Chapter 12 Planning Before Action

  Ma Rou and the other two were like this. After adjusting their breath, Ma Lan led the poisonous spider, Feng Yi trapped it, then Ma Rou killed it, and afterwards they rested, repeating the cycle.

  Ling Xiao secretly estimated that the three of them, from luring out the poisonous spider to killing it, and then adding in their rest time, had only spent about a quarter of an hour. Of course, as they went deeper, the three of them had to be increasingly cautious, and on top of that, they had to avoid luring out more than two poisonous spiders at once, so their killing speed was getting slower and slower. From time to time, they would even get scared off by startling too many poisonous spiders...

  But even so, about an hour can kill six or seven poisonous spiders, which is equivalent to 20-30 points of sect contribution! Enough to offset the income from collecting medicine for five or six days.

  One day, four time periods can be hunted and killed, and more than 100 contribution points can be exceeded! Although Fengyi's cultivation is the lowest, she also insists on getting at least a small share, but I'm sure she can get twenty or thirty contribution points.

  It's impossible to say that Ling Xiao didn't feel anxious. However, his attacks were ineffective, and he had no confidence in trapping the poisonous spider either. As for defense, it was even more hopeless... The three of them coordinated so seamlessly, and he really had nothing to intervene with.

  If it were someone else, I'm afraid at this time they would either retreat with a smile or step forward to help out a bit, contributing some effort, so that when the time comes to share the spoils, they wouldn't have to say they didn't contribute anything.

  But Ling Xiao didn't, he just silently observed from the side.

  This also made Ma Rou increasingly dissatisfied with him. Although she thought that if Ling Xiao really came forward to help kill, she would definitely mock him back - "With your attack, it's not even enough to scratch an itch!" But what she thought was that Ling Xiao didn't even show any intention of coming forward, just waiting for a share of the contribution points. This face is too thick, right?

  Thanks to Fengyi and Ling Xiao's close relationship, Ma Lan was also a shy and kind person. Neither of them held grudges, so Ma Ru could only complain for a bit before letting it go. As for her muttering dissatisfaction, Ling Xiao just smiled and ignored it, making her swallow her anger in frustration.

  Ling Xiao was not as thick-skinned as he seemed; he did this because a bold plan had suddenly popped into his mind...

  After watching the three of them for so long, I have a good understanding of the poisonous spider in my heart. In fact, this poisonous spider is not particularly difficult to kill, but because it moves quickly and its venom is too severe, plus the poisonous spider often lives together, and several come out at once, which brings difficulty to these low-ranking disciples.

  But if you can avoid these flaws and kill the poisonous spider, it shouldn't be too difficult!

  Just like Ma Rou and the other two, as long as they could hold on, the poisonous spider would be left to wait for death. Therefore, the key to killing this poisonous spider was to defend against its venom, restrict its movement, and avoid attracting too many of them.

  Of course, it's already very complicated.

  After all, these outer disciples, especially those who have cultivated the second and third layers of Qi Refining, only have a single low-grade talisman in their hands. The spells they know are also quite ordinary. If they want to hunt down the poisonous spider, they can only use guerrilla tactics, luring it over and carefully keeping their distance, patiently hunting it down...

  The efficiency is much worse, and there is even a risk of life at any time.

  But for Ling Xiao, it was somewhat different.

  Qī Yún Zōng's outer sect had over a thousand people, but only he chose the Flying Claw when entering the sect. Moreover, only he was able to wield the Flying Claw with such proficiency. In this place, other techniques were lacking, but the Flying Claw was different.

  The hundred-refined flying claw he used had a claw head that was not fixed, but rather like a human hand, which could be freely retracted under the operation of true energy.

  Ling Xiao mentally calculated, first choosing the right moment, then quickly taking out his flying claw to grab a poisonous spider, next swiftly moving away from the area where the spiders were densely packed, and finally using his flying claw to control the spider while he killed it from the side.

  Even if the poisonous spider's venom is extremely potent and its movements are extremely swift, it would not be able to harm me as we are separated by a distance of several zhangs. However, it is currently within my spell's range!

  Ling Xiao had always been cautious, and although he felt confident in his plan, he still deliberated for a long time, observing the poisonous spider's movements and distribution, how Ma Lan avoided and dodged, when Feng Yi would take out the talisman, and where the three of them would attack the poisonous spider...

  Only when everything is ready did he start taking action.

  Of course, if they were to act at the same time, it would be inevitable that the two poisonous spiders would affect each other. Therefore, Ling Xiao informed the three of them and went a little further away. Feng Yi and the others never thought that Ling Xiao would dare to single-handedly take on the poisonous spider, so they didn't worry about it, thinking he just wanted to pick some spiritual herbs around.

  Ling Xiao carefully chose a relatively empty and flat place, the poisonous spider was much more agile than him, so such an open space would be more beneficial for him to escape.

  Choose a good location, then patiently observe the surroundings and wait for the opportunity. His defense is far from that of Ma Lan, so he naturally doesn't dare to get too close and disturb the poisonous spider.

  Fortunately, on this spider mountain, the poisonous spiders come and go very frequently. After a while, I saw a gray poisonous spider crawling out from under the rock, slowly moving towards one side. Ling Xiao seized the opportunity, suddenly activated his technique, and his flying claw flew out, accurately hitting the poisonous spider, retracting his claws, instantly grabbing the poisonous spider firmly.

