Chapter 12: Chapter 11 Powerful Talent
"Be careful, there are snakes coming over, more than one."
"What?!"
Zhang Wei heard this and immediately stood up in alarm, gripping the steel pipe in his hands tightly. Although Tao Yu had made killing the python look easy, that was just one-on-one!
Each python's head was large enough and its vitality strong enough that normally it would take at least a dozen shots to the head to kill it.
Human attention is limited, and it can lead to neglecting one thing while attending to another. If there were really multiple snakes, these pythons which could instantly kill with one strike would greatly increase the difficulty and danger!
This caused the hand that Zhang Wei held the steel pipe with to also sweat, mixing with the blood from the snake carcass he was previously cutting open, making the steel pipe feel slippery in his grip.
As the noise intensified, Tao Yu quickly glanced back at the snake carcass on the ground and cursed silently. Was this one a female? What had drawn so many here?
This is a bit troublesome...
Tao Yu was able to fight these pythons solely with the advantage of firearms, but his own defense could not withstand the pythons' attacks!
Even if he could burst forth with enough strength after being chewed up thanks to [One Proof Forever Proof], it wouldn't change the fact that he could be killed instantly.
Looking at his Yuan Force which had once again returned to a hundred points, Tao Yu hesitated for a moment and did not immediately choose to activate Deification on any combat skill.
He was temporarily satisfied with his firearm accuracy, and punching, kicking, and using swords were restricted by his physical condition, so it would be better to save all one hundred points for prolonging life.
If he were really swallowed by a snake, he could still burst through its stomach to escape!
While adjusting himself with the Breathing Technique, the Qi-Blood surging through his body, Tao Yu continually surveyed his surroundings, ready to eliminate one python first.
Swish swish~
The sound of branches moving grew closer, and there were sounds of fallen leaves being swept across the ground. Some were in the trees, others were coming from the ground.
Even Tao Yu's eyesight could make out the occasional flash of green bodies, but he chose not to open fire.
He had tried before; gunshot wounds to the body had limited effect on these massive creatures, and with only thirty bullets in a clip, he had to consider the time to change clips and the consumption of ammunition for multiple snakes!
"Here they come!"
The head of the first python finally emerged, slowly poking out from behind a large tree.
Tao Yu didn't even give it a chance to react, firing immediately!
Dealing with one by one or all at once were completely different levels of difficulty, so it was imperative to take out one first!
However, just as Tao Yu fired at the head of that python, splattering its blood and causing its body to twist, another python broke through the dense foliage from behind and rapidly opened its mouth, leaping down at Tao Yu!
The speed and power unleashed by its spring-like body far exceeded its movements when slithering.
Zhang Wei, though making threatening shouts and waving his steel pipe from the side, did no good. The python seemed quite intelligent, knowing who posed a greater threat!
Furthermore, a third python appeared from the side, quickly coiling its body, ready to strike!
Tao Yu never placed his hopes on Zhang Wei's ability to distract them. With a calm expression, he finished off the first python while his heart seemed to slow its beating.
The feeling of blood plasma flowing out of the heart chambers was so clear, and every breath seemed to stir the surging of his Qi-Blood as the images around him suddenly slowed.
Bullets fired from the gun barrel in slow motion, tracing twisted paths through the air into the head of the large snake in front of him.
The sound and pressure of the python lunging from behind forced him to tear and twist the tendons in his feet just enough to manage a sidestep. With one hand, he nonchalantly pulled the pin of a fragmentation grenade and tossed it to the side without even looking back.
He let the giant python swallow the grenade while withstanding the pain as he squeezed his muscles, regardless of the cost, making his leg muscles swell and tendons tighten like a bowstring to execute a tumble, instantly increasing the distance between them.
Completely ignoring the injuries to his feet and finger tendons, in a world where each breath felt like a slide show, he raised his gun, aimed at the last python and pulled the trigger.
Rat-tat-tat~
The third python, which was coiled and about to strike, was locked in place by precise shots to the head and began to dart around wildly.
The second python which had plunged from the sky hit the ground hard, unable to recover immediately.
As the bullets in the magazine emptied, killing the third python, the second one, just regaining its composure to lift its head, also burst open with a loud bang, sending flesh and blood flying!
Without lingering on his success and changing the magazine, Tao Yu maintained a high state of alert.
