Chapter 504 - 460: Giant Beast, White Snake

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The sky and sea were vast, yet continuous roars echoed through them.

From a distance, one could see a colossal beast wielding a pair of deep blue blades. With a mixture of ice and fire, every slash it brought down created a hell of both elements.

Under this ferocious assault, Chu Mu's figure flickered as he dodged, already looking quite pathetic.

'What kind of madman created this monster!'

Chu Mu seemed utterly exasperated.

Tier Three Demon Beasts weren't usually difficult to handle, as long as they weren't of a special High Tier bloodline or a direct descendant of the Demon Race's main lineage.

But this giant beast before him was clearly the ultimate fusion of flesh and Puppet!

Its limbs, tail, and even its skin and bones had all been replaced with Puppet Creations. It was, for all intents and purposes, a living Puppet.

As a result, although its own Cultivation was only at the Tier Three Late Stage, these flesh-and-blood modifications boosted its Combat Power to a level no less than that of an ordinary Tier Three Perfection being.

If that were all, this Demon Beast wouldn't be too difficult to deal with.

Its transformation into a Flesh Puppet meant it was bound to be constrained by the Puppet's limitations. With his understanding of Puppets, even if it were difficult to defeat this Demon Beast, he should not have ended up in such a sorry state.

However, the Artifact Refiner who modified this Demon Beast was clearly insane.

They had actually integrated the Qianlan Ice Flame—a precious Heaven and Earth Spiritual Flame no weaker than the Earth Spirit Flame—into its Puppet body. Furthermore, the Demon Beast's original body was clearly a rare creature with an Ice Attribute.

The combination of flesh and Puppet was already troublesome enough.

Add to that the Qianlan Ice Flame, which was compatible with the Demon Beast's original body...

The difficulty of dealing with this giant beast had jumped exponentially. It was sheer madness!

Chu Mu estimated that even if you gathered all the Golden Core Cultivators on the Demon Suppression Islands, probably not a single one would dare claim they could defeat this giant beast in a one-on-one fight!

Chu Mu practically had a toothache. He didn't know whether to be more vexed by the beast's tenacity or the waste of the Qianlan Ice Flame being consumed like this.

Chu Mu had no intention of fighting it out with the giant beast. After many years on the Demon Suppression Islands and getting to know more and more fellow Golden Core Cultivators, he had naturally learned a few secrets.

For example, he had previously sensed that the Beast Tide showed signs of organization, and from what he had gathered, this was indeed the case.

It was rumored that among the major powers of the Vast Sea Demon Race, a special type of Magical Treasure called the Ten Thousand Beasts Banner was prevalent. These Magical Treasures were often the inherited Supreme Treasures of the various Demon clans, controlled by their respective patriarchs.

Any member of the clan who reached a certain Cultivation Realm was usually required to leave a Divine Soul Seal in the Ten Thousand Beasts Banner, binding them to it and allowing the banner's master to command them.

The organized movements he had noticed among the Tier Two and Tier Three Demon Beasts were a result of being manipulated by the Ten Thousand Beasts Banner.

The root cause of every Beast Tide was the behind-the-scenes manipulation by these banners.

And a near-insane creation like this Flesh Puppet fusion—he didn't even need to think to know it was the handiwork of a Tier Four Great Demon.

Although he was staying on the Demon Suppression Islands to work for the Chen Family, there were clearly limits to his service. Killing some ordinary cannon-fodder Demon Beasts, fulfilling his daily guard duties, and earning some resources was one thing.

But if he killed a direct descendant of the Profound Serpent Race or slaughtered a Flesh Puppet like this one and got targeted by a Tier Four Great Demon, it would be a purely thankless task—just asking for trouble.

'If the Qianlan Ice Flame hadn't already been put through Refinement, I might have considered it worth the trouble!'

Chu Mu glanced back at the terrifying giant beast and clicked his tongue, feeling it was a pity.

The Qianlan Ice Flame had clearly been completely refined, becoming part of its Puppet body.

