Slaying the Datura Snake

The Datura Snake rolled about for a while before gradually coming to a stop.

One of its eyes had been blinded by flying stones, and a large patch of scales on its head had shattered. Blood continued to drip from its wounds.

Tang San leaned against a tree, his chest heaving violently.

He was in no better condition himself.

His right arm had been numbed by the snake's tail, and the clothes across his chest were stained red with blood.

Yet as he watched the Datura Snake lying on the ground, Tang San could not suppress the excitement in his heart.

He had succeeded. With his own strength, he had defeated a powerful soul beast.

As long as he delivered the final blow, he would obtain his first soul ring since arriving in this world.

Once the Mysterious Heaven Skill broke through, he would make everyone who had looked down on him regret it.

Tang San forced himself upright. His right hand turned jade-white once more as he slowly approached the Datura Snake, step by step.

As Xiao Wu watched, her brows twitched slightly. Her perception of a soul beast's condition was far sharper than Tang San's.

Although the Datura Snake's aura had become extremely weak, its body coiled on the ground remained taut, and its tail was gradually drawing inward. It had not yet lost its ability to fight back.

Jiangmo Douluo naturally saw it as well.

"Your Highness, that Datura Snake is playing dead."

"I know."

The amusement in Qian Renyuan's eyes grew more obvious.

He had long noticed that the Datura Snake was gathering strength, yet he had no intention of warning Tang San.

When prey believed it had gained everything and walked defenselessly toward the final step, that was the sort of spectacle that was truly entertaining.

"Don't make a sound."

Qian Renyuan lowered his voice and looked at Tang San with anticipation.

"Let him be happy a little longer."

Tang San had no idea that death was drawing ever closer.

He walked up to the Datura Snake, raised his right hand, and prepared to smash its wounded head completely.

"It's over."

Excitement flashed through Tang San's eyes as his palm came crashing down.

At that moment, the motionless Datura Snake abruptly opened its one remaining eye.

Its coiled body shot outward with a bang, faster than any of its previous attacks.

Tang San's pupils shrank sharply.

He wanted to dodge, but all the injuries he had accumulated erupted at once. The agonizing pain in his chest slowed him by half a beat.

The foul-smelling snake mouth was already before him.

Two venom-coated fangs rapidly enlarged in Tang San's suddenly constricted pupils.

It's over!

The stench of death rushed toward him. Tang San could even smell the pungent, fishy odor emanating from the venom.

Just as the fangs were about to pierce his throat, a bolt of lightning suddenly shot out from the woods nearby.

Boom!

The lightning struck the Datura Snake squarely beneath the jaw.

The Datura Snake's enormous body was blasted sideways, snapping two trees in succession before finally crashing heavily to the ground.

Tang San was also thrown over by the bursting shockwave, rolling several times across the ground in a wretched state.

Ignoring the pain in his body, he hurriedly looked toward where the lightning had come from.

A familiar figure emerged from behind the trees.

"Qian Renyuan!"

Tang San stared fixedly at the newcomer. His eyes held both shock and an indescribable humiliation.

Perhaps Qian Renyuan had watched the entire life-or-death battle between him and the Datura Snake.

The thought that his miserable state had been treated as entertainment by the other party made the fury in Tang San's chest surge at once.

Qian Renyuan paid no attention to his gaze.

He flexed the wrist that had just unleashed the lightning, excitement still lingering in his eyes.

Although that strike had not directly killed the Datura Snake, it gave him a clearer understanding of the power within his body.

Not bad. At the very least, this soul beast of around four hundred years was not qualified to endure much more.

Xiao Wu walked out of the woods and stood slightly behind Qian Renyuan.

Jiangmo Douluo gripped his Coiling Dragon Staff, his gaze locked on the Datura Snake in the distance.

When Tang San saw them, how could he not understand what was happening?

"You've been following me the whole time?"

Qian Renyuan looked at him, the smile on his face not fading in the slightest.

"What else?"

"Did you think you could really run around here as you pleased without my permission?"

Tang San opened his mouth, but could not find any words to refute him.

The feeling of always being under someone else's control made Tang San feel especially miserable.

"Why didn't you warn me just now?"

Tang San could not help asking.

Hearing this, Qian Renyuan seemed to have heard something amusing and laughed outright.

"Why should I warn you?"

"You said yourself that you could hunt soul beasts. Of course I had to see just how capable you really were."

Qian Renyuan walked up to Tang San and lowered his eyes to glance at the blood on his body.

"Unfortunately, you fell just short."

In the distance, the Datura Snake moved again.

It swayed as it raised its head. Its one remaining eye stared fixedly at Qian Renyuan, and there was now a trace of fear in its gaze.

That bolt of lightning had made it feel the threat of death. Its beastly instincts told it that this child, who did not appear very old, was far more dangerous than Tang San.

Rather than pouncing again, the Datura Snake twisted its body and tried to flee deeper into the woods.

"Trying to run?"

The smile on Qian Renyuan's face darkened.

He had only just begun to take an interest in this power, yet this snake wanted to escape.

"I'm not done playing yet. Who gave you permission to leave?"

The Datura Snake seemed to understand his voice and fled even faster.

Qian Renyuan's figure flickered where he stood, instantly crossing more than ten meters to block the Datura Snake's path.

The Datura Snake stopped abruptly, its enormous body swiftly coiling up.

With its retreat cut off, the fear in its eyes was quickly replaced by ferocity. It opened its jaws and lunged at Qian Renyuan.

Facing the snake mouth biting toward him, Qian Renyuan showed no nervousness. Instead, his eyes held a trace of eagerness.

The Datura Snake's fangs drew closer and closer.

Tang San lay on the ground, staring intently at the scene. He had just been defeated by this very move, and he wanted to see how Qian Renyuan would deal with it.

Just as the snake's jaws were about to close, Qian Renyuan suddenly shifted to the side, brushing precisely between the two venomous fangs.

The Datura Snake bit down on empty air.

Qian Renyuan raised his hand with the motion and struck the shattered scales atop its head with his palm.

Bang!

The Datura Snake's head sank, smashing directly into the dirt.

Tang San's eyelid twitched hard. He had exhausted all his strength just to shatter those scales, yet Qian Renyuan had effortlessly torn the wound completely open with a single palm strike.

The gap between them was simply too great.

The Datura Snake struggled wildly, its thick tail sweeping toward him with a piercing whistle.

Qian Renyuan shifted his footing and swept over the snake's tail. As he landed, he stepped directly onto the Datura Snake's vital point.

Boom!

The Datura Snake's body slammed viciously into the ground. No matter how it struggled, it could not lift itself up.

Lightning spread from beneath Qian Renyuan's foot, burrowing into the Datura Snake's body through its shattered scales.

Crackle, crackle. The Datura Snake's body abruptly stiffened, and the smell of scorched flesh drifted through the air.

"That's all?"

Qian Renyuan pressed down with his foot again.

Crack. With a sharp sound of breaking bones, the enormous body went limp.

A yellow soul ring slowly rose from the corpse.