent demon beasts were excellent ingredients for making pills, and their value was no less than that of demon cores.

After stripping the Double-Headed Silver-Patterned Python of everything valuable, he turned his gaze back to the Purple Sun Vermilion Fruit.

This was the greatest gain from his trip!

"Finally, it's mine!"

He plucked the Purple Sun Vermilion Fruit along with its branch and transplanted it into the Grafting Spirit Soil.

"Phew..."

The instant the unripe Purple Sun Vermilion Fruit was picked, the spiritual energy within it began to drain away rapidly.

Fortunately, once it had been grafted into the Spirit Soil, the process stopped.

"Success."

Seeing that the Purple Sun Vermilion Fruit hadn't withered just because it had been picked before ripening, he finally let out a quiet sigh of relief.

Only after solemnly putting the pot of Grafting Spirit Soil into his Qiankun Pouch did Shen Mo find the time to deal with his own sorry state.

Splish, splash!

Among the fruit trees in the vast Spirit Field, he found a well.

He planned to draw some water and wash himself thoroughly.

After his earlier fierce battle, blood, sweat, and even the Double-Headed Silver-Ringed Python's brain matter had soiled his once-spotless white robes.

He was covered in a foul stench.

He hadn't gathered qi yet, so he couldn't use the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to condense water vapor and wash himself. He had no choice but to rinse off with water.

After washing himself, he finally felt much better.

"Next, I'll kill all those little demon serpents too."

With the Double-Headed Silver-Patterned Python dealt with, the remaining low-level demon serpents were easy prey.

Shen Mo spent only half an hour sweeping through the place like a whirlwind, finding and killing every demon serpent that had been lurking in the Spirit Field's shadows, too afraid to come out.

"My footwork seems much quicker!"

While hunting the demon serpents, Shen Mo suddenly realized it.

"Could Thunderbolt Quickstep have advanced?"

As he wondered, he checked his information panel, scanning through the entries for confirmation.

[You successfully activated a Separating Fire Talisman. Your spiritual power greatly diminished.]

[You successfully activated a Separating Fire Talisman. Your spiritual power was completely exhausted.]

[You consumed seven Qi Recovery Pills. Their medicinal power quickly filled the gaps in your spiritual power, and your spiritual power became abundant once more.]

[In the midst of combat, you unexpectedly activated a special effect and gained 1 Destiny Point.]

[Facing the Double-Headed Silver-Ringed Python's fatal strike, you were greatly alarmed. As you frantically activated Thunderbolt Quickstep, you unexpectedly grasped the key to the force of a sudden thunderclap. Thunderbolt Quickstep experience +132.]

[Through training, your Thunderbolt Quickstep successfully advanced to a minor level of mastery, greatly increasing its effectiveness.]

After carefully reading through the entries, Shen Mo was overjoyed when he reached the last two.

"During that fierce battle, I didn't even notice that Thunderbolt Quickstep had advanced another level!"

These past few days, Shen Mo had diligently practiced his cultivation techniques, martial skills, and immortal arts.

He'd made great progress in both the Heaven Origin Technique and the Supreme Clarity Sword Technique, but Thunderbolt Quickstep alone had remained at the introductory stage.

He'd thought it would take at least several more months to cultivate this footwork to the next level.

He hadn't expected a life-or-death battle to bring him the chance to improve so rapidly.

"Now that Thunderbolt Quickstep has reached minor mastery, my body feels much lighter."

"When I use it with all my strength, I'm at least thirty percent faster than before. But I'm still not as swift as the lightning-haunted specter described in the manuals."

After putting it to the test, Shen Mo roughly estimated the benefits of his breakthrough and felt a surge of satisfaction.

Outside Spirit Field Valley, Zhao Family.

When Zhao Bing and the others saw Shen Mo walk out, they hurried to ask how things had gone.

"The great demon has been slain. As for the low-level demon serpents, I killed them all as well."

"From today onward, you may freely enter and leave your Zhao Family Spirit Field and cultivate in peace. You need no longer worry about demon beasts attacking you."

Shen Mo delivered the news to the Zhao Family members gathered there.

The crowd immediately erupted in cheers. Everyone from the Zhao Family was overcome with excitement.

"The immortal master has shown us a kindness so great that my Zhao Family has no way to repay it!"

Zhao Bing took a deep breath and bowed to him. "From this day on, my Zhao Family will erect a Longevity Stele for the immortal master to express our gratitude."