61: Chapter 61 Three Heroes Battle the Mysterious Water Crocodile

"Xuan Shui Crocodile?!" Su Qingyue's brows furrowed slightly.

"What's its strength? Can we handle it?" Zhang Wen asked urgently.

"Its Realm is actually only at the Peak of the Microscopic Realm, but the difficult part is that it has the Black Tortoise Bloodline in its body," Zhao Yu said with distress.

"Black Tortoise Bloodline?!" Su Qingyue and Zhang Wen exclaimed.

"It seems you guys usually don't accumulate enough knowledge," Zhao Yu tapped his palm. "Although the Xuan Shui Crocodile is a variant of an ordinary crocodile, once it undergoes a Black Tortoise Bloodline Awakening, its strength becomes worlds apart. Not only can its scales withstand Protective Aura, but its water-element abilities are doubled. An ordinary expert at the Peak of the Microscopic Realm would likely not last three moves against it."

Just as he finished speaking, the pool water suddenly churned like it was boiling. A zhang-long, greenish-black crocodile head broke through the water. Half a circle of dark gold scales actually grew on its head, resembling the patterns of a Black Tortoise shell.

The pool water suddenly kicked up muddy waves several zhang high. The Xuan Shui Crocodile's massive body cut through the water like a fast boat. Its greenish-black scales glinted coldly in the moonlight, and the ring of dark gold scales on its head faintly flowed with an earthy yellow halo—the Black Tortoise's Divine Ability of controlling water and earth was fully activated.

Zhao Yu stomped his feet hard, pushing his Unbreakable Bedrock talent to the limit. A stone armor half a zhang thick surged around him. But the moment the Xuan Shui Crocodile's tail whipped over, the stone armor shattered like pottery. He was sent flying, crashing into a rock wall and spitting out a mouthful of blood.

"Zhao Yu!" Su Qingyue shouted urgently, flicking out her Ice Silkworm Silk. Her Thousand Waters Without Trace talent allowed the silk threads to vanish into the water vapor. She intended to wrap them around the crocodile's head, but they were severed by water arrows spat from its mouth. Those water arrows, stained with silt from the bottom of the pool, turned into sharp earth spikes upon landing, forcing her to leap back repeatedly.

Purple electricity crackled wildly on Zhang Wen's right fist. Nine Heavens Tribulation Thunder condensed into a dark purple lightning ball. The force of the Rushing Thunder Delusion Breaking Fist already caused ripples in the pool.

Just as his fist was about to strike, the Xuan Shui Crocodile suddenly dove to the bottom, and the pool surface froze into solid ice with a "crack." A dark shadow swam rapidly beneath the ice, and undercurrents surged up through the surface, making Zhang Wen's knees buckle and causing his momentum to mostly dissipate.

He gritted his teeth to steady himself, only to see the dark shadow beneath the ice stop at his feet. Its vertical pupils glinted coldly through the ice, as if it were playing with him.

"It's using hit-and-run tactics!" Zhao Yu clambered up while clutching his chest, fragments of his stone armor still falling off. "Qingyue, use your talent to draw the upstream creek water and cut off its water supply!"

Su Qingyue pressed her slender hand toward the creek by the bank, but just as water ripples appeared at her fingertips, the ice suddenly exploded. The Xuan Shui Crocodile's massive jaws lunged out from beneath the ice, spraying foul-smelling saliva all over her face. Zhang Wen lunged forward to push her away, but his own shoulder was struck by the crocodile's snout, and the crisp sound of breaking bone was clearly audible.

"Zhang Wen!"

Seizing the moment the Xuan Shui Crocodile raised its head, Zhao Yu endured the intense pain and lunged forward, his sword tip stabbing toward its left eye. But the moment the tip hit the scales, it was deflected by three inches, leaving only a white mark.

"Damn it, these scales are harder than refined iron!" He cursed as he spun to avoid a sweep of the crocodile's tail. He then saw the gold scales on the Xuan Shui Crocodile's head suddenly light up, and the silt at the bottom of the pool surged up like a living thing, condensing into an earthy yellow shield around its body.

Su Qingyue suddenly bit her fingertip and dripped blood onto the Ice Silkworm Silk: "Thousand Silk Water Prison! — Bind!"

The silver silk suddenly turned crimson, burrowing into the gaps of the Xuan Shui Crocodile's scales like a spirit snake.

