A metallic clang rang out as the colossal green serpent slammed headfirst into Jared’s shimmering sword energy shield. The impact rattled the ground, the monster recoiled, hissing.

“Interesting…” The leader of Greenscale Gorge chuckled through the snake’s maw, surprise threading his voice. Who knew two human cultivators could possess such strength?

The serpent’s jaws yawned wide, spewing a misty spray of viridian venom. Mid-air, the poison split into hundreds of needle-thin arrows that reeked of death.

Jared’s eyes narrowed. He summoned his spiritual energy that flared into a gold shield, wrapping both men just as the toxic rain began to fall.

Venom spat from the serpent sizzled against Jared’s shimmering shield. Steam curled upward, filling the air with the stink of rot, but the translucent barrier held firm.

“Your poison is useless against us!” Jared snapped.

In the same instant, the Dragonslayer Sword burst from his palm as a ribbon of golden light, arrowing toward the serpent’s narrow heartline just beneath its emerald scales.