Battle Against the Two-Headed Snakes

Just then, rustling sounds drew closer.

Bai Liuli pushed aside the branches and spotted Xie Jun. "So this is where you..."

Then she saw Xiao Qinghe leaning against him, wrapped in Xie Jun's outer robe.

The exquisite beauty's expression stiffened slightly. "You two..."

Xie Jun narrowed his eyes. Rather than hide anything, he slipped an arm around Xiao Qinghe's shoulders and pulled him closer, looking at Bai Liuli with a hint of provocation.

Bai Liuli seemed about to speak, but ultimately said nothing. She left without a sound, as though she had never appeared.

Just then, the sleeping Xiao Qinghe suddenly heard the system sound a shrill alarm.

[High-rank demon creature rapidly approaching! High-rank demon creature rapidly approaching!

Host, evacuate immediately! Host, evacuate immediately!]

Before Xiao Qinghe could open his eyes, a piercing scream shattered the stillness of the night.

"Senior Sister Bai, save me! Aah-"

Countless dark shapes suddenly shot out of the dense forest, swift and vicious.

The campfire was knocked over, sending flames surging into the air and illuminating one hideous face after another.

The female disciples had no time to react before they were dragged into the forest.

Only their screams remained, echoing through the night.

It was utterly horrifying!

Xiao Qinghe and Xie Jun exchanged a glance, drew their swords, and leaped over. "What happened?"

Dark shapes swarmed in the dense forest, especially on the high branches of the towering trees, where thick black shadows coiled.

The female disciples dragged inside were already nowhere to be seen. Only scraps of bloodstained cloth drifted down, mixed with clumps of unidentifiable, bloody flesh.

The dead branches and rotting leaves on the ground were stained red, and the stench of blood filled the air.

The fate of those female disciples was all too easy to imagine.

Perhaps because Bai Yuqing had excessively restricted his freedom during the three years since his transmigration, almost never allowing him to set foot outside the Demon-Slaying Sect, Xiao Qinghe's understanding of the Demon Clan's bloody cruelty had remained confined to a few brief descriptions in the original novel.

Faced with such a brutal sight for the first time, he struggled to stomach it.

Mu Yingying's pretty face drained of color. She scrambled over to Xie Jun, too distraught to wonder why Xiao Qinghe had suddenly appeared, and cried out shrilly, "Senior Brother Xie, there are demon creatures! So many demon creatures!"

Before she finished speaking, the dense forest shook. A long black shape as thick as a person's waist burst through the trees and raced along the ground. In an instant, it coiled around Mu Yingying's legs and dragged her toward the forest!

It was too fast!

So fast that Mu Yingying only had time to scream.

"Aah-"

Xiao Qinghe reacted swiftly and grabbed her arm.

But the dark shape was so powerful that it began dragging him into the forest as well.

In a flash, Xie Jun leaped into the air and slashed down with a streak of sword light, severing the dark shape. It let out a piercing roar of rage toward the sky, then vanished into the depths of the forest.

The severed section writhed and twisted, a horrifying sight.

Only then did they see that it was a snake's tail. Its scales were bluish-black, and hooked barbs as sharp as blades grew from its tip. A thick, foul-smelling liquid coated its surface.

As the liquid dripped onto the ground, the grass hissed and instantly dissolved into a puddle of black water.

"W-what kind of demon creature is this..." Mu Yingying collapsed on the ground, trembling and close to fainting.

Xiao Qinghe's expression changed. "It's a Two-Headed Snake!"

No wonder the system had issued a high-danger warning. If all the demon creatures in the original novel were ranked S, A, B, C, D, and E, the Octopus Monster he had encountered before would only qualify as D-rank, while the Two-Headed Snake was an A-rank high-rank demon creature!

It had two heads, measured dozens of feet in length, possessed a powerful body, and carried deadly poison in its tail.

Two-Headed Snakes were cunning, treacherous, bloodthirsty, and cruel. They loved raw flesh, delighted in hunting and tormenting the Human Clan, and often lived in groups.

Like cockroaches, seeing one meant there was already a whole swarm!

They had stumbled into a snake nest!

