The Cornflower Witch Chapter 159

The large snake head rose, its entire python body forming an ‘S’ shape. Its eyes were cloudy, with vertical pupils in a murky yellow. When it stared at the group, they all felt varying degrees of rigidity.

Even though it was also a ‘second-tier’ creature, the giant python still brought them considerable pressure.

The snake with dark red scales slithered through the tall grass, flattening it along the way, then rose again, striking down like an afterimage. This time, its target was not the frontline Yarn, but the weakest member of the team, Bona.

The few seconds of intense gaze allowed the giant python to quickly assess the strength of each person. It ignored Yarn, who was equipped with heavy armor, and swept its tail horizontally, the tip hissing as it lunged towards the short-haired girl with chestnut-red hair.

At this moment, Bona couldn’t react in time. Fortunately, ‘Bad Apple,’ the team leader, acted quickly, kicking Bona away and taking the snake tail whip himself.

When the tail struck ‘Bad Apple,’ he tilted his body, trying to receive the blow diagonally. This greatly reduced the force of the snake’s tail, only sending him tumbling. If he hadn’t adjusted his posture in time and let the tail hit his waist squarely, he would likely have suffered multiple broken bones and fallen unconscious.

Seeing his teammate under attack, Yarn no longer hesitated. He raised his sword and shield and charged directly at the giant python, diverting its attention.

The sturdy broadsword struck the giant python, creating sparks and dislodging a few scales. Although it had some effect, compared to the enormous body of the python, this scratch was negligible.

The giant python began to move again. Its seemingly colossal body was not slow; its body, thicker than five Hylial combined, rapidly slithered past Yarn’s position, and then its head lunged at Bona once more.

Its bloody maw opened, revealing two pairs of sharp, scimitar-like fangs, menacing and terrifying. At this moment, Hylial, who had been accumulating power for a long time, shot an arrow, hitting the python’s upper jaw.

The arrow shallowly embedded itself in the flesh, and the seeds it contained rapidly germinated, growing jagged vines inside the snake’s mouth.

Feeling the foreign sensation and stinging pain in its mouth, the giant python ceased its pursuit, raising its head and shaking it repeatedly to dislodge the spreading thorny vines.

At this point, it was not focused on attacking, giving the others time to act.

Yarn dropped his shield, gripped his sword with both hands, and brought it down with full force. The sturdy broadsword, its silver edge gleaming, finally cleaved deep into the snake’s body, creating a massive gash.

‘Bad Apple,’ the team leader, sprinted forward, holding two daggers, and used the snake’s body as leverage to climb onto it, then plunged a dagger into the python’s body, aiming for its heart.

Injured, the giant python became incredibly frenzied, thrashing its head and tail wildly. It flung ‘Bad Apple’ off, then bit at the lone Karl nearby. The wizard only had time to defend himself with a ghost, but he couldn’t stop the python’s fierce attack. Its fangs snagged half his arm, which visibly paled. Fortunately, Hylial arrived and forcefully hacked at the fangs with her sword, causing blood to spurt. Without proper sealing of the conduits, the snake fangs couldn’t continue to draw blood, and it finally let go.

The enraged and irrational giant python slithered its body, glaring fixedly at Hylial, then its head dove down again, opening its bloodied maw, attempting to swallow the young girl whole.

Facing such an attack, Hylial found it difficult to resist and could only quickly dodge, then she was sent flying by the side of the python’s body, but thankfully avoided the fangs’ surprise attack.

On the other side, Yarn and ‘Bad Apple’ rushed over. One helped the weak and pale Karl quickly retreat, while the other launched another attack to attract the python’s attention.

Under this disturbance, the giant python suffered several more wounds. It instinctively sensed the danger of defeat and death, starting to retreat. It burrowed into a nearby patch of tall grass, its body low, and quickly slithered away.

At this moment, Hylial raised her compound bow, aimed at the retreating giant python, and stared intently.

