"Crack!"
Amid the swirling sandstorm, a crisp shattering sound echoed over the Gobi, making every soldier below feel their heart skip a beat.
The entrance to the Manticore Lair had opened!
Elsewhere, sensing that its territory had been breached, the manticore grew even more furious. It tried to fly toward the cave regardless of everything else, but the Bone Dragon kept it firmly pinned in combat, leaving it unable to break away for the moment.
Taking advantage of the two enormous beasts attacking each other, everyone instinctively turned their attention to the lair above.
Evans, for instance, had nothing left to hesitate over now that the entrance was open. What mattered most was seizing the lamp before the other side did.
Evans immediately changed direction and charged toward the cave entrance on the cliff.
A group of elite soldiers followed close behind him, also heading toward the entrance.
But just as they reached the cave and were about to rush inside together...
Another roar suddenly rang out from behind the veil of sand.
Then a massive hand wreathed in dark shadows reached out of the sandstorm and slammed down at them.
"Shadow Fiend!"
Evans reacted the fastest, narrowly dodging the blow with his extraordinary agility.
The soldiers behind him were not so lucky. By the time they discovered another enormous beast ahead, they had no room left to dodge. Over a hundred men were packed together, and the Shadow Fiend sent every last one flying far away with a single slap.
After that strike, the Shadow Fiend noticed that one had slipped through. It immediately growled and swung its claws down at Evans on the ground again.
Unfortunately, it had still underestimated Evans's speed.
Even with both claws working at full strength, the Shadow Fiend could never catch him. Evans