Chapter 272: Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat
After emerging from the Water Lizard King’s stomach, Shen Daoxing gave a wave of his hand. His body lit up faintly as black arcs of electricity flashed over him, clearing away the foul-smelling blood.
He then turned to look at the dismembered corpse of the Water Lizard King. ’This creature wasn’t particularly strong, but it sure could run. I have no idea where it brought me.’
Shen Daoxing looked around and found himself in a natural, underground cavern.
The surroundings shimmered with a faint, brilliant light, which emanated from chunks of translucent Crystal Stone.
Shen Daoxing slowly walked over and crouched down. As he reached out a hand, he suddenly felt a surge of abundant Primordial Energy.
He froze.
’These are all Celestial Essence Ores.’
’This is a natural Celestial Essence Mine.’
Shen Daoxing’s gaze swept across the cavern. It was huge, but there were signs of gnawing everywhere.
’It seems the Water Lizard King discovered this mine.’
’It must have made this place its lair and grown so massive by devouring the vast quantities of ore here.’
Unfortunately, what was once a complete Celestial Essence Ore deposit had been almost entirely consumed by the Water Lizard King. However, even the little that remained was a considerable haul for Shen Daoxing. The ore here was special—Spirit Stones refined from it contained five times the Primordial Energy of common Spirit Stones.
A black light flashed.
Shen Daoxing drew his Great Ming Demon Sparrow and, with a BOOM, blasted a chunk of ore from the wall.
He then waved a hand, collecting the ore into his Sumeru Ring.
The ore needed to be refined to become true Spirit Stones, but he didn’t have time for that now.
Before long, Shen Daoxing had filled his Sumeru Ring to the brim.
At that moment, he remembered the real reason he had come: the Wind Attribute Demon Core.
So, Shen Daoxing walked back to the Water Lizard King’s dismembered corpse. He raised his Great Ming Demon Sparrow and prodded the remains, causing a dazzling, cyan orb to roll out.
The cyan orb was translucent, and a brilliant light faintly pulsed from within.
This was the Water Lizard King’s Demon Core.
Shen Daoxing reached out to take it.
Suddenly, a black shadow zipped past.
The Demon Core before him vanished.
Shen Daoxing looked up to see a tiny mouse had appeared before him.
The mouse was no bigger than his palm. It was entirely gray and looked ordinary, except for its pair of golden eyes. The Water Lizard King’s Demon Core was now in its paws.
Without a moment’s hesitation, the gray rat opened its mouth and swallowed the Demon Core. It then gave its belly a contented pat.
"You little...!"
It took Shen Daoxing a moment to react. Then, he raised the Great Ming Demon Sparrow in his hand and swung it down fiercely.
With a WHOOSH, the gray rat transformed into a black shadow and shot away at an incredible speed.
"That’s a Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat!"
At that moment, the faint voice of the Blood Dragon suddenly echoed in Shen Daoxing’s mind.
"Even in the Upper Realm, that is an incredibly rare demon beast. To think one would appear here... Kid, catch it! That’s a Treasure-Seeking Divine Beast! It possesses the Racial Innate Divine Technique of Celestial Fate, which allows it to locate any and all supreme treasures. The previous Venerable Supreme had a Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat just like it, and it helped him find countless treasures."
’Oh, a Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat!’
Shen Daoxing’s interest was instantly piqued. He raised two fingers, and a point of light flared to life before his Aurora Sword Intent shot out in a flash.
At the same time, he gave his hand a light toss, and the shimmering Venerable Dharma Seal also flew out.
The Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat was tiny and even faster than the Water Lizard King. With a zip and a twist of its body, it dodged the Aurora Sword Intent. Then, its limbs tapped against the cavern wall, and with a faint flash, it easily evaded the Venerable Dharma Seal’s strike as well.
The Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat then landed on the ground, aimed its rear end at Shen Daoxing, and gave its tail a smug little wag.
Shen Daoxing laughed in exasperation. With a flick of his hand, he sent the Venerable Dharma Seal crashing down on it again.
But in a flash of gray light, the Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat had already leaped out of the way.
In the cavern’s faint, shimmering light, the Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat’s eyes lit up as it spotted a Celestial Essence Ore embedded in the wall. It pounced joyfully.
Shen Daoxing gestured with his hand, summoning the Venerable Dharma Seal again and sending it flying with a WHOOSH.
Seeing the Venerable Dharma Seal approach, the Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat showed no panic. It bared its sharp teeth and, with a CRUNCH CRUNCH, shattered the Celestial Essence Ore. It swallowed every last bit just as the Venerable Dharma Seal was about to strike.
Only then did it leisurely flash away as a gray shadow, landing on another chunk of ore.
Shen Daoxing froze for a second, then laughed in exasperation.
’It’s trying to compete with me for the Celestial Essence Ore!’
’I can’t let this stand.’
He saw the Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat about to lay waste to another piece of Celestial Essence Ore.
Shen Daoxing acted first. He sent his Sumeru Ring flying into the air. A powerful suction force erupted from it, instantly pulling the Celestial Essence Ore inside.
The Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat pounced on empty space, and its fur immediately stood on end.
"SQUEAK SQUEAK!"
It squeaked angrily at Shen Daoxing a few times, then flashed away as a gray shadow, pouncing toward another chunk of ore.
Shen Daoxing hurriedly raised his Great Ming Demon Sparrow and sent it shooting out with a WHOOSH.
With a flick of its tail, the Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat actually smacked the approaching Great Ming Demon Sparrow aside with a loud CRACK.
And so, the man and the rat, one large and one small, frantically competed for the Celestial Essence Ore within the cavern.
Before long, the already scarce Celestial Essence Ore in the cavern had been completely divided between them.
The sound of "SQUEAK SQUEAK SQUEAK!" rang out.
The Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat stood on its hind legs atop a rock, its tail held high. It hopped up and down in anger, squeaking incessantly as if furious that Shen Daoxing had stolen its belongings.
All of a sudden, its figure blurred. It pounced onto Shen Daoxing’s body, bared its sharp teeth, and lunged for the Sumeru Ring on his hand, trying to snatch away the Celestial Essence Ore within it.
’The nerve!’
’So audacious!’
After a brief moment of shock, Shen Daoxing raised his Great Ming Demon Sparrow and abruptly swung it down.
BANG!
A cyan light flared up around the Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat. Shen Daoxing’s Great Ming Demon Sparrow made contact with a soft thud and was actually repelled.
’The Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat’s power is surprisingly high.’
The Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat then lifted its head and shot Shen Daoxing a look of contempt.
It let out a few squeaks, "SQUEAK SQUEAK SQUEAK," as if declaring its ownership of the Celestial Essence Ore. Then it opened its mouth, bared its sharp teeth, and lunged for Shen Daoxing’s Sumeru Ring once more.
Shen Daoxing wasn’t about to be polite any longer. He raised the Venerable Dharma Seal high as it blazed with brilliant white light, then smashed it down onto the Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat.
BANG!
The rat tumbled through the air, tracing a graceful arc before crashing to the ground with a thud.
WHOOSH!
It landed on all fours, instantly arching its back. Every hair on its body stood on end as it glared fiercely at Shen Daoxing, baring its teeth defiantly.
The next moment, it shot through the air, pounced, and sank its teeth into Shen Daoxing’s arm.
"SQUEAK SQUEAK SQUEAK!"
The Golden-Eyed Treasure-Seeking Rat squealed viciously.
Shen Daoxing looked down to see beads of blood welling up on his arm. It had actually bitten through his defenses.
’This little guy!’