The fatty wheezed, panting heavily, "You best hurry up; Fatty's strength is limited, not to mention I haven't eaten in so many days."

Lu Zong smiled faintly at the fat man, then snapped violently at the giant snake: "Damn it, it seems you won't submit unless I show you my true skill. Some people won't shed tears until the coffin lid is on."

With that, he actually launched himself from the standing rock towards the serpent, startling the fatty—God forbid he missed and tumbled!

Yet, Lu Zong showed no sign of being reckless; he seemed perfectly prepared. His body gradually approached the snake's massive girth and finally landed upon it, gripping it fiercely.

Considering he had jumped from such a height, and the snake's body was incredibly slick, it should have been impossible for anyone to hold on like that. Why hadn't Lu Zong fallen?

He watched Lu Zong closely and suddenly noticed that the dagger Lu Zong held in his hand had somehow been driven deep into the serpent's body. He was only clinging there by virtue of the dagger pinning him in place.

But the snake seemed completely oblivious. The fatty felt the downward pressure from the serpent growing heavier, and gradually his strength waned. He cried out again, "Lu Zong, hurry up! I can't hold on much longer!"

Lu Zong replied casually, "Fatty, just a moment. Watch me carve this thing open."

Just as the fatty was wondering what he meant, he saw Lu Zong wrench a massive stone from the adjacent cliff face, place it against his chest, and then release his legs. The combined weight of himself and the stone bore down entirely upon the poorly lodged dagger in the serpent's flesh. Then, his body dropped rapidly. The blade sliced directly down from the snake's upper body, cutting all the way to the tail as he fell.

Fortunately, Ma Xiong below was prepared, waiting early on the lower rocks for Lu Zong's descent, saving him from being smashed to bits. Looking back at the snake, he paused, and then great gobs of rotten flesh began spilling out of its torso. Its viscera seemed to join the spectacle, resulting in a sudden rain of blood and gore that drenched the two men, leaving them slick and covered in blood—it looked exactly like a fresh murder scene.

The snake began to paralyze, but its limbs still gripped the cliff face tightly; it wasn't completely dead yet. It glared furiously at the things spilling out of its belly, letting go of the fatty. It reared back, letting out a piercing shriek that was certainly not a serpent's hiss, but rather the roar of a monstrous beast. The three men shuddered, and when they looked back at the snake, its eyes were filled with blood, staring fixedly at them. Lu Zong didn't hesitate: "Climb down, quickly!"

The three scrambled down frantically, almost leaping, knowing this was life or death and there was no time for jokes. The only sounds besides their heavy gasps were the thud of falling rocks.

Seeing them flee, the snake gave chase. He too ran downward at a desperate pace, and with every step, a cascade of rocks tumbled down. The three had to dodge falling stones while scrambling downwards.

Mixed in with the rain of stones were various smaller organs residual within the snake’s body, and the bleeding hadn't stopped. Ma Xiong said, "At this speed, the snake will bleed to death soon. Just hold on a little longer."

But as soon as he spoke, the snake seemed to realize its time was short. It stopped pursuing and remained still on the cliff face, its bloodshot eyes fixed on the trio. Something seemed caught in its throat, causing it to cough repeatedly—a very strange sight.

The fatty pointed at the snake and asked, "What is that giant snake doing? Why is it coughing? Is it about to unleash its power, some kind of serpent roar technique?"

Lu Zong and Ma Xiong were also perplexed, staring blankly, having forgotten to move forward.

Suddenly, the snake opened its massive maw, and an immense suction force blasted toward the three. If they hadn't been clinging to something, they would have been sucked upward. They watched as small surrounding stones obediently flew up and vanished into the snake's stomach. It was bizarre. Even after a long time, its stomach seemed unfilled, and the sucking continued relentlessly.

The fatty asked, his voice trembling slightly, "Lu Zong, doesn't it look like that Ice Crystal Fetus we encountered before? They have the same ability. I feel there must be some secret history here; maybe they share the same ancestor."

Lu Zong, his expression somber, replied to the fatty, "I don't quite think so."

The fatty argued, "Look at them! Isn't such a rare coincidence enough to prove it? I know it's hard for you to believe, but it's clearly the truth."

Lu Zong pointed at the snake's mouth, then motioned the fatty to stand where he was, saying, "Look into the snake's mouth. See anything?"

The fatty curiously moved to Lu Zong's spot and glanced up, then sighed in disappointment, "It seems you are right."

Ma Xiong, completely unaware of their discussion, saw the fatty realize something when he stood in Lu Zong's former position. He walked over too, looked up, and exclaimed in surprise, "Lu Zong, look! The Ice Crystal Fetus is actually in the snake's mouth! This is incredible."

