Chapter 2009: Rock Scorpion Attack
Several birds were occasionally spotted flying in the sky. Right below them was a rugged path. The Tyrant Blade Sect didn’t build a road from Lower Earth Mountain to Black Dragon Mountain. On the contrary, they destroyed any possible paths connecting the two mountains. Having no path between the mountains would slow down the attacking beasts, giving Lower Earth Mountain more time to prepare.
Although Zhao Hai doesn’t know about the thoughts of the Tyrant Blade Sect, he was someone who experienced large battles in the past. He was aware of this method.
Because of this, Zhao Hai didn’t complain. Instead, he cautiously advanced. He was currently wearing warrior clothing and not his usual black robe.
Wearing a robe in the forest is simply impossible since it was too long. Therefore, Zhao Hai changed into a warrior’s clothes to move more efficiently. However, Zhao Hai didn’t take his blade out.
Zhao Hai carefully moved forward. Although Lower Earth Mountain wasn’t far from Black Dragon Mountain, it would still take Zhao Hai some time to arrive due to the bad condition of the road.
When Zhao Hai was halfway on his journey, he suddenly heard a strange sound. Then he felt a wind coming towards the back of his head. Zhao Hai turned his head and took out his blade. Then he slashed the blade towards the direction the wind was coming from.
Clang! The long blade in Zhao Hai’s hand blocked the attack that was coming towards the back of his head. Zhao Hai also saw his attacker. It was a scorpion. And the attack was a tail needle of the scorpion’s tail.
The scorpion looked very much like rock. Its entire body was covered with a stone-textured sh.e.l.l. If it lay down without moving, it was easy to mistake it with an ordinary rock. Zhao Hai had been negligent, which was why he wasn’t able to detect it.
Zhao Hai held his blade as his gaze fell on the scorpion. He could recognize this scorpion. He bought a jade slip with information about beasts in the Miscellaneous Hall and this scorpion was one of the beasts included. The scorpion’s name was Rock Scorpion. It had a very ordinary name but it was also t.i.tled as the Stone a.s.sa.s.sin.
Rock Scorpions also have the nickname of living rocks. This was because they could petrify their bodies and have strong defenses. Most importantly, their petrified bodies could s.h.i.+eld against spiritual force. In other words, it was very hard to detect them using spiritual force.
It was also for this reason that Zhao Hai wasn’t able to discover the scorpion. After arriving in the True Spirit Realm, Zhao Hai barely used liquid silver to scout. This was because there were too many experts more powerful than him in the True Spirit Realm. Earth Monarch cultivators have abilities where dust wouldn’t fall on them. Even if liquid silver was reduced to the size of dust, it may still be discovered. Therefore, Zhao Hai decided to hold off using liquid silver for reconnaissance.
Zhao Hai might not have noticed, but after arriving in the True Spirit Realm, the s.p.a.ce wasn’t as helpful to him as before. But at the same time, the s.p.a.ce was much more useful in other aspects. It was a strange and contradictory condition.
The s.p.a.ce can now help Zhao Hai cultivate and even comprehend his techniques. It could also help him in battle through refining artifacts and pills. These things were important for Zhao Hai.
But at the same time, the s.p.a.ce could no longer scout the surroundings. If liquid silver was discovered, then it might be traced back to Zhao Hai. When the time comes, Zhao Hai would be in trouble.
Although the s.p.a.ce was unhelpful towards Zhao Hai with regards to scouting, Zhao Hai didn’t mind it. With his present strength, he wouldn’t suffer any problems even without liquid silver’s help.
Zhao Hai was currently confronting the Rock Scorpion. The scorpion waved its huge pincers around and its tail swung back and forth. Its dark green eyes were completely focused on Zhao Hai.
From his previous attack, Zhao Hai could see that the defenses of the Rock Scorpion were very good. The scorpion was also very strong. Zhao Hai’s blade attack only managed to block the needle attack of the scorpion. It didn’t manage to hurt the scorpion.
