Chapter 175: Underground Barrier

The White Dragon Lord weighed his options. Having used its black mist ability three times, Yuir had to be nearing its physical limit. He only needed to catch up to capture it.

If Yuir escaped this time, the panther would be on guard from now on. He would never find such a perfect opportunity again.

Moreover, this ambush had offended the Nether Panther to the core. If he didn't capture it now...

The White Dragon Lord's head throbbed at the mere thought. Having an entity more terrifying than an ordinary Legendary Rank assassin lurking within White Castle's territory, wreaking havoc on dark and windy nights, would be an absolute nightmare.

Sensing that the Nether Panther was about to slip beyond the range of his spiritual power, Amos stopped hesitating.

"Stand guard here. I'll go after it. This cave might just be a dead end."

"Yes!"

Shrinking his frame, the White Dragon Lord swept aside the vines concealing the entrance and darted into the cave, racing after the fleeing Nether Panther.

Hearing rapid footsteps closing in from behind, the Nether Panther—Yuir—felt incredibly wronged and let out a furious roar over its shoulder.

"Roar! Roar! Roar!" (Why are you still chasing me?!)

The White Dragon Lord blanked for a moment.

"I want Jizhi Cough Syrup!"

One fled desperately in front, while the other pursued relentlessly from behind.

Amos soon realized that the deeper they went, the wider the cave became. Eventually, he no longer needed Polymorph to shrink his size.

It felt exactly like the passage leading to Dark Furnace Fortress.

Mentally calculating the distance from their current location to Dark Furnace Fortress, Amos figured out what lay at the end of the tunnel. It was a section of the Dark Lands situated relatively close to the duergar city. After all, the old Dark Furnace Fortress had once connected to multiple regions of the Dark Lands.

Having reverted to his original size, the White Dragon chased wildly through the caverns. Soon enough, he spotted the Nether Panther up ahead.

Yuir panicked. It hurriedly used Shadow Shuttle to widen the gap. Although it had exhausted its black mist ability several times, using Shadow Shuttle in a pitch-black environment drained very little energy. It could still hold on for a while longer.

The White Dragon Lord grew increasingly annoyed as the chase dragged on. This black-furred panther was as slippery as a loach, constantly using Shadow Shuttle to escape just as he was about to catch it.

Finally, the black panther reached the end of the tunnel and slammed to a halt.

The path downward was completely submerged in seawater.

Seeing the Nether Panther halt, the White Dragon Lord felt a flicker of confusion. But as his gaze landed on the pool of water blocking the way, he instantly understood why it had stopped.

Unlike Dark Furnace Fortress, this section of the Dark Lands had completely flooded.

He was just about to lunge forward when he stopped himself. If he chased it over there now, what would stop the Nether Panther from using Shadow Shuttle to teleport behind him?

At that thought, the White Dragon Lord rapidly chanted an incantation.

Boom!

An Explosive Flame Spell shot from his claw, collapsing the tunnel behind him.

Although White Dragons specialized in ice magic, Amos was familiar with a few common spells from other elements.

His power with other elements was nowhere near his mastery over ice, but a single Explosive Flame Spell was still enough to cave in a tunnel completely devoid of magical defenses.

Boulders sealed the path behind the White Dragon Lord, sending loose rubble tumbling down the passage and splashing into the seawater.

Since his spellcasting level was high anyway, he could just use Teleportation to leave once he caught the Nether Panther.

Or so the White Dragon Lord thought.

With the tunnel collapsed, the White Dragon Lord felt victory in his grasp. He advanced step by step.

"Run! Why aren't you running anymore?!"

Right as he spoke, the Nether Panther gritted its teeth and dove headfirst into the water.

Holy shit!

Amos had never expected Yuir to actually have the guts to challenge a water-element True Dragon to a swimming contest.

The White Dragon Lord quickly dove in after it.

Plunging into the water, the White Dragon swung his massive tail and used his wings like oars, surging toward the Nether Panther as it frantically dog-paddled ahead.

