The Journey of Immortal Cultivation

This is also the reason why other teammates stick with him: only he knows the way ahead.

Ning Xiaoxian was about to speak, but her gaze sharpened as she looked upward: "The lizard is coming."

Everyone’s expressions became tense, and they all heightened their vigilance. Sure enough, after a few seconds, as they passed by a big pillar, another soft tongue shot out from the shadows, this time directly targeting the heads of the humans. The mutated lizard seemed to have observed that the human head was the most vulnerable, and thus changed its strategy, no longer attacking midsection like when hunting Mountain Anchor.

However, the greatest skill of this monster was its excellent sneak attack. Boss Kun and his group, informed by Ning Xiaoxian, had already prepared in advance. Although the lizard’s strike was fast, it was within expectations, and the person being attacked, though not as skilled as Ning Xiaoxian, was not overly panicked. After being wrapped by the long tongue, he reached into the pouch at his waist and grabbed a handful of red and white powder, sprinkling it onto the tip of the soft tongue.

With a "whoosh," the soft tongue, originally immensely powerful and impervious to blade or spear, suddenly released its prey and retreated in a panic, retracting almost faster than it had shot out. The lizard, not knowing what it had been attacked with, let out several piercing cries, and its massive body shockingly retreated two steps, then frantically shook its head, as if something had invaded its brain.

Ning Xiaoxian’s delicate nose twitched, and she burst out laughing. Changtian frowned and asked, "What is this stuff? The smell is so spicy." He couldn’t figure out what these mortals were up to.

"It’s neither Divine Skills nor Magic, so naturally you can’t understand it." She laughed uncontrollably, "This powder is made of chili, horseradish, glutinous rice, Sichuan peppercorns, ginger, and pepper root ground together. Seeing how bright red it is, it must be incredibly numbing and spicy... Even if the lizard’s tongue is used for hunting, it still has taste, and coming in contact with something so unbearably spicy so suddenly, it’s no wonder it would get stunned instantly." She pointed at the lizard, "Look at its current actions, it’s probably got horseradish powder in its brain, the taste must be something else." Horseradish made into a paste is mustard, and most people know the effect when eaten is quite unique.

Changtian’s face suddenly became quite a sight. Ning Xiaoxian had cooked in Hidden Stream before, and once used this chili the day after they had a spat... even with all his Divine Skills, he couldn’t cultivate his tongue to withstand what tasted like a devil, a memory that remained vivid in his mind. He sympathetically glanced at the creature, feeling a bit of camaraderie in their shared plight.

The others were not mere clay figurines; having gained valuable time, each used their own methods. Boss Kun murmured a mantra, then stroked the spine of the sword with two fingers of his left hand. The mortal iron, already sharp enough to cut iron like mud, suddenly looked as if it had come to life, the blade emitting a faint radiant glow, with the tip extending a half-foot-long sword light. His movement technique was quite agile, and he swept around to the back of the lizard’s neck, thrusting the sword forward.

This time, the lizard’s skin, as tough as wood and stone, couldn’t withstand the sharpness of the longsword, and dark blood gushed out like a fountain. The monster roared in anger and opened its mouth to bite him.

In the team, another Heavenly Master gave a low shout. He was already taller than the others, and now, apparently using some Secret Technique, his stature grew even more, reaching over seven feet (about 2.2 meters, roughly Uncle Yao’s height), his muscles suddenly bulging, every line seeming to be cast in steel, with a faint metallic sheen on his skin. He had been protecting Boss Kun’s side, and now stepped forward, inhaling and exhaling, and slammed a fist the size of a sand bowl hard into the lizard’s eye socket.

With a "puff" sound, like hitting a defeated leather, the lizard’s giant head was knocked askew from the vulnerable hit, causing its entire body to tilt.

Ning Xiaoxian’s brow twitched slightly. Being a Body Cultivator herself, she paid close attention to strength, and the power the Heavenly Master erupted with in just one breath was actually no less than thirty thousand pounds! It should be known that this far surpassed the strength of an ordinary demon, nearly reaching the standards of a Giant Strength demon species; her strength back when contending for the Dragon Elephant Fruit in Hidden Stream wasn’t much greater than this.

At this moment, "Fourth" threw out four Soul Losing Nails, each wreathed with black aura, which upon release, directly pierced through the lizard’s webbed feet, pinning it firmly to the ground. The lizard struggled fiercely but was unable to break free from the grip of these four nails, each less than a palm’s length.

From Changtian and Ning Xiaoxian’s perspective, it was clear that there’s more to the nails, as each one pinned tightly, a wisp of black light emerged from them, then three sly little ghosts appeared, pressing the nails firmly into the ground.

These little ghosts appeared chubby and pale, except their eyes had a faint red glow and displayed extreme excitement as soon as they appeared.

Seizing this opportunity, Boss Kun raised his sword again, aiming at the wound on the lizard’s neck, he thrust in again with effort, and this time finally severed the tough muscles, cutting through the lizard’s trachea.

This move was always effective because most creatures’ vital points are in the head and throat. But the lizard struggled even more fiercely, its limbs powerful and robust, showing no sign of weakening at all.

Just as everyone was astonished, Ning Xiaoxian couldn’t help but interject, "In the underground palace, the air is scarce, this creature doesn’t really need to breathe much. You’ll have to sever its arteries or heart to be effective."

Boss Kun immediately understood and shifted the direction of the sword, stabbing straight into the main artery. Blood gushed from the lizard’s throat like a fountain, and it struggled mightily, almost breaking free from the black nails holding its limbs, until the Giant Strength Heavenly Master decisively pressed down on its body with a leg.

After a while, its struggles slowly subsided, and finally it stopped moving.

Even though Boss Kun and the others managed to win, they were all panting, especially the Giant Strength Heavenly Master, who, although returned to his usual size after the battle, looked a bit pale. Ning Xiaoxian asked, "How much further is it?"

Boss Kun chuckled dryly, "We’ve made it through about a third of the way!" Even though he felt a bit bitter inside, having led teams often before, he knew that if the morale dispersed, it would be even more troublesome, so he tried to keep his tone light. Earlier, they had dealt with the lizard together while Ning Xiaoxian and Changtian stood by; it took all four or five of them considerable effort, clarifying the gap between them and these two. Several thoughts ran through his mind, and when he looked at Ning Xiaoxian again, he felt as if her smile was mocking his over-cautiousness.

Ning Xiaoxian noticed his flickering gaze, aware he was scheming inside, but just smiled it off, too lazy to guess. In the face of Changtian’s absolute strength, what use does a mortal’s scheming have?

The mutated lizard, though troublesome to deal with, was advantageous in that, unlike the Mountain Anchors, it did not come out in groups, seeming instead to have carved out its own territory to reside. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please read at m.qidian.com.)