As they watched the flame dragon soaring in the air, its magnificence overpowering. The three Bai Sisters immediately regret their decision of wanting to kill their adversary.
They finally understood why Elder Ancestor had repeatedly cautioned them that the Celestial Dragon Form was the bane of all evil creatures and that they should stop its breeding at all costs.
At the moment, they couldn't even cast the little magic they had left in them; casting magic that could change the surrounding weather was certainly out of the question. Their entire beings trembled under the True Dragon's power, and it was as if the entire battlefield had become anti-magic. Maybe a monster of Elder Ancestor's level could continue using magic, but they definitely could not.
Perhaps they would be able to forcefully cast magic if the magic power in them was full, but with their magic reaching rock bottom, they couldn't compete even if they tried.
Not long after the flame dragon appeared, a flaming Flame Dragon's Breath rushed towards the three massive rats.
In an instant, the two smaller rats rushed to shield the larger rat from the flames.
"Elder sister, you can control our bodies?" The pair of smaller rats asked, fear and befuddlement lacing their tones. Anger could be heard too.
The larger rat only endured a bit of the flames before its' entire body disappeared from the battlefield without a trace…
After that moment, all that was left behind were two rats' carcasses, the larger rat nowhere to be seen.
Fang Ning spoke up, "Did one escape?"
The System answered, "The largest rat escaped."
"Can we catch up to it?"
"I can't see it on the map…"
"The System Map covers the entirety of Qi City, it couldn't have teleported, right?"
"Maybe it has some treasure that allows it to hide from the map. Don't forget that the System Map only showed a big patch of red after they appeared right in front of us, which was unlike that massive spider from last time, which we could see clearly even when we were far away."
"No wonder the people from the Truth Department couldn't figure out their true identities. But now that you've put it like that, does this mean we can't loot them even after we've defeated them? I can't take that lying down. Let me think of a proper plan. By the way, which way did it run off to?"
When Fang Ning saw the direction The System marked on the map, his eyes glinted as he said, "Maintain your dragon form and continue pursuing in that direction, we just might find it yet…"
...
Sleep eluded Madam Zhuo that night. Not only could she feel the True Dragon's aura, the muted roars of the dragon could be heard too, causing slumber be increasingly fleeting. As compared to the last time when it had appeared within the metropolis, the aura came from the somewhere in the countryside, which was further from her manor compared to the city center. However, due to the pressure in her bloodlines, she was still sensitive enough to sense these changes.
She had found out from her underground network of information that the person that summoned the Celestial Dragon Form was Qi City's recently famous Vigilante A, which made her relax. From Vigilante A's behavioral patterns, he would never come to her family's doorstep.
She glanced at her husband, who was dead asleep, and felt slightly envious. She got off the bed to get dressed before walking towards the outside.
She went around the spacious mansion, inspecting, and after realizing that nothing was out of the ordinary, returned to her bedroom. Just before she attempted to fall asleep once again, two auras from afar made her heart thud in fear.
One of the auras was faint and fuzzy, sometimes present and sometimes not, as if it would disappear once out of focus. However, label it an instinct to one's natural enemy if you will, Madam Zhao was still vaguely aware of this aura, which belonged to one of her old enemies. It was unfamiliarly strong and fear-inducing, yet also possessed a strange sense of weakness; it wasn't far from the Zhao Manor. From the direction the aura was moving in, it seemed to be rushing towards the manor itself, which was situated on the outskirts.
As for the other aura, Madam Zhao knew it like the back of her hand. Although it was further away, but it was clearer; the magnificent and majestic aura belonged to the True Dragon that she had sensed earlier. However, it lingered in various places while moving, as if it were searching for something.
Madam Zhao's expression shifted. She turned to cast a glance at the villa that was home to her family, nostalgia in her gaze, before she rushed in the direction of the fuzzy aura without sparing a glance back.
...
A massive, ugly rat was in a confrontation with a large long white python.
"Get out of my way, you snake! If it weren't because of my wounds, I would've swallowed you in a single gulp!" exclaimed the massive rat maliciously. The rat was Bai Ruoshuang, one of the Bai Sisters, who had sacrificed her two younger sisters in a critical moment to escape the True Dragon's fatal attack.
