Born as an ant, I was summoned to ascend to immortality.

Chapter 11 The Green-Eyed Toad

The mantis's takeoff posture was completely different from Zhou Li's.

The Zhou Li (a mythical creature) has six legs pushing off the ground and its wings flapping rapidly, like an arrow released from a bow; the mantis, on the other hand, lightly flicks its hind legs on a bamboo branch, and its body floats up gracefully and calmly.

Zhou Li also observed that when the mantis's thin wings vibrated, a very faint spiritual pattern would spread out.

With each flap of the mantis's wings, spiritual patterns flow from the base of the wing to the tip, forming an air blade that reduces air resistance.

This is a wonderful combination of spiritual power and wings!

Zhou Li felt quite amazed. Although he could fly, he relied entirely on instinct and brute force.

Moreover, his use of spiritual power was simply to strengthen his physical body; he never imagined that spiritual power could have such wonderful uses.

At this moment, the mantis slowly approaches, sometimes flapping its wings and stopping abruptly, sometimes gliding lightly.

As it drew an arrogant arc in the air, Zhou Li could tell that it was showing off its skills, as if mocking Zhou Li's clumsy take-off and landing just now.

"What an intelligent praying mantis!"

Zhou Li secretly praised it, and seeing that it meant no harm, he was inclined to ask it for advice on the art of riding the wind.

The thought had just arisen in my mind, and I was about to test it with my spiritual sense.

"call out!"

A whooshing sound came from deep within the bamboo forest!

It moved so fast that it left a white shockwave in the air, scattering bamboo leaves wherever it passed.

It was a long tongue as thick as a child's arm.

It shot out from behind a clump of bamboo ten feet away, so fast that only a blur remained. Its tongue, forked like a snake's tongue, pointed directly at the mantis in mid-air.

Because of the unique structure of his compound eyes, Zhou Li was able to clearly see the long tongue coming at him.

But it was too fast, leaving no time to react. Zhou Li could only watch helplessly as it precisely wrapped its arms around the mantis's abdomen and then suddenly retreated into the depths of the bamboo forest.

A strong wind hit my face!

Only after the tongue retracted did Zhou Li smell the fishy, ​​foul odor emanating from it.

His six legs were frozen on the green tiles of the courtyard wall, his eyes fixed on the direction from which the tongue had come.

From the shadow of the lush bamboo grove, a giant toad suddenly leaped up, instantly soaring more than ten feet off the ground.

This is no ordinary toad, but the spirit pet of the peak master of Tianchi Peak of Changtian Sect, the Jade-Eyed Golden Toad!

This green-eyed toad is three feet long, with fist-sized golden growths covering its back. Its pair of coin-like horizontal pupils are coldly staring at Zhou Li on the courtyard wall.

A sudden "boom" filled Zhou Li's mind as the primal fear of an insect permeated his entire body.

Escape? How can I escape? With that tongue's speed just now, even if I ran at full speed, I couldn't get more than half a foot away.

Fluttering its wings? This golden toad can leap ten zhang in one bound; if it flies, it will probably die even faster.

Fight? With a body the size of a four-inch ant against a three-foot-tall toad, the only chance of victory is to overeat and kill it...

The golden toad in the sky throbbed with its throat, about to stick out its tongue at Zhou Li once more.

Just at this critical moment, a fair and delicate foot suddenly appeared in mid-air and stomped hard on the golden toad's head.

At the same time, a sharp shout rang out: "Fatball!"

The three-foot-tall golden toad was kicked so hard that it rolled three times in the air before crashing back into the bamboo forest, breaking countless purple bamboo stalks amidst a series of cracking sounds.

Immediately afterwards, the two girls leaped off a cloud boat and landed lightly on the bamboo forest path.

The person in the lead was about seventeen or eighteen years old, dressed in a moon-white long dress, with a gentle and graceful appearance. She was none other than Gu Siwei, Zhou Li's junior sister from Ziyun Peak, whom he had not seen for a long time.

Beside her, another girl, slightly younger, was dressed in a bright blue robe, barefoot, with her trousers tied at the ankles with gold thread.

Judging from her attire, one could tell she was a member of a powerful sect or a prestigious family, with a deep and profound background. That kick just now was delivered by her.