He was right on its tail when he suddenly felt himself pass through a barrier. Startled, he violently whipped his tail to accelerate, shooting forward and snatching the Nether Panther in his grip.

Caught in the White Dragon Lord's grip, the Nether Panther thrashed wildly.

The White Dragon Lord tightened his grip slightly, delivering a stern warning, and Yuir stopped struggling.

Pinching the Nether Panther, the White Dragon swam back toward the tunnel entrance.

Suddenly, he felt the barrier block his path. He quickly placed his free claw against it, attempting to sense its composition.

The moment his spiritual power brushed the barrier, a wave of profound malice washed over him. Startled, the White Dragon instantly severed the mental connection.

'Damn it! This is the aura of the Abyss!'

The White Dragon Lord's expression darkened. From that brief contact, Amos realized it would be impossible for him to break this barrier in a short amount of time.

Moreover, he absolutely refused to believe a place like this was left unguarded by a powerhouse.

Water avoidance boundary!

A massive spherical force field manifested, pushing away the surrounding seawater and enveloping the White Dragon and Yuir.

His face grim, the White Dragon Lord pulled out a Dragon Tooth inscribed with a magic array and spoke in a low, heavy tone.

"Yuir, you must have felt the abyssal aura on this barrier. I don't have time to waste with you! Submit, or die!"

Yuir froze, then inwardly roared. 'Big brother! Why didn't you just say so?! You chased me so relentlessly, I thought you were trying to kill me!'

The Nether Panther nodded frantically.

The White Dragon Lord found it odd. How did this stubborn panther, who had fought so desperately to escape, surrender so quickly?

But given the current situation, Amos didn't have the luxury to overthink it. He had just triggered the barrier and likely alerted its creator. Someone was bound to come and investigate soon.

"Do not resist, or you die."

The White Dragon pressed the Dragon Tooth against the Nether Panther's forehead.

As the Nether Panther underwent its dragon bloodline transformation, the White Dragon Lord rapidly chanted an incantation.

When the incantation was finished, the expected Portal did not appear.

The White Dragon Lord's expression turned incredibly sour. This barrier actually blocked Teleportation.

Amos quickly pulled out a councilor's Golden Badge and attempted to contact the Tower Spirit, but that failed as well.

'Damn it! The Tower Spirit's signal is completely blocked too!'

Amos realized that this section of the Dark Lands had to be extremely important to the Demon faction. He had accidentally stumbled into a massive conspiracy.

'No, I need to find a place to hide quickly.'

The White Dragon Lord dispelled the Water avoidance boundary and used Polymorph to shrink his size. Masking both of their magical fluctuations, he dragged the Nether Panther down into the thick muck at the bottom of the seabed. Like a lurking crocodile, he buried himself, leaving only his eyes exposed above the silt.

A short while later, a black silhouette came swimming out from the deep water.

As the black, fish-like figure drew closer, the White Dragon Lord finally recognized its species.

A Benthic Demon Fish!

However, this Benthic Demon Fish was significantly smaller than the one that used to rule the coastal waters of Kumlinge.

It was an immature Benthic Demon Fish!

As the Benthic Demon Fish swam directly over the White Dragon Lord, Amos sensed an unusual aura radiating from its body.

It was the scent of a Demon!

This was a corrupted, immature Benthic Demon Fish!

The Benthic Demon Fish were a powerful race that naturally possessed Legendary Rank strength upon reaching the Adult stage.

However, compared to the Dragon Race, their numbers were far scarcer. There were fewer than a hundred of them in the entire plane, and most dwelled within the waters of the Underworld, hidden from outsiders.

This particular Benthic Demon Fish, having just passed its Childhood Stage, swam over in a leisurely, carefree manner.

Suddenly, it noticed the boulders that had tumbled into the water when the White Dragon's Explosive Flame Spell collapsed the tunnel. Its eyes lit up.

The White Dragon Lord knew things were about to go south, and he secretly gathered his strength.