Senior Brother Huang? Hearing the salutation Jiang Teng called him with, Huang Xiaolong was stunned.
"Xiaolong, you're here!" At this moment, Sun Zhang and Xiong Chu both had a brilliant smile on their faces as they stood up and indicated for Huang Xiaolong to take a seat.
After all four of them were seated, Xiong Chu smiled and said: "The matter regarding your advancement assessment has been decided. Head towards the Southern Cliff Marsh, kill an Iron Crocodile, then return with its beast core."
Hearing this, Huang Xiaolong nodded.
The Iron Crocodile is a species of crocodile, but its defense and attack strength were much stronger. The average Iron Crocodile possessed the strength of a Ninth Order warrior, and even some more powerful ones could reach a Tenth Order warrior's strength. For Huang Xiaolong, this assessment was considered easy.
It was just that the Southern Cliff Marsh was a little far away from the Luo Tong Royal City.
The Southern Cliff Marsh was in the most southern tip of Luo Tong Kingdom. Not far from the marshes and just across the Luo Tong Kingdom's border was the Baolong Kingdom's land where the headquarters of Big Sword Sect was located.
Next, Sun Zhang and Xiong Chu highlighted some things Huang Xiaolong needed to pay attention to.
Not long after, Huang Xiaolong left the Principal's room, returning to Tianxuan Mansion to inform his parents that he needed to perform a task at the Southern Cliff Marsh. He left on the same day.
This time when going to the Southern Cliff Marsh, Huang Xiaolong did not bring any guards or Fei Hou with him, only the little violet monkey.
Almost five years had passed, yet there weren't many changes to the Spirit Devourer Violet Monkey from the first day it followed Huang Xiaolong home. Only its hair was much shinier, and its eyes were a piercing shade of ice blue. Overall, only its cute factor had risen.
If a person didn't know its origin, the little violet monkey would very likely be treated as a normal pet.
The little violet monkey's cultivation level also increased at an amazing speed, comparable to Huang Xiaolong's.
Three months ago, Huang Xiaolong was peak late-Ninth Order and the little violet monkey was at peak late-Stage Nine. However, Huang Xiaolong had recently broken through to the Tenth Order.
Still, according to Huang Xiaolong's estimation, within two months' time, the little violet monkey would catch up to him.
Experiencing the little violet monkey's terrifying cultivation speed, even Huang Xiaolong had a trace of envy in his heart. One must know that he could only breakthrough to the Tenth Order so fast because he had superb talent martial spirits, and he was able to refine two Heavenly Treasures: The Linglong Treasure Pagoda along with the more recent acquisition, the God Binding Ring.
But what about the little violet monkey?!
From Huang Xiaolong's observation, it seemed as if when its strength increased, it would also trigger a reaction from the energy within its body. By swallowing a beast core, the speed in which it absorbed the demonic energy inside of its body became increasingly faster.
After leaving the Luo Tong Royal City, Huang Xiaolong and the little violet monkey, one man and one monkey, headed straight towards the Southern Cliff Marsh.
Although Sun Zhang and Xiong Chu did not place a time limit on the assessment, Huang Xiaolong wanted to complete the Third Year class promotion as soon as possible and was unwilling to waste any more time on this than necessary.
Initially, Huang Xiaolong did not plan to advance to the Third Year Class, but he had no choice in the matter because only Third Years were eligible to compete in the overall Academy championship.
Huang Xiaolong and the violet little monkey made their way while practicing.
With the little violet monkey as a companion, Huang Xiaolong didn't feel bored.
Two months later, Huang Xiaolong came to the top of a mountain cliff. Looking out in front him, dry sand danced in the air and he was surrounded by huge mountain cliffs, some reaching more than three hundred meters tall.
This was the most southern location of Luo Tong Kingdom's cliffy peaks, and it was called Southern Cliffs.
Huang Xiaolong hid his breath and moved forward with the little violet monkey. A while later, they came before a marsh area that stretched endlessly: Huang Xiaolong's destination this time was this place, the Southern Cliffs Marsh.
Standing at the edge of the endless marsh, he could feel the dampness in the air, and there were aquatic plants mixing together to create the moldy odor that assailed his nose. Hiding their aura, Huang Xiaolong and the little violet monkey continued to move forward into the marshes.
