Chapter 33

Chapter Thirty-Three: Venomous Snake

After introducing Iron Tower to his senior brother Changyang Hu, Jianchen started chatting with him. They continued talking until Vice Principal Bai En arrived, at which point they separated.

Subsequently, Vice Principal Bai En gave a speech and cleaned all the students, temporarily confiscating their spatial belts and spatial rings to prevent anyone from using magic cores from their spatial items to cheat. Then, he distributed a low-grade spatial belt to each student. These belts were not very valuable on the Tianyuan Continent and were quite common, so the academy could provide over a thousand of them at once.

The space in these belts was very small, only one square meter, but it was sufficient for storing magic cores. Each belt also contained some healing medicines.

After all preparations were complete, over a thousand students left Kagas Academy in a grand procession, heading towards a forest twenty miles away. Dozens of teachers accompanied them, tasked with dispersing throughout the forest to rescue any students in danger. The leader of the group was Vice Principal Bai En.

After leaving the academy, the group gradually increased their speed. Even though they were not traveling at full speed, they were still quite fast, as the weakest among them had reached eighty percent of the Saint level.

After two hours of travel, the group finally reached the outskirts of the forest. Here, everyone could clearly see that the entire forest was enveloped in a faint white glow.

Jianchen looked at the forest ahead, which was shrouded in a faint white light, with a sense of curiosity. He had read a lot of books in the library and was well aware of the history of this forest.

Three hundred years ago, this place was a barren wasteland covered in wild grass, with no forest at all. It was only after the then-president of Kagas Academy mobilized thousands of people and spent a whole year that this area was developed into a forest, albeit a relatively small one. Despite this, the forest covered nearly fifty kilometers. Over the following hundred years, it gradually transformed into a primitive forest.

Once the forest was fully formed, President Bune of Kagas Academy personally spent three days and nights setting up a massive barrier to enclose the entire forest, dividing it into three zones, each protected by a powerful barrier. He then introduced some low-level, highly reproductive magical beasts into the forest for the students to train with.

President Bune had put in a lot of effort to cultivate more talents for the Garsen Kingdom, though the Bune at that time was not the current president of Kagas Academy.

At this moment, Vice Principal Bai En's calm voice echoed from the front: "Students, from now on, you must stay in the forest for three days and submit at least two magic cores to pass. If you leave the forest midway or fail to submit two magic cores, you will be considered a failure and will not receive any rewards." His voice was clearly heard by every student present.

"Now, everyone will split up. Students who have not yet reached the Saint level can team up and hunt magical beasts in the second zone. Students who have reached the Saint level should head to the third zone."

The group gradually dispersed, and Changyang Xiangtian and Iron Tower naturally walked together. Since the barrier was only effective against magical beasts, they entered without any hindrance.

Upon entering the barrier, Jianchen and Iron Tower found themselves in the first zone, where the magical beasts were not very strong, not even reaching the first level. On the Tianyuan Continent, such creatures were typically called beasts, as only those reaching the first level were considered magical beasts.

With over a thousand students together, even the most ferocious beasts dared not cause trouble, so the journey was very peaceful. Soon, they crossed another barrier and entered the second zone, where all the inhabitants were first-level magical beasts. For those who had not yet reached the Saint level, even these low-level magical beasts posed a significant threat.

After entering the second zone, Jianchen and Iron Tower separated from the group and headed deeper into the dense forest. The area was covered in tall grass, making it difficult to see the path. Only the tracks left by large magical beasts on the ground were visible.

"Changyang Xiangtian, we might encounter magical beasts at any moment. We must be careful and not let our guard down," Iron Tower said sternly. Having grown up hunting beasts in the forest, he was well aware of the dangers and knew that a single mistake could be fatal.

Jianchen's face showed a hint of confidence as he said calmly, "Don't worry. Even if you encounter danger, I might not." With the memories of his past life, Jianchen could not be judged by ordinary standards. In his previous life, he had spent a lot of time in the wilderness, and his experience in surviving in the forest was even richer than Iron Tower's. Additionally, he had read many books in the library, including a lot of content on surviving in the magical beast forest.

