Chapter 44: Ant Sand Dunes

Regarding the power of the Ice Feather Ring, Qiu Han was quite satisfied. While the Fire-Spitting Bird’s physical toughness could not compare to that of the Wolf Emperor or the Flower-Browed Mink, it was still a second-tier monster beast. No matter what, it couldn’t be considered weak. Although Qiu Han’s cultivation had improved significantly since then, the Ice Feather Ring’s might was truly formidable. If it could completely pierce the body of a second-tier beast like the Fire-Spitting Bird, then even encountering a beast as powerful as the Wolf Emperor of the Spirit Valley again, it would likely be enough to kill it.

Nevertheless, the most pressing matter was to find a place to recover and heal. In his current condition, flying through the skies was extremely dangerous—he could easily run into other high-tier monster beasts. With this in mind, Qiu Han calmed his emotions, peered down at the vast expanse of the Hundred Thousand Mountains, and then descended to a spot he deemed relatively safe.

A day passed, and his injuries had fully healed. After a day of rest, Qiu Han had regained his optimal state. Tidying himself up, he continued on his journey.

After flying for more than half a day, Qiu Han’s spiritual sense detected a vast desert ahead. Within the desert, human presence was rare—or to be precise, not a single person could be seen. Qiu Han slowed his flight, gradually landed, and stepped into the desert. The sun blazed overhead, and though it was early autumn, the temperature in the desert was exceedingly hot.

Qiu Han paused, carefully surveying his surroundings. After a moment, he raised his foot and walked forward step by step, leaving deep footprints behind him.

Within the desert, a poisonous snake a yard long slithered across the sand, moving slowly toward the path ahead of Qiu Han, producing a faint, rustling sound. At a distance of ten yards in front, it suddenly stopped, its body coiling rapidly until only its head protruded from the sand, its deep red eyes fixed intently upon Qiu Han.

This was a Green Phosphorus Viper, a first-tier monster beast, its skin entirely green. Its primary method of attack was its venom, which was extremely potent; ordinary people who came in contact with it would die instantly. Even cultivators of slightly lower skill would lose all combat ability if poisoned, and without urgent use of a specialized antidote, death was inevitable.

Clearly, this Green Phosphorus Viper had spotted Qiu Han and was lying in wait to ambush him. However, as it extended its neck to observe Qiu Han once more, a sudden wind blade appeared in the air. With a swift hiss, the wind blade struck the snake’s body, buried beneath the sand.

Blood spurted forth, and the Green Phosphorus Viper was sliced cleanly in two. Qiu Han grabbed it and stored it in his pouch. With his current strength of spirit sense, he had already noticed the snake while flying overhead. Handling such a low-tier monster beast was trivial—the Wind Blade spell was enough to kill it effortlessly.

Qiu Han had previously learned from the trial jade slip that the main inhabitants of this desert were a first-tier, lower-grade monster beast resembling ants. Each was about the size of a common wild rabbit. Individually, their combat strength was weak, and fire spells could easily burn them to death. However, their numbers were vast, and their devouring ability was terrifying—even the bodies of second-tier monster beasts could be chewed through, attesting to their horror.

Of course, other low-tier monster beasts also thrived here, such as the Green Phosphorus Viper he had just encountered, the Red Phosphorus Viper with crimson scales, and various other desert creatures.

Qiu Han took out several defensive talismans from his pouch, activated them, and layered himself in protection. Speeding up, he continued onward.

To reach the Misty Swamp, one had to traverse this desert. Beyond it, after some distance, lay the Misty Swamp itself. Though Qiu Han knew the dangers here were many, he had come this far and would not turn back. As long as he exercised caution, there should be no issue.

As he walked, a distant buzzing sound suddenly arose ahead. Qiu Han extended his spiritual sense and saw, five hundred yards ahead, a dense cluster of yellow clouds in midair. Upon closer scrutiny, he realized these were not clouds at all, but a swarm of nearly a thousand Yellow Wasp Beasts, forming a bee cloud, the source of the buzzing.

A swarm of nearly a thousand Yellow Wasp Beasts was neither small nor large in scale. According to his master, Gu Sui Feng, in the jade slip, large swarms could number in the tens or even hundreds of thousands. Even with his Nascent Soul stage cultivation, Gu Sui Feng found such encounters troublesome and escaping safely required considerable effort.

Qiu Han hurriedly drew a low-grade spiritual defense shield from his pouch, along with a pile of attack talismans. For these Yellow Wasp Beasts, low-tier spells were sufficient to kill them, but relying solely on defensive talismans to withstand a swarm would be inadequate.

Yellow Wasp Beasts were known for shooting wasp needles. Individually, these needles were not highly damaging, but their piercing power was formidable. With such numbers, if Qiu Han tried to block them with just defensive talismans, he would end up just like the monster beasts slain by his Ice Feather Ring—his body riddled with holes.

“Fortunately, I never intended to fly straight across this desert using flight techniques. Otherwise, if I’d flown in without any preparation and crashed headlong into this swarm, the outcome would have been disastrous.”

Qiu Han rejoiced inwardly at his wise decision. As he made these preparations, the Yellow Wasp Beasts had already closed to within fifty yards, their speed astonishing.

There was no avoiding this. It was better to strike first. As the bees spotted Qiu Han, he unleashed dozens of attack talismans, sending a barrage of spells into the swarm. In no time, nearly a hundred wasps fell dead.

Without pause, Qiu Han formed a spell with his right hand, casting Fireball Technique, then rapidly switched to other spells. As the fireballs neared the swarm, they exploded into a cloud of flame, engulfing the bees. Soon, the swarm suffered heavy losses.

Yet the wasps retaliated, shooting countless needles at Qiu Han. The barrage struck his defensive light shield, instantly breaking through several outer layers.

Qiu Han continued to wield fire control techniques, burning the swarm, while channeling spiritual power into his shield to maintain defense. At last, the wasp needles were fully repelled by his spiritual artifact shield. By now, less than a hundred Yellow Wasp Beasts remained, and under Qiu Han’s relentless assault, only one remained—a giant wasp, half as large as a man—which he dispatched with a Wind Blade spell.