Chapter One Hundred Forty-Seven: Capturing the C-Rank Beast

As Xiaofeng surged into the maw of the three-eyed red serpent, his momentum propelled him beyond its throat, plunging him deep into the creature's intestinal cavity, near the upper stomach.

This perilous maneuver startled Rice and the two mercenaries, who, while aware of Xiaofeng's audacity, had never imagined he would dare such a feat.

Holding his breath behind the serpent's throat to withstand the overwhelming stench within its abdomen, Xiaofeng steadied himself and unleashed the full force of his electric psychic power. A brilliant surge of crackling currents coursed through the twenty-meter-long serpent's body, flickering like a bolt of lightning.

The beast convulsed violently before gradually collapsing to one side. Though classified as a C-rank monster, it was stunned senseless by Xiaofeng's assault.

Yet Xiaofeng showed no haste to emerge. Instead, he crept deeper along the serpent's esophagus, venturing ever further into its cavernous belly.

Never before had he subjected himself to such repugnant conditions — the slick, foul mucus clung to him, and the nearer he approached the stomach's depths, the more unbearable the rank odor became.

Within the serpent's stomach lay undigested animal bones and patches of fur; Xiaofeng wove cautiously through the grisly detritus, nearly overcome with nausea.

After several painstaking minutes covering nearly ten meters, he finally glimpsed the crimson glow he had sought — the radiance of the C-rank monster's magic crystal, which filled Xiaofeng with elation, making every agonizing moment worthwhile.

Reaching the brightest locus of the glow, he drew his alloy combat knife from his back and swiftly slit open the serpent's intestinal wall, grasping the ruby-sized crystal nestled within as if it were an ostrich egg.

Perhaps driven by pain, the serpent let out a heart-wrenching roar and began thrashing wildly, regaining some semblance of consciousness.

These magic crystals were akin to a second heart for such beasts: where the heart supplied blood, the crystal fueled their energy. Losing it meant their vitality would dwindle, and death would inevitably follow.

As the serpent writhed, Xiaofeng cursed under his breath, "Damn it, behave!" Before unleashing another jolt of electricity, which again rendered the massive beast unconscious.

He continued crawling through the narrowing intestinal tract, finding just enough space to navigate.

Finally, struggling, Xiaofeng emerged from the serpent's anus, much to the astonishment of Rice, Rush, and the others, who stared at him in disbelief. His body was coated in filth, as though he had crawled from a cesspit.

Though not from a sewer, the serpent's innards were little different—its final stretches were clogged with excrement.

Rice hurried over, exclaiming, "Xiaofeng, are you alright?" before hastily covering his nose, unable to endure the foul odor emanating from him.

Exhausted, Xiaofeng retorted, "Are you hoping I'll die or something?"

Rice's gaze fell upon the crimson crystal clutched in Xiaofeng's hand, his surprise erasing any thought of the stench. "That is…"

"A C-rank magic crystal. Haha, never seen one before, have you?" Xiaofeng said proudly.

"No, I haven't. Let me see it!"

"No way. If you see it and lose it, who am I supposed to turn to?" Xiaofeng replied, then slowly approached the jeep and fetched a box used for storing armor. Methodically, he removed his armor, noticing numerous small pits corroded by strong acid. He silently thanked his armor for shielding him from digestion inside the serpent.

After stowing the crimson crystal in the box and placing it in the jeep's trunk, Xiaofeng addressed the amazed group, "Alright, we can leave now."

They all boarded the vehicle, with Rice once again at the wheel. As for the enormous corpse of the three-eyed red serpent, they had no means to transport it. Even with Rush's level 8 psychic powers, dealing with such a colossal creature was a daunting task. Thus, they left it behind.

Xiaofeng, however, carefully collected some of the serpent's green venom in a small vial — a lethal toxin known to incapacitate D-rank beasts instantly — treating it as a valuable weapon.

As the jeep rumbled away, Xiaofeng, weary from the fierce battle, slumped into the rear seat, fatigue overtaking him.

Rice glanced over while driving, asking, "Xiaofeng, what are your plans for that red crystal?"

"Heh, why should that concern you?"

"Don't be like that; we're a team. If you sell it, don't you owe us a share?"

"Ha! How much do you want?"

"Just a few hundred thousand credits would satisfy me."

"Dream on! You think you'll get tens of thousands from me? I've got dozens of you—don't delude yourself. This red crystal has its uses. C-rank magic crystals are exceedingly rare nowadays."

Rush chimed in, "Indeed, very rare. B-rank beasts are even harder to capture, and as for the legendary A-rank, no one dares challenge them yet. The Victoria Company only has a handful of B-rank crystals, two or three at most."

"Impressive," Xiaofeng admitted, surprised by Rush's knowledge, having only glimpsed traces of B-rank beasts but never encountered one directly.

"Yes, they're formidable. That's why C-rank crystals are almost priceless on the market. If we sold this to the Victoria Company, we could fetch millions of credits."

"Millions? We'd be rich!" Rice exclaimed excitedly as he drove.

Xiaofeng growled, "You greedy fool. I told you it's none of your concern. Stop dreaming. I intend to give this C-rank crystal to the Brown Company."

Rice froze, shocked. "Why?"