The Prodigal Son

Seeing this, Qin Yu felt much more at ease.

Generally speaking, these fierce animals have a strong sense of territory.

Since these predators are here eating the carcass of that strange snake, it means there shouldn't be another strange snake like that nearby.

Even so, Qin Yu didn't rush to examine the strange snake's corpse. He said in a deep voice, "Everyone, look around first and make sure it's safe before you proceed!"

"Um."

The group responded and immediately began to search the surrounding area.

Soon, they discovered a large pool of water less than ten feet away from the monstrous snake's corpse.

There were also clear crawling marks next to the pool.

If I'm not mistaken, this pool is the nest of this strange snake.

Staring at the marks beside the pool, Qin Yu suddenly slapped his forehead, realizing something. "I understand!"

"What do you understand?"

Xu Wan and Nan Que'er both cast questioning glances at him.

Qin Yu pointed to the crawling marks on the ground and said, "The path we came from is most likely the strange snake's hunting route! We've walked right into its mouth!"

Damn it!

He had previously wondered if that road was built in a similar way to the Qin Straight Road.

Now it seems I was just overthinking things!

"Oh yeah! I didn't expect that!"

"No wonder the path wasn't covered in weeds and bushes, now I know why!"

"In that case, our encounter with this strange snake wasn't entirely unjustified!"

Upon hearing Qin Yu's words, the others suddenly realized what he meant.

The python and the road had already given them a warning, but they hadn't paid any attention.

At this moment, they blamed themselves for being careless, yet secretly rejoiced.

It was fortunate that this strange snake had no other abilities besides its great strength and strong defense; otherwise, even with Ning Huang with them, they would probably have had to flee for their lives in a panic.

This incident also served as a reminder to them that this place was a bit eerie!

Just because Ning Huang is around doesn't mean they can act recklessly.

Just as they were talking, Qi Dachui took the water bag and walked towards the pool.

He was just about to fill the water bag when he made an unexpected discovery.

"The water is hot!"

Qi Dachui turned his head and exclaimed in surprise at the group.

"Hot?"

The group was surprised and crowded around, putting their hands into the pool.

It's definitely hot!

It feels like it should be slightly higher than a person's body temperature.

spa!

"Your ancestors really knew how to choose a location!"

Xu Wan withdrew her hand and looked at Nan Que'er with a smile, "They've found such a blessed land."

Hidden away and not cold, there are also hot springs like this.

If this were located near the imperial city, it would surely have become a royal winter palace.

Qin Yu was surprised and secretly wondered if the mist here was related to the hot spring.

"That's true."

Nan Que'er nodded in deep agreement, "Compared to our tribal lands in the Southern Frontier, it's like heaven and earth."

But she was a bit strange.

Why didn't those who besieged the Wind Clan's ancestors seize such a good place?

Even if their goal is to seize the Nine Dragons Pendant, it doesn't seem to prevent them from taking over such a blessed land and allowing their descendants to live and thrive here, does it?

Is it because this place is isolated from the world and too remote?

Qin Yu did not participate in the two women's conversation, but stared at the hot spring in front of him and pondered silently.

Could it be that there's a volcano down there?

Therefore, it's warmer here?

"Thirteenth Young Master, should I go down and take a look?"

At this moment, Qi Dachui's voice rang in Qin Yu's ears again.

"Go down there? Who knows what's down there!"

Qin Yu gently shook his head, "Let's not worry about that for now. Even if we really want to go down and take a look, let's wait until dawn!"

"oh."

Qi Dachui nodded and said no more.

After washing their faces with the warm spring water in the pool, the group finally arrived at the strange snake.

Only then were they finally able to see the true size of the strange snake.

This strange snake was at least three zhang long, and its entire body was covered with black scales.

The snake's body had several wounds that were a bloody mess, clearly caused by the bites from those unidentified predators.

Ning Huang swiftly removed his Broken Mountain from the monstrous snake's body and took it to the nearby hot spring to wash it.

Qin Yu then carried a torch to the front of the strange snake's head, only to find that the horns on the snake's head were a bit strange.

The horns are hard on the outside, but inside the hollow part in the middle, there are things that look like fish gills.

outer cheek?

Qin Yu frowned, looking at the enormous monster with suspicion.

But apart from the scales, the rest of its body and head look exactly like a giant python!

Could this thing be a mutant?

Or perhaps, due to prolonged exposure to water, they evolved this gill-like structure?

This left Qin Yu's mind in a bit of a mess.

While Qin Yu was secretly wondering, Qi Dachui painstakingly pried off a palm-sized scale from the strange snake and struck it against his hammer, producing a metallic clang.

Qi Dachui's eyes were filled with curiosity as he looked at Qin Yu: "These scales aren't heavy, so how can they be so hard?"

Qin Yu took the scale from Qi Dachui and held it in his hand.

The scales are not thick, only about three or four millimeters thick.

Holding it in my hand and weighing it, it is indeed not heavy, in fact, it is quite light.

It's probably only about two or three ounces.

Unable to answer Qi Dachui's question, Qin Yu gently stroked the scales in his hand, his eyes instantly lighting up with excitement.

The next moment, Qin Yu hugged the scale and showered it with kisses.

baby!

This is absolutely a treasure!

Hard yet light!

This is practically natural titanium alloy!

Seeing Qin Yu passionately kissing the scales, Qi Dachui felt a chill run down his spine and instinctively took two steps back. "Thirteenth Young Master, what are you doing...?"

"What kind of look is that?"

Qin Yu looked at Qi Dachui speechlessly.

Qi Dachui smiled sheepishly and tentatively asked, "Thirteenth Young Master, you wouldn't happen to be the pervert you always talk about, would you?"

"Pfft..."

Nan Que'er and Xu Wan were amused by Qi Dachui's question and looked at Qin Yu with strange expressions.

He's always saying this person is a pervert and that person is a pervert.

Now look what happened; he's being treated like a freak by the hammer.

"Holy shit..."

Qin Yu's face twitched violently. He took two steps forward and lightly tapped Qi Dachui's head a few times with the scale.

"Pervert! I think you're the pervert!"

Qin Yu stopped, glaring at Qi Dachui with a mixture of amusement and exasperation. "What the hell are you thinking? Didn't you consider that these scales might be very useful?"

Damn it!

It's true that the most painful thing is being betrayed by someone close to you!

"what?"

Qi Dachui stared blankly at Qin Yu, unsure whether he was stunned by the knock or simply hadn't reacted yet.

"You want to use these scales to make armor?"

Xu Wan instantly guessed Qin Yu's thoughts.

"Um!"

Qin Yu nodded slightly, "This thing is so hard that even Senior Ning could barely split it open. If it were used to make armor, ordinary people wouldn't be able to harm it at all!"

The scales are the perfect size; with a little processing, they can be embedded in the armor to protect vital parts of the body.

If you equip all your personal guards with armor like this, wouldn't they be even more formidable on the battlefield?

Regardless of whether there are any other gains from this trip.

These light yet hard scales alone are enough to make their trip worthwhile!