Chapter 301: Mud Mire Fiend
“Flower Scorpion, you can’t go back on what you just said.”
The moment Mole had just recovered from his injuries, he didn’t even have time to thank Zhou Ming before tightly grabbing Flower Scorpion’s hand, as if afraid she would regret it.
“Let go of me, you damn fool.”
Although Flower Scorpion’s face was full of disgust, she didn’t withdraw her hands. After all, her strength was several times greater than Mole’s.
Watching this scene, Zhou Ming and the other two couldn’t help but reveal faint smiles—it was obvious that Flower Scorpion had accepted Mole.
“No, answer me. Were you telling the truth just now?”
Faced with Mole’s questioning, Flower Scorpion refused to respond. She lowered her head, pretending to pull back the hand he was holding.
“Mole, if Flower Scorpion didn’t agree, do you think you could hold her hand so tightly?”
Seeing how stubborn he was, Zhou Ming could only helplessly give him the answer he wanted.
Hearing this, Mole, who was sitting on the ground, grinned foolishly and prepared to pull Flower Scorpion into his arms.
“Get lost.”
Seeing him trying to push his luck, Flower Scorpion immediately shoved him away.
“Ow, ow…”
Mole instantly pretended his injuries had relapsed. Unfortunately, this time no one paid him any attention. As long as he wasn’t dead, it was fine.
At this moment, everyone’s gaze shifted to Zhou Ming.
“Ten Thousand Snakes, what level has your strength reached? That potion you gave Mole earlier wasn’t ordinary either, right?”
As the strongest in the team, Lion King found that he couldn’t see through Zhou Ming at all.
“Didn’t you already guess?”
Seeing Lion King hesitate, Zhou Ming asked with a faint smile.
“Transcendent Master… and also the master of the Serpent King Fortress.”
Hearing Zhou Ming’s reply, if Lion King still couldn’t confirm it, then his more than ten years as a hunter would have been in vain.
Under everyone’s gaze, Zhou Ming slowly nodded.
“Wow, Ten Thousand Snakes, you really advanced to Transcendent Master—and you’re even the master of the Serpent King Fortress?”
“Do you think I still have a chance?”
After receiving confirmation, Flower Scorpion once again moved close to Zhou Ming, just like before.
“Flower Scorpion, what are you doing? Do you think Ten Thousand Snakes would fancy you? Who would want you besides me?”
Mole, who had been lying on the ground, instantly sprang back to life.
Unfortunately, the next moment, he was knocked flat by a punch from Flower Scorpion. As long as she didn’t kill him, it was fine.
“You’re murdering your own husband!”
Mole wanted to continue complaining, but when he saw the anger in Flower Scorpion’s eyes, he immediately lowered his head and didn’t dare say another word.
“Unfortunately, my heart already belongs to someone. Flower Scorpion, you’d better accept Mole’s pursuit.”
Looking at the people before him, Zhou Ming no longer carried any airs.
Back when he had been at his weakest, aside from Lei Yuan, Xiao Yun, and Wang Yan, only these people had fought and survived alongside him.
If not for Lion King and the others helping him escape the beast tide back then, he might have already died in that ruin in the Northern Wasteland.
Now that they had unexpectedly reunited, Zhou Ming couldn’t help but sigh at the changes over the years.
If he hadn’t obtained the Half-Beastman profession system in the Northern Wasteland, he might still be just an Apprentice Beast Tamer.
If he hadn’t met Lei Yuan again, he might have lost the little humanity he had left through repeated experiments and become a slave to power.
Watching their playful banter, it felt as though he had returned to those days fighting together in the Northern Wasteland.
“You make it sound easy. Mole has no car, no house, no savings—how is a man with nothing supposed to marry me?”
“Now that you’re rich, give us some support.”
“Flower Scorpion!”
Hearing her words, Mole’s expression instantly turned serious as he scolded her.
“Mole, I really won’t be able to attend your wedding, so I’ll definitely compensate you.”
Zhou Ming raised his hand to stop him from speaking.
“How about this—I’ll give the four of you a shop in the camp. Fighting in the wilderness always comes with risks. You might as well do business and make money.”
Without giving them a chance to refuse, Zhou Ming handed a spatial ring to Lion King.
“Lion King, this is a spatial ring. The capacity is too small for me to use, so consider it a gift for you.”
“Alright. Since you’ve made it big, Ten Thousand Snakes, I’ll take advantage of you this once.”
Lion King understood that, given Zhou Ming’s current strength and status, their paths would rarely cross again.
In that case, it was better to accept his goodwill.
After their brief reunion, Zhou Ming left behind a letter for them to pass to Su Mei, then leapt into the air and departed through the passage, heading deeper into the Gloom Domain.
“Back then, I already knew Ten Thousand Snakes would achieve something great. But I didn’t expect that in just ten years, he’d reach such a height.”
After Zhou Ming left, the usually silent Doghead finally spoke with a sigh.
“Stop sighing, Doghead. Ten Thousand Snakes left us a pile of spoils—let’s collect them before anyone else arrives.”
Flower Scorpion had no time for sentiment. She had already drawn her large blade and began dissecting the Ferocious Beast corpses like a butcher.
The others quickly snapped out of it.
With the shop Zhou Ming had given them, they now needed goods to sell—and the materials from these Ferocious Beasts were the best merchandise.
As for Zhou Ming, after parting with Lion King and the others, he suddenly felt much more at ease. Even his Spiritual Power became more active.
After all, reflecting on life and improving one’s state of mind was one of the most crucial aspects of cultivation.
And the elevation of one’s mindset couldn’t rely on external forces—it could only be achieved through personal realization.
After sensing the change in his mental state, Zhou Ming stopped reminiscing and focused on exploring the Gloom Domain.
The caves of the Gloom Domain either fused together, forming semi-dimensional spaces with caves as carriers…
Or they were connected by massive passages, forming the entirety of the Gloom Domain.
As Zhou Ming continued his exploration, the scale of the caves grew larger, and increasingly powerful Ferocious Beasts began to appear.
Finally, within a massive cave spanning over a hundred kilometers, Zhou Ming encountered, for the first time in the Gloom Domain, a Lord-level existence—a Mud Mire Creature.
This peculiar being wasn’t a Ferocious Beast. It could barely be categorized as an elemental lifeform or perhaps an undead entity.
Because Mud Mire Creatures were typically born in filthy, dark swamps, nurtured by the lingering resentment of creatures devoured by the mire.
In other words, they were strange existences formed from the remnants of the dead merging with the swamp.
Under normal circumstances, their strength was at most comparable to low-tier Ferocious Beasts.
But perhaps due to the unique environment of the Gloom Domain, it had grown into a being comparable to the Transcendent level.
Now, it could be called a Mud Mire Fiend.
As Zhou Ming arrived, the Mud Mire Fiend revealed its true body from the swamp that occupied most of the cave.
Sticky. Foul-smelling. Like filth mixed into mud—it surged out of the swamp like a tidal wave, attempting to engulf Zhou Ming.
“Disgusting thing.”
Even before its attack reached him, Zhou Ming had already smelled an unbearable stench.
Although the Mud Mire Fiend was revolting, Zhou Ming did not underestimate its strength.
The chaotic and filthy aura made him feel as if he were sinking into a swamp, slowly devouring his sanity and polluting his mind.
Thus, Zhou Ming immediately unleashed his full power.