Volume One: The Soul-Drawn Gourd, The Soul Igniting Lamp Chapter 98: The Arrow Poison Frog

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Rustle, rustle~

The sultry heat suddenly surged, and the damp, sticky scent lingered throughout the dense rainforest.

A small bamboo boat drifted over the deep, murky lake, a treacherous body of water where one could reach out and touch various shrubs.

Beneath the lake lay countless grains of sand, stones, and countless skeletal remains...

Xiao Yulou, dressed in a Taoist robe, briefly examined Gu Mo’s injuries.

Afterward, this sly Taoist leisurely admired the surrounding flora and fauna as if on a spring outing.

At the stern, Li Hetang, who rowed the boat, wore a sullen expression, eyes fixed intently on every move of Xiao Yulou, silently seething and cursing in his mind.

"Damn it! Why did I think it was a good idea to drag this useless fool into the team? Sure enough, people with skills are always some kind of freak!"

To avoid trouble, the three men tacitly stuck to their roles without speaking.

...

Suddenly, a tiny red spider, no bigger than a pinprick, silently swung into the bamboo boat on its silk thread.

Li Hetang, well aware of the rainforest’s dangers, had lowered the orange visor from his helmet and activated his invisibility mode from the start.

At a glance, there were only three people on the boat, with the paddle quietly slicing through the water at the stern.

Despite his resentment, Li Hetang’s eyes darted from time to time to the rear, wary and alert.

The perilous rainforest could trap all four of them at any moment!

After a few minutes of rowing, the minuscule red spider had already crawled up Xiao Yulou’s Taoist robe.

Suddenly—

A sharp cry startled Li Hetang’s nerves taut.

With a snap!

A palm-sized green frog leapt from nearby shrubs into the bamboo boat.

A dart poison frog!

Li Hetang’s heart instantly leapt into his throat—his scalp tingled, his body stiffened, and his eyes widened in disbelief.

What you fear most always comes true!

Just as he was getting familiar with the rainforest’s creatures, this cursed little cutie appeared.

In an instant, the air around them seemed to freeze. A terrifying atmosphere swept over everyone.

Looking closely, the small visitor was coated in slick, reflective green skin. Vast black patches, covering nearly 40% of its body, shimmered with specks of multicolored light, creating a dazzling mosaic of hues!

The unexpected guest stared curiously at Xiao Yulou with jet-black eyes like deep, precious gems.

The green dart frog inhaled deeply, puffed its vocal sac, and croaked a deathly call.

For a moment, all three on the bamboo boat froze, not daring to breathe or provoke the sudden intruder.

Only Li Hetang, due to his vantage point, could see the frog.

Facing away from the frog, Xiao Yulou and Min Wenhua were confronted with a deeper dread—they hadn’t expected the frog to be so large!

(If this thing isn’t poisonous, I’ll wash my hair standing on my head tonight!)

In a flash, the fuzzy little glutton in Gu Mo’s arms jumped onto Xiao Yulou’s shoulder.

With starry eyes of ink-black, the glutton curiously studied the dart frog aboard the boat.

It seemed this little creature favored the frog, whose croaking resembled its own calls—almost like kindred spirits.

The dart frog, poised to attack, suddenly halted. It couldn’t see the glutton in its line of sight.

Yet the gurgling sound confused the frog.

After a few seconds, the frog croaked again.

The glutton responded in kind.

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The frog was utterly bewildered!

Suddenly, it opened its mouth wide.

With a swift flick!

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A scarlet, slender tongue shot out toward Xiao Yulou’s neck.

Click—

A faint sound was heard as the red tongue stuck to the tiny red spider on Xiao Yulou’s collar.

Before the tongue could retract, the glutton also flicked out its long tongue.

With a muffled chomp!

The highly venomous dart frog was swallowed whole.

Seeing the crisis resolved, Li Hetang finally exhaled deeply.

“Master Taoist Xiao, how do you feel?”

Xiao Yulou had just turned around when a large red swelling appeared on his pale neck.

“Huh? I don’t feel anything! What just happened?”

Seeing the alarming wound, Li Hetang gasped and turned pale.

“Master Taoist Xiao, you’ve been poisoned!”

Startled, Xiao Yulou realized Li Hetang wouldn’t joke about such a thing. A fierce burning sensation spread across his neck.

Breathless, Xiao Yulou opened his mouth wide in confusion, his once-handsome face turning pale as wax!

Within a split second, as Xiao Yulou reached to scratch, Li Hetang quickly pulled out a bottle of mineral water and warned him.

“Master Taoist Xiao, don’t move!”

At this critical moment, Min Wenhua brought the bamboo boat ashore, stepping forward to examine Xiao Yulou’s injuries.

Suddenly, Xiao Yulou, face ashen, withdrew a wax-sealed pill from his robe sleeve.

“Drink this—Li Hetang, feed me!”

But as the words left his mouth, Xiao Yulou realized his speech was slurred!

