"Damn, what the hell is going on here? Who's the ruthless bastard that's been siphoning off the Spirit Marrow?!"

The True Immortal Realm Fifth Stage brute, confident in his high cultivation base, glared with his big, copper bell-like eyes, scanning everyone one by one before he burst into curses, clearly infuriated by the situation.

Not only him, but everyone else was extremely angry as well, and to prove their innocence, they cursed and swore in turn.

Wang Xiaoqiang, being labeled the "thief," could accept being cursed at a couple of times—after all, it didn't itch or hurt—but he couldn't bring himself to curse his own name no matter what.

However, if he didn't speak up at this moment, he would definitely be suspected by everyone, so he spoke up, "Everyone, calm down a bit, listen to me…"

By now, Wang Xiaoqiang had established a bit of credibility within the group.

Seeing Wang Xiaoqiang speaking in such a manner, they all turned their attention to him and ceased their swearing.

Putting on an indignant expression, Wang Xiaoqiang said, "The Spiritual Energy contained within this Spirit Marrow is extremely potent; it's impossible to absorb it all in just twenty minutes. There must be something fishy going on. Honestly, I am also quite annoyed by what's happened, but it's not right for us to suspect each other... Everyone knows that if a person absorbs a large amount of Spiritual Energy in a short period, it could rupture their meridians, or they could even explode and die. So, to say that someone has been foul and devoured most of the Spirit Marrow, I can't bring myself to believe it..."

As he spoke, Wang Xiaoqiang moved his will and took out his piece of Spirit Marrow from the Sumeru Ring, placing it on the ground, "If you don't believe me, feel free to use my Spirit Marrow for the experiment. I'll give you twenty minutes. If anyone can absorb my Spirit Marrow completely within twenty minutes, then I'll give it to them. If not, I'm sorry, but please return my Spirit Marrow..."

The eighty-three people looked at each other, none of them speaking up again,

They all knew very well that there were no shortcuts when it came to Refining Pills or absorbing Spirit Marrow; one could only absorb it bit by bit, progressing slowly.

For a single person to absorb a piece of Spirit Marrow, let alone twenty minutes, it might not be possible even in twenty days.

"No one willing to try? Fine then!" Wang Xiaoqiang took back his Spirit Marrow, saying, "Since that's the case, let's not suspect each other anymore. I think the rapid depletion of the Spirit Marrow might be due to some powerful living being stealing it. A Divine Beast, for instance, could instantly absorb an entire Spirit Marrow…"

Upon hearing this, everyone agreed and nodded.

"Therefore, I believe that when we get another Spirit Marrow, everyone should be more cautious while refining it! Perhaps set up a Restriction…" At this point, Wang Xiaoqiang spread his hands and added, "Alright, if anyone still wants to dwell on this matter, feel free to do so. I'm going to look for Armor now..."

Wang Xiaoqiang spoke, then stood up and walked into the deeper parts of the mountain range.

The more than five hundred thousand Spiritual Springs outside of him closely followed behind him, their five-colored brilliance twinkling, resplendently unparalleled, but it was a pity that the others could not see them.

Seeing this, the rest also stood up and hurriedly followed.

The True Immortal Realm Fifth Stage brute got up last, casting a doubtful glance at Wang Xiaoqiang and muttered to a True Immortal Realm Second Stage cultivator next to him, "Hey, don't you think that Wang Xiaoqiang is a bit odd?"

The True Immortal Realm Second Stage cultivator exclaimed in surprise, "Not really; if anything, I find him to be quite trustworthy…"

"Trustworthy? Hmph, he could sell you, and you'd still count the money for him…" the True Immortal Realm Fifth Stage man rolled his eyes and paid him no further heed, striding forward to catch up with the group.

The True Immortal Realm Second Stage cultivator thought for a moment, but couldn't see any problem with Wang Xiaoqiang, shook his head, and followed the group.

After they left the small valley and crossed over another hill, the cries of the Spirit Beasts began to intensify, with terrifying roars coming from afar. These roaring sounds seemed to carry a Magic Power, causing the bodies of those with weaker Cultivation Bases to involuntarily tremble upon hearing them.