She was fortunate to have the treasure given to her by Elder Ancestor; after fleeing a certain distance, the scary flame dragon stopped giving chase. Instead, it lingered within an area, seemingly unable to locate it.
Seeing this, it stopped fleeing in another direction since it had put quite some distance between itself and the battlefield. It believed that the flame dragon wouldn't be able to locate it for the time being.
However, after it had escaped to the outskirts of the city near the manor, it was stopped by a snake demon that it wouldn't have paid attention to usually.
If were any other time, it would've swallowed the snake demon in a single gulp, but it didn't have enough magic to accomplish that now. Besides, the dragon's breath left in its body has made it quite difficult for it to fully use its powers.
All it could do now was to try to scare the snake into backing away.
It was obviously failing.
This white python had coiled itself inwards and upwards, its head high up as it looked down on its enemy with blood-red eyes, its gaze tracing its enemy's every movement. The silhouette of the massive rat was reflected in its eyes, its posture poised to strike at any moment.
Perhaps it was primal instinct, but the massive rat knew that if it moved forwards even an inch, the python would attack without hesitation.
"Begone, stay far away from this place! I don't care how many people you consume to heal yourself, but you will not lay a single finger on anybody here!"
The white python exclaimed suddenly.
The massive rat sneered, "Oh, do you have human relatives inside? How hilarious, you're also descended from demons, why are you protecting humans? I'm staying my hand because I'm hurt, or else I could use even you for sustenance, so get out of my way."
The massive rat's words seemed to have struck a nerve with the white python, it growled, "I'm no demon! I'm a human, and this is my form after I shapeshift!"
The massive rat retaliated, "Another idiot trying to deceive themselves! The vitality in the world is just getting back on its feet, so the humans can't tell the difference between us and them yet! But as time passes, they'll be able to do so easily. When that time comes, you'll die in the hands of the very people you tried to protect!"
The white python was unbothered by the massive rat's words; it remained in its spot, immobile and unmoving. Even if the massive rat wanted to beat around every bush in the yard to get to the manor, it would be useless, as nothing has ever escaped its short distance attack.
The massive rat knew this too; this was a battle between mortal enemies, it should never expose its back to an opponent, so it wasn't even planning to change its route into the manor. Unless it retreated slowly, in which case the white snake wouldn't attack, no other plan would work.
The rat steeled its heart; the True Dragon had still yet to find it, so it had to figure out a way to kill this snake demon once and for all!
It had confidence in itself; although this white python looked to be in healthy condition, it seemed to have never eaten a human before; its magic was surprisingly weak. Even right now, the python's magic power wasn't that much stronger than whatever the rat had left in its boy.
This snake demon didn't smell of blood and rust either, which meant that it also lacked battle experience. It was probably worse than its relatives – the wild snakes. The massive rat and the snake demon were worlds apart.
The massive rat started carrying out its plan; it bent its body to go into an offensive stance.
The white python didn't miss the change and so it couldn't help but grow nervous. All this while, it has never experienced a true fight; the few times it had, it had depended on its sheer power to achieve success. This was its first time facing a truly powerful enemy.
Suddenly, the python saw a ray of light. It ducked to the side instinctively as a sharp claw landed squarely on its neck.
It had no idea that victory was decided so quickly in a true fight.
As the claw retracted, it took with it a gash that ran across half of the snake's neck.
The white snake's cervical bones could even be seen, where fresh, warm, red blood sprayed in every direction.
It writhed in agony; its injured neck could no longer support its huge head. It had lost its most powerful weapon!
It never thought that its impenetrable scales, which was resistant to even bullets usually, would be so weak against its enemy's claws!
"Hahaha, I thought you were strong enough to at least have a certain amount of battle power. Who knew it would be the complete opposite! I was even scared of you for a second! Sadly, if it weren't for your hard scales, I would've decapitated you," said the massive rat gleefully. It had suddenly realized that it could heal its injuries with two sources, which would allow the injuries to heal without leaving a trace.
The white python was in extreme pain, but it remained rooted in its spot. It showed no semblance of wanting to escape, but this was just as the rat had expected.
"That's great. After eating you, I'll eat that one in the manor, then I'll be as good as new. That damned dragon, I won't let it get away with this!" spat the massive rat.
"I won't let, let you pass…" said the white python with all the strength it could muster, its head already drooping. Its tail slowly stood up as it prepared for another move; once the rat moves to eat it, it'll coil itself around the rat and they'll perish together.
"Hah! You underestimate me," the rat knew of its mortal enemy's ultimate move. It once again bent its body to land the final attack on its enemy.
The white python was also prepared to fight to the death.
Suddenly, a frightening aura could be felt from afar, and it seemed to be nearing them as well.
"That's impossible! How did it manage to find me so quickly? That's impossible!! It was still going around in circles just now!" The massive rat panicked and gave up on attacking the white python.
"Get out my way now, you damned snake. I'll let you go if you move out of the way," Time was insufficient for it to finish off the snake. Snakes were hardy creatures, not to mention its adversary was a snake demon. Although the attack that landed was fatal, to actually kill the snake demon would take time it didn't have. However, its truly frightening enemy would appear any second now.
The white python remained in its place. It couldn't move, because nobody in its family would be able to face this massive rat.
"Do you know what's nearing us as we speak? You should be able to feel it! It's the Celestial Dragon Form, the bane of all monsters and demons! Do you think that it'll let you go just because you've never eaten a human? If you die in my hands, you'll still reincarnate. But if you die in its hands, your soul is destroyed forever!"
"Even if that happens, I won't let you lay a finger on them. Leave this place now…"
The massive rat had used all its energy in the previous attack, and its injuries weren't light either. It would have to eat the person in the manor to survive, so how could it leave?
"You forced me to this. I offered you two chances to let you go, but now you're just looking for death!"
The massive rat steeled its heart and decided to kill this stubborn snake before eating the people in the manor. It would have to continue it escape; it didn't want to die yet, there was so much in this world that it hadn't experienced.
As it weakly pounced on the white python, it saw a silhouette reflected in the python's blood-red eyes. The silhouette elicited great fear in its heart. It couldn't even land on the white python before it heard…
"I found you…"
,
As they watched the flame dragon soaring in the air, its magnificence overpowering. The three Bai Sisters immediately regret their decision of wanting to kill their adversary.
They finally understood why Elder Ancestor had repeatedly cautioned them that the Celestial Dragon Form was the bane of all evil creatures and that they should stop its breeding at all costs.
At the moment, they couldn't even cast the little magic they had left in them; casting magic that could change the surrounding weather was certainly out of the question. Their entire beings trembled under the True Dragon's power, and it was as if the entire battlefield had become anti-magic. Maybe a monster of Elder Ancestor's level could continue using magic, but they definitely could not.
Perhaps they would be able to forcefully cast magic if the magic power in them was full, but with their magic reaching rock bottom, they couldn't compete even if they tried.
Not long after the flame dragon appeared, a flaming Flame Dragon's Breath rushed towards the three massive rats.
In an instant, the two smaller rats rushed to shield the larger rat from the flames.
"Elder sister, you can control our bodies?" The pair of smaller rats asked, fear and befuddlement lacing their tones. Anger could be heard too.
The larger rat only endured a bit of the flames before its' entire body disappeared from the battlefield without a trace…
After that moment, all that was left behind were two rats' carcasses, the larger rat nowhere to be seen.
Fang Ning spoke up, "Did one escape?"
The System answered, "The largest rat escaped."
"Can we catch up to it?"
"I can't see it on the map…"
"The System Map covers the entirety of Qi City, it couldn't have teleported, right?"
"Maybe it has some treasure that allows it to hide from the map. Don't forget that the System Map only showed a big patch of red after they appeared right in front of us, which was unlike that massive spider from last time, which we could see clearly even when we were far away."
"No wonder the people from the Truth Department couldn't figure out their true identities. But now that you've put it like that, does this mean we can't loot them even after we've defeated them? I can't take that lying down. Let me think of a proper plan. By the way, which way did it run off to?"
When Fang Ning saw the direction The System marked on the map, his eyes glinted as he said, "Maintain your dragon form and continue pursuing in that direction, we just might find it yet…"
...
Sleep eluded Madam Zhuo that night. Not only could she feel the True Dragon's aura, the muted roars of the dragon could be heard too, causing slumber be increasingly fleeting. As compared to the last time when it had appeared within the metropolis, the aura came from the somewhere in the countryside, which was further from her manor compared to the city center. However, due to the pressure in her bloodlines, she was still sensitive enough to sense these changes.
She had found out from her underground network of information that the person that summoned the Celestial Dragon Form was Qi City's recently famous Vigilante A, which made her relax. From Vigilante A's behavioral patterns, he would never come to her family's doorstep.
She glanced at her husband, who was dead asleep, and felt slightly envious. She got off the bed to get dressed before walking towards the outside.
She went around the spacious mansion, inspecting, and after realizing that nothing was out of the ordinary, returned to her bedroom. Just before she attempted to fall asleep once again, two auras from afar made her heart thud in fear.
One of the auras was faint and fuzzy, sometimes present and sometimes not, as if it would disappear once out of focus. However, label it an instinct to one's natural enemy if you will, Madam Zhao was still vaguely aware of this aura, which belonged to one of her old enemies. It was unfamiliarly strong and fear-inducing, yet also possessed a strange sense of weakness; it wasn't far from the Zhao Manor. From the direction the aura was moving in, it seemed to be rushing towards the manor itself, which was situated on the outskirts.
As for the other aura, Madam Zhao knew it like the back of her hand. Although it was further away, but it was clearer; the magnificent and majestic aura belonged to the True Dragon that she had sensed earlier. However, it lingered in various places while moving, as if it were searching for something.
Madam Zhao's expression shifted. She turned to cast a glance at the villa that was home to her family, nostalgia in her gaze, before she rushed in the direction of the fuzzy aura without sparing a glance back.
...
A massive, ugly rat was in a confrontation with a large long white python.
"Get out of my way, you snake! If it weren't because of my wounds, I would've swallowed you in a single gulp!" exclaimed the massive rat maliciously. The rat was Bai Ruoshuang, one of the Bai Sisters, who had sacrificed her two younger sisters in a critical moment to escape the True Dragon's fatal attack.
She was fortunate to have the treasure given to her by Elder Ancestor; after fleeing a certain distance, the scary flame dragon stopped giving chase. Instead, it lingered within an area, seemingly unable to locate it.
Seeing this, it stopped fleeing in another direction since it had put quite some distance between itself and the battlefield. It believed that the flame dragon wouldn't be able to locate it for the time being.
However, after it had escaped to the outskirts of the city near the manor, it was stopped by a snake demon that it wouldn't have paid attention to usually.
If were any other time, it would've swallowed the snake demon in a single gulp, but it didn't have enough magic to accomplish that now. Besides, the dragon's breath left in its body has made it quite difficult for it to fully use its powers.
All it could do now was to try to scare the snake into backing away.
It was obviously failing.
This white python had coiled itself inwards and upwards, its head high up as it looked down on its enemy with blood-red eyes, its gaze tracing its enemy's every movement. The silhouette of the massive rat was reflected in its eyes, its posture poised to strike at any moment.
Perhaps it was primal instinct, but the massive rat knew that if it moved forwards even an inch, the python would attack without hesitation.
"Begone, stay far away from this place! I don't care how many people you consume to heal yourself, but you will not lay a single finger on anybody here!"
The white python exclaimed suddenly.
The massive rat sneered, "Oh, do you have human relatives inside? How hilarious, you're also descended from demons, why are you protecting humans? I'm staying my hand because I'm hurt, or else I could use even you for sustenance, so get out of my way."
The massive rat's words seemed to have struck a nerve with the white python, it growled, "I'm no demon! I'm a human, and this is my form after I shapeshift!"
The massive rat retaliated, "Another idiot trying to deceive themselves! The vitality in the world is just getting back on its feet, so the humans can't tell the difference between us and them yet! But as time passes, they'll be able to do so easily. When that time comes, you'll die in the hands of the very people you tried to protect!"
The white python was unbothered by the massive rat's words; it remained in its spot, immobile and unmoving. Even if the massive rat wanted to beat around every bush in the yard to get to the manor, it would be useless, as nothing has ever escaped its short distance attack.
