Boom!
Rumble...
The enormous roars echoed without end as Chen Xuan sprinted at full speed. Perhaps it was the Lotus Flower's effect, but he felt a warm current spread from his hands through his limbs and bones.
As that warm current spread, the steps beneath his feet seemed to grow several degrees faster.
As for the basket on his back, he had long since thrown it away.
"Run seven hundred steps, turn left, then turn right after two hundred steps."
Information from the Conceptual Ability appeared before his eyes. In the blink of an eye, he had covered five or six hundred meters.
The massive black shadow behind him was drawing ever closer. At this moment, Chen Xuan could even smell the stench of blood.
But he did not dare look back.
He sped up even further.
The streams of warmth within the Lotus Flower in his hand seemed to grow more abundant, making him even faster.
Fortunately, he had picked the Lotus Flower quickly enough. By the time the Giant Python noticed, he had already run more than a hundred meters away.
Moreover, the trees around the Cold Pool were taller and sturdier. It was not so easy for the Giant Python to smash through them, and its movements were hindered, preventing it from catching him for now.
However, seven hundred steps seemed to be the limit.
Chen Xuan could even feel a fierce wind at his back.
"Six hundred seventy-five!"
"Six hundred seventy-six!"
"Six hundred ninety-nine!"
"Seven hundred!"
He counted silently. The instant he reached seven hundred steps, Chen Xuan twisted sideways and rolled straight to the left.
And at the very moment he rolled aside, an enormous black shadow swept past the spot where he had just been.
Even merely sensing that massive shadow made Chen Xuan's heart seize up. Yet he had no time to care about anything else. He scrambled to his feet and continued sprinting madly to the left.
A moment later.
Boom!
A huge, muffled crash came from the place where he had been before.
Ahead of where Chen Xuan had turned left stood a cliff roughly ten meters high. Hidden by grass and trees, it had been impossible to spot, and the Giant Python had plunged straight down.
Yet such a tremendous impact only left the Giant Python somewhat dizzy. There was not even a scratch on its enormous body.
It shook its massive head, and the fury in its snake eyes deepened.
Its huge body once again chased after Chen Xuan.
By then, bolstered by the warm current, Chen Xuan had already raced another hundred or so steps away.
"One hundred twenty-three steps!"
"One hundred twenty-four steps!"
"One hundred."
His legs moved frantically while he continued counting in his mind.
Finally, just as another huge commotion erupted behind him, Chen Xuan counted to two hundred steps.
A thicket of shrubs appeared ahead.
Without the slightest hesitation or pause, Chen Xuan wrapped the Lotus Flower in his clothes, then leaped toward the thicket.
Crash!
The shrubs collapsed instantly beneath his weight, and Chen Xuan's entire body sank down with them.
Splash!
As he fell, Chen Xuan landed in something soft after only a moment, while a powerful foul stench engulfed his nose.
"Urgh!"
Nausea surged up at once, and Chen Xuan hurriedly covered his mouth.
Just as he completed that motion.
Outside.
Boom!
A tree as thick as a bowl was violently knocked over, and the Giant Python finally rushed to this spot.
However, when it flicked out its tongue, confusion appeared in its eyes. That damned human's scent had completely vanished.
Its movements immediately halted.
And at the instant it stopped.
Roar!
A tremendous beastly roar rang out from the forest. A foul wind rushed head-on, accompanied by an even denser stench of blood and rot.
It was even stronger than the Giant Python's.
"Hiss!"
The Giant Python flicked its tongue and instantly turned its gaze toward where the foul wind had come from. When it saw that enormous white figure, gravity appeared in its eyes as well.
Roar!
Another thunderous roar rose up. In the distance stood an incomparably massive Suspended-Eye White Tiger.
Its eyes were equally scarlet as it glared furiously at the Giant Python.
This was its territory. That great snake had actually dared to trespass without permission, and it was enraged.
"Hiss, hiss!"
It flicked its tongue violently, seemingly sending some sort of signal.
But the Striped-Eyed White Tiger paid it no attention whatsoever.
Roar!
With another beastly roar, the enormous Striped-Eyed White Tiger pounced directly at the Giant Python.
The Giant Python swung its tail.
It too could not help growing enraged, and it directly met the Striped-Eyed White Tiger's attack.
Boom!
Rumble...
Massive explosions continually burst through the air above.
Chen Xuan could only feel the ground around him trembling without end.
Even though he had no idea what was happening outside, he could still sense the terror that made one's heart tremble.
He opened his clothes and saw that the Lotus Flower had not been damaged, making him breathe a sigh of relief.
He carefully wrapped it up again.
At the same time, he held his breath and endured the foul stench with difficulty.
He did not know how long it had been, nor how long it would last.
Only when Chen Xuan realized that he was gradually becoming accustomed to the stench did the tremendous commotion outside slowly die down.
But Chen Xuan still did not dare move.
Though he did not know exactly how long three hours were.
He knew when he had come out and when night would fall. By his estimate, three hours would most likely be when darkness arrived.
So he remained in the pit until night gradually descended.
Only after the outside had become completely quiet did he begin climbing upward.
Fortunately, although it was a pit, it was not very deep, so Chen Xuan did not have much difficulty climbing out.
After roughly a quarter of an hour, Chen Xuan crawled out, reeking from head to toe.
By then, the sky had already begun to darken.
Yet even by the moonlight filtering through the towering trees, he could clearly see the devastation all around him.
One huge tree after another was battered full of pits and gouges, while many had been snapped cleanly in half.
The entire area had practically been cleared into an enormous open space. Fresh red blood still stained the ground.
Clearly, a terrifying battle had erupted here earlier.
Chen Xuan had seen the Giant Python's enormous size for himself. What kind of terror could fight something like that? He did not even need to think to know.
Suppressing the turmoil in his heart, Chen Xuan did not dare linger any longer. Following the Conceptual Ability's instructions, he hurriedly left.
Whether it was because of the foul stench on his body or some other reason, Chen Xuan's journey was surprisingly smooth. He did not encounter a single wild beast.
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