"That's enough," Lu Heng said, having learned the giant python's attributes and losing interest in observing it further. He left its elimination to Blood Wolf.
Instantly, Blood Wolf manipulated the soil in the forest, condensing it into a long blade that slashed fiercely at the giant python's body.
Sensing the threat of death, the giant python immediately drew upon the surrounding water to erect a water curtain around itself. Then, it continuously strained its lower half, which was fixed in place, intending to escape this dangerous location.
However, it was now facing two opponents at level eight. How could Blood Wolf let it go? Even if it wasn't sure if this python was the killer of its mother, such giant pythons were rare. Blood Wolf decided it was better to kill it by mistake than to let it escape.
The blade sliced through the giant python's scales. Scales as large as fists were split in two and instantly broke. The python let out a high-pitched shriek of pain, but this cry was cut short after only a moment.
With a thud, the upper half of the giant python's body, which had been gathering strength, was cleaved to the ground by the long blade.
Blood splattered from the clean-cut surface, the gushing blood dispersing faintly into the water.
The two severed halves of the giant python writhed a few times, unable to gather its internal energy. The upper section, with its head, instinctively tried to bite at Blood Wolf and the others again. However, without the propulsion from its lower half, its cumbersome head struggled for only a short while before being pierced by sharp earth spikes that shot up from the ground.
The surging water gradually receded. Blood Wolf looked at the thoroughly dead giant python through the transparent glass of its protective mask.
Lu Heng glanced at Blood Wolf's motionless form and shook his head with a hint of helplessness. He then walked to the giant python and, controlling vines, pierced its head. He retrieved a pale blue magic crystal from within.
Manipulating the water vapor in the air, Lu Heng watched as the magic crystal, held aloft by the vines, was gradually washed clean. Only then did he store the magic crystal in his spatial dimension and release his control over the vines.
"This snake can survive in this mist, so it means the mist is not poisonous," Lu Heng murmured, looking at the fallen snake carcass.
"Master, shall I try?" Blood Wolf turned to look at Lu Heng. It couldn't remove its own equipment, so it would have to trouble its master to take it all off.
Lu Heng nodded and, with a wave of his hand, all of Blood Wolf's equipment was removed.
Taking off equipment was much simpler than putting it on.
Seeing that Blood Wolf showed no adverse reactions, Lu Heng then stored his own equipment into his spatial dimension.
"Master, aren't you going to collect the giant python's meat?" Blood Wolf asked as Lu Heng walked forward.
"In a moment. It seems there's another magical beast here." Lu Heng had sensed the presence of two magical beasts earlier, but he had been fighting the giant python, and the other aura was too weak, almost causing Lu Heng to overlook it.
"Oh, right." Blood Wolf sniffed. Now that it had removed its protective suit, it could sense the faint traces of blood that did not belong to the giant python.
"You're quite resilient, aren't you?" Lu Heng had already found the dying magical beast and frowned at the animal lying on the ground.
It was a giant gray rat, lying weakly on the ground. Its fur was soaked by the water the giant python had summoned.
There were no visible wounds on the rat's skin. Perhaps it was internal injuries caused by the python's constriction, which left it unable to move.
"Let me give you a swift end," Lu Heng said, looking at the giant rat's heaving abdomen.
Just as Lu Heng raised his hand to end the giant rat's life, squeaking sounds could be heard from nearby.
The sounds varied in volume, and there seemed to be quite a few of them. It appeared the rat had sensed the giant python's danger had passed and had summoned its kin.
However, it hadn't anticipated Lu Heng, the variable, being present.
The giant rat let out two weak squeaks. Instantly, several giant rats that had just appeared near Lu Heng froze in place.
Lu Heng looked around, surprised by the number of creatures that had gathered. It seemed these giant rats had been observing the situation from the surroundings, which explained their swift arrival. He frowned, looking at the giant rat whose abdomen was still rising and falling.
Killing this creature wouldn't be difficult, as he had plenty of area-of-effect skills. However, it was hard to eradicate rodent-like creatures completely. He couldn't be sure if there were any still hidden underground.
If he missed even one, his movements within the forest would be quite troublesome.
He looked at the rat pack again and noticed that the highest level among them was this level four creature. While there were many surrounding giant rats, none were of a higher level, making killing this one rather pointless.
The meat couldn't be kept for consumption, and he wasn't lacking in low-level magic crystals of any attribute.
Waving his hand, Lu Heng murmured to the giant rat, "Never mind, I'll let you go. Whether you live or not depends on your fate."
Turning around, Lu Heng stored the giant python's carcass in his spatial dimension and beckoned Blood Wolf. "Let's go, let's explore somewhere else."
Blood Wolf quickly trotted a few steps forward, stopping in front of Lu Heng and carrying him away.
"Squeak."
Behind them, weak calls sounded, and the giant rats blocking Lu Heng's path parted to make way.
"Heh, interesting. Seems they have a decent intelligence."
"Master, these giant rats are spread throughout the entire Cloud Mist Forest. If you had killed that rat lying on the ground earlier, it would have been very troublesome," Blood Wolf said at this moment.
"Why didn't you say so earlier? I almost sent it on its way."
"I could tell you didn't intend to kill it, so I didn't say anything."
"Is that so?"
Animals bonded by a contract could communicate telepathically with their masters. Therefore, even if Lu Heng didn't voice his thoughts, these sensitive animals could perceive a hint of his emotions.
Lu Heng glanced back. The location of the giant rat had already disappeared into the mist. Lu Heng could only sense that it was still alive; at least, it hadn't died by the time he left.
"This mist is quite dense," Lu Heng said to Blood Wolf, looking at the increasingly thick water vapor ahead.
"Master, is this the correct direction?" Blood Wolf was also afraid of going the wrong way. The visibility of the trees ahead was very low, and Blood Wolf slowed its pace, not daring to gallop.
Taking out a compass, Lu Heng compared it again. "The direction is correct."
He then began to control the surrounding vines to probe further into the forest. Since he couldn't see, he had to rely on these vines attached to the ground to investigate the situation ahead.
Lu Heng was also worried about encountering deep pits or swamps, which would be problematic if he stepped into them.