Swallowing the Stars: Reboot, The Eternal Serpent!

Chapter 17 The Gap!

Speaking of city numbers, one cannot help but mention the famous region of Eurasia, city number 003, which corresponds to the former economic center of the Hanxia Kingdom—the Magic City.

It is adjacent to the ocean, where numerous sea monsters roam the waterways; it also boasts one of the most numerous architectural complexes in almost all of Asia, inhabited by an astonishing number of monsters.

However, it should be noted that the Hanxia Kingdom has two famous rivers of similar size.

One of them flows into the sea at city 003, creating that dangerous region;

Another river, the Tai River, flows into the sea right in city 009. The dangers in the river are no less than those in the former, and the Bohai Bay is also a notorious den of iniquity.

The latter city was numbered later simply because the building density was insufficient and the number of monsters occupying the city was "fewer".

The grandfather and grandson were flying to city number 009.

Midway through, Jiang Zhe exhausted his mental energy and while resting in the Taiyi mountain area, a minor incident occurred.

The old man took a liking to a waterfall, thinking it would be a good place to practice shooting. Considering the favorable conditions offered by the surrounding environment, he decided to stay for a while to help him further improve his shooting skills.

Of course, Jiang Zhe's goal of fighting against a Lord-level monster can also be achieved here.

Although the old man was still conflicted about Jiang Zhe's goal.

In a cave a few dozen meters from the waterfall, Jiang Zhe was holding a tablet computer and looking through a rare, treasured handbook of marksmanship notes from his home.

Many of the notes come from the turbulent era one or two hundred years before the Great Nirvana. Due to the rise of firearms, traditional martial arts gradually faded from the historical stage, making this the last vestige of ancient martial arts.

The martial arts masters of that era were not as physically fit as modern intermediate students, but in terms of skill, they were at a level of perfection and advancement.

Jiang Zhe found the source of the training plan his grandfather had made for him, wrote down the tips mentioned in it, and also saw the subsequent advanced training.

"Putting soybeans together" - "Putting incense sticks together" - "Putting mirrors together"!

The incense used in the second stage was not the high-quality kind with bamboo sticks inserted, but rather the very cheap kind.

It might have just been lit, but if you move it around with a slightly large motion, it will break.

After hundreds of attempts, Jiang Zhe was so tormented that he suffered from neurasthenia.

Every half hour or so, I would go to the pool to meditate, listen to the roar of the waterfall, and let the cool mist hit my face, allowing my mind to return to a state of tranquility.

Then they returned to the shade of the mountain to continue training.

Jiang Zhe showed no impatience whatsoever. After all, thinking about how abnormal the third stage was, he felt that what he was seeing now was nothing.

"Piercing the mirror" refers to piercing a fly that has landed on a mirror with a gun, ensuring that the fly dies but the mirror does not break.

Jiang Zhe thought to himself: Good heavens!

Is this shooting practice? Or is he trying to inflict one of the ten most cruel tortures on himself?

While Jiang Zhe was training, the old man contacted the family and asked his eldest son, Jiang Chengbo, to bring over a hundred bundles of incense sticks. He was clearly certain that his grandson would be stuck here for a while.

Only the Jiang family could afford to have the God of War running the transport business.

Oh, right, he'll also be coming over to be a sparring partner, responsible for training his nephew.

Even if Jiang Zhe completes the three stages of training, he will only be able to master the spear thrusting technique to its extreme, barely reaching the level of spear mastery.

However, this technique alone is not enough to achieve mastery of spearmanship.

Applying the fundamental laws to the process of comprehension only means being acknowledged by the laws; it's still a long way from complete understanding.

You can't become a master marksman without real combat experience!

A real-world combat scenario like killing monsters? Sure!

However, it's inefficient and you can only learn a little, so it's definitely not as good as sparring with a master marksman.

The old man underestimated Jiang Zhe's talent.

As evening fell, Jiang Zhe practiced diligently for nearly 8 hours and finally achieved the feat of "extinguishing the incense sticks while the incense continues to burn"!

"Incredible!" The old man looked at the monster as if it were a monster, his eyes almost overflowing with excitement.

This is my grandson!

He is destined to become a legend in the Jiang family!

No, with this kind of talent, it's no exaggeration to say that he will definitely become a legend on Earth!

"I seem to have a real talent for 'body cultivation'," Jiang Zhe said after thinking for a moment.

The old man was taken aback, and after thinking about it, he realized that it was indeed true.

Kang Chul is naturally gifted at controlling his strength!

Jiang Zhe, seizing the opportunity, asked again, "Grandpa, I want to challenge a Lord-level monster."

"Sigh, you can wait here." The old man sighed, flew out of the valley, and disappeared into the night.

Jiang Zhe could tell that his grandfather really didn't want him to fight a lord-level monster too early, and was worried about his safety.

Some of the unexpected events at the God of War level might be too late for him to intervene.

"I have a pronucleus, so I'm not that easy to kill. My head, heart... none of that matters."

"Moreover, I can slaughter hundreds of high-level beast generals at will, which is of no use as they serve no purpose of training."

Just like when Luo Feng was climbing the trial tower of the training camp, he fought against hundreds of beast generals. Relying on his high power multiplier, he could kill them all in a short time.

At this stage, with such a high multiplier, one can indeed do whatever one wants, right?

"Apprentice four against apprentice seven, that shouldn't be too difficult, right?" Jiang Zhe muttered to himself.

About ten minutes later, a cold wind rushed into the valley, and the old man descended from the sky holding a huge block of ice.

By the moonlight, Jiang Zhe could see that a humanoid monster more than ten meters tall was encased in the ice.

Novices, Golden Ape!

This is a race that ranks among the top five of mutated ape monsters.

