11: Chapter 11 Crushing Victory! Shocked Chen Nianchu

Zhang Wen had always believed in the truth that "the early bird catches the worm, while the latecomer suffers." Before his voice had even finished echoing in the cave, he had already transformed into a bolt of blue-purple lightning—"Lightning Flash!"

With a crisp crackle, wearing his safety helmet and clutching his thunder bath towel, he shot toward the Frost Prison Demon Spider like a launched lightbulb. Getting close enough to see his own reflection in the spider's compound eyes, he swung his arm violently, the Lightning Radiance at his fingertips exploding into a crackling mass: "Big spider! Taste my move, 'Tribulation Thunder Scrubbing'—no, 'Tribulation Thunder Strike'!"

The Frost Prison Demon Spider was so startled by this sudden flash of lightning that its eight legs trembled. In particular, the restraining aura wrapped within that lightning made it instinctively want to shrink back. Its furry abdomen curled into a ball, looking much like a cat that had its tail stepped on. But a Demonic Beast was a Demonic Beast after all; its brain hadn't evolved enough to calculate pros and cons. Seeing the opponent strike right before it, that bit of hesitation was instantly overwritten by its ferocity. Its eight compound eyes glared, and it actually lunged forward to meet the lightning.

On the other side, Chen Nianchu and Old Man Li were still pondering how to divide the work when they suddenly saw Zhang Wen charge out like a skyrocket. Both of their faces turned pale instantly.

"He... he... why did he just charge in?!" Chen Nianchu nearly bit her tongue in fright. She reached out frantically to grab him but only caught air. "Didn't we agree to test the waters first? This is practically delivering himself to the spider to be knitted into a sweater!"

Old Man Li sucked in a breath of cold air, his withered hand tightly gripping his sword hilt until his knuckles turned white. "This young man... is he treating a Vicious Beast like a job for a construction demolition crew?!"

Before his voice faded, a strange cry of "Aow—" echoed from the depths of the cave. It was unclear if Zhang Wen's lightning had struck the spider or if his safety helmet had collided with its leg. Chen Nianchu and Old Man Li exchanged a look and hurriedly circulated their Qi to give chase, with only one thought in their minds: This temporary-worker-like teammate better not turn himself into the spider's afternoon tea right at the start!

Chen Nianchu and Old Man Li had only chased for a couple of steps when they were so stunned by the scene before them that they froze in place, their jaws nearly hitting the floor.

Zhang Wen stood in the center of the ice platform, his body wrapped in crackling blue-purple Lightning Radiance. His hair stood on end from the electricity, looking like a blooming dandelion. Yet his face was exceptionally clear in the glow of the lightning; with his high brow bone and a hint of a nonchalant smile playing at the corners of his mouth, he truly had the aura of a "Thunder God descending to earth." Looking at that figure, Chen Nianchu's cheeks suddenly felt a bit hot for some reason. She subconsciously reached out to smooth her hair at her temples—this... this contrast with the "construction guy" in the safety helmet from a moment ago was just too great, wasn't it?

But when the two looked closer, they couldn't help but suck in another breath of cold air: Zhang Wen was currently stepping on something furry. Who else could it be but that Frost Prison Demon Spider? At this moment, the spider's eight legs were bound tightly by lightning like a tied-up hairy crab. Its abdomen twitched occasionally, the ice armor on its back was shattered all over the ground, and it didn't even have the strength to spit silk. It looked exactly like a drowned rat that had just been drenched by a rainstorm.

Old Man Li rubbed his eyes and then pinched his own arm. After confirming it wasn't a hallucination, his voice trembled. "Young... young friend? You... you took it down?"

He asked this cautiously, as if afraid a loud voice would startle the spider and make it suddenly come back to life. One must know that this was an Initial Blooming Realm Vicious Beast capable of forcing a Peak Shimmer Cultivator into a pathetic retreat. How did it become a "prisoner" under someone's foot in the blink of an eye? Could it be that this thunder bath towel was some kind of ancient Divine Artifact?

Zhang Wen looked down and kicked the still-twitching spider, scratching his electrified, messy hair with a chuckle. "Heh, it went down just as I was warming up. If I'd known it was this fragile, I wouldn't have used that 'Thunderous Head-Press Kill' move just now." As he spoke, he even ground his foot into the spider's belly as if putting out a cigarette butt. "Old Man Li, look, can these spider legs still move? Should I give it a few more hits?"

Chen Nianchu looked at his relaxed manner, as if he had just "swatted a mosquito," and then glanced at the ice shards melted by the lightning near his feet. The heat in her cheeks rose a few more degrees—this guy was indeed hiding his depths. It was just that the safety helmet lying nearby, covered in spider silk, really ruined the "Thunder God" atmosphere.

It took quite a while for Chen Nianchu and Old Man Li to recover from their shock. When they walked forward, their gaze toward Zhang Wen was like they were looking at some rare, exotic beast.

"Young friend... no, Little Brother Zhang Wen, thank you so much!" Old Man Li stroked his beard, smiling so much the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes piled into folds. "I was worried we'd have to fight for three hundred rounds, but I didn't expect you to solve it so quickly. This ability is truly... tsk tsk!"

Chen Nianchu also took out a lustrous white jade box from her Storage Pouch. Her fingertips trembled slightly as she handed it over. "This is the promised reward." She gently opened the jade box, inside of which lay a walnut-sized crystal. It glowed with an electric blue light, its surface entwined with fine thunder patterns. "This is an A-rank Lightning Core. The thunder power it contains is very pure and is of great help to a lightning-element Cultivator's Cultivation."

She paused, her eyes sweeping over the lingering Lightning Radiance on Zhang Wen's body, and her smile softened. "I had originally prepared some general Cultivation Materials as a reward, but seeing you use your lightning talent just now, I thought this core would be wasted on me. It's better suited for you—certainly better than letting it gather dust in my Storage Pouch."

As soon as Zhang Wen's gaze landed on the core, the System in his mind chimed: [Task Completion: Perfect. Rewards issued.] His heart bloomed with joy. He hurriedly draped the thunder bath towel over his arm and freed both hands to take the jade box. "Oh, this is too generous..." While his mouth spoke polite words, his eyes were glued to the core. That shining look of his was exactly like a groundhog that had just found a treasure.

Old Man Li watched from the side with amusement. "Take it, take it! You earned it! If you ask me, this core is a perfect match for you. Look at these thunder patterns; they look just like the aura you had when you struck that spider!"

Chen Nianchu couldn't help but curl her lips into a smile. Watching Zhang Wen carefully tuck the jade box into his robe and even patting it to make sure it wouldn't fall out, that treasure-hugging appearance made him feel more approachable than his previous "Thunder God descending to earth" persona.