Chapter 276 - 165: Perilous Combat! Chen Chong is Flying on a Stone Claw Eagle?

Chapter 276: Chapter 165: Perilous Combat! Chen Chong is Flying on a Stone Claw Eagle?

’Could it be that the boss found the Bloodthirsty Vine King and got into a fight with it?’

The two exchanged a look and instinctively started to rush over to help, but Xu Jun’s next words stopped them dead in their tracks.

"The scent of the Tiger Striped Dog is getting closer, and so is the scent of the Bloodthirsty Vine. Be careful..."

Xu Jun gripped the Snakebone Giant Axe in his hand.

Qi Zhen and Wang Biao didn’t dare to be careless, either, and immediately assumed defensive stances.

WOOF—

Just then, a bark echoed from the distance, accompanied by all sorts of rustling sounds.

The Tiger Striped Dog arrived, pressing itself against the three of them.

Hearing its frantic barking, Xu Jun and the others knew it was a signal of imminent danger.

Given the Tiger Striped Dog’s temperament, it would never make such a commotion unless the situation was absolutely critical.

The three of them quickly braced themselves for a fight.

Aside from Xu Jun, who could smell the approaching threats, they were all practically blind in the pitch-black environment.

Even as Transcendents with senses far superior to ordinary people, they still couldn’t see without light. At best, they could perceive some unusual changes.

"So much noise!"

"It sounds like thick ropes scraping along the ground, and it’s getting closer!"

"The Bloodthirsty Vine?!"

Accompanying the Tiger Striped Dog were, to their alarm, four or five thick vines.

"Here they come!"

"Hu Zi, get back!"

With a loud shout, Xu Jun pushed the Tiger Striped Dog behind him as the three men attacked simultaneously, relying on instinct.

BOOM—

The Bloodthirsty Vines were hit.

But the three men were also caught in the attack.

Of the five Bloodthirsty Vines, only two were blocked. The attacks from the remaining three slammed heavily into them.

Wang Biao’s left arm was immediately bloodied. Qi Zhen, on the other hand, managed to withstand the blow with his formidable physique.

But it was a different story for Xu Jun.

Two vines struck him, sending him flying like a broken rag doll.

"Gah!"

After a pained cry, he got back to his feet.

Fortunately, at the last second, he had instinctively dropped to the ground and activated his "turtle defense." Though he’d been sent flying and hit hard, at least he wasn’t injured.

"Wang Biao, you’re bleeding?"

"It’s nothing, just a minor wound. This damn thing is extremely fast and much stronger. It’s not on the same level as the Parasites back at school. Everyone, be extra careful!"

"Let me take the front!"

Qi Zhen roared, summoning all his strength and charging to the very front, wreathed in a golden light.

Xu Jun and Wang Biao were overjoyed.

They could see!

Although the golden light from Qi Zhen’s body was nowhere near as bright as a Lighting Stone, and visibility was still extremely low—at most illuminating a two-to-three-meter radius—in the prolonged darkness of a place like the abyss, even a tiny bit of light was enough to keep them from feeling so hopeless.

They could also just barely make out the movements of the Bloodthirsty Vines up ahead.

"Qi, if I’d known you could be a lightbulb, we wouldn’t have had to feel our way down here in the dark!"

Xu Jun couldn’t help but complain.

Qi Zhen’s only response was to roll his eyes.

The Bloodthirsty Vines moved again, and Qi Zhen met them head-on without hesitation.

He threw a punch!

Under the force of his extreme physical power, even the Bloodthirsty Vines couldn’t resist and were shattered inch by inch.

The powerful impact slammed into the ground, causing the surrounding area to shake. Countless rocks rained down from above with a series of crashes.

This scared Xu Jun and Wang Biao badly.

The two of them scrambled left and right, narrowly dodging several boulders by instinct.

Feeling the dull thuds next to them, they were both struck with a wave of fear. ’If one of those had hit us, we’d have been laid out flat on the spot...’

"Qi, hold back a little! You’re not smashing the Bloodthirsty Vines, you’re trying to smash us!"

Dodging the Bloodthirsty Vines’ attacks in this pitch-black environment was already a headache, and now they had to dodge rocks too.

There were only four or five Bloodthirsty Vines, which they could just barely locate by sound.

But the falling rocks were a different story. Not only were there a lot of them, but it was also extremely difficult to predict where they would land. Dodging them was pure luck.

’Don’t tell me we’ll survive the Bloodthirsty Vines just to get crushed by a rock... That would be the biggest joke in the world!’

Qi Zhen also realized he’d used too much force. This dark abyss wasn’t a suitable environment for him to go all out, so he immediately pulled back most of his power.

At the same time, the Bloodthirsty Vines shot forward again...