The grandfather and grandson chose to stay here not only because they liked the waterfall, but also because they could be neighbors with the golden ape community. Their leader was known as the Monkey King, and they had no shortage of lord-level monsters under his command.

The old man's voice came from above: "Get ready, this is your own choice."

Jiang Zhe nodded, picked up his spear, and stood ready for battle.

A giant ice block, more than ten meters high, fell from the sky, but before it could hit the ground and shatter, the monster inside broke out of the ice.

Roar!

The golden ape roared in frustration.

He swung his remaining right arm and pounded his chest; there was a large hole in his left chest that went through both the front and back.

He looked at the "king" above him with a wary gaze.

A monster at the lord level is already quite intelligent, and having noticed the insects waiting in full battle array opposite it, it could easily understand the other party's intentions.

I will die, but you will pay the price!

The golden ape roared and rushed in front of Jiang Zhe in an instant, bending down so that its single right arm could be smashed down like a pillar.

Jiang Zhe thrust out his spear, multiplying his strength to the maximum, attempting to block the right arm in a head-on collision.

This is the most basic combination of "block" and "stab".

If you can parry this right arm, the spearhead will pierce straight into the golden ape's throat!

10 times the power!

A terrifying force of over 80 tons was transmitted!

But Jiang Zhe still overestimated himself.

While his strength was indeed at a level comparable to that of a beginner leader, his physical attributes were far from sufficient to support him in a confrontation of this intensity.

The spear did indeed deflect the golden ape's pillar-like arm.

At the same time, a huge recoil force was transmitted along the gun barrel to Jiang Zhe's tiger's mouth and arms.

I'm currently reading the error-free version! This is the first time I've published this novel.

My hand is torn and my arm is numb!

It felt like my fascia had been violently ripped open, and my bones were falling apart, about to sag limply.

He couldn't even control the greatly increased elasticity of the spear in his hand, causing it to slip from his grasp.

With the weapon out of his hand, Jiang Zhe had already lost completely.

But it wasn't over yet. His life-or-death crisis was looming. The golden ape's momentum was unstoppable, even more terrifying than a high-speed train.

It's no exaggeration to say that if you get hit, you'll be turned into a pile of minced meat.

With his exceptionally heightened neural reflexes, Jiang Zhe could see the golden ape grinning maliciously, and this state also enabled him to make the most correct response.

"Ah! Die!"

In the moment of crisis, the dormant spiritual power within Jiang Zhe's original core burst forth.

First, control the spear that has been thrown away, and make it spiral towards the golden ape's eye.

The golden ape instinctively closed its eyes, its single arm protecting its face, while its large hand, like that of a bathtub, reached for the spear.

Then, Jiang Zhe used his telekinesis to propel his combat suit, crouch down, and crash into the golden ape's crotch, avoiding the fatal impact and repositioning himself behind the ape.

Six throwing knives flashed out from the leather wallet behind Jiang Zhe's waist, turning into silver streaks of light and plunging into the wound on the back of the golden ape, shredding all the organs in its chest and abdomen, and then rushing down its throat into its head to shred the brain tissue.

The screams of pain that echoed through the night sky came to an abrupt end.

The imposing body, over ten meters tall, fell to the ground.

Countless points of light surged in like a tide.

It was more than what he had gained from slaughtering a whole tribe of beast generals, but Jiang Zhe was not happy at all.

After the intense concentration and adrenaline rush subsided, Jiang Zhe's body felt weak, and he was still shaken. His back was soaked with cold sweat.

He began to reflect on the battle he had just fought.

"Their playing style was flawed. They overestimated my physical abilities and shouldn't have engaged in a head-on collision."

"Should we roam around first, look for opportunities, and then launch an attack?"

Jiang Zhe shook his head.

That's not right either, that won't work.

Only by unleashing their full power can they possibly injure the Golden Ape, but at that point, the Golden Ape will inevitably seize the opportunity.

After going around in circles, we still have to face the same situation as before.

"Ultimately, the problem lies with myself; my physical condition is far too poor!"

"If we can withstand the recoil..."

No if.

Jiang Zhe sighed, he was really craving the defensive amplitude that Babata had mentioned.

"Ten times the power? If it's ten times the power of the universe, I could definitely fight a beginner war god in close combat as a beginner war general!"

This is similar to wearing an alloy combat suit.

Wearing an S-class combat suit, theoretically, no lord-level monster can break through your defenses. However, your physical abilities are insufficient. Although they cannot break through your defenses, they can still kill you with the impact force.

"You're not entirely stupid; you found the correct answer I left for you." The old man descended from the sky and asked, "Now you understand the gap between yourself and a Lord-level monster, right?"

The "correct answer" refers to the open wound on the left chest of the golden ape, from which the throwing knife can penetrate without leaving any gaps.

"I understand, I'm just a glass cannon." Jiang Zhe acknowledged his own limitations. "Grandpa, I'll focus on practicing my shooting from now on."

Closing his eyelids and visualizing the star on his right shoulder, which was nearly 60% bright, Jiang Zhe suppressed the restlessness in his heart.

They were too eager for that double level of life genes, and were somewhat impatient and reckless.

Don't even think about training yourself.

High-level beast generals are easier to bully. I estimate that slaughtering another thousand beast generals should be enough. There's no need to risk taking chestnuts from the fire by hunting lord-level monsters.

Just as Babata taught Luo Feng, there is indeed a small watershed between the third and fourth ranks, and between the sixth and seventh ranks.

Earth's incomplete secret techniques do not support engaging in overly absurd cross-level battles.

With ten times the power of Earth, a novice warrior really shouldn't be able to defeat a novice lord-level monster; their physical abilities are too poor.

You can refer to the part where Wang Tong fights the Ironclad Dragon, the battle between a High-level War God and a High-level Lord.

(End of this chapter)