The female disciples trembled, nearly scared out of their wits. "How could there be Two-Headed Snakes in the Nine Ridges and Eighteen Peaks?"

Xiao Qinghe had no answer, because Two-Headed Snakes were never supposed to appear in the Heroes' Conference instance!

If the sect leaders had known there were Two-Headed Snakes inside the barrier, how could they possibly have let their disciples enter? It was like sending lambs into a tiger's jaws-serving the snakes a free dinner!

"Evacuate immediately!" Xiao Qinghe shouted.

But it was already too late.

Several female disciples were so frightened that their legs went weak. They moved just a fraction too slowly, and ghastly, deathly pale faces suddenly emerged from the forest. Not one had a human body; below their necks were thick snake bodies. They shot toward the female disciples like lightning and coiled around them.

They opened their bloody maws, baring razor-sharp fangs, and bit down, tearing away chunks of flesh.

Blood sprayed everywhere.

Xiao Qinghe was about to rush forward to save them when Xie Jun forcibly held him back and shouted, "Stab its vital point below the head!"

The female disciple fought in a frenzy, reversing her sword and thrusting with all her strength.

The snake's head let out a piercing shriek. Just when it seemed she would escape, its other head revealed a vicious gleam in its eyes. It suddenly opened its bloody maw, bit off half her body, and swallowed it.

It even let out a satisfied belch!

The gruesome sight terrified everyone. Mu Yingying clung to Xie Jun and refused to let go. "Senior Brother Xie, protect me! I don't want to die, sob..."

How could she still be sobbing at a time like this!

Xie Jun knocked her unconscious with a chop to the neck and promptly tossed her to Bai Liuli. "She's from your Heartless Valley. Carry her yourselves!"

He showed not the slightest tenderness toward a beauty.

But the situation was dire. This was no time for romance or tender consideration.

Suddenly, fierce winds rose, and the sky darkened!

Dozens of enormous black shapes shot out of the depths of the forest. There were so many that they nearly blotted out the sky and moon. In an instant, they slithered toward the group like arrows loosed from a bow.

So fast!

Far too fast!

"Aah!"

"Save me! I don't want to die!"

In the space of a breath, several female disciples were caught in the snakes' coils before they could even draw their swords. Several snake heads immediately swarmed over them.

Bloody maws tore through flesh and crushed bone.

The scene was more horrifying than anything they had ever witnessed.

When the snakes pulled apart again, one young woman had been gnawed down to nothing but stark white bones.

Xiao Qinghe's face went deathly pale. The next second, his gaze suddenly met the snake's!

The Two-Headed Snake let out a bizarre, excited cry, swung its body, and charged straight at Xiao Qinghe!

"Fuck!"

Xiao Qinghe's scalp prickled. He drew the Sharp Sword, but a figure suddenly stepped in front of him.

Holding his spirit sword before him, Xie Jun swiftly summoned a talisman, channeled qi into his blade, and shouted, "Eighteen Swords of Shocking Swan, unleash!"

In an instant, sword qi surged with overwhelming force, raging like a gale and sending sand and stones flying. Amid dazzling radiance, the blade transformed into eighteen streaks of light that shot toward the Two-Headed Snakes.

The technique was breathtakingly magnificent.

Its power was terrifying. Wherever it passed, the Two-Headed Snakes' flesh and blood flew, accompanied by piercing shrieks.

Xiao Qinghe wished he could shower the expert with ten thousand extravagant compliments on the spot.

The Eighteen Swords of Shocking Swan was one of Master's exclusive techniques. Its power was boundless, killing in a single strike.

Master and Xie Jun couldn't stand each other, so Master would never have taught him. The only explanation was that Xie Jun had seen Master use it during his earlier obsessive challenges and learned it by watching.

Self-taught.

A genius!

But this was no time to sing his praises.

Realizing they were outmatched, the Two-Headed Snakes' eyes flashed coldly. They swung their tails, swiftly changed direction, and coiled toward the others who had become isolated.

How could a group of female disciples possibly stand against more than a dozen savage, bloodthirsty Two-Headed Snakes?

For a time, screams rose one after another.

Beneath the vast sky lay a living hell.