Chapter 33: The Serpent of the Golden Pagoda Town (Part 1)

Chapter Eleven: The Golden Pagoda’s Serpent

Billowing smoke soared into the sky.

“We’re in trouble!” The Grand Commander’s face changed dramatically.

“What’s wrong, Grand Commander?” the surrounding generals asked in confusion.

“Bring me the map!” the Grand Commander ordered.

“At once!”

A young officer quickly presented a map. Gazing at the crude drawing, the Grand Commander let out a bitter laugh.

“We’ve been deceived, Huo Guang!” the Grand Commander roared.

“Grand Commander, what happened?”

“Send scouts in this direction—quick, quickly!” He pointed to a spot on the map—the very place where Yan Chuan and his men were.

“Yes, sir!”

After a moment of grim silence, the Grand Commander ordered, “Send a signal to the honored guardians!”

“Yes, sir!”

With a shrill whistle, a flare shot up into the sky.

Atop the mountain, the four guardians stood outside a temple, watching the inferno below as flames crawled halfway up the mountainside. Suddenly, a flare arced into the sky.

Seeing this, all four narrowed their eyes.

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Three thousand Black Armored Soldiers advanced steadily toward Yan Chuan’s forces.

In the center, soldiers bore four sedan chairs and an enormous cage.

The sedan chairs carried the four guardians, while the Grand Commander led the march nearby.

Inside the cage, a colossal black bear, its flesh heaped like a mountain, roared ceaselessly and battered the iron bars. Even on all fours, the beast stood as tall as two grown men, its bulk so great it took sixteen burly soldiers to lift the cage.

A jet-black serpent slithered through the heart of the army. Wherever it passed, the soldiers shrank away in terror.

The snake raised its head with regal disdain, sparing not a glance at the men.

After a time, the serpent turned its gaze to the iron cage.

Its cold eyes met the bear’s, and the beast suddenly fell silent, turning to stare back.

“Roar!” The black bear let out a furious bellow at the serpent.

The serpent’s eyes narrowed dangerously.

With a hiss, a cloud of venomous smoke billowed toward the cage.

As the toxic mist enveloped the bear and the sixteen men carrying it, screams erupted.

The soldiers collapsed, their faces blackened, dead in moments.

Terror swept through the ranks.

Inside the cage, the black bear weakened, not dying immediately but cowering in horror at the snake.

The serpent opened its jaws and bit through the top of the iron cage.

With a crash, the cage was torn apart.

The black bear, feeble and terrified, roared in desperation, venting its fear.

With deliberate slowness, the serpent bit into the bear and began to swallow it whole in full view of the soldiers.

In that dreadful silence, no one dared to intervene.

All four guardians had stepped down from their sedan chairs, waiting quietly.

The sounds of the serpent swallowing the bear pressed on everyone’s chest like a suffocating weight.

The huge bear vanished down the snake’s gullet; its belly swelled severalfold, so distended it seemed awkward to move.

The serpent’s eyes narrowed.

A series of grinding noises came from its belly.

In the blink of an eye, the distended bulge subsided, the mass redistributed throughout its body.

All around, soldiers gulped audibly. They knew well what had happened: the serpent’s crushing power had obliterated the enormous bear in an instant.

Satisfied, the serpent turned its head toward the bald-headed chief guardian.

With a flick of its tongue, the chief guardian immediately understood.

“Move out!” he commanded.

The march resumed.