chsdbacks Chapter 271 Snake
Chapter 271 Snake
Chen Duo instinctively shrank back, her small hands gripping Nie Lingfeng's clothes tightly, a hint of resistance flashing in her emerald eyes—"I don't want to keep 'Little Cutie' company." (๑•́ ₃ •̀๑)
Nie Lingfeng glared at Wang Ye's retreating figure, annoyed. "Don't scare her." Then he said softly to Chen Duo, "Don't worry, we're here. Those things won't dare come near. If you're tired, just say so, and we'll take a rest."
"Not tired!" Chen Duo shook her head, and seemed to quicken her pace to prove herself, but then she stepped on a wet stone, slipped, and almost fell. Fortunately, Nie Lingfeng caught her in time.
"Let's take a break," Nie Lingfeng said without room for argument, pointing to a relatively dry area not far ahead with several flat, large rocks and a small clearing in the woods. "It's almost noon, let's eat something and replenish our energy."
Upon hearing this, Wang Ye stopped, stretched, and agreed, "Alright, I'm hungry too. This damn forest is more tiring to walk through than to fight."
The three walked to the open space and cleared a clean spot to sit down. Sunlight filtered through the layers of leaves, casting dappled patterns and bringing a rare respite from the oppressive heat. Nie Lingfeng took out compressed biscuits, dried meat, and water from his backpack and distributed them to the two. Chen Duo nibbled slowly on the hard compressed biscuits, eating them with water, clearly not very interested in them, but she didn't complain, only her brows were slightly furrowed.
While chewing on dried meat, Wang Ye squinted and surveyed the surrounding woods, his nose twitching occasionally as if he were sniffing something. After a while, he suddenly exclaimed "Eh!", stood up, walked to a clump of dense bushes at the edge of the clearing, squatted down, and parted the branches and leaves.
"Old Nie, Little Chen Duo, come and see, we're in for a treat today." Wang Ye's voice carried a hint of smugness at discovering a "treasure."
Nie Lingfeng and Chen Duo walked over and saw a large snake, about the thickness of an arm and about 1.5 meters long, coiled up in the soft soil under the bushes. It was covered with dark green scales, had a triangular head, and seemed to be dormant at the moment! The snake looked quite plump, and even when coiled up, its full body was still evident.
"This is... a python? No, it's a venomous snake, isn't it?" Nie Lingfeng frowned. He recognized it as a type of highly venomous lancehead viper, commonly found on the Yunnan-Myanmar border. Locals call it the "King of Rotten Meat" because of its potent venom. A bite from this viper will cause the wound to ulcerate rapidly and is extremely difficult to treat.
"Who cares if it's poisonous or not, it's almost lunchtime anyway." Wang Ye rubbed his hands together, looking eager to try it. "This thing has firm meat, and when it's roasted, wow, it's incredibly fragrant! Much better than compressed biscuits and jerky! Little Chen Duo, do you want some roasted snake meat?"
Chen Duo stared at the large, coiled snake that looked somewhat frightening, her emerald eyes filled with hesitation and a hint of... curiosity. She had eaten fish and rabbit grilled by Nie Lingfeng, but she had never eaten snake before. "It... is poisonous. Will I get sick if I eat it?" she asked softly, but the desire for something "delicious" in her eyes was still piqued by the words "grilled snake meat."
"What's there to be afraid of if it's poisonous? Remove the venom glands and the head, and the flesh won't be poisonous. Watch me!" Wang Ye said, stretching out his right hand and gently grabbing and pinching the still "sleeping" spearhead viper in mid-air.
"The character '巽' (xùn) represents a prison of wind."
An invisible yet resilient current of air instantly coiled around the giant snake from all directions, binding it tightly and fixing it in place, preventing it from even lifting its head! The giant snake was awakened and struggled violently, hissing threateningly and baring its venomous fangs, but trapped by the "Wind Prison," it could not move an inch.
Immediately afterwards, Wang Ye pointed his left hand like a sword and lightly slashed at the snake's neck, about seven inches from the ground.
"brush!"
A thin yet sharp blade of air swept past, severing the snake's head, which rolled to the side. The snake's body twitched violently a few times before becoming still. Dark red blood flowed from the wound, but it was quickly contained by the airflow of the "Wind Prison" and did not splatter everywhere.
The whole process was clean and efficient, without a trace of blood or even much noise. Wang Ye removed the "Wind Prison," used a tree branch to lift the headless snake's body, walked to the center of the open space, found a thick, dry branch, and strung the snake's body together.
"All done, start the fire, let's grill!" Wang Ye said enthusiastically, gathering some dry branches and fallen leaves from the surrounding area, piling them up, then looking at Chen Duo and winking, "Little Chen Duo, can I borrow a light?"
Chen Duo paused for a moment, then understood Wang Ye's meaning. A look of eagerness mixed with uncertainty appeared on her face. She looked at Nie Lingfeng, who nodded at her encouragingly, "Give it a try, just make sure to control the temperature and don't set the forest on fire."
"Hmm!" Chen Duo nodded vigorously, walked to the pile of firewood, stretched out her right index finger, and carefully flicked it towards the center of the pile.
"puff."