Although Huang Xiaolong and the little violet monkey were quite strong, within the marsh, there was always the possibility of some peak late Stage Ten existences. If there was only one or two of them, Huang Xiaolong wouldn't be afraid, but a swarm of them would be troublesome.
As the two of them moved deeper into the marsh, their vigilance towards the surrounding area increased.
Any movements within the scope of three hundred fifty meters didn't escape Huang Xiaolong's eyes.
However, after more than an hour, they still hadn't come across a single Iron Crocodile.
The marsh was enveloped in silence. Apart from the random sounds of insects and some unknown beast roars in the distance, there was nothing else.
Two hours later, Huang Xiaolong stopped with a deep frown on his forehead. Continuing like this wasn't a good idea. Iron Crocodiles would normally lurk at the bottom of the marsh and rarely come close to the edge or come up to the land, giving no chance for Huang Xiaolong to kill one.
Must I go down into the swamp? Huang Xiaolong thought to himself before shaking his head, abandoning the idea.
This swamp wasn't normal water. It was thick and sticky, and once he entered the swamp, his strength would be greatly reduced. Moreover, at the bottom, Iron Crocodiles rest in groups. If he ran into some bad luck and was besieged by a group of crocodiles, it would take a herculean effort to escape.
In the end, Huang Xiaolong waited by the shore with the little violet monkey.
They decided to wait for the Iron Crocodile to swim up or come ashore.
One day passed.
The sky gradually grew dark.
Huang Xiaolong looked at the sky and went in search of a place to spend the night with the little violet monkey, ultimately deciding to settle for a nearby cave in the cliff wall.
The cave was spacious, extending several square meters. Huang Xiaolong put the fresh kill near the campfire to roast, with the little monkey excitedly drooling as it waited for its meal.
The beast meat tasted quite good, and with the Snow Moon Wind and Fiery Wine from the Asura Ring, one man and one monkey gobbled their food till their stomachs bulged.
Night slowly gave way to the day.
The next morning, Huang Xiaolong and the little monkey walked along the swamp banks in search of their prey.
Time flowed and several hours passed, bringing the day closer to noon.
Up above, the radiant sun shone clearly but there wasn't a trace of warmth on Huang Xiaolong's body. In the marsh, the moist dampness actually increased at noon.
As Huang Xiaolong continued to walk along the banks, suddenly, his eyes caught sight of something. In the center of the swamp, a muddy black object about fifty to sixty meters long could be seen, similar to a crocodile gliding across the surface of the swamp.
An Iron Crocodile!
Huang Xiaolong's eyes lit up.
But, that Iron Crocodile was two hundred meters away from the shore. Wanting to kill an Iron Crocodile that was two hundred meters away and then return safely to the banks presented quite a challenge.
By that point in time, Huang Xiaolong could not take so many things into consideration. In an instant, the Blades of Asura appeared in his hand as the Wings of Demon erupted from his back. With a flash, he was already half way across the swamp, right above the Iron Crocodile.
In the same instant Huang Xiaolong appeared above it, the Iron Crocodile seemed to have sensed him and its big head snapped out of the waters with its jaws stretched wide open. It did not bite into Huang Xiaolong, instead, it spurted out a green-colored poisonous liquid.
Beneath the brilliant horizon, the fountain of poison liquid sparkled in the sunlight, releasing a horrid smell.
Seeing this, Huang Xiaolong's body quickly flipped, avoiding the poisonous liquid. Streaks of lightning flashed in the air and the Blades of Asura in his hands slashed out onto the Iron Crocodile's eyes. It screamed in agony.
In the next moment, Huang Xiaolong's body plummeted down, stopping a dozen meters from its head and swinging out the Blades of Asura. Both blades stabbed down from above. With a horizontal drag across the head, green blood came spurting out.
The top of an Iron Crocodile's head was its fatal weakness, and in less than a breath's time, Huang Xiaolong ended the life of that Iron Crocodile.
However, after the Iron Crocodile died, before Huang Xiaolong could take out the beast core, the scent of blood had spread. Hearing the miserable scream of their companion, a countless number of Iron Crocodiles rushed out above the surface of the swamp.