Long Cheng led the way, with everyone else following closely, their vigilance heightened. This massive piece of snake meat evoked a mixture of excitement and fear, coupled with profound unease.

For them, this kind of perilous exploration was far more thrilling than any hunt. The group moved forward in a single file line, two abreast, proceeding in a straight path.

At the very front were only Long Cheng and his hunting dogs. Behind them were Chang Feng and Li Ya, followed by Long Feng and Wu Zhiguo.

Long Feng appeared completely relaxed, positioned in the middle so he could react instantly should anyone face danger. His primary focus was protecting the leader, Long Cheng; after all, he was family from the Long clan.

“Careful!” Long Cheng suddenly called out from the front, and both hunting dogs erupted into loud barks. Quickly, a fire fox darted out ahead.

Wildman Mountain was home to many beasts, including foxes, though they were not numerous. Even Mayor Wang had seen very few, and no one in the town had ever managed to catch one.

Seeing the fox, everyone paused. Long Cheng instinctively raised his hunting rifle.

Before he could fire, the fox staggered, collapsed onto the ground, foam flecking its mouth as it convulsed violently. The fox had died right there.

Its demise mirrored that of the wild wolves just moments before—it was clearly poisoned. Long Cheng cautiously approached, and the two hunting dogs sniffed around before confirming the fox was dead.

The men exchanged glances. Foxes were notoriously cunning and intelligent creatures.

If even a fox could be poisoned to death, everyone's nerves tightened again. “Move!” Long Cheng waved his hand.

The more mysterious the situation became, the more curious he grew. The others followed close behind.

As Mayor Wang and his contingent passed, one of the security patrol members couldn't help but stop, staring intently at the fox's corpse. “Mayor, a fox!” the patrol member called out.

“Can’t you see it died from poison?” Mayor Wang looked up and replied curtly. He understood the man’s thoughts; a fox was a rare commodity to them.

“We don’t want the meat, just the pelt!” the patrol member whispered. Fox pelts were valuable, and they were almost impossible to hunt down normally.

This one was intact; taking its pelt back could fetch a good sum of money. Since this fox had died naturally, whoever found it could claim it.

Moreover, Long Cheng and his group hadn't shown interest in it, and the patrol member was already tempted. His words made Mayor Wang glance back at the fox’s body.

He had been so focused on the poisoning that he hadn’t considered this point. The meat of a poisoned animal was unusable, but the pelt was fine.

This fox pelt would indeed fetch a decent price back in town. Besides foxes, there were also the wolves they had passed—wolf pelts were also quite valuable.

“If you want it, take it. But you absolutely must not eat the meat!” Zhang Yang turned back and smiled suddenly.

Being close to Mayor Wang and his men, he had overheard the patrol member’s request. The fox had been poisoned by eating the Golden Crown Python's flesh, and its body carried the toxin.

The meat was naturally off-limits, but the poison in the body had weakened considerably by now and would not affect the pelt at all. Since the fox was already dead, it would be a waste to leave it.

The people from the town deserved something good, so letting them have it was fine. “Thank you, thank you, Boss Zhang!” Mayor Wang looked at Zhang Yang with some surprise before speaking, then ordered the patrol member to retrieve the fox’s body.

The names of the mountain folk were simple. The one who helped guard the camp earlier was called Er Hu; this man was named Gou Zi.

Gou Zi excitedly retrieved the fox’s corpse, hoisting it onto his crude rifle, clearly thrilled. The men around him also smiled, tinged with envy—why hadn't they thought to collect the fox?

However, a few of them immediately remembered the wild wolves they had passed earlier. Two men leaned in and whispered something to Mayor Wang before quickly running back.

If they could take the fox, they certainly wouldn't pass up the wolves. Wolf pelts could be used by them even if they weren't sold.

Zhang Yang didn't stop them as they ran back. There was little danger in the immediate vicinity, and the two armed patrol members would be safe, especially since the dead wolves weren't far from their current location.

This brief delay widened the gap between the two groups, forcing Mayor Wang and his men to hurry to catch up. Zhang Yang remained in the middle of the formation, constantly scanning their surroundings.

Judging by the direction they were heading, they were walking toward the spot where the Golden Crown Python had died the previous day. They would reach it soon.

Since the Golden Crown Python was already dead, and its carcass had been discovered by these beasts, it likely wouldn't be in good shape. Pity the five-crowned Golden Crown Python; even in death, it couldn't rest whole.

But keeping such a massive body intact was proving impossible. “Woof!” The dog in front barked again.

This time, they hadn't found a living beast, but instead discovered two dead jackals. Jackals, also known as Chai, were another cunning species.

These two jackals shared the same fate as the fox and wolves before them—death by poisoning. Seeing this, the leading members of the group sucked in a cold breath.

This unknown, mysterious great serpent had poisoned quite a number of creatures. Before even finding the source, they had already seen so many corpses.