  No plan survives contact with the enemy.

  This suddenly exposed his position, the poisonous spider suddenly turned its head, a pair of deep and mysterious small eyes looked over, with a chilling feeling. Then eight long legs moved like the wind, actually dragging flying claws, and suddenly pounced on him!

  The hoof dragged on the ground, sparks splashed out, and made a "crackling" sound.

  In just an instant, that poisonous spider had already crept close to him, less than a zhang away. If it got any closer, it would have already entered the range of its venomous spray.

  Ling Xiao did not expect the poisonous spider's reaction to be so sensitive, fortunately he was calm and composed, quickly using force on his wrist, the flying claw was instantly shaken off, grabbing the poisonous spider, fiercely smashing it onto a nearby rock.

  "Clang!"

  With a crisp sound, the poisonous spider was flung far away by Fei Zhao. This was another advantage of having flying claws; if he wanted to escape, it would be impossible for him to outrun the poisonous spider, but with his flying claws, he could easily shake off the spider and gain control over the battle.

  Ling Xiao didn't dare to slack off, the true energy circulated, pinched the hand seal in his hand, and struck out a mysterious handprint in the void. A stream of flames flew out from his hand, gradually forming a winding fire snake shape. The finger changed, and the first-level spell "Fire Snake Technique" was instantly cast, shooting towards that poisonous spider.

  A flash of flame, and the fire snake struck the poisonous spider's abdomen with precision. The poisonous spider's entire body was violently shaken.

  The next battle has entered Ling Xiao's rhythm. With flying claws restricting the poisonous spider's movements, keeping a distance at all times, and then using his low-level magic spells to launch a series of attacks on the poisonous spider. Occasionally, he would use his flying claws to fling the spider away, making it dizzy and unable to resist.

  The poisonous spider also wants to escape from the control of the flying claw, but the flying claw is engraved with the Xian family's talisman, which is much harder than usual, and the five claws are tightly stuck on the poisonous spider's body, making it impossible for it to struggle out.

  Ling Xiao didn't stop fleeing, dodging and releasing magic... it took a full minute of effort to finally kill that poisonous spider.

  Ling Xiao panted heavily, feeling quite pleased with himself. Although it took him several times longer to kill the poisonous spider than Ma Zhu and the others, he was alone after all, and besides, his cultivation was only at the second layer of Qi Refining!

  Even a three-layer Qi Practitioner disciple like you, wanting to hunt and kill the poisonous spider alone, wouldn't be as efficient as this, right? Not to mention the other two-layer Qi Practitioner disciples.

  Although he took longer than Ma Zhu and the others, and rested for a longer time, he wasn't worried about startling other poisonous spiders. Moreover, he was alone, so in the end, his gains would likely be even greater. Enduring the nausea, he went forward and collected the eight legs and blood of the poisonous spider, then immediately sat down to catch his breath. After recovering, he got up again and continued searching for new targets.

  A first-order spell, from incantation release to hitting the target, takes about two breaths of time.

  After that, Ling Xiao needed seven or eight breaths to catch his breath. Adding the time spent dodging and hiding, it was enough to release thirty first-level spells in a short moment, which was already enough to kill the poisonous spider.

  This was just as well, after all, a first-order spell consumed little energy, but releasing more than thirty of them in succession was his limit.

  ……

  The sky gradually darkened, and in one afternoon, Ling Xiao had killed seven poisonous spiders. Calculating it out, he had at least earned twenty contribution points for the sect. This was still due to his lack of skill; come tomorrow, he might be able to reap even more rewards.

  After nightfall, visibility is poor, but the poisonous spider's movements are unaffected. Therefore, hunting for poisonous spiders generally only takes place during the day.

  Ling Xiao packed up his things and headed back to Ma Rou and the others. As it happened, they had also stopped and were enthusiastically discussing something on the side. When they saw him, Feng Yi happily walked over.

  Ling Xiao didn't mention his own gains and instead whispered a few words with Feng Yi.

  Listening to Ma Rou and Ma Lan's loud conversation, they had a pretty good luck today, with few bumps, so in the afternoon, they killed fifteen poisonous spiders together. Everyone can get tens of contribution points now.

  Ling Xiao felt even more embarrassed to mention his own gains, and when they asked him about it, he just evaded the question vaguely.

  Fengyi and the others did not expect that a second-level Qi-practicing disciple would single-handedly hunt down the poisonous spider, so they didn't think much of it. Ma Rou even told him that after returning to the sect, they would collectively exchange the materials they had obtained for contribution points, which would then be distributed among the four of them. This was also their usual practice.

  Ling Xiao hastily declined.

  It's rare that Ma Ru felt a few more points of goodwill towards him: although this kid's abilities are lowly, he's not too bad as a person after all.

  Fengyi was a bit unhappy, but her cultivation was the lowest among the three of them, and Ling Xiao had insisted on refusing, so she couldn't say anything. She could only secretly tell Ling Xiao that when they got back, she would give half of her contribution points to him. Ling Xiao naturally refused again.

  The four of them retreated from Zhuling and chose a relatively safe place to take turns keeping watch for the night. The night passed without incident.

  ，！