About a hundred meters away from her, a giant python with dazzling colors slithered.
The python was seven or eight meters long, as thick as a baby's waist. Right now, it was flicking its crimson tongue at her, its venomous fangs glistening with saliva. The snake seemed to have locked onto her as prey—after pausing for a moment, it continued slithering in her direction.
“Such bright scales, such a flat head—just how poisonous is this snake?”
Serena Feng saw the danger behind her was a snake, and felt a little relieved. Unlike most girls who would panic and scream at the sight of a snake, she stood calmly in place and slowed her breathing.
Snakes have eyes, but their vision is poor—they can only detect movement. As long as she stayed still and held her breath, the python wouldn’t notice her presence. Of course, the main reason was that she wasn’t afraid of snakes, so she didn’t panic at all.
Back when she was with the army, chasing drug lords along the Yunnan border, snakes were her favorite encounter. Seeing a snake meant there was good food around—no need to gnaw on cold, tasteless rations.
In the jungle, snakes are actually pretty stupid creatures—easy for humans to trick. That’s why they were the team's favorite food, and tasted great too.
After all, deep in the jungle, there weren’t tame little animals like rabbits, deer, or pheasants. Of course, she had no desire to meet a seven or eight-meter-long python like this one—if it went berserk, it could swallow seven or eight grown men whole.
Serena Feng didn’t want to provoke this snake, nor did she want to eat snake meat. All she cared about was avoiding danger.
The distance between woman and snake kept shrinking—one hundred meters, eighty, fifty. When the python was only thirty meters away, Serena Feng sensed something was wrong. This snake seemed to be able to "see" her; the closer it got, the more excited it became, its gaze growing sharper, just like a predator spotting its prey.
“What the hell, did this snake get glasses or something? Looks like it’s fixated on me.” Now Serena Feng was truly a little scared—this snake was obviously highly venomous. If it bit her, she probably wouldn’t even have time to activate her Smart Med-Pack.
Even if she was confident she wouldn’t get bitten, just being constricted by the snake would be fatal—the python could easily suffocate her to death.
Twenty meters now—the snake suddenly sped up, a rank stench pouring from its mouth.
“Something’s off.” Serena Feng raised her handgun, aimed at the snake’s head, and slowly shifted left. She wanted to see if the python was really locked onto her.
Facing a giant python, if you can’t guarantee a one-shot kill, don’t fire lightly. If you fail to kill it and only startle it, you’re the one who’s doomed.
Serena Feng’s steps were feather-light—she was already wearing soft-soled shoes, so her movement was nearly silent. But this python seemed unusually smart: whenever Serena moved, it stopped, coiling in place, its massive head probing forward before it continued slithering toward her.
“No way—does my body have some scent that attracts snakes?” Serena Feng believed the snake was set up by someone, but it hadn’t been caught and released—it came here on its own.
But her clothes were self-prepared, and she hadn’t used any palace-issued weapons. So what was drawing the snake to her?
Snakes can hear, but their hearing isn’t great. To attract a snake, you need to rely on scent. Their tongues are agile and sensitive to smells, letting them detect what’s nearby.
Serena Feng kept an eye on the python’s movements while considering possible dangers. But no matter how she thought about it, she couldn’t figure out what was wrong with her gear—wait, there was one thing.
Serena Feng’s eyes lit up—she pulled the signal flare out from her sleeve, and the moment she did, the python suddenly sped up.
“So the signal flare really is the problem. How did I forget about this thing? Just my luck.” Serena Feng muttered in frustration. When she tugged at the flare, she found it was soaked—completely impossible to ignite.
“Well played, Empress—even little things like this aren’t spared. Palace-issued gear really can’t be trusted. Last time it was the clothing, this time it’s the signal flare. Just how much do you hate me?” Serena Feng shook her head. Sure, the flare was evidence if she took it out, but surviving was more important right now—she wasn’t about to risk her life under the python’s attack just to hold onto proof.
Without a second thought, Serena Feng threw the signal flare in the opposite direction.