At this moment, her almond-shaped eyes widened, one hand on her hip, pointing at the golden toad and cursing loudly:

"You damn fatso, eating random things again! Last time you stole food from that fire scorpion in the alchemy room, and you vomited so much acid throughout the entire spirit beast garden. If you get a stomachache again this time, your feeding pills for this month are confiscated!"

Upon hearing this, the golden toad's green eyes widened, and it hurriedly croaked repeatedly, rolling to the girl's side and sticking out its long tongue to lick the girl's feet in a flattering manner.

"Still playing the victim?" the girl glared. "I brought you here to find a spirit pet, not to give you special treatment!"

Seeing this, Gu Siwei covered her mouth and chuckled, "Junior Sister Ruoshui, it knows it was wrong. There are many insects in the bamboo forest of Ziyun Peak, so it's no wonder it was tempted."

"Senior Sister Gu, you're just too soft-hearted." The girl called Ruoshui snorted, her tone much gentler.

She crouched down and patted the golden toad's head. "Fatball, sniff around. Where's your senior sister's spirit pet? If you find it, you'll get an extra treat when we get back!"

The golden toad perked up, its green eyes narrowing as if trying to catch a whiff of something.

Having narrowly escaped death, Zhou Li leaned against the wall and slowly exhaled.

"We're saved!"

The wisest course of action at this moment is to take advantage of their attention being focused on the golden toad and quietly slip back to their nest.

Zhou Li shifted its six legs slightly, slowly folded its wings, and was about to slide down the wall when it heard Gu Siwei suddenly speak, her voice tinged with worry:

"Junior Sister Ruoshui, do you really think this golden toad can find the larva of that flying centipede?"

Centipede? Flying creature?

Zhou Li paused, thinking, "Could it be such a coincidence?"

Ruoshui, who was sniffing the golden toad, didn't turn around when she heard this: "Don't worry, this golden toad is my father's darling. As long as it's an insect, it will never escape its pursuit. If even it can't find it, then the centipede is just short-lived and has ended up in someone else's stomach."

Seeing her growing worry, Ruoshui patted her chest and said, "Senior Sister Gu, it's just a centipede. I've seen all sorts of poisonous insects with three heads and six wings on our Tianchi Peak. How could a centipede possibly stump us? Since you've come to me for help, I'll definitely take care of it for you!"

"Junior sister, actually..." Gu Siwei sighed softly, "This centipede was lent to me by Young Master Yuwen."

"Yu Wenzhao?"

Ruoshui seemed to have rediscovered her old friend, teasingly saying, "That playboy Yuwen Zhao? I was wondering why you suddenly started researching spirit pets, Senior Sister. So they were a gift from your lover?"

"Junior Sister!" Gu Siwei hurriedly stopped her, looked around, and lowered her voice, "Don't say that. I originally declined, but Young Master Yuwen said he just wanted to lend it to me for a few days so I could experience the wonders of the chess game. I didn't want to offend him, so I had to accept it for now."

"The wonders of the Insect Chess Game?" Ruoshui rolled her eyes. "Senior Sister Gu, Yuwen Zhao is clearly using the Insect Chess Game as an excuse to pester you. Everyone knows that Young Master Yuwen is a big fan of this game. Relying on the wealth and power of the Yuwen family, he collects rare and exotic insects and gambles with those纨绔 (sons of wealthy and powerful families) of noble families every day. How could you, a person who cultivates in seclusion, understand these tricks?"

"Yes." Gu Siwei smiled bitterly. "I really don't understand. After I got the spirit-rearing jar, I just casually placed it by the window, thinking that I would find an excuse to return it in a few days. Who knew that the jar would suddenly develop a crack, and by the time I noticed it, the centipede had already disappeared."

Upon hearing this, Ruoshui suddenly fell silent.

She stared at Gu Siwei for a long time before slowly saying, "Senior Sister, it's just a centipede. If it's lost, it's lost. No matter how arrogant Yuwen Zhao is, he wouldn't turn against you for a mere demon insect, would he? Although the Yuwen family is powerful, compared to our Changtian Sect, they are nothing special."

Gu Siwei shook her head and sat down beside her: "Junior sister, you don't know, but this centipede is no small matter to Young Master Yuwen."

"How is it so extraordinary?" Ruoshui raised an eyebrow. "Can a mere toy of the Yichongxi (a type of mythical insect) compare to the spirit beasts of my Tianchi Peak?"

"Young Master Yuwen has already signed a blood pact with it."