206: Chapter 206 Black Water Dragon Lord

"I do not have time to dally here with you all."

"I command the two of you to release all available manpower at your disposal and conduct a carpet search of the outskirts of Black Stone Ridge. Report back immediately upon discovering any suspicious Qi or traces."

"Within three days, you must find this group of foreign Yao Race."

"We understand!"

...

It was the evening, three days later.

The Grey Rat Demon darted out from a rock crevice, his four legs running so fast he was almost airborne, and dove into the cave entrance behind the waterfall, panting breathlessly.

"Old Ancestor!"

"Horned Dragon! Horned Dragon has brought Yao soldiers here!"

Wu Li was sitting cross-legged in the stone chamber, regulating his breath. Hearing this, he opened his eyes, a flash of light gleaming within his Blood Pupil.

He stood up and walked out of the Immortal Cave. Hu Lie had already risen from the stone, his yellowish-brown pupils fixed on the direction of the east, his tail held stiffly straight. Hei Yu landed above the waterfall, wings folded, his purple-black pupils filled with gravity.

"How far?"

Wu Li asked.

The Grey Rat Demon panted: "They have already reached the mountain pass. There are at least three hundred Yao soldiers. Horned Dragon is leading the team personally, and all three half-step Third Stage lieutenants are present. They have set up a wide formation."

Wu Li said nothing. His Blood Pupil gazed toward the east, the crimson light piercing through the twilight, passing through the trees and scattered rocks of the mountain pass, to see that dense mass of figures.

Horned Dragon stood at the very front in human form, his dark cyan scale-armor robe gleaming with a cold, eerie light in the twilight. Behind him stood a dense crowd of Yao soldiers—wolves, jackals, foxes, snakes, everything imaginable.

Three half-step Third Stage great Yao stood on either side behind him, each leading a team of Yao soldiers, sealing the mountain pass tight.

The Yao pack was quite disciplined, all staring in the direction of Qingfeng Ravine like a group of beasts that had caught the scent of blood, waiting for their leader's command.

Hu Lie walked to Wu Li's side, his yellowish-brown pupils fixed on that direction, a low rumble emanating from his throat.

"Old Ancestor, let me go and meet them!"

Wu Li glanced at Hu Lie: "Go."

"Also, go find Hei Yu. Mobilize the three hundred First Stage Crow Flock and array them above the mountain pass. Don't let our presence look weak."

Hu Lie grinned, revealing a mouthful of fangs.

"Understood!"

He turned and charged out of the Immortal Cave, kicked off with his hind legs, and leaped onto the rock wall at the top of the waterfall.

A moment later, the dense Crow Flock flew up from all parts of Qingfeng Ravine, rising from the mountain pass like a dark cloud, spreading out along the ridgeline.

Three hundred crows circled and formed an array in the air, the sound of their flapping wings merging into a dull drone, like low-hanging clouds before a storm.

"Ah-gaga-ga~"

"Gaga!!"

In the twilight.

Three hundred pairs of blood-red pupils lit up simultaneously, dense and numerous, suspended in mid-air like countless ghost fires floating in the darkness.

Horned Dragon's side visibly paused.

The previously orderly formation showed slight agitation; several small Yao looked up at the sky-covering Crow Flock and instinctively retreated half a step.

Horned Dragon stood at the very front, his dark yellow