Chapter 35: My Merit Points Have Gone Off the Charts

Of course, while the snakes were fake, the poison they carried was definitely the real deal.

That black python venom had already been checked by the Priestess—although it wasn’t the kind of peerless, never-ending toxin that could cause worldwide panic, given the current state and means of these people, a single bite could surely lead to a near-fatal situation.

Around us, the eerie “hissing…” sounded more and more dense, as if closing in yet never launching a substantial attack. The torches held by everyone could only illuminate a range of a few meters. In such a dark and confined space, this environment easily creates immense psychological pressure.

Clearly, this was a deliberate tactic meant to unsettle us; they didn’t have the confidence to break through the defense formed by nearly forty strong individuals here and were merely creating pressure and stalling for time.

However, just because Miss Vilyric could think of it didn’t mean everyone else shared the same mental strength and calmness in emergency situations.

Before long, someone exploded in panic, overwhelmed by the increasing mental strain.

“XXX! What the hell is this? Come on, I’ve had enough of this!!”

“Hey, don’t—”

Before Zhu Chengye, dressed as a fortune-teller, could stop him, one of the armored bald men in his team furiously charged out of the crowd, holding a torch in one hand to illuminate the dark and swinging a broadsword with the other, aiming to chop those writhing black shadows on the ground into mush.

He did manage that, and with just a few swings of his deadly blade, he had already cut at least seven or eight black pythons into pieces, leaving them motionless.

Yet before he could feel triumphant, he was immediately shocked to find that the corpses of those black pythons started turning into black smoke and dust, while even more dense shadows descended from above, falling onto his armor and bald head like rain!

“Ugh! Get off! Get off!!!”

The bald man immediately wanted to fight back, but the shadows falling were simply too dense. Even though he hacked and slashed with his broadsword, more still landed on him, slithering through the gaps in his armor, showing their vicious fangs as they lunged toward his unprotected flesh.

“Get off! Get off!! Aaaaahhhhhh!!!”

His furious roars quickly morphed into desperate screams as he crashed heavily to the ground, thrashing around futilely.

At that moment, Ling Feng suddenly shouted!

“Bold snake demon, how dare you act recklessly here! Show yourself at once!”

Her voice, bright and clear like silver bells, remarkably transformed into the sound of crashing waves and rolling tides, reverberating like thunderous chimes through the deep valley!

That shout resounded like a grand holy edict from the heavens, akin to the primal force that could suppress all beasts, and even her teammates couldn’t help but feel a shock in their hearts, finding their minds cleared of all distractions.

The swirling motions and hissing of the myriad of spiritual snakes around us abruptly retreated under this overwhelming might, whether crawling on the ground or hiding in the walls and rocks, they all scattered like black smoke the moment the sound wave swept through.

Not only that, but a golden-red vertical pupil unexpectedly opened in the smooth, fair forehead of Miss Ling Feng as some mysterious pattern expanded, sending a brilliant glow sweeping outwards like a net, illuminating the surroundings!

Then, a clear human-like silhouette was outlined a few dozen meters away at a corner.

The figure clearly realized something amiss and attempted to fly away, but Bai’er, who coordinated perfectly with Ling Feng, was faster. Almost the moment the location of the enemy was revealed by the divine ability, a flying sword was cast with lightning speed!

“Pfft!”

With no resistance, the outlined figure was pierced straight through the shoulder and flew back, nailing against the rock wall of the tidal ravine, and its concealment spell completely failed, revealing its true appearance.

“That, that is…”

Instantly, someone in the crowd gasped at the illumination surrounding us.

It was clearly not a human entity.

Her upper half resembled that of an ordinary woman, appearing to be in her early twenties. Although she wore tattered rags that barely covered her vital parts, she could still be considered a beauty against the backdrop of her black and gray mixed hair.

However, her lower half was a black snake tail, desperately writhing and stretching out over two or three meters.

A snake demon.

Her identity was unmistakably revealed through Ling Feng’s earlier thunderous shout filled with overwhelming authority.

“Go!”

Seemingly unwilling to be left behind, with Ling Feng and Bai’er attacking one after another, Zhu Chengye quickly raised his hand and a jade ruler flew out, spinning and wrapping around the still motionless bald man, quickly checking his breath.

“He’s still breathing, but…”

He exchanged glances with Murong Yun, both of their expressions darkening.

Just as Miss Vilyric thought, those snakes were merely illusions conjured by the snake demon, but the venom they carried didn’t lessen; after being bitten all over, even if he managed to survive temporarily due to a robust physique, it would only be a matter of time before he perished.

Du Zhe from the Returning Origin Sect furrowed his brow, clearly knowledgeable about the black python venom, but could only shake his head.

“There’s no way around it. While the black python venom isn’t unsolvable, it’s also not something the typical antidote can neutralize, and moreover, this fool has been bitten all over; the toxin has already infiltrated his lungs. Even if a deity were to show up, they couldn’t save him.”

“No… I think a deity could still give it a shot.”

Almost instinctively, Murong Yun cast a sidelong glance at the Priestess who had been slacking off all along.

“What, what do you mean? If we’re talking about deities, what does that have to do with me… Alright, alright, just let me say this once…”

Reluctantly, she stepped out amidst the crowd.

Originally, Miss Vilyric didn’t plan on easily stepping in; if her blessings were given away too indiscriminately without any cost, it would lead to overconfidence, causing people to take it for granted.

Once this line was crossed, if she encountered another dimwit who thoughtlessly went out and got themselves killed, would she save them or not?

But… Even though they had agreed to just sit back and relax, since Ling Feng and Bai’er had subdued that snake demon, it seemed Miss Vilyric was the only one who had been slacking off from beginning to end…

Ultimately, she couldn’t help but feel just a tad competitive.

Taking out her priest’s staff, the black-haired girl casually placed the tip on the chest of the barely breathing, white-foamed bald man, unleashing a warm and holy golden light.

The black python venom sounded impressive, but at the end of the day, it was just a pretty serious snake venom; compared to the 【Shadow Emperor Snake】 she had seen on another continent, it was nothing notable, not to mention those truly bizarre and exotic poisons.

By continuously casting the low-level holy magic: 【Purification】 and 【Healing Spell】, the snake venom on the bald man was completely dispelled.

Of course, to prevent this seemingly dimwitted fellow from going back out again, and in an effort not to be too extraordinary, Miss Vilyric didn’t fully restore his condition, deliberately maintaining him at a level where he was healthy yet still somewhat weak.

Even so, when that bald man groggily rose, rubbing his head, the gasps of disbelief and shock from around him, as well as Du Zhe’s exclamation of “This… This is impossible!” still filled Miss Vilyric’s ears.

Well, just consider it as amassing merits…

   

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