Black Water Mysterious Snake

Realizing she had gone limp in Jia Lie Jun's arms, Ning Yuyao's pretty face flushed red. She hurriedly pushed him away and turned her head aside, not daring to look at him, though her beautiful eyes still stole glances at him from time to time. A hero saving a beauty might have been an old cliché, but that did not stop it from moving a young girl's heart—especially when the hero was an incomparably handsome youth.

"You stinking brat, you must be tired of living, daring to meddle in my Lu Family's affairs." Lu Wushuang had been watching Ning Yuyao about to be swallowed by the Black Water Mysterious Snake. As long as Ning Yuyao died, annexing the Ning Family would have been as easy as turning over his hand. He had never expected some meddler to appear halfway and forcibly ruin his plans. Lu Wushuang stared at Jia Lie Jun with venom in his eyes, like a beast ready to devour someone, and paired with his effeminate face, it made people shudder.

"Master Li, show yourself." Lu Wushuang clapped his hands, and a figure slowly walked out from the depths of the dense forest. The man wore a black robe, his entire body wrapped beneath it, with only a pair of bony, withered arms exposed. The Black Water Mysterious Snake affectionately rubbed its head against Master Li. Master Li stroked the Black Water Mysterious Snake, and the black snake narrowed its eyes, looking as if it were enjoying it immensely.

"A spiritual pet." Ning Yuyao's pupils shrank, and her expression changed slightly. Earlier, she had thought the Black Water Mysterious Snake had simply attacked her on its own. She had not expected it to actually have an owner. In that case, once they fought the Lu Family, their side had no advantage at all. So-called spiritual pets were demonic beasts on which rune masters branded a spiritual imprint in their minds while they were still young, thereby controlling them. However, raising a spiritual pet required an enormous investment of effort. Not only did it take tremendous energy to tame one, but many heavenly treasures also had to be poured in to help the demonic beast grow. Spiritual pets fought alongside their masters and grew alongside them, and a very deep bond had long since formed between them. Moreover, demonic beasts that became spiritual pets also possessed high intelligence.

"Ning Yuyao, I advise you to obediently hand over all of the Ning Family's medicine shops and become my woman. Perhaps I'll be merciful and spare you. Otherwise, don't blame me for being rude." Lu Wushuang licked his lips, his lecherous eyes roaming up and down Ning Yuyao's body.

"Lu Wushuang, I advise you to stop daydreaming. Thinking you can annex my Ning Family is nothing but wishful thinking. My Ning Family would rather shatter like jade than remain whole like common tile." Ning Yuyao's willow brows shot up, her pretty face flushed crimson. She then turned to Master Li and said respectfully, "As long as Master Li helps my Ning Family destroy Lu Wushuang, my Ning Family will surely thank you with a generous gift afterward."

Hearing this, Jia Lie Jun glanced at Ning Yuyao in surprise. He had not expected Ning Yuyao to be rather capable. Even at a time like this, she still did not forget to try turning Master Li against them. Though the chance of success was not high, it was still worth trying.

"Master Li, hurry up and act. Once this matter is done, my Lu Family will deliver the promised reward in full." Worried that delay would bring unexpected trouble, Lu Wushuang lightly tapped the ground with his foot and stabbed his long spear toward Ning Yuyao as swiftly as lightning. The refined-iron spear tore through the air, carrying an unstoppable momentum as it thrust at her. Ning Yuyao snorted coldly. With a clang, she drew the refined-iron sword at her waist. The blade gleamed with a deep cold light, and as she swung it, a sword ray slashed fiercely toward Lu Wushuang.

"Ah!" An extremely shrill scream rang out, particularly piercing in the quiet forest. Ning Yuyao's heart tightened, and she turned to look, only to see a Ning Family guard rolling on the ground while clutching his severed leg. The broken stump was a bloody mess, white bone showing deep within, a horrifying sight. And that severed leg was being swallowed into the Black Water Mysterious Snake's belly.

