Taking Disciples, Ten-Thousandfold Returns: Starting from Battle Through the Heavens — Section 7

"Snow Demon Sky Ape. Just as I thought!"

After hearing Zi Yan's words, Qin Hao silently thought that it was indeed as he had expected. It was clearly the demonic ape from the original story.

"A Snow Demon Sky Ape... Let's do it!"

Qin Hao spoke directly. If this had been before, he would have stayed as far away as possible. A Magic Beast of this level was simply not something he could handle. But now, his strength was no longer what it used to be.

Besides, the Earth Core Body-Tempering Milk was immensely tempting to both Zi Yan and himself, so naturally, he would not let this opportunity pass.

"Let's go!"

Seeing Qin Hao agree, Zi Yan wasted no words and immediately led him toward the Snow Demon Sky Ape's lair.

The Snow Demon Sky Ape's lair was not far from the Azure Shadow Eagle's territory. At their speed, it took them only about half an hour to reach the valley where its lair was located.

The moment Zi Yan arrived in the valley, she wasted no time and fully unleashed her aura.

"Roar, roar, roar..."

Sure enough, the instant Zi Yan's aura erupted, a deep roar came from the heart of the valley. The ground shook and the mountains trembled, and soon, a gigantic ape covered in snow-white fur and nearly ten meters tall appeared before them.

It was indeed a Snow Demon Sky Ape. At that moment, it stared fixedly at Zi Yan, its eyes filled with savage fury as though they contained towering rage.

"Damn it, it's you again, you little pest!"

A deep voice came from the Snow Demon Sky Ape's mouth, brimming with anger. From its reaction, it was clear that Zi Yan had not come to provoke it for the first time.

Because the Snow Demon Sky Ape possessed a trace of ancient Magic Beast bloodline, it could speak human language despite being only a fifth-tier Magic Beast. This was an ability most fifth-tier Magic Beasts did not possess.

"You stupid gorilla, today I'll show you why flowers are so red!"

Zi Yan planted her hands on her hips and spoke to the Snow Demon Sky Ape with an arrogant expression.

"Roar... Die!"

The Snow Demon Sky Ape had violent blood in its body and was naturally ferocious and savage. It roared in fury almost instantly and charged toward them.

"Attack!"

Zi Yan immediately shouted and rushed toward the Snow Demon Sky Ape.

Qin Hao did not hesitate either. His body shot forward as he met the Snow Demon Sky Ape head-on.

"You two damned insects, die!"

The Snow Demon Sky Ape swung its massive palm and viciously slapped down at Qin Hao and Zi Yan.

Spatial ripples surged around Zi Yan. Her body flickered, and she seemed to teleport out of the attack's path. Then, her delicate little fist tore through the air with a sharp whistle as it smashed fiercely toward the Snow Demon Sky Ape.

"Crimson Sun Palm!"

Qin Hao was entirely different. He neither dodged nor evaded the Snow Demon Sky Ape's attack. The battle qi within him surged madly as he unleashed the high-grade Xuan-tier battle skill, Crimson Sun Palm. A crimson-gold palm condensed from battle qi directly met the Snow Demon Sky Ape's strike.

"Bang!"

With a dull crash, the two palms collided. Qin Hao did not move an inch, while the Snow Demon Sky Ape staggered and was forcibly knocked back several steps.

"Bang! Bang! Bang..."

At the same time, Zi Yan's attacks followed closely behind. Her fists fell like raindrops, smashing viciously into the Snow Demon Sky Ape's body.

Already staggering unsteadily, the Snow Demon Sky Ape could no longer hold on beneath Zi Yan's frenzied barrage. Its massive body crashed to the ground.

"Nicely done!"

Zi Yan's eyes lit up at the sight.

She had already been greatly surprised when she saw Qin Hao fight the Azure Shadow Eagle in close combat. Now that even the Snow Demon Sky Ape had suffered at Qin Hao's hands, it was obvious that his close-combat strength far exceeded her expectations.

Zi Yan immediately rushed forward to kick it while it was down. Qin Hao followed close behind, unleashing attack after attack upon the Snow Demon Sky Ape.

Although the Snow Demon Sky Ape was far stronger than an ordinary Dou King,

as a creature with ancient Magic Beast bloodline, it had entered adulthood. Even Zi Yan had to avoid confronting it head-on in terms of pure strength.

After all, although Zi Yan's bloodline was noble, according to the growth cycle of Magic Beasts, she was at most in her juvenile stage and far from adulthood. Furthermore, her bloodline had not completely awakened, so it was only natural that she could not match the Snow Demon Sky Ape in strength.

Unfortunately, this time, the Snow Demon Sky Ape had encountered a monster like Qin Hao.

After cultivating the Chaotic Heaven-Devouring Art, Qin Hao's strength had clearly undergone an earth-shaking transformation.

Perhaps in terms of pure physical strength, Qin Hao, who was only a one-star Dou King, was still no match for the adult Snow Demon Sky Ape.

But when battle skills were added to the equation, things became entirely different. They completely made up for the gap in physical strength.

A high-grade Xuan-tier battle skill empowered by his new battle qi erupted with power even stronger than an ordinary low-grade Di-tier battle skill.

Together, the two produced an effect far greater than one plus one.

Thus, after only a single exchange, the Snow Demon Sky Ape had fallen into a disadvantage.

Naturally, Qin Hao and Zi Yan would not miss this chance to beat a fallen enemy. They pressed their advantage relentlessly, giving it no chance to catch its breath.

"Roar!"

Faced with Qin Hao and Zi Yan's savage attacks, the Snow Demon Sky Ape entered a berserk state almost instantly. Its snow-white fur gradually turned crimson, and its aura surged wildly.

