Chapter 685: Chapter 685. Underwater Cave

Huang Er used her movement art just as the gas barely hit her. Though she felt the icy cold breath, her body managed to move away. Leaving multiple afterimages, she slipped between the Dread Penguins while her sword-whip never stopped slashing.

When she could finally take a breather, she noticed that half her body, which the penguin’s icy breath had touched, was covered by a thin layer of ice. She channeled her aether to shatter the ice layer. While the ice was gone, the stinging cold remained.

The Dread Penguins regrouped and came after her again once she stopped moving. When they were almost upon her, a torrent of flames washed over the penguins.

Huang Er looked down and saw that the flames came from a talisman in Sima Fang’s hand. A battle puppet rushed ahead and threw itself amid the penguin swarm. It had a similar power level to Huang Er while possessing a more durable body. Most of all, it wasn’t confused by the swarm’s chaotic movement.

A long blade emerged from its right arm. The blade was coated with flames. The flaming sword easily cut through the penguins’ thick hide.

“They are weak to fire,” Sima Fang informed. She used more talismans that produced flaming assaults.

With the battle puppet drawing the penguins’ attention and Sima Fang’s fiery aid, Huang Er found it easier to deal with them. Her sword flashed again. Now that she didn’t have to keep the penguins at bay, she could focus her slashes to target the penguins’ weak points.

As the battle progressed, she noticed another person in the mix. This person was Kazhan’s Grand Chief, Xan Chi. He was covered in a rock layer and fought inside the penguin swarm. He swung his metal hammer back and forth, smashing the penguins and causing internal wounds to the spirit beast. He was laughing as he fought. Huang Er taught that his fight was more like a bout between beasts rather than a fight between a cultivator and beasts.

Scores of Dread Penguins continued to drop from the sky.

After enough penguins had fallen, the rest decided to call it quits and ran away. They plunged from the sky and dove directly into the lake.

Huang Er and Sima Fang landed back on the ground. Huang Er hesitated for a second before telling Sima Fang, “Thank you.”

Sima Fang waved her off. “As I said, I still consider you a friend. Unlike someone who is supposed to be your subordinate but didn’t even bother to lift a hand.”

Huang Er turned to the one Sima Fang mentioned. She was annoyed that Amon didn’t even return her gaze. He was standing beside the lake, which was no longer covered by ice. He was staring into the water.

Xan Chi was happily picking up the penguins’ corpses. “Hahaha! Tonight we will be having a feast!” He laughed. When he noticed Amon peering into the water, he said, “There are plenty up here to last us for weeks. No need to look for more inside there.”

Amon replied, “Let’s go. I know where we should go now.”

After those words, he jumped into the water without further explanation.

“What the heck is he doing now?” Xan Chi asked as he approached where Amon had been standing a moment ago.

Sura Yao had been with Amon all the time. He was gazing into the same spot as Amon. After Amon entered the water, he also did.

“Bloody heck! Wait for me!” Xan Chi exclaimed. He stored the Dread Penguins he was holding in his space ring before jumping into the water.

Huang Er and Sima Fang ran to the lakeside. Without the ice, the water was pretty clear for them to look inside. They saw Xan Chi and Sura Yao swim behind Amon, but couldn’t see where the three were heading.

“Aren’t they afraid to get swarmed by those penguins in their home turf?” Huang Er asked.

“Dread Penguins are indeed more dangerous underwater. They can move faster and are difficult to detect,” Sima Fang answered. “However, they are in reality cowardly beasts. Their courage comes when they have big numbers. They were just beaten, so they won’t dare to make another move against us. Come on, we had better follow before those penguins gather their courage and return.”

Sima Fang jumped into the water. Huang Er was uncomfortable with the thought of entering the freezing water, but she saw no choice unless she wanted to stay out here alone. She gathered her aether to blanket her body with protective energy before following the others into the water.

Sima Fang was weaker, so Huang Er quickly caught up to her in the water. She grabbed her arm and helped her speed up as they chased after Xan Chi, who was ahead. They couldn’t see exactly where they were going. The movements from those in front disrupted the water. All they saw ahead of them were bubbles. If not for their cultivation senses, they would have lost the ones who had gone ahead.