Even if he killed this giant beast, he would at most gain a Tier Three Demon Pill. As for the Qianlan Ice Flame, it was impossible to extract it after it had been so thoroughly integrated.

The risk and reward were completely disproportionate.

Time to bail!

Without another moment of hesitation, Chu Mu's crimson Tunneling Light flickered between the two icy-blue Giant Blades, and in the blink of an eye, he had flown out of their Attack range.

But what happened next was completely beyond Chu Mu's expectations.

He had assumed that being so heavily modified into a Puppet would make the beast clumsy. But just as his Flying Escape took him out of its Attack range, the giant beast shot into the sky, chasing after him at a speed no slower than his own!

Only then did he notice a faint, deep blue light flickering on the beast's lower limbs, acting like thrusters and propelling its rapid flight.

Chu Mu's expression turned grave. A bad feeling welled up within him.

For such a giant beast to appear in a routine patrol area was already extremely abnormal.

Not only did it target him the moment it appeared, but after he fled, it completely ignored the other Cultivators still within its Attack range, focusing solely on him...

As these thoughts raced through his mind, Chu Mu dared not delay. After sending out several voice transmissions, wisps of sharp Sword Intent began to flow, and the speed of his crimson Tunneling Light increased once more.

In the blink of an eye, the crimson Tunneling Light streaked across this stretch of sea, heading rapidly toward the Demon Suppression Islands.

The giant beast's flight was also fast, and it was clearly fixated on Chu Mu, unwilling to give up.

Suddenly, a voice transmission entered his ears. "Fellow Daoist, please wait."

Before Chu Mu could react, a frantic warning from his Divine Soul Blade—a sense of threat so intense it was almost a tremor—jolted him to his senses.

The crimson Tunneling Light instantly dissipated. Chu Mu flipped his body, abruptly retreating and ascending. In a mere moment, he had pulled back a great distance before stopping in the sky to perceive his surroundings.

At that moment, not far in front of him, a blast of white frost suddenly appeared. The frost spread rapidly as if freezing space itself, and in the blink of an eye, it formed a massive ice wall hanging in the sky. As it shimmered brightly, wisps of a terrifying aura testified to the frost's immense Mighty Power.

Chu Mu's pupils shrank. A wave of lingering fear washed over him. If he hadn't stopped in time just now, he would have crashed head-first into that frost-covered ice wall.

Judging by its Mighty Power, even if he wasn't injured, he certainly wouldn't have come out unscathed.

He slowly looked down at the sea. On the calm surface, a giant whirlpool spanning a thousand meters in diameter had appeared. As the whirlpool swirled, wisps of frost pulsed within it. In just a few breaths, a completely frozen vortex had formed.

Amidst the flawless white, a pair of vertical, serpentine pupils appeared at the center of the vortex.

Then, the serpentine pupils seemed to float in mid-air, slowly rising from the vortex.

Only then did Chu Mu realize that beneath the flawless white was a giant snake, its body as pristine as snow. The interplay of light and shadow on the frozen, snowy sea had created the illusion that the pupils were floating on their own.

By now, the giant beast had arrived. But strangely, the beast, which had been brimming with killing intent just moments ago, had now fallen eerily silent.

Its dual blades hung low, their tips piercing the ice. Only its crimson beast eyes remained fixed on Chu Mu, as if ready to launch a Thunderous Strike at the slightest movement.

Chu Mu's expression had returned to calm as he impassively watched the giant White Snake coil and rise.

An Ice Attribute was rare.

Within the Profound Serpent Race, known for its "profound" or dark nature, a white Profound Snake—let alone one with an Ice Attribute—was even rarer.

Such a bloodline mutation was undoubtedly a beneficial one, moving it closer to an Ancestral Return.

This snake had also achieved sapience early. Its status in the Profound Serpent Race was definitely not low.

A highly-regarded being with such a high status, leading a giant beast capable of suppressing the vast majority of Golden Core Realm Cultivators.

And it had come for him, Chu Mu...

A glint flickered in Chu Mu's eyes. The gloom clouding his heart had grown much heavier...

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