Invincible Snake Emperor-Chapter 157 - 155: Snake Gully

His appearance was ghastly, but Jiang Xingze no longer cared. He had returned like a king, bringing with him the peerless Vampire Snake—a Snake Species ready to dominate the world.

All the venomous snakes on this mountain would become food for the Vampire Snake, continuously elevating its bloodline until it became a true Snake King.

No, not just the snakes. Even the people on this mountain would be reduced to food for the Vampire Snake.

The deaths of those two Snake Catching Masters were only the beginning.

"Eat your fill, Vampire Snake. The snakes and people of this mountain are all your food. Follow me, and you will become a true Snake King."

A Snake King commands all the snakes in the world, and the character for 'King' manifests as a mark on its head.

A venomous glee flashed in Jiang Xingze's eyes. He murmured as if in a dream, "Silver White Snake, aren't you revered by the people of Bai Town as their Snake King? Well then, let's see if you dare to show yourself and save them from their plight."

Having escaped from the Shanye Group, Jiang Xingze and the Vampire Snake were like wild horses loosed from their reigns, completely uninhibited.

The most frightening people in the world are madmen. A madman has no logic, no scruples; in his eyes, all rules and conventions are meaningless fictions, existing only to be broken to achieve his own ends.

This was what Jiang Xingze had become. Now, he was single-mindedly bent on finding that damned snake to take his revenge—to eat its flesh and drink its blood.

He was going to make a scene, one big enough to throw the entire city into an uproar.

Every day, numerous Snake Catchers went up She Mountain. Gradually, it became clear that some who went up never came back down.

At first, no one noticed. But as days passed, their families began to panic. When they started asking around, they discovered that quite a few Snake Catchers had failed to return from the mountain.

First it was one, then two. In just a few short days, more than twenty Snake Catchers had gone missing.

The people of Bai Town grew uneasy. Accidents were common for Snake Catchers on She Mountain, but people disappearing every single day was anything but.

They had vanished without a trace—no sign of them, dead or alive. Slowly, a Formless dread began to settle over the hearts of the people in Bai Town.

Eventually, a rumor started that a man-eating monster had appeared on She Mountain, and the missing Snake Catchers had been eaten by it.

The rumor sent a wave of panic through the town, but a rumor was just a rumor until it was proven. The next day, a number of Snake Catchers voluntarily formed a fifteen-man team to ascend the mountain and search for their missing comrades.

They would also investigate whether there truly was a man-eating monster.

As the team ventured deeper into She Mountain, they slowly realized they hadn't seen a single venomous snake along the way.

Someone couldn't help but wonder aloud, "Don't tell me the monster ate all the venomous snakes on the mountain too?"

Had a man-eating monster really appeared on She Mountain? Many of them swallowed hard, their throats suddenly feeling dry.

The team spread out, searching deep into the dense forests and wild trails. This mountain belonged to the people of Bai Town. Even if there was a man-eating monster, they had to find it and eliminate it.

Otherwise, with such a threat lurking, no one could rest easy. It wasn't an option for them to simply stop catching snakes on She Mountain forever.

To become a Snake Catcher, one had to be both bold and meticulous. The fifteen-man team explored the labyrinth of crisscrossing trails on She Mountain, familiar with every path as if it were their own backyard.

They had to search. Whether they found the missing Snake Catchers or the monster, they needed to find an answer.

They searched continuously, venturing ever deeper into She Mountain.

"Everyone, over here! I've found something!"

Someone at the front of the group suddenly shouted.

The rest of the team rushed over. On the ground ahead was a winding serpentine track, as wide as a water bucket. The track itself was unnaturally smooth, as if it had been slicked with oil.

This was definitely the track left by an enormous Giant Snake.

As experienced Snake Catchers, they exchanged surprised glances. But in that moment, it was as if they had found their path forward.

'Could the man-eating monster be a Giant Snake?'

"Let's follow the tracks and take a look. Everyone, be careful."

The team followed the tracks on the ground. After they passed through a patch of dense forest, they began to feel that something was wrong.

Suddenly, the whole team stopped in unison. They looked at each other, none of them daring to take another step forward.

There were two places on She Mountain where the Snake Race congregated most. The first was a place called She Tou Mountain, which was teeming with venomous snakes of all kinds.

The other was deep within She Mountain: a gully stretching for dozens of miles. The vegetation was lush both in and around it, making it an ideal habitat for snakes. It was crawling with a terrifying number of venomous snakes.

It had been there for hundreds of years and was known as Snake Gully.

No one had ever counted how many snakes were in Snake Gully, and it was impossible to even guess. According to the elders, legend said that Snake Gully was the birthplace of a Snake King.

Back then, before it attained its title, the Snake King was an incomparably massive python. It would travel this path daily, its colossal body dragging along the ground, gradually carving out the long gully.

After the Snake King achieved its apotheosis and departed, the long gully became a breeding ground for countless venomous snakes, becoming the place known as Snake Gully—the main den for the vipers of She Mountain.

No one dared to enter Snake Gully, for no one who went in ever came out.

No one knew how many species of venomous snakes it held, nor how vast it truly was.

"Should we go in and take a look?"

The Snake Catchers looked at the tracks on the ground, which pointed directly into Snake Gully.

'Did the man-eating Giant Snake come from Snake Gully?'

It was highly possible. A long time ago, people had reported seeing a snake as thick as a water bucket emerge from it.

"Let's just go in a little way. If anything feels wrong, we retreat immediately."

Snake Gully was a mysterious place, essentially a forbidden zone for Snake Catchers. If one dared to hunt there, the rewards would be immense—but you'd likely die in the process.

The fifteen-man team advanced cautiously into Snake Gully, every man treading as if on thin ice.

They hadn't gone a kilometer before they spotted a cave beside the gully. The cavern's entrance was pitch-black and exuded a sinister aura.

It looked like the lair of some great snake.

The cave's location right next to Snake Gully was telling.

Any Snake Catcher could tell you that in a place like Snake Gully, there were only snakes. Any other animal would just be food for the Snake Race.

The cave had a bizarre, unsettling air about it that sent a chill down their spines.

"What should we do? Keep going, or check out this cave?"

"Do you guys feel that? A really strong presence, from the Snake Race."

Several of them agreed. "I just feel like something's watching me. It's making my skin crawl."

Suddenly, a figure flickered within the gloomy cave. Slowly, a man in a black robe emerged. He looked at the group and laughed. "Welcome, guests, to my—Jiang Xingze's—new home."

'A person... walked out of the cave?'

Everyone stared at the black-robed man, their eyes wide with horror. If a giant snake had slithered out, they wouldn't have been surprised. But a person emerging from the cave? That was an unexpected twist.

Before they could process why a person would emerge from such a sinister cave, a long shadow fell over them from behind, cutting off their retreat. A colossal, twenty-three-meter-long Giant Snake appeared, its body covered in fiery red scales. With a ferocious and terrifying expression, it spoke in a human voice.

"ROAR... Humans. Fresh meat, delivered right to my door."

In an instant, they were all plunged into the terror of imminent death.