After diving for a while, Huang Er finally understood why Amon entered the water. She saw an underwater cave on the lakebed. The others had entered, so she followed.

Inside the cave was complete darkness. She continued to utilize her cultivation senses to guide her to the others. She wondered how Amon, who was at the lead, could see anything in here. Suddenly, everything brightened. She turned back and saw that the source of light came from a bright flare stone in Sima Fang’s hand.

With the light, she could see better. The cave became narrower as they went deeper. At one point, it made a sharp turn upward. The water stopped not far after the turn. They came out of the water and found themselves in a cavern.

“We are still underground?” Huang Er asked.

“Judging from the rock above us, I can safely confirm that,” Xan Chi replied.

“Quiet,” Amon told them. “We are in uncharted territory. We will move slowly and silently.”

No one objected to the instruction. They could sense several presences ahead, most likely spirit beasts. Most were weak, some were strong. The cavern had many different pathways. Amon took one of the pathways. The others followed. From what they sensed, Amon was heading toward a presence with the strongest aura.

They didn’t protest. The Soul Flayer they were hunting was a Higher Mythical Beast. It was among the strongest creatures that existed in this surface world.

As they traversed through the cavern, they found many spirit beast carcasses on the ground. These carcasses were at multiple stages of decomposition. Some had only the skeletons left. They assumed this cavern must once have been teeming with spirit beasts to have these many carcasses.

They slowed down when the spirit beast was nearby. Unless the spirit beast had sufficient self-awareness and intelligence, its detection range should be smaller than a cultivator’s. They stopped when Amon gave them the sign.

Amon turned back and asked, “That is not the spirit beast we are looking for. Let’s take another path.”

“Are you sure? I didn’t see anything,” Huang er asked. Everyone had consumed a Cat Eye Pill after leaving the water, so they could see without using the Bright Flare Stone.

“I can use Eagle Eye art. The spirit beast in that direction is a Cave Basilisk, a Mid Mythical Beast,” Amon informed. “If we go closer, it will detect us. We will waste time fighting it, and the fight may attract other spirit beasts in the vicinity, causing us to waste more time. The others are waiting for us. We can’t afford to waste time. You can help us from wasting time by not second-guessing my every decision.”

Huang Er was not happy with Amon’s critique, but he didn’t let her retort. He was already walking back the path they had come from. Xan Chi and Sura Yao were behind him.

“Let’s go, Princess,” Sima Fang said.

Huang Er let out a frustrated sigh before following the others.

They continued exploring the cave with their cultivation senses to guide them. When spirit beasts blocked all paths, and none was the Soul Flayer, they chose the weakest one and eliminated it quickly so they could proceed deeper into the cave.

They sensed fewer spirit beasts as they went deeper, but the number of paths in the cavern increased. They felt like they were in a maze.

“We should split up to quicken our search,” Amon proposed.

“I disagree,” Sima Fang said. “You are the only one with the battle puppets to take on the Soul Flayer. We must call you if we find one. Although we have the beacon and message talismans, these underground paths are too complex. It will take too long to navigate them. What if the Soul Flayer detected the person who found it? It will be too late by the time you arrive.”

“We can carve signs in the cave wall to mark the path we have taken,” Amon used his ceremonial knife to demonstrate. He wrote his name on the wall. “This way, I know which path you take.”

“I still disagree to split up,” Sima Fang insisted.

“What? Are you scared, little girl?” Xan Chi provoked.

“It is unwise. Someone might wait for us to be alone before launching an attack,” Sima Fang said.

“Do you mean, something?” Xan Chi asked. “You can’t be saying a spirit beast is stalking us, can you?”

“The Dread Penguins can conceal their presence. Maybe there are other spirit beasts in this cave that can do the same,” Huang Er supported Sima Fang.

Sima Fang, however, never made a mistake in her speech. She was looking straight at Amon when she spoke.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep