Chapter One Hundred and Eight: The Giant Spider

The first slash struck straight into its chest. It crashed to the ground with a cry, its body cleaved clean in two.

It looked terrifying, but it was so fragile that it was hardly worth the trouble.

I changed direction and kept weaving up the mountain.

The mountain was probably too vast. I had been walking for ages, yet I had not seen a single fellow disciple.

Nor had I found any demonic beasts since the one I had just killed.

Frustrated, I sat down on a boulder and smoked, when suddenly I felt a chill above my head.

I carefully looked up, only to be so startled that I flung away the cigarette I had barely taken a few puffs from.

There, hanging from the tree, was a spider over two meters wide, and on closer inspection, it seemed to have a human-like head.

We stared at each other for several minutes. In the end, I decided to strike first.

With a sharp ring, I summoned Snowblade. The spider knew I meant to act and leaped down from the tree.

I looked at the enormous spider before me with disgust, and my hand showed no mercy.

Before the blade even reached it, my other hand had already unleashed a thunder spell.

But it was also remarkably swift, springing lightly upward by several meters.

I lifted my blade and let it graze past its fur.

The spider seemed enraged, emitting low growls again and again.

Against such a nimble creature, swordplay would not do.

Before I could even react, the spider sprang at me.

Its claws were like thick needles; one stab would leave a transparent hole through a person.

I dodged nimbly, but relying on its speed and many limbs, it had already sliced me open in one place.

I smiled faintly. At last I had met something formidable. Then I would fight with full force.

After several simple exchanges, I discovered that its claws were not only sharp, but also extremely hard. Snowblade struck them with no effect at all.

So my targets shifted to its head and back.

I did not know whether my analysis was right, but there was no time now to sit and deliberate over battle strategy.

Suddenly, the spider spat out a sticky mass that clung directly to my foot.

It was probably a specially prepared kind of spider silk. Once it stuck, it could not be pulled free, and my movements were restricted.

But I had a weapon in hand. With a light flick of Snowblade, the mass of silk shattered apart.

Seeing that it would gain nothing from such tricks, the spider no longer toyed with me and simply hurled itself forward.

I stepped back a few paces and slashed at its hard claws.

The force of that strike was immense. Both it and I were knocked back several meters, yet its claw remained completely unharmed.

I slowly shifted to its flank, then leaped with all my strength and brought the blade down toward its back.

But I still underestimated its speed. I could not touch it at all, and it played me round and round.

For a moment I did not know what to do. I could neither win nor run.

In the end, I had no choice but to take a desperate risk.

I charged straight upward with everything I had, abandoning all defense and focusing solely on offense.

The spider blocked my attack with those proud claws of its.

Though I appeared to be attacking with both hands on the blade, one of my hands was already preparing a technique.

Just as it drove those claws toward me, I instantly unleashed another thunder spell.

Neither of us dodged. We took each other’s attacks head-on.

Its claw pierced into my shoulder, and my thunder spell struck its head.

Daoist techniques were simply too effective against these beasts, and at such close range, its head was blown apart at once, spraying foul blood everywhere.

I drew a deep breath and pulled the claw from my shoulder.

I had suffered injuries like this countless times, and I was long since used to them.

I took gauze and ointment from my ring, applied the medicine, then wrapped the gauze around my shoulder.

After giving the spider’s corpse one last look, I continued up the mountain.

The higher I climbed, the poorer the visibility became, and the trees grew thicker.

Just when I felt I was near the summit, I would only find a gloomy forest.

Since I was still injured, I did not press farther upward for the time being, and instead kept moving around near the mountainside.

Along the way, I encountered many bizarre and monstrous beasts.

Some had the face of a horse and the body of a bull; others had crocodile heads but tiger bodies; still others were rats more than a meter long.

Here, I would have preferred to call it a mutant-animal base.

Fortunately, none of those beasts provoked me, and I was too lazy to bother with them.

Not long after, I heard cursing and the sound of fighting ahead.

I hurried over at a run and found that it was Luan Teng grappling with a wolf.

Luan Teng had already been disarmed, and was now fighting hand to hand with the wolf he had enraged.

He was riding on the wolf’s back, punching and hammering at it again and again, but perhaps because he was running low on stamina, each blow did little damage.

The wolf made a sharp pivot and flung Luan Teng off, then turned back to bite.

At this rate, if I did not step in, Luan Teng was done for.

I quickly rushed forward a few steps, then fired a thunder spell straight into the wolf’s body.

Faced with the thunder spell, the wolf could only meet its end there and then. A few seconds later, it shuddered and collapsed to the ground.

I went up to help Luan Teng to his feet and said with a wry smile,

“How did you get beaten up by a wolf like this? At the very least, you’re an expert at the Spiritual Blossom stage.”

Luan Teng retrieved the weapon he had dropped and scratched his head awkwardly.

In truth, it was not that Luan Teng was weak. After all, beasts were not the same as people. Against a person, one could use sword techniques, but against a beast, one could only rely on experience.

Besides, wolves were usually fast to begin with, let alone one that had already become spiritually cunning.

Luan Teng and I chatted idly, one sentence after another, since there was nothing else to do anyway.

That morning, he had said he wanted to learn dao techniques from me, and I gladly agreed.

Since I had nothing to occupy myself with now, I might as well teach him the first finger technique: Spirit Gathering.

“Want to learn finger techniques? I’ll teach you.”

Luan Teng glanced at me. Seeing that I was not joking, he nodded furiously and said, “Of course. Of course I want to.”

With a smile, I patted his shoulder. Then we found a large boulder to sit on, and I began teaching him the basic principles of finger techniques.

Luan Teng listened very earnestly. Whenever he did not understand something, he knew how to ask without shame.

After roughly explaining my own understanding of finger techniques, I began teaching him the first one.

Spirit Gathering seemed simple, but for a beginner it was by no means easy.

I told Luan Teng to watch carefully and demonstrated the motions of Spirit Gathering with one hand over and over.

At first, Luan Teng was just like I had been at the beginning, his fingers unable to bend correctly. But with a little guidance, he understood the technique very quickly.

Once he had nearly memorized the movements, I began teaching him the mental method.

In truth, the mental method was the hardest part. Anyone could imitate the motions, but whether they could match them with the proper internal method depended entirely on comprehension.

Still, Luan Teng’s aptitude was good, and he was very serious. With a few days of practice, he would be able to use Spirit Gathering with confidence.

I watched him busily working his fingers beside me, and my thoughts drifted back to my own beginnings...