" One-Horned Whale Serpent!?"
Upon seeing the enormous creature before him, Xiao Yan's expression instantly hardened, and then, the face beneath his black robe showed utter astonishment.
"Roar! Human, this is my territory. If you don't want to die, get out of my way, or I'll devour you alive!"
Although Xiao Yan recognized the One-Horned Whale Serpent in front of him, Xiao Yan was currently wearing a black robe, which blocked his aura. Even though the One-Horned Whale Serpent had met him once before, it was still unable to recognize the person in front of it.
A thunderous roar erupted from the Whale Serpent's gaping maw, causing the entire void around Xiao Yan to tremble violently, with ripples spreading outwards like waves.
A buzzing sound filled the air, and an invisible force, like a storm, hurtled towards Xiao Yan head-on.
Faced with this, Xiao Yan couldn't help but show a look of surprise on his face beneath the black robe. In less than two years, the strength of this big guy in front of him had actually reached the Dou Di level, which was truly astonishing.
Although the One-Horned Whale Serpent's strength has now reached the Dou Di, Xiao Yan felt much more relaxed when facing it.
Despite the hurricane tearing off his cloak, Xiao Yan remained standing motionless, a faint smile on his handsome face as he gazed warmly at the colossal figure before him.
A Dou Di powerhouse, a figure whom no one in these ruins would dare to underestimate, was now being treated with ease and comfort by Xiao Yan.
Immediately afterward, when the Whale Serpent One-Horned Whale Serpent saw the face of the human, who was as small as an ant, the pupils of its huge, scarlet beast eyes suddenly contracted, and the part of its body that was exposed above the lake surface couldn't help but take a step back.
"You... you're not..."
"Hey, old friend, it's been a long time."
Seeing the giant snake's seemingly terrified expression, Xiao Yan grinned and chuckled.
"Roar!"
Immediately afterward, the giant snake in front of Xiao Yan suddenly roared to the sky. Then, to Xiao Yan's astonishment, its massive body burst out of the lake, coiled around Xiao Yan 'Xiao Yan body, and surrounded him in the center, while the avatar and the Northern King were left standing there dumbfounded.
"Cough cough..."
Seeing the giant snake like this, even with Xiao Yan's composure, he couldn't help but reveal an embarrassed smile. Could it be that this behemoth still remembered how he had toyed with it in order to cultivate the Heavenly Severing Steps, and now wanted to take revenge?
Upon realizing this, Xiao Yan's heart sank. The development of the situation was not what he had expected!
But then, just as Xiao Yan was about to make a move, the Whale Serpent that was surrounding him suddenly let out a loud howl, as if it had seen a savior.
"Roar! Xiao Yan, how did you get into this godforsaken place?"
A loud, surprised voice boomed from the One-Horned Whale Serpent's mouth, the sound shaking the entire space. Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan's expression quickly calmed down, but a sense of astonishment welled up inside him. In his memory, he seemed to have only mentioned his name to this creature once, and what surprised Xiao Yan was that the One-Horned Whale Serpent could call out his name without hesitation.
However, Xiao Yan quickly regained his composure, secretly guessing that perhaps the One-Horned Whale Serpent in front of him simply had a good memory. He then explained to the One-Horned Whale Serpent how he had entered the ruins.
After Xiao Yan's explanation, the giant snake nodded repeatedly. Finally, Xiao Yan, also looking up at the One-Horned Whale Serpent with curiosity, asked in a puzzled tone:
"And what about you? How did you get into these ruins?"
When Xiao Yan first saw that scarlet lake, his first thought was that it was the blood of the giant snake in front of him. However, now it seems that this is not the case.
"I came in a few months ago. A group of humans discovered the ruins at the bottom of my lake and drove me away. When I returned, those powerful humans had vanished except for a hole opened from the bottom of the lake. Out of curiosity, I entered the hole and ended up here. But I didn't expect that the ruins would completely close shortly after I entered. Then, I stumbled upon this Ancient Forest and found that the guy on the shore was on the verge of death. Hehe..."
At this point, the giant snake chuckled, a sound so grating that it sent chills down Xiao Yan's spine.
"I discovered that this guy's Magic Core is still relatively intact. In order not to waste his strength, I had no choice but to take it for him, hehe."
Only then did Xiao Yan understand why, in just two years, the One-Horned Whale Serpent's strength had actually increased from the Early Nine-Star Half-Emperor to the level of One-Star Dou Di.
Xiao Yan smiled with a sigh, and at the same time, the big snake in front of him also came back to his senses at this moment, staring at Xiao Yan with a pair of huge scarlet eyes, and asked in a rough voice:
"Since you say the ruins are fully open, can you help me leave this place?"
Although this Ancient Forest is rich in natural treasures, it is ultimately just a space created by humans. Compared to this place, the outside world is where the strong reside. As a member of a high-blooded serpentine beast, the One-Horned Whale Serpent cannot tolerate being bound by constraints. Only the outside world can make him feel free and powerful.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan's expression faltered slightly at first, then a glint of light flashed in his dark eyes. He nodded at the One-Horned Whale Serpent before him and smiled:
"Haha, that's no problem at all. I'd be more than happy to have a Dou Di expert accompany me."
Xiao Yan's words were indeed true. Now that Sun Hanxi was still alive, the Four Great Clans probably already knew that Xiao Yan was in the ruins. His identity was very likely to have been exposed on this trip. If he could have this big guy traveling with him, then Xiao Yan would be able to avoid a lot of pressure on his journey ahead.
However, we can deal with that later; the important thing is to focus on the present. Before that, Xiao Yan still has one matter to resolve.
Standing before the lake, Xiao Yan's gaze swept across the surface and finally settled on the jade-white fruit tree in the center of the lake.
That was... the Soul-Congealing Fruit Tree!