The Qi-Blood eruption from the Basic Breathing Technique - Modified, combined with the extra physical exertion and strain from focusing with Bullet Time, caused a piercing pain throughout his body.
Especially the ligaments of the ankle and knee, and the tendons of the fingers, seemed as if they had all snapped.
But the more this pain emerged, the clearer Tao Yu's mind became, and his body's movements didn't pause for even a moment.
Apart from the physical injuries forcibly decaying, Tao Yu was still able to unleash attacks close to his peak without much impact!
"This [One Proof Forever Proof] must include an enhanced version of [Endurance]..."
Feeling the tearing pain in his body and the sustained force he could maintain, Tao Yu couldn't help but feel somewhat helpless and exasperated.
Using the powerful dynamic perception of [Bullet Time], he confirmed there was no danger around before he finally let out a sigh of relief.
Just now, that was his first time using the active effect of [Bullet Time] in real combat, and the results were much better than his tests last night while munching on snake meat.
The burst of strength brought on by forcibly tearing muscles in combination with the Qi-Blood from his Breathing Technique allowed him to maintain a certain level of mobility even in the slowed vision state, tossing grenades and rolling to shoot seemed ordinary, but everything was under control.
He had ample time to contemplate his tactics.
Otherwise, facing multiple attacks at the same time, he really might have had to rely on Yuan Force to recover while finding an opportunity to cut his way out from inside the snake's belly.
The effect was significant, but the side effects were also clear, the ligaments of the ankle and the cruciate ligaments of the knee were likely torn, finger tendons ripped, already physically affecting his ability to perform.
Moreover, the increased energy consumption of [Bullet Time] along with the enhanced burst of power also made him feel a soreness all over, and he roughly estimated that with just that momentary outburst, only about thirty percent of his strength was left.
He couldn't manage the same intensity again.
Within a few seconds, he had nearly drained himself.
The consumption from that instantaneous outburst was indeed terrifying, like even someone with great Endurance running two hundred-meter sprints back to back would be left gasping for breath.
His natural talent could indeed ensure peak performance as long as he had the strength, but if he ran out of energy, he figured he'd collapse on the spot.
However, since the crisis was resolved, Tao Yu didn't plan on using Yuan Force to recover, as it would be a waste not to eat so much snake meat...
...
"Bro Tao is freaking awesome! I thought I was going to die just now! Bro Tao is freaking awesome!"
Zhang Wei kept grilling the snake meat while handing some to Tao Yu, his mouth spouting non-stop flattery.
His own strength being what it was, the previous snake attack seemed like just a momentary thing in his eyes. He could only see Tao Yu elegantly taking out three snakes, and as for how fast Tao Yu had reacted and moved in the moment, it looked no different to him than before.
He knew how troublesome it was to be attacked from multiple sides, but Tao Yu had already hunted several Pythons before, and it seemed reasonable that two were shot and one was blown up by a grenade here.
After all, he had survived!
While eating the freshly grilled snake meat, Tao Yu glanced at Zhang Wei and after feeling the ligaments reattach without physically affecting him, he simply stood up and said,
"Let's go. Don't attract a few more."
"Okay."
Hearing that there might still be snakes around, Zhang Wei also shrank his neck a bit.
"But you're too weak now, even with [Endurance] (D+), you can't fully utilize it."
Hearing Tao Yu say this, Zhang Wei could only laugh awkwardly, not knowing how to respond.
"I'll teach you the method of the [Basic Breathing Technique] on the way, getting a bit stronger will be more useful to me too."
But the words from Tao Yu that followed casually were like a light in Zhang Wei's eyes, making him very excited.
"[Basic Breathing Technique]? Thank you, Bro Tao! Thank you! I'll definitely study hard so I can be more useful!"
No wonder Bro Tao didn't look very robust, but had such great physical strength — it was the Basic Breathing Technique. The Yuan Force his family supported must have been used to improve the acceleration of this Breathing Technique.
That must have been why he could handle the attack of the three snakes before, and now even the speed of his recovery could be attributed to his proficiency in the [Basic Breathing Technique]...
Tao Yu glanced at the excited Zhang Wei and didn't say anything more.
An offering that was of no loss to him, yet could motivate the other party and potentially solve some lurking issues, was still a worthwhile trade.
As for whether the other party could learn it, that was none of his business. If he truly mastered it, it would indeed be beneficial to him. Either way, it was a win...