Chapter 406: Chapter 196: Sword Puppet, the First Intermediate Squad First Year of Great Xia, May 20th Redwood Ridge, three kilometers deep Under a gigantic Ice Tree, there is a light golden, soft marshland. Over a hundred meters away on the right side of the marshland, a cluster of torches suddenly lit up. "Gurgle gurgle gurgle gurgle..." The moment the torches ignited, the marshland seemed to sense it. The previously calm surface of the mud pits immediately bulged with massive mud bubbles, clearly indicating something had awakened. Poof... A jet-black sharp horn first broke the surface of the marsh and slowly rose upward. The horn hadn’t fully emerged when a massive bulge appeared behind it. Splash... Once the nearly three-meter-long jet-black horn was fully revealed, the bulge behind it also burst open completely, exposing the true appearance of the creature inside. It was a gigantic creature with a light golden surface, resembling a rhinoceros, topped with a jet-black sharp horn. It was nearly ten meters long, with sturdy limbs each over a meter in diameter, standing fully upright at over three meters tall, with muscles knotted like four gigantic pillars. If Xia Hong were here, he would surely recognize it at a glance. This was a Golden Armored Thunder Kui, evidently an Intermediate one based on its size. "Roar... Roar..." After slowly stepping out of the marsh, the Thunder Kui let out two low roars, and only then, seeing no movement around, it proceeded towards the cluster of torches. Its gaze was fixed intently on the torches, with lantern-like blood-red pupils filled with greed and desire. Step... Step... Step... Step... Step... The Thunder Kui’s enormous size meant each step covered six to seven meters. As it got closer to the torches and sensed the alluring substance within the light, its pace quickened, soon leaving only a dozen meters between it and the torches. Crunch... However, just as it took its final step closer to the torches, a crisp collision sound abruptly emanated from its left forelimb. "Roar..." The Thunder Kui let out a painful roar and suddenly lifted its left forelimb, revealing a half-meter-diameter fan-shaped iron clamp clamped onto it. The iron clamp was lined with sharp iron teeth on both sides, now firmly embedded into the flesh of the Thunder Kui’s left forelimb. The end of the animal trap was tied to five ropes, and as the Thunder Kui lifted its foot, the ropes were fully revealed. Whoosh... "Pull, take action!" With a precise shot, an Iron Arrow knocked the torch over to extinguish it, and Xia Chuan’s stern shout suddenly rang out above the Thunder Kui’s head. Stretch... Twenty meters away, five people clutching the ropes leapt down from a tree and used the big tree as a pivot point to fiercely pull backwards, causing the five ropes to immediately go taut. "Roar..." The power of the ropes transmitted to the animal trap, and the Thunder Kui, caught off guard, staggered on its left forelimb, nearly flipping over. However, its strength was still tremendously overwhelming, and after an angry roar, it forcibly steadied itself, pulling the five people at the ropes’ ends back towards it. Whoosh... Whoosh... Whoosh... However, the real assault was only just beginning. Countless Iron Arrows suddenly attacked from all directions, targeting vital spots like the Thunder Kui’s eyes, ears, and its immobilized left forelimb. Boom... Boom... Detecting the incoming Iron Arrows, the Thunder Kui’s muscles bulged, and despite the animal trap on its left forelimb, it violently twisted and swung its head and body to dodge, prioritizing evasion of shots at its vital points. Squeak... The five ropes screeched with tension as the five people behind them, despite holding the ropes tightly, were on a completely different level of strength compared to the Thunder Kui. Even borrowing the strength of the tree, they were still being dragged around, unable to maintain their footing. Boom... Boom... The blood-covered hands of the five were just the start, their bodies were continuously slammed into the big tree, causing loud booms. Yet still, they clenched their jaws, with their legs either pressed against the ground at an angle or wedged into the tree, using leverage to hold tightly, refusing to give up. Pffft... Finally, the efforts of the five yielded results. The Thunder Kui, restricted in movement, finally got hit. Though it was not its eyes or ears that were hit, but its left forelimb. Specifically, the area of exposed flesh torn open by the animal trap on its left forelimb. Roar... The flesh already torn by the animal trap now struck by an arrow, the Thunder Kui let out a devastating howl, its body movements slowing down noticeably. This is the art of hunting! The defensive capabilities of the Cold Beasts are exceedingly strong. Although humans know to seek weaknesses at the eyes or ear canals, or even anal canals, it’s not like they’re foolish; they understand these are crucial spots and generally won’t easily expose them for harm. The animal trap precisely addresses this gap. Through Mu Dong’s continuous improvement, the advanced animal traps of Great Xia now generate explosive force of over fifty thousand pounds when snapping shut, paired with the razor-sharp teeth ground after each hunt; breaking through the Intermediate Cold Beast’s skin is no problem at all. And once the skin is pierced, the rest becomes simple! 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖 "Qiu Peng, go!" Xia Chuan’s voice sounded again. It was him who shot that arrow earlier, and hearing the Thunder Kui’s furious roar, a flush of excitement crossed his eyes. Indicating Qiu Peng should hurry, he pulled sharply on the transparent silk thread with his right hand. Whizz... The fierce blade suddenly descended from the trees, commanded by Qiu Peng. Holding a large knife, Qiu Peng fixed his gaze on the Thunder Kui’s eyes. His position upon jumping down was aimed at the Thunder Kui’s neck, and the knife he wielded was aimed right at the Thunder Kui’s eyes. The light golden exterior of the Thunder Kui provides strong defense; considering his own base strength of over twenty thousand pounds, breaking it open would be impossible.