Chapter 40

New day, you know. ^_^

Zhao Lingxuan suddenly became anxious again. The Fifth Transformation Spirit Rhinoceros had fought with Little Ling, and at this moment...

The Fire Phoenix was clearly extremely vigilant, but it had no strength left. The Fifth Transformation Spirit Rhinoceros was approaching step by step, and Wang Meng was trying to figure out how to deal with this rhinoceros. Fifth Transformation, tough skin, and no obvious weak points—this was exactly the type of opponent Wang Meng least wanted to face.

Zhao Lingxuan closed her eyes; she couldn't bear to imagine the monster stepping on Little Ling.

"Hey, hey, girl, your roasted chicken is fine, but we're in trouble!"

Zhao Lingxuan's face turned pale, her mind blank. "Wha... What should we do?"

"Next time, bring more magical treasures when you go out. I really don't know what kind of parents let a child run around with just a wasteful bird like this." Wang Meng gripped the broken blade tightly. This was likely to be a fierce battle, and it was hard to say who would win.

What Wang Meng feared the least were soul spells, followed by ordinary spells. What he hated the most were these mindless, brute-force, and tough-skinned creatures, especially the Spirit Rhinoceros he was familiar with.

Wang Meng stood in front of Zhao Lingxuan, blocking the sunlight. At that moment, all Zhao Lingxuan could see was his broad and reliable back.

As the Fifth Transformation Spirit Rhinoceros approached step by step, Wang Meng felt a bit strange, a sense of familiarity.

The golden monster, as big as a small mountain, suddenly charged over, the ground rumbling. Behind him, the little girl let out a deafening "No!"

After a long while, there was no movement. Zhao Lingxuan, peeking through her fingers, found that the massive creature was squatting on the ground, allowing Wang Meng to pat its head.

"Haha, little guy, you're much stronger than your father."

Wang Meng felt a pleasant surprise. In his previous life in the Small Thousand World, he had a Spirit Rhinoceros that had reached the Ninth Transformation, invulnerable to blades and fire.

The familiarity of the little guy came from the inheritance. It was most likely the descendant of that Spirit Rhinoceros. Once a spirit beast recognizes its master, its loyalty is unparalleled, unwavering until death, just like the Fire Phoenix and Zhao Lingxuan, who would die to protect their master. Although it was a generation apart, the Ninth Transformation Spirit Rhinoceros, being nearly a divine beast, had passed down the master's contract. The Fifth Transformation Spirit Rhinoceros had sensed the strong aura of the divine presence and had come here, perhaps out of the spirit beast's persistence.

The Fire Phoenix, seeing the danger pass, returned to its normal state, its form rapidly shrinking. Wang Meng's gaze casually swept over, and when he saw the Fire Phoenix's eyes, they widened.

He suddenly sprang up, "Eightfold!"

"You finally found me, don't think your long feathers can fool me. I'd recognize you even if you turned to ashes!"

The Fire Phoenix quickly flew into Zhao Lingxuan's arms, her innocent face showing a charming and pitiful expression. "Senior Brother, please don't bully Little Ling Ling. She's injured."

Wang Meng, despite his thick skin, was a man. Under the pure gaze, he couldn't help but scratch his head. "Look at my memory, that Eightfold is a little broken sparrow demon, and this roasted chicken... Fire Phoenix is a spirit beast. I made a mistake, I made a mistake."

"Thank you, Senior Brother, for saving my life." Zhao Lingxuan bowed, her small figure and gentle expression truly melting the hardest of hearts.

But Wang Meng, being a man who didn't understand romance, said, "Alright, no need to be so formal. Hurry up and go, or your Fire Phoenix will really end up as roasted chicken." Wang Meng shook his head, knowing in his heart that this Fire Phoenix was most likely Eightfold. No wonder it ran away; it was a misunderstanding.

Zhao Lingxuan was stunned, unable to understand for a long time. Did this man have eyes? Here was such a beautiful and charming girl, and he didn't even ask her name.

"Yes, Senior Brother, I'll really go." Zhao Lingxuan decided to give this fool one more chance.

