A roar powerful enough to shake the entire valley suddenly erupted from the swamp.
It was like a thunderclap from a clear sky, so deafening that it seemed to make the space itself tremble.
Splash—
After the roar, the flat patch in the middle of the swamp lake suddenly rose from the ground.
It broke free of the swamp lake and shot up into the air.
At the same time, the enormous body hidden beneath the lake was exposed. Its sheer bulk sent towering waves crashing across the silent swamp.
The black creature rose to its full height. A massive shell with a gently curved surface covered its back, while the rest of its body resembled a giant lizard.
The Armored Shell Giant Lizard!
A Commander Level creature!
Lan Yu raised an eyebrow. Looks like he'd have to find that giant centipede and make the two creatures fight. That was the only way to fish in troubled waters.
Lan Yu wasn't so confident that he could take down a Commander Level creature alone without getting hurt. Besides, this one was far bigger than the Giant Lizard Pseudo-Dragon he'd seen before.
The Armored Shell Giant Lizard even had a shell on its back, so its defenses were probably formidable too.
Killing it would be difficult.
Never mind the Battle Generals under a Commander Level creature—its Servant Level little demons alone could overwhelm him. And there might well be other Demon Beasts nearby, waiting to swoop in after the fight.
Even if he were lucky enough to kill the Commander Level Armored Shell Giant Lizard, the other Commander Level Demon Beasts certainly wouldn't pass up such a perfect chance to kick it while it was down.
After putting away the Elemental Surveyor, Lan Yu hurried back to the cave as fast as he could.
As soon as he returned, Lingling said, "I had Snow Empress scout the area earlier. There's a path behind this cave that leads straight to a dried-up underground river valley. It runs throughout the underground world beneath the valley, including under the swamp lake."
"By the way, are you sure your 'snipe and clam fight' plan will work? Commander Level creatures don't break into fights easily."
"Don't worry. I have a way to make them fight." Lan Yu smiled. Momo had probably already made her move.
By afternoon, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger returned, carrying a giant centipede leg in its jaws.
"Go on. Toss that centipede leg into the swamp lake and feed it to the Armored Shell Giant Lizard." Lan Yu reached out and patted the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's foreleg.
Roar~
The Dark Demon Evil God Tiger let out a low growl, then dashed toward the swamp lake with the centipede leg in its jaws.
Its powerful limbs let it race and leap across the treacherous terrain, while the wings on its back allowed it to fly swiftly.
After tossing the centipede legs into the swamp lake, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger roared, then vanished in a flash.
Before long, the swamp lake erupted again. The centipede legs disappeared behind a curtain of mud, leaving no trace. It seemed the Armored Shell Giant Lizard had eaten them.
Back in the cave, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger returned to Lan Yu's Summoning Space.
[If your cultivation weren't so weak, we wouldn't need to go to all this trouble.] Snow Empress's voice sounded in Lan Yu's mind.
[So it's my fault, then?] Lan Yu replied helplessly with his thoughts. [For now, this is all we can do. Given enough time, once my Summoning Element breaks through to the Advanced Level, your strength should reach Commander Level too. Then we'll be able to do a lot more.]
"Now all we have to do is wait." Lingling pulled out her own little pink tablet and tapped away at the keyboard with her delicate fingers, seemingly recording something.
"Let's rest first. Once we've recovered, we'll get to work!"
Lingling and Snow Empress put on their gear and entered the underground river's jagged cavern. Their flashlights didn't illuminate very far, but fortunately, Snow Empress had left markers to make sure they could match their position underground with the one above.
That little girl Lingling always brought all kinds of equipment on long trips. She even had gear from the military.
"Little brat, have you and Snow Empress reached the designated spot?" Lan Yu's slightly muffled voice came through the earpiece.
"We're here, but the signal's pretty bad. I can't quite make out what you're saying," Lingling replied.
"We don't have much time. Those Lizard Skull Giant Demons will be back soon after finishing their square-dancing routine," Lan Yu said.
The signal in the earpiece was poor, but Lan Yu's connection with Snow Empress and the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger was still intact.
Meanwhile, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger waited in the poisonous marsh.
It looked up at the setting sun. Its blood-red eyes gleamed with eager anticipation.
Fight, fight! Go on and fight! Better yet, both sides could end up badly wounded. Then it could swoop in at the end!
[Momo, move out!]
At Lan Yu's mental command, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger shook itself and fixed its gaze on the poisonous area.
Roar—
With a roar, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger unleashed a terrifying sonic blast that sent a wave of mud surging into the air.
Gurgle, gurgle—
The mud in that area began to churn, wave after wave rising forty or fifty meters high. The sight was spectacular.
A long body emerged from the churning sludge, its sides lined with countless legs. It looked like a gigantic centipede.
After waking the Poison Centipede, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger turned and ran.
The sight of an old enemy was enough to set its eyes ablaze.
The moment it spotted the demon tiger that had ambushed it, the Poison Centipede burned with rage and charged after the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger.
But the Poison Centipede had lost many legs when the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger ambushed it, so it stumbled as it ran. The tiger even slowed down a little on purpose, afraid the centipede wouldn't be able to keep up.
Before long, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger reached the designated spot. A moving black mountain loomed before it.
It was the Armored Shell Giant Lizard!
After rejoining its pooper-scooper, Lan Yu, the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger returned to the Summoning Space of its own accord.
[Snow Empress, now!]
Seeing that the time was right, Lan Yu hurried her along.
[Emperor Sword: Ice Extreme Unrivaled!]
Snow Empress raised her left index finger. An icy-blue light shimmered at its tip.
The next moment, the light abruptly turned into a sword beam. With a wave of Snow Empress's hand, it slashed forward.
BOOM!
A thunderous crash rang out, and rocks pattered down.
Snow Empress casually waved her hand again, forming an icy-blue barrier around Lingling to protect her from the falling rocks.
The rocky ceiling had been blasted open, leaving a hole nearly ten meters across. Frost spread around its edges.
[Huh? There's a rich aura of earth element in this layer of rock.] Snow Empress sounded surprised.
[Great. That's the Spirit Seed we came here to find. Snow Empress, keep cutting with the Emperor Sword.]
Waves churned across the swamp lake. Thick black sludge rained down from the sky, nearly turning Lan Yu into a walking mud puddle.
"Good thing I put up an ice shield." Lan Yu let out a long breath.
Gradually, the distance between the two enormous creatures shrank.
Watching the monsters charge toward one another like they were churning rivers and overturning seas, Lan Yu felt a little uneasy.
Wait a minute. With Snow Empress's power, she should have opened a passage by now. Why wasn't it ready yet?
Before you continue