162: Cold Pool

Su Chen led the way in, and following the hint, they found a cave in a corner, concealed by withered grass and difficult to spot.

It was truly a dog hole, just big enough for an adult to squeeze through; anyone with a larger build would have to give up.

With a depth of five meters, a flashlight shone inside easily illuminated the bottom of the cave.

After carefully examining the place, Tian Ye was the first to grow impatient.

This place was nothing like the one Wu Yongtang had described!

Clenching his fist, he glared at Su Chen: "Is this the cave you were talking about?"

"Yes."

Su Chen also felt a bit of a headache. It seemed the hint card couldn't be fully trusted; there were times when it was off.

Several people were already preparing to turn back the way they came. However, Wu Yongtang, who had caught up from behind, stopped them after looking at the spot.

"This is an illusion."

Wu Yongtang stroked his beard and explained: "This place is exactly as my grandfather described. When my grandfather saw this cave, he also didn't pay it much mind.

He initially thought it was a snake den and went in to see if there were any snake eggs to eat. Once inside, he saw a completely different scene."

To test this theory, Wu Yongtang didn't hesitate.

Taking a flashlight, he squeezed in first. Then, everyone saw Wu Yongtang pass through the rock and disappear.

Tian Ye didn't hesitate for a moment, following closely behind and also disappearing after passing through the rock.

Wen Hemo used his Divine Sense to probe the mountain and found it solid, not hollow. After a moment's thought, he offered his analysis:

"There's a hidden teleportation array inside. No wonder General Azure Dragon searched several times and found nothing unusual; Divine Sense probes also detected nothing wrong.

Something this concealed would indeed be very hard to find unless you were literally digging three feet deep."

"Enough analysis, let's go in and see first."

Ding Ranran gave him a push, letting Wen Hemo take the lead.

Su Chen and the group from Jing University waited for them to enter and then followed behind.

Originally, the five-meter-deep cave should have been visible to its end. But at this very endpoint, he ended up crawling for over twenty meters.

Then, the rock wall before him vanished, the space ahead turning to darkness. After emerging, the cave widened and opened up dramatically.

Su Chen's first sensation upon entering was intense cold, a yin chill.

Shining his flashlight around, within its beam there was nothing but rock pillars and darkness.

He couldn't even illuminate the top of the cavern, let alone the surroundings.

It was indeed a teleportation array. If it were just a simple ventilation shaft, the interior being this large would require it to be deep underground.

Around twenty meters would still be near the surface, impossible to be this vast.

Wang Xiaoting, upon entering, was also filled with emotion:

"It's so big inside? We should leave a mark here, otherwise we might not find our way out later.

It's so eerie here. Have we already arrived in Hell?"

"You're the one with all the problems every day."

...After the entire group had entered, Wu Yongtang led the way towards the direction of the pool.

It wasn't far, just about a ten-minute walk. The scenery here was mostly similar. To avoid getting lost, everyone left marks along the way, lest they truly become trapped here.

At another turn, the scenery ahead finally changed. It was no longer just dark rock; the flashlight beam revealed a glittering expanse of gold.

A flat area, its stones all golden, paved around a water pool over twenty meters wide.

The gold pieces were the size of eggs, the largest ones too big for a single person to lift.

There was a spring in the center of the pool, water continuously flowing out. The air grew colder near the pool.

Although Wu Yongtang was thrilled to see the gold, wishing he could fill a sack and leave immediately,

he thought of the giant serpent residing in the pool and didn't rashly approach.

Seeing the ground paved with gold, Wang Xiaoting's eyes were already gleaming:

"My god, there's so much! If we took all this out, each of us would be billionaires!"

If Yang Junlong hadn't stopped her, she would have already rushed over and started stuffing her pockets.

"Calm down. Have you forgotten there's a snake living in there?"

Reminded, Wang Xiaoting finally settled down... Long Hanjie asked: "Lure it out and fight directly?"

"Yes, get ready and act according to the situation."

Wen Hemo stepped forward, approaching the pool's edge. A lightning dragon circled around him, slowly taking shape, ready to be launched directly into the water.

Watching the lightning dragon coiling around Wen Hemo, Xia Weiyu was puzzled:

"Is his Ability Lightning Element? That's a bit of a counter to me; I'd be at a disadvantage fighting him."

"No, Wen Hemo's Ability is Natural Force. He can use all elemental Abilities."

"All of them?"

"Wind, fire, lightning, water, earth, wood, and so on, he can use them all. Having many Abilities gives him many tactical choices, making him a tricky opponent."

Hearing this, Xia Weiyu wasn't discouraged but instead filled with fighting spirit:

"It seems I still have a long way to go.

Su Chen, don't worry. By the time of the Championship Tournament, I'll definitely be able to defeat them!"

...Wen Hemo finished shaping the lightning dragon but didn't attack. Instead, he condensed another 25 basketball-sized rocks and threw them into the pool.

Less than ten seconds after they were thrown in, the pool began to stir.

The bubbling spring vanished, and immediately after, a towering water column erupted.

A black shadow shot out like lightning. Half its body emerged from the water, the visible part already exceeding twenty meters, with a girth of two meters.

Its emerald green scales were the size of palms, and a pair of blood-red pupils fixed on Wen Hemo.

Everyone present had faced Exotic Beasts before, but those third or fourth-tier creatures were insignificant in size compared to this python.

Just the part above water was twenty meters; if it emerged fully, it would absolutely be a hundred meters long!

The giant serpent flicked its tongue, its Yin Qi menacing, causing everyone to shiver involuntarily.

Seeing Wen Hemo's attacking posture, it wasn't afraid but instead grew angry, arching its body, poised to strike.

Wen Hemo calmed himself first. Having been to the Otherworld several times and seen high-level Yao Beasts, he quickly regained his composure in this situation.

If it was sixth-tier strength, they still had a fight. He and Long Hanjie could handle it together.

The giant serpent, swift as lightning, lunged first, and Wen Hemo's attack was also unleashed.

Electric arcs crackled everywhere. The giant serpent hissed in agony, crashed into the pool, and fell still.

Wen Hemo didn't believe he had killed it with one move and quickly retreated:

"You all step aside. Leave this to me and Long Hanjie..."

Before he could finish, the giant serpent surged out of the pool again, biting towards Wen Hemo.

Boom!

In an instant, an ice wall sealed the path. The serpent crashed into the ice wall, its body shuddering, its fury towards Wen Hemo intensifying!

The latter didn't pause, continuing to gather his technique. A fire phoenix slowly took shape in his palm. Meanwhile, Long Hanjie also prepared his attack.

After a few impacts, the ice wall collapsed with a crash. The serpent lunged with its maw open. Wen Hemo threw the fire phoenix in his hand, sending it flying directly into the serpent's mouth.

Instantly, flames erupted from the serpent's mouth, causing it so much pain it lost its composure.

Long Hanjie, from the side, charged in first, his spear tip striking the serpent's head, scraping off a shower of sparks. The thrust felt like hitting steel.

Long Hanjie inwardly cursed. Having missed with one strike, he could only try to dodge first. But when he tried to move, he realized something was wrong.

He couldn't muster any strength in his body, and the back of his hand was turning purple.

Poison!

Only then did he have time to observe his surroundings. A layer of nearly transparent purple mist enveloped the serpent. In the dim light, it was hard to see; you had to be close to notice something was wrong.

"Wen Hemo, don't get too close! It's poisonous! Has a paralyzing effect..."

Before Long Hanjie could finish, he plummeted towards the ground and was then swallowed whole by the serpent, perishing in its belly.