"Roar!"
A roar.
Everyone was startled.
When everyone recovered, they realized that what suddenly sprang from the pool was a giant snake severalzhang long.
The giant snake was snow-white all over, and each scale was as transparent and smooth as carved jade. The sides of its head bulged slightly, as if a pair of long horns were about to break out.
Its raised head almost reached the roof of the cave, and its sturdy body was still coiled in the pool. It flicked its tongue madly, its deep red pupils staring intently at everyone, as if extremely displeased by their uninvited intrusion.
"Damn! What kind of monster is this? It's so big!"
Ma Long immediately exclaimed in surprise, cursing.
Shan Nan also rushed to the front of everyone. While warily watching the giant snake, he said to everyone with a thumping heart.
"No wonder we could smell such a strong fishy odor as soon as we entered the cave. I originally thought it was the smell of the earth from deep within the mountain, but I didn't expect there to be a giant snake about to transform into a dragon hidden here!"
Hearing this, Han Lang and the others were even more shocked.
"A dragon-like snake? Could it be that it grew to this extent due to the nourishment of this spiritual earth essence?"
Shan Nan replied.
"It should be! Otherwise, such a life could not have been nurtured in such a dense forest!"
Liu Xiaoxiao asked next.
"Then what should we do? Retreat?"
Before Shan Nan could give an order, Ma Long had already expressed his unwillingness.
"No way! It's such a rare treasure that we've finally found. It would be a shame to retreat! Why don't we kill it! That way, not only can we continue to enjoy the hot spring, but we also don't have to find food today. Roasting it later would probably taste good too!"
Everyone couldn't help but marvel at Ma Long's boldness upon hearing this.
Only Han Lang couldn't help but swallow his saliva at these words.
After all, he had tasted the flavor of wild game prepared by Ma Long before.
But even so, he was still relatively cautious at this moment, saying repeatedly.
"Brother Ma, I must say, your idea is indeed good. But the problem is, we don't know how strong this giant snake is after years of nourishment from the spiritual earth essence. Can the few of us handle it?"
Han Lang's question made everyone gasp. They never expected Han Lang to agree with Ma Long's suggestion.
Ma Long immediately retorted dismissively.
"Tch! What are you afraid of? Six Golden Core cultivators and one Nascent Soul commander, and we're afraid of not being able to deal with such a beast? Enough said, I'll go first!"
With that, without giving the others a chance to dissuade him, he leaped onto the giant snake's head and threw a fierce punch at its massive head.
With a "boom."
The entire cave began to tremble from this.
The giant snake merely tilted its head slightly from the blow, and soon turned its head back, glaring fiercely at Ma Long who was attacking it.
"Roar!"
With another deafening roar.
The giant snake was completely enraged by Ma Long's punch, opened its gaping maw, and bit directly at Ma Long.
Ma Long was greatly alarmed and dodged quickly, narrowly avoiding the snake's attack.
"Damn! This beast is quite fast. Young sir, Deputy Shan, you guys shouldn't just watch, let's get to it!"
Shan Nan and Han Lang were speechless.
You, like a brute, provoked the giant snake without any battle plan, and now you're blaming us for not keeping up.
Isn't this a bit unreasonable?
But the problem was, the giant snake was already enraged. After failing to hit Ma Long, it turned its mouth and bit directly at Tang Geng on the other side.
Tang Geng could naturally dodge it, but he didn't launch an attack. Instead, he hurriedly asked.
"We've occupied someone else's territory and are now trying to kill the owner. Isn't this a bit unfair!"
Ma Long was furious upon hearing this.
"Damn it, Tang Geng. Are you still trying to reason with a beast? Treasures are for the capable, this is an eternal rule of the cultivation world. Not to mention a stinking mudfish. Enough said, quickly kill it, and I'll treat you to a good meal tonight!"
With that, he charged forward again, launching a fierce assault on the giant snake.
However, the giant snake's scales were too defensive. Even though Ma Long used all his might, he couldn't injure it at all, and instead made it even more enraged.
Hearing the angry roars, Shan Nan and the others no longer hesitated.
They all agreed with what Ma Long had said. This pool of spiritual earth essence was a natural treasure that anyone could obtain. Why should a snake that hadn't even opened its intelligence monopolize it?
So they all rose into the air and bombarded the giant snake with their most powerful attacks.
If Ma Long's attacks were mostly ineffective, then the giant snake could barely withstand a blow from Shan Nan, a Nascent Soul cultivator.
After a pained howl, it quickly focused its attention on Shan Nan, who posed the greatest threat to it.
However, although its defense was strong and its speed was fast, it couldn't catch Shan Nan's figure at all.
It was just that due to its relentless pursuit, Shan Nan no longer had the opportunity to attack it.
"You all attack with full force, I'll attract its attention. Today, even if we have to wear it down, we'll wear this beast down!"
Shan Nan seemed to be affected by the giant snake's pressure and ordered angrily.
Han Lang and the others dared not delay any longer. They all unleashed their killing moves, which repeatedly landed on the giant snake.
However, the attacks of the Golden Core cultivators were indeed somewhat insignificant to the giant snake.
Protected by its scales, Han Lang and the others were panting from exhaustion, while the giant snake, as if nothing had happened, continued to frantically pursue Shan Nan.
Shan Nan was perhaps also annoyed by the chase.
For a moment, he stopped condensing his spiritual energy and unleashed a powerful punch at the giant snake's rapidly approaching mouth.
"Boom!"
A loud sound.
The giant snake lost a fang from Shan Nan's blow. Scarlet blood flowed from the corner of its mouth, and the immense pain caused its massive body to roll continuously.
Shan Nan, however, did not fare much better.
His body was also thrown heavily against the stone wall by the snake's impact.
Everyone was greatly alarmed at this sight.
"Deputy Shan, are you alright?"
Shan Nan got up, brushed the dust off his body, and replied as if nothing had happened.
"I'm fine! I was just careless and didn't dodge!"
Seeing that Shan Nan was indeed fine, Han Lang and the others were completely relieved and continued to output their full strength.
Shan Nan once again rose into the air and delivered another heavy blow to the giant snake, which was still struggling in pain.
The giant snake cried out in pain again. It could no longer care about its injuries, endured the pain to control its body, and then chased Shan Nan even more frantically.
Facing the now berserk giant snake, Shan Nan was momentarily helpless and could only flee frantically, attracting the giant snake's attention.
On the other side, Han Lang and the others had been fighting for a long time but saw no damage inflicted on the giant snake. They were all gradually becoming anxious.
Ma Long complained loudly.
"Damn it! How can this thing be so tough and thick-skinned! It's fine no matter how we hit it. Do we really have to do like in the movies and burrow into its belly to break it from the inside?"
Ma Long's unintentional remark reminded Han Lang.
He had a flash of inspiration and shouted to Tang Geng.
"Tang Geng, do you remember how we dealt with Wang Shan before?"