Besides, with something like this, any investigation would just land a few palace maids or handmaids in trouble, maybe push out a minor noble as a scapegoat. Toppling the Empress with it? Dream on.
Pa—once the signal flare hit the ground, the python stopped right in front of Serena Feng, stretching its head toward her and flicking its tongue. Serena didn’t even dare to breathe, terrified the scent might shift and the beast would turn on her instead.
Luckily, the scent did its job—after lingering in front of Serena for about three seconds, the giant python changed direction and raced after the signal flare, moving at lightning speed.
Whew... Only when the python’s tail slithered past her did Serena Feng finally let out a breath.
With the danger gone, Serena snapped her fingers, a bright smile flashing across her face as she turned to leave.
She was alone—no way she’d dare take on a seven or eight-meter python. She wasn’t completely confident, and besides, this wasn’t a life-or-death moment. There was no need to take risks; peaceful solutions were always best.
Still, she was simmering with frustration inside.
Today’s incident wasn’t huge, but it wasn’t trivial either. If she hadn’t kept her nerve and refrained from panicking or attacking the python, she’d definitely have ended up as snake food—nothing left of her at all. If it came to that, not even Nolan Drake could save her, no matter how capable he was.
The more Serena thought about it, the more upset she became. She hadn’t gone ten steps before it hit her—her contest zone and Su Wan’s were right next to each other. If her enemies could draw the python to her, why couldn’t she send it to Su Wan?
Fight fire with fire. If they played dirty first, she had every right to strike back.
After considering it, Serena nodded to herself. Both she and Su Wan were women—if Su Wan could go for her throat, why shouldn’t she retaliate? Her opponent must have known just how terrified and helpless a girl would feel facing a giant python.
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Her opponent hadn’t treated Serena Feng as a person—so why should she show mercy?
“Su Wan, don’t blame me. Blame yourself for your malicious intent. If I hadn’t been calm and bold, I’d be dead in a snake’s belly by now, not even a bone left.
Su Wan, you sowed this evil seed, so you’ll reap the consequences. If you end up dead in a snake’s belly, don’t blame me—blame whoever came up with the plot against me. I bet you won’t be as unlucky as I was, and your signal flare won’t be soaked.
Serena Feng holstered her handgun at her waist, activated the Smart Med-Pack, and took out a drug that could attract snakes. For safety, she put on a mask, white coat, and gloves—she didn’t want the scent sticking to her body and making that stupid snake chase after her. That would be poetic justice in the worst way.
Serena Feng first ran to the boundary of Su Wan’s sector, splashed the drug along the edge, then sprayed some inside. She doubled back, circling several hundred meters around to another spot, and scattered more of the drug within range of the python’s scent.
Serena had a great sense of direction. Though time was tight, she picked the shortest route, confident the snake wouldn’t disappoint her.
Of course, if it failed, so be it—she was just venting her anger. Success would be nice, but if not, she had no regrets. Life was long.
The drug Serena scattered was potent—it carried a bloody scent that carnivores loved. Mixed into the air, humans couldn’t detect it, but animals were extremely sensitive.
No sooner had Serena scattered the drug than the python came racing toward her, its tail whipping the ground with sharp cracks—it looked ravenous.
Serena knew danger was close and moved even faster. In the end, she didn’t dare linger—she dashed for the far side, stripping off her clothes along the way. Only when she was sure the snake hadn’t followed did she finally breathe easy, rolled up her clothes haphazardly, stuffed them into the Smart Med-Pack, wiped the sweat from her brow, and headed out of the hunting zone.
On the way, Serena was deeply glad she hadn’t killed any rabbits. If the python caught a whiff of blood here, it would never have left so easily.
“Su Wan, I hope your combat skills are lousy and you caught as few rabbits as possible—otherwise, you’re in for it.” Serena didn’t hide her little surge of glee. After checking herself over and making sure everything was fine, she put her handgun back in the Smart Med-Pack and picked up her discarded spear.
“That’s it—consider today a field trip.” Serena left the hunting grounds without a backward glance.
She was off to watch the show and see Reid Yale’s brilliant performance.