Chapter 121: Dragon Elephant’s Domination, Eight Desolations Purgatory (II)

As the Sword Beast continued to lurk, the restless fish far exceeded their usual agitation. Meanwhile, the turtle quickly devoured the glowing coral in the volcano crater, gobbling up large chunks with each bite until it was all gone.

Wuuu!

At the mouth of the small volcano, the turtle lifted its head and let out a deep, resounding roar, its voice carrying far and wide.

Boom!

A heavy and majestic aura erupted from the turtle, and red and blue energy radiated from it as its size began to change. The continuously expanding body caused cracks to appear all over the spiky shell’s surface, and it broke open to reveal a newly formed, even sturdier shell underneath.

Its limbs grew thicker, as new heavy scales and sharp claws grew in, and its neck became longer and wider. Two sharp horns pierced through the skin on its ferocious head, and in an instant, an invisible pressure permeated the sea.

As the horns grew in, the turtle seemed to undergo a kind of sublimation. Not only did it break through to level 7, but it also seemed like some kind of bloodline within it had awakened.

The powerful pressure caused the Sword Beast's gaze to sharpen, as it felt a familiarity with this invisible force.

During its third evolution, it had also experienced the awakening of a genetic power within its body, gaining a similar king-level bloodline, which had significantly boosted its combat power beyond that of its peers.

Under this terrifying pressure, the three fish, which had been unwilling to relent in their attacks, stiffened, their eyes showing a hint of fear before they started instinctively retreating.

Wuuuu....Roar!

The successfully evolved mutated giant turtle let out an excited roar, its previously whistle-like sound gradually transforming into a deep growl. An invisible shockwave erupted, growing stronger and stronger.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The terrifying shockwave spread over hundreds of meters with explosive roars, causing the water within its diameter to boil.

Within the range of the sonic shockwave, the fish had no chance. Their blood boiled, and within a few breaths, the remaining five ten-meter-long fish were directly killed by the shock. Their bodies exploded, scattering blood everywhere, and their torn carcasses floated in the boiling water.

Even the three largest fish, each over fifteen meters long, couldn't withstand the violent shockwave. They were forced to retreat under the explosive force, barely escaping the attack range, and finally left without looking back.

Boom!

The area beneath the turtle had been silent for many years. The small volcano, over a hundred meters high, collapsed under the shockwave, causing torrents of mud and sand to engulf its surroundings.

The turtle gradually ceased its shockwave. Standing amid the ruins of the volcano, its thirty-meter-long body resembled a dragon as it let out a deep roar, asserting its dominance.

In the darkness, the Sword Beast glanced at the corpses of the fish around the turtle, then slowly retreated and disappeared without a trace, moving in the direction of one of the fleeing fish.

Under the pitch-black ocean, over two hundred meters below the surface, a fifteen-meter-long Crystal Horn Fish was swimming rapidly. It was trying to escape from the terrifying giant turtle that had just evolved, but after all of the energy that it had expended trying to defend the volcano, it had become weak.

Unbeknownst to it, several hundred meters behind, a menacing black creature was swiftly closing in. In just moments, it arrived within a hundred meters of the fish.

However, the fish's senses were also keen. Just as the Sword Beast came within dozens of meters of its side, it abruptly halted.

Boom!

With a sudden explosion, a dark shadow sliced through the water, appearing instantly to the left of the fish.

Faced with the sudden attack, the fish abruptly turned its head, its massive mouth gaping open as a powerful jet of water erupted like a cannon blast.

Bang!

The powerful water stream crashed into the Sword Beast's body, but it simply ignored the attack, its claws carrying terrifying force as they slammed down on the side of the fish's head.

Boom!

The water exploded as the claws shattered the fish’s scales, turning flesh and blood to foam. Its sturdy skull collapsed abruptly, forming two large dents with a diameter of over a meter. The massive body was overturned by the raging force, rolling dozens of meters in the water before finally coming to a stop.

However, this fish had sturdy bones and formidable life force. Despite sustaining two bloody holes on its head, it was still alive.

Just as the fish steadied itself, the raging water erupted once more, and the ferocious Sword Beast surged forward at a terrifying speed. Its muscles swelled, gathering an infinite power in its claws.

However, the fish had endured countless battles while growing to its current size. Just as the Sword Beast pounced, the deep blue crystal horn on its head lit up.

Boom!

The Sword Beast's full-force strike directly exploded half of the fish's skull. However, its rear end was also struck by the retaliatory beam of light, almost immediately becoming covered in blue ice.

