Chapter 116: DEMONIC LIZARD(4)

The battle outside the cave continued as Meng Jiali and Li Hanye attacked the rank-nine lizard from different directions. Their stronger techniques managed to force the creature backward, but its scales remained difficult to penetrate.

The other disciples also joined the attack whenever they found an opening, yet none of their techniques caused serious injuries. The poisonous miasma surrounding the lizard made the situation more difficult because everyone had to use spiritual Qi to protect their bodies while fighting.

Meng Jiali gathered spiritual Qi around her weapon and struck forward. "Heavenly Falling Star!"

The attack descended with enough force to shake the ground beneath them and struck the lizard across its back. Its huge body moved several steps backward, but when the dust settled, only a shallow mark remained on its scales.

Li Hanye followed with a stronger technique. "Seven Moon Splitting Strike!"

His attack struck the lizard from the front and pushed it farther away from the cave entrance. The creature steadied itself and opened its mouth, releasing another wave of venom that spread through the air. Everyone immediately retreated from the poisonous cloud while circulating spiritual Qi through their bodies.

Li Yan remained behind the others and watched the battle carefully. His cultivation had improved after spending three months training inside the mythical space, but he knew that his current strength was still insufficient to fight a rank-nine demonic beast directly. His dragon-scale armor could protect him from some of the cold and venom, which gave him an advantage, but he did not want to rely on it more than necessary.

He covered his nose and mouth with a piece of cloth and waited for the lizard to become distracted by Li Hanye and Meng Jiali.

The two core disciples continued attacking from the front, preventing the creature from approaching the others. When the lizard turned its attention toward Li Hanye, Li Yan used his lightness technique to move toward the cave entrance and slipped inside without attracting its attention.

The interior of the cave was much larger than Li Yan had expected. Several chambers connected to the main passage, and the walls were filled with spiritual stones that provided enough light for him to see the treasures scattered throughout the area.

There were chests filled with unknown objects, piles of coins, weapons, and various treasures that the lizard had apparently collected over a long period.

Li Yan did not stop to inspect them because something else soon caught his attention. The farther he walked into the cave, the warmer the air became, which was strange considering the freezing temperature outside.

After moving deeper into the cave, he discovered the reason for the warmth when he saw a large nest surrounded by stones and other treasures.

Another lizard was lying beside the nest and guarding a huge egg.

Li Yan immediately realized that the lizard inside the cave was the female, which meant the lizard fighting the disciples outside was the male. The arrangement also explained why the male had remained outside instead of returning to the nest. It had been guarding the entrance while its partner stayed inside to protect their egg.

When the male had noticed the group approaching the cave, its earlier screech must have been a warning to the female that there were intruders nearby.

Li Yan carefully observed the female while remaining near the wall. The warmth inside the cave now made sense because the female needed a suitable environment for the egg to develop. The treasure surrounding the nest also explained why the lizards had chosen this place as their territory.

The female eventually noticed him and raised her head. Li Yan tightened his grip around Fan Jian while keeping his distance.

"Xiaoxiao, what should I do?" Li Yan asked quietly.

"You cannot fight her directly," Xiaoxiao replied. "Her cultivation is higher than yours, and her venom is dangerous enough to kill you if you make a mistake. You need to find a way to attack her without allowing her to trap you."

Li Yan understood her concern, but the female lizard did not give him enough time to think. She opened her mouth and released a stream of venom toward him. He immediately moved aside, and the venom struck the stone wall behind him. The surface of the stone began to corrode as soon as the poisonous liquid touched it.

Li Yan became more careful as he watched the damage. His armor could protect him from some of the poison, but he could not assume it would completely block the venom of a rank-nine demonic beast.

The female lizard charged toward him, forcing Li Yan to move around the chamber while avoiding her claws and tail. He used his lightness technique to maintain enough distance before raising Fan Jian and gathering his fire attribute around the blade.

"Nine Heavens Blazing Sun Attack!"

Nine sword attacks appeared almost simultaneously and struck the female lizard from different directions. The force of the attacks shook the cave, but her scales blocked most of the damage. Li Yan watched the results carefully and realized that his current strength was still insufficient to break through her defenses.

"Your normal attacks will not break those scales," Xiaoxiao told him. "You need to attack her neck. It is less protected than the rest of her body, but an ordinary sword would still break if you tried to cut through it."

Li Yan looked at Fan Jian before studying the female lizard again. He knew that reaching her neck would not be easy because she could attack him with her claws, tail, and venom whenever he approached.

Before he could decide what to do next, he suddenly felt heat spreading through his body. His bloodline, which was initially dominant, began reacting to something inside the cave. Li Yan turned toward the corpses and skeletons scattered across the chamber. The remaining spiritual Qi inside those bodies had begun moving toward him.

Li Yan could feel the energy entering his body as his Devouring Phoenix bloodline absorbed it. His meridians and dantian began circulating the additional Qi, causing his strength to increase.

"Xiaoxiao, what is happening?" Li Yan asked.

"Your Devouring Phoenix bloodline is absorbing the remaining Qi from the corpses and skeletons," Xiaoxiao answered. "You should be careful because your body is taking in too much energy at once."

Li Yan knew he had no way to stop the bloodline once it began devouring the Qi. The energy continued flowing into his body, and the change also affected Fan Jian. The sword began vibrating in his hand as its blade released stronger spiritual pressure.

The female lizard noticed the change and immediately attacked him. Li Yan moved away from her claws while using his lightness technique to avoid her tail. The creature struck the stone wall, causing several pieces of rock to fall from above.

Li Yan moved away from the falling debris and continued watching the lizard. The increase in his strength gave him a better chance of injuring her, but he understood that it came with a risk. The bloodline had absorbed a large amount of Qi in a short period, and he could not predict how severe the backlash would be once the effect ended.

He therefore decided that he needed to finish the fight as quickly as possible. If he allowed the battle to continue for too long, the female lizard could take advantage of the backlash and kill him.

The female lizard released another stream of venom while advancing toward him. Li Yan avoided the attack and continued searching for an opportunity to reach her neck. He did not have enough strength to overpower her, so he needed to rely on his sword technique, his lightness technique, and his knowledge of the creature’s weaknesses.

Another screech came from outside the cave, and the female lizard briefly turned her attention toward the entrance. Li Yan realized that the male outside was warning her about the ongoing battle.

The momentary distraction gave Li Yan enough room to move. He gathered the spiritual Qi flowing through his body into Fan Jian while keeping his attention fixed on the exposed part of the female lizard’s neck.

He knew that Fan Jian could withstand the force of the attack, but his cultivation was still too low to use the sword’s full potential. Even so, the energy his bloodline had absorbed had given him a temporary increase in strength, and he intended to use that opportunity before the backlash could affect his body.

Li Yan adjusted his grip on Fan Jian and prepared to attack the female lizard’s neck.