A small cluster of warm, pure, and beautifully golden-red flames flew from her fingertips and landed lightly on the dry, withered leaves. Upon contact with the fuel, the flames immediately ignited with a "whoosh," quickly spreading to the surrounding branches and forming a moderately sized, steadily burning campfire. Chen Duo had excellent control; the flames were concentrated solely on the firewood, without a single spark, and the temperature was just right—enough to ignite the wood without instantly reducing the pile to ashes.
"Beautiful!" Wang Ye praised, placing the skewered snake over the campfire and slowly rotating it to roast. The snake meat sizzled under the heat of the flames, its skin contracting and its color changing from dark green to golden brown. A strange aroma, a mixture of caramelized protein and a faint fishy smell, began to fill the air.
Nie Lingfeng also sat down, keeping a watchful eye on the surroundings while watching Wang Ye skillfully flip the snake meat. This guy is not only good at fighting, but his wilderness survival skills are also maxed out; he's truly an "all-rounder."
Chen Duo squatted by the campfire, her hands supporting her chin, her emerald eyes fixed intently on the snake meat that was gradually turning golden. Her little nose twitched slightly, as if she were carefully discerning the increasingly rich aroma. Her previous hesitation and fear seemed to have been largely washed away by the temptation of the "delicious food," and her eyes were filled with anticipation. (☆▽☆)
However, just as the snake meat was roasted to about 70-80% done, its surface turning an enticing golden brown, the oil dripping into the fire crackling and popping, and the aroma growing stronger—
An accident happened.
Wang Ye seemed to think the fire was almost done and prepared to remove the snake meat from the flames. Just then, a sudden, unannounced mountain wind, carrying a thick dampness and a chilling aura, swept in from the depths of the dense forest behind them! This wind came extremely strangely, as if it had a life of its own, precisely swirling up several burning dry leaves and sparks, and hurling them at Chen Duo, who was intently watching the snake meat!
"Watch out!" Nie Lingfeng reacted quickly, shouting as he prepared to attack.
But Chen Duo's reaction was faster than Nie Lingfeng had imagined! Or rather, it was her instinctive reaction!
The instant the eerie wind carrying sparks touched her body, Chen Duo didn't even turn around. Instead, instinctively, like a small animal whose territory had been violated, she suddenly turned around to face the direction from which the wind was blowing. At the same time, the Phoenix Seal that she had been holding in her left hand unconsciously pushed forward!
"Buzz—!"
There was no earth-shattering explosion, only a warm, bright, and even deeper golden-red flame shield that seemed to have a phoenix phantom flowing around it instantly formed in front of her! The shield was not large, just enough to protect her entire body, but it exuded an aura of inviolability and purification of external evil!
"call--!"
The few burning leaves and sparks that struck the flame shield were instantly vaporized and purified without even causing a ripple, disappearing without a trace! Even the strange wind carrying a cold and damp aura quickly subsided and dissipated when it came into contact with the warm and purifying aura emanating from the shield, just like ice and snow melting away!
The crisis was over, and the fiery shield in front of Chen Duo slowly receded and disappeared. She blinked her emerald eyes, seemingly a little surprised by her own reflexive defense, a hint of confusion on her face. Then she looked at the snake meat on the campfire, and then—
"Oops! The meat's burnt!" Chen Duo exclaimed softly, pointing above the campfire.
It turned out that in the instant she turned to defend herself, Wang Ye was also drawn to the sudden gust of wind and Chen Duo's reaction, and his hand, which was turning over, subconsciously paused for a moment. In just a second or two, the snake meat skewered on the branch, the side closest to the flame, had clearly been overcooked, with the edges even starting to turn black and smoke, emitting a burnt smell.
"Oh my god!" Wang Ye finally snapped out of his daze, hurriedly removing the snake meat from the fire. Looking at his charred "achievement," he exclaimed in pain, "My roasted snake meat! Little Chen Duo, it's all your fault! Why did you have to set off those 'fireworks' (referring to the flame shield)? Look, you've burned my lunch!"
Looking at the charred snake meat, Chen Duo's face showed heartache and guilt. She whispered in defense, "It was...it was blown by the wind, there were sparks...I didn't mean to..." As she spoke, she cautiously glanced at Nie Lingfeng, as if seeking support.
Nie Lingfeng looked at the charred snake meat, then at Wang Ye, who looked "heartbroken," and Chen Duo, who looked a little aggrieved. His lips twitched almost imperceptibly. He suppressed a laugh and tried to smooth things over, saying, "Alright, it's just a little burnt. The other side is still edible. Just make do with it. It's better than compressed biscuits."
Finally, the "ill-fated" spearhead viper, after enduring a "tragic fate" of being decapitated, roasted, blown by the wind, nearly burned, and finally charred, became the three's lunch. Wang Ye disdainfully sliced off the charred side, leaving the remaining meat relatively tender, with the characteristic aroma of roasted food. Although it had a slightly fishy smell, it was indeed a delicious treat in the wild. Chen Duo ate small bites, her brows slightly furrowed, seemingly not quite used to the fishy taste, but she didn't spit it out, eating it with great relish. Nie Lingfeng also shared some to replenish his energy.