Chapter 71: Red-Clad Snake

The morning was peaceful. Walking in an area so close to the outskirts, they occasionally encountered some magical beasts, but they posed no threat at all to a group like theirs.

Looking at the two women firmly surrounded in the middle behind him, Rod sighed secretly. It was the last day. If everything went well, they would reach the northern exit by tomorrow, and once they arrived in Blackstone City, there would be no more danger. With all their strength, they should be able to reach the capital by tomorrow night—by then, everything would be over.

As they walked through the lush forest, a sudden cold wind blew, making everyone shiver as their pores bristled.

“Be careful!” Rod slowed down and drew his Dark Dragon sword, speaking to those around him. The dark and damp environment made him frown; he had a feeling that something was about to happen.

They moved forward slowly, taking extreme care with each step. The crunching of broken branches underfoot heightened the tension, putting pressure on everyone.

“Sssss…” A harsh sound made everyone stop in their tracks, their expressions changing. It was the sound of a magical beast—likely a snake, if he wasn’t mistaken.

A swishing sound came from the forest, the result of leaves and branches being crushed.

“Over there!” Rod whispered, pointing in the direction of the sound.

They quickly formed a defensive formation, concentrating their attention and gripping their weapons. The two mages also began preparing their spells without hesitation, ready to attack the moment the beast appeared.

A faint, growing stench filled the air, causing everyone to frown unconsciously. Lucia and her maid covered their noses and mouths instinctively—the smell was unbearable.

“Damn it, we’re lucky!” Bitte said with a bitter smile, his lips trembling as he looked at the figure appearing about a hundred meters ahead.

“Red-Clad Snake!” Aida couldn’t help but exclaim after recognizing the magical beast.

At that moment, nearly a hundred meters ahead of them, the figure of that magical beast fully emerged. It was about six to seven meters long, as thick as an adult man’s thigh, covered in crimson-black scales. Its eyes, the size of copper bells, glowed with a bloodthirsty light as it stared at the group. Its dark tongue flicked from time to time, releasing a pungent smell.

A Red-Scaled Snake! A magical beast of bronze strength, approaching silver-tier power. Clearly, this one had already reached maturity. Such beasts were the last things mercenaries and adventurers wanted to encounter—not only because of their immense strength and formidable defenses but also due to their venom. If one was touched by or injured by its venom and no antidote was found within three minutes, death was certain, no matter how strong the person was.

It quickly approached them. In the blink of an eye, the Red-Scaled Snake was already in front of them! Suddenly, it opened its massive maw and lunged at Rod, the leader.

“Die!” Rod frowned, a killing intent flashing in his eyes. His Dark Dragon let out a light humming sound as it pierced toward the snake.

At the same time, Aida and Chelly had prepared their spells. Instantly, a giant fireball and several water arrows shot toward the Red-Scaled Snake.

Ahow! The two spells struck the snake’s surface, causing it to cry out in pain. Seizing this moment, Rod launched his attack as well. His Dark Dragon slashed at the snake’s body with a howling sound.

Ding! A clear sound came, with sparks flying. Rod felt a tremendous rebound force in his hand, his knuckles throbbing painfully—almost dropping his Dark Dragon. Upon closer inspection, thin streams of blood were already flowing from his knuckles.

With another cry, the Red-Scaled Snake rolled on the ground, the pain unbearable. It never expected humans to be so strong. It had thought it could easily feast, but instead faced such a fate, filling it with rage.

Damn it! It wasn’t even hurt! His full-power strike only scratched the snake’s scales and damaged its skin slightly. Seeing the shallow wound, Rod was surprised. Since his attack had failed, naturally, the attacks of the two mages weren’t much better either—only causing the snake to howl without causing any real damage.

Raising its head, with blood-red eyes, it let out a long roar. The additional wounds on its body fully ignited its ferocity!

