Boss Battle? (Part 1)

Creatures on Earth evolve, and so do the Demonic Beasts on Spirit Star. Over generations, the great Demonic Beasts of the primordial era have seen their numbers increase while their quality declined, long gone are their former glories.

However, there are always exceptions.

In the ancient desolate era, there was a race of Demonic Beasts whose form had not changed since birth. They possessed a single eye and a massive mouth, feeding on the Life Force of all things. Wherever they passed, vegetation withered, the land became barren, and all beasts scattered in fear.

Their name: Desolate Beasts.

The Demonic Beast before me was about forty meters long, with an extremely bizarre appearance: its body was dark green, resembling a horizontally stretched, multi-leaved aloe vera. Where its head should be, a giant, blood-red eye grew, and beneath it was a strangely shaped maw. Its thick, gecko-like limbs were completely disproportionate to its body, as if forcibly attached, making one feel deeply uncomfortable just looking at it.

Hundreds of years ago, Desolate Beasts became a plague on the East Emperor Continent. Their influence caused an unprecedented famine to sweep across the entire continent, followed by riots and wars. Many small nations were directly annihilated, and even large nations struggled to control the situation. In the end, the great powers of the East Emperor Continent united, dispatched a large number of powerful individuals, and paid a heavy price to almost wipe out the Desolate Beast race, which had existed for hundreds of millions of years. The surviving Desolate Beasts fled underground and entered hibernation to escape certain death. Since then, there have been no reports of Desolate Beasts being sighted.

I never expected that a stray survivor would be hidden beneath Salt Crystal Lake. This abnormal desert is due to its influence! For some unknown reason, it has awakened from its hibernation!

"Let's not act rashly yet. Let's see what it wants to do..." Rui Feng quickly regained his composure.

The Desolate Beast twisted its massive body, seemingly surveying its surroundings. The dark green pupils within its blood-red eye spun wildly before locking onto us.

"ROOOOAR------" The Desolate Beast suddenly let out a deafening roar, its malformed maw opening wide, unleashing a powerful suction! Instantly, the Spiritual Energy in the heavens and earth began to churn. From beneath the rocks, from within the dry grass, wisps of pale green aura emerged and were drawn into the Desolate Beast's mouth!

"Quick, get away! It's absorbing Life Force!"

Unlike Spiritual Energy, Life Force is the power that sustains life, originating from within living beings. The natural world, such as fertile land and oceans, also produces Life Force. If Life Force were to dissipate externally, let alone humans, even ordinary small trees and grasses could absorb it. However, Life Force typically does not dissipate externally, so absorbing it was previously unthinkable. The terrifying aspect of the Desolate Beast is its ability to forcibly extract Life Force from within and use it as its own!

I then realized that even strands of pale green aura were being drawn from our bodies! Just as I was about to retreat, suddenly--

Thump! A small body weakly leaned against me. It was Lin Bing! Her already pale face was now ashen, her eyelids drooped, and her skin had become dry and cracked!

"Liu Ye, take Lin Bing and retreat quickly!" Si Nanlong roared. I then noticed that it wasn't just Lin Bing; all the other members were exhibiting similar symptoms! Although Si Nanlong could still move, he wasn't much better off than Lin Bing, looking like he could collapse at any moment. There was no time to delay! I scooped Lin Bing into my arms and ran back in the direction we came from. Absorbing Life Force is not only the Desolate Beast's method of feeding but also its most powerful weapon! Back then, the warriors who fought the Desolate Beasts had to carry large quantities of specialized Spiritual Medicine and supplements to counter this attack, and we were completely unprepared. Fighting now would be extremely disadvantageous!

Suddenly, a deafening roar came from behind, and a giant shadow flashed overhead. The Desolate Beast landed directly in front of us with a thunderous boom, blocking our path! I didn't expect it to be so agile. It seemed to have decided it was going to eat us!

"Damn it, we have no choice but to fight!" Rui Feng activated his armguards, took out a Spirit Stone, and popped it directly into his mouth. "Shi Tao, Du Lin, your physiques are stronger. You two, block it with me. Xiao Xin, take the others and run!"

"Okay!" Without hesitation, the two named individuals stepped forward and charged fearlessly at the Desolate Beast! Shi Tao stomped the ground, and a large section of rock erupted, forming a wall that separated us from the Desolate Beast. Then, the sound of earth-shattering combat could be heard from the other side of the stone wall!

