Death... and me

Kentucky was alarmed and immediately hardened his feathers, transforming them into blades.

*Bang!*

*Argghh!*

The attack power was so high that Kentucky's entire body was launched like a cannonball. One must remember that as a Stage Eight Demon Beast, Kentucky's body and weight was enormous. Not to mention that his defense was even higher than the twins and their Third Grade Star Body. If the attack could do that, then the enemy was definitely at the Void Tempering Realm at the very least.

Seeing that, Rean and Roan used their Divine Soul Power to grab Luan while they held on Kentucky's back. However, they didn't have time to think much. As soon as the first attack came, several more enemies appeared, jumping out of the white powder below as they quickly attacked Kentucky.

"Fuck!"

The very first attack had already broken several of Kentucky's blade feathers and the scales under them, leaving quite the injury. At this moment, one could only imagine how Kentucky would end up if he was hit by all of that at once.

Without thinking twice, Kentucky's body burst into black and white flames before he flapped his wings with as much strength as possible. That forcefully changed Kentucky and the group in his back's direction. However, some of the creatures that were coming for Kentucky were even faster and adapted to Kentucky's reaction.

'Death Style, First Defensive Form, Reversive Arcs!'

Of course, Rean and Roan wouldn't just idly watch as Kentucky was attacked. Their sword and scythe danced in the air, creating hundreds of black and white threads surrounding all sides. Surprisingly though, the creatures' attacks also broke through the threads, hitting Kentucky's body once again.

*Bang, bang, bang, bang...*

Fortunately, the Reversive Arcs reduced their strength by a lot before they hit Kentucky. With Kentucky's own defense, he was able to withstand the attacks with just a few of his blade feathers being broken. No injuries were inflicted whatsoever.

*Crack... shatter!*

*Shatter!*

*Shatter!*

After those attacks, the twins' group could finally make sense of what was hitting them. The creatures were made of white powder and had taken on the shapes of various animals. However, as soon as they hit the target, they would break down into white powder again before falling to the ground. It was as if all they knew were suicide attacks. 

Rean then yelled, "Kentucky, fly up. I don't think these things can fly."

Kentucky didn't think twice and shot in the ceiling's direction. However, they were too naive. The creatures quickly took the shape of flying demon beasts, with some even copying Kentucky's form, and immediately gave chase.

*Creeeeee!*

In response to the abrupt change, Kentucky released his black and white flames on them, hindering their attacks. The twins, of course, helped Kentucky.

'Death Style, Third Form, Three Claws of the Dragon!'

'Life Fire, Third Form, Flaming Blade Arc!'

*Swish, swish, swish...*

*Boom, boom, boom...*

Broken white powder birds fell from the air as even more began to take the form of birds below before taking flight. There was one good thing, though.

"They get weaker the further away they get from the river," Roan said.

Rean and Kentucky agreed with him. They also noticed the difference in attack power now that Kentucky was several tens of meters away from the river. However, there was a problem. Because they were moving all around, it was becoming more and more difficult to keep the floating white powder away. If it continued like that, they would eventually be affected by it and start to transform into salt statues.

"Should we fly away from this place first?" Kentucky asked while he dodged and attacked the flying white powder creatures.

The twins nodded without thinking twice. "Yes, let's head back to the sea. Even though the hole before us closed, it shouldn't be as hard to open it again."

Kentucky then changed direction and flew to the part of the ceiling from where they first entered the cave. This time, the twins' group didn't try to slowly open a hole with Earth Element. Instead, they directly attacked it, trying to open a hole by force.

'Death Style, Sixth Form, Destroyer!'

'Life Fire, Second Form, White Stellar Explosion!'

*Boom!*

The ceiling trembled as the power of Divine Energy swept everything around, even the white powder birds that were flying in their direction. However...

"That's not good."

The ceiling that they found quite easy to pass through when they came in now didn't have a single scratch on it. Instead, Rean saw the natural formation's runes shining on it as Divine Energy fortified them. "This is pure bullshit. These runes weren't even present outside. Can a natural formation really take on the form of a trap?"

*Flap, flap, flap...*

"Forget it. The white powder birds are coming back." Roan immediately gave up trying to flee through the ceiling. Since it wasn't possible, they had to do something else. "Kentucky, follow the river. We'll focus on defending against the creatures."

"On it!" The white river continued as far as the light of Rean's light sphere could reach. Everything else was covered in white powder.

Suddenly, Luan's voice appeared, telling them, "Kentucky, fly close to the ground by the river's side."

"What?!" Kentucky was taken aback. The creatures were taking form on the ground, plus they were more powerful there.

However, Rean and Roan thought Luan had a reason to say that. "Just do as he says."

With that, Kentucky steeled his mind and immediately dove down before he started to follow the river's side, flying close to the ground. Sure enough, not only did the white powder creatures become stronger, but the other creatures could also attack from below.

*Swish, swish, swish...*

*Bang, bang, bang...*

Naturally, it became harder for them to defend against the creatures' attacks. However, it didn't take long for the twins to understand why Luan said that. "The concentration of white powder in the air is a lot smaller closer to the ground."

That meant the twins and Kentucky had a much easier time keeping the white powder in the air away from their bodies. At the very least, they wouldn't need to be afraid of being transformed into salt statues even though the creatures got stronger.. Without a doubt, it was a worthwhile trade-off since the twins could at least defend against the creatures, unlike with the white powder in the air.