Lu Zong said, "Yes. It must have accidentally fallen into the snake’s belly when the Ice Crystal Fetus dropped earlier. This giant snake probably wants to get that thing out. While they are occupied, we should hurry and leave. Time is life, and life is wives."

However, the upward suction was growing stronger. How difficult it was to climb down, especially after that journey through blood and gore had already exhausted them.

Lu Zong resigned himself, saying, "How about this: we just jump straight down. Since there's suction pulling us up, what do we have to fear?"

The fatty found this unbelievable, "That’s too insane! Given my weight and fat, you think the snake's suction can hold me? That's a joke! I'm afraid I'll be smashed to death before I even manage to jump out."

Lu Zong paused, realizing his idea was indeed somewhat reckless. If they jumped like that, what if the snake closed its mouth? The suction would vanish, and they would fall to their deaths. Moreover, the deeper they went, the stronger the suction, and the faster their speed, meaning the impact force would only increase—a certain death by smashing.

But now there seemed no other path, so they could only stand still and try to figure something out.

Suddenly, they felt the suction from above vanish instantly. They looked up curiously and found that the snake had closed its mouth, essentially trapping the Ice Crystal Fetus inside. The suction naturally disappeared. However, the snake did not look comfortable; the skin on its face began to contort, collapsing inward. It seemed the Fetus's suction was aggressively drawing in the snake's head muscles, trying to suck all the flesh dry.

Lu Zong quickly urged them, "While the Fetus's suction is temporarily gone, let's climb down fast." He led the way, starting to descend first.

Just as Lu Zong jumped down, a tremendous roar echoed from above. The sound was deafening, shaking loose, soft rocks which began to crash down—if they weren't careful, they could be hit.

Helplessly, they had to halt their descent, pressing their bodies flat against the cliff face, waiting for the rocks to finish falling. Lu Zong shouted up to the fatty and Ma Xiong, "Don't panic! It’s probably just the Fetus sucking in external air, causing vibrations as the air passes through the snake's vocal cords. It will quiet down once the Fetus has sucked the vocal cords in completely. Now, we just wait. Once the Fetus finishes absorbing the snake, it will lose its anchor and fall."

Lu Zong suddenly noticed a cave entrance not far below him. He struggled to climb down a bit further, preparing to slip inside to rest and wait for the Ice Crystal Fetus. The Fetus had now entirely drawn in the snake’s head, and the massive torso was slowly beginning to drop. Lu Zong estimated with his eye that if the tail hit the rock where Ma Xiong and the fatty stood, it would crush them. He urgently called out to them, "You two, hurry down! There's a cave here; let's hide inside together. That snake tail hanging above you will hit you!"

The two looked up hastily—it was true! The huge torso was swinging down like a giant club, heading straight for them. Without a second thought, they jumped down.

Lu Zong joined them, and they all crawled into the cave, intending to rest.

The cave was pitch black, and its size was unknown, though its height was even greater than the fatty's, allowing him to stand upright without stooping.

The fatty stuck his head out and saw the snake's torso being slowly devoured by the Ice Crystal Fetus. He felt terrified and quickly pulled his head back, saying, "That thing is truly damn terrifying! It eats everything. Fatty almost became a meal myself."

Lu Zong also poked his head out and patted his chest, saying, "That was a close call. If that thing latched onto this cave entrance, it would be disastrous."

Ma Xiong said, "Out of sight, out of mind. I'd rather wait quietly here. Sooner or later, the clouds will part."

Eventually, all outside noise ceased. Then they saw a streak of white flash past the cave mouth—that was the sound of the Ice Crystal Fetus falling downward again. After that, it was silent, save for the breathing of the few men.

Everyone silently prayed in their hearts; surviving this ordeal was not easy, and they should thank Guanyin Bodhisattva properly. Inside the cave, only the sound of heartbeats and breathing remained.

Suddenly, Lu Zong, who had been sitting cross-legged in prayer, seemed to sense something. His expression grew panicked as he asked Ma Xiong, "Ma Xiong, listen."

Ma Xiong cocked his ear and almost shrieked, "Yes, Lu Zong, did you hear the breathing of four people?"

Lu Zong nodded, his face full of dread, "Do you have anything else that can burn? Light it up and see."

Ma Xiong shook his head, "No, all the fire starters are used up. We can only burn surrounding branches and leaves for light now."

Lu Zong found a relatively dry stick nearby and handed it to Ma Xiong. Ma Xiong felt it and said, "It’s okay, dry enough to burn." He then pulled out a lighter from his pocket and ignited the branch.

But as soon as it caught fire, Ma Xiong frantically dropped the torch as if he had seen a ghost. Lu Zong curiously asked, "Ma Xiong, what did you see?"