Chapter 28: The Flame-Tail Herb and the Black Snake’s Fury

Flapping her wings, Qi Lin, accompanied by Ailin and Nia, the two beastkin, descended through the clouds to the ground.

“Ah, it feels so good to have solid ground beneath my feet.”

Nia stretched her back, her gaze sweeping towards the distant towering mountains.

“If I’m not mistaken, the cold-resistant herbs grow on the steeper slopes of these mountains.”

Ailin, his eyes fixed on the nearby peaks, addressed Qi Lin and Nia.

“Qi Lin, don’t fly up. The herbs are found in steep mountain crevices, and if you fly, you might miss them.”

Upon hearing this, Qi Lin and Nia nodded in agreement and began walking towards the base of the mountain.

“This mountain is truly massive.”

Qi Lin ran her hand over the rock face, gazing up at the seemingly endless cliffs.

“Remember, the vermillion herb is called Flame-Tail. It’s reddish all over, shaped like a foxtail grass, and its petals feel warm. If you’re unsure, bring them all back for me to check.”

Ailin, having chosen a particular peak, turned back and added.

“And be extremely careful when climbing; the mountains are home to ferocious beasts.”

With that said, Ailin, without another glance, reached out his hands and began scaling the tall mountain.

“Well then, see you later.”

Nia called out, then found a mountain that appeared relatively easier to climb, beginning her ascent as well.

Watching the two depart, Qi Lin eagerly stretched her limbs, ready to begin.

Having finished her warm-up, Qi Lin placed her now soft and smooth small hands onto the mountain face.

Adopting a suitable climbing posture, Qi Lin began her ascent.

Yet, after only a few steps, a sharp pain shot through her hands.

‘What’s wrong with this body? Is it really this delicate?’

Grasping a rock, Qi Lin looked down in surprise at her cut left hand.

But swiftly, her injured hand returned to its original state, thanks to the Bloodline’s powerful regenerative abilities.

Blinking once, Qi Lin continued her upward climb.

Yet, every few meters she climbed, her hands would be cut by the sharp rocks, only to heal immediately afterward.

This cycle of injury and recovery repeated itself endlessly.

Unable to tolerate it any longer, Qi Lin simply spread her wings and soared into the air.

Suddenly, a massive black snake, fangs bared, lunged out from a mountain crevice.

Sensing the danger, Qi Lin transformed into a swarm of bats.

Hissing,

Flicking its forked tongue, the black snake, with its vertical pupils, silently watched each individual bat.

The bats reverted to human form, and Qi Lin, her crimson eyes wide, met the venomous snake’s gaze.

Recalling Ailin’s words, Qi Lin shifted her gaze from the venomous snake to peer into the crevice.

Her excellent vision allowed Qi Lin to easily discern what lay within the fissure.

Inside the crevice, countless black snakes writhed.

Aside from the large snake that had lunged out to bite her, almost all the others were juveniles.

Besides the snakes, she also spotted a plant emitting a faint red glow.

‘That must be the Flame-Tail Ailin mentioned, right?’

Biting her lip, Qi Lin considered reaching her hand into the crevice.

But upon seeing the multitude of writhing snakes, she immediately shivered.

‘No, what if these are venomous snakes? I can’t just grab that plant directly.’

Shaking her head, she withdrew her hand.

After a moment of thought, Qi Lin began chanting an incantation in her mind.

A crimson rope materialized.

“Heh, there’s always a way, isn’t there?”

Holding the coiled rope, Qi Lin tossed it forward.

The rope, once airborne, writhed like a living creature.

As Qi Lin guided the rope towards the crevice, she noticed the black snake staring at it with a bewildered expression, as if muttering, ‘Wait, is that a snake? Is it one of my kind? Why doesn’t it have a head? If not, how is it moving?’

Ignoring the stunned black snake, Qi Lin, almost before the snake could react, swiftly darted the rope into the crevice and coiled it around the herb, which she suspected was Flame-Tail, pulling it out.

