Chapter 336: Chapter 332: Changes in Taize Lake

“Did I just hallucinate?”

Bai Qi patted the cordyceps in his arms and realized that he had not been hallucinating when he felt its burning temperature.

“How dare you insult me in this way, now see what I…’”

The Ring Tail Snake, slapped to the ground by Beta, angrily stood upright, protesting at Beta. But Beta clearly didn’t intend to indulge it, slapping it to the ground again with another swipe of his paw.

Awroo…

(So weak…)

“Blast it! I’m angry!”

The Ring Tail Snake stood upright again, as if it intended to fight Beta to the death. But at the sight of Beta extending his claw, slithered slightly back.

“Jerry, didn’t you say this was a fearsome enemy?”

Jerry: “…forget I said that…”

Jerry hadn’t expected Beta’s slap, but it also let him momentarily ascertain the condition of the Ring Tail Snake.

It lacked energy and was as ordinary as any common Big Tooth Rabbit. By Gamma’s standard, apart from being useful for cooking, it was practically worthless.

However, how could such a fragile creature withstand the extreme cold environment of Taize Lake?

“According to my combat power detector, this is indeed just a common snake, well, but its skin seems very special, worthy of study.”

Schuck scanned the Ring Tail Snake quietly and came to its conclusion.

Clip clop clip clop.

(Master, do you want snake soup?)

“Forget it, let’s take it back for study first.”

The cold wind blowing from underneath the ice could temporarily freeze his thoughts, yet this thing was still lively. Even if snakes liked to hibernate, this was a bit much.

Moreover, Beta didn’t hold back with those two slaps just now, but the Ring Tail Snake didn’t seem to be hurt at all. One didn’t need to think to know that there was something special about this snake.

Just then, the Ring Tail Snake suddenly took advantage of Beta’s momentary distraction, and slithered swiftly to Beta’s side. It skillfully avoided Beta’s paw strike, reached Beta’s tail, and bit down hard.

Ahwoo!

Beta immediately jumped as the stinging pain caused him to run uncontrollably. He tried to shake off the Ring Tail Snake, but it was evidently vengeful, refusing to let go no matter how Beta ran or thrashed.

“Did you see the Ring Tail Snake’s movements clearly just now?”

Bai Qi was somewhat surprised to see Beta being successfully ambushed, and so he inquired Gamma, Delta, and the cordyceps next to him.

“I didn’t see clearly, it seemed to have instantly moved over?”

Blurb blurp.

(Impossible, there was no ripple in the space around it, it must have been just speed.)

Clip clop clip clop.

(But how come Gamma feels that even Alpha doesn’t have that kind of speed?)

Hearing the three pets’ discussion, Bai Qi understood in his heart, the corner of his mouth immediately curling into a wicked smile.

“Schuck, bring it back.”

“Understood.”

Schuck, who was blindly running around alongside Beta, received the order. His body flickered a red and blue energy. The Thunder Flame Power enveloped both the Three-Headed Dog and the Ring Tail Snake. The Ring Tail Snake stiffened all over, spewing black smoke and falling straight to the ground.

Awoo awoo!

(Almost forgot, I still have this move!)

Beta pitifully looked at the two bite marks on his tail; his eyes turned even unfriendlier looking at the Ring Tail Snake. But Schuck clearly didn’t allow Beta to continue causing trouble, picking up the Ring Tail Snake and bringing it to Bai Qi.

Bai Qi looked at the Ring Tail Snake, which was sticking out its tongue, unmoving. He clicked his tongue, said: “Alright, stop pretending, I know you’re fine.”

Ring Tail Snake: “…”

“Gamma, I want snake soup.”

Ring Tail Snake: “I was just joking with you, please don’t take it seriously.”

The Ring Tail Snake, which had just moments before seemed indistinguishable from a dead snake, suddenly raised its head. Seeing the five runic marks on the back of Bai Qi’s hand, it again put on an arrogant expression.

“So, just a Fifth Stage Beast Master, you’d better be nice to me. If I’m happy, I might tell you some secret pet evolution recipes to help you improve your strength.”

“The Martial Emperor was able to raise so many legendary creatures only with my help.”

Seeing the Ring Tail Snake acting pretentious, Bai Qi stayed indifferent. Beta, on the other hand, seemed as if he had received some order and slapped the Ring Tail Snake back to the ground with another paw.

“If you don’t want to be turned into snake soup, you’d better watch your attitude when talking to me.”

Bai Qi seized the Ring Tail Snake, saying, “The Martial Emperor has been dead for two thousand years. Are you trying to tell me you’ve lived from then until now?”

“Of course not! I’ve been accompanying the Emperor since the…”

The Ring Tail Snake arrogantly raised its head, ready to show off, but after seeing Bai Qi’s cold eyes, it closed its mouth.

“Since you love boasting so much, I might as well call you Cowskin Snake, after all, your skin is indeed quite thick.”

Cowskin Snake, taken aback by the comment, was about to resist, but then saw Beta’s paw coming over again. He dodged it nimbly and made his way to Beta’s neck along its forelimb, biting his tail and then pulling it hard.

