Earth Dragon

"Rustle..."

A clear, grating scraping sound slowly drew closer from deep within the cave.

Everyone's hearts leaped into their throats.

As it approached, a nauseating stench spread through the air, so foul it nearly choked them.

"Prepare to fight," Lin Ye said in a low voice.

The shadow drew closer and closer. Under the light of the jade talisman, they finally saw its true form.

"An Earth Dragon?" Su Muxue cried out, her voice trembling with fear.

"An Earth Dragon? What's that?"

"A subterranean demonic beast." She spoke rapidly. "An adult Earth Dragon is comparable to someone in the late True Qi Realm. It has thick skin and tough flesh, can spew powerful acid that corrodes everything, and can devour spiritual energy. Most importantly, they live in groups."

In groups?

Everyone's hearts sank.

Lin Ye took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil within him. Demonic beasts above the fifth level of the True Qi Realm, and in a pack—given their current condition, they had no chance of winning in a direct fight.

But there was only one passage through the cave. Behind them lay the defunct teleportation array. There was nowhere to run.

They could only fight to the death.

"Su Muxue, how long can your jade talisman hold out?" Lin Ye asked quickly.

"One incense stick," Su Muxue gritted out.

"That's enough." Lin Ye's gaze swept the surroundings, then settled on the stalactites hanging from the ceiling. "Chen Feng, take the other two and attack those stalactites. Cause a disturbance and buy us time. Su Muxue and I will draw its attention from the front."

"What?" Chen Feng froze.

"Go!" Lin Ye ordered, his tone leaving no room for argument.

Chen Feng gritted his teeth and ran toward the side ahead with two disciples.

Su Muxue knitted her brows as she looked at him. "What are you planning?"

"Earth Dragons live underground, so their eyesight has deteriorated. They must be extremely sensitive to vibrations and sound." Lin Ye spoke rapidly. "First, we disrupt its senses, then look for an opening."

"Have you gone mad? In our current condition, how could we possibly hurt it?" Su Muxue whispered.

"We won't know unless we try." A cold glint flashed in Lin Ye's eyes.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Just then, Chen Feng and the others made their move, blasting the stalactites overhead. Shattered rock flew everywhere, dust billowed, and the entire cave shook violently.

"Rrr—"

The Earth Dragon was indeed affected. Its huge maw snapped open with a hiss. Its massive body stopped, and its head turned slightly, as if sensing where the vibrations came from.

"Now!"

Lin Ye and Su Muxue exchanged a glance and moved at the same time!

Lin Ye shot forward like lightning, covering thirty feet in an instant. Sword Qi tore through the air, stabbing straight at the gelatinous hide on the Earth Dragon's head!

Su Muxue came around from the other side. Frost gathered along her sword, forming several icicles that shot toward the joints of the Earth Dragon's legs!

Their attacks landed almost simultaneously.

"Schhk!"

The Star-Shattering Sword pierced three inches into its flesh before becoming firmly lodged in its tough hide, unable to go any deeper.

Su Muxue's icicles shattered, only making the leg pause for the briefest moment.

"What incredible defenses!" Su Muxue's expression changed.

The Earth Dragon was thoroughly enraged! Its huge maw swung toward Lin Ye, and a terrifying force of suction erupted from within!

Lin Ye felt his body go weightless as he was dragged toward that gaping maw. His expression changed drastically. He stamped both feet hard into the ground and drove the Star-Shattering Sword into the rock, barely managing to hold his ground.

"Lin Ye!" Su Muxue cried out, rushing to help him, only for an Earth Dragon to crawl over from nearby and block her way.

"Forget me! Attack its maw!" Lin Ye growled, both hands gripping the hilt as he fought against the suction.

Su Muxue didn't hesitate. She retreated quickly to evade the other Earth Dragon's pounce while flicking her sword again and again. Several streaks of icy-blue Sword Qi shot toward the huge maw of one of the Earth Dragons.

"Clang, clang, clang!"

The icy-blue Sword Qi struck the sharp teeth along the edge of the maw, ringing like metal against metal. Most of it bounced away; only a few streaks shot into the depths of its mouth, vanishing like mud oxen sinking into the sea without making the slightest ripple.

"It's no use! Its maw is even tougher!" Su Muxue's face went deathly pale.

Lin Ye's heart sank as well. The Earth Dragon's defenses were beyond his expectations. Their attacks couldn't break through. Were they going to die here?

"Brother Lin, catch!"

Chen Feng's shout came from the side.

Lin Ye glanced over. Chen Feng had climbed onto a higher rock. He threw something the size of a fist with all his might, sending it arcing through the air toward Lin Ye.

It was the "Heaven-Shattering Thunder" they had found earlier on the Blood Fiend Hall's black-clad men in the Bone-Eroding Forest.

A flash of insight crossed Lin Ye's eyes. The instant the Heaven-Shattering Thunder reached a point above his head, he suddenly released the Star-Shattering Sword. Using the suction from the Earth Dragon's maw, he surged forward instead of retreating, charging toward its mouth!

He reached out with his left hand, and a palm formed from True Qi seized the Heaven-Shattering Thunder precisely. He hurled it into the depths of the Earth Dragon's abyss-like maw!

"Get in there!"

The Heaven-Shattering Thunder became a streak of black light and disappeared into the depths of the Earth Dragon's mouth.

"Rumble!"

The next moment, a muffled explosion erupted inside its body.

"Rrr—"

The Earth Dragon let out a scream of agony. Its huge body thrashed wildly, smashing the rock walls and sending fragments flying.

Its maw snapped open to its limit, spewing a torrent of foul blood mixed with scraps of flesh! A terrifying blast of air burst from its mouth and hurled Lin Ye away before he could brace himself. He slammed into the cave wall.

"Pfft!" Lin Ye spat out a mouthful of blood, feeling as if every bone in his body had been broken. But he ignored his injuries and fixed his eyes on the Earth Dragon.

The Earth Dragon had suffered a grievous wound, but it wasn't dead.

It was going to fight to the death.

The other Earth Dragon, along with the owners of the several "rustle" sounds from deep within the cave, now emerged completely as well.

There were four Earth Dragons in all!

Two of them were somewhat smaller, with auras roughly equivalent to the fourth level of the True Qi Realm.

Leaning against the cave wall, Lin Ye struggled to his feet.

The Star-Shattering Sword was still stuck in the ground some distance away.

Less than twenty percent of his True Qi remained.

Everyone else was at the end of their rope, too.

What could they do now?

He closed his eyes and sank his mind deep into his sea of consciousness.

There, besides the pale golden characters representing his points, another strand of eerie, pitch-black energy had appeared.

"Devour and plunder... grow stronger through battle... survive by any means necessary."

A mad thought rose in his mind.

Imitate the Earth Dragon's "devouring"?

Imitate the true meaning behind the forbidden essence of the Star-Drawing Art?

In his current state, forcing himself to imitate it and attempt that path of devouring and plunder would be tantamount to walking straight into his own death.

But he had no choice.

"Come on."

His voice was hoarse, yet carried a chilling calm.

He stopped waiting for the four Earth Dragons to approach.

He walked toward the grievously wounded Earth Dragon himself.

With every step, the black vortex in his eyes deepened.

With every step, the dark-gold True Qi seed within him spun faster, its rotation growing more and more distorted, like a miniature black hole about to take shape.

Everyone watched his back, feeling a chill creep up their spines.