Chapter 213: Hiding

Everyone heard this frightening sound, and all looked toward the direction it came from with terrified expressions.

About ten seconds later, a massive black figure suddenly burst out. It was a huge serpent as thick as four or five meters, covered in dark, shiny scales.

Power like a volcanic eruption was hidden within the giant snake’s body. Wherever it passed, all kinds of trees were directly snapped and knocked down. Behind it, a path about four or five meters wide opened up as it slithered along. Thick trees in front of it seemed as weak as grass.

What surprised everyone even more was that on the serpent’s head sat a cold-faced man with long, flowing hair and an eye patch over his left eye, cross-legged.

The man just glanced at them briefly, as if looking at ants fighting for food on the ground, then turned away and paid them no more attention.

Throughout the whole process, aside from the serpent’s hissing and the sound of trees being crushed and broken, there was no other noise. Whether it was Jin Shuixian, others from the Dragon Spear Sect, the middle-aged beautiful woman, or the man in animal hides, all stood still like mice being watched by a cat, as if afraid the man and the serpent would turn their attention toward them.

After watching the serpent and the man crush through the forest and move away, the middle-aged beautiful woman finally spoke, her face pale as if exhausted, her voice hoarse, “It’s… the… Heavenly Serpent King.”

“So this is the Heavenly Serpent King! The leader of the Four Kings in the Shadow Corps.” The bearded man from the Dragon Spear Sect watched the Underworld King Snake’s retreating figure in fear; a wide path had been formed by the pressure of its body.

He felt deeply shocked: “I had long heard of the Shadow Corps’ Heavenly Serpent King, but only now, seeing him, do I know…” His only thought now was to leave quickly. The Ziyun incident had escalated to a level far beyond what the Dragon Spear Sect could handle.

Beside him, his son’s eyes held not only shock but also endless admiration and envy.

“With just one glance, without even saying a word, he made everyone feel as if facing a great enemy. That arrogant Jin Shuixian from the Heavenly River Sect didn’t dare make a sound earlier.

This is what a true powerhouse is like. I must become like this in the future, so my life won’t be in vain.”

It wasn’t just the two of them reacting this way. Among the various forces present, the older ones mostly showed shock and fear in their eyes, while the younger ones displayed admiration, envy, and jealousy.

However, the middle-aged beautiful woman looked at the Snow Domain Silver Wolf’s corpse from earlier and suddenly laughed. Unnoticed, the Snow Domain Silver Wolf had been crushed by the Underworld King Snake, its body flattened into a bloody mess on the snow, no longer resembling a wolf at all.

A cold light also flashed in Jin Shuixian’s eyes as she looked at the crushed wolf corpse, feeling as if it were a scornful handout from someone else.

When she heard the middle-aged beautiful woman’s laughter, she glared angrily at her and coldly told her companions around her, “Let’s go. The Heavenly Serpent King must have followed Ziyun here. Follow him.

Fei Dian, you go back and report to our master, tell him everything that happened!”

“Senior Sister, what about the Snow Domain Silver Wolf?”

“Hmph, why would we want this thing?” Jin Shuixian couldn’t shake off the memory of Zuo Zhicheng’s indifferent glance. Someone like her, top-notch in both Martial Arts and appearance, had been the center of attention since childhood, a favored child of heaven.

But now, thinking of the Heavenly Serpent King’s utterly uncaring gaze, her heart felt as if bitten, deeply uncomfortable.

‘Heavenly Serpent King, it won’t be long before I make you look at me properly.’

Then, the group from the Heavenly River Sect split into two. One group, led by Jin Shuixian, followed the path crushed by the Underworld King Snake. The others dashed into the forest to report to their master.

They left behind the previously tense major forces, who now looked at each other in confusion.

Finally, the middle-aged beautiful woman said, “Since they don’t want it, we’ll take it.” Jin Shuixian refused the crushed Snow Domain Silver Wolf out of pride, but for people from smaller factions, obtaining a piece of Spiritual Energy Food was a huge benefit, regardless of whether it was crushed or not.

…

Meanwhile, Zuo Zhicheng, sitting on the Underworld King Snake’s head, arrived at a snow-white valley and stopped.

According to the earlier markers, the Shadow Corps members should be right here.

Sure enough, shortly after the Underworld King Snake stopped, two men wearing white cloaks, almost blending into the snow, emerged, looking respectfully at Zuo Zhicheng and the serpent.

Zuo Zhicheng leaped down, but instead of falling straight down as one might expect, he drifted gently like a feather onto the snow. His feet didn’t even release the slightest bit of force, unlike the two men in front of him, whose feet sank ankle-deep into the snow.

Clearly, his mastery of Earth Fiend had become more refined.

Zuo Zhicheng glanced briefly at the two men, then took out his small black beast jade pendant. The two men looked at it and immediately respectfully produced their own documents.

After checking and confirming everything was in order, Zuo Zhicheng asked, “Where is Ziyun?”

“Reporting, sir, we tracked her here, but as soon as she entered the valley, she disappeared.”

The other added, “This valley has only one exit. We’ve had people guarding it all along. She should still be inside, but we don’t know what method she used to hide.”

“Hiding, is she?” Zuo Zhicheng’s eyelids lowered slightly. He took a step and appeared over ten meters away. Despite the soft snow under his feet, there wasn’t even a trace or footprint left.

Seeing this feat of stepping on snow without leaving a trace, the two Shadow Corps members showed astonished expressions.

Then, in the blink of an eye, they saw Zuo Zhicheng drift into the valley at high speed, like a leaf blown by the wind and snow. It seemed as if the storm was carrying him, not that he was walking himself.

“I’ll go in and capture her. You two stay here with the Underworld King Snake. No one is allowed to enter or leave.”

With that, Zuo Zhicheng’s figure completely vanished into the wind and snow. With his Infrared Vision, his left eye that could distinguish friend from foe, and his sharp hearing, smell, and touch, finding someone hiding was too simple.

So the Underworld King Snake coiled up, settling at the valley entrance. It had received Zuo Zhicheng’s order: if anyone tried to pass through the valley entrance, it was to eat them.

Its tongue flickered out. Thinking about eating live humans again, its stomach felt hungry once more. Its eyes glanced slightly toward the two vague, small figures beside it, somewhat hoping they would run into the valley quickly.

The two Shadow Corps members seemed to sense the Underworld King Snake’s ‘malicious’ gaze. They swallowed hard, gave awkward smiles in the direction of the snake’s eyes, but inside they were tense, hoping Zuo Zhicheng would return soon.

Being alone with the Underworld King Snake, just the two of them, the pressure was overwhelming.