Chapter 118: The Savage Flood Dragon

Upon seeing those two red glints, a sense of foreboding rose in the hearts of the men below.

The next moment, a roar echoed through the air. A massive, blood-dripping maw appeared behind the sect elder.

"Fourth Elder, watch out behind you!"
"Fourth Elder, there's a beast!"

Mo Xingtian and the others saw the gaping maw and instantly realized that the two red glints they had seen earlier were not anything else, but the eyes of a demonic beast.

"What? A beast?"

Hearing this, the Fourth Elder immediately controlled his body to look behind him. In the next second, a serpentine beast with its blood-stained jaws wide open filled his vision. At that moment, he felt like nothing more than an ant before this creature.

"Sect Master, save me!"

Unable to muster any will to resist, the Fourth Elder could only plead for help from the Sect Master and the other elders behind him. However, the moment his voice fell, a crisp "crunch" resonated—the Fourth Elder was swallowed whole by the beast, leaving not a trace of his remains.

"Fourth Elder!"
"Fourth Elder!"

Seeing the Fourth Elder of the sect swallowed by the beast, Mo Xingtian was consumed with fury. The other elders of the Azure Cloud Sword Sect felt the same.

Just then, a massive figure darted through the toxic mist. Everyone could not clearly see what kind of beast it was, only that it was immense.

"Elders, do not panic! Form the sword array with me," Mo Xingtian commanded at this critical juncture.

Hearing this, the elders nodded one after another and quickly drew their swords. But just as they drew their blades, a tail swept out from the mist. Forced to react, they had no choice but to brace themselves with their swords.

"Bang!"

Following a thunderous crash, Mo Xingtian and the others were all sent flying by the sweep of the beast's tail.

"Pfft!"
"Pfft!"

...

Except for the Sect Master, Mo Xingtian, the other elders of the Azure Cloud Sword Sect felt a surge of metallic sweetness in their throats the moment they landed, and they violently spat out mouthfuls of blood.

"Are you elders all right?" Mo Xingtian asked.

"We are fine," one elder replied quickly. "Sect Master, this beast must be a serpent-type demon. The Tuoluo Flower is one of the favorite spiritual herbs of snakes; it seems this is the guardian beast of the flower."

No wonder they hadn't seen any large predators since they entered, save for some small, crawling venomous insects. It turned out that such a terrifying beast resided here.

"Elders, join me in forming the Azure Cloud Defensive Sword Array!" Mo Xingtian roared.

The situation allowed for no further deliberation; if they did not form the array quickly, they would be picked off one by one until their entire force was annihilated.

"Understood."

The remaining four elders agreed. The next moment, the five of them cast their swords into the air and began to weave hand seals rapidly.

"Hum—"

The five swords flashed with blue light under their control, their blades trembling violently. Immediately after, the swords descended from the sky, hovering above their heads.

"Azure Cloud Sword Array, activate!"

Led by Mo Xingtian, the four elders shouted in unison. A moment later, the five flying swords rapidly converged into a circle. A blinding blue light exploded outward, and the defensive sword array was formed. The array enveloped the five men, who held their hands high, continuously channeling their strength into the formation.

Just then, "Bang! Crack!"

The serpentine beast's tail struck again, and a fissure instantly appeared in the defensive array under the force of the blow.

"Sect Master, what do we do now? This beast's strength is far too great; our sword array cannot hold for much longer!" one sect elder said with a grave expression.

The beast's strength was far beyond theirs. If they could not find a way to break the deadlock, they would all die here.

"Maintain the formation for now while I think," Mo Xingtian gritted out.

Among the five, he was the strongest, a mid-stage Martial King, while two of the others were early-stage Martial Kings. The last two were at the peak of the Martial Grandmaster realm. Even with such a lineup, they could not gain the slightest advantage against this beast. It was highly likely that this was a Tier 2 demonic beast.

