Poisonous Snake

"Be careful, watch your step. The guiding insects only lead us the shortest way, not the safest. You all must be cautious."

As the group followed the fireflies deeper into the jungle, Perkin couldn't stop muttering.

Although Perkin's voice wasn't loud, it carried quite far in the quiet of the late night.

The direction they were heading was the opposite of where Mr. York had gone to find food. They had been walking for nearly an hour and hadn't seen any sign of Mr. York.

Meanwhile, Liu Zhi was getting disoriented by their route. He had a feeling they had strayed far from their objective.

Several times, Liu Zhi considered giving up the pursuit. However, their previous attitude towards him had ignited a stubbornness in his heart. He wouldn't feel satisfied until he saw them all dead.

It was this thought that kept Liu Zhi trailing behind them.

Soon, however, Liu Zhi found an opportunity. He smelled the slick, fishy odor of a giant snake in the air.

"That's the fourth one. What's going on with this jungle? This place shouldn't be able to support so many giant snakes."

Liu Zhi mumbled to himself, abandoning his pursuit of Perkin and the others, and stealthily moved towards the direction of the snake's scent.

Before long, Liu Zhi spotted the giant snake slithering down from a tree in the distance.

This giant snake was smaller than the previous ones he had seen, but Liu Zhi didn't dare underestimate it. This one was different from the others; it had a triangular head.

"How is this possible? Poisonous snakes can grow this big? Is something wrong?"

Liu Zhi looked at his discovery with disbelief. Compared to the giant snakes that devoured others, the one before him was more dangerous. Who knew how long its venom had been stored, or what mutations it had undergone?

Liu Zhi cautiously retreated from the snake's vicinity. After only a few steps, the giant snake seemed to sense his presence and began to slither towards him.

Liu Zhi noticed the situation and checked himself. He found that the various herbs he had prepared to mask his scent were still effective and hadn't expired. Why was the giant snake coming his way?

With no time to think, Liu Zhi had no choice but to quickly move towards Perkin's group. As he moved, he looked for the downwind side of Perkin's location, hoping to use their scent to lure away the giant snake that had discovered him.

Liu Zhi didn't know if his plan would succeed. He had already decided that if the snake continued to target him even at the downwind side, he would abandon this mission and leave the jungle to find the Golden City. Whoever wanted to get involved in this mess could do so; he certainly wasn't planning on leaving his life here.

Fortunately, after smelling the scent of the others, the poisonous snake changed its target. It let go of Liu Zhi, whom it hadn't found yet, and headed towards Perkin's group.

Watching the giant snake with black and white patterns slither past the tree he was hiding under, Liu Zhi's heart pounded.

He remained motionless on the tree. He knew that if he moved even slightly, he would most likely face the deadly gaze of the poisonous snake.

So, he stayed crouched, observing Perkin's group only with his peripheral vision.

Dawn was approaching, and the fireflies were slowly stopping. Perkin hadn't put them in a jar; he let them die.

"We've been traveling all night. Let's rest for a bit."

As the light of the last firefly extinguished, Perkin also stopped. "Can someone check the trees? See if there's a waterfall nearby."

Swordsman, who had already sat down on a rock, stood up proactively. "I'll go take a look. You guys be careful."

After speaking, Swordsman looked around, chose a tall-looking tree, and climbed five or six meters up in a few steps.

Then, Swordsman hung onto a branch, about to climb higher, when he saw a pair of eyes, the size of headlights, staring at him from within the leaves.

Swordsman's hair stood on end. Without thinking, he let go and fell downwards.

In mid-air, Swordsman drew the Longsword from his back, preparing to block any attack from above. He had seen enough of the giant snakes' attacks recently; they always bit directly. If he could injure the snake immediately, he might escape.

However, the biting attack from above didn't come. The giant snake that emerged from the leaves opened its mouth, but instead of biting down, it spat out a stream of transparent liquid.

Unable to turn in mid-air, Swordsman was directly sprayed by the liquid.

He cried out in mid-air, his body rapidly turning black and swelling. By the time he hit the ground, he had already lost his life.

The three people below the tree screamed upon seeing this. Female Knife Thrower raised her hand and threw two knives at the poisonous snake above, then turned and ran back the way they came.

Perkin and Lloyd couldn't bother with anything else. They didn't even grab their backpacks, which they had just put down, and ran in another direction.

After being attacked by Female Knife Thrower, the giant snake opened its mouth and bit in the direction Female Knife Thrower had fled. However, Female Knife Thrower was faster and quickly outran the snake.

The giant snake, being vengeful, saw Female Knife Thrower escape and slid down from the tree, chasing after her.

Liu Zhi, watching from the tree, saw Female Knife Thrower run past his tree and then watched the giant snake chase after her before he dared to climb down.

After confirming he had left no scent or clues, he cautiously approached the spot where Perkin's group had been resting.

By now, Swordsman's corpse had turned completely black. The Longsword he tightly gripped had lost all its metallic sheen.

Liu Zhi thought for a moment, tore off a corner of his clothes, and used a branch to move the Longsword out of the venom. He then tightly wrapped the cloth strip around the sword's hilt.

After picking up the Longsword again, Liu Zhi's attention turned to the backpacks left behind by Perkin's group.

Lloyd hadn't carried his bag when he fled. He hadn't taken any luggage with him. However, Perkin had kept his important belongings close. His bag was the key to this journey.

Seeing that the bag was left here, Liu Zhi naturally wouldn't let it go. He picked up the bag and headed in another direction. As for whether Perkin and the others would chase after him to snatch the bag back, Liu Zhi could only say, "I'm not afraid."

Not long after Liu Zhi left, Perkin and Lloyd crept back.

Seeing the scene before them, Perkin couldn't help but exclaim, "Where's my bag?"