146: Chapter 146 Silverback Wild Bull

The stones in the riverbed were scorched by the sun.

Lin Xuan crouched behind a millstone-sized pebble, his hand pressed against the stone surface, feeling the lingering warmth of the sunlight seeping into his palm.

The surface of the stone was rough, riddled with tiny holes, and felt like sandpaper to the touch.

The Herb-Seeking Mouse crouched on his shoulder, its ears standing straight up.

It stopped moving.

It just stood like that, like two small, withered leaves.

Lin Xuan turned his head to look at it. The little creature's nose was twitching rapidly, its whiskers trembling, and its tail had stiffened into a little stick—he knew this reaction; it was exactly how the Herb-Seeking Mouse had acted when they discovered the nest of the Purple Lightning Sable in Cloud Mist Valley.

He lowered his breathing and unfurled his Earth Listening Technique.

The pebbles beneath his feet were vibrating.

It wasn't the trembling caused by the wind, but a rhythmic, heavy vibration.

Thump, thump, with an interval of about two breaths; each vibration caused the stones under his feet to jump slightly.

Lin Xuan slowly poked half his head out.

Upstream of the riverbed, over a hundred zhang away.

A behemoth was walking down along the dried-up riverbed.

Its size was a circle larger than an adult rhinoceros, but it wasn't the tall and mighty type—its limbs were thick and short like stone pillars, and its body was kept very low, like a moving gray boulder.

Its pace was not fast, one could even say it was very slow. Every step was taken firmly, its hooves sinking into the pebbles and leaving a bowl-sized pit when lifted.

The most eye-catching part was its back.

From its neck to its rump, along the entire spine, it was covered with a layer of silver-gray bony plating.

It wasn't a single complete piece, but dozens of hexagonal bone plates pieced together, connected by fine silver lines between them, as if it were wearing a suit of intricately crafted armor.

The pale purple skylight shone on it, and the edges of the bone plates reflected a cold metallic luster.

Its head was large, with a pair of curved horns on its forehead, the horn shafts having spiral patterns, with a faint silver light flowing on the surface.

Its eyes were dark gold with vertical pupils, and its gaze was as deep and stagnant as a pool of dead water.

Silver-Backed Bull.

Lin Xuan recognized it.

He had seen the illustrations of this Yao Beast in the "Ten Thousand Beast Compendium"—it had dual Earth and Lightning attributes and was known for its defensive power.

The silver armor on its back was its hallmark. After reaching adulthood, the silver armor would cover its entire body, and its horns would increase from one pair to two; by then, it would be a Tier 2 Yao Beast.

The one before him was a size smaller than the adult in the illustrations; the silver armor only covered its back, the sides of its waist were still exposed thick gray-brown skin, and it only had one pair of horns.

Tier 1 High Grade Early Stage.

Equivalent to a human Cultivator at around Qi Refining Stage 7.

Lin Xuan retreated behind the stone, his back leaning against the scorching surface, his mind beginning to race.

The value of a Silver-Backed Bull was very high.

That layer of silver armor was a High Grade Material for refining Magical Artifacts; in the markets outside, a piece the size of a palm could sell for dozens of Spirit Stones.

The pair of horns contained dual Earth and Lightning attributes, which could be used for Artifact Refining or ground into powder to mix into cinnabar for drawing Talismans, having an amplifying effect on lightning-attribute Talismans.

Its flesh and blood were a great tonic for a Body Cultivator—the sea spirit ginseng he had consumed on Chenjiao Island was the essence of plants, with gentle and long-lasting medicinal power, whereas Yao Beast flesh and blood contained blood essence, making the Body Tempering effect more direct and brutal.

More importantly, this bull had the potential to reach Tier 2.

He still had capacity remaining in his spirit control tower's slave contracts.

The Herb-Seeking Mouse and the Pangolin were both contracted from a young age, so the burden on his Divine Soul wasn't great; his Divine Soul still had quite a bit of room.

This Silver-Backed Bull was not bad.

Lin Xuan licked his lips and reached for the Thunder-Striking Thorn in his sleeve.

But he was in no rush to act.

He observed first.

The Silver-Backed Bull's pace was very regular—it would walk seven or eight steps, stop, lower its head to sniff the pebbles on the ground, pause for about two breaths, and then continue walking.

Two breaths.

It was enough for him to do many things.

Lin Xuan released the Pangolin.

As soon as the Pangolin landed, it shrank its neck, its scales slightly standing up—it, too, had sensed the aura of that big guy in the distance.

Lin Xuan crouched down, patted its head, and lowered his voice: "Go around from the side, stay underground, keep thirty zhang away from it, and wait for my signal."

The Pangolin looked up at him, its small dark purple eyes blinking, and then it dove into a gap between the pebbles, disappearing within a few breaths.

Lin Xuan plucked the Herb-Seeking Mouse from his shoulder.

The little creature squeaked reluctantly, its claws gripping his collar and refusing to let go. Lin Xuan pried its claws open and stuffed it into the Beast Taming Space.

It was too weak to help, and leaving it outside would only be a burden.

He stood up.

He pushed his Breath Concealment Technique to the limit, his whole person becoming like a stone commonly found in the riverbed, without a trace of aura leaking out.

He stepped on the pebbles, specifically choosing spots that were sun-baked and cracked, where stepping wouldn't make a sound.

Fifty zhang.

The Silver-Backed Bull didn't notice. It was lowering its head to sniff a large stone buried in the riverbed, its breath blowing onto the stone surface, kicking up a patch of dry dust.

Thirty zhang.

The Silver-Backed Bull's ears twitched. Lin Xuan stopped immediately, remaining motionless.

The bull raised its head, its dark golden pupils scanning in this direction, its gaze sliding past the stone where he was hiding without lingering.

It lowered its head again and continued to sniff that stone.

Twenty zhang.

The Silver-Backed Bull stopped, scraped its front hooves twice on the pebbles, and lowered its head to sniff the ground.

Now.

Lin Xuan moved.

His [Extreme Speed] talent was fully activated. He stomped fiercely on the pebbles, causing the stones to sink half an inch into the ground, and his entire body blurred into a vague afterimage across the riverbed.

The twenty-zhang distance was covered before the sound of the wind could even reach his ears.

The Thunder-Striking Thorn slid out from his sleeve, purple lightning light illuminating the tip of the blade.

The Silver-Backed Bull's reaction was astonishingly fast.

It sensed danger almost the moment Lin Xuan started moving.

Its massive head snapped up, its dark golden pupils suddenly constricting into thin lines, and it let out a low, muffled roar from its throat.

It wasn't a shriek of terror, but a steady, imposing low roar, like a warning issued by a king whose territory had been violated.

But it didn't dodge.

Its front hooves stomped heavily on the riverbed, causing the pebbles beneath its feet to scatter and fly.

The silver armor on its back suddenly lit up. The silver lines between those hexagonal bone plates began to flow as if alive, and a layer of silver-gray translucent shield surged out from the seams of the bone plates, spreading across the surface of its body.

"Clang—!"

The Thunder-Striking Thorn struck the shield.

The loud sound of metal clashing exploded in the river valley, the echoes bouncing back and forth between the hills on both sides several times.

Sparks erupted from the point where the blade tip touched the shield, splashing onto the back of Lin Xuan's hand, burning his fingers until he flinched.

The shield vibrated violently, the silver light flickering, but it did not shatter.

The Silver-Backed Bull's horns simultaneously erupted with blinding silver light.

An arm-thick arc of silver lightning shot from the tips of its horns, heading straight for Lin Xuan's face.

It was too fast.

So fast that only that silver light remained in Lin Xuan's pupils.

But [Extreme Speed] brought not just running speed, but also reaction speed.

His body moved before his brain could react—he twisted his waist sharply, took a sideways step on the pebbles, and launched himself to the side.

The arc of lightning grazed past his left shoulder.

The distance was so close that he could feel the stinging pain of his skin being scorched by the electric current, and a burnt smell rose from the shoulder of his robe.

The arc of lightning slammed into a millstone-sized pebble behind him.

The stone exploded on the spot.

Not cracked, but exploded.

Countless fragments shot out in all directions, and several fist-sized pieces smashed into Lin Xuan's back, making him groan, his back burning with pain.

He had no time to check his injuries.

Taking advantage of the momentum from his sideways shift, Lin Xuan had already circled to the side of the Silver-Backed Bull.

The startling thunder whip lashed out from his waist, purple lightning light brightening on the whip body the moment it was released, the tip of the whip drawing an arc in the air as it coiled toward the bull's hind leg.

The Silver-Backed Bull stomped its hind hooves fiercely against the ground.

A layer of earth-yellow halo spread out from beneath its hooves, rippling outwards like waves.

Wherever the halo passed, the pebbles on the ground suddenly vibrated and rolled, and several fist-sized stones sprang up from the ground, shooting toward Lin Xuan.

Lin Xuan flicked his wrist, the startling thunder whip changed direction in mid-air, the whip body sweeping horizontally, shattering the stones one by one.

The shattered stones hit the riverbed, making a clattering sound.

But with this delay, the Silver-Backed Bull had already turned around.

Its turning was very slow. Its thick, short limbs limited its flexibility, its massive body making creaking sounds as it turned on the pebbles, its hooves sinking into the gaps between the stones and then pulling out, the entire movement clumsy and heavy.

But it had indeed turned around.

Its head hung low, its horns aimed at Lin Xuan's chest, its dark golden pupils devoid of anger, holding only a steady, cold focus.

That layer of silver armor shield had already dimmed, but it didn't care—its defense had never relied on that shield.