Dashing Student

Chen Nan stood at the cave entrance, took a deep breath, and the True Qi within him surged like a river, wildly circulating through his meridians.

Then, resolutely, he entered the cave.

A cold and damp air rushed at him, mixed with a nauseating stench, the residue of the giant serpent's long occupation.

"Beast, come out and meet your death!"

Chen Nan shouted fiercely, his voice echoed through the deep cave, causing waves of reverberation.

He formed a hand seal with his right hand, and a ball of scorching True Qi gathered in his left palm, ready to strike at any moment.

Almost as soon as the sound rang out, two crimson lights suddenly lit up in the darkness — the eyes of the Single-horned Xuan Python!

Those vertical pupils, like two blood lamps in the darkness, exuded a cold and ruthless shine.

Immediately, a rustling sound came from afar, the massive body of the python slithered out from the depths of the cave, each scale scraping against the ground with a teeth-grating noise.

"Hiss—"

The giant serpent flicked its crimson tongue, the forked end vibrating rapidly in the air, capturing the scent of its prey.

It recognized Chen Nan, the prey that had escaped its grasp before, with a flash of human-like anger in its cold vertical pupils.

Chen Nan dared not slack, and without a word, struck out with his palm.

This palm strike contained seventy percent of his strength, the terrifying True Qi roared toward the giant serpent's vital spot like towering waves.

For a moment, the air appeared to twist!

Yet the giant serpent displayed astonishing agility, its bulky body twisting like flowing water, easily dodging the strike.

Simultaneously, its tail, as thick as a barrel, whooshed horizontally with such speed that it left afterimages in the air!

"Bang!"

Chen Nan crossed his arms to block hurriedly, but was still hit so hard that he staggered back several steps, leaving deep imprints in the hard rock beneath his feet.

The severe pain from his arms made him inhale sharply, his entire arm numbed and trembling from the incredible force.

"This creature's strength is too formidable; even though I've reached the Third Layer of the Foundation Establishment Stage, I still stand no chance!" Chen Nan was shocked inside; this beast's power was more terrifying than he had imagined.

Without much thought, Chen Nan attacked again.

He stepped with the Seven Star Step, his figure ghost-like as he weaved through the cave, while his palms struck consecutively, sending wave after wave of terrifying palm strikes like rain towards the giant serpent.

Though he knew he was no match for the giant serpent, what he needed to do was anger it, and only then could he lure the serpent out of the cave!

The giant serpent, enraged by the continuous attacks, let out a thunderous hiss.

Its massive body suddenly accelerated, pouncing towards Chen Nan like a black lightning bolt, while spitting a jet of dark green toxic mist, which instantly filled the entire cave.

Chen Nan quickly held his breath, simultaneously circulating True Qi to form a shield on his body surface.

The toxic mist, upon contact with the shield, produced a sizzling corrosive sound, thinning the shield at a rate visible to the naked eye.

He did not dare to prolong the battle, battling while retreating, moving toward the cave entrance.

In the subsequent dozens of exchanges, Chen Nan deliberately feigned weakness.

He sometimes pretended his True Qi was insufficient, his movements slowed; sometimes he feigned being hit by the serpent's tail, letting out a pained grunt.

To make his act more convincing, he even allowed the serpent's tail to graze his shoulder, leaving a bloody mark.

The giant serpent indeed took the bait, its attacks growing even more aggressive, pressing step by step.

Its crimson eyes shone brighter with excitement, its bulky body twisting madly in the cave, sending shards of rock flying from the walls it crashed into.

"It's time!"

When he retreated to near the cave entrance, Chen Nan suddenly stumbled, dropping to one knee, gasping, with beads of sweat as big as beans on his forehead, appearing exhausted.

His chest heaved violently, his face as pale as paper, and even his Protective True Qi flickered.

Seeing this, the giant serpent's ferocity surged in its eyes, and it opened its bloody maw to strike!

Its sharp fangs, each half a foot long, shone a ghostly blue under the sunlight, obviously laced with venom.

The foul breath came rushing at him; Chen Nan could even see the muscles in the python's throat wriggling.

At that critical moment, Chen Nan sprang up like a carp, his body bouncing off the ground like a spring, narrowly evading the deadly strike.

The python's fangs grazed his clothing, corroding several large holes in the fabric.

"That was close!" Chen Nan exclaimed inwardly, then dashed out of the cave without looking back, his figure like an arrow loosed from a bow, fleeing toward the predetermined direction.

Behind him came deafening hisses and the crashing of trees, the giant serpent thoroughly enraged, its massive body writhing in pursuit.

Everywhere its massive body passed, trees as thick as bowls snapped like straw, and the ground was churned into deep furrows.

The giant serpent's speed far exceeded expectation, closing in on Chen Nan, less than ten zhang behind him in the blink of an eye!

Hidden in a nearby grove, Lin Qingzhu held her breath, witnessing everything.

She saw Chen Nan in constant danger, cold sweat already pooling in her palms.

But now was not the time for worrying; she had to seize the opportunity Chen Nan had risked his life to create.

Once the giant serpent had chased far enough, Lin Qingzhu immediately leapt from her hiding spot, her figure streaking into the cave like lightning.

Her movements were as light as a swallow, not making a single sound.

The lighting in the cave was dim, but she had prepared a Luminous Pearl, its gentle glow lighting her path, and she quickly found the stone platform.

The stone platform was located in a natural stone chamber deep in the cave, jade-like and exuding a faint spiritual light.

Sitting silently on top was indeed a silver-glimmering Primordial Heaven Order!

The Token was about palm-sized, with the ancient characters Primordial Heaven carved on the front, and a landscape pattern on the back, vaguely pulsating with Spiritual Power.

"Got it!" Lin Qingzhu rejoiced inwardly, quickly putting the Token into her bag and flying toward the cave entrance.

As soon as she exited the cave, she saw smoke and dust rolling in the distant forest, trees falling in swathes — Chen Nan was indeed leading the giant serpent around in circles.

Even from this distance, she could see several striking wounds on Chen Nan's body, his white clothes stained with blood.

Yet his movements remained agile, sometimes using trees to block the serpent, sometimes abruptly changing direction, causing the serpent to miss repeatedly.

"Young Master Chen, got it!" Lin Qingzhu shouted, exerting True Qi to project her voice, while raising the Primordial Heaven Order high, its silver light dazzling in the moonlight.

Hearing this, Chen Nan was overjoyed and immediately changed his strategy.

He suddenly made a sharp turn, breaking away from the serpent's pursuit, fully exerting his movement technique to close in on Lin Qingzhu.

His figure flitted through the forest like a ghost, each step leaving a deep footprint in the ground, demonstrating astonishing explosiveness.

The giant serpent, seeing its prey about to escape, hissed in rage and pursued relentlessly.

Its massive body crushed through the underbrush, flattening everything in its path to the ground.

Its crimson eyes grew even redder with fury, and corrosive venom dripped continuously from its fangs, withering the grass and trees wherever it passed.

"Go!"

Once the two of them reunited, Chen Nan grabbed Lin Qingzhu's hand and dashed deeper into the dense woods.