Ferdican

After walking for an unknown distance, the scenery ahead became progressively darker, as if they were trapped in an endless cycle or simply walking in circles.

As the light dimmed, their fear grew. Only five minutes ago, they could clearly see the branches and leaves of the Twisted Jungle behind them, but now it had transformed into a pitch-black, twisted curtain.

The once-visible trees and foliage had vanished into an impenetrable darkness.

[Ding! 15 minutes left!]

After five minutes had passed, time seemed to blur by like an arrow's flight. Suddenly, they both felt their pace slow down, and their feet weighed down as if something was pulling them down.

"Stop! I finally figured it out!" Bai Han exclaimed in the darkness. With no visibility, fear was creeping up on them. They could barely see each other's outlines in the pitch-black darkness.

"The ground beneath us is not soil or cement anymore," he continued.

"What do you mean?" Lin Yuwei asked in confusion.

"We're on quicksand! That's why we're slowing down," Bai Han replied, taking out his Vampiric Void Staff. It was designed to absorb blood and other substances. He faced the sand in front of him and began absorbing it fiercely.

A miracle occurred at that moment. A path started to form in the twisted jungle before them!

[Ding! Congratulations, you have found the entrance to the quest.]

[I will now reveal the details of the special mission to you.]

[Please find at least one creature from the Fertican Mystic Realm!]

[There is only one clue for this mission. Please carefully contemplate the following information.]

[Hint: Ferdican is the guardian of a mysterious creature in the mystic realm. His lifespan is short, and it is crucial that you do not harm him. Killing Ferdican would result in the disappearance of all the creatures in the mystical realm.]

This hint seemed useless, but upon careful consideration, this hint was found to be very significant.

Ferdican was not a living being, but rather a location or area in the mystical realm.

This place was created specifically to protect the mysterious creatures, but the hint suggested that its lifespan was short. This implied that the guardians of this place had a limited lifespan, possibly due to the influence of the organism they were protecting.

The hint also indicated that the mystical realm creature and its guardian were inextricably linked, and killing the guardian would result in the disappearance of the creatures. Thus, they had to find a non-violent approach to obtain the creature.

With this clue in mind, they ventured deeper into the Twisted Jungle and discovered that the interior was vastly different from the outside of the mystical realm.

Before proceeding further, they checked their current attributes and information, hoping to be prepared for any potentially terrifying dangers that lay ahead.

[Name: Bai Han]

[Class: Priest]

[Level: 8 (933/1100)]

[Constitution: 85 (+29)]

[Spirit: 90 (+28)]

[Strength: 113 (+39)]

[Intelligence: 87 (+20)]

[Agility: 89 (+38)]

[Health Points: 3480 (+1000)]

[Mana Points: 4300 (+2000)]

[Luck: 30]

Bai Han swiftly checked his attribute panel, finding it satisfactory for withstanding some attacks and situations.

Lin Yuwei nodded in agreement after glancing at her own attributes.

The twisted forest ahead took on a more solid appearance, with branches visibly straightening from their previously contorted state. However, the branches appeared petrified rather than wooden, with a different color.

Bai Han thought of the term "petrification" and considered a seemingly ridiculous creature that could cause such an effect. But, how could there be such a creature in this place?

Casting away his doubts and suspicions, he continued to advance.

"Bang! Hiss hiss-!"

The ground ruptured as a massive cobra, larger than any python they had seen, burst forth, blocking their path and transforming the previously open route into a sheer cliff.

They now had to confront the colossal serpent in their way.

[Monster: Awakened Mother Cobra]

[Health Points: 2800]

[Attack Power: 260]

[Level: 10]

[Skill: Its intimidating size and appearance instill fear in anyone

who lays eyes on it. The cobra possesses an incredibly potent binding ability

that resists magical attempts to break free. Once the cobra encircles its prey,

it creates a formidable barrier that is nearly impenetrable.

During this process, the mother cobra summons smaller cobras to attack relentlessly until the prey within the barrier is exhausted. Each time the smaller cobras bite, their venom inflicts a permanent reduction of one point on the target's attributes until they fall to zero, rendering them a cripple.]

Hence, the strategy to defeat it was straightforward - prevent it from creating the barrier. And regardless of the snake's species, its weak spot always remained at seven inches below its head.

"You have an idea how to defeat this thing, right?"

"But such a huge python, how can I shoot at that vital spot seven inches below its head?"

"Don't forget that this is a cobra. Its weak spot is more obvious than a python's. I will attract its attention and make it use all means to surround me with a barrier.

"I'm sure this is the entrance to Fertican, and this very large cobra must be guarding the entrance. It doesn't want us to enter Fertican."

As he spoke, Bai Han ingested a Golden Fruit to boost his agility. As the cobra was enormous, Bai Han knew that increasing his agility could only improve his speed and not his climbing ability.

Nevertheless, he had to climb onto the cobra's body to accurately stab its weak spot.

However, doing so would be extremely perilous, since even a slight shake could send him plummeting down the cliff at the entrance.

Death seemed inevitable, but he had to take the risk to defeat the cobra and continue his journey.