The massive rat knew this too; this was a battle between mortal enemies, it should never expose its back to an opponent, so it wasn't even planning to change its route into the manor. Unless it retreated slowly, in which case the white snake wouldn't attack, no other plan would work.
The rat steeled its heart; the True Dragon had still yet to find it, so it had to figure out a way to kill this snake demon once and for all!
It had confidence in itself; although this white python looked to be in healthy condition, it seemed to have never eaten a human before; its magic was surprisingly weak. Even right now, the python's magic power wasn't that much stronger than whatever the rat had left in its boy.
This snake demon didn't smell of blood and rust either, which meant that it also lacked battle experience. It was probably worse than its relatives – the wild snakes. The massive rat and the snake demon were worlds apart.
The massive rat started carrying out its plan; it bent its body to go into an offensive stance.
The white python didn't miss the change and so it couldn't help but grow nervous. All this while, it has never experienced a true fight; the few times it had, it had depended on its sheer power to achieve success. This was its first time facing a truly powerful enemy.
Suddenly, the python saw a ray of light. It ducked to the side instinctively as a sharp claw landed squarely on its neck.
It had no idea that victory was decided so quickly in a true fight.
As the claw retracted, it took with it a gash that ran across half of the snake's neck.
The white snake's cervical bones could even be seen, where fresh, warm, red blood sprayed in every direction.
It writhed in agony; its injured neck could no longer support its huge head. It had lost its most powerful weapon!
It never thought that its impenetrable scales, which was resistant to even bullets usually, would be so weak against its enemy's claws!
"Hahaha, I thought you were strong enough to at least have a certain amount of battle power. Who knew it would be the complete opposite! I was even scared of you for a second! Sadly, if it weren't for your hard scales, I would've decapitated you," said the massive rat gleefully. It had suddenly realized that it could heal its injuries with two sources, which would allow the injuries to heal without leaving a trace.
The white python was in extreme pain, but it remained rooted in its spot. It showed no semblance of wanting to escape, but this was just as the rat had expected.
"That's great. After eating you, I'll eat that one in the manor, then I'll be as good as new. That damned dragon, I won't let it get away with this!" spat the massive rat.
"I won't let, let you pass…" said the white python with all the strength it could muster, its head already drooping. Its tail slowly stood up as it prepared for another move; once the rat moves to eat it, it'll coil itself around the rat and they'll perish together.
"Hah! You underestimate me," the rat knew of its mortal enemy's ultimate move. It once again bent its body to land the final attack on its enemy.
The white python was also prepared to fight to the death.
Suddenly, a frightening aura could be felt from afar, and it seemed to be nearing them as well.
"That's impossible! How did it manage to find me so quickly? That's impossible!! It was still going around in circles just now!" The massive rat panicked and gave up on attacking the white python.
"Get out my way now, you damned snake. I'll let you go if you move out of the way," Time was insufficient for it to finish off the snake. Snakes were hardy creatures, not to mention its adversary was a snake demon. Although the attack that landed was fatal, to actually kill the snake demon would take time it didn't have. However, its truly frightening enemy would appear any second now.
The white python remained in its place. It couldn't move, because nobody in its family would be able to face this massive rat.
"Do you know what's nearing us as we speak? You should be able to feel it! It's the Celestial Dragon Form, the bane of all monsters and demons! Do you think that it'll let you go just because you've never eaten a human? If you die in my hands, you'll still reincarnate. But if you die in its hands, your soul is destroyed forever!"
"Even if that happens, I won't let you lay a finger on them. Leave this place now…"
The massive rat had used all its energy in the previous attack, and its injuries weren't light either. It would have to eat the person in the manor to survive, so how could it leave?
"You forced me to this. I offered you two chances to let you go, but now you're just looking for death!"
The massive rat steeled its heart and decided to kill this stubborn snake before eating the people in the manor. It would have to continue it escape; it didn't want to die yet, there was so much in this world that it hadn't experienced.
As it weakly pounced on the white python, it saw a silhouette reflected in the python's blood-red eyes. The silhouette elicited great fear in its heart. It couldn't even land on the white python before it heard…
"I found you…"
,
