28: Second Life: First Steps on the Immortal Path (Twenty-Seven)

The recent fluctuations in Spiritual Qi and the Yao Beast tide were likely not just because of the Earth Vein Fire Lotus ripening, but because this guardian Yao Beast was attempting a Breakthrough and drawing in the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi!

At this moment, the Yao Beast might be at the most critical juncture of its Breakthrough, its perception of the outside world reduced to its lowest point, which is why it didn't appear immediately.

But precisely because of this, once disturbed and the Breakthrough fails, the backlash and its rage...

A flash of ruthless determination suddenly crossed Xu Yuan's eyes!

Gamble it is!

Xu Yuan deliberately left an opening, taking a blow from the Axe-Wielding Strong Man's axe-wind squarely on his left shoulder!

"Pfft!"

His shoulder blade felt as if it had shattered, causing excruciating pain. A sweet taste rose in Xu Yuan's throat, and he used the momentum to fly backward, his trajectory perfectly aimed at the edge of the lava lake!

While he appeared to be flailing in panic in mid-air, he was secretly channeling a highly condensed, extremely provocative burst of fire-attribute energy toward the center of the lava, where the Spiritual Qi was pulsing!

"Now! Attack there! Something in the lake is about to come out!"

Xu Yuan used all his strength to scream at the pale youth and the Axe-Wielding Strong Man, his tone filled with "terror" and the implication of "discovering a powerful enemy"!

Xu Yuan's sudden action and shout caused the attacking pale youth and the Axe-Wielding Strong Man to freeze, their offensive subconsciously slowing down.

Their Divine Sense immediately swept toward the lake surface!

Sure enough!

In the center of the lava lake, aside from the Earth Vein Fire Lotus, the liquid was now churning violently, and a massive, blurry black shadow was rapidly rising to the surface!

An aura far more terrifying, violent, and heart-palpitating than that of a 1st-rank Yao Beast suddenly erupted!

Although this aura seemed somewhat unstable, fluctuating in strength, the pressure on the level of life was definitely far beyond the Qi Condensation Stage!

"Oh no! It's the guardian Yao Beast! It's attempting a Breakthrough to the 2nd Rank!" The pale youth's expression changed drastically, and he exclaimed in shock!

If a 2nd-rank Foundation Establishment realm great demon were born, everyone present would die!

He instantly understood Xu Yuan's "warning," and without bothering to wonder why Xu Yuan would be "kind" enough to warn them, he reacted almost instinctively. To prevent the birth of a 2nd-rank Yao Beast, he shifted the direction of the feather fan in his hand without hesitation, gathering all his magic power. An unprecedentedly massive ice spear, carrying bone-chilling cold, shot fiercely toward the black shadow rising in the lake!

The Axe-Wielding Strong Man also roared, fiercely throwing the giant axe in his hand, which spun as it chopped toward the center of the lake!

Their reaction was extremely fast, and their strikes were ruthless, intending to strangle the Yao Beast before it could fully complete its Breakthrough!

However, they underestimated the consequences of interrupting a Yao Beast at the critical moment of its Breakthrough!

"ROAR—!!!"

A deafening roar, filled with extreme pain and rage, suddenly exploded from the bottom of the lava lake! The entire cavern shook violently from the roar!

The massive ice spear and the spinning giant axe accurately struck the black shadow that had just emerged!

Pfft! Clang!

The ice spear seemed to pierce something, while the giant axe was deflected!

The next instant, the lava erupted into the sky as if it had exploded! A behemoth suddenly thrust half of its body out of the lake!

It was a giant python covered in dark red lava scales, with a single horn on its head and pupils like two burning pools of lava!

The ice spear was embedded near one of its eyes, with blood mixing with flowing lava, making it look incredibly hideous!

Its aura was extremely unstable, sometimes surging to a suffocating 2nd-rank level, and other times falling back to the top of the 1st rank. Clearly, the Breakthrough process had been forcibly interrupted, causing severe backlash!

