35: Chapter 35 The Old Turtle Advances to a Higher Rank, the Water Spirit Flower

Zhuang Zimo drew his compound bow to its limit, and a sharp arrow whistled through the air.

It flew straight toward the raised head of the Giant Turtle.

A crisp 'clink' of metal clashing rang out.

"How is this possible?" Zhuang Zimo's arrow had struck the turtle's raised head dead center, yet it caused no substantial damage.

This was a 60-pound compound bow, capable of piercing the flesh and organs of an adult black bear. If aimed correctly at the heart, it could kill in a single shot.

But what about this turtle? It was hit directly in the head, yet the arrow failed to penetrate. It only left a tiny wound that bled a little before healing in no time.

Wu Xingzhu followed immediately with an arrow of his own, this time aiming for the eye, surely a lethal spot.

But beyond all expectations, the turtle's eyeballs rolled, and its head retracted, dodging the attack. It then clamped its jaws onto the slender bowstring.

It stared coldly at the two men on the shore.

At this moment, the turtle's advancement was nearing its end. Its evolution was much faster than Bai Xuan's, which left Bai Xuan feeling puzzled.

The turtle's aura suddenly surged. With a booming 'bang,' as if breaking through a barrier, its aura exploded again, and its body grew larger at a rate visible to the naked eye.

Its level subsequently reached Rank 2, Stage 1.

A moment later, its aura retracted, and its massive body lunged into the water.

Witnessing this, Zhuang Zimo and Wu Xingzhu were so terrified they collapsed onto the ground, their bodies trembling uncontrollably. They were nearly scared witless. Zhuang Zimo grabbed a homemade explosive packed with steel balls for greater power:

"It... it should be gone, right?"

"Brother Zhuang, let's run! That monster's defense is too terrifying; we're no match for it!"

"Right, let's get out of here."

"Brother Zhuang, there's something in the water."

"Oh no, the monster is coming after us!"

Zhuang Zimo scrambled to his feet, but time had already run out.

The monster burst out of the water, opening its bloody maw to reveal rows of fangs and a tongue covered in barbs.

Zhuang Zimo glanced at Wu Xingzhu, and an evil thought crossed his mind: "Xingzhu, I'm sorry."

With those words, Zhuang Zimo gave a violent shove, pushing Wu Xingzhu toward the Giant Turtle to buy himself time to escape.

"Brother Zhuang!" Wu Xingzhu's face was filled with disbelief; he couldn't imagine Zhuang Zimo would actually do this!

Zhuang Zimo pulled the fuse of the bomb. With white smoke trailing from the end, he threw it with precision into the turtle's mouth.

The turtle's massive maw clamped down on Wu Xingzhu's head just as a deafening explosion roared.

The explosive detonated inside the turtle's mouth. White mist filled the air, and flesh and blood splattered everywhere.

Wu Xingzhu became a headless corpse, falling to the ground and meeting his end right there.

Meanwhile, Zhuang Zimo had already fled far away with his compound bow.

After running a certain distance, he stopped, wanting to see if the turtle had been blown to bits:

"It must be dead."

No matter how powerful the turtle was, the force of the explosive was no joke, especially since it detonated inside its mouth. With such immense power, it had to be dead or at least crippled!

Then he could go back and finish it off. Selling it would definitely earn him a fortune. With a size like that, would it be five hundred thousand? Or a million?!

Zhuang Zimo grew more excited as he thought about it! Any guilt he felt for Wu Xingzhu had long since been cast to the back of his mind!

"It's actually not dead!" Zhuang Zimo quickly nocked an arrow and drew his bow.

But the scene before him made his jaw drop in shock!

The turtle spat out a pile of steel balls and blood, its eyes crimson with rage. It had been thoroughly incensed! After letting out a roar, its strong, powerful limbs crawled across the ground as it charged toward Zhuang Zimo.