Seeing the rope retrieve the herb, the black snake let out a furious hiss.

“Oh no you don’t. This is mine now.”

Seeing the black snake attempt to snatch the herb back, Qi Lin tightened her grip on the rope and sharply pulled it backward.

With that swift tug, the rope rapidly moved out of the black snake’s reach.

Flicking its tongue, the black snake opened its enormous maw and roared in fury.

A subtle black glow emanated from the black snake’s fangs, as a dark, ink-like orb coalesced within its mouth.

“Hey, now it’s getting violent!”

Seeing the black ink hurtling towards her, Qi Lin frantically flapped her wings, attempting to evade it.

But it was too late; the black ink was already upon her.

Gritting her teeth, Qi Lin decided to take a gamble.

Controlling one of her wings to extend forward from her back, she managed to block the black ink.

The wing, having intercepted the black ink, sizzled for a few seconds upon contact, producing a sound like oil frying.

“Ah, ow, ow, ow, ow!”

Feeling the intense pain radiating from her wing, Qi Lin’s entire face twisted into a pained grimace, like a tangled knot.

Gasping sharply, Qi Lin flapped her wings, darting haphazardly through the air like a bee with a broken wing.

After a long moment, the pain in her wing subsided, and Qi Lin, now covered in cold sweat, glared, gritting her teeth, at the perpetrator.

Sensing Qi Lin’s malice, the black snake reared its entire body upright, as if ready to lunge at Qi Lin and bite her at any moment.

However, Qi Lin was not about to let the matter rest.

Glancing at her wing, now festering after being used to block the black ink, Qi Lin felt a wave of belated fear.

‘If that thing had landed on my face, I probably would have been disfigured. I wonder if the Bloodline’s powerful healing abilities could even fix disfigurement.’

Shaking her head, Qi Lin took the herb from the rope and tucked it into her shorts pocket.

She then held one end of the rope and flung the other end outward.

Like a lassoing cowboy, Qi Lin ensnared the black snake.

The ensnared black snake let out a piercing, furious roar.

Rustling sounds began to emerge from the crevice, as numerous small black snakes crawled out and coiled themselves around the large black snake.

If Qi Lin had trypophobia, she would surely have fainted upon seeing the mass of black snakes coiled together in a writhing ball.

Fortunately, Qi Lin did not, but even so, the sight of such a snake mass still stirred something within her.

Tightening her grip on the rope, Qi Lin then loosened the end of the rope that had ensnared the black snake.

‘I’ve got the herb anyway, so we’re even now.’

With that thought, Qi Lin immediately flew towards the higher reaches of the cliff.

After flying some distance, Qi Lin barely reached the middle section of the tall mountain.

Noting the remaining distance to the summit, Qi Lin began searching for new herbs.

Even though Ailin had advised against flying if possible, flying truly made things easier!

Squinting her eyes and humming an unknown tune, Qi Lin flew around the cliff face.

After circling the cliff once, Qi Lin spotted another crevice.

Of course, if this crevice hadn’t been quite large, she might not have noticed it.

Flying towards the fissure, which was wide enough for a person to walk through, Qi Lin was filled with curiosity.

While the saying ‘no daring, no dying’ held true, she couldn’t resist the urge to enter and see what lay within.

After observing the crevice for a while, her curiosity ultimately outweighed her caution.

After all, she had considered herself a seeker of knowledge since childhood, even if it was a self-proclaimed title.

Standing at the edge of the crevice, Qi Lin retracted her wings back into her body, then stepped inside.

Clack, clack,

Walking through the dimly lit crevice, Qi Lin’s footsteps echoed.

Suddenly, a fluttering sound came from above her head.

Hearing the noise, Qi Lin sharply looked up.

After clearly seeing what it was, Qi Lin subtly exhaled in relief.

“Oh, it’s just a bat! I thought it was some kind of strange monster. You startled me.”

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