Chapter 19: Snake Coming

In the pitch-black forest, a faint campfire flickered, casting a warm glow in the silent night.

Several people sat around the campfire, huddled together.

Yang Ye leaned against a large tree, occasionally poking at the fire with a stick. Through their previous conversation, Yang Ye had gained some understanding of the three individuals.

All three of them hailed from a city called Qingshan City, which was the closest city to the Sword Sect. Mǎnzi and Qīnghóng were siblings, born into a family of mercenaries that spanned several generations. They made a living by hunting and killing powerful beasts. As for the silent figure by their side, Xiǎohēi, it wasn't because he was cold-hearted but rather because he was mute.

"Brother Yáng, are you really not a disciple of any sect?" Mǎnzi asked curiously, his gaze fixed on Yang Ye.

Upon hearing Mǎnzi's question, both Xiǎohēi and Qīnghóng turned their attention to Yang Ye. It was undeniable that Yang Ye's display of splitting the Two-winged Serpent in half had left them amazed. Such strength was beyond the reach of ordinary cultivators or scions of minor families.

Thinking back to how they had asked Yang Ye to clean up the battlefield and the repeated taunting by Xiūyuǎn, the expressions on their faces grew heated.

"For now, I'm not," Yang Ye paused in his stick-poking and looked at the three of them. "By the way... What do you plan to do if you encounter your former teammate, Xiūyuǎn?"

At the mention of Xiūyuǎn's name, the expressions of the three turned grim.

Qīnghóng snorted disdainfully, her face showing no attempt to hide her contempt. "That guy, he joined us with impure intentions from the beginning. We thought he was just a bit arrogant, but we never expected him to be so cowardly, abandoning his teammates to save himself. The next time I see him, I'll shoot an arrow through his head!"

Watching the angry Qīnghóng, Yang Ye shook his head and smiled. It seemed that she was truly angered by Xiūyuǎn's act of desertion.

Mǎnzi sighed and said, "Let it go. We won't associate with someone like him anymore."

"Let it go?" Qīnghóng became even more furious. "Brother, if it weren't for Yang Ye just now, the three of us would have died under the attack of those Two-winged Serpents. How can we just let it go?"

Xiǎohēi, who had been silent with a gloomy expression, gripped his dagger and made a few random cuts through the air, expressing his displeasure with Xiūyuǎn in his own way.

Seeing the anger in the two of them, Mǎnzi sighed again and said, "I didn't mean we should just forget about it. When we return to Qingshan City, we can expose what Xiūyuǎn did to the public. Let's see who will let him join their team in the future."

At his words, both Mǎnzi and Xiǎohēi nodded. If they didn't express their stance, they would feel somewhat stifled. As Qīnghóng said, once Xiūyuǎn's actions were exposed, he would become a disgrace in the mercenary world of Qingshan City. After all, desertion and abandoning teammates were taboo in the mercenary realm.

in the mercenary realm.

"Is Qingshan City close to Anan City?" Yang Ye suddenly asked, breaking the silence.

The three of them were taken aback by Yang Ye's question. They wondered why he was asking. Mǎnzi smiled and replied, "Although we haven't been to Anan City ourselves, it shouldn't be far. We occasionally encounter mercenaries from Anan City who come to the Ten Thousand Serpent Forest for beast hunting." Mǎnzi glanced at Yang Ye and added, "Could it be that you're from Anan City?"

Yang Ye nodded and glanced at the three of them thoughtfully.

Seeing that Yang Ye didn't show further interest, the three of them tactfully refrained from asking more questions.

After a moment of silence, Mǎnzi began to feel something was off. He stood up and surveyed their surroundings. It was pitch black and eerily quiet. Furrowing his brows, he thought for a moment and then looked at the silent Xiǎohēi. "Xiǎohēi, let's go spread some beast king dung around the vicinity. It's too quiet here, something feels off."

Upon hearing this, Xiǎohēi nodded. The two of them headed towards a distant location.

While Yang Ye was lost in thought, Qīnghóng sat down beside him. As she looked at Yang Ye, a hint of a peculiar light flashed in her beautiful eyes. Yang Ye's slightly gaunt face, delicate features, and flowing black hair made him passable as a handsome young man. However, it was his strength that truly described him. Though he was only at the seventh rank of the Profound Realm, his power could be described as terrifying.