Its aura, originally only around that of a three-star Dou King, instantly soared to a level comparable to a five-star Dou King. Coupled with its Magic Beast body, even ordinary high-level Dou Kings would not dare rashly touch a berserk Snow Demon Sky Ape.

"Shut up!"

Qin Hao's expression did not change in the slightest when facing the berserk Snow Demon Sky Ape, but the force in his hands increased unconsciously.

Whenever the Snow Demon Sky Ape tried to stand, Qin Hao activated Crimson Sun Palm and struck down with all his strength, forcing it flat onto the ground again.

He unleashed battle skill after battle in rapid succession, the battle qi within him seemingly endless.

This was clearly another major benefit of cultivating the Chaotic Heaven-Devouring Art.

Not only was the quality of his battle qi high, but its quantity was also extremely abundant—at least ten times that of cultivators at the same level. His endurance in battle was terrifying.

Unless he used high-level battle skills, he hardly needed to worry about exhausting his battle qi.

At the very least, sustaining repeated bursts of a high-grade Xuan-tier battle skill posed no problem at all.

The Snow Demon Sky Ape's fury under this nearly humiliating assault was easy to imagine.

Unfortunately, no matter how it struggled, it was utterly futile. Moreover, aside from Qin Hao, Zi Yan's attacks might not have been as powerful as his,

but her angles of attack were extremely tricky. Every strike targeted the Snow Demon Sky Ape's vital spots, and her destructive power was no less than Qin Hao's.

Still, the Snow Demon Sky Ape's durability was indeed formidable. At the very least, it was far tougher than the Azure Shadow Eagle they had killed earlier.

It endured dozens of Qin Hao's battle skill attacks head-on.

"Whimper..."

At that moment, the Snow Demon Sky Ape let out a whimper, and its aura deflated like a punctured balloon.

Its blood-red fur turned white once more. Clearly, its berserk state had reached its limit.

After leaving its berserk state, the Snow Demon Sky Ape fell into extreme weakness and no longer had the slightest ability to resist.

Both its strength and defense plummeted off a cliff.

After taking several more attacks from Qin Hao and Zi Yan, its body finally went limp on the ground, motionless. Its life force drained away at an incredibly terrifying speed. Clearly, it would not survive.

"Whew, it's finally dealt with. This guy was thick-skinned and tough as hell!"

After sensing that the Snow Demon Sky Ape had lost its life force, Qin Hao and Zi Yan stopped attacking at the same time. Zi Yan could not help speaking, clearly exhausted.

"Alright, let's go. It's time to collect our spoils."

Qin Hao said.

"Let's go!"

Reminded by Qin Hao, Zi Yan stopped wasting words and headed straight into the depths of the valley. Soon, a huge cave appeared before them.

It was the Snow Demon Sky Ape's lair. After Qin Hao and Zi Yan searched the cave, they found nothing valuable apart from several scattered Magic Cores. Compared with the Azure Shadow Eagle's lair, it was clearly much poorer.

After thoroughly searching the cave, Qin Hao and Zi Yan arrived before a stone wall. Zi Yan immediately threw a punch, blasting the wall apart and revealing a passage.

The moment the passage appeared, a refreshing fragrance instantly filled the air.

"That's right, this is the scent! Trying to hide it from me is a joke!"

Zi Yan sneered. Clearly, the passage had been sealed by the Snow Demon Sky Ape in order to conceal the treasure within.

Unfortunately, such concealment was as good as nothing before Zi Yan, who possessed a treasure-seeking talent.

Likewise, it could not hide from Qin Hao either. His soul realm had already reached the Spirit Realm, and his soul detection and perception far surpassed those of ordinary people.

The two immediately stepped into the passage. It sloped downward, and after walking for more than ten minutes, they finally reached its end.

The moment they emerged from the passage, Qin Hao and Zi Yan were stunned by the sight before them.

Before them was a vast underground karst cavern of terrifying size, filled with endless stretches of milky-white stalactites.

A pale white glow radiated from the stalactites, illuminating the underground cavern.

As far as the eye could see, enormous stalactites hung throughout the cave. From time to time, drops of white liquid fell from them, eventually gathering in a half-meter-wide depression at the center of the cavern.

Above the depression hung a giant stalactite over a hundred meters long and as thick as several people embracing it together. Amid this forest of stalactites, it resembled a pillar holding up the heavens.

This stalactite was clearly the largest in the entire stalactite forest, like the king among them.

"Ah, wonderful! It really is the legendary Earth Core Body-Tempering Milk, and there's so much of it! Now it's all ours!"

Looking at the milky-white liquid in the depression beneath the giant stalactite, Zi Yan cried out in surprise and let out excited cheers. She was clearly thrilled beyond measure.

"Hehe, don't be so hasty. Stay calm. This is only diluted inferior product."

Qin Hao said with a smile. Having read the original story, he naturally knew that this was not the true Earth Core Body-Tempering Milk.

In fact, even if he had not read the original story, with his current soul realm, he could clearly sense where the true Earth Core Body-Tempering Milk was located.

"Hmm?"

Not only Qin Hao—even Zi Yan, after being reminded by him, quickly calmed down. Purple light flashed around her body, and her gaze finally landed on the giant stalactite. Clearly, she had also discovered where the true treasure lay.

Qin Hao did not hesitate. He took out a jade shard and lightly cut a slit into the stalactite.

Very quickly, Qin Hao discovered a mass of emerald-colored, crystal-clear viscous liquid floating within the stalactite, like a flawless piece of jade hidden inside it.

This was clearly the true Earth Core Body-Tempering Milk. Although there was only a single mass of it, the aura it gave off was more than a hundred times richer than the liquid in the depression below.