272: Chapter 272 As long as no one dies, we won't show up.

The snake demon opened its mouth, and a thick, purple-black toxic mist gushed out from the serpent's maw, spreading in all directions. The air within a ten-zhang radius quickly became murky.

"Hold your breath! Raise your spiritual power protection to the maximum!"

The Disciples activated their spiritual power, pushing their protective spiritual light to the limit.

The toxic mist made a faint corrosive sound as it touched the spiritual power protection, and the rate at which the spiritual light was consumed accelerated visibly.

"We can't keep this up; our spiritual power won't last long!" shouted Chen Rui, who was at the Qi Refining Ninth Layer.

Liu Ce made a decision.

"Zhou Hong, take three people to maintain the Formation and seal off the east! Chen Rui, Sun Mao, follow me; the three of us will strike its seven-inch spot!"

"You're going into the toxic mist for close combat?" Zhou Hong asked anxiously.

"It'll be too late if we don't strike now!"

Liu Ce pulled some detoxification pills from his Storage Pouch, gave two to Chen Rui and Sun Mao, and swallowed one himself. The three of them charged into the toxic mist simultaneously.

High in the air, Wenren Zimo's body tensed.

Su Yunling stared down, her right hand already gripping the hilt of the crimson cloud sword, but she didn't move.

The Disciples had charged into the toxic mist. The situation looked perilous, but it hadn't reached a life-threatening point yet.

The purple-black toxic mist clung to the spiritual power protection, making a piercing corrosive sound. Liu Ce's spiritual power consumption rate spiked; at this rate, he could last thirty breaths at most.

Sensing the three approaching, the snake demon swept its tail across.

Liu Ce dodged to the side, while Chen Rui swung a long blade Magical Artifact from the other side, striking the scales on the middle of the snake's body.

Unfortunately, the edge of the Medium Grade Magical Artifact only left a shallow white mark on the scales, failing to even break the skin.

"Strike the seven-inch spot! Don't hit the scales!" Liu Ce roared.

The three quickly adjusted their aim and attacked the snake demon's seven-inch spot.

The snake demon was not stupid; it coiled its body to protect its seven-inch spot within its loops, while its head shot out to bite the nearest person, Sun Mao.

The snake's fangs grazed Sun Mao's shoulder, tearing a half-foot-long gash in his Daoist robe. A purple-black toxic mark appeared on the flesh beneath, and the toxin spread toward both sides of the wound at a visible speed.

"Sun Mao, get out of there!"

Chen Rui grabbed Sun Mao by the back of his collar and shoved him out of the toxic mist.

The Disciples outside the mist caught Sun Mao and hurriedly poured detoxification pills into him. The spread of the toxic mark was contained, but the flesh at the wound had already rotted and turned black; for the time being, this arm was useless.

Su Yunling saw clearly from above that Sun Mao's injury was not fatal and that a first-grade detoxification pill could temporarily suppress it.

Her fingers loosened on the sword hilt, then tightened again.

Only Liu Ce and Chen Rui remained inside the toxic mist.

Liu Ce gritted his teeth and pulled a Talisman from the very bottom of his Storage Pouch. This was a life-saving item his Revered Master had given him when leaving the Sect, with instructions not to use it unless it was a matter of life and death.

A second-grade Low Grade attack Talisman was a trump card for a Qi Refining Disciple.

Without hesitation, Liu Ce activated the Talisman with his spiritual power. A golden sword beam shot out from the paper, slashing toward the snake demon's coiled body.

The grade of the golden sword beam far exceeded that of a Medium Grade Magical Artifact. It sliced through the coils protecting the snake demon's seven-inch spot, shattering a patch of scales and exposing the pale purple snake meat beneath.

The snake demon hissed and roared, its body twisting violently.

"Now!" Chen Rui seized the gap as the snake's body unfurled, striking the exposed seven-inch spot with his long blade and all his spiritual power.

The Medium Grade Magical Artifact struck the unprotected snake meat, the blade cutting nearly an inch deep, and dark purple snake blood sprayed out.

The snake demon thrashed like mad. Liu Ce and Chen Rui were flung away by the force of its rolling body, and they scrambled out of the toxic mist's range.

The snake demon was heavily injured, and it could no longer maintain the toxic mist; the purple-black fog quickly dissipated.

