The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, becoming a disciple of Yue Buqun.

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man was filled with respect: "You are indeed a young hero. I have been disrespectful."

Jiang Ning said no more, cupped his hands in farewell and took his leave.

After bidding farewell to the middle-aged man, Jiang Ning headed in the direction the man had described, and after a short while, he indeed saw the traces the man had mentioned.

Jiang Ning's spirits lifted upon seeing this, and he continued to follow the trail. After about two hours, there was no sign of human habitation in the mountains, only withered trees and weeds in sight, and the trails on the ground were fading more and more.

After searching for a long time without finding the beast, Jiang Ning sighed slightly and prepared to turn back.

But just as Jiang Ning was about to leave, he noticed something not far away. After taking a closer look, he quickly leaped to his target location.

This is a deep pit, surrounded by weeds, but these weeds have all been flattened, as if they had been crushed by something.

Jiang Ning paid no attention to these things, but stared intently at the bottom of the pit, his gaze hardening.

A giant python was coiled up in the pit.

No, it should be said to be the skin shed by the giant python.

The python skins inside the pit were coiled together, their exact length unknown, but judging from their size, the owner of the python skins was indeed a colossal being.

Jiang Ning frowned as he watched this scene. He didn't go down into the pit to check, but turned around to look around carefully. He didn't find any trace of the giant python, so he jumped down into the pit to examine the python skins up close.

The python skin was a bit yellowish and looked somewhat dry. Jiang Ning reached out and pinched it, and a crisp sound came from his fingertips, indicating that it had been there for some time.

Jiang Ning shook his head and then jumped out of the pit.

This is not the giant python's lair, but merely a place where it shed its skin; the giant python itself is not located here.

Having searched for so long without finding the giant python, Jiang Ning turned back. By the time he returned, it was already dark, but he found that many disciples of the Weiyi Alliance from Huashan and Emei were already waiting in the village, along with many other martial arts figures.

"Senior brother."

Upon seeing Jiang Ning return, Lin Pingzhi quickly stepped forward and said, "I have already reported the matter of the strange beast to Master. Master thinks it is of great importance and has sent senior brothers and sisters from the Weiyi Alliance to guard various villages."

As he spoke, Lin Pingzhi pointed to the martial arts practitioners and said, "These people came to help because they heard about the strange beast causing trouble."

Jiang Ning nodded upon hearing this, looked at the group of martial arts practitioners, and cupped his hands in greeting.

"I am Jiang Ning. Thank you all for your help. I am very grateful."

"Hahaha, Ning Yan... You're too kind, great hero of Guanzhong."

Chapter 679: The Giant Python

It's unclear when the news spread, but it's said that Master Yue of the Huashan Sect dislikes the title "Ning Yanwang" for his disciple, claiming it's a stigma given by evil spirits. He says his disciple has the official title "Guanzhong Hero." The righteous heroes who came to Huashan to accept the invitation all heard this news. Although they all felt that "Guanzhong Hero" didn't sound as prestigious as "Ning Yanwang," they all changed their titles to avoid misunderstandings and causing offense.

They were especially afraid of upsetting Jiang Ning himself, since no one knew whether Jiang Ning actually liked the nickname.

Hearing the man quickly change his tune, Jiang Ning smiled slightly and didn't take it to heart.

He himself didn't care much about these empty titles, but his master did, so he would occasionally correct them.

"May we ask the heroes of Guanzhong, we've heard that a monster is causing trouble at the foot of Mount Hua. We'd like to ask if it's true?"

One person shouted loudly.

The other martial arts figures also looked at Jiang Ning.

Jiang Ning nodded.

"good."

Jiang Ning's answer caused an uproar.

"Are there really monsters?"

"What kind of monster is that? Where is it?"

Everyone started asking questions.

Jiang Ning shook his head.

"I don't know what kind of monster it is, but judging from the traces left on the ground, there should be two unknown monsters. One of them is a giant python. I just entered the Qinling Mountains to look for its tracks and found its shed skin in a pit. It was about ten zhang long and about five chi in body. The other strange beast is still unknown. Everyone should be careful when you encounter it."

Upon hearing Jiang Ning's words, everyone's expression changed.

A giant python, several dozen feet long and five feet thick?

They had never heard of such a creature before, let alone seen it. If Jiang Ning hadn't told them, they wouldn't have believed that such a creature existed.

The group, who were initially full of confidence, began to have second thoughts upon hearing that it was such a behemoth. However, when they thought of the many fellow martial artists around them, their hesitation subsided.

Jiang Ning observed everyone's reactions and said, "This thing is dangerous. Although we haven't seen the appearance of the other beast, it should also be quite dangerous. They usually come out at night, so be careful if you encounter them. You can leave this place temporarily and rest on Mount Hua."

