Chapter 121: The Small Island
A lightning bolt as thick as a barrel lit up the vast cavern, instantly enveloping the giant serpent. The creature roared, its body thrashing in the air.
But after the lightning faded, it seemed only to have enraged the giant serpent. The vicious gleam in its scarlet, vertical pupils grew even more intense!
The old man froze, dumbfounded. If even a lightning spell of such power couldn't harm the giant serpent, then their path to survival had surely been cut off.
Chen Dong's breath caught. 'It's a good thing such a fearsome beast is sealed within this tomb by an Array. If it ever escaped, it would be a catastrophe. This giant Nether Serpent must have the bloodline of a Soaring Snake. Otherwise, there's no way a lightning spell would be so ineffective.'
So, Chen Dong chose to flee. He had no reason to fight the Nether Serpent head-on. In a flash, he hoisted the old man onto his shoulder and, with a few quick leaps, vanished from the giant serpent's sight.
The giant serpent was completely caught off guard by his escape. It had perceived this human as a major threat, and a hint of confusion flashed in its eyes. Though its instincts couldn't comprehend his actions, it gave chase all the same.
The old man hadn't expected Chen Dong to bring him along. Moved to tears with gratitude, he coughed twice and said, "Thank you, young friend, for risking your life to save me!"
As he ran deeper into the tomb, Chen Dong replied nonchalantly, "I wasn't trying to save you. I'm just waiting for the Nether Serpent to catch up so I can toss you out to attract its attention."
The old man choked on his words and began coughing repeatedly. He fell silent, praying inwardly that the giant serpent wouldn't catch up.
Chen Dong sprinted through a sea of ethereal blue flowers, passing one Everlasting Lamp after another as the floral scent grew progressively thicker.
He ran on, the terrain sloping ever downward. 'I never would have imagined a cavern this massive existed beneath these mountains. We must be at least a thousand meters below the surface by now.'
As the Everlasting Lamps grew more numerous, Chen Dong knew he was nearing the tomb's center. The sea of flowers underfoot gave way to a marsh dotted with pools of varying sizes. The giant serpent finally caught up, stopping at the edge of the marsh and roaring incessantly at him.
It seemed there was something in the marsh that the creature feared, for it remained on the bank, refusing to cross the threshold.
Seeing that the giant serpent wasn't pursuing him further, Chen Dong stopped as well, standing lightly on the water's surface to survey his surroundings.
The countless flames of the Everlasting Lamps filled the cavern's ceiling like a star-studded night sky. Below, the vast sea of ethereal blue flowers swayed under the starlight, creating a scene so picturesque it was breathtaking.
'Wait, suffocating?'
How could an expert of his caliber actually feel like he was suffocating?
Chen Dong frowned. He could last two or three hours in a place with no air without feeling the slightest bit suffocated. Yet here, over this marsh, the sensation was real. 'There's definitely something wrong with this place. No wonder the giant serpent won't follow.'
The strings of Everlasting Lamps now looked like a diagram for an Array. 'That's it,' he realized. 'They're channeling all the deadly, baleful qi of this tomb to converge right over this marsh. From here on, this place is a dead zone where nothing can survive.'
Chen Dong felt it too—a life-draining sensation, dozens of times more potent than what he'd felt in the baleful chamber earlier. An ordinary person wouldn't last more than a few minutes here.
The old man on his shoulder was rapidly growing feeble, looking as if he were at death's door. His salt-and-pepper hair was turning snow-white before their very eyes.
Chen Dong's eyebrow twitched. He still had no intention of fighting the giant serpent to the death. He pulled the Thunder Spirit Pearl from his robes. Instantly, lightning flared, forming a spherical shield around them that sealed off the life-draining sensation. The old man was granted a brief respite.
This protective barrier furiously consumed his True Qi; Chen Dong knew he couldn't maintain it for long. He quickly strode across the water, making for the tomb's center.
Seeing Chen Dong press deeper into the marsh, the giant serpent grew visibly agitated. After a series of frantic roars, it charged after him again.
Beyond the narrow marsh was a massive lake. Here, the giant serpent was truly in its element. It conjured dozens of incomparably powerful Water Dragons that surged toward Chen Dong in a dense swarm.
Chen Dong dodged left and right. Ahead, a small island came into view. He put on a burst of speed, heading straight for it.
Growing more desperate, the giant serpent threw everything it had at him. A monstrous, sky-high wave suddenly erupted in front of Chen Dong.
Faced with the massive wave, Chen Dong reversed course and ran back toward the giant serpent. With a nimble leap, he landed on its body. He sprinted along its length, shot past its head, and used it as a springboard to vault clean over the crest of the wave, landing gracefully on the small island.
Seeing that Chen Dong had reached the island, the giant serpent lowered its head and slowly began to retreat.
The island wasn't large, only about a hundred square meters. It was covered in reddish-yellow flowers that resembled chrysanthemums, yet were distinctly different. In the very center sat an eye-catching red Jade Coffin.
The suffocating aura of the dead marsh was completely absent on the island. In its place was a feeling of boundless comfort, like basking in warm sunlight, breathing the air of a lush forest, or drinking from a spring of life. It made one want to lie down and never get up again.
Furthermore, the island was suffused with a vibrant aura of life that was extremely conducive to healing. The old man, who had been clinging to a thread of life just moments ago, was now recovering at a visible rate.
The old man quickly revived. Staring at the chrysanthemum-like flowers, he cried out, "Th-this... this is Mingxi Grass! It's... It's all in bloom!"
Chen Dong shot the old man a glance. "You know a lot, old man."
"A Celestial Spirit Martial Artist needs Mingxi Grass to achieve a breakthrough! If I didn't even know that, what kind of Celestial Spirit Martial Artist would I be?" The old man's expression remained one of utter shock.
Chen Dong chuckled. "Who says a Celestial Spirit Martial Artist absolutely needs Mingxi Grass to break through? That just means you're all too weak. Still, having Mingxi Grass certainly does make a breakthrough possible."
"With so much Mingxi Grass... how many Celestial Spirit Martial Artists could break through?! It's true what they say: those who survive a great disaster are blessed with great fortune! My Yang Family is destined to stand at the apex of the world!"