Although Zhao Hai’s eyes were on the Rock Scorpion, his spiritual force was scanning the surroundings. Rock Scorpions weren’t solitary beasts. It was a beast that lived and hunted in groups. A Rock Scorpion appearing on its own was not normal. There should be other Rock Scorpions around.
Zhi~zhi~zhi. Just as Zhao Hai was thinking about this, the Rock Scorpion in front of him suddenly screeched. The sound was very unpleasant. Zhao Hai’s expression couldn’t help but change. Then he coldly snorted and waved his hand, turning his tang blade into a large glaive.
The large glaive was a heavy weapon. Zhao Hai hasn’t given up on using the tang blade as a weapon. He only changed into a large glaive because the defenses of the scorpion were very strong. It would be difficult to use the tang blade to break through the scorpion. To deal with the Rock Scorpion, he would need a heavy weapon like the glaive.
With the glaive in his hand, Zhao Hai charged towards the Rock Scorpion. Although Zhao Hai hasn’t acquired any techniques regarding the glaive, this doesn’t mean that he couldn’t use it. Don’t forget, Zhao Hai had a world inside the s.p.a.ce with a Chinese background. Not only did he receive Buddhist sutras, Daoist manuals, and the like, he also received plenty of martial techniques. And that collection included books about the glaive. Particularly, there was a technique called the Spring and Autumn Technique that was written by a glaive expert.
In the past, Zhao Hai didn’t give much importance to techniques from earth. Back in the Great Realm of Cultivation, the offensive methods used were completely different. So these techniques could only be used as reference, but not for battle.
However, things were different in the True Spirit Realm. Although spells were also present in the True Spirit Realm, attacks using one’s body were more common. This gave Zhao Hai the opportunity to use the techniques from Earth. When he revisited his techniques, he also practiced the techniques he obtained from Earth.
When Zhao Hai was studying these techniques, he discovered that the consciousness they contain has a similar thinking speed as high-level techniques. Of all the manuals in Zhao Hai’s possession, the Stellar Transformations Yin Yang Art has the fastest thinking speed, then it was followed by the 18 Buddhist Techniques, and then by his other techniques. Of these manuals, the techniques from Earth were just a level below the 18 Buddhist Techniques. It was on par with the other high-level methods that Zhao Hai practiced.
This was a startling discovery. Zhao Hai knew the state of Earth’s martial arts before he transmigrated. But now, these martial arts seem to be stronger than the ones in the Great Realm of Cultivation.
It was because of this that Zhao Hai focused his attention more on the manuals from Earth. By this point, it wouldn’t be incorrect to say that Zhao Hai was proficient in all 18 weapons. He could treat the weapons like his hands and feet.
This allowed Zhao Hai to utilize the glaive comfortably. In his hand, the glaive exuded a heavy aura of aggression. It was as if he was a martial G.o.d that looked down from the heavens.
The Rock Scorpion could also feel Zhao Hai’s imposing aura. Its instincts were screaming that the person in front of it was a dangerous individual. However, the scorpion didn’t retreat. The other scorpions were approaching, it could not let its prey go.
The Rock Scorpion retreated every time Zhao Hai waved his glaive. But at the same time, it used its pincers to attack Zhao Hai. His tail was also propped up, ready to attack if ever Zhao Hai showed a little opening.
The tail of the Rock Scorpion was very famous in the True Spirit Realm. Not only was the tail flexible, it also contained a very potent poison. Once the poison gets inside a person’s body, they would immediately feel sluggish before their body turns into stone. Once its prey turns into stone, the Rock Scorpion will eat them.
The reason for the poison’s fame was because even Earth Monarchs would be turned into stone if they were hit by it. Not only would one’s body turn sluggish due to the poison, their hearts would also stop beating. Only a cultivator who reached the Teleportation Stage would be able to save anyone afflicted by the poison.
At the same time, the poison was famous for its wondrous property, and that was petrification.
This strong petrification effect applies to other things, not just the human body. Because of this, it was always in demand for refining masters and pill masters.
