Chapter 271: Nowhere to Run
The Water Lizard King bit down on the Venerable Dharma Seal. With a sharp CRACK, its teeth shattered. A shiver ran through its body, and it began to tremble violently.
The next moment, Shen Daoxing reached out, seized it by the lower jaw, and with a slight exertion of strength, lifted it up.
One spin, two spins. Shen Daoxing rotated his body, whirling around in the water.
"WHOOSH!"
He flung the Water Lizard King away.
"BAM!"
The Water Lizard King was sent flying, crashing hard into the mud below.
The Water Lizard King shook its head and looked up in a rage. Apparently provoked, it opened its monstrous, blood-red maw. Bending its limbs, it kicked off with great force, stirring up clouds of silt as it lunged forward once more.
But before it could even launch itself...
In the blink of an eye, Shen Daoxing appeared above its head. He held the Venerable Dharma Seal high, and a pure white light illuminated the water.
The Venerable Dharma Seal unleashed a shockwave through the water as it descended abruptly.
"BAM!"
The Water Lizard King’s massive jaw, which had just opened, was snapped shut, and its entire head was driven deep into the mud.
A strange, muffled sound came from the Water Lizard King’s mouth. It shook its head, then jerked it upward. Now thoroughly enraged, it opened its massive jaw and let out a great roar.
In that instant, the surrounding water surged like a river, churning violently as monstrous waves rolled.
"WHOOSH!"
One, two, three... Several enormous underwater whirlpools spun into existence.
The once-calm Celestial Lake Swamp was suddenly wracked by fierce winds and towering waves.
The group of people who were still fleeing, unaware of what was happening, jumped in fright.
"Aiyah! Oh my god! The Great Wilderness is breaking out!"
Jiang Shaohe cried out in alarm. With a WHOOSH, he transformed into a stream of afterimages and vanished.
But the next moment...
「Beneath the Celestial Lake Swamp.」
A pure white light flared.
The Venerable Dharma Seal that Shen Daoxing had raised once more came crashing down.
"BAM!"
The Venerable Dharma Seal smashed down on the Water Lizard King’s head, and light erupted.
The Water Lizard King froze, its eyes flying wide as if they would split at the seams.
Its massive body lurched downward, sinking deep into the mud with a THUD.
Instantly, everything vanished like smoke. The towering waves disappeared, the whirlpools dissipated, and all returned to tranquility.
Only a single shockwave, with Shen Daoxing at its center, suddenly spread out in all directions.
The Water Lizard King shook its body, stirring up the murky silt.
A strange, muffled sound escaped its mouth.
It sounded like an enraged roar.
But the next moment, the Water Lizard King’s figure flashed and shot off into the distance.
It was actually running away!
Clearly, it was not stupid at all. It knew it couldn’t defeat Shen Daoxing, so it simply bolted.
’But how could I let the Demon Core I’m so close to obtaining just run away?’
With a flicker, Shen Daoxing’s figure shot after it.
Despite the Water Lizard King’s massive size, it was incredibly agile in the water.
To Shen Daoxing’s surprise, he couldn’t keep up.
Abruptly, Shen Daoxing raised the Venerable Dharma Seal in his hand, and a pure white light erupted.
He slammed the Venerable Dharma Seal backward, creating a massive shockwave in the water.
Shen Daoxing used the force of this impact to propel himself forward like an arrow through the water, instantly closing the distance.
He lifted his finger, and a pinpoint of light flared. In the span of a breath, it crossed a vast distance, streaking across the Celestial Lake.
Aurora Sword Intent.
The Water Lizard King, swimming ahead, suddenly faltered. A fin on its back had been sliced clean off.
The Water Lizard King looked back, stunned for a moment. Seeing Shen Daoxing about to catch up, it suddenly turned and dove into the silt below, vanishing from sight.
Light flared between Shen Daoxing’s two fingers once more. Again, it crossed a vast distance in an instant, a point of light shooting forth.
A large section of the silt below vanished, leaving behind a deep crater. However, the Water Lizard King was nowhere to be seen inside it.
Shen Daoxing smiled faintly. ’This Water Lizard King’s skills are nothing special, but its ability to flee is first-class.’ Without any hesitation, he dove into the hole.
The tunnel was long and winding. Shen Daoxing swam through it for a long time but still saw no sign of the Water Lizard King.
He stopped and sensed the auras around him.
Suddenly, Shen Daoxing tapped his fingers together. A point of light, the Aurora Sword Intent, shot out horizontally. In an instant, a new opening blasted by the Sword Intent appeared before him. Inside, he saw a massive lizard tail flick once before vanishing.
But then, Shen Daoxing sensed something lunging at him from the side.
His figure flickered and vanished from the spot.
The next moment, a pair of enormous jaws snapped shut where Shen Daoxing had just been.
Light erupted from Shen Daoxing’s fingertip as the Aurora Sword Intent shot out in a flash.
But the Water Lizard King in front of him had vanished again.
Shen Daoxing couldn’t help but stop again and look around.
At this moment, the voice of the Blood Dragon sounded from within him. "This Water Lizard King possesses a Wind Attribute Demon Core, which is why it’s so fast. It’s also an expert swimmer, and this is its domain. It’s not surprising you can’t catch it."
Shen Daoxing smiled faintly. "If I can’t catch it, then I won’t try to match its speed."
Then, Shen Daoxing began to swim leisurely through the underwater tunnel. Suddenly, he sensed something.
He lifted two fingers, and a point of Aurora Sword Intent shot out, instantly blasting open a deep cavern. Inside, a lizard tail flicked once and vanished again.
And the next moment, the mud beside Shen Daoxing churned and burst open. The Water Lizard King’s terrifying, blood-drenched maw appeared right before his eyes.
This time, Shen Daoxing didn’t move a single step.
"GULP!"
He was swallowed in one gulp by the Water Lizard King.
Shen Daoxing was immediately assaulted by a foul stench. Everything around him was sticky and slick, and a constant pressure bore down on him.
He felt himself sliding down a massive throat before falling with a SPLASH into a stomach sac. It was filled with blood mixed with countless bones, and bubbles constantly rose to the surface with a GURGLE. The entire place reeked of a nauseating stench.
The blood-water churned around him, and immense pressure bore down on Shen Daoxing. A disgusting red fluid sizzled as it corroded everything it touched.
But Shen Daoxing merely smiled faintly.
’I couldn’t catch it on the outside, but where can it possibly run to in here?’
The seven-colored Profound Platform began to spin. Black arcs of electricity flickered as the Venerable Power within Shen Daoxing’s body quietly emerged.
The black arcs of electricity flickered around him, and the space immediately began to twist and distort. The corrosive blood seemed to be wiped from existence, vanishing completely.
Shen Daoxing slowly raised the Venerable Dharma Seal. A pure white light flared brightly as, bit by bit, the seal began to grow larger.
...
「Beneath the Celestial Lake Swamp, inside a massive natural cavern.」
The Lizard King had eaten its fill. It let out a burp and was now sprawled atop a smooth rock, resting and sleeping soundly.
Suddenly, it snapped its eyes open. They grew wider and wider, bulging in their sockets. Its body began to heave and bulge erratically.
"BOOM!"
A massive explosion erupted.
The Lizard King’s massive body suddenly exploded, tearing it to pieces.
From within the dazzling white light,
Shen Daoxing’s figure slowly emerged.
He had burst his way out from inside the Water Lizard King’s stomach.