Chapter 113: Fierce Battle with the Petrifying Serpent

Above the path of the petrifying beam, all the wild grass instantly shifted from a greenish-yellow to gray, turning into stone. Several mutated beasts were also unfortunate enough to be struck by the petrifying beam, their life forces abruptly severed as they transformed into stone blocks.

Watching the petrifying snake unleash its petrifying beam, Zhang Ran reacted swiftly, his figure flickering as he dodged to the right.

The greater the power of a spell domain ability, the harder it is to control. For a formidable power like the petrifying beam, the petrifying snake could only control its initial direction, unable to guide it further.

The petrifying beam traveled incredibly fast, covering over a hundred meters in less than half a second, striking the spot where Zhang Ran had been moments before.

Though swift, Zhang Ran's agility and reflexes were even faster; having anticipated the attack, he had already evaded. The petrifying beam passed about ten meters beside him, hitting the ground instead.

Upon impact, the beam did not explode but dispersed outward, turning all soil and wild grass within a ten-meter radius into stone.

While evading the petrifying snake, Zhang Ran did not halt his advance. Instead, he continued to sprint at full speed.

After enduring extensive evolution energy, Zhang Ran’s agility had reached 8.5 points. Coupled with the blessing of Blood Boil, his actual agility approached 10 points. At full sprint, his speed was terrifying, far surpassing Usain Bolt’s record on Earth.

Having released the petrifying beam, the petrifying snake entered a charging phase to accumulate energy for its next attack, Petrifying Eye. Meanwhile, it crawled backward, increasing the distance between itself and Zhang Ran.

Seconds later, the petrifying snake completed its charge for the Petrifying Eye once more. A gray gleam flickered in its eyes as two petrifying beams shot forth toward Zhang Ran.

“Hmph, using tactics after all. No wonder its mental power has reached 10 points—far smarter than an ordinary mutant beast! But such a strategy is far too crude!” Zhang Ran thought, observing the petrifying beams, yet he made no move to dodge and instead charged straight at the snake.

Indeed, this time the petrifying beams were not locked directly onto Zhang Ran. They targeted either his left-front or right-front sides. If Zhang Ran dodged left or right, he would be hit.

Unfortunately for the snake, Zhang Ran's keen observation and chip analysis saw through its trick. He never attempted to dodge but instead headed directly for the creature.

Realizing its plan had been uncovered, a human-like flash of irritation crossed the petrifying snake’s eyes. It retreated while charging again.

When the snake finished charging again, a dense gray light gleamed from its eyes. By then, Zhang Ran had closed to within three hundred meters.

This time, though fully charged, the snake held back, fixating on Zhang Ran without attacking.

If it attacked now and Zhang Ran evaded, the snake would be vulnerable before it could charge another petrifying beam, allowing Zhang Ran to close in and seize the advantage.

For the Petrifying Eye ability, the closer the target, the higher the hit rate. Within ten meters, it is nearly impossible to dodge the beam. Thus, the snake’s choice to hold its charge and wait for the perfect moment was cunning.

“How sly! But against absolute strength, cunning counts for little!” Zhang Ran thought, admiring the snake’s guile. Yet, bolstered by his overwhelming power, he pressed onward relentlessly.

Seeing Zhang Ran’s persistence, the snake ceased retreating and instead tracked Zhang Ran’s path with its large, petrifying-beam-infused eyes, ready to strike at any moment.

Seconds passed, and Zhang Ran closed to less than a hundred meters. Unable to restrain itself any longer, the snake unleashed the petrifying beam.

Seeing the beam rushing toward him, Zhang Ran leapt to the side with all his might. At the same time, a thought flickered through his mind. He drew the level-2 alloy heavy shield from his spatial box and held it at his side to block the attack.

At such close range, even with his speed, Zhang Ran could not completely avoid the beam, so he chose to use the heavy shield to absorb its force.

The petrifying beam grazed past Zhang Ran’s side, most of it striking the ground and petrifying a large patch of terrain. About ten percent of the beam hit the alloy heavy shield in his hand.

The surface of the heavy shield, forged from level-2 alloy, instantly turned gray and began to petrify into stone. The grayness spread inward, petrifying roughly half of the shield.

“What a pity! This level-2 alloy heavy shield is worth tens of thousands of Black Eagle Coins, and after that beam, its value just halved overnight. Even selling the snake’s materials would barely break even!” Zhang Ran thought, wincing at the loss. He immediately retracted the half-petrified shield back into his spatial box to avoid hindering his speed.

This petrifying snake was a relatively powerful level-4 creature, while Zhang Ran’s shield was made of ordinary level-2 alloy, clearly unable to withstand the petrifying beam’s assault. This encounter underscored the vital importance of advanced weaponry for an evolver.

Of course, Zhang Ran had no time to lament. He charged at the petrifying snake once more. After releasing the beam, the snake was again in the midst of charging. Naturally, Zhang Ran aimed to interrupt it, preventing a new petrifying beam from forming.

Holding his greatsword, Zhang Ran sprinted forward, then swung the heavy blade viciously downward toward the snake’s vulnerable neck.

Simultaneously, Zhang Ran gathered his focus, channeling his spiritual power into the Evolution Tree and locking onto the first blood-drop-shaped scarlet rune.

At his mental command, the Blood Plunder rune suddenly shimmered, releasing mysterious waves that spread through Zhang Ran’s body.

As the waves dispersed, the blood within his body condensed sharply, forming five razor-sharp blood spikes that shot forth wildly toward the petrifying snake.