The tail of the Rock Scorpions was a very valuable item in the True Spirit Realm. However, this didn’t cause the Rock Scorpions to be hunted down to extinction. In fact, the price of their tails allowed Rock Scorpions to kill even more cultivators.
The Rock Scorpions can do this because their stone skins could s.h.i.+eld against spiritual force. It was very difficult for ordinary cultivators to discover them, allowing the scorpions to perform successful sneak attacks. At the same time, stronger cultivators wouldn’t want to provoke Rock Scorpions due to their powerful defenses. Also Rock Scorpions live in groups. Strong cultivators have other means to make money, they have no need to endanger themselves just to harvest a few Rock Scorpion tails.
This placed the Rock Scorpions in a good position. Super strong cultivators disdained hunting them, stronger cultivators couldn’t deal with them, and weak cultivators couldn’t detect them. Therefore, Rock Scorpions were able to live freely in the True Spirit Realm.
Zhao Hai was also aware that the Rock Scorpion was waiting for reinforcement. He wouldn’t dare underestimate the beasts of the True Spirit Realm. These beasts were intelligent and could plot to get their kill. Zhao Hai regarded the beasts of the True Spirit Realm the same way he regarded other cultivators. So upon seeing the Rock Scorpion retreating, Zhao Hai didn’t slow down his attacks. On the contrary, he attacked more aggressively.
The glaive in Zhao Hai’s hand carried the imposing aura of a mountain. Wen, wen, wen! A violent gale of wind appeared every time Zhao Hai waved his heavy glaive. The stone scales of the Rock Scorpion sparked every time it was. .h.i.t by the glaive. Cut marks also began appearing on the scorpion’s body. It was clear that the scorpion was hurt by the attacks. It screeched whenever Zhao Hai made a cut.
At this moment, Zhao Hai heard a skittering sound. He knew that the other scorpions had arrived. Moreover, there seems to be a lot of them. Zhao Hai’s complexion changed, then he silently chanted, “Righteousness of the Spring and Autumn!” This was a killing move of the Spring and Autumn Technique. It carried the intent of a duty-bound soldier pus.h.i.+ng on for their mission.
Bu! Zhao Hai’s glaive shook the sh.e.l.l of the Rock Scorpion. Then the glaive continued slas.h.i.+ng down, eventually chopping the Rock Scorpion’s head off. The scorpion twitched two times before it completely stopped moving.
Zhao Hai waved his hand and sent the dead Rock Scorpion to the s.p.a.ce. At this time, Zhao Hai was surrounded by ten Rock Scorpions. The scorpions surrounding him varied in size. The largest scorpion was five meters long and had cyan colored stone skin. The smallest scorpion was around a meter long and had light gray skin. Zhao Hai understood that this scorpion was still a juvenile.
Zhao Hai looked at the scorpions and coldly snorted. Then he declared, “Kill!”. Then he waved his hand and began another round of battle.
Seeing their fellow scorpion killed and taken away by Zhao Hai, the other scorpions were enraged. They screeched as they attacked Zhao Hai.
Zhao Hai already finished studying his movements techniques. So what he was least afraid of were group battles. Under the siege of ten Rock Scorpions, Zhao Hai was completely unafraid. On the contrary, he skillfully used his movement techniques to fight against them.
While enduring the attacks of the Rock Scorpions, Zhao Hai used a net made from liquid silver to capture a few of them and send them to the s.p.a.ce. This caused the bigger scorpions to be completely enraged. They attacked Zhao Hai more aggressively.
After battling for three hours, Zhao Hai was finally able to deal with the Rock Scorpions. However, he didn’t kill all of the scorpions. Of the ten, he only killed five while the rest were captured and sent to the s.p.a.ce.
Zhao Hai let out a long breath after the battle. The Rock Scorpions weren’t a joke to deal with. Their offensive strength wasn’t any less than their defenses. If Zhao Hai’s cultivation wasn’t special, he wouldn’t have been able to endure for so long. It must be known that the spiritual qi density of the True Spirit Realm was greater than the Great Realm of Cultivation. Even then, it took Zhao Hai a lot of effort before the Rock Scorpions were dealt with.