The wound at its seven-inch spot was bleeding continuously, and its movements were much slower than before, but it wasn't dead yet.

"Keep fighting!" Liu Ce swallowed a qi recovery pill, barely recovering twenty percent of his spiritual power.

The snake demon stopped fighting and turned to burrow into the ground.

Four Disciples at the Eighth Layer of Qi Refining used Magical Artifacts to bombard the snake demon's tail from a distance, but their attack power was limited, only striking sparks off the scales.

Zhou Hong reorganized the Formation, and the Sword Qi net of the Big Dipper Combined Attack Formation spread out in front of the snake demon.

The snake demon crashed into it, charging recklessly. Its injured body was ground against the Sword Qi, leaving large bloody streaks, and the eight-man Formation became shaky under its frantic collisions.

After half a quarter of an hour, the net finally tore under the snake demon's frantic ramming. The snake's body darted through the gap, dragging its injured seven-inch spot as it fled wildly toward the southeast, vanishing into the deep brush in the blink of an eye.

"Chase it!" Liu Ce scrambled up from the ground, ready to pursue.

"Liu Ce!" Zhou Hong called out to him. "Your spiritual power is nearly bottomed out. What are you going to chase it with?"

Liu Ce fished a top-grade qi recovery pill from his Storage Pouch, bit into it, and swallowed. His spiritual power instantly recovered to fifty percent.

He had bought this Medicinal Pill at the Zhenpin Pavilion and had been reluctant to use it, but he had no choice now. Seeing that the Foundation Establishment Yao Beast was already injured, now was the time to press the advantage.

He scanned everyone's condition. Sun Mao's right arm was useless, and two others at the Eighth Layer of Qi Refining had sustained various injuries in the toxic mist.

One had a large swelling where the snake's tail had struck their shoulder, and another had a sprained ankle and couldn't run fast; all three were unable to fight further.

Chen Rui had less than thirty percent spiritual power left, while Zhou Hong and the other Disciples at the Qi Refining Ninth Layer were at about forty to fifty percent. The remaining two at the Eighth Layer of Qi Refining were in decent shape.

"Sun Mao, the three of you injured ones return to the Heming City station." Liu Ce looked at one of the Eighth Layer of Qi Refining Disciples. "Zhao Ning, you take them back and look after them on the way."

Zhao Ning opened his mouth as if to say something, but after seeing the state of the three injured Disciples, he still responded with a "Yes."

"The rest of you, follow me!"

Zhou Hong frowned. "Martial Aunt Su said..."

"Martial Aunt Su said if we ask for help, we have to go back, but now..." Liu Ce interrupted him. "The snake demon is already heavily injured. How can we not chase such an opportunity?"

Zhou Hong thought about it and didn't stop him again. This was indeed a good opportunity. Even if things didn't work out, Martial Aunt Su was protecting them in the shadows, so they shouldn't come to harm.

Ultimately, nine people followed. Liu Ce and Zhou Hong were at the Tenth Level of Qi Refining, plus Chen Rui and four others at the Qi Refining Ninth Layer, and two more at the Eighth Layer of Qi Refining with lighter injuries.

High in the air, Wenren Zimo watched as the nine Disciples chased toward the southeast.

"Should we go down and call them back? Although the snake demon is injured, there are too many variables if they chase it into the heart of the mountain range."

Su Yunling stared in the direction the Disciples were moving and didn't budge.

"They haven't asked for help."

"But..."

"Since it's a trial, let them see it through to the end." Su Yunling's voice was indifferent. "As long as no one dies, we won't show up. Let's follow."

The two adjusted their direction and continued to tail them from high above.

The Disciples pursued quickly. The wound at the snake demon's seven-inch spot was bleeding constantly, and the dark purple snake blood dripped along the beast path, making it exceptionally striking on the soil.

After chasing for over twenty li, the bloodstains became sparse; the snake demon's blood was likely clotting, and the wound was healing itself.

Liu Ce quickened his pace. He knew that if he let the snake demon completely stop the bleeding and recover, another fight in their current state would be precarious.

After another ten or so li, the terrain became increasingly desolate.

The brush had disappeared, replaced by large expanses of exposed gray-brown rock layers where nothing grew, and a very faint acidic, putrid smell filled the air.

Moreover, if they went another few dozen li, they would be heading toward the Soul-Severing Ravine.