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**
During those most dangerous moments, they had not only encountered powerful ten-thousand-year Evil Beasts that viewed them as prey but were also obstructed by large groups of gregarious, bloodthirsty Evil Beasts.
This often led to them being pinned down in one spot.
Furthermore, because fleeing from ten-thousand-year Evil Beasts consumed a massive amount of Soul Power, it became difficult for them to quickly deal with those lower-tier groups.
Eventually, they would be overtaken, making escape nearly impossible. In the span of a year, they had sustained countless injuries in this place, including numerous heavy wounds.
Almost all were suffered under such circumstances.
Fortunately, the four of them cooperated closely and assisted one another; combined with a bit of luck, they had not all been heavily injured at the same time. Otherwise, their training in the Death Canyon would likely have ended long ago.
Now, being targeted by a ten-thousand-year Evil Beast once again, Ling Xiao and the others were no longer surprised, much less panicked. The four exchanged glances, communicating their intent mentally, and immediately fled toward one side of the wasteland.
They had been in that direction before; there was a forest in the distance that wasn't particularly lush. Compared to the open plains, it was more suitable for losing this giant beast. Moreover, based on their previous experiences, the number of Evil Beasts in that area was relatively low.
Seeing the four flee quickly, the Dark Thunder-Horned Rhinoceros Dragon let out a roar.
The sound vibrated through the air, creating a series of aftershocks that rippled out in all directions. Lightning flickered across its body, and its lightning-attribute Soul Power aura was incredibly overbearing and powerful.
It moved its four pillar-like limbs and quickly gave chase.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The sound of heavy impacts echoed from the ground behind them.
Although the Dark Thunder-Horned Rhinoceros Dragon was massive, when it unleashed its power, it was shockingly fast. Relying on its powerful physique and the lightning power within the giant horns on its head, nothing in the wasteland or the forest could withstand it.
It rampaged all the way, snapping trees and crushing boulders in its path.
Even though Ling Xiao and the others had gotten a head start, the distance between them continued to close. The four were forced to strike out repeatedly during their flight to obstruct it. Axe glows and blade qi sliced through the air, striking the Rhinoceros Dragon's body.
While they didn't cause much damage, they served to draw its attention, creating opportunities for Hu Liena and Yan to hinder the pursuit. However, Ling Xiao and his comrades weren't the only ones attacking.
The Dark Thunder-Horned Rhinoceros Dragon was no fool that would simply take hits without retaliating. The two thick, giant horns on its head were not only incredibly hard but also contained immense lightning energy.
As blue lightning flickered during its violent charge, the giant horns unleashed bolts of lightning over ten meters long toward the group.
The air erupted with the sound of muffled thunder.
These powerful lightning attacks clearly exceeded the upper limit of what the four could resist.
They focused primarily on dodging.
As a result, the ground along the way was completely destroyed beyond recognition; craters and cracks were everywhere, and the trees looked as if they had undergone a baptism of heavenly thunder, having been blasted into splinters.
The power of each lightning strike was enough to shatter mountains and crack stone. Its might was far above the attacks of Ling Xiao's group and was not something that Ling Xiao and the others—who had only just stepped into the Soul Ancestor level—could withstand head-on.
If they hadn't been fleeing in front, allowing them to choose their path and take the lead—and if they weren't numerous enough to avoid frontal assaults and block collectively—they likely would have been heavily injured and unable to escape.
However, the good times did not last.
A violent bolt of thunder erupted, and a thick, massive strike of lightning descended from behind like a divine weapon falling from the heavens.
It was incredibly fast and difficult to dodge.
Ling Xiao had no choice but to turn back and swing his axe, sending out a massive axe glow formed by the Profound Sky Slash.
Although the black-red axe glow, over ten meters long, was condensed and fierce, it was difficult to withstand the lightning attack released by the Rhinoceros Dragon. The massive lightning bolt, several meters thick, was even more exaggerated than the axe glow.
It easily shattered the strike and continued to descend.
But Ling Xiao was not fighting alone. Seeing the lightning strike down so rapidly that it was hard to avoid, the four of them attacked simultaneously to block it. Compared to before, all four had now reached Rank 40.
Although they had not yet absorbed their fourth Soul Rings, their Soul Power cultivation had increased significantly, leading to no small growth in strength. By combining their efforts, they weren't so weak that they couldn't even take a single one of its attacks.
Hu Liena mobilized the power of her Soul Rings, and a purple thousand-year Soul Ring was released. A burst of crimson fire erupted from her silver-white Charming Fox Martial Soul, her fire-attribute aura surging.
Opening her mouth, a stream of crimson flames gushed out like a fire dragon. The Charming Fox Flames were scorching hot, transforming into a torrent of fire to meet the lightning.
Xie Yue's twin Moon Blades flashed with cold light as he performed the Flame Moon. Two silver-white blade beams crossed into shape, igniting with fierce flames as they tore through the sky.
As Yan exerted his power, he threw two consecutive punches. His Blazing Sun Collapse carved out two massive pillars of fire that surged upward to meet the bolt of lightning.
Boom!!!
The multiple attacks converged, fusing into one as they collided with the thick, deep-blue lightning.
The sky instantly erupted with a series of thunderous cracks.
Blue lightning, crimson fire, and silver-white blade light intertwined, reflecting off one another. A powerful surge of energy suddenly manifested, forming ripples of near-invisible spatial fluctuations that spread outward.
The intense residual power shook the air, creating a violent shockwave that kicked up massive clouds of dust and caused the surrounding trees and boulders to explode. Even trees nearly a hundred meters away were shaken apart, collapsing into fragments.
This overbearing shockwave dealt no small amount of damage to Ling Xiao and the others, forcing them back several steps. Their internal organs were jolted, and their breathing became ragged.
A moment later, the silhouette of a giant beast emerged from the billowing dust.
Blue lightning crackled around its body as a coarse roar echoed out. Clearly, the aftershocks meant nothing to the monster; it had used the opportunity to close the distance and was now lunging toward them.
"Go, quickly!"
Hu Liena shouted, reacting without a moment's hesitation.
She pushed her Martial Soul to its limits, and the three long tails of her Charming Fox form whipped out, wrapping around Ling Xiao and the other two. With a violent heave, she flung them away from the direction of the Dark Thunder-Horned Rhinoceros Dragon.
Borrowing this momentum, the three men quickly adjusted their positions in mid-air. They mobilized their Soul Power, stepping forcefully against the air itself before kicking off several large tree branches to land steadily on the ground.
Before they even touched the earth, they twisted their bodies in mid-air to fire off several attacks to cover Hu Liena's retreat. Now in a perilous position herself, Hu Liena activated her second soul skill, Shadow Raid.
Her speed increased instantly as she released a flurry of crimson-red silhouettes. Under the cover of these clones, her true body transformed into several red streaks, racing toward Ling Xiao and the others.
Through this joint effort, the four of them managed to narrowly block the attack and escape the Rhinoceros Dragon's immediate reach. Just as they were about to attempt to lose the giant beast for good—
Suddenly, their surroundings went dark.
This peculiar change caused their hearts to tremble.
Although the Death Canyon was perpetually shrouded in fog and remained gloomy even during the day, there was usually some modicum of light. Now, it felt as though a gargantuan object had completely blotted out the last remaining rays of the sun.
"Watch out above!"
Xie Yue suddenly cried out in alarm, his eyes fixed on the sky in utter shock.
The group looked up.
High above the canyon, a terrifying black giant bird had appeared out of nowhere. Its size was so immense that even the ten-thousand-year Dark Thunder-Horned Rhinoceros Dragon appeared small by comparison.
**
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