Demonic beasts were divided into five tiers: a Tier 1 beast was equivalent to a human Martial King, a Tier 2 to a Martial Emperor, and so on. Given that this beast could crush them so easily, it was likely a Tier 2.

...

Meanwhile, Su Yifan walked into the Valley of Reincarnation, feeling only the oppressive, gloomy air. Not only that, but the place was deathly silent.

"This is... toxic mist."

Su Yifan sniffed the air casually and discovered that the mist contained a potent toxin. Fortunately, having consumed various spiritual herbs during his years on the mountain, his body was already immune to all poisons. The mist here, though toxic, could not harm him in the slightest.

After walking a hundred meters inside, Su Yifan hadn't seen a single living thing—not even a plant. It was to be expected; to survive in this toxic fog, one had to be inherently poisonous or possess the ability to resist the toxins. Otherwise, survival was impossible.

Suddenly, "Boom!"

Su Yifan sensed the shockwaves of a battle coming from ahead. Seeing this, he immediately released his divine sense to scan the area and quickly locked onto the location of the fight.

"I imagine these are the people from the Azure Cloud Sword Sect," he mused. "Oh? I didn't expect there to be a Python-Dragon beast here. Looking at the horns on its head, it should be nearing the level of a Tier 3 beast."

Su Yifan said this with a faint smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. A beast nearing Tier 3 was comparable to the strength of a Golden Core cultivator. If he consumed its demonic core, he might even be able to break through another small realm.

Thinking of this, he moved forward, covering dozens of meters with every step.

...

On the other side, the defensive sword array above Mo Xingtian and his men was now covered in multiple cracks.

"Sect Master, have you thought of anything? This formation can hold for one more strike at most," an elder said.

The others were equally grim. If they had known it would come to this, they would have looked for an exit rather than obsessing over the Tuoluo Flower. But it was too late for regrets now; they were at the mercy of fate.

"Fifth Elder, when the formation breaks, I and the other elders will distract this beast. You must find an exit immediately," Mo Xingtian commanded.

Given the current situation, this was the only option. If the Fifth Elder could find an exit in a short time, they might be able to escape with their speed. It was the best plan he could conceive.

"Understood," the Fifth Elder nodded.

Just then, another roar echoed: "ROAR!"

A giant tail descended from the sky, slamming down toward their formation.

"Everyone, get ready," Mo Xingtian said, swallowing hard.
"Understood," the four elders replied in unison.

The next second, "Bang!"

With a deafening crash, the formation shattered instantly, and the five men were sent flying over a dozen meters away. Because their vision was obscured by the mist, they couldn't clearly see the beast's figure.

"Bang!"

A sect elder was swept away by the beast's tail and smashed heavily into a nearby boulder, fainting instantly.

"Everyone, watch out! The beast is trying to pick us off one by one!"

Mo Xingtian realized only now that his plan had been naive. In this environment, they were in the light and the beast was in the dark. Without being able to see the opponent, coordinated combat was impossible, let alone distraction.

"Bang! Bang!"

Two more sect elders were sent flying, their survival uncertain.

"Damn beast, you're courting death!"

Mo Xingtian was furious. He leaped up, waving his longsword to strike at the air above. However, as he reached the mid-air, he realized that what lay before him was not the beast's tail, but its head.

"ROAR—"

The beast roared, opening its blood-stained jaws to snap at Mo Xingtian.

"What!"

Mo Xingtian was startled. He tried to retreat, but he was in mid-air, and although he could fly, his speed could not match the beast's.

*Is this really how I die?*

As Mo Xingtian turned, he was already deep within the beast's massive mouth. *Daughter, goodbye. Father can no longer accompany you.*

In his final moments, the graceful figure of his daughter appeared in his mind.

But at that very instant, a calm and powerful voice sounded from somewhere nearby:

"Beast, begone!"

As soon as the voice arrived, the beast was instantly sent flying by an invisible, powerful force.