She only had one chance to shoot an arrow now; any further and it would be difficult to hit, and the force would not penetrate.

Quickly she inserted a seed into the arrowhead, aiming at the escaping python, her gaze drifting towards the wounds on its body.

Continuously calculating the python’s trajectory, Hylial forced herself to concentrate, then constantly adjusted her aim, finally releasing the arrow just before the giant python was about to disappear.

The black arrowhead flew with a faint whoosh, traveling nearly a hundred meters over the flattened grass, embedding itself in a wound on the running snake’s body, and then the eerie blood vines began to grow.

Slender branches intertwined within the snake’s body, spreading along its blood vessels, while the outer vines continuously wrapped around the snake’s form.

The giant python rolled, struggling and thrashing, and after about several minutes, eerie blood-colored vines seeped from all its wounds, constantly piercing through its scales.

Finally, its body slowly ceased all activity, and as the vines drained its blood, it withered, becoming so thin that only a layer of snake scales seemed to cover its skeleton, halted in place.

Is it over? Everyone watched the dead giant python from a distance, still shaken.

After a long while, ‘Bad Apple,’ the leader, quietly approached and, after a quick check, nodded to the others before they came closer.

Each person examined the python’s corpse. Hylial also followed her senses to one side of the python’s body, where the eerie blood vines extended from its body, blooming with tiny flowers and then bearing vivid crimson fruits.

[Fresh Blood Red Fruit] (Tier 1 – Blood Law): An ominous fruit containing the essence of ‘Blood Law’. Eating it can enhance physical fitness, and it is very effective for Tier 1 and Tier 2 creatures. (Quality: Excellent)

The girl’s fingers plucked a fruit, similar in size to an egg, with crimson skin.

“Is this the fruit that forms after the Demonic Blood Vine kills a monster?” Bad Apple asked, walking over.

“I’ve heard them talk about it before, but this is the first time I’ve actually seen it. Indeed, gardeners are not a group to be trifled with.”

“However, it looks like part of the harvest will have to be advanced, Lia.” He looked back, where Yarn was helping the weak and pale Karl walk over.

“I understand.” Hylial picked 10 fruits, carried them over, and handed them to Karl.

“Thank you.” The other party was too weak to refuse at this point. Having just been drained of blood by the giant python, if Hylial hadn’t interrupted the process, he would most likely have died on the spot.

Biting into the crimson fruit and swallowing it, Karl’s complexion and strength gradually returned.

After eating all 10 fruits, his face flushed, and he released Yarn’s support, sitting to rest by himself.

On the other side, Bona had also returned, curiously assessing the snake’s body, searching for other usable parts.

“The flesh is mostly gone; only some scales and fangs seem usable.”

“But the flesh being replaced by fruit is much more cost-effective and useful,” Bad Apple walked over and counted the remaining fruits.

“There are 23 left,” he nodded.

“We owe Lia a big thank you this time; if it weren’t for you, Karl would have been in serious trouble just now.”

The others also felt a sense of relief, having narrowly escaped disaster.

If it were a one-on-one fight, Yarn could probably kill the giant python with minor injuries. The leader, Bad Apple, might not be able to defeat it, but escaping unharmed would certainly not be a problem. However, for Bona and Karl, it was a different story.

Bona’s combat power was very low, and she couldn’t escape. Although Karl had many ways to deal with strange creatures, he was particularly powerless against this purely numerical monster, lacking highly explosive output methods.

As for Hylial facing the giant python alone, as long as she could find an opportunity to wound the python and sow the seeds, she would be guaranteed victory. Even if she fled, the giant python wouldn’t be able to catch her.

After the battle, everyone began to clear the aftermath, clearing the surrounding grass, and then paused to rest.

Harvest:

‘Fresh Blood Red Fruit (Tier 1 – Blood Law)’ x 23

‘Blood-Sucking Snake Fang (Tier 2 – Blood Law)’ x 1

‘Snake Scale Skin (Excellent)’ approximately sixteen meters of intact sections.