Iron Tower tightened his grip on his giant axe and looked around the dense grass with a vigilant gaze. "Although I have killed many beasts before, I have never killed a first-level magical beast. They are powerful magical beasts at the Saint level, and even a Saint with a holy weapon might not be able to kill one. I wonder if we can kill a first-level magical beast if we encounter one. After all, they can run, and we won't be able to catch them here."

Jianchen chuckled. "Iron Tower, do you really have so little confidence in your own strength?"

Iron Tower's face turned slightly red, and he scratched his head, saying honestly, "No, I have a lot of confidence in my strength. My teacher said that with my current strength, I can defeat an ordinary Saint. But I have never killed a first-level magical beast, or even seen one..."

Just as Iron Tower said this, Jianchen's expression turned serious, and he immediately stopped Iron Tower from speaking further. His eyes flashed with a sharp light as he scanned the surroundings.

Noticing Jianchen's sudden change in demeanor, Iron Tower immediately sensed the danger and became cautious, his sharp eyes scanning the dense grass around them.

Jianchen scanned the area with a sharp gaze, but the tall grass, which had grown thick over the years, completely blocked his view, and he could see nothing.

Jianchen lightly gripped his iron rod and closed his eyes. His ears twitched slightly as he listened carefully to the sounds around him.

After a few breaths, Jianchen's eyes suddenly snapped open, and two sharp glints flashed in his eyes. He took a step forward, and his rusty iron rod, glowing with a brownish-yellow light, shot out at lightning speed.

At the same time, a green branch suddenly sprang from the grass, shooting towards Jianchen at an incredible speed.

In mid-air, Jianchen's iron rod collided with the green branch. The branch was momentarily halted, and the tip of the iron rod pierced into its body.

At this moment, they realized that the branch was actually a green venomous snake, as thick as an adult's arm, with the visible part of its body already two meters long.

At this moment, a strong wind whistled past Jianchen's ear as Iron Tower swung his giant axe with a piercing sound, aiming at the green venomous snake.

The giant axe struck the snake's body with great force, sending it flying nearly ten meters away before it landed with a soft thud. However, due to the dense grass, it was difficult to see even five meters away, let alone ten.

"Quick, we can't let it hide," Jianchen understood the situation. As soon as he spoke, he dashed in the direction the snake had flown, knowing that if the snake managed to hide, it would cause them significant trouble. In this environment, every step they took would brush against countless blades of grass, and it would be difficult to see what was underfoot. Defending against a prepared venomous snake would be very challenging.

Without hesitation, Iron Tower followed Jianchen's direction and quickly caught up. When he reached Jianchen, he saw that Jianchen had stopped, and three meters away, the venomous snake was raising its head, its cold eyes staring at them, its tongue flicking out.

The snake, with its head raised to a height of one and a half meters, had two wounds on its body, one a deep, bone-deep hole left by Jianchen, and the other a long gash from Iron Tower's axe, which had cut through its body, causing flesh to tear and blood to flow.

Jianchen watched the snake cautiously. Although it was a relatively weak species, it was still a first-level magical beast, with strength comparable to a Saint who had condensed a holy weapon.

Iron Tower also watched the snake with a serious expression, his hands trembling with tension as he gripped his giant axe, ready to strike with full force.

After a moment of tension, Jianchen finally moved. The three-meter distance was almost negligible to him. His body flickered, and he was already two meters away from the snake. His iron rod, whistling through the air, shot out at a speed that was hard to see, aiming for the snake's vital point.

The snake let out a hoarse hiss and deftly shifted its body to avoid the fatal blow. Despite this, the rusty iron rod still pierced deep into its body, piercing through it and emerging from the other side.

"Hisss!" The intense pain made the green venomous snake let out a hoarse hiss, its mouth opening wide.

"Hey!" Iron Tower was not slow either. He swung his giant axe with all his might, striking the snake's head with a powerful blow.

Iron Tower's axe swept across the snake's head, sending a fist-sized snake head flying high into the air, splattering blood everywhere. The severed part of the green body spurted blood like a fountain, instantly turning the surrounding grass red.

---

(End of Chapter)