"Let's go! Staying here will only slow them down!" Rui Xin grabbed my wrist. Tears streamed down her face; the one fighting across the stone wall was her own brother! Yet, she forced herself to fulfill her duty as a team member with unwavering resolve!

Seeing her like this, I was stunned.

How incredibly strong she is.

Family bonds...

Having family in this world is truly a blessing.

Before, I never truly understood what "family" meant to me.

Only after arriving in this new world, with everything from my past gone, did I realize how precious the things I took for granted were.

The feeling of being utterly alone in a strange world was terrible.

So...

I don't want to see this kind girl tormented by the grief of losing loved ones!

"What's wrong? Hurry up and go!" Seeing my lack of reaction, Rui Xin tried to drag me away, but she no longer had the strength.

"I'll entrust Lin Bing to you..." I pushed Lin Bing into her arms and turned away.

"Hey! What are you doing?"

"I'm going to kill that beast."

Boom!!

The armguards, emanating a dazzling spiritual light, collided fiercely with the Desolate Beast's forelimb. Rui Feng was sent flying, landing on the ground and barely managing to steady himself. The Desolate Beast roared in fury and swiped its giant claws at Rui Feng. Just as Rui Feng couldn't dodge in time, a flame-wreathed figure slammed forcefully into the Desolate Beast, scorching its dark green skin black!

"Du Lin!"

"I probably can't hold on much longer..." Du Lin looked at the increasingly dimming flames on his body and shook his head helplessly. His charge hadn't caused much substantial damage; instead, it had only further provoked its ferocity.

"If we had prepared enough life-sustaining Spiritual Medicine beforehand, we could have fought it, but now..."

Du Lin and Rui Feng were at their limit, and Shi Tao, who had erected the stone wall from the beginning, was already kneeling on one knee, gasping for breath. In contrast, the Desolate Beast grew stronger with each passing moment. It raised its head high, its blood-red eye dilated to its limit, and a strange red light condensed within it.

"Damn it! That move again!" Du Lin mustered his last ounce of strength and leaped towards Shi Tao, who could no longer move. Simultaneously, a blood-red beam, a meter in diameter, shot from the Desolate Beast's eye. The beam was like a thick, heavy sword, carrying a monstrous stench as it swept towards the three of them!

"I'll fight you to the death!" Rui Feng roared, his muscles expanding to their limit, his clothes ripping with crackling sounds. The armguards on his arms erupted with unprecedented light. Like a maddened lion, he charged at the Desolate Beast, directly confronting the beam!

"Haa, haaaaaaaa!!!!!!" The armguards and the beam clashed fiercely, sparks flying everywhere. Rui Feng, with his dying body, managed to block the Desolate Beast's powerful attack!

But that was the limit. Rui Feng was forced back inch by inch, his feet carving deep furrows in the ground. At the last moment, his armguards roared, unleashing a powerful shockwave, and the thick blood-colored beam dissipated! The recoil sent Rui Feng flying backward, crashing heavily against the stone wall. He spat out a mouthful of blood and could no longer move.

Is this the end... The Desolate Beast's giant claw swept towards Rui Feng's blurry vision. At this moment, he felt no fear. The people he had seen in his life flashed before his eyes like a slideshow—his parents, his sister, Captain Si Nan Yuan, the second young lady, his battle-hardened comrades who stayed with him until the end, and that mysterious girl, Liu Ye...

"...Feng... Rui Feng..."

...Strange, why is Liu Ye's image clearer than everyone else's? And it sounds like he's talking to me?

"Snap out of it, Rui Feng!"

Rui Feng jolted violently, his vision rapidly clearing. He felt the touch of the earth beneath him, his entire body ached, but he was alive! Without a doubt, he was alive! The fact that he was still alive injected new strength into Rui Feng. He struggled to prop up his upper body, and then—he saw a sight he would never forget for the rest of his life.

A hand, formed from blood, was firmly holding back the Desolate Beast's giant claw, preventing it from moving even an inch. Beneath the blood hand stood the familiar figure clad in a dark red trench coat. The hood that always covered his head had been blown off by the Desolate Beast's claw wind, revealing vibrant black hair and a peerless beauty that could captivate all who beheld it.

The three men were dumbfounded. This was the first time they had seen the true face of this mysterious person.

I glanced at their stunned expressions, couldn't help but smile slightly, and uttered the line I had always wanted to say:

"You guys step aside, I'll handle this guy."