.....
The demonic serpent lunged with astonishing speed, like a massive whip striking down on its enemy. Its open maw radiated tongues of fire, and its colossal body twisted through the dark waters. The sheer force of its attacks was beyond description.. yet it wasn't enough to overwhelm the three cultivators who had formed a tightly coordinated defensive formation.
"Swift Assault Formation!" one of them shouted, raising his hands into the air. Dark lines of light erupted, slicing through the air and coiling around their bodies like iron chains. These lines were laced with shards of deathly Qi, unified in power and synchronization.
The ominous aura surrounding them briefly receded.. but they were now enclosed in a circle of united force. One of them, wielding a long spear, launched an immediate attack, dashing toward the serpent.
"Now!" he shouted, reinforcing the assault with the Cutting Wind Technique, aiming straight at the beast's heart.
At that exact moment, the second cultivator at the rear activated a chained attack. His flying sword, charged with the Swift Wind Technique, tore through the air like lightning. It struck the serpent's body, piercing one of its black scales and leaving a blazing mark behind.
A moment of silence.. then a burst of fury. The waters surged violently, and a massive wave of Blood Qi erupted, amplifying the previous strike on the serpent and engulfing all of them.
"Yes! We hit it!" one of the cultivators yelled, laughing wickedly.
But the demonic lake serpent, now coiled in a deadly spiral, let out a devastating roar that ripped through the air and echoed across the heavens. Flames burst from its mouth, raining down deathly dust, followed by a destructive wave of energy that swept across everything.
"Damn it!" shouted the cultivator who had launched the sword attack, hastily retreating to escape the catastrophic counterstrike.
"Fall back now!" came the voice of the third cultivator, surfing the waves with his spear. But he was trapped, unable to escape.
Despite the serpent's overwhelming threat, something strange was stirring in the deep waters. The battle with the serpent and the cultivators was about to evolve into something more deceptive and fluid.
While they focused on the beast, none noticed that Jiji.. who had been watching from behind the rocks.. had vanished. In a blink, he had dived into the lake.
Unnoticed, the waters around them began to shift. Jiji sank swiftly, slipping deep into the dark depths of the lake with cunning, aiming for the location of the Bloodheart Flower.
Now submerged, Jiji struggled to breathe while riding the current. The depths were cold, dark.. the risk immense.
This was the true battle Jiji was meant to fight.
..
The battle intensified, turning the lake into a terrifying arena of chaos. The demonic serpent coiled its immense body and opened its enormous jaws with a thunderous screech.
A dark, chilling aura laced with corrupted Qi suddenly poured from its mouth. Like a freezing mist, it surged toward the cultivators at lightning speed. They couldn't react in time.
The frontmost cultivator tried to retreat, but the aura struck him with incredible speed. He had no time to defend himself.. his body was electrocuted, then instantly frozen, as the icy Qi penetrated every cell of his being.
"No!" cried the other as he watched his brother freeze solid before collapsing lifelessly into the water.
The frozen cultivator quickly vanished beneath the lake's surface, as if the waters had devoured him savagely.
The remaining two, still holding the formation, stood in stunned silence. They had expected a fierce battle.. but not one this swift or lethal.
"How? How did this happen?!" muttered one, staring at the waters, now darker and deeper than ever. He was the strongest of the trio, yet powerless before the sudden assault.
"We shouldn't have come near it…" whispered the other, retreating in fear.
While the two cultivators wrestled the demonic serpent, the scene from afar looked like utter chaos.. relentless attacks and a sky full of corrupted Qi, like a deadly storm. But just then, as all eyes were locked on the fight, Jiji emerged suddenly from the depths.. right in front of the Bloodheart Flower.
In that instant, everything stopped. The serpent halted its strikes. The two cultivators froze, sensing something unusual.
The Bloodheart Flower, now fully open before Jiji, began to pulse.. as if it had been waiting for him. Its crimson petals shimmered like they were coated in fresh blood, moving strangely, sensing Jiji's presence. His glowing eyes locked onto the flower with sharp focus.
At that moment, the demonic serpent, still reeling from the cultivators' attacks, sensed something wrong. Its enormous body twisted in panic, letting out a horrifying scream from deep within.. as though it sensed a threat to its very existence. It turned to the Bloodheart Flower and saw Jiji standing directly in front of it.
"What is that rat doing here?!" the short cultivator yelled, launching dark Qi toward Jiji.
"Watch out! He's trying to take the flower!" another shouted.
But Jiji paid no mind to their screams. His eyes remained fixed on the flower. A strange surge of power overwhelmed him as he approached. He feared no attack. This was his only chance to change his fate in this world.
Sensing true danger, the serpent launched itself upward, diving toward Jiji with incredible speed.
But Jiji was ready. He reached out, grabbed the flower, and plucked it in a single motion.
The demonic serpent roared as it surged across the water's surface, leaving a massive, terrifying wave behind. Its massive body tore through the lake with terrifying speed, eyes blazing with hatred and rage.
One cultivator screamed, "Damn it! That crazed beast is going to beat us to him!"
The other growled furiously, "Hand over the flower, you filthy rat.. or we'll shatter your soul into dust!"
Jiji didn't look back. He didn't stop for even a second. In his eyes, there was only one goal.. escape to the opposite shore of the lake.
The serpent drew closer, leaping with its massive body in a terrifying arc, mouth wide open, ready to swallow Jiji whole..
Then, in a decisive moment:
BOOM!!
A column of black flame erupted from Jiji's foot as he stomped on the lake's surface, launching himself forward at unbelievable speed.. like a red meteor streaking across the sky over the water.
Everyone was stunned.. even the serpent recoiled in confusion.
It was an escape technique Jiji had learned from the memories of the body's original owner.
Even he was shocked at how well he had executed it.. the original memories were never this strong.
One cultivator whispered in disbelief: "Impossible.. That's not fourth-layer Qi…"
Jiji kept running, and in his hand, the Bloodheart Flower emitted an aura so tempting, even dead souls would crave it.
..
••••
End of Chapter