The Xuan Shui Crocodile hissed in pain and violently thrashed its body, pulling Su Qingyue off the ground. She was about to be flung into its massive jaws.

"Thunder Net Locking Truth!!!"

Zhang Wen dragged his injured shoulder and lunged to the edge of the pool, slamming the thunder net hard onto the ice. The purple-black thunder net spread along the cracks in the ice, actually burrowing into the Xuan Shui Crocodile's body through Su Qingyue's blood silk. This surprise attack caused the crocodile's body to twitch violently. Su Qingyue took the opportunity to break free but fell to the ground due to exhaustion.

Zhao Yu spotted the opportunity and poured all his spiritual energy into his sword tip, stabbing fiercely at the Xuan Shui Crocodile's left ribs. The blade sank three inches and could go no further; the scales there were slowly healing.

"It's using its Black Tortoise Bloodline to heal itself!" Veins bulged on Zhao Yu's temples. "Zhang Wen, do you have any more killing moves that can blast it open?"

Zhang Wen's face was as pale as paper, his teeth clenched: "I do, but I need a moment to gather power."

At that moment, the Xuan Shui Crocodile suddenly let out an earth-shattering roar. The earthy yellow shield around it suddenly expanded, sending Zhao Yu flying back, and his sword slipped from his hand into the pool. Su Qingyue was about to get up when she saw the crocodile's head turn toward her, its dark gold vertical pupils filled with ferocity.

"Qingyue, watch out!"

At the critical moment, Zhang Wen suddenly lunged forward and hugged the crocodile's head, using his body to block its massive jaws. The Xuan Shui Crocodile snapped its mouth shut, and the clothes on his back were instantly torn by its fangs, blood staining the greenish-black scales red.

"Now's the time!" Zhang Wen roared, his right hand pressed firmly against the crocodile's eye. "Thunder Wrath: Instant Prison Kill — the final strike!"

The moment purple electricity exploded from his palm, Su Qingyue grabbed the gravel on the ground and, using her Thousand Waters Without Trace talent, wrapped the gravel in water vapor, shooting it like sharp arrows toward the Xuan Shui Crocodile's left eye. Zhao Yu also endured the intense pain and lunged forward, slamming his broken scabbard into the gap of the crocodile's mouth.

The Xuan Shui Crocodile let out a dying wail, its massive body crashing to the ground and kicking up mud and water everywhere.

The three of them collapsed on the ground, unable to speak for a long time. Zhao Yu's stone armor had long since shattered completely, and his back was a bloody mess. Su Qingyue's face was as pale as paper, with a trace of blood at the corner of her mouth. Zhang Wen's right arm was unnaturally twisted, and the wound on his shoulder was still seeping blood.

"Next time..." Zhang Wen panted and laughed. "Next time we encounter one with a Bloodline, let's run three li before saying anything else."

Su Qingyue used her spiritual energy to draw creek water to wash his wound, her voice carrying a hint of a sob. "Still laughing? One step later and your arm would have been ruined."

Zhao Yu looked at the Xuan Shui Crocodile's gold scales, which were gradually losing their luster, and suddenly frowned. "Wait, the Bloodline Power in its body... it doesn't seem to have fully dissipated."

Just as he spoke, the Xuan Shui Crocodile, which should have been dead, suddenly twitched. By the time everyone noticed, the bloody hole in its left ribs made by the sword was closing at a visible speed. Even the edges of the scales scorched by Thunder Fire were glowing with a dark gold luster.

"Not good! The Black Tortoise Bloodline is forcibly extending its life!" Zhao Yu struggled to pick up his sword, only to see the crocodile corpse suddenly snap its eyes open—that left eye, which had been injured by the Tribulation Thunder, was now oozing golden blood.

The Xuan Shui Crocodile opened its massive jaws, and several earthy yellow water columns suddenly rose from the bottom of the pool, trapping the three of them in the center.

Zhang Wen wanted to summon the Nine Heavens Tribulation Thunder, but he found that the Meridians in his right arm were already wracked with intense pain. The purple electricity flickered in his palm, making it difficult even to condense.

"It's absorbing the water and earth Spiritual Qi from the bottom of the pool!" Su Qingyue suddenly shouted. Her water silk probed the ground but was repelled by a heavy earthy power. "This beast has used the Black Tortoise's Divine Ability to the extreme!"