The ice was over a meter thick, and the aching chill penetrated through the outer armor, stiffening the muscles and flesh beneath and congealing blood.

Suddenly, the Sword Beast’s robust vitality erupted. Its tail whipped around, and with a loud bang, it shattered the ice covering its body.

Phew! Seems like it wasn’t too strong.

After killing the fish with just two attacks, the Sword Beast spewed out a string of bubbles. A grimace on its face revealed an unsettling humanoid smile.

The Sword Beast's claws grabbed hold of the fish's body, and with a ferocious snap, its large mouth tore into the fish's scales, ruthlessly biting off a several-hundred-kilograms chunk of flesh and greedily swallowing it down.

Delicious, delicious!

Savoring the rich taste of flesh and blood in its mouth, the Sword Beast tore off another large piece of meat, causing the dense blood to gush out and dye the surrounding water red. Yet, not a single fish dared to approach.

All were deterred by the invisible ferocious aura emanating from the Sword Beast's body.

The fish’s energy was incredibly rich, and the Sword Beast had been coveting it for a while. The instant the flesh entered its stomach, it exploded into a blazing tumult of chaotic energy. Each large bite caused the Sword Beast’s body to grow by a fraction, its massive frame rapidly expanding.

The speed of its biological energy conversion and absorption had become increasingly terrifying.

In less than an hour, the ten-meter-sized Sword Beast consumed the larger fish entirely, crushing even its bones and discarding only a few intestines it deemed unworthy.

After devouring the energy-rich fish, the Sword Beast immediately surged by half a meter, nearing eleven meters in length and appearing even more fierce and monstrous. Its evolution points also soared by 40 in one go, reaping a bountiful harvest.

In the darkness, the Sword Beast's gaze turned icy as it looked in the direction in which another Crystal Horn Fish had fled. With a swift movement, its massive form vanished into the darkness.

It was hoping that those two fish hadn't fled too far, or worse, fallen prey to other large mutated creatures. Otherwise, it would be heartbroken.

***

In the evening, the sun’s orange-red light painted the clouds a fiery hue as it descended.

On the backyard veranda, Chen Chu, sitting cross-legged, exuded an even more powerful aura than before. He slowly opened his eyes, a hint of regret shining in them.

After their territory had been destroyed, the remaining two Crystal Horn Fish had vanished directly into the depths of the sea, their whereabouts unknown. The ocean was vast; even a slight deviation in direction could lead the Sword Beast dozens of kilometers away from them, making it a world of difference.

A faint icy coldness flickered in Chen Chu's eyes as he murmured quietly, "That giant turtle, we'll devour it once the Sword Beast undergoes its fourth evolution and encounters it again."

Due to the giant turtle’s interference, the Crystal Horn Fish had been scattered. On one hand, it had allowed the Sword Beast to catch one of those fish and enjoy a hearty feast, but at the same time, the losses were significant.

Two estimated Level 6 Crystal Horn Fish had escaped, six level 4 late stage ones had been killed by the turtle, and there had also been those glowing corals of unknown significance.

The Sword Beast had been eyeing these things for a long time. It had even changed its base of operations to the vicinity of the fish’s territory, with the intention of hunting the rest of them once its strength increased further.

Who would have thought that such a ferocious beast would have appeared out of nowhere with no warning?

The next two days passed very calmly for Chen Chu. Apart from cultivating and eating, he helped with some household chores, and time flew by in the blink of an eye.

On the morning of the third day, Chen Chu had breakfast early and then headed straight to school to report in.

In martial arts high schools, there was a rule that students who broke through to the Third Heavenly Realm were granted the privilege of not having to wear the school uniform. Chen Chu had decided to take advantage of that today, wearing a white long-sleeved T-shirt with gray casual pants.

It was already January, and the weather was cold, but Chen Chu no longer needed to worry about changes in the weather.

Walking along the familiar road leading to school, as he watched the hustle and bustle of people and vehicles around him, Chen Chu couldn't help but feel a faint sense of nostalgia.

How things had changed. Just two months ago, he had still been a fresh high school student, just beginning to make progress in his true martial arts practice and full of youthful vigor.

Now, he had become a seasoned special forces soldier, over a hundred ordinary people dead by his hands with two or three dozen practitioners among them.

The martial arts high school was also on winter break, making the school much quieter. Academic students were taking full advantage of the break, and it was rare to see second- and third-year students at most points in the school year, giving the impression that the school only had first-year students.

