Free Web NovelChapter 101: Chapter 99: A Small Gain
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The Mammoth’s body was immense. As it charged at full speed, the very earth trembled and dust billowed into the air. The four men were all extraordinary experts. Seeing the Mammoth charge, they were not alarmed but delighted. Their bodies soared into the air simultaneously, pouncing toward the Mammoth in unison.
The weakest of the four had the cultivation of the Martial Arts Fourth Layer. The strongest one’s aura was deep, vigorous, and powerful, clearly an expert of the Martial Arts Fifth Layer, or perhaps even the Sixth Layer. freёweɓnovel.com
The four men transformed into four swift shadows. Their long swords slashed out streams of Sword Qi, descending upon the Mammoth like shooting stars, aiming for its eyes and other vulnerable spots, intending to kill it in a single blow.
"HRRNK!!"
The Mammoth let out a great roar, its voice filled with majesty and power. As it roared, its long trunk shot up, and it sprayed!
Mammoths enjoy bathing, using their trunks to suck up water and spray it over their bodies. This Mammoth was massive; who knew how much water it had stored inside? With a casual spray, a jet of water as thick as a bucket shot through the air, streaking toward the four men like an arrow.
The four men had never imagined the Mammoth possessed such a unique skill. Caught completely off guard, they couldn’t even dodge. Their only choice was to hold their swords horizontally to block the column of water.
"WHOOSH—"
The column of water slammed into their long swords. Two of the weaker men actually had their swords knocked from their hands. And while the two stronger men managed to block the water with their swords, they were left in a sorry state, their entire bodies sent flying by the impact.
At that very moment, the Mammoth’s second attack arrived. Its attack was simple: a sweep of its trunk!
The Mammoth’s trunk was slightly shorter than its height, but when extended, it was over five zhang long. Thicker than a bucket, the trunk moved with extreme speed in a full-force sweep, cracking the air with a rumbling sound like a clap of distant thunder. The four men were still in mid-air, their qi and blood in turmoil from the water jet’s impact. Before they could even react, the Mammoth’s long trunk struck them dead-on.
"THWACK! THWACK! THWACK! THWACK!"
Amidst four sharp cracks of breaking bones and tearing flesh, the four men were sent flying several dozen zhang. They then fell straight to the ground, their bodies mangled into a bloody mess, looking like nothing more than lumps of dead meat.
The Mammoth’s spray and sweep took longer to describe than it did to happen. In the span of a few blinks, these four powerful and self-assured experts were reduced to four heaps of mangled flesh.
"Whew!" Seeing the Mammoth end the fight so quickly, Zhaang Ye was secretly astonished. He praised, "Big guy, you’re getting stronger and stronger!"
"Hrrnk—" The Mammoth gave a proud call.
Zhaang Ye chuckled, somersaulting off the mammoth’s back. After confirming the four were completely dead, he strode over to them and began searching their bodies.
These four were powerful experts; they ought to have something valuable on them. Zhaang Ye was practically broke, and now that an opportunity to get rich had presented itself, he certainly wasn’t going to let it pass.
After a thorough search, a pile of items lay on the ground.
Two Mid-Level Martial Arts Secret Manuals, seventy thousand taels in golden tickets, five bottles of Qi Gathering Pills, including one bottle of Mid-Level Qi Gathering Pills. There were also several bottles of Healing Elixirs and Calm Spirit Elixirs. This was the entirety of Zhaang Ye’s haul.
Among these items, the most valuable were undoubtedly the two Mid-Level Martial Arts Secret Manuals. If he could sell them successfully, these two Martial Arts Secret Manuals should fetch several hundred thousand taels of gold. In addition, the bottle of Mid-Level Qi Gathering Pills was also quite valuable. The medicinal power within Mid-Level Qi Gathering Pills was much purer than that of Low-level Qi Gathering Pills. With it, Zhaang Ye was confident he could advance to the late-stage Martial Arts Third Layer in a short time.
Although the haul wasn’t as large as he’d imagined, Zhaang Ye was still content. The Ant Robbing Plain was a dangerous place; one couldn’t expect people who came here searching for Ant Crystals to be carrying too much money. If these four had been carrying a fortune in golden tickets, they wouldn’t have come to a place like this.
After stashing the items away in his robes, Zhaang Ye pointed at the four corpses on the ground and said to the Mammoth, "Interested?"
Since the men were already dead, he had to destroy the bodies to eliminate any future trouble. And the quickest way to destroy the evidence was, of course, to give them to the Mammoth. With its enormous body, no amount of food was ever enough for it.
Sure enough, upon hearing Zhaang Ye’s question, the Mammoth opened its great maw. With a flick of his wrist, Zhaang Ye used his Thick-Backed Saber to deftly flick the four corpses into the Mammoth’s mouth.
Sheathing his Thick-Backed Saber, Zhaang Ye chuckled and said, "Let’s go!"
The Mammoth let out a low roar and thundered away.
Sitting on the mammoth’s back, Zhaang Ye casually pulled out one of the Martial Arts Secret Manuals and began to flip through it. After just a few glances, his brow furrowed. On the title page of this manual, called the *Seven Seas and Heaven Swords*, were several large, handwritten characters: "Secret sword technique of the Cyan Mulberry City Luo Family. Those who pass it on without permission will be killed!"
Zhaang Ye took out the other Martial Arts Secret Manual. This one, titled *Little Luo Sword Technique*, also had a line of text on its title page: "Secret sword technique of the Cyan Mulberry City Luo Family. Those who pass it on without permission will be killed!"
’So those four were from the Luo Family of Cyan Mulberry City!’ Zhaang Ye’s brow tightened. He thought, ’The Luo Family is one of the four great powers in Cyan Mulberry City. Their strength is in no way inferior to the Zhaang Family’s. Now that those four are dead, the Luo Family will definitely launch a thorough investigation. If I don’t handle this properly, I’ll be in huge trouble...’
After a moment of contemplation, Zhaang Ye decided to destroy the two Martial Arts Secret Manuals. Though they were extremely valuable, they were unique to the Luo Family. If he were caught with them, he would face relentless pursuit. Even ten lives wouldn’t be enough to survive. Besides, the Luo Family’s people were everywhere in Cyan Mulberry City. Even if Zhaang Ye kept the manuals, he wouldn’t dare try to sell them.
Having made his decision, Zhaang Ye spent over four hours memorizing both Martial Arts Secret Manuals. Then, with a slap of his palm, he pulverized them into dust.
Looking at the dust that was once the Martial Arts Secret Manuals, Zhaang Ye sighed in frustration. Then, he clenched his fists and thought, ’Being weak means having too many fears. This trip with the Mammoth is a rare opportunity for training. I must seize this chance to cultivate the Dragon Elephant Skill to the mid-stage of the 4th Layer, and also raise my cultivation to the late-stage Martial Arts Third Layer, or even its peak! I will use overwhelming strength to enter the family’s Inner Sect in one go!’
"Hrrnk!"
The Mammoth let out a soft call.
Zhaang Ye looked ahead and saw a mountain-sized anthill. Outside the nest, a huge, dark swarm of Robber Ants was madly pressing toward them!
So many Robber Ants!
The Mammoth called out softly to Zhaang Ye twice, as if asking whether to fight or flee.
Zhaang Ye laughed heartily and said, "Of course we fight! I’m going to use these Robber Ants to test some ideas I have for the third saber strike." With that, he drew his Thick-Backed Saber and charged toward the Robber Ants alongside the Mammoth.
