He pulled out a snake.

The two looked again at the rabbit, which was sprawled not far away, leisurely nibbling on grass, occasionally shooting them a sidelong glance as if to mock their futile efforts. Zhao Liang and Bai Ling were both exasperated and amused, finding it almost absurd to be made so helpless by a mere rabbit.

“Has this rabbit swallowed some miraculous elixir? How can it be so cunning? I’m getting dizzy chasing it,” Bai Ling said helplessly.

“I’m starting to suspect it’s not even a rabbit,” Zhao Liang grumbled.

“If it’s not a rabbit, then what is it?” Bai Ling shot back.

“Who knows? Only a ghost could tell,” Zhao Liang replied with a sigh.

After resting for half an hour, they resumed their pursuit of the rabbit. The creature, upon noticing their approach once more, darted off without hesitation.

This time, Zhao Liang and Bai Ling changed tactics. They split up: Little White took the ground, while Bai Ling and Zhao Liang took to the sky. Bai Ling flew low, keeping only about ten feet above the ground. In this way, they kept the rabbit under constant surveillance, leaving it little room for any more tricks.

The two, together with the fox, surrounded and trapped the rabbit at the entrance of a pitch-black cave. The rabbit trembled all over, shaking like a leaf in the wind.

They landed, watching the rabbit’s fearful demeanor, suspecting it might be up to some new trick.

Just then, Little White began to whimper in terror, looking as if something unspeakable lurked within the cave. Sensing danger themselves, Zhao Liang and Bai Ling decided to leave at once.

They had barely started to move when a thunderous roar erupted from the cave. Out slithered a gigantic serpent, nearly five hundred feet long, its body as thick as a grown man’s waist, its head as large as a millstone, and its flickering tongue as thick as a human arm.

All color drained from their faces. The only thought flashing through their minds was to flee. Matching strength with such a creature was out of the question—the disparity was simply too great.

As they turned to escape, the serpent lunged after them with lightning speed. Moments ago, they had been the hunters, chasing a rabbit in high spirits. Now, they had become the hunted, pursued relentlessly by this monstrous snake.

Little White, with four legs, and Zhao Liang and Bai Ling, with two each, were outmatched by the legless serpent, which closed the distance with unnerving swiftness. Clearly, speed had nothing to do with the number of legs, or even the presence of legs at all.

Bai Ling, with the stench of the serpent growing stronger behind her, called out as she summoned her Snowcloud Ribbon, “Quick, get on!”

Zhao Liang and Little White leaped onto the ribbon, and Bai Ling shot into the air as soon as they were aboard.

Soaring higher and higher, they finally escaped the serpent’s reach and breathed a sigh of relief.

But then Little White let out an urgent, mournful cry.

Turning to look, Bai Ling’s jaw nearly dropped in shock. The serpent was rising into the air, flying after them. She stammered, “Heavens, it’s... it’s flying after us!”

Zhao Liang, utterly aghast, turned his head and, half in despair and half in fury, exclaimed, “What kind of monsters are these? First a rabbit that’s slyer than a fox, now a giant flying snake. How are we supposed to survive?”

“This won’t do. It’s faster than us—we’ll be caught in no time,” Bai Ling said anxiously.

“What do we do now?” Zhao Liang cried, his heart pounding.

Bai Ling thought quickly and said, “Let Little White go home and bring help from my mother. If we don’t get rescued, we’ll be the serpent’s next meal.”

“If it catches up to us, let it eat me first!” Zhao Liang declared with determination.

“Why?” Bai Ling, touched, couldn’t help but ask.

But Zhao Liang’s answer made her want to laugh and cry at the same time.

“I fell into a latrine pit a few days ago. If the snake eats me, the stench alone will kill it. I guarantee it’ll be vomiting for three days and nights and never dare eat a human again. So, once it eats me, it won’t come after you,” Zhao Liang said, patting his chest with mock solemnity.

“Even now, you have time for jokes?” Bai Ling chided.

They pressed forward with all their might, the giant serpent hot on their heels.