However, most of the first-year martial arts students still came to school to utilize the equipment and facilities for their cultivation. Today, as soon as Chen Chu walked through the school gate, he ran into an acquaintance.

Li Wenwen's face lit up with a smile as she greeted him, "Chen Chu, long time no see."

Chen Chu smiled slightly in return. "Long time no see, Li Wenwen. How have you been lately?"

"Not bad, but far behind you guys," Li Wenwen replied, a hint of envy in her eyes.

She had used to be a member of Lin Xue’s club, possessing average talent, and she had even completed Foundation Building two days earlier than Chen Chu.

But after two months, she had only recently broken through to the Second Heavenly Realm, while Chen Chu and the others had returned with all of them already broken through to the Third, creating a gap that seemed insurmountable.

But thinking about this now was pointless. It had been her own lack of strength that had prevented her from qualifying for the trial. Even if she had broken through in time, she might not have dared to participate, just like those thirty or so classmates who had also broken through to the Second Heavenly Realm but had chosen not to go.

After chatting with Li Wenwen for a few moments, the two parted ways beneath the teaching building. Chen Chu needed to report to Pang Long first.

His office was still on the third floor, and no one else had arrived yet.

Chen Chu knocked on the door and politely greeted him. "Mr Pang."

After witnessing Pang Long’s ferocious appearance while wielding his weapon, plus the insane strength of his combat power, Chen Chu was fully aware of how dangerous not being polite could be. Especially since he could feel faint signs of Pang Long having made a breakthrough, such as how much more oppressive his aura had become.

"Chen Chu, come in."

Looking at Chen Chu as he entered, Pang Long suddenly asked, "What realm is your cultivation at now?"

Chen Chu paused slightly before replying, "...I estimate that in a little over a week, I'll be able to break through to the late stage of the Third Heavenly Realm."

After absorbing that Energy Crystal in Kyrola, Chen Chu hadn’t exchanged for anything else, so his progress had slowed down during the tail end of the trial, only returning to normal after coming back.

There wasn’t really a point in trying to hide it anymore; after all of the battles in Kyrola, especially the one with the Blood Emissary in Kyria, his formidable strength and agility were no longer secrets. Even if that hadn’t been the case, now that he had pushed his Dragon Elephant Art to its limits, it would be impossible to conceal during combat now.

Thankfully, his habit of exchanging for Life Crystals past the point of severely diminished returns, along with any other strange occurrences, could be explained with art compatibility or innate physical talent.

Even so, Pang Long was still taken aback. "I had sensed that your aura had become much denser than the others' when we were on the plane, but I didn't expect you to already be that far along in the Third Heavenly Realm. And I heard from Liu Feixu that you've already pushed the Dragon Elephant Art to the pinnacle of True Martial Spirit."

Then Pang Long pondered for a moment. "Late stage of the Third Heavenly Realm, hm? Let me calculate... there should still be enough time."

Chen Chu was puzzled. "Sir, what do you mean by 'enough time?’"

"Of course, I mean your art," Pang Long spoke slowly. "With your talent, even without high-level arts, I estimate that you could break through to the Fourth Heavenly Realm in a maximum of three months. However, I don't recommend you do it."

"Is it because of the nature of true power attributes?"

After taking some time to study, Chen Chu was no longer as naive as he once was. He knew that upon reaching the Fourth Heavenly Realm, there would be a qualitative change in his true power, and he could gain special attributes based on the nature of his chosen arts.

Like the high-level Blood Emissary he had slain, whose true power attribute had been corrosion. Even battle armor with a +10 durability enhancement hadn’t been able to fully defend against it.

“Indeed.” Pang Long nodded. "If you were to break through to the Fourth Heavenly Realm like this, even if your compatibility with the Dragon Elephant Art is perfect, the power of the transformed true power would at most be comparable to ordinary high-level arts.

"But if you break through using the Dragon Elephant Tyrant Body, your true power transformation will be extremely formidable. You should know that the Dragon Elephant Tyrant Body ranks among the strongest in high-level arts."

“The Dragon Elephant Tyrant Body is that strong?!” Chen Chu was a little surprised.

"Of course, it's a dominant art even among high-level arts. And beyond that, there are top-level arts that complement the Dragon Elephant Tyrant Body.

"By then, you won't need to switch arts again. You can directly cultivate and break through to the Seventh Heavenly Realm in one go. It will save you a lot of time and resources in reaching the Ninth Realm."

"Does this mean I need to hold back on the timing of my breakthrough...?" Chen Chu furrowed his brow.