A deep voice was heard, and suddenly a stream of black liquid sprayed out from the black snake’s mouth, aiming at Rod and his companions. “Poison! Get away quickly!” Seeing this, Bit behind them roared loudly and hurriedly took Lucia and the maid away from there, along with Ada and Chelly. As for Rod, he wasn’t so lucky. Since he had attacked the Red-Scaled Snake earlier, he hadn’t moved far enough and didn’t have time to dodge at such close range. In fact, it seemed the black snake had targeted him as its main enemy, with most of the poison aimed at him. Bit’s words made him quick-witted; he quickly dodged to the side, but still got some poison on his sleeve. Instantly, black smoke rose, and his sleeve corroded rapidly, spreading further. Not daring to be careless, he quickly tore off his sleeve and threw it aside, secretly relieved. If the poison had touched his skin instead, the consequences would be unimaginable. Looking at the sleeve on the ground, it had now turned to ashes, with only black smoke remaining. The trees around also turned to dust in a short time whenever they were touched by the poison. “Damn you! I still don’t believe in your powers!” With a roar, the Shadow Sword was drawn, and he charged at the Red-Scaled Snake again. This time, the snake, having learned from its last mistake, didn’t dare to be careless. It quickly turned over, its massive body moving with surprising agility. Its upper body stood upright, about three or four meters tall, and eight human voices flashed with confusion as it lunged at one of them. Ding ding ding… Unfortunately, it failed. Rod’s attacks continued, producing sharp sounds, with sparks flying and fragments of scales scattered everywhere. After several cries of pain, Rod appeared beside the Red-Scaled Snake. In pain, the snake roared angrily and swung its tail swiftly! A dull sound came, and Rod’s entire body flew away like a kite with a broken string! Severe pain shot through his arm—was it dislocated or broken? In pain, Rod thought to himself that things were bad. He had thought his body was strong enough, but he was left in such a miserable state after just one strike. At that moment, he should have been grateful he used his hand to block instead of his body, otherwise the consequences would have been unimaginable.

With a single strike, the bloodlust of the Red-Clad Snake was fully unleashed. Its massive body moved swiftly, swimming toward Rod, who had just crashed to the ground. A flame appeared suddenly in front of Rod, followed by a gentle water sphere that enveloped his body. It wasn’t cold at all; instead, a soothing warmth spread through him. The pain in his arms vanished quickly, as if it never existed. It was the power of water-based healing magic, fully demonstrated by the water mage.

“Damn it!” Seeing that the Red-Clad Snake was charging straight at him despite the fire wall, clearly regarding him as a mortal enemy to be eliminated at all costs, Rod quickly dodged aside to avoid the venomous spray. Watching the thick smoke on the ground, he prayed for luck. Gripping his Dark Dragon, he showed a determined expression, swiftly swinging it as he moved nimbly as if stepping on lotus flowers.

There was no other choice. Ordinary attacks weren’t even effective enough to get close to that damned Red-Clad Snake, and using the Shadow Sword consumed too much combat energy, with little apparent effect. Although his previous attack had succeeded, it only caused superficial injuries—nothing serious at all.

Autumn Wind! That was the only thing he could think of at the moment. Perhaps this sword technique was the most effective now. Though he hadn’t mastered it yet, he had no choice but to try. With the guidance of the Xuanyuan Sword Spirit the previous night, he might be able to use it now, and its power should be considerable.

The Autumn Wind Sword—like autumn wind sweeping away leaves—focused on momentum and power. Its widespread attack should have a significant impact.

Its main targets were the Red-Clad Snake’s eyes, mouth, tongue, and vital points.

He channeled his internal energy into the Dark Dragon. Instantly, dark light flashed, the Dark Dragon emitted a humming sound, and its dark sheen became even more pronounced.

“Autumn Wind!!” With a sudden burst of strength from his feet, the Dark Dragon circled his palm before returning to it. He gripped the sword with his back hand, dodged the snake’s tail with a sidestep, then leaped three times in a row to get closer to the snake. With a fierce push, he spun his body, stepping as if on seven stars. Each step brought him closer to the snake, allowing him to evade its attacks. Seven bursts of dark light created a fierce wind, lifting the fallen leaves. Even Aida and Cheri, who were far away and ready to cast magic again, couldn’t see clearly inside and were unable to use their spells for a moment.

After the bursts of dark light, the snake fell, the wind gradually stopped, and the leaves drifted down. Rod appeared before everyone!

Behind the Red-Clad Snake, Rod gasped for breath. It had worked—although barely, with minimal power, it still succeeded. With the technique of “Feet on Seven Stars, Hands Moving Like Autumn Breeze,” the Autumn Breeze Sword was used for the first time under such difficult conditions.