“Hmph!”
Yan Qingshan, who had been practicing with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them and looked in a specific direction.
His ears twitched as he sensed some movement.
With a spring in his step, he leaped forward, covering nearly a hundred meters in just a few strides, rushing toward a certain direction at high speed.
At the outskirts of this forest, near the patch of sand he and Qing Ling had visited before, two groups of Magical Beasts were currently locked in a standoff.
Qing Ling was dressed in azure, protected and surrounded by a group of snake-type Magical Beasts.
At the center stood a giant serpent nearly eight meters long, as thick as a water bucket, with small fleshy horns faintly visible near its eyes on its forehead.
This group of snakes by Qing Ling’s side was a pack of Desert Rock Snakes that Yan Qingshan and she had discovered in the vicinity over the past two months.
The Desert Rock Snake was a semi-social 1st Rank Magical Beast.
Adults reached a size of about two meters and mostly stayed within a specific territory.
Each pack within a territory was led by a 2nd or 3rd Rank Snake King.
After discovering this pack of Desert Rock Snakes, Yan Qingshan had devised various ambushes and sudden raids.
After subduing the snakes one by one, he had Qing Ling control them using her Jade Snake Three-Flower Pupils.
In the original timeline, it would have been several years later that Qing Ling would fully awaken her Jade Snake Three-Flower Pupils through the subdual of the Two-Headed Flame Spirit Serpent.
However, Yan Qingshan had now provided her with an excellent environment and conditions.
Qing Ling’s Dou Zhi Qi was progressing rapidly, and because Yan Qingshan used several gentle stimulation methods, her Jade Snake Three-Flower Pupils—though not yet fully awakened—had begun to undergo slight changes.
At the very beginning, a single Desert Rock Snake had been exceptionally exhausting for Qing Ling.
But as the number of controlled snakes increased, she actually found it much easier.
Still, in her current unawakened state, semi-controlling a 2nd Rank Rock Snake King was already her limit.
That’s right, semi-control.
Yan Qingshan did not excessively stimulate her pupils; instead, he used her talent as a medium to establish a communication channel with these snakes.
This slowly influenced the thoughts of these low-intelligence creatures, turning them into Qing Ling’s guardians.
Qing Ling had a considerable number of snake-type Magical Beasts on her side, around twenty to thirty.
But opposite her, an even greater number of Yellow Sand Demonic Scorpions had surrounded her and her snakes.
The Yellow Sand Demonic Scorpion was a unique small Magical Beast of the desert.
Most of them were only the size of a human head.
They hunted by waiting in the sand and suddenly injecting venom into passing humans or animals to obtain food.
These small creatures didn’t even qualify as 1st Rank Magical Beasts, but their numbers were overwhelming.
At a glance, the area was a dense, crawling sea of scorpions, at least several hundred strong.
Furthermore, mixed among them were many 1st Rank Demonic Scorpions and one 2nd Rank Demonic Scorpion King.
The Scorpion King stood at a height of one meter, with a body length far exceeding that.
At nearly ten meters long, it was even more powerful than the Rock Snake King at Qing Ling’s side, very close to being a 3rd Rank Magical Beast.
Seeing Yan Qingshan arrive, Qing Ling quickly spoke, “Young Master, that patch of desert turns out to be the nesting ground of these Yellow Sand Demonic Scorpions.
We sent ‘Xiao Huang’ and the others to investigate underground, which provoked these scorpions.
They came here to give a warning.”
“Yellow Sand Demonic Scorpions prefer hot, dry sandy environments.
It’s no surprise that so many scorpions gathered here, given that the sand remains warm even on winter nights.
However…
I cannot give up.”
Yan Qingshan frowned in thought, but the scorpions across from them would wait no longer.
Seeing that these outsider beasts refused to retreat even after a warning, the Demonic Scorpion King let out a sharp screech.
Numerous scorpions surged forward like a tide—a truly grand and terrifying sight.
