Cracks suddenly split the ground beneath his feet. In the next instant, a colossal jet-black python burst forth from the earth, its massive body surging toward Lin Tian with terrifying speed.
"Black-Gold Python." The moment he recognized the spirit beast, Lin Tian's expression changed drastically. A single Black Owl had already been troublesome enough; now, with a Black-Gold Python at the fourth layer of the Foundation Establishment Realm joining the fray, his situation had only grown more dire.
Without a moment to spare, Lin Tian swung the Coldwater Sword in his hand while simultaneously channeling spiritual energy into his spatial ring. A spiritual-energy rifle materialized at once. He pulled the trigger, and a beam of condensed spiritual light shot forth.
Boom.
The blast struck the Black-Gold Python head-on, hurling it violently backward before it crashed heavily to the ground. Yet it rose again almost immediately. Bloodshot veins spread across its predatory eyes, brimming with ferocity. Clearly, Lin Tian's attack had failed to deal any decisive damage—instead, it had thoroughly enraged the beast.
At the same time, the Black Owl's talons collided directly with the Coldwater Sword. Waves of icy aura erupted from the blade, instantly freezing the owl's claws solid.
However, the Coldwater Sword itself was not unscathed. The owl's razor-sharp talons scraped across the blade, leaving behind deep gouges. If this continued, the sword would likely be destroyed before long.
With a swift slash, Lin Tian forced the Black Owl back and retreated rapidly himself. Facing two ferocious spirit beasts at once, he felt an overwhelming pressure weighing down on him.
Despite the peril of the moment, his hands never paused. Bottles of spirit liquid were consumed in quick succession, and within his palm, a tiny lotus slowly unfurled its petals.
At the same time, the temperature of the surrounding air soared, growing unbearably stifling. A sharp glint flashed through Lin Tian's eyes as he sent the lotus flying outward. Yet the Black Owl and the Black-Gold Python clearly had no intention of giving him any respite. One took to the skies, the other surged forward on the ground, both closing in on him at full speed.
Lin Tian clenched his hand.
The lotus shattered instantly. A terrifying surge of power erupted alongside a scorching heatwave. Immediately after, agonized cries rang out. The stench of burnt feathers filled the air around the Black Owl.
Although the Black Owl's offensive power was nearly on par with a fifth-layer Foundation Establishment spirit beast, its defenses were markedly weaker. In their earlier clashes, it had relied solely on the sharpness of its talons to block Lin Tian's attacks. Now, faced with the aftershock of the exploding Fire Lotus, it had no means of defense and was directly engulfed.
The Black-Gold Python, however, was another matter entirely. The defensive power of its scales was astonishing. Though the explosion had affected it slightly, the damage was negligible. Its speed continued to increase, the distance between it and Lin Tian shrinking rapidly.
"Trying to kill me? You're still far too inexperienced." Lin Tian's gaze turned icy as seals flew rapidly from his hands. A barrier formed around his body in an instant. When the Black-Gold Python lunged, a brilliant flash erupted from the barrier, forcibly halting its ferocious assault.
Its attack thwarted, the Black-Gold Python showed a hint of surprise. Its crimson tongue flickered in and out before it suddenly dove underground.
"Damn it—so it still has this trick." Lin Tian could only curse inwardly. His formation could block frontal attacks, but assaults from beneath the ground were beyond its reach. Fortunately, the Black Owl was in dire straits and had no spare attention for him. This allowed Lin Tian to focus entirely on the Black-Gold Python.
The Coldwater Sword flashed forth once more, unleashing a burst of chilling frost. At the instant the Black-Gold Python burst from the earth, Lin Tian moved at top speed, narrowly evading its strike. At the same time, his sword thrust forward like lightning, stabbing heavily toward the python's vital point.
The Black-Gold Python convulsed violently, its massive tail whipping toward Lin Tian with tremendous force. At that moment, Lin Tian had poured all his strength into the attack, leaving him with no room to evade the counterstrike.
Fortunately, the Black-Gold Python was already gravely wounded and could no longer unleash its full power. The tail strike was only comparable to an attack at the ninth layer of the Qi Refinement Realm. Though it still inflicted serious injuries on Lin Tian, it was far from fatal.
His body slammed heavily into the light barrier as the Coldwater Sword was swiftly withdrawn. Lin Tian stood still, watching the Black-Gold Python intently as its body trembled uncontrollably. After a final bout of violent convulsions, its movements grew weaker and weaker—until its life was extinguished entirely.
Witnessing this, the Black Owl fled at once. It was clear that the owl and the python had been allies. Now that Lin Tian had not only withstood their combined assault but had even slain the Black-Gold Python, it was evident that he was no easy opponent. Even wounded, who knew what other methods he might still possess?
Faced with such a foe, the Black Owl naturally did not dare linger. After all, it had already been badly injured by the Crimson Lotus.
"Looks like I'll be taking advantage of this one." Struggling to his feet, Lin Tian glanced at the fallen Black-Gold Python and offered a faint smile toward Seban in the distance. Lacking sufficient strength, Seban had been reduced to a mere spectator during the battle. Now, with the Black Owl gone and the Black-Gold Python dead, the corpse alone represented a tremendous gain.
Especially for Seban, the flesh and blood of the Black-Gold Python were an exceptional tonic. If absorbed properly, his strength would undoubtedly rise to a new level.
After drinking another bottle of spirit liquid, Lin Tian stepped forward slowly, preparing to dismantle the python's corpse.
But just as he approached, a surge of spiritual energy rushed toward him. His expression changed as he narrowly dodged aside. When he looked up, he saw three figures standing before him.
"I never imagined we'd meet you here." One of them smiled faintly as they advanced step by step, while Lin Tian's face darkened at once.