The two of them knew very well that this fellow named Hu Lan was petty and held grudges. Moreover, he was incredibly capable, with endless killing techniques and bizarre sorcery. Eliminating the two of them would be a matter of minutes.
"Lord Hu Lan, I can assure you, the Orthodox Alliance has definitely sent experts this time. We must not be careless... Of course, with you here to back us up, we can rest assured."
"I've already said, there's no need to worry about such trivial matters! We'll just wait here like a hunter waiting for a rabbit. We won't even have to lift a finger; the creature in the cold pond will eliminate them! It's a shame this time; if no one had interfered, Zhang Daoyun of Longhu Mountain would already be dead!"
The three of them were well aware of Zhang Daoyun's injury. After all, they had been secretly watching from a distance when it happened. Later, as Zhang Daoyun's condition worsened, all this information was continuously relayed to Yin Tianxiong by the mole hidden within Longhu Mountain. It wasn't until later that unwelcome news arrived: Ling Tian had come to Longhu Mountain and miraculously revived Zhang Daoyun, much to the chagrin of the trio. Hu Lan, in particular, felt he should have acted then and there to kill Zhang Daoyun directly.
The reason they hadn't acted directly back then was Zhang Daoyun's special status. He was the sect leader of Longhu Mountain and held considerable prestige within the entire Orthodox Alliance. If Zhang Daoyun were to be killed by the three of them, neither Longhu Mountain nor the Orthodox Alliance would let it go. Although these three were arrogant, they weren't foolish enough to provoke the Orthodox Alliance and become a target in the spotlight.
...
The next morning, as dawn broke, the entire village was still shrouded in mist. Ling Tian and the Monk Cheng'e got up, preparing to head towards the cold pond. After they left the village and arrived near the forest from the previous day, Ling Tian activated his Heavenly Eye divine ability, and Monk Cheng'e employed his Wrathful Vajra Dharma appearance. To the monk's surprise, he saw with his own eyes that the forest, which had been teeming with venomous snakes just yesterday, was now devoid of any serpentine presence.
Well, that wasn't entirely accurate. Not far away, a stout giant snake lay coiled by the roadside, as if peacefully asleep. This snake was Ling Tian's pet King Cobra, Du Long. In just one day yesterday, this venomous snake had devoured dozens of various poisonous snakes. Normally, ordinary snakes require at least three days to half a month to digest their meals. For example, an anaconda in the Amazon rainforest, after consuming a caiman or other beast, would lie motionless for half a month to digest its food.
However, Ling Tian's King Cobra, Du Long, had been in Ling Tian's spiritual realm for over two years. During this time, a vast amount of spiritual energy had nourished it, causing the snake to transcend the boundaries of ordinary serpents. In the wild, it would likely take hundreds of years for a snake to evolve into Du Long's current form, but nature rarely provided such ample time for growth. For Du Long, devouring a 15-pound hundred-pace viper would take only about ten minutes to digest, allowing it to continue hunting other venomous snakes without interruption.
King Cobras are inherently highly resistant to the venom of various snakes, and the scales on Du Long's body are impenetrable to the fangs of other venomous snakes. What had transpired in this forest last night was a massacre of snakes by one snake!
Ling Tian walked forward, patted the giant snake's head with satisfaction, then took out a dazzling talisman, activated it, and tossed it onto the ground beside the giant snake. A blinding flash of light ensued, and the giant snake immediately vanished from their sight, as if it had never existed. This was a diversionary tactic, specifically designed to fool Monk Cheng'e, who was standing nearby.
"Amitabha! Daoist magic is truly profound," Monk Cheng'e praised from the side, unable to contain his admiration.
Ling Tian nodded in agreement. For thousands of years, Daoism had produced countless individuals of exceptional talent. However, the religion of Daoism was fundamentally different from other religions in this world. While other religions busied themselves with expanding their influence, attracting followers, and amassing wealth, Daoism quietly resided in the deep mountains and ancient forests, practicing non-action, allowing people to believe or not as they pleased.
The two walked along the riverbank, passing through the thickets. Indeed, there wasn't a single living snake in sight, only the carcasses of a few venomous snakes. These were too small, and Du Long hadn't even bothered with them. As they ventured further in, the undergrowth became denser. Suddenly, the ground beneath their feet began to rumble, a sound akin to standing by a railway track as a train speeds past.
"Master, let's hurry! There's an open area ahead!" Ling Tian had already surveyed the surroundings with his Heavenly Eye. For them, fighting in the dense undergrowth would be restrictive, obstructing their vision, and not a wise choice.
The two quickened their pace, and the view suddenly opened up. Before them lay a riverbank, and about fifty meters ahead, a cliff several meters high. The small river meandered a few times on the bank before disappearing into the cliff. At this moment, what appeared before them were over a dozen wild boars.
Upon seeing these wild boars, Monk Cheng'e immediately tightened his grip on his staff. The reason was simple: the size of these boars was truly monstrous. The smallest among them weighed three to four hundred catties, while the largest appeared to weigh over a ton. Its physique was comparable to that of a rhinoceros. It was these creatures whose movements on the riverbank had caused the ground to tremble!
"Amitabha!" Monk Cheng'e was somewhat speechless. This place was too bizarre, with strange phenomena appearing one after another. After dealing with the ghoul, fighting the mountain spirits, and driving away the venomous snakes, they were now confronted with these oversized wild boars.
Ling Tian observed the boars closely and noticed something was very wrong with them. Their eyes were blood-red, and they possessed an extremely aggressive demeanor. Ling Tian could even see the bulging muscles and prominent veins on their bodies. Clearly, these wild boars had also mutated.
"Master, be careful! These wild boars are not right. We're likely in for a tough fight..." Before he could finish speaking, a wild boar weighing over 600 catties from the herd charged directly towards them. Monk Cheng'e gripped his staff with both hands, preparing for a desperate struggle.
Just then, Ling Tian raised his hand and shot out a Blazing Fire Talisman. A fireball the size of a human head flew directly towards the boar's head.
"Boom!"