Chapter 1 Evolution: Hell Kirin Serpent

The shadow of the monstrous serpent fell upon the Misty Forest. Its crimson body, like a colossal mountain range, lay across the land, crushing countless ancient trees.

"Accumulated evolution points: 167 billion/100 billion. Evolution conditions met. Initiate evolution now?" The metallic voice in Zhang Ji's mind prompted him, and he confirmed with a mental command.

Instantly, scales rippled across his body. The fifty-thousand-meter-long serpent began to shed its skin, growing larger and longer. A fierce and powerful aura emanated, stirring the surrounding mist into tumultuous waves.

The crimson serpent wings on its back grew even larger, and a single flap stirred up a hurricane, causing countless trees to sway.

The serpent claws also became longer and more terrifying. The scale-covered ankles were as thick as mountain ridges, and the curved claws, like divine weapons, sank hundreds of meters deep into the earth.

Each scale became thicker and darker.

The blood-red scales crisscrossed like countless arranged shields, with a mysterious white mist permeating the gaps.

This wasn't the strange mist.

It was a "void mist" emanating from Zhang Ji's serpent body.

The void mist enveloped Zhang Ji's entire body, and his aura instantly merged with the void. From afar, he seemed to have vanished from this realm.

But in reality, he still existed, exuding a pressure far surpassing his previous power. His aura was even more profound and terrifying, like an abyss slumbering in this place.

Clearly, he had advanced, breaking through the ninth-level Heavenly Beast realm. His life essence underwent another leap, and his biological level increased again, transforming into a more advanced life form.

In the void, dark clouds gathered, and the lightning tribulation arrived as expected.

"Roar!"

Zhang Ji roared to the sky. His tail supporting him, his body rose like a crimson mountain, piercing the clouds. His serpent mouth opened, devouring lightning in the sea of thunder.

"Lightning Fang Charging!"

Sizzling sounds filled the air.

Dense currents of electricity poured into Zhang Ji's mouth from the thunderous sea, flowing into his fangs. These were Lightning Fangs, capable of being charged. The blood and flesh of his gums writhed, turning crimson. It looked like gingivitis, but in reality, it was *gingivitis* accumulating power.

*Gingivitis* – a lightning flame stored in the gums, not an actual inflammation. It could unleash a lightning flame attack when roaring.

This was Zhang Ji's Lightning Serpent Roar talent. He had possessed this talent for many days, but had been too busy devouring unfilial offspring to charge it. Now, with the lightning tribulation accompanying his advancement, it was the perfect opportunity to charge up.

He couldn't let it go to waste.

After an hour, the lightning tribulation ended. This time, the lightning wasn't particularly unusual, and Zhang Ji passed through it with ease. His flesh and scales were tempered, becoming even stronger.

And the gums had also finished charging, ready to unleash a Lightning Serpent Roar at any moment.

At the same time...

At his neck, flesh tore with a "hiss" as scales bulged and broke open, and a ferocious head emerged from the scales, covered in blood and mucus.

This was Zhang Ji's fifth head.

Shaped like a ram's head but more majestic and ferocious, it had deer antlers and a fiery-red beard on its lower jaw. Its fangs were serrated and bone-white, and its eyes were fiery red, with what appeared to be flames burning and dancing in its pupils.

As soon as it was born, it let out a joyous and excited roar, and actually spat out a torrent of flames.

"Whoosh!"

It was golden flame, a sea of fire that instantly turned the surrounding thousand *li* of forest to ashes. The ground was scorched and cracked like a rocky desert. The extremely high temperature made even the strange mist fade significantly.

"What is this head? Could it be..." Zhang Ji's mind raced.

In his mind, the metallic voice sounded...

"You have completed this evolution, advancing from a ninth-level Heavenly Beast to a Void Beast."

"Void Beast: A beast of the void that can merge into the void to escape danger, possessing powerful stealth, lurking, and survival abilities."

