Tang Bai Li

Chapter 144 Terrifying Melee

The mine shaft, impossibly deep and vast.

Hundreds of great demons plunged in, feeling no crowding whatsoever.

Yan Yu, sword in hand, leaped into the cavern with Qiong Qi.

Sticking to the walls, they observed the steadily ascending rocks for over ten minutes before reaching the mine's depths.

There, they beheld the strangely beautiful flower blooming at the center.

It was the Other Shore Flower. Its true form was only half a person's height, identical to its spectral appearance. The inflorescence was lanceolate and curled, roughly umbellate, with hundreds, even thousands, of densely packed stamens extending from the pistil. With every sway, a peculiar pollen was shed.

The air would then become intoxicating due to the pollen; inhaling it brought a sense of boundless power!

"Just the pollen has such miraculous effects. If I eat it, won't I be able to directly leap across the fifth realm!"

A Scorpion Lord great demon, excited, stood on the mine floor.

It was injured, but after inhaling a small amount of pollen, its wounds inexplicably healed, and its demonic power surged, as if it were about to break through to the next realm!

It wasn't the only one feeling this. More and more great demons began to breathe with fervent intensity, their blood boiling. All were eager to pluck it, or to devour it.

But here, nearly a thousand great demons were present, and their numbers were still increasing, while the Other Shore Flower was only one.

Thus, when a fourth-stage Sparrow Demon, seeking to exploit its speed advantage and snatch the Other Shore Flower first, made its move, the prelude to the inevitable, bloody war had officially begun.

Hum!

The Sparrow Demon descended from the sky, diving directly towards the Other Shore Flower. Its strange eyes were filled with excitement and greed, utterly unaware of the peril that lay ahead.

Seeing a demon make the first move, all the great demons in the mine changed their expressions and furiously unleashed their attacks.

Roar!

Rumble!

The Azure Snake Great Demon, a hundred zhang long, clung to the wall, spewing venom.

The mutated Ox Demon, its muscles bulging, slammed the ground in fury, emitting a low roar. This was its innate divine ability; it intended to utterly shatter the Sparrow Demon!

The Ape Great Demon's arms stretched for hundreds of meters. It clawed at the air, its destructive aura undeniable...

Almost instantly, the Sparrow Demon was submerged by the divine abilities of countless great demons.

It was then reduced to dust and bone, forever separated from the Other Shore Flower.

But its death did not signify the end of the war.

The Azure Snake Great Demon, without pause, crawled towards the center. As it moved, it opened its blood-red maw and venomously sank its fangs into the hindquarters of a mutated Antelope before it.

The latter let out a piercing shriek. It couldn't retaliate, and could only stubbornly kick its hooves, for its enormous, spiraling horns were locked in a twisting struggle with the horns of a Water Buffalo Lord Great Demon!

Crash!

Boom!

The mine shaft descended into utter chaos. In the face of this opportunity, all great demons, regardless of ally or foe, began to unleash their innate divine abilities, attacking each other.

Domains overlapped and intertwined. Greed, brutality, and bloodshed reigned. The walls cracked, and dust filled the battlefield, obscuring everything. Everywhere, demonic blood splattered!

Crack!

Qiong Qi swatted away the attacking Azure Snake with a claw, pushing forward with difficulty.

Yan Yu, by its side, did not participate in the fray.

Utilizing its advantage in size and speed, it constantly sought openings, moving closer to the Other Shore Flower in the center.

"Don't rush. I still feel that Other Shore Flower is peculiar!"

Little Qiong Qi chased behind Yan Yu, swatting away one enemy after another with its claws.

It hadn't used its innate spatial teleportation ability because it sensed something amiss with the Other Shore Flower, though it couldn't pinpoint the exact reason.

But by some inexplicable intuition, Qiong Qi felt danger. This was a warning from its divine beast bloodline, which was never wrong!

However, how could Yan Yu heed its advice? His wife had waited for this Other Shore Flower for a millennium!

No matter what dangers lay ahead, he had to fight for it, for this was the sole value of his life!

"If this continues, this mine will collapse!"

Great demons collided with each other, unleashing various divine abilities. Their terrifying power, spanning thousands of meters, clashed, causing the tens of thousands of zhang high mine shaft to tremble. It could collapse at any moment, burying them all!

Rumble!

With another fierce collision, Little Qiong Qi was besieged by numerous great demons simultaneously, then battered and slammed into the ground.

These great demons were cunning; they knew to focus on the strongest competitor, Qiong Qi.

"Damn it, no chance for spatial traversal!"

Qiong Qi retreated while fighting, the attacks from all sides overwhelming it.

These great demons, to some extent, possessed divine beast bloodlines, so their innate divine abilities were not weak. Various terrifying attacks descended, disorienting it and preventing any opportunity for spatial shifts!

"In that case, I can only fight my way through myself!"

Seeing Yan Yu moving further and further away, Qiong Qi roared. Disregarding whatever strangeness the Other Shore Flower held, it unleashed its domain. A hundred-zhang-high spectral image of a White Tiger materialized above its head, ablaze with Samadhi True Fire that billowed out for a hundred zhang.

Roar!

It howled, charging into the horde of demons. The true fire mercilessly incinerated demon after demon. Countless domains were torn apart by the White Tiger. For a time, it forcefully carved out a wide path.

"Kill Qiong Qi first!"

Seeing Qiong Qi's seemingly invincible advance, the other great demons in the arena realized the gravity of the situation. They abandoned their current enemies and attacked Qiong Qi in unison.

"How dare you!"

Qiong Qi roared, its divine beast bloodline intimidating the entire audience, causing all the great demons to instinctively feel the urge to prostrate themselves.

But as the Other Shore Flower swayed, its pollen entered their bodies. They became like madmen, their eyes turning crimson, and they charged at Qiong Qi without restraint.

"They're mad, all of them! This flower is strange, quickly retreat!"

Qiong Qi, seeing its bloodline's suppressive effect rendered useless, finally realized something was terribly wrong. The Other Shore Flower was undoubtedly fraught with immense peril!

Thus, it ceased its attempt to break through forward and instead fled towards the outer edges. After all, even as a divine beast, it would perish if surrounded and attacked by all the great demons!

Roar!

The great demons' attacks missed. Seeing Qiong Qi only fleeing backward, they ceased their pursuit.

They turned their heads, continuing their chase for the Other Shore Flower, and resumed their fierce battles after colliding with each other.

Meanwhile, Qiong Qi soon retreated to the mine's edge.

Its form flickered continuously, dodging the colossal rocks crashing down from above, while it gazed into the distance.

Yan Yu was now less than a hundred zhang from the Other Shore Flower.

It had successfully pushed to the forefront amidst the struggles and ambushes of countless great demons, the Other Shore Flower within easy reach!

"That human is the fastest! Kill him first!"

The Ape Lord Great Demon, wielding its stone club, roared and hurled an attack at Yan Yu. Hearing that a human was approaching the Other Shore Flower, other great demons, just as they had surrounded Qiong Qi, simultaneously attacked Yan Yu.

Demonic energy surged to the heavens, tearing the earth apart. A terrifying pressure rushed towards Yan Yu's direction.

So intense was the assault that the roots of the Other Shore Flower, growing from the ground, were partially exposed.

"This..." Qiong Qi's eyes widened. Such a small flower, yet its exposed roots were so thick, and that seemed to be just the tip of the iceberg?

Crash!

Yan Yu, sensing the terrifying divine abilities, felt its bones fracture under the pressure. The piercing pain made its face even paler, but it knew this was no time to feel pain.

For it understood that it might very well die here.

If it didn't draw its sword!

...