Chapter 98: The Serpent Soul
Han Ming and the veiled woman stared each other down, neither daring to make the first move.
Han Ming wasn’t foolish enough to think the larva could handle the veiled woman. Her strength far surpassed that of the snake guard he had faced earlier. Not only could she potentially kill the larva with some unknown method, but the larva’s crawling speed—no faster than a running human—was no match for her agility. Besides, he had no intention of using the larva against her.
“So, what’s it going to be? I’ll give you one last chance. Let me and the human women go, and we’ll call it even. Otherwise…”
The veiled woman trembled with rage. When had she ever been threatened by someone she considered as insignificant as an ant?
“Otherwise what? You think that little bug can intimidate me?”
Han Ming chuckled. “I wouldn’t go that far. But you must have plenty of snake clansmen here, right? While my little friend might not be able to touch you, it can certainly wreak havoc on your kin. How does that sound?”
The veiled woman’s eyes blazed with fury. “Let’s see if you live long enough to give that order!” With a swift leap, she lunged at Han Ming, her body now adorned with three massive green tails that lashed violently, sending a barrage of venomous needles hurtling toward him.
“You asked for it! Go!” Han Ming gritted his teeth, his patience worn thin. If she wanted a fight, he’d give her one.
The larva, obeying his command, scurried out of the hall toward the snake clansmen outside.
“I’ll kill you first! Once you’re dead, that little pest won’t obey anyone!” the veiled woman shrieked.
Han Ming retreated quickly, swinging his massive battle axe to deflect the incoming needles. The clash sent a deafening *clang* through the air as the needles scattered.
The woman closed the distance in an instant, her hand glowing with a swirling orb of combat aura that enveloped her entire body. Han Ming leaned back at a sharp angle, his axe slashing toward her waist.
*Boom!*
The axe collided with her aura, sending a shockwave through the hall. The impact knocked the woman slightly off course, but the recoil nearly tore the axe from Han Ming’s grip.
*Her defensive aura is insane!* Han Ming thought, stunned. His strength was enough to shatter boulders, yet her aura had nearly disarmed him.
The veiled woman, aware of Han Ming’s formidable combat skills, had wisely enveloped herself in a protective aura. While it drained her energy, she didn’t care. With her four-stage, fifth-tier combat soul, she had more than enough power to spare.
Han Ming, after their initial exchange, realized the woman’s strength was at the fifth tier of the combat soul realm—a level far beyond his own.
“Old man, what do I do when my opponent is overwhelmingly stronger than me?” Han Ming recalled asking Li Xiaotian.
“Do you have any divine weapons?” Li Xiaotian had replied.
“What if I don’t?”
“Then run. If the gap is too wide, you can’t win. Martial arts can enhance your strength, but they won’t make you invincible. If you don’t run, you’re just waiting to die.”
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
Han Ming agreed with the old man’s wisdom. Against such overwhelming power, victory was impossible.
But as for divine weapons, Han Ming did have one—the Cyan Rainbow Sword. He wasn’t sure if it qualified as a divine weapon, but it was the best he had. The battle axe, while sturdy, was just a heavy weapon with no special abilities.
Thinking quickly, Han Ming swapped his axe for the Cyan Rainbow Sword.
Outside the hall, the screams of snake clansmen echoed through the air. Some were fleeing in terror, while others cried out in agony as they fell.
*It’s begun,* Han Ming thought.
Inside the hall, the bodies of slain snake clansmen lay scattered. Han Ming wasn’t sure if their blood was still fresh enough, but he had to try. He stabbed the Cyan Rainbow Sword into one of the corpses, narrowly dodging a stream of venom the woman spat at him.
The venom hit the ground, sizzling and corroding the stone floor into a smoking crater.
Han Ming shuddered at the venom’s potency but didn’t stop moving. He pulled the sword free, and it began to hum, its blade glowing with a faint red light. The glow wasn’t as intense as when he had slain the Red Moon Beast, but it was enough.
*The fresher the blood, the stronger the sword’s power,* Han Ming realized.
The veiled woman, seeing the strange sword in Han Ming’s hand, grew cautious. She unleashed her beast soul—a massive green serpent that emerged from her combat aura.
Han Ming nearly fell backward at the sight. The serpent’s head alone was nearly as tall as the ten-meter-high ceiling, its glowing eyes the size of Han Ming’s body, and its fangs over a meter long.
“This is the five-stage Viper Beast Soul, passed down through generations of our snake clan. It’s why we’ve survived in the Wild Desert without being overrun by the other territories. You’d better surrender now,” the woman sneered.
*Other territories?* Han Ming’s mind raced. *So the Wild Desert, Wild Ice Plains, Wild Ancient Forest, Wild Storm, and Wild Fire Prison each have their own rulers?*
The serpent’s massive head lunged at Han Ming, its jaws wide open.
Han Ming swung the Cyan Rainbow Sword, releasing a crescent-shaped red energy wave that collided with the serpent’s head.
*Boom!*
The impact shook the hall, but the serpent only tilted its head slightly before striking again.
Han Ming leaped aside just as the serpent’s head crashed into the ground, collapsing part of the hall. He rolled to his feet, stabbing the sword into another corpse to recharge it, then bolted through a side door, layering two ice shields around himself.
The serpent’s tail swept through the hall, splitting it in two and slamming into Han Ming as he emerged outside.
Han Ming grunted in pain, blood spraying from his mouth as he was thrown to the ground. He felt at least two ribs crack from the blow. Some of his blood splattered onto the Cyan Rainbow Sword, causing it to glow brighter than ever before. The red light enveloped a five-meter radius around him.
*My blood, infused with the Seed of Life, must be amplifying the sword’s power!* Han Ming realized.
The serpent reared up, its massive body breaking through what remained of the hall. Han Ming, seeing the serpent’s head towering above him, swung the sword with all his might. A blinding crescent of red energy shot toward the serpent.
The serpent lunged again, its speed terrifying. Snakes were often slow, but when they struck, their speed was unmatched. Han Ming barely saw the movement before the serpent’s head collided with the red energy wave.
*Boom!*
The collision created a shockwave that flattened the surrounding buildings. Han Ming was thrown backward, tumbling across the ground.
The serpent’s head bore a deep gash from the sword’s energy, but it quickly healed. After all, the serpent was made of combat aura, not flesh and blood.
The veiled woman, however, wasn’t focused on Han Ming. Her attention was on her fleeing clansmen. The red larva was cutting through them like a scythe, leaving a trail of bodies in its wake. Some clansmen tried to fight back, but the larva was too quick, using their attacks to propel itself into the heart of the fleeing crowd.
The woman’s eyes twitched as she watched her people fall. The snake clan was already small in number, and this massacre was more than she could bear. Over a hundred clansmen had already died.
The serpent, hearing the woman’s enraged scream, turned its attention to the larva. Its massive tail slammed into the ground, sending shockwaves through the earth.
Han Ming, even from a distance, was thrown into the air by the impact. He landed hard, his body aching.
*Is the larva okay?* Han Ming worried, but he couldn’t see clearly from so far away.
The serpent lifted its tail and struck again, collapsing more buildings. Han Ming felt a flicker of relief. If the serpent was attacking again, it meant the larva was still alive.
*That little guy’s tougher than I thought.*