Chapter 71 - 70: The Torch Dragon

Chapter 71: Chapter 70: The Torch Dragon

Gu Qingyin knew the hidden Fierce Beast was toying with her, but she had no choice but to give chase. She let her anger simmer, and at the same time, she secretly slapped a Gathering Evil Talisman onto the Curse Doll.

’The Evil Qi here is dense. It’d be a waste not to use it.’

With the boost from the Evil Qi, the Curse Doll’s power gradually overwhelmed the "plate." The very second the Curse Doll gained the complete upper hand, Gu Qingyin clearly sensed the aura of the Ancient Fierce Beast.

She snapped her head up and shot forward before she even had time to pinpoint its location.

The Fierce Beast hiding in the shadows was dumbfounded. It didn’t understand how it had been so suddenly discovered despite hiding so well. And now its lair was exposed!

The Fierce Beast glanced back at its prey inside the cave, conflicted over whether or not to take them along.

’That Heavenly Master outside is vicious. If I hadn’t gotten lucky last time, I’d be dead. I finally found this perfect spot to recover, and she tracked me down again like a lingering spirit. So annoying.’

’If I take the prey with me, I’ll definitely be slower. But if I don’t... wasn’t capturing them a complete waste of effort? Besides, it’s been so long since I’ve tasted human flesh. I knew I shouldn’t have waited for some auspicious time. I should have eaten them the moment I caught them!’

This all sounds like a lot, but these thoughts flashed through the Fierce Beast’s mind in a single instant.

But because of that single moment of hesitation, the Fierce Beast had lost its chance to escape.

Gu Qingyin arrived with unexpected speed, storming into the cave from outside in the blink of an eye.

The second she got a clear look at the Fierce Beast inside the cave, Gu Qingyin’s eyes turned red. "So it IS you!" she roared.

A long, dark red serpent was coiled inside the cave. Its exact length was impossible to tell, but its body was clearly wide—even wider than Tian Gang’s exaggeratedly broad shoulders. Most astonishing of all, it had a human face!

A snake’s body with a human face—it was the Ancient Fierce Beast, the Candle Dragon!

According to legend, the Candle Dragon possessed the power to create worlds. When it opened its eyes, it was day; when it closed them, it was night. It also had the ability to travel through time and space, making it an incredibly powerful Fierce Beast in ancient times.

But by the present day, most of the ancient Fierce Beasts and divine beasts had been lost to the river of time. Those that barely managed to survive no longer possessed their former earth-shattering abilities.

Besides, the Candle Dragon before her was only a juvenile.

Aside from its instinctual ability to flee by traversing time and space, the most formidable part of its body was its claws. It hadn’t even awakened the Fire Spirit unique to Candle Dragons.

If it hadn’t been so fast at running away, Gu Qingyin would never have chased it into a Different Space all those years ago, wasting twenty years of her life. The memory still left a suffocating frustration in her heart.

Back then, Gu Qingyin had thought she had killed the culprit, leaving her with no target for her pent-up rage. Now, discovering that the Candle Dragon was not only alive but had also captured her son, new hatred piled on top of old grievances. Gu Qingyin wanted nothing more than to flay the Candle Dragon, rip out its tendons, and grind its bones into dust.

Gu Qingyin casually tossed aside the plate with the doll pinned to it and drew a completely black... Fire Burning Stick? from her satchel. With a single stride, she charged toward the Candle Dragon.

At the same time, to prevent the Candle Dragon from escaping, Gu Qingyin’s other hand was tracing runes in the empty air.

The Curse Doll was still exerting its power, as the energy on the "plate" was still putting up a desperate resistance.

As a result, the Candle Dragon was exceptionally unlucky.

Seeing Gu Qingyin charge at it, the Candle Dragon immediately rose, intending to activate its Space Power and flee—it had experienced the might of that Fire Burning Stick before. A single strike could send a huge patch of its scales flying, and it hurt like hell.

But just as it got up, it felt its tail tighten as if something had grabbed it. It instinctively yanked, and a piercing, heart-stopping pain shot up from its tail, causing it to let out an irrepressible, wretched scream.

A glint flashed in Gu Qingyin’s eyes as her finger drew the final stroke. The rune hovering at her fingertip suddenly erupted with light, then abruptly expanded and merged completely with the surrounding void.

Seeing this, a look of resentful hatred flashed in the Candle Dragon’s eyes. ’This trick again!’

This was the same move that had sealed the void last time, causing its spatial jump to fail and nearly killing it. It had only managed to escape by using its last ounce of strength to open a Different Space.

’But I’m not the same dragon I was twenty years ago! I won’t give this Heavenly Master a single chance to hurt me!’

The Candle Dragon decisively lowered its head and bit down on the Reversed Scale on its chest. A flash of fear crossed its eyes, but it firmly ripped the scale off. The instant blood sprayed out, a pitch-black hole appeared in the void.

The Candle Dragon’s eyes lit up as it lunged for the opening.

But it had forgotten one thing: its tail was still not free.

This unhesitating lunge once again sent a tearing sensation through its tail. It howled, "AOWWW AOWWW," the intense pain igniting the ferocious nature and survival instinct in its blood. Far from giving up, it put even more force into its charge toward the black hole.

Gu Qingyin, however, stared at the black hole with lingering fear. The last time, she had followed the Candle Dragon into a black hole without a second thought, and when she emerged, twenty years had passed.

She carefully skirted the black hole, then leaped up, raised the Fire Burning Stick, and brought it down on the Candle Dragon, whose body was now stretched taut!

After the blow, scales flew everywhere, and the Candle Dragon’s wretched screams grew even louder. It could have escaped, but because its tail was snagged, it had no choice but to take the hit.

A vicious glint flashed in the Candle Dragon’s eyes. Its body twisted and began to spin. A hair-raising ripping sound of flesh and sinew followed, and the Candle Dragon was finally free. After forcefully enduring one more blow from Gu Qingyin’s stick, it successfully entered the black hole!

Gu Qingyin watched the black hole, which had not yet fully closed. The light in her pupils flickered, but in the end, she did not give chase.

’Trading twenty years for the Candle Dragon’s life isn’t worth it.’

A little deeper inside the cave, Gu Qingyin found Huo Xinghai. The boy was fine, just unconscious.

Lin Xiaoyun and the cameraman were there too. Both looked to be in a sorry state, with numerous scratches on their bodies, but thankfully, their lives were not in danger.

Gu Qingyin sighed in relief. She walked over to where the Candle Dragon had severed its tail and began to dig at the spot with her stick.

The Candle Dragon’s powers may have degenerated, but its flesh, blood, and scales were all valuable materials. ’No one’s paying me a Fate Fee for this trip, so I’ll have to provide for myself.’