“One 2nd Rank Scorpion King, nearly twenty 1st Rank scorpions distributed across six positions—each position has about three or four close together—and over three hundred common scorpions… This chapter is updated first at novelping.com.
Dawn, initiate combat analysis.”
Yan Qingshan quickly completed his information gathering, easily calculating the precise data of the enemies before him and even beginning to simulate their movement trajectories and feasible solutions.
“Young Master, what do we do?”
As the scorpion tide surged, Qing Ling—who was still just a little girl after all—instinctively had the Rock Snakes retreat toward Yan Qingshan.
The two people and twenty-plus snakes were surrounded by hundreds of scorpions and over twenty 1st Rank scorpions.
“Dawn, determine the feasible combat plan…
Qing Ling, have the Rock Snakes move out together, head toward the Scorpion King’s position!”
Yan Qingshan calculated the strength comparison.
His side had nearly thirty 1st Rank Rock Snakes, while the opponent had just over twenty 1st Rank scorpions.
Both sides had 2nd Rank Magical Beasts.
The opponent had hundreds of extra common scorpions, making them appear to have the advantage.
But as long as they didn’t allow the enemy to utilize their numerical superiority, this tough battle was not impossible to win.
Once Yan Qingshan made his decision, Qing Ling quickly communicated with the Rock Snake King.
Magical Beasts were more impulsive than humans; they almost always responded to provocation with a direct fight.
Upon receiving the signal, the snakes moved like the wind.
The Desert Rock Snake, as the name suggested, was related to the flat-shaped Rock Snakes found in the Magic Beast Mountain Range.
Both possessed the Stone attribute, a variation of the Earth attribute.
However, the desert variant was not as flat as its distant cousins and could glide through the air at full power, though not for very long distances.
With bodies like metal and stone, the Rock Snakes coordinated with each other, some clearing the path and others guarding the rear.
They forcefully carved a path through the scorpion tide, heading straight for the Demonic Scorpion King.
The Scorpion King clearly didn’t expect the opponent to be so bold.
It screeched sharply to call its subordinates, and the 1st Rank scorpions quickly began to assemble around their King.
“You think you’ll have the chance?”
Yan Qingshan and Qing Ling were on the back of the Rock Snake King, protected in the middle of the pack.
When 1st Rank scorpions appeared ahead to block the way, he struck decisively.
“Assistance initiated.
Wind speed, distance, scorpion movement speed, and trajectory locked.”
With a leap, a pair of purple wings unfurled from Yan Qingshan’s back.
Moving with extreme speed, he arrived even before the Rock Snakes.
Two sonic orbs of beastly roars infused with pale green light hit the fragile gaps in their carapaces.
The two 1st Rank scorpions in front were instantly flipped over and shattered, their bright red blood splattering across the ground.
Why were high-level Qi Methods and Dou Techniques so highly sought after?
It was because after practicing high-level Qi Methods, not only was the cultivation speed faster and the Dou Qi quality higher, but the combat power was also far superior to those of the same rank.
Yan Qingshan was currently practicing a High Xuan Class Qi Method.
In terms of Dou Qi quality, he was likely not inferior to a 3rd Rank Mid Stage Magical Beast.
Against 1st Rank scorpions evolved from a low-tier race like the Yellow Sand Demonic Scorpion, he could essentially achieve total suppression.
Bang!
The formation of nearly thirty Rock Snakes, shaped like a sharp arrow, pierced straight into the center of the scorpion swarm.
The Rock Snake King, which had been at the rear, surged forward to become the lead, colliding with the Scorpion King.
The duel between 2nd Rank Magical Beasts was exceptionally brutal.
About ten Rock Snakes arranged themselves in a ring, tail to head.
After surrounding the central battlefield, they began to swim in a rapid, circular motion, effectively cordoning off the center from the two sides.
The impact of the fast-moving Rock Snakes was staggering; any common scorpion that got close was instantly ground into fragments. This chapter is updated first at g.com.
