CHAPTER 874: CHAPTER 874: LILY IN BLOOM

The gale shot swiftly, with a sharp whistling through the air.

Chen Nan suddenly opened his eyes, turned around like lightning, and grabbed the incoming gust with one swift motion.

Upon a closer look, he discovered that his assailant was a small, emerald-green snake, only as thick as a thumb, now held tightly at its vital spot.

"So it was just a snake."

Chen Nan smiled faintly, took out his broken sword, cut off the snake’s head, and then slit open its belly to extract the snake gallbladder before tossing the snake’s body aside.

This was merely a first-layer Foundation Establishment Stage snake, with little value, except for its gall which might fetch a few spirit stones.

Nonetheless, the promising start made Chen Nan very happy inside.

"It seems this area is inhabited by Foundation Establishment Realm demon beasts, too weak for me. I need to venture deeper."

His ideal opponent was a demon beast at the peak of the Foundation Establishment Stage—not so strong as to render him hopeless, yet dangerous enough to serve as a worthy challenge.

However, this area seemed to be the territory of low-grade Foundation Establishment Stage demon beasts. To find powerful ones, he had to venture further in.

Looking at the broken sword in his hand, Chen Nan gave a wry smile.

Although only a third of the blade remained, it could still be used as a dagger.

But as for the sword’s mystical properties, Chen Nan couldn’t see any, and even when he channeled his mana into it, it was like a stone sinking into the sea.

"Could it be just an ordinary broken sword? Was the King of Ten Thousand Gu’s disturbance just a coincidence?"

Chen Nan felt like summoning the King of Ten Thousand Gu right away to give it a couple of smacks.

With just a slight movement, he had spent nine thousand low-grade spirit stones—what a colossal waste!

Despite his frustration, Chen Nan could do nothing but continue forward, hoping to hunt more demon beasts to make up for the loss.

He remained cautious in all directions—this place was riddled with dangers and demon beasts everywhere.

If he let his guard down, he might not leave alive.

After traveling over a hundred miles, Chen Nan encountered a few spiritual medicines along the way. Though they were only ninth grade, it wasn’t a fruitless journey.

Moreover, in the brief hundred-mile journey, he had faced more than a dozen demon beast attacks, indicating the vast number of demon beasts in the forest.

"Isn’t this about right? I should have bought a map beforehand, or else I’m just wandering around like a headless fly."

While there weren’t many landmarks in Wuyin Forest, there were still many ways to determine direction.

With so many people entering the forest annually, there were bound to be those who map out the terrain, marking where heavenly treasures and powerful demon beasts could be found.

But every map had been obtained by cultivators risking their lives, so no one would be willing to sell them. If there truly were spiritual medicines, why wouldn’t they just collect them themselves?

The Myriad Phenomena Commerce also sold maps, but they covered vast areas of the continent and were rather rough, only noting basic terrain features and powerful demon beasts.

Chen Nan had been preoccupied with examining the broken sword, thus neglecting this matter.

"Sigh, I can’t expect a map to just fall from the sky, so I’ll have to slowly explore."

Sighing, Chen Nan continued to wander around, unwittingly arriving at the base of a low cliff, where a stream flowed down to form a small waterfall.

"The constantly changing terrain in the forest is truly breathtaking."

After marveling for a moment, just as Chen Nan was about to leave, he noticed something amiss and stopped to observe.

Logically, the small waterfall would have formed a decent-sized pond below, where the surrounding demon beasts should visit to drink water.

Yet, as he approached the area around the small waterfall, he couldn’t see any demon beasts.

This could only mean one thing: this was the territory of an even more powerful demon beast!

Sure enough, upon closer inspection, Chen Nan discovered at the edge of the pond, just below the cliff of the small waterfall, a small white flower growing.

It was still in bud form, looking soft and tender, yet emitting a faint glow.

"A spiritual medicine? This is... Snow Falling Lily!"

With a bit of thought, Chen Nan understood the spiritual medicine’s information.

Snow Falling Lily, named for its snow-like white petals, has a cold attribute and is a sixth-grade spiritual medicine, extremely valuable.

To maximize its medicinal power, one must harvest the Snow Falling Lily at the moment it blooms; observing closely, Chen Nan realized this particular one was on the verge of flowering.

It wouldn’t be long before it bloomed.

"Unexpectedly, I found such a precious spiritual medicine even on the outskirts of Wuyin Forest."

Chen Nan smiled, thinking his luck was indeed good, but suddenly, he remembered something else.

While there were many valuable heavenly treasures in Wuyin Forest, these usually had demon beasts guarding them.

Though demon beasts lack intelligence, they instinctively recognize the value of spiritual medicines, awaiting their maturity to consume them.

This led Chen Nan to conclude there must be a demon beast guarding this Snow Falling Lily, although he hadn’t discovered it yet.

With this in mind, he took a few steps back and carefully sensed his surroundings, wary of a demon beast sneak attack.

Any beast guarding a sixth-grade spiritual medicine wouldn’t be weak.

"Could the demon beast also be waiting for the lily to bloom?"

Chen Nan muttered, becoming even more vigilant.

If the demon beast was nearby and he hadn’t noticed, it meant that it was quite adept at concealing itself.

"The dangers in Wuyin Forest are indeed numerous."

This was only the outskirts, yet the pressure was palpable for Chen Nan.

Time ticked by, Chen Nan stood motionless like a statue.

Finally, the Snow Falling Lily began to bloom.

The first pure white petal extended, releasing a special fragrance, followed by the second petal, the third...

As soon as the lily fully bloomed, Chen Nan suddenly moved, leaping toward the Snow Falling Lily, silently forming a Dharma Seal with his hand.

At this moment, the surface of the pond was broken as a water arrow shot forth.

"As expected!"

Chen Nan’s expression tensed, but having anticipated this, he didn’t panic; he quickly executed the prepared hand seal.

"Fierce Tiger Seal!"

A large golden seal suddenly materialized, revealing a tiger’s phantom, pressing down hard on the water arrow.

As soon as the water arrow touched the golden seal, it was shattered by the tiger phantom’s claw, and the golden seal unimpededly smashed downward into the pond.

Splash!

The water in the pond splashed over two meters high, yet a long pink tongue lashed out like a whip.

With a snap, the Fierce Tiger Seal shattered instantly before the tender tongue.

Gazing intently, Chen Nan saw the demon beast hidden in the pond finally reveal its true form.

It was a pure white toad, with the most peculiar feature being a vertical eye on its forehead.

"Three-eyed Treasure Toad?"

Chen Nan exclaimed, deeply shocked.