"Level: Initial Void Beast"

"Body Length: 100,000 meters"

"You have grown a fifth head: Qilin Head. Qilin: An ancient auspicious beast and master of flame. Therefore, you now possess the ability to control fire and can breathe Qilin True Fire to incinerate all things."

"You have a new name: Hell Kirin Serpent"

Zhang Ji listened to the prompts in his mind and finally realized that the new head he had grown during this evolution was actually a Fire Qilin's head.

Fire Qilin – a divine beast of the same level as a True Dragon. He would actually grow such a head one day, and even possess the Fire Qilin's fire control techniques.

The metallic voice in his mind continued to prompt:

"You have gained a new innate divine power: Qilin Battle Arm."

"When your Qilin fangs bite living beings, the infused Qilin Qi can activate their Qilin Arm, enhancing their combat power."

Zhang Ji was overjoyed and satisfied upon hearing this prompt.

Including the fire control techniques, this evolutionary upgrade had granted him tremendous benefits, greatly increasing his strength.

"Creating Qilin Arms... I'll give myself a pair of Qilin Arms first." Zhang Ji raised his serpent claw arm, bit it sharply, and injected a large amount of Qilin Qi.

Instantly, his claw arm felt a sharp pain, as if it were immersed in magma. After a moment, the blood scales on his serpent claw turned fiery red, and golden flames emanated from the gaps between the scales. A scorching aura spread, and the ground was charred.

From afar, his two mountain-like claw arms looked even more ferocious and terrifying, like the flaming claws of a flame monster. A single wave stirred up the ground, turning it into scorched earth.

Zhang Ji laughed heartily, regretting only that he didn't have more serpent claws.

He moved his body, his massive hundred-thousand-meter-long form rampaging through the Misty Forest, crushing ancient trees into dust, leaving deep ravines in the ground. Unknowingly, he arrived before a mountain of flesh.

This was the Tai Sui Meatball.

A five-thousand-meter-large mountain of flesh, with an ancient pine tree of unknown age growing on top, its pine cones flourishing. It was particularly conspicuous in the Misty Forest, but its aura was restrained, like an ordinary mountain. A handful of it felt like dirt, without any signs of life, like a dead object.

But Zhang Ji knew that this was its disguise talent during slumber.

"Second Brother, Second Brother? Wake up, still sleeping!" Zhang Ji called out, but there was no response. Immediately, all five heads simultaneously chanted an ancient forbidden technique.

"Tai Shang Tai Xing, Ying Bian Wu Ting, Qu Xie Fu Mei, Bao Ming Hu Shen..." (Supreme star of the platform, respond without ceasing, expel evil and bind demons, protect life and guard the body...)

Zhang Ji had advanced to an initial-level Void Beast, and his strength was not what it once was. The power of the ancient forbidden technique, chanted by five mouths, was unimaginable. The ancient forbidden technique's power was vast, the strange mist surged, and a ripple of wind stirred around him.

Before him...

The Tai Sui meat body began to shake, dirt and rocks rolling down. Then, it emitted heavy breathing and yawning sounds. Next, two huge scarlet eyes, like lakes of blood, opened, filled with ferocity and baleful aura.

It awoke from its dream.

But upon seeing the figure before it, even larger and more ferocious than itself, it immediately shuddered. It remembered who this was, and its eyes showed flattering and fawning colors, saying:

"Ah, so it's Big Brother... Holy crap, Big Brother, you've broken through again?! Your aura is so strong! Have you already advanced to a Heavenly Beast? And you've grown another head!"

"Damn! I can't even see how long you are? Where's the tip of your tail?"

The Tai Sui Meatball exclaimed, shaking its head and wobbling its fat body up and down.

Zhang Ji looked at its body of fat and his eyes lit up, "How long Big Brother's tail is depends on how fat you get. You seem to have slept soundly this time, Second Brother. Look at all that fat on you, you probably have high blood pressure! Tsk, tsk, tsk, come on, Big Brother will help you lose weight!"

"Skinny is healthy!"

His distorted and monstrous mouth was extremely greedy, and saliva was already flowing, falling to the ground and corroding large patches of dead leaves, creating billowing smoke.