Ning Yuyao felt a chill at her throat and hurriedly snapped back to her senses. A refined-iron spear was stabbing toward her throat with a sharp, fierce momentum. Ning Yuyao hastily swung her sword to block and retreated explosively, narrowly dodging the fatal strike. Lu Wushuang pressed his advantage, and spear shadows filled the sky as they stabbed toward Ning Yuyao's entire body. Ning Yuyao struggled to deal with them and was forced back step by step.

Seeing this, Jia Lie Jun could not help sighing. Logically speaking, Ning Yuyao and Lu Wushuang were about evenly matched. Even if she was slightly weaker, she should not have fallen into a disadvantage after only a few minutes of fighting. But Ning Yuyao had been distracted in battle, and Lu Wushuang had seized the opportunity, which was why she had been beaten until she could no longer counterattack. Jia Lie Jun's mind stirred, and a ball of green flame appeared out of thin air. He flicked his finger, and the fireball immediately carried a fierce power as it blasted toward Lu Wushuang.

Sensing the power contained within the fireball, Lu Wushuang did not dare be careless. The spear in his hands moved rapidly, and spear shadows filling the sky stabbed together at the fireball. With a thunderous boom, the countless spear shadows collided with the fireball. The fireball instantly exploded, whipping up a massive blast of wind that uprooted the surrounding trees.

Ning Yuyao gasped heavily for breath and touched her fair neck. A faint blood mark there was oozing blood. Fortunately, she had reacted quickly at the time; otherwise, she likely would have died on the spot. Thinking of this, Ning Yuyao felt a lingering fear, her back soaked with cold sweat.

"Girl, just focus on dealing with that guy. Leave this shame-faced fellow to me." A lazy voice sounded in the field. Everyone turned to look and saw a youth with an idle expression slowly walking toward Master Li. Hearing this, Ning Yuyao's heart filled with joy. Although she did not know Jia Lie Jun's true strength, she could tell from the move he had just displayed that his strength was anything but ordinary. The Ning Family's people also cheered in unison, their morale greatly boosted.

"Boy, there was a road to heaven, but you refused to take it; there was no gate to hell, yet you came barging in." An extremely sinister, grating laugh came from beneath the black robe. Although Master Li was deeply shocked by the method Jia Lie Jun had just used, he was not afraid of him. Not only was Jia Lie Jun extremely young and presumably not too strong, but he also had the Black Water Mysterious Snake fighting alongside him. The Black Water Mysterious Snake was extremely powerful, comparable to an expert at the Minor Accomplishment of the Origin Core Realm. He himself also possessed the strength of a Four-Seal Rune Master. With two against one, he did not believe he would lose.

Jia Lie Jun immediately charged fiercely toward Master Li. The Black Water Mysterious Snake sank into the swamp, seemingly waiting for a chance to launch a sneak attack. Jia Lie Jun snorted coldly, and greenish-purple flames abruptly covered his entire body. His body floated into midair. This was the first time he had flown without relying on any tool. Now that he was already an expert at the Minor Accomplishment of the Origin Core Realm, he could manage brief hovering flight. When the people around him saw this, they drew in sharp breaths. This fellow, who looked even younger than Ning Yuyao, was actually also an Origin Core Realm expert. Though they had already had their guesses, seeing it with their own eyes still shocked them immensely.

Looking at the motionless swamp below, Jia Lie Jun's thoughts stirred, and two massive clusters of greenish-purple flame spurted from his hands. In only a short while, that vast stretch of swamp had actually been dried out. Seeing this, everyone drew in sharp breaths one after another. As they looked at the youth in midair, some felt fear, some terror, and some admiration, but all of them sighed in unison, "This youth really is ruthless!"

Master Li's pupils shrank, fear showing on his face. Jia Lie Jun's move had truly scared him into breaking out in a cold sweat. He immediately roused his spirit to its fullest, not daring to be the slightest bit careless again.