Although the stocky man had escaped disaster for the moment, he had been unable to withstand the Stone Demon's assault even at the height of his strength. Now that he was wounded and far weaker than before, his defeat and death were only a matter of time.
"Feinting east while striking west. This Stone Demon certainly knows how to play its cards." The lion-maned elder was both shocked and furious. The Stone Demon before them was not only overwhelmingly powerful, but also cunning to the extreme. It had deliberately exaggerated the might of the Water Baleful Essence, making it seem as though Lu Xiaotian was its target, when in fact it had placed its breakthrough on their side. There were five of them, and although most had protected themselves thoroughly, they still had a fool like the stocky man among them. Perhaps he wasn't actually a fool—his reactions had been fast enough. The only one to blame was the Stone Demon, whose power was overwhelming and whose grasp of opportunity was exquisite.
"Originally, I had no intention of competing with you. But since you want to keep us all here, I have no choice but to fight you with everything I've got." Lu Xiaotian's voice was calm. His tone showed little inclination to join forces with the lion-maned elder, but even so, his words lifted their spirits. The stocky man was as good as dead, but if Lu Xiaotian could shoulder more of the pressure, their chances of breaking free would naturally improve.
"You little clowns. What can you do to me?" The Stone Demon was utterly arrogant. Seeing that the lion-maned elder and the others had already abandoned the badly wounded stocky man, it seized the opportunity to launch several rapid attacks. Its two tentacles lashed into the stocky