"Don't come over here!" Zhuang Zimo fired his arrow and turned to bolt.

But his running speed was nowhere near that of the turtle.

He was caught within seconds. With one bite, the turtle snapped him in half at the waist!

Zhuang Zimo let out a scream of agony: "Aaaah! Don't kill me! Please don't kill me! I won't do it again! Please, be magnanimous and spare me just this once!"

The turtle did not spare him. It proceeded to eat Zhuang Zimo alive, devouring him completely, bones and all!

After finishing its meal, the turtle turned and slowly crawled back toward the water.

At that moment, Bai Xuan finally made his move. Since the turtle had actually come onto land, Bai Xuan wasn't about to let this opportunity slip by!

[Profound Cold Heavy Claw]

Sharp Talons, glinting with a cold light and covered in frost, delivered a heavy blow to the turtle's head. A thunderous 'bang' followed.

The turtle let out a pained wail:

"Please, let me go! I have good things! As long as you don't kill me, I can give them all to you."

Now it was the turtle's turn to beg for mercy. It understood its current predicament; it had a bright future ahead and didn't want to die like this.

But Bai Xuan had no intention of letting it go.

If I kill you, everything will be mine anyway. Why would I need you to give it to me?

"It still hasn't died."

Bai Xuan was also somewhat surprised. He hadn't expected this turtle's defense to be so high!

If one move didn't work, then two, or three. He didn't believe he couldn't kill it.

Bai Xuan grabbed the turtle's head and twisted his body, wringing the entire neck into a mangled mess.

The turtle finally died a miserable death. Its massive body lay prone on the ground, motionless, in a gruesome state.

Bai Xuan stood atop the turtle's giant corpse. Its shell was incredibly hard, its limbs were covered in scales, it possessed sharp claws, and that terrifying mouth—it was far beyond what any normal softshell turtle should have.

Bai Xuan released his Divine Sense to probe inside the turtle's body:

"No attributes?"

No wonder it had advanced so quickly; only its size had increased, and its own attributes hadn't awakened. At the same time, there were several Low-Grade Spirit Stones inside its body.

Bai Xuan swallowed them into his stomach.

[Devoured Mutated Old Softshell Turtle, Rank 2 Stage 1, gained 200 evolution points!]

[Devoured Low-Grade Spirit Stone, gained 100 evolution points.]

[Devoured Low-Grade Spirit Stone, gained 100 evolution points.]

...

"There must be treasures in its underwater lair."

Bai Xuan took a deep breath and dove into the reservoir.

He pushed his Divine Sense Perception to the maximum and searched downward from the spot where the turtle had been absorbing the essence of the sun and moon.

Before long, Bai Xuan found the turtle's lair. It was filled with the skeletal remains of many mutated creatures—both aquatic and terrestrial beasts!

Bai Xuan searched through it and finally found a large Mid-Grade Spirit Stone, a pile of Low-Grade Spirit Stones, and most importantly, a mysterious plant.

The Eye of Appraisal presented the information about the plant's species to Bai Xuan:

[Water Spirit Flower, Mature Stage. Devouring it grants 10,000 evolution points!]

"It actually gives ten thousand evolution points!" Bai Xuan was surprised.

He hadn't expected such a massive harvest from this trip!

Bai Xuan swallowed everything into his stomach, then leaped out of the water and flew to the shore. He looked at the items Zhuang Zimo and Wu Xingzhu had brought.

He let out a sigh and then flew into the mountain forests.

Bai Xuan had learned a bit from their conversation.

They had sneaked to the reservoir wanting to make a fortune. If they hadn't become greedy upon seeing the turtle's advancement, they would have been fine.

But not only were they greedy, they also overestimated their own strength.

In the end, Zhuang Zimo even pushed Wu Xingzhu into the jaws of the beast.

He had even fantasized about selling the turtle for money after killing it. If he could have reined in his greed at the end, he might have lived, but there are no 'ifs' in life.

...