The leaders fought with all their might to escape the lava lake, then raced nearly a hundred li back along the route they had come. Only after they could no longer sense that scorching, savage aura behind them did they slow down and stop.
Thorny Sea Urchin was the first to give out. His enormous body crashed onto a patch of soft sand, and he gasped for breath. The black spines covering his body drooped limply; clearly, that desperate flight had drained a tremendous amount of his stamina and soul power.
The other leaders were scarcely better off. Some had lost most of their scales, exposing bloody, mangled flesh beneath; some had broken one or two appendages, with pale blue blood still seeping from the stumps; others had erratic auras and pale faces, their internal organs evidently scorched in the lava lake.
Gray Catfish was the last to land. He surveyed their wretched state, his expression so dark it seemed water might drip from it. Slowly, he spoke, his voice hoarse and heavy. "Sea Spider, he..."
He could not finish.
Everyone present understood that, judging by Sea Spider's final, utterly frenzied surge of soul power, there was almost no chance he had survived. A companion they had known for years had chosen to sacrifice himself to cover their retreat. The weight of that price lay like a massive stone upon every heart.
Thorny Sea Urchin struggled up from the sand and cursed through gritted teeth. "That bastard Ao Yu! We have to slaughter him!"
The other leaders voiced their agreement. For a time, outrage surged through the group, curses rising one after another.
Just then, a gentle, steady voice came from behind the nearby Seaweed Forest. "There is no need to grieve so deeply, everyone. Sea Spider's sacrifice will not