"Go, go, have a safe trip. Next time, don't bring your bird to such a dangerous place." Wang Meng waved his hand, finding it annoying that a little girl could be so talkative. Whether in his past life or this one, Wang Meng couldn't stand chatty girls.

Zhao Lingxuan and the Fire Phoenix almost choked. The Fire Phoenix was furious, "You're the bird, and your whole family are birds!"

The Fire Phoenix's injuries were severe, and Zhao Lingxuan didn't dare to stay long. She barely managed to ride her sword away. In the air, she looked down at the jubilant Wang Meng, bit her lip, and stomped her foot. The flying sword turned into a beam of light and headed toward the Holy Hall.

"Come here, come here. Your father is called Big Stupid, so you're called Little Stupid. Come, let's divide the Thunder Python."

The Spirit Rhinoceros happily got to work. Wang Meng reminded it, "Be careful, don't damage the inner core."

The python's skin was peeled off, and the fist-sized inner core was a pleasant surprise. It was a bit of a waste to hand it in as a task, but at this stage, no one could use it, so it was better to exchange it for something practical.

Not everything that could be picked up could be eaten. Good things could also be fatal.

A few pieces of snake meat could be taken back to satisfy his craving, but the rest had to be discarded. The Spirit Rhinoceros was a vegetarian, and one of the reasons Mo Shan had raised it was because it was strong and didn't pick its food.

The Spirit Rhinoceros was a minor demon, rarely a spirit beast. Generally, it could only reach the Third or Fourth Transformation. At the Fifth Transformation, ordinary spells were hard to hurt it. Although the Spirit Rhinoceros wasn't good at spells, it was an excellent tank. However, any spirit beast at a high level was very powerful.

Wang Meng was about to leave, but the Spirit Rhinoceros bit his sleeve and pushed toward the Cold Spring.

The deep pool where the Two-Headed Thunder Python resided was one of the forbidden areas of the Thunder Pool. Very few who entered could come out. Even with Zhao Lingxuan and the Fire Phoenix's strength, they almost didn't make it. Ordinary people had no chance, especially since the Thunder Python was extremely cunning. Once it sensed danger, it would hide in the deep pool and refuse to come out, making it extremely difficult to deal with. This time, it was all taken care of.

Such places usually had some rare treasures, but Wang Meng instinctively ignored the Small Thousand World.

"Good, you're better than Big Stupid!"

Wang Meng dived into the water. The Cold Spring was indeed bone-chilling. The water contained a special spiritual energy, and he quickly found a water-dividing array.

The water-dividing array was of average quality, probably close to the fiftieth level. It was clear that the person who set it up was a bit distracted.

Three large characters were carved above—Cold Spring Cave. The writing was soft and lacked strength, most likely the work of a talisman cultivator.

Wang Meng pushed open the heavy stone door, and dust fell. The only valuable thing was the water-repelling pearl on the doorhead. Without it as the array's focal point, the cave might have already collapsed. The cave was not small, and after searching, Wang Meng was a bit disappointed. The secret manuals were all junk, and there were no usable magical artifacts. However, the spirit herbs in the courtyard were quite promising.

Though not rare treasures, they were old enough, at least a hundred years, making them excellent for alchemy.

Wang Meng threw away a piece of snake meat to free up some space and took all the spirit herbs. Before leaving, he casually took the water-repelling pearl, the only valuable thing in this place.

Once the water-repelling pearl was removed, the water-dividing array collapsed instantly. Wang Meng quickly darted out of the Cold Spring. The Spirit Rhinoceros by the spring was overjoyed, and a large whirlpool appeared in the center of the spring, lasting for a while.

The inner core of the Four-Winged Two-Headed Thunder Python lay quietly in Ma Tian'er's hand, emitting a strong aura. Ma Tian'er's eyes widened, and the senior sisters, led by Liu Mei, looked at Wang Meng as if he were a three-headed, six-armed monster.

Liu Mei swallowed hard, her voice hoarse. "This... This was really completed by you?"