Chapter 7, Peak Struggle

Watching the great white crane circling in the sky, Yang Lei knew that his opportunity had arrived. This great white crane, which made the white snake so anxious, was certainly not an ordinary crane. Looking at its imposing presence, it was not at all inferior to the white snake.

Upon seeing this, the white crane disregarded the white snake and flew towards the Yin-Yang fruit. However, the white snake would not allow it to succeed; it opened its mouth wide and tightly ensnared the white crane, preventing it from having any opportunity.

In such entanglement, one snake and one crane, neither yielding to the other, neither can obtain anything, both are determined, and the struggle intensifies.

Upon seeing this, Yang Lei directly placed another male deer into the storage ring. The advantage of this storage ring is that it is vacuum-sealed, ensuring that food will not spoil, regardless of how long it is stored.

Indeed, although this snake and crane are already at the end of their strength, the combat power they unleash is still astonishing, definitely surpassing the fighting capability of a late-stage martial artist

The transformation of the dual kill into one is intricate; only by fully mastering it oneself can one hope to achieve the triple kill in one. This progression is layered, and similarly, to attain the seven kills in one, one must first master the six kills in one.

Both the snake and the crane were naturally anxious, as the Yin-Yang fruit had ripened. If they did not consume it immediately, it would be a waste. Both had developed spiritual intelligence and were well aware of this characteristic of the Yin-Yang fruit

Five minutes have passed, and both parties are now at the end of their strength. The energy generated from their struggle has significantly diminished, a fact that Yang Lei is acutely aware of. However, Yang Lei will not approach them just yet; that would be foolish. Although both the snake and the crane are at their limits, he is still not their match. If he were to attempt to intervene, it is possible that these two would set aside their grievances and turn their attention to eliminating him first, which would leave him in a dire situation. Therefore, patience is still required at this moment.

Eight minutes have passed, and now both the snake and the crane are left with only the air they exhale, having no air left to inhale. They lie limply on the ground, staring at each other with wide eyes. Neither is willing to yield to the other.

Yang Lei was taken aback, exclaiming in disbelief at how terrifying it was for these two individuals to engage in battle. With his own cultivation level only at the ninth layer of Qi Refinement, he simply could not withstand such fierce energy and could only retreat continuously. He thought to himself, "Let them fight, let them fight, let them fight to the death. It would be best if they both suffered heavy losses, then I could reap the benefits. Moreover, there is a possibility of killing two major BOSSes, both of which are peak-level eighth-tier magical beasts. If I were to kill them, how much experience would I gain?" With this thought, Yang Lei's mouth watered. Of course, if he could tame one of them, that would be absolutely incredible.

Six minutes have passed, and the two are still locked in a fierce struggle. At this point, the great white crane has lost nearly half of its feathers and is no longer the graceful and elegant figure it once was in flight; one of its legs is also limping. The white snake is not in a much better condition, its body is torn and bloodied all over.

Since the situation had developed to this point, Yang Lei had no choice but to take action. He took out his stainless steel dagger and quickly processed one of the male deer, then placed it on the fire rack to begin roasting. After about half an hour, the deer was finally cooked. Yang Lei cut off a smaller piece of venison and gave it all to the white snake. After finishing the meal, the white snake did not look at Yang Lei again; instead, it remained in place, not coiling up, but lying down with its eyes closed.

In the past two days, Yang Lei has been living quite comfortably with the *Book*; whenever he felt like eating, the White Snake would bring him prey, while he focused on studying the Wind Blade Seven Kills. Each of the seven styles has been mastered by Yang Lei to an extraordinary degree, but he can currently only achieve a two-in-one combination. However, even this two-kill combination is already quite remarkable, providing four times the combat power. If he could master the four-in-one combination, it would yield sixteen times the combat power, which means that if he breaks through to the initial stage of a martial artist, he could definitely contend with those in the mid-stage. If he reaches the five-in-one combination, he would be comparable to those in the late stage of martial artists, and if he achieves the six-in-one combination, he would be on par with those at the Great Perfection stage of martial arts. Of course, if he reaches the seven-in-one combination, he would be comparable to a martial master.

However, this does not affect the conflict between the two; rather, it intensifies, showing a trend of a life-and-death struggle. Yang Lei understood that the snake and the crane were natural enemies, and it was even less surprising that they would fight to the death over the heavenly spirit fruit. Thus, Yang Lei felt a sense of certainty in his heart; whether both perish or one dies and the other is injured, it would be beneficial for him. Perhaps he might truly obtain a sacred beast along with the book.

After retreating more than ten zhang, Yang Lei was no longer affected by the shockwave of energy. Watching the fierce battle between the snake and the crane, it had already reached a boiling point. The white snake was scratched in multiple places, with scales and blood scattered everywhere, while the large white crane was not faring any better, having lost a large patch of feathers and also showing considerable blood.

Achieving the unity of the Seven Kills is merely a thought; it was only after practicing the combined kills that Yang Lei truly understood the difficulty of this unity. As for the combination of two kills, Yang Lei has only managed to master one of the twenty-one variations, which illustrates the considerable challenge involved.

As expected, the great white crane suddenly swooped down, instantly entangling itself with the white snake in a fierce struggle, exchanging blows with remarkable ferocity. The destructive power of their energy was astonishing wherever it reached

Oh no, the time has come, and the Yin-Yang Fruit is about to ripen, yet the battle between the snake and the crane is still ongoing. This makes Yang Lei feel extremely anxious, wishing he could jump in and make the fight between the snake and the crane even fiercer. It is important to know that the Yin-Yang Fruit is a rare spiritual fruit of heaven and earth, and if it is not harvested within a quarter of an hour, it will immediately wither and fall. Once it falls, it will merge into the soil.

Another minute passed, and only six minutes remained until the Yin-Yang fruit would drop. The snake and the crane continued to stare at each other with wide eyes, their breaths growing weaker. Finally, feeling relieved, they stepped forward with a light and brisk pace, instantly arriving in front of the two large creatures

On the third day at noon, as the Yin-Yang Fruit was about to ripen, exuding a fragrant aroma and surrounded by spiritual energy, the white snake fixed its gaze on the fruit, remaining utterly still, fearing it might miss the opportunity. At that moment, a crane's call echoed through the clear sky. Hearing the sound, the white snake suddenly raised its large head.

As the surrounding spiritual energy was completely concentrated into the two fruits, these two fruits, known as the Yin-Yang Fruits, have now fully ripened

Yang Lei had not expected the white snake to bring back prey, but to his surprise, as soon as the white snake heard this, it swiftly darted outside. In less than two minutes, the white snake returned, coiling around two male deer and placing them before Yang Lei. Then it flicked its tongue at Yang Lei, as if to say, "I have brought the prey; you can handle it as you see fit"

Yang Lei knew that the opportunity had arrived, with seven minutes remaining until the Yin-Yang Fruit would fall. However, he still felt a bit anxious; if both of those guys still had some strength left at this moment, he would be in trouble.