The injured Wang Biao knew that without a handy spear, his advantage lay not in close combat, but at a distance.

He quickly created some distance, using the golden light emanating from Qi Zhen to aim, and drew his Bipolar Bow to fire at the Bloodthirsty Vines.

Meanwhile, Qi Zhen relied on his formidable physique and a pair of incredibly destructive fists to clash with the vines up close.

But even as a Body Cultivator, Qi Zhen had no special abilities. Under these constrained conditions, despite his tough body, fine bloody lines began to appear on his skin.

As for Xu Jun, he wanted to help Qi Zhen with his Snakebone Giant Axe, but before he could even charge forward, he was sent flying again.

Fortunately, the blow landed on the Snakebone Giant Axe, which absorbed most of the damage for him.

"Son of a bitch!"

Xu Jun scrambled to his feet, feeling the sharp pain wracking his body, and charged forward again in a fury.

BANG—

After being sent flying yet again, he finally faced reality.

’My own strength is still too weak. I can’t compare to A-Level Transcendents like Wang Biao and Qi Zhen, not to mention the environmental restrictions. Instead of rushing up just to get beaten, I might as well hunker down in the back.’

So, Xu Jun pulled the Tiger Striped Dog under him and activated his "turtle defense."

Qi Zhen and Wang Biao were still fighting the Bloodthirsty Vines.

One at the front, one at the back, they were locked in a frantic struggle.

But as time went on, the two began to lose ground...

It was true that Wang Biao and Qi Zhen were A-Level Transcendents, but the Bloodthirsty Vine was a top-tier A+ Class Extraordinary Creature.

At this level, even a small evolutionary step created a world of difference in power.

Furthermore, they were at the bottom of the abyss, the Bloodthirsty Vine’s home turf. Their abilities were severely limited: one didn’t dare use his full strength for fear of causing a rockslide, while the other could barely see, aiming his arrows almost entirely by feel.

They were lucky there were only four or five vines. If there had been just a few more, the battle would have long since become one-sided. Not only would they be unable to fight back, but their lives would have been in grave danger...

But even with just these few vines, the situation was getting progressively worse.

Wang Biao was running low on arrows.

Qi Zhen, unable to use his full power, was locked in a pyrrhic exchange, injuring the enemy by a thousand while losing eight hundred himself.

The Bloodthirsty Vine could regenerate, but Qi Zhen could not. The bloody marks on his body were multiplying.

But right now, their biggest concern wasn’t how to win the current battle, but rather...

Where was Chen Chong?

The Tiger Striped Dog had returned and the Bloodthirsty Vines had appeared, but after all this time, there was still no sign of Chen Chong.

’If he’s still alive, shouldn’t there have been some sign from him by now?’

For a moment, even though none of them spoke, the same bad feeling arose in all their hearts.

’Could it be that Chen Chong found the Bloodthirsty Vine King’s main body and ran into even bigger trouble, unable to escape?’

’But we’re in a crisis ourselves, completely unable to advance deeper into the abyss. What should we do?’

’If this keeps up, the only path left for us is to be slowly worn down and killed by the Bloodthirsty Vine...’

Just as Qi Zhen, Wang Biao, and Xu Jun were growing anxious and about to force their way through, a massive sound suddenly erupted from the depths ahead!

RUMBLE!!!

This colossal sound was a hundred times more violent than the commotion Qi Zhen had caused earlier. It was as if the entire abyss was shaking violently, like an earthquake.

Countless boulders broke loose from above and came crashing down, instantly smashing several of the Bloodthirsty Vines into green pulp.

There was almost nowhere to hide on the ground, which was completely covered by a dense barrage of rocks of all sizes, raining down like hail.

Fortunately, Xu Jun reacted quickly, shouting for Wang Biao and Qi Zhen to get under him.

The three men and one dog, stacked up like a human pyramid, managed to block several falling boulders with the "turtle defense."

"What in the world is happening..."

Before the words had even left his mouth, a bright light appeared in the distant mid-air.

The light source wasn’t particularly large, but at the bottom of the pitch-black abyss, it was incredibly conspicuous.

Immediately after, a clear eagle’s cry echoed throughout the abyss.

As the light source drew closer, the three of them stared wide-eyed at a sight they would never forget for the rest of their lives...

A massive creature with heavy, sharp stone claws was soaring rapidly through the bottom of the abyss.

And on its back, a light was shining.

Holding the light, they could faintly make out the silhouette of a person, who was also carrying a long, slender, blood-red blade...

At that moment, Xu Jun, still lying on the ground, was dumbfounded. He began to doubt himself, wondering if a rock had hit him on the head and he was hallucinating.

’Chen Chong... is riding a Stone Claw Eagle... and flying!?’

...