Qīnghóng felt a certain fondness for Yang Ye because his gaze towards her lacked the aggression of others. Throughout their journey, she had been taking care of him because of that, but it was when she saw him standing before her like a war god, splitting the Two-winged Serpent in half with a single sword strike, that she realized, at that moment, she felt something different for the young man in front of her.

In the Southern Domain, powerful individuals always attracted attention.

Sensing Qīnghóng's gaze upon him, Yang Ye turned his head and looked at her, teasingly saying, "Is there something on my face?"

Qīnghóng quickly averted her gaze, her cheeks slightly blushing. Fortunately, it was dark, so it wasn't visible. After a moment of silence, Qīnghóng looked at Yang Ye again and asked, "Little brother, with such formidable strength, why didn't you resist when we asked you to clean up the battlefield or when Xiūyuǎn repeatedly taunted you?"

Upon hearing this, Yang Ye smiled and said, "It's better to keep a low profile. If you have overwhelming strength, it's fine, but someone like me, there are countless individuals in the Ten Thousand Serpent Forest who are stronger than me. If I were to be high-profile, that would be truly seeking death." His year as a menial disciple had taught him many lessons. If someone with weak strength were to act arrogantly, it would indeed be suicidal. Just like Xu Guanshi and Du Xiu, if they had been more low-key on the Peak of Menial Disciples, they probably wouldn't have ended up in such a miserable state.

Qīnghóng's eyes flashed with surprise. Her years as a mercenary had exposed her to numerous talents, most of whom were arrogant and eager to show off their strength. However, the young man before her exhibited none of the arrogance typically found in talented disciples. Moreover, he understood the value of keeping a low profile.

His modesty and maturity truly surprised her.

After chatting for a while, everyone except Mǎnzi began to rest. Despite the presence of the beast king dung in the surroundings, Mǎnzi and the others didn't dare to let their guard down. They took turns keeping watch.

In the deep night, the dense forest was pitch black. The dim glow of the campfire in front of Yang Ye seemed eerie and terrifying in the silent darkness of the forest.

"Hiss..."

Suddenly, the once-quiet forest filled with hissing sounds. At first, there were only a few, but after a moment, they multiplied into what seemed like hundreds. After a while, it felt as if the entire forest was filled with hissing sounds!

Yang Ye and the others woke up as soon as the first hissing sound emerged. Yang Ye was about to get up, but Qīnghóng, who was beside him, placed her jade-like hand on his, shaking her head gently.

Seeing Qīnghóng's solemn expression, Yang Ye looked at Mǎnzi and Xiǎohēi, who had the same serious expression. They shook their heads, indicating that they shouldn't move. Yang Ye nodded slightly and sat back down, quietly observing the situation.

For a while, the four of them stood still like sculptures.

The hissing sounds didn't stop; instead, they grew more numerous. With the faint light from the campfire, they could see things wriggling all around them. Fortunately, the snakes didn't dare to approach them beyond the area where the beast king dung was spread. Otherwise, they would have been in grave danger.

Qīnghóng gripped Yang Ye's hand tightly, her forehead covered in cold sweat. Eventually, she closed her eyes, but the countless hissing sounds filled her with uncontrollable fear. She turned her fear into strength, vigorously kneading and squeezing Yang Ye's hand.

Even with Yang Ye's sturdy skin, he felt the pain. He glanced at Qīnghóng, who had her eyes tightly shut, a pale face, and a trembling body. Then he looked at Mǎnzi and Xiǎohēi, who were in the same state. Yang Ye furrowed his brows, knowing that if they continued like this, they would surely be overwhelmed by the oppressive atmosphere. They were fine as long as they didn't move, but once they did, the snakes around them would surge like a tide.

At that moment, their chances of survival would be slim.

"Calm down, stay calm!"

Thinking of the scene where they would be besieged by countless snakes, Yang Ye forced himself to remain calm. He knew that this situation was something they hadn't encountered before. Otherwise, they wouldn't have chosen to rest in the Ten Thousand Serpent Forest. Since it had never happened before but was happening now, it meant that they had somehow provoked these snakes.

"Provoked these snakes?"

With that thought, Yang Ye furrowed his brow and tried to figure it out.

"Swoosh, swoosh..."

Just then, the snakes disregarded the beast king's dung and surged toward Yang Ye and the others wave after wave...