Awooooo!!!

(My neck!!!)

Beta’s eyes widened in surprise as he fell flat on the ice. He tried to pull the Cowskin Snake off his neck but to no avail. Meanwhile, Cowskin Snake seemed to have found a way to deal with Beta and coiled himself even tighter.

“These two, they are such troublemakers.”

Bai Qi shook his head helplessly at the sight, and Schuck immediately intervened once more, pulling the Cowskin Snake down from Beta’s neck and saved Beta’s life.

Awooooo awoooooo!

(I can’t stand this stinky snake. Don’t try to stop me, human!)

“Hold on, let me ask him a few questions first.”

Bai Qi calmed the raging Beta down and looked at the Cowskin Snake, firmly secured by Schuck’s mechanical arm. He asked, “What exactly are you? How did you end up under Taize Lake? And, tell me what’s going on with all these abnormalities in Taize Lake?”

“As I said, I am… never mind, I am just an ordinary little snake who accidentally fell into the Zhenezhe… that is, the Taize Lake you were talking about, when I hibernated. As for the abnormalities you were talking about, it’s just the cold current surging under Taize Lake, breaking through the ice layer.”

Laying his innocent eyes on Bai Qi, Cowskin Snake said, “I’ve told you everything now. Can this…cough cough… can this powerful creature put me down now? This position really isn’t very elegant.”

“Hold on, I’ll let you go after I figure out what you are.”

Bai Qi chuckled, laid his hand on the Cowskin Snake, and looked at the Evolution Egg, which remained motionless without even a bit of data being transferred. Yet a smile appeared on his face.

Ordinary, so ordinary that it’s abnormal. This guy, he’s definitely worth studying~

Ignoring the pleading eyes of the Cowskin Snake, Bai Qi started observing the situation of Taize lake.

The Taize Lake was no longer calm as before. Through the hole made by the Cowskin Snake’s emergence, one could clearly see the fierce currents below. If it weren’t for the enduring ice layer of many years, it would have been shattered by the surging undercurrent long ago.

“Beta, can you sense what’s happening down there?”

Awoooo awoooo.

(It’s too cold underneath. I can’t extend my spirit power that far down.)

“I see…”

Bai Qi nodded and, looking at the increasingly widening hole, mounted Delta to fly into the sky.

“Better notify the teacher first.”

…

Bai Villa.

Alpha, who had sensed Bai Qi’s call, suddenly spaced out. He was about to respond to Bai Qi’s call and leave, but he was abruptly enveloped by the Netherworld Realm, interrupting Alpha’s move.

The Jiuyou Darkbird, having taken the form of a small sparrow, steadily landed on the Sword of Death. Despite the terrifying power of annihilation emanating from the Sword of Death, it said, “Being distracted during a fight- that’s a rookie mistake.”

Reacting silently to the comment, Alpha swiftly swung the Sword of Death towards the Jiuyou Darkbird. Yet, no matter how dazzling Alpha’s attacks were, they couldn’t get close to Jiuyou Darkbird.

However, it seemed as if Alpha had anticipated this. His sword strokes got faster and faster, leaving a thin black line across the sky. These lines intertwining formed a special rune.

“Drawing runes with the Power of Death, I suppose that’s only your style.”

Jiuyou Darkbird slightly nodded and shredded the rune of death with one claw.

“But this kind of energy without foundation is pretty useless.”

Without a word, Alpha put away the Sword of Death and stopped resisting, instead starting to contact Bai Qi silently.

“Alright, that’s enough for today. I presume your Beast Master has encountered some danger.”

Seeing Alpha like this, Jiuyou Darkbird also lost interest and went back to Bai Heguang’s shoulder to sleep.

“Dad, is Bai Qi in danger?”

Seeing Alpha’s unusual behavior, Bai Qiucha couldn’t help asking. Bai Heguang just shook his head and said, “I’ve told Blood Scythe Wraith to go too, so he should be fine. Plus, there’s always Snare monitoring from above.”

To the Federation, Bai Qi now had a value even higher than some Legendary Beast Masters, so whenever Bai Qi left the city, Snare would pay very close attention to him. If danger ever arose, Snare would be the first to respond.

Bai Heguang had been aware of this, but he still sent the Blood Scythe Wraith to secretly protect him.

Being extra safe wouldn’t hurt.

Buzz buzz buzz…

Bai Heguang took out his cell phone and answered Bai Qi’s call.

“Did you finish the task?”

“Well, not yet, but I’ve encountered something and wanted to report to you first.”

Having said this, Schuck’s eyes flashed red and switched the phone’s screen to an overhead view of Taize Lake.

“Something happened to Taize Lake. The ice on a large area of the surface has cracked, and the surrounding temperature is dropping rapidly. If it continues to spread, it may impact the surrounding creatures. Do you need to come over and take a look?”

Bai Qi glanced at the increasingly larger hole beneath him, urged Delta to ascend even higher, and avoided the incessantly emerging cold waves.

The temperature here is getting lower and lower…