The group, who were initially hesitant, saw that Jiang Ning's words were out of consideration for their feelings, but since the words had already been spoken, they all agreed.

"What are you saying, esteemed hero of Guanzhong? We've all come here to rid the people of this monster that's threatening their lives. How can we leave?"

"That's right. When everyone works together, their strength can break metal. Besides, there are many experts here, including the great hero from Guanzhong. Why would we be afraid of a mere beast?"

The crowd was noisy and chattering, but no one wanted to leave.

Jiang Ning bowed to the crowd and said, "On behalf of the people at the foot of Mount Hua, I thank you all."

Everyone said, "You're too kind, sir."

It was already dark, the time when the two monsters would appear. They didn't know if they would show up tonight, but in order not to alert them, everyone began to hide and wait for them to appear.

"Senior brother."

At this moment, Lin Pingzhi asked curiously in a house, "Is it true that the giant python is more than ten zhang long?"

At this moment, there were other disciples of the Weiyi Alliance in the room, all looking at Jiang Ning with great curiosity in their eyes.

"good."

Jiang Ning nodded.

"There are snakes this big in the world..."

Everyone was amazed.

They were all disciples of various sects and lived in the mountains. They had seen snakes before, but the longest snakes they had ever seen were only a few feet long. When had they ever heard of a giant python that was more than ten feet long?

But when Jiang Ning said it, it seemed incredibly believable.

The thought that they might soon see this enormous, unheard-of and unseen creature filled everyone with both anticipation and a touch of trepidation.

Jiang Ning's expression remained calm, though his brows were slightly furrowed.

He didn't know when the python skin he saw in the pit was left by the giant python, but pythons usually shed their skin as they grow larger, and it was probably even larger now.

This creature cannot be measured by common sense. Even ordinary experts would be in great danger if they encountered it and would need to be extremely cautious.

But nothing happened in the village overnight. No poultry went missing from the villagers' homes, and no monster was found. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief but was also somewhat disappointed.

Jiang Ning sent people to other villages to look for any trace of the two monsters, but they found nothing.

"These two monsters could appear at any time, possibly in the next few days, so everyone must remain vigilant."

Jiang Ning gave instructions.

The disciples of the Weiyi Alliance nodded in agreement.

"Junior Brother Jiang Ning/Senior Brother, rest assured."

Among those present were people older and younger than Jiang Ning, but they all agreed with Jiang Ning's words and trusted him.

Several more days passed, and still no trace of the monster was found. During this time, many martial arts practitioners who had come to Mount Hua to accept the invitation to exterminate the monster came here after hearing about it, hoping to see the monster's true appearance. However, they did not see it for several days and could not help but have some doubts. Jiang Ning did not pay attention to these discussions.

Two more days passed.

The hour of Chou (1-3 AM).

Shu Qi, who was still stationed in the village, suddenly heard a noise outside. A martial arts figure rushed in, looking surprised.

"It's here! It ...

The man stammered, as if he had been frightened by something.

His words caused everyone to stand up.

"A monster has appeared?"

Jiang Ning immediately asked.

Before the man could speak, a roar suddenly rang out from outside, its voice fierce and not something a human could produce.

Jiang Ning's expression changed, and without saying another word, he rushed out the door and sped off in the direction from which the sound came. He disappeared in a few leaps.

After traveling for a while, Jiang Ning saw flames shooting into the sky ahead, a dense crowd, and a great commotion. It was a group of martial arts practitioners who had surrounded a huge creature with torches.

Jiang Ning also saw the monster that was surrounded.

Upon seeing the monster, Jiang Ning was also startled.

Even after seeing the shed skin of this giant python, one would still be shocked to actually see it.

It was entirely black and enormous, its snake scales radiating a chilling aura under the firelight.

At this moment, most of its body was coiled up, and the front of its body stood upright, reaching a height of three zhang (approximately 10 meters). Its head was huge, and its two snake eyes were clearly visible.

Surrounded by the crowd, the giant python's eyes widened, its blood-red mouth opened wide, its tongue flicked in and out, and it kept hissing. Its tail slapped the ground hard, making muffled thuds and kicking up dust.

Instead of attacking the giant python, the group surrounded it with torches. Their faces showed a mixture of fear and apprehension, and none of them dared to be the first to approach.

The two sides are locked in a stalemate.

At this moment, the giant python was already very agitated by the crowd surrounding it, ready to attack or flee at any moment. But suddenly it paused, as if realizing something. It turned its head and saw a person rushing towards it from a distance. In just a few moments, the person was already very close.

Upon seeing the person approaching from afar, the giant python visibly paused its movements, and its pupils dilated slightly.

For some reason, it sensed that the person approaching was very dangerous.

Chapter 680: Escape

"Master Jiang has arrived!"

Jiang Ning's appearance also attracted everyone's attention. Seeing Jiang Ning arrive, everyone's mind finally calmed down.