Cultivating Immortality Through a Hundred Lifetimes: I Possess the Heavenly Book of Merit

Twelve sword shadows shot through the air, their sharp sword energy slicing through the sky and leaving twelve dazzling white streaks in the morning light.

The giant snake's pupils suddenly contracted.

Ignoring the rising carnivorous creatures, it suddenly tilted its massive head, barely dodging the three sword shadows at the very front.

But how easy is it to dodge a sword formation?

Yu Yan changed his hand seals, and the twelve sword shadows suddenly dispersed in mid-air, forming three groups of four swords each, which surrounded the giant snake from three different directions.

"hiss--"

The giant serpent let out a low hiss, opened its mouth wide, and spewed out a thick mist of blood.

A cloud of blood spread out, carrying a pungent, fishy stench, instantly enveloping its massive head.

The four sword shadows rushed into the blood mist, their speed suddenly slowing down. The spiritual light on the swords was eroded by the blood mist, emitting a hissing sound.

But the other two groups of sword shadows had already bypassed the blood mist from both sides and slashed fiercely at the giant snake's neck!

"clang!"

A loud, metallic clang.

Sparks flew everywhere.

The sword left two deep white marks on the giant serpent's scales, but failed to truly break through its defenses.

Yu Yan narrowed his eyes.

The snake demon's scales were harder than he had imagined.

The giant serpent cried out in pain, its massive body thrashing violently in the clouds, scattering the surrounding mist. It finally shifted its attention from its prey, its golden vertical pupils fixed on Yu Yan on the ground, filled with venomous resentment.

But it still didn't attack.

It simply spewed out more and more blood mist, enveloping itself layer by layer, while desperately twisting its body to evade the relentless sword shadows that clung to it like a leech.

Yu Yan figured it out.

It dared not fight.

Or rather, it simply doesn't have the ability to fight right now.

Although the blood mist could erode the spiritual power on the sword shadow, it clearly consumed the snake demon's own power. With each breath it exhaled, its aura weakened further.

Those who were rising also slowed down at this moment.

The giant snake no longer had the strength to control them.

"it is good."

Yu Yan's lips curled into a cold smile as he once again activated his spiritual power.

The twelve sword shadows regrouped in mid-air, forming a larger sword circle, with the tips of the swords all pointing at the giant serpent's head.

"Then let's slowly wear each other down and see how long your blood mist can block my sword shadows?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the sword circle suddenly began to spin, and twelve sword shadows poured down on the giant serpent like a torrential rain!

hum-

Each sword strike was weakened by the blood mist, but each strike also left new marks on the giant serpent's scales.

The white marks grew deeper and denser, until finally...

"Click."

A scale shattered.

Then came the second piece, and the third piece.

The sword shadow finally broke through the defense, leaving behind bloody and mangled wounds on the giant snake.

Dark red blood gushed from the wound, dripping down and turning into a blood mist in mid-air, only to be dispersed by the sword shadows.

The giant serpent hissed in agony, its massive body writhing wildly in the clouds, shaking the entire sky.

But it still did not retaliate.

It simply raised its head desperately, peering towards the higher sky, its golden vertical pupils fixed on the blood-soaked creatures suspended in mid-air.

Almost there.

It was so close.

Just a few more, just a little more blood and energy, and it will—

Don't even think about it.

Yu Yan let out a cold shout, his hands formed a seal, and the twelve sword shadows suddenly merged into one, transforming into a huge light sword, which, with the force of thunder, fiercely slashed towards the head of the giant snake!

With this sword strike, he intended to sever the snake's head!

The giant snake's pupils shrank to a thin line, and fear finally appeared in its eyes.

It tried to dodge, but its massive body didn't have time to react.

It wanted to spray a mist of blood, but it had almost no power left in its body.

It’s over.

Just then—

"Bang!"

A soft explosion came from behind.

Yu Yan paused in his sword strike.

What was that sound?

He turned around instinctively.

Then, he froze on the spot.

On the ground, those ordinary people who were waiting to "ascend" were exploding one after another.

It wasn't an attack.

It burst open from the inside.

Their bodies seemed to be torn apart by something invisible, their skin ripped apart, flesh and blood flying everywhere, turning into thick clouds of blood mist.

One.

two.

Five.

ten.

Everyone is exploding.

The blood mist gushed from their shattered bodies, but instead of dissipating, it seemed to be drawn upwards by something, slowly drifting towards the giant serpent.

Yu Yan's pupils contracted violently.

He suddenly looked in the direction of the little mute boy.

The small figure was still standing there, but his body was trembling and his face was full of pain.

"..."

Yu Yan opened his mouth slightly.

The little mute boy's face began to contort, as if something was wriggling beneath his skin.

He opened his mouth as if to say something, but could only let out painful whimpers.

Then he saw Yu Yan.

He saw the older brother who had given him wild fruit, stood up for him, and was just fighting the giant snake.

A glimmer of light suddenly appeared in the little mute boy's eyes.

He tremblingly reached out his hand towards Yu Yan, his lips moving as he silently uttered two words:

"Help...me..."

Yu Yan moved his feet and was about to rush over.

But it was too late.

"Bang!"

A soft sound.

The little mute's body exploded in front of him.

That frail body turned into a cloud of blood mist, mingling with the blood mist of others, making it impossible to distinguish one from the other.

Only that hand, that small hand reaching out to him, lingered in mid-air for a moment before turning into a blood mist and dissipating in the morning breeze.

Yu Yan's hand was still outstretched, but he didn't grab anything.

He stood still, motionless.

The blood mist drifted past him, slowly rose into the air, and surged toward the giant serpent.

The giant serpent opened its massive jaws, greedily devouring the blood mist.

With each bite it took, its wounds healed at a visible speed. With each bite, its weakened aura grew stronger. With each bite, its massive body grew even larger.

The scales became whole and smooth again.

The bleeding stopped.

The wound has healed.

His aura steadily increased, from weakness and lethargy to the third, fourth, and fifth levels of Qi Refining... until it finally stopped at the eighth level of Qi Refining.

The giant snake slowly closed its mouth, its golden vertical pupils lowered, looking at Yu Yan on the ground, and spoke in human language.

"Humans..."

Its voice was low and hoarse, as if it came from the abyss, filled with anger and resentment.

You ruined my plans.

Its head emerged from the clouds, staring down at Yu Yan, its tongue flicking in and out of its mouth.

It has been operating here for who knows how many years.

Each ascension ceremony is meticulously planned and carried out step by step, allowing these mortals to completely lower their guard, willingly take the elixir, and willingly ascend into the sky.

In this way, their blood and energy will be at their most concentrated, purest, and most nourishing.

If this grand ceremony were completed in a normal manner, it would not only be able to heal its injuries, but could even break through its bottleneck and enter the second stage by using the pure blood and energy of these people.

But now—

It stared intently at Yu Yan, its golden vertical pupils filled with murderous intent.

If it weren't for his aggressive actions, disrupting the ceremony and forcing it to devour these people prematurely, its energy and blood wouldn't have been fully transformed. In its haste, it could only barely recover to eight-tenths of its original strength.

"Second-order, my second-order!"

The giant snake opened its mouth wide and let out a deafening hiss.

"You ruined my ten-year plan, you ruined my chance to advance, you deserve to die!"

Its massive body emerged completely from the clouds, like a moving mountain, pressing down on Yu Yan.

Its mouth gaped open, and a foul stench filled the air.

Yu Yan stood still, looking at the sky.

Looking at the blood mist that had not yet completely dissipated.

His hands slowly clenched into fists, his eyes devoid of any warmth.