The vast swarm was blocked outside, forced to watch helplessly as their King was double-teamed by a human and a snake.
The Scorpion King faced the challenge of the Rock Snake King, while Yan Qingshan—his Purple Cloud Wings unfurled—harassed it from above from time to time.
The surrounding 1st Rank scorpions were picked off one by one, surrounded and killed by the other Rock Snakes.
Unfortunately for the King, when it had ordered the attack earlier, it had stayed too far to the rear, positioned on a rocky slope.
Now that the slope was surrounded, it was difficult for the surging scorpions to turn around; rescue wouldn’t arrive for quite some time.
The combat power of the 2nd Rank Yellow Sand Demonic Scorpion King was still formidable.
It suppressed the Rock Snake King from the front, the poisonous stinger at the end of its tail flashing with a cold glint.
Had the Rock Snake’s defense not been staggering, any other beast would have been finished long ago.
A 2nd Rank Magical Beast was not something a 1st Rank could contend with, and this Scorpion King was nearly at the 3rd Rank.
Yan Qingshan had Qing Ling take the 1st Rank Rock Snakes to defend the perimeter; they couldn’t get too close to the central area.
As the other 1st Rank scorpions were slaughtered, only the central battlefield remained without a conclusion.
The outer circle was shrinking once more as the scorpion swarm surged forward again.
This time, they pressed in desperately from all directions, and casualties began to appear among the Rock Snakes.
“Roar!!!”
The Scorpion King was ultimately stronger.
With a sharp screech, its dual pincers moved suddenly, pinning the Rock Snake King between them.
The tail hook behind its back curved upward slightly and then whipped forward, stabbing toward the Rock Snake King’s eyes.
It had learned its lesson; knowing it couldn’t break through the defense elsewhere, it began to target vulnerable vitals like the eyes and nose.
As for Yan Qingshan behind it, his several harassing attacks had only slightly cracked its shell, failing to break its defense or cause serious injury.
It had lowered its guard against this nimble ‘little bird,’ thinking that even if it were hit, the damage wouldn’t be too heavy.
“Assistance initiated.
Calculating scorpion tail trajectory, wind speed, distance…”
“Mad Lion’s Roar!!!”
Unfortunately, this Scorpion King had no way of knowing that humans possessed things called Dou Techniques.
After his probes, Yan Qingshan had determined the opponent’s defensive strength.
He accumulated Dou Qi in mid-air and, at the very moment the Scorpion King launched its attack and its defense slackened, he descended rapidly to execute the Mad Lion’s Roar.
The power of an incompletely charged Mad Lion’s Roar naturally didn’t reach its peak, but it was enough to shatter the Scorpion King’s defense.
A streak of purple light flashed by, and the Scorpion King’s tail was instantly severed.
Blood gushed from the wound like a fountain.
The intense pain and loss of balance caused its strength to falter, giving the Rock Snake King the perfect opportunity.
The Rock Snake King twisted its body to break free from the pincers.
Opening its maw wide, it bit directly onto the nearby scorpion head.
Venom and Monster Core energy were quickly injected into the Scorpion King’s wound through its fangs.
“Screech!!!”
The Yellow Sand Demonic Scorpion King let out a shrill, piteous wail, its body struggling frantically.
Sadly, Yan Qingshan—having landed—delivered the final blow.
Yan Qingshan retracted his wings and dropped to the ground.
From a height of over ten meters, he smashed onto the Scorpion King’s head using the Thousand-Jin Drop posture.
His deep green Dou Qi hit like a siege hammer, causing the Scorpion King’s carapace to crack and blood to explode outward.
This 2nd Rank Magical Beast finally failed to withstand the powerful impact of this last strike.
Its legs slipped, and its heavy body slammed into the ground.
After the continuous barrage of attacks, with shattered armor flying and blood flowing everywhere, the Scorpion King finally let out a final mourning cry amidst its tremors and died.
(End of Chapter)