Before Li Hetang could wash the poison from his neck, the sly Taoist felt his stomach churn violently.

With a retch, Xiao Yulou leaned over the edge of the boat, vomiting turbulently.

Seeing the dire situation, Li Hetang hurriedly rinsed Xiao Yulou’s neck with mineral water.

Min Wenhua, stepping over the unconscious Gu Mo, crushed the wax seal of the pill in Xiao Yulou’s hand.

Bringing it close, he smelled a pungent chill and overpowering bitterness.

His years of survival experience told Min Wenhua this pill was no ordinary medicine!

Soon after, Xiao Yulou, having stopped vomiting, was forced to drink an entire bottle of mineral water.

Lying in the bamboo boat, the usually ethereal Taoist’s face was deathly pale, breathing heavily, his swollen neck blotched with red, frothing at the mouth!

The dart frog’s poison was shockingly potent. Compared to it, the giant insects of the micro forest were almost insignificant.

The rainforest’s array of deadly creatures sent chills down their spines—truly terrifying!

Li Hetang instantly regretted it. The twenty thousand commission now seemed like a ransom for Gu Mo and Xiao Yulou’s lives!

Cradling Xiao Yulou, Li Hetang twisted his face in distress and asked Min Wenhua,

“Brother Mao, what should we do now?”

Min Wenhua’s voice was equally anxious.

“Hetang, don’t you have antidotes in your backpack?”

Li Hetang nervously pulled out an antidote syringe, but another problem arose.

“Brother Mao, will the antidote conflict with Master Taoist Xiao’s elixir?”

Hearing this, Min Wenhua was at a loss.

Desperately, Li Hetang looked to the fuzzy glutton beside him.

“This little guy, what should we do?”

The glutton gurgled a few times but made no attempt at first aid.

With two already unconscious since entering the rainforest, the severely reduced team left Li Hetang utterly panicked!

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Even if he managed to bring Code O back alive, the company would surely blame him, and he might not escape unscathed!

The future looked bleak.

Li Hetang clutched the black Taoist robe tightly around Xiao Yulou, thinking only of these words.

Now, he was as anxious as ants on a hot pan.

A cold wave of regret washed over him.

Drip... drip...

A few tears fell onto Xiao Yulou’s face, scattering into eight petals...

Just when they were at a loss—

Suddenly, golden, eerie light radiated from Xiao Yulou’s entire body!

Seeing this, Li Hetang and Min Wenhua were utterly dumbfounded.

Then, the fuzzy glutton gurgled a few times and leapt onto Xiao Yulou’s body.

Suddenly,

The glutton opened its terrifying mouth wide, sticking out a long, glistening tongue, and began tapping Xiao Yulou’s body.

Thump, thump, thump!

After a few taps, the glutton had covered all the major acupoints on Xiao Yulou’s chest. (Who would’ve thought this little glutton knew acupuncture? The world is full of wonders!)

Then, the glutton lightly brushed Xiao Yulou’s neck with its tongue, coating it with sparkling saliva.

Before long, the golden glow around Xiao Yulou intensified, and he turned to the side, vomiting violently.

The foul, fishy stench filled the air.

After a long while,

Having expelled all the bile, Xiao Yulou finally clung to life.

After Li Hetang handed him mineral water, Xiao Yulou took it gratefully, rinsed his mouth, and then, with eyes half-closed, lay back in Li Hetang’s arms, uttering words that nearly made Li Hetang faint.

“Brother Hetang, why are your eyes filled with tears? This Taoist has not yet savored the splendor of the world; I will not depart so soon!”

Hearing this, Li Hetang and Min Wenhua shared a knowing smile.

Still, Li Hetang muttered softly, “Damn you!”

Xiao Yulou smiled faintly, closing his eyes to rest, and quipped in an annoyingly playful tone,

“Row the boat—what are you standing there for?”

Though displeased, Li Hetang and Min Wenhua resumed rowing, heading deeper into the rainforest...

The water gurgled gently, and for the next several minutes, all was peaceful.

Xiao Yulou, lying comfortably in Li Hetang’s arms, crossed his legs leisurely, admiring the canopy above.

The fuzzy glutton hopped from Gu Mo’s shoulder, using its sparkling saliva to clean Xiao Yulou’s body.

Though a bit disgusting, Li Hetang noticed something remarkable.

The glutton’s saliva actually had healing properties.

Not only did the swelling on Xiao Yulou’s neck subside significantly, but the bruises on Gu Mo were also nearly gone!

Seeing this, Li Hetang finally felt some relief.

Humans revere nature because of its untamable beauty...

At that moment, Min Wenhua, holding a sharp spear, glanced backward.

Ripples formed on the river behind the bamboo boat.

In the depths of the rainforest, a flock of hidden birds and mosquitoes suddenly stirred.

At the same time, the relaxed Xiao Yulou suddenly sat up with a start.

The next moment, Min Wenhua clenched his fist and stood alert...

(The chapter ends)