Xiu Xi could only turn his gaze away from her for a moment and looked at the snake behind him.
There were four snakes in total, standing at the entrance of the cave. They appeared to be of the same species, all in dark green, with triangular-shaped heads. Upon seeing the two of them, the snakes froze as if they were hit by an immobilizing spell, staying still right there.
The sound of slithering came from behind them again.
Ruan Jiaojiao’s scalp tingled, and she carefully turned her head to look, only to indeed see five more snakes behind them!
Among them, one had a scar on its mouth and looked particularly vicious.
Ruan Jiaojiao’s spirit jolted, realizing that this must be the snake that had killed Ruan Qun.
She felt she might have to retract her earlier bravado, she... she... woo woo... seeing so many snakes, she was still a bit afraid, her whole body breaking out in goosebumps.
These creatures were different from the Changchong she had seen before. Their appearance alone was enough to make one’s scalp tighten, especially the way they encircled them, which was utterly terrifying.
This time, Ruan Jiaojiao truly regretted her actions and thought she was far too headstrong.
How could she have come in here without any preparation?
"Big Brother Xi..." Ruan Jiaojiao called out in a tiny voice, feeling that she had gotten him into this mess. She whispered, "We probably can’t beat them... Maybe you should run. I’m scared of so many snakes..."
"Don’t be afraid." Xiu Xi repeated, his gaze monitoring every movement of the snakes.
The snakes also seemed wary of him, not daring to make any rash moves.
Ruan Jiaojiao stood frozen in place, her feet numb, not daring to move, and even her breathing was as light and gentle as possible, for fear of startling these snakes with any careless action.
Even so, she could feel the snakes watching them intently and with hostility, their stance ready to attack, as if waiting for the right moment to pounce and bite them to death!
This was the first time Ruan Jiaojiao had encountered animals not friendly towards her in this world.
In her mind, she frantically tried to remember what a snake’s natural enemy was, but just then her mind went blank, unable to think of anything, and at that moment the nine snakes finally began to move.
They all moved at the same time.
Xiu Xi roared, "Take her away!"
Ruan Jiaojiao felt a sudden tightness around her waist, and then she was lifted off the ground as two monkeys held her and carried her up into the air.
"Big Brother Xi!" Ruan Jiaojiao screamed, seeing herself being lifted off the ground while Xiu Xi was surrounded by several snakes in the midst. Her eyes reddened with urgency, she struggled to get down but was held fast around the waist by the two monkeys, unable to move.
"Don’t hold on to me, Big Brother Xi is still down there!" Ruan Jiaojiao shouted.
Watching Xiu Xi surrounded and attacked by the nine snakes, with several close calls of getting bitten, her heart raced as if it were about to burst out of her chest. Not knowing what to do, she suddenly saw eagles flying overhead and instantly snapped to attention.
She immediately cried out to the eagles, "Hey, hey, hey, over here, over here, come down quick, help us, eagle, eagles..."
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh!" The sound of wings beating.
Ruan Jiaojiao was overjoyed, seeing four huge eagles dive down with sharp talons, swooping at the snakes aggressively.
Eagles are natural enemies of snakes, and even the most formidable snakes will hide upon seeing eagles.
The nine dark green snakes, seeing the eagles, indeed began to flee towards the dark underbrush, but it was futile. The eagles forced them into an open confrontation.