“Move!” Long Cheng called out again, his guard even tighter now. While they weren't afraid of a few corpses, the continuous stream of dead animals was starting to unnerve everyone.

Further ahead, more carcasses appeared. Regardless of size, they all shared the same characteristic: death by poison.

Mayor Wang’s men gathered any carcass whose pelt was useful. By this point, they were already burdened with numerous animal bodies.

If not for (Shu Shu Wu Bookstore)— After walking for less than half an hour, Long Cheng suddenly froze, staring blankly ahead. The two hunting dogs beside him also stood with their tongues lolling out, looking fixedly ahead without making a sound.

Ahead was a slightly larger clearing, a scene of utter devastation littered with the chunks of meat they had seen before. In addition to these pieces of flesh, they saw far more animal corpses.

Besides wolves and jackals, there was even a leopard and a tiger. The leopard and tiger lay some distance away, but both were clearly dead on the ground.

This place was nothing short of a beast slaughterhouse. But that wasn't the worst part.

What truly shocked and terrified them was the corpse in the center: a carcass that was still colossal, though only half-intact. Around this massive object, several other beasts were tearing at it—some snatched a chunk of meat and fled, while others remained to devour their prize on the spot.

And the beasts currently feasting on these pieces of meat paid no mind to the other animals nearby that were already showing signs of poisoning, lying on the ground and foaming at the mouth. “Ugh!” Wu Zhiguo was the first to vomit.

Long Feng shook his head slightly; they had arrived at the place where the Golden Crown Python had been killed yesterday. But the Python’s end was truly tragic.

All useful parts had been scavenged, and its remains were now being desecrated by these beasts. “Chirp chirp chirp!” Wu Ying sleepily crawled out of the canvas bag, finally awake.

Seeing they had returned to the forest, it suddenly snapped to attention. But upon witnessing the tragic scene before it, it stood perfectly still, a hint of sorrow in its eyes.

Though the Golden Crown Python had been an enemy, it was still a Spiritual Beast. Being of the same kind, Wu Ying mourned for it.

Spiritual Beasts were inherently proud; they never associated with common animals. Even in death, they sought out hidden graves.

Such a sight—dying and then being devoured by others—was rare. Zhang Yang sensed Wu Ying’s thoughts and gently picked it up.

He felt partially responsible for this spectacle, as he was the one who had killed the Golden Crown Python. Responsibility, however, did not equate to regret or a desire to do it over.

He would still kill the Python; if he hadn't, he would have been killed, and he wouldn't have obtained the Sacred Maiden Flower. If the Golden Crown Python had secured the Sacred Maiden Flower and broken through to the Sixth Crown realm, they would have stood no chance against it.

“You all wait here. I’m going to take a look!” Long Cheng suddenly announced.

They were behind the giant carcass and hadn't seen its front. Anyone could tell this was a giant python, but none of them had ever seen a serpent of such colossal size.

“I’ll go with you!” Chang Feng immediately agreed and followed behind Long Cheng. Huang Hai hesitated for a moment, then followed as well.

Li Ya glanced back at the still-retching Wu Zhiguo, turning his head away despite his nausea. He hadn't thrown up; only Wu Zhiguo had.

Yang Ling’s eyes were covered by Su Zhantao, otherwise, she likely would have reacted the same way. Slowly turning around, upon seeing the front of the giant beast, the heartbeats of Long Cheng, Chang Feng, and Huang Hai accelerated rapidly.

Once they stood directly in front and clearly saw everything, the three men felt their legs grow weak. A massive python, mouth agape, with only one eye remaining, lay there, its body stained crimson.

That single open eye looked ferocious and terrifying, seemingly filled with resentment. It was indeed a snake, a python, just as they suspected—a dead giant serpent.

But its size was utterly beyond their expectation. They had never even heard tales of a python this large.

“Thud!” Huang Hai collapsed onto the ground. He was paralyzed by sheer terror; even dead, the enormous serpent was enough to render him immobile.

Chang Feng took a deep breath. Though he remained standing, he wasn't much better off than Huang Hai.

Only four words echoed in his mind, drawn from a foreign movie he once watched: Anaconda: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid. This python was even larger than the one in the film.

Long Cheng was slightly better than the other two, but not by much. His gaze shifted slowly, and then his pupils constricted sharply.

He walked quickly to a nearby tree. By the tree, he picked up a small object with a trembling hand.

After examining it, his expression changed abruptly. He quickly tucked the small item into his robes, then grabbed Huang Hai and pulled him back toward the main group.

First update. I am too tired; I overslept and the update is a bit late.

My apologies to my friends. The monthly ticket count didn't break one hundred, falling short by only ten votes.

The results are quite good, and I understand this is my responsibility, Little Yu. If I had slept a few fewer hours and woken up earlier, this wouldn't have happened.

Even though it didn't reach one hundred, I will still strive to update. This is the first update; there are more coming.

(To be continued)