Chapter Forty-Six: The Monster Appears

Chapter Forty-Six: The Monster Emerges

Senior Brother Zhang acted without hesitation, pressing the button on the remote control. With a loud bang, fragments of stone flew everywhere—the cover concealing the monster was blasted apart. In the dim light, they could make out a vast underground hollow at the end of the narrow path.

Everyone hesitated, unsure whether to advance.

At that moment, the beautiful woman seized Bai Shi and gave him a shove.
"You brat, get in there!"
Bai Shi frowned. "Me?"
She replied coldly, "You’re the bait."
"What?" Bai Shi was furious. "How can you use a person as bait?"
She sneered, "What did you think I brought you down here for? You’re here to lure the monster out."
A chill ran from Bai Shi’s head to his toes. This woman, as stunning as she was, had a heart colder than a viper’s.
"Hmph! Me, go? Dream on!"
Her eyes flashed coldly. With a swift motion, her sword was at Bai Shi’s throat. "Refuse, and I’ll kill you myself."

Bai Shi scoffed, just about to call upon Master Qiao’s spirit, when suddenly a deafening roar echoed from the hollow. The air instantly filled with a pungent, fetid stench.

Everyone looked up to see an enormous creature emerging from the mine tunnel. It looked something like a cross between a dragon and a serpent, easily over a dozen meters long. Its eyes were as large as lanterns, glowing ominously red in the gloom.

Yet its movements were odd—more a crawl than a stride, nothing at all dragon-like.

As it drew further from the darkness, the truth dawned on them—it was no dragon, but a monstrous centipede.

Bai Shi couldn’t help but gasp, his scalp prickling and his whole body going numb at the sight of its countless writhing legs. His second uncle and Old Fu collapsed to the ground in terror. "Heavens above! We’re doomed for sure!"

Upon seeing the centipede, Senior Brother Zhang’s expression grew grave.
"Form up!"

The group quickly arranged themselves in a semicircle, drawing their pistols.

"Concentrate your fire on its head!" Zhang ordered.

"Yes, sir!"

The sound of bullets being chambered echoed in the tunnel.

"Ready—fire!"

A volley of gunfire erupted.

Bullets struck the centipede’s head with metallic clangs, sparks flying, but the creature seemed unfazed. It only gave its head a slight shake and continued crawling toward them.

Everyone was stunned. Senior Brother Zhang barked, "Grenades!"

"Yes, sir!"

"Toss them under its belly!"

"Yes, sir!"

Eight men quickly pulled the rings and hurled their grenades. The explosives fell beneath the centipede, but it didn’t even pause, crawling onward and pressing its abdomen directly onto the bombs.

Several explosions rang out, stones raining down as smoke billowed through the tunnel and chunks of rock fell from the walls.

Bai Shi clapped his hands over his ears, feeling as if his eardrums might burst, but no one paid him any mind. All eyes were fixed on the centipede, hoping to see it fall.

Yet as the smoke cleared, the centipede still stood, unharmed. It even reared up, letting out a loud, triumphant roar—as if flaunting its invincibility, or mocking their futile efforts.

The group was thrown into a panic. "What do we do now?" someone cried.

Senior Brother Zhang’s brow furrowed. "There’s no other way! We’ll have to use that technique!" With a flourish, he drew his long sword from his back.

"Form up! Seven Swords, Unite!"

Seven men quickly gathered, joining their swords together. Bai Shi craned his neck to see, and was astonished—their blades combined to form a massive cross-shaped flying dagger.

The seven of them strained, faces red with effort, and the cross-blade began to glow with a blue light.

"Seven Swords as One—Heaven and Earth, Be Destroyed!"

With a mighty shout from Senior Brother Zhang, "Release!"

The great cross-shaped blade spun from their hands like a propeller, crackling with blue electricity, and shot toward the centipede.

With a resounding clang, the monstrous centipede was sliced clean in two. Its upper half tumbled to the ground, from the wound gushed streams of green ichor.

The cross-blade circled in the air before returning to them, splitting once more into seven individual swords, each reverting to its owner.

"Wow! Senior Brother, you’re amazing!" the woman cheered, running to Senior Brother Zhang’s side.

Bai Shi’s second uncle and Old Fu let out a long sigh of relief, collapsing onto the ground. "Mother of mercy, that scared me half to death!"

Bai Shi himself was filled with curiosity about their martial arts. Who said all ancient secrets were lost to the modern world? These were techniques straight out of a legend!

The woman pouted, "Father is so biased—he never taught me the Seven Swords as One!"

The Seven Swords looked exhausted, sweat streaming down their faces. They tried to respond to the woman, but were too winded to speak. That last move had drained all their strength.

The woman quickly supported Senior Brother Zhang. "Sit down, quickly! Rest and recover!"

The Seven Swords could hardly stand, immediately sitting down and beginning to meditate to restore their energy.

She wiped the sweat from Senior Brother Zhang’s brow, her face filled with worry. "No wonder Father never taught me this technique—I never imagined it would be so draining!"

Senior Brother Zhang continued to regulate his breathing, still unable to answer her.

Seeing how weary they were, she dared not disturb them any further.

At that moment, Bai Shi’s second uncle and Old Fu hurried over, bowing deeply. "You heroes are truly immortals come to earth! We never dreamed such miraculous martial arts still existed in this world. We are in awe!"

Old Fu nodded vigorously. "A true hero indeed!"

The woman arched an eyebrow in pride. "Of course—do you even know who we are?"

Bai Shi’s curiosity was piqued. This group had been with them so long, yet he still didn’t know their identities.

His second uncle hesitated, then asked cautiously, "May I ask, great heroes, to which illustrious sect do you belong?"

The woman lifted her chin, her pride evident. "I suppose it doesn’t matter if we tell you—a bunch of country bumpkins. We are of the Severed Mountain Sect."

"Severed Mountain Sect?"

His second uncle and Old Fu exchanged confused looks—they’d never heard of such a sect.

She laughed dismissively. "Of course you haven’t. The Severed Mountain Sect is one of the Nine Great Sects—beyond the reach of commoners like you."

"The Nine Great Sects?" The two were even more bewildered.

She waved impatiently. "Enough questions. Knowing won’t do you any good."

By this time, Senior Brother Zhang had finished restoring his energy and slowly opened his eyes. The woman, excited, said, "Senior Brother! The earth dragon is dead—shall we…"

But before he could reply, a group of men in black surged out from behind.

With a series of muffled pops, several smoke bombs exploded on the ground. A sweet, heady scent filled the air, and the members of the Severed Mountain Sect collapsed where they stood.

The black-clad men quickly moved in, collecting their weapons. Only Senior Brother Zhang and the woman managed to cover their noses in time, avoiding the worst of the smoke.

But the attackers didn’t spare them. Raising their broad swords, they surrounded the two and launched a swift assault.

The woman, still covering her nose and mouth, struggled to fend off the onslaught. Soon, overwhelmed, she inhaled a lungful of the smoke. Her body went weak and she collapsed.

Though Senior Brother Zhang’s skills were superior, he was hard-pressed by the encirclement. He received several wounds and, finally, his strength gave out and he, too, fell to the ground.

Blood streamed steadily from the fresh wounds on his body.