Although Wang Xiaoqiang was young, he had endured many battles, had a firm resolve, and to maintain the image of reliability in front of everybody, he continually led from the front.

Suddenly, he felt the Spiritual Springs inside and outside his body vibrating in unison, issuing a warning. The Patterned Beast on his back stirred as well, signaling to him that a powerful Spirit Beast might be lurking ahead.

Turning back to the group, he said, "There might be Spirit Beasts roaming ahead. If we do encounter them, don't be afraid, and don't run away. We must unite and fight together. After slaying a Spirit Beast, everyone can share its Spirit Marrow..."

Hearing these words, some people felt apprehensive, some panicked, while others revealed looks of excitement, and some wore expressions of suspicion and indecision.

Clearly, not everyone was entirely convinced of Wang Xiaoqiang's leadership.

Wang Xiaoqiang continued to lead the way forward. The Five Elements Spirit Spring shook even more violently, but still, there were no roars from any Spirit Beast, nor any sign of them, which made Wang Xiaoqiang also feel a wave of doubt.

Could it be that it's not a Spirit Beast?

Is it some other kind of powerful being?

Just as Wang Xiaoqiang was wrestling with his doubts, suddenly, a clear, bell-like and pleasing sound of laughter "giggling... giggling..." came from the right.

It was the laughter of a woman, sounding naïve and carefree, yet sweet and delightful, bringing a moment of pleasure to the heart, drawing everyone's gaze toward it.

At that moment, a woman's face appeared from a cluster of vines on the mountainside, giggling at the crowd and batting her eyelashes flirtatiously.

The woman was stunningly beautiful, with skin like creamy jade, a melon-seed shaped face, a Qiongyao nose—only her willow-leaf shaped eyebrows ended in a peculiar twist, and her mouth was too vivid a red, her lips almost blood-like, lending her a hint of demon Qi which strangely made her even more

After seeing this woman, the majority of the group began to display lustful expressions; some even had sleazy smiles on their faces,

"Giggling, dear young heroes, are you tired from your journey? Come, rest your feet a while; I'll pick some grapes for you to eat..."

The woman continued to flirtatiously bat her eyelashes, stretching further out from the vines, extending her delicate, jade-like hand to pluck a bunch of ripe grapes, lifting them above her head, and then deliberately arched her neck to tease eating the grapes, biting into one after another,

Wang Xiaoqiang also marveled in secret, though he understood in his heart that this woman was definitely not human!

"Giggling... giggling..." the woman continued to showcase her tongue while emitting a delightful laugh that grew increasingly pleasant to the ear, more and more ticklish to one's heart.

Even Wang Xiaoqiang at that moment felt a strong urge to approach the woman.

Suddenly,

a bearded man started running towards the woman.

Including Wang Xiaoqiang, all 83 people were also captivated by the woman's bewitching technique, their divine souls so spellbound that they involuntarily walked toward her.

By then, the bearded man had already reached the woman's side, chuckling hehe as he moved closer to the woman.

The woman giggled, discarding the grapes in her hand,

However, just as the bearded man moved closer, the woman's smile vanished, replaced by a flash of ruthlessness on her face, and suddenly her pair of jade arms retracted, disappearing into her body in a most bizarre manner.

Following that, the woman's fair skin began to change rapidly, turning to a blue hue right before their eyes, as scales revealed themselves prominently...

The bearded man felt the smooth, delicate body in his arms become coarse, pausing in surprise before he looked up to see the woman had transformed into a giant snake, thick as a barrel, with a gaping maw...

The bearded man screamed in terror and tried to flee, but the Snake Demon bit down on him, swallowing more than half of his body before slithering downward.

The rest of the group, snapping out of their trance from the bearded man's scream, felt a cold sweat wash over them as they witnessed the scene before them,

At that moment, everyone was shocked to realize that the Snake Demon's lower body had always been hidden inside a cave in the mountain, exposing only her upper half, covered with vines, which prevented her discovery by the crowd. (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation tickets, monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please go to m.qidian.com to read.)

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.