But even so, the rage and killing intent it exuded at this moment already surpassed all living beings in the cavern!

Its burning pupils immediately locked onto the source of the attack—the pale youth and the Axe-Wielding Strong Man!

"HISSS—!" The Lava Python let out a frantic hiss, its massive tail suddenly lifting, carrying the weight of ten thousand jun and scorching lava, crashing down like divine retribution toward the pale youth and his companion!

The battlefield was instantly thrown into chaos!

"Bastard! You set us up!" The pale youth now realized he had been used by Xu Yuan. His face turned livid with rage as he dodged the python's frantic attacks in a pathetic state, shouting in shock and anger.

Xu Yuan took the opportunity to retreat quickly, joining Hou Ting and Liu Yiyi. He quickly fed a Medicinal Pill to Luo Shou, his face pale but with a hint of coldness:

"Quick! Take this chance, we're retreating!"

Although the strategy of driving the tiger to eat the wolf had succeeded, that crazed Lava Python would not distinguish between friend and foe! Its attacks covered the entire cavern indiscriminately!

Every time the massive python tail crashed down, the earth shook and mountains swayed, and scorching lava splattered everywhere, forcing everyone to dodge in a pathetic state.

The Poison Fang squad and Xu Yuan's group of four were now both embroiled in a chaotic battle with this quasi-2nd-rank Yao Beast!

"Kill those four scumbags first!"

The pale youth shouted sternly to his companion while narrowly dodging the sweep of the python tail, his eyes filled with venom.

Hearing this, the Axe-Wielding Strong Man roared, ignoring the lava crashing down behind him, hacked through the splattering lava chunks, and fiercely charged at Xu Yuan again!

Xu Yuan had just dodged a fireball of lava falling from the sky. Seeing this, his pupils shrank, and he pushed his internal magic power to its limit, gathering it in his palm to erupt with blinding light, throwing a punch!

BOOM!

The fist and axe collided fiercely once again!

This time, Xu Yuan was still shaken by the overwhelming force, his arm in excruciating pain, but he forcibly stopped his retreat. His feet plowed two deep trenches into the ground, yet he didn't take a single step back!

A flash of astonishment crossed the Axe-Wielding Strong Man's face; he hadn't expected this kid at the Eighth Level of Qi Condensation to be able to withstand his heavy blows repeatedly.

However, Xu Yuan himself was even more shocked.

Under the immense pressure of that life-or-death moment, at the instant his internal magic power was pushed to the extreme and even overdrawn, he clearly felt the barrier that had trapped him for so long loosen!

The dense and violent Fire Spiritual Qi from the outside world seemed to be drawn by something, crazily surging into his almost dried-up Meridians!

The Bottleneck was broken!

An aura several times stronger than before suddenly erupted from Xu Yuan's body!

The flames burning around him suddenly became solid and deep, their color shifting from crimson to a pale white, emitting a heart-palpitating high temperature!

9th Layer of Qi Refining!

On this life-and-death battlefield, Xu Yuan had actually achieved a Breakthrough in the heat of the moment!

"What?!" Feeling Xu Yuan's rising aura, the Axe-Wielding Strong Man's expression changed drastically.

"Good chance!"

Xu Yuan let out a long whistle, draining his internal Spiritual Qi without regard for the consequences. Two incredibly condensed white fire Dragons roared out from his palms, crossing as they blasted toward the Axe-Wielding Strong Man!

In terror, the strong man swung his axe with all his might to block!

BOOM!

This time, it was the Axe-Wielding Strong Man who was sent retreating!

The giant axe in his hand hummed incessantly, the webbing between his thumb and index finger split open, a trace of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth, and his eyes were filled with disbelief.

From the other side came Luo Shou's painful and determined roar:

"It was my rashness that harmed everyone! You guys go quickly! I'll cover the retreat!"