txolops Chapter 283 Plotting Against the Salamander King
Chapter 283 Plotting Against the Salamander King
The Crimson Flame Old Monster's face was pale at this moment. The Sunflower Water Mist around him was still thick, and the blue and red pearl protective shields did not lose their spiritual light. It seemed that his defense was not in danger, but the magic power in his body was flowing out rapidly like a flood.
The number of fire lizards attacking him was also a dozen or so, mainly level five, supplemented by two level six golden-crowned fire lizards. They seemed to have learned their lesson and no longer charged blindly, but instead took turns harassing him, spitting golden fire pillars or stirring up waves of lava, forcing the Crimson Fire Monster to continuously maintain the consumption of Sunflower Water Mist in order to offset and weaken these attacks.
Even worse, these fire lizards were extremely cunning. If their first attack missed, they would immediately burrow into the lava below, using the environment to conceal themselves, recover their demonic power, and then emerge again to launch another attack after a short rest. This annoyed the Crimson Fire Old Monster to no end, yet he found it difficult to retaliate effectively. His attacks, once they landed in the lava, were either weakened by the high temperature or skillfully dodged by the high-level fire lizards, making them extremely inefficient.
"Damn it! These beasts!" Old Monster Crimson Fire was extremely frustrated. His Sunflower Water Demon Art was indeed excellent in defense and attribute restraint, but his attack methods seemed clumsy and laborious when facing such opponents.
He wanted to capture the leader first and kill the two level-six fire lizards, but as soon as he showed any intention to focus his fire, the other fire lizards would pounce on him and force him to retreat to defend.
"There's definitely something wrong with this lava path!" The Crimson Flame Monster's face was grim as he struggled to "move" forward while parrying attacks.
"That old monster Feng was able to get through safely last time either because he was incredibly lucky and didn't encounter this strange lava lake or these golden-crowned fire lizards, or... something unknown happened here!"
Looking at the seemingly endless and cunning fire lizards around him, and feeling his mana rapidly depleting, a shadow fell over the Crimson Fire Monster's heart. At this rate, forget about seizing any opportunities; even reaching the other side safely would be a problem.
"We can't keep dragging this out, we have to break through!" He gritted his teeth and made a completely different decision from Luo Ming—he would no longer try to wipe out these annoying fire lizards, but instead reduce unnecessary attacks and use most of his mana to maintain the Kui Shui defense and the treasure under his feet, and sprint towards the other side with all his might! He pinned his hopes on his powerful mana at the late stage of Core Formation and the support of the two ancient treasures, so that he could withstand the attacks and break through this lava lake area.
However, just as he adjusted his strategy and prepared to accelerate at all costs—
"Roar—!!!"
In the distance, deeper within the lava lake, a deafening roar, filled with terrifying majesty and fury, suddenly resounded! This roar was not directed at him, but the Nascent Soul level pressure emanating from it still caused the Crimson Flame Old Monster to tremble violently!
Immediately following, a series of muffled yet incredibly powerful explosions could be faintly heard. Even from a great distance, one could feel the destructive energy contained in the explosions, as well as the even more chaotic and violent fire elemental turbulence that followed!
"It's... the fluctuation of Azure Fire Lightning?!" The Crimson Fire Old Monster had heard of the Azure Sun Sect's signature secret lightning technique and instantly recognized it, his expression becoming even more unsightly.
"Is that the man in black robes? He was actually forced to use such deadly weapons repeatedly... It seems he's being targeted by that fire lizard king. The situation over there is probably even worse than here!"
Thinking of this, the Crimson Flame Old Monster dared not hold back in the slightest, nor caring about the loss of his magical power. He pushed the Sunflower Water Demon Art to its limit, causing water mist to spread and the protective barrier to fully open, like a gray-blue water ball, heading towards the opposite bank he had chosen, braving the attacks of the surrounding fire lizards! He only hoped to escape this area before an even more terrifying disaster struck.
The source of that terrifying roar and the continuous explosions of blue fire and lightning—Yuan Yao—is now in a situation that can only be described as desperate.
She was surrounded by an incredibly dense swarm of golden-crowned fire lizards, ranging from level three or four to level five, like a crimson-gold tide, completely encircling her on a relatively "calm" lava lake. What she feared most was a pair of huge, cold, cunning, mocking, and cruel vertical pupils in the distance, hidden within the lava.
That was a Golden Crown Fire Lizard King, whose strength had reached the peak of level seven and whose intelligence was extremely high! It did not personally go forward to attack, but like the most skilled hunter, it lurked outside the battle circle, coldly watching the trapped prey, while in some special way, it commanded and drove its tidal wave of offspring to launch wave after wave of attacks without regard for cost.
The giant hammer beneath Yuan Yao's feet had lost its luster, clearly having been severely damaged in the previous defense. She was now relying mainly on the double shield created by her small silver shield and the black jade pendant, but the shield was flickering and teetering on the brink of collapse under the relentless onslaught of golden fire lines and magma fireballs. In her hands lay the last three Azure Fire Thunderbolts.
Just now, in order to repel a particularly ferocious attack led by several level-six fire lizards, she had no choice but to grit her teeth and throw several more Azure Fire Thunderbolts. The terrifying explosions instantly cleared the lake surface within a hundred-foot radius, killing dozens of demonic beasts, including a level-six fire lizard, and temporarily intimidating the beast horde.
However, a hint of human-like mockery flashed in the eyes of the salamander king in the distance. It let out a low growl, and more salamanders emerged from the lava to fill the gaps. The attack slowed slightly, but became more dense and oppressive.
"Could it be... that I am truly going to perish here today?" Yuan Yao's pretty face beneath her black robe was ashen, and her fingers gripping the Azure Fire Thunder were white from the force. Looking at the seemingly endless, ever-growing swarms of fire lizards around her, a profound sense of powerlessness and despair overwhelmed her.
She had few life-saving items left, and her strongest offensive trump card, the Azure Flame Thunder, was down to only three. Meanwhile, the enemies seemed endless, with a terrifying being at the peak of level seven lurking in the shadows. From any perspective, this was a hopeless predicament.
"No! I, Yuan Yao, have gone through countless hardships to get to where I am today. How can I die here!" At the end of despair, a spirit of defiance suddenly ignited in her eyes.
She bit her tongue sharply, the sharp pain jolting her awake. She quickly scanned the battlefield, her gaze finally settling on the distant Fire Lizard King. Then she glanced at the three remaining Azure Fire Thunderbolts in her hand, and a crazy, resolute thought began to grow wildly within her…
Just as Yuan Yao's crazy thought of dying together with others arose in her mind, an accident occurred.
A snow-white figure was slowly walking towards the battlefield of death where she was! In this predominantly crimson lava lake, the spotless white clothes seemed so out of place, yet so conspicuous.
What shocked her even more was that around the white-clad figure, a dozen dark golden "insect cloud arrows" were like the most loyal guards, or the most deadly venomous snakes, circling and weaving around, agile and unpredictable.
Whenever a golden-crowned fire lizard tries to intercept or approach, the golden insect arrows pounce like sharks smelling blood. In a short while, only the broken skeletons are left sinking into the lava, while the swarm buzzes back, seemingly even more ferocious and refined.
"He... came to save me?" Yuan Yao's eyes flickered violently beneath her black robe. This unbelievable thought flashed through her mind for a moment, then she was filled with an extremely complex emotion.
Meanwhile, Luo Ming's gaze remained firmly fixed on the Golden Crown Fire Lizard King in the distance, which exuded a terrifying aura of the peak of the seventh level.
"Senior, what do you think of the quality of this Fire Lizard King's golden crown? Is it sufficient?" Luo Ming asked calmly in his mind.
The Heavenly Mirror Hermit's divine sense swept over it, with a hint of scrutiny: "Hmm... Although this beast has not reached level eight, it has been nurtured in this lava environment for many years. The quality of the 'Crimson Sun Golden Essence' contained in its golden crown is far superior to those of level six beasts, making it a top-grade one. If you can put it into the Spirit Gathering Cauldron along with the level five and six golden crowns you obtained before, and refine and fuse them using secret methods, the resulting Crimson Sun Golden Essence should be enough to increase the power of your imitation 'Eight Gates Golden Light Mirror' to about 70% of the original."
A glint flashed in Luo Ming's eyes—seventy percent of the original power! The temptation was immense! This was why he had come to Yuan Yao's side after resolving his own troubles.
Of course, there was another reason, which was that he didn't want Yuan Yao to be swallowed by that fire lizard king. If that happened, all his original plans would be in vain.
"This beast in this lava lake is not easy to deal with. Should I take action and finish this quickly?" Tianjing Sanren asked calmly. The power of his attack was Luo Ming's greatest trump card at present.
Luo Ming hesitated for a moment, then resolutely refused: "There's no need to trouble you, senior. Your attack is incredibly powerful, but it also consumes a great deal of energy. You should save it for dealing with a true Nascent Soul stage threat, or for the unknown variables deeper within the Void Heaven Palace. Although this beast is strong, I believe I still have the strength to fight it."
Having learned from his previous experience dealing with the fire lizard siege, he already understood the attack patterns and weaknesses of these demonic beasts. Most importantly, he still had the two Heavenly Capital Corpse Fire Pearls "gifted" by the Extreme Yin Ancestor! These objects were extremely Yin and poisonous, and had a special effect on the extremely Yang fire lizards, making them an excellent tool for testing and weakening the fire lizard king!
"Very well, you can decide for yourself." Tianjing Sanren said no more.
With a flick of his wrist, Luo Ming revealed a jet-black bead, radiating a chilling and deathly aura, in his palm—the Heavenly Capital Corpse Fire Bead. A cold smile curled at the corner of his lips: "The 'intention' of that extremely Yin old ghost. I'll find an opportunity to test its power later, and it'll also help him accumulate some 'virtuous deeds'."
In the distance, the Golden-Crowned Fire Lizard King was stunned for a moment when it saw Luo Ming not only not fleeing, but also charging towards it with a cloud of insects. Then it flew into a rage! On its territory, a human whose aura was only at the mid-stage of Core Formation dared to provoke it?
"roar--!!!"
A roar filled with majesty and murderous intent reverberated across the lake! The Fire Lizard King abruptly raised its massive head, its cold, vertical pupils blazing with ferocity. It ceased its lurking and instead let out a distinctive hiss.
Instantly, most of the high-level fire lizards that had been frantically attacking Yuan Yao turned around and charged towards Luo Ming like a crimson-gold torrent! Clearly, in the eyes of the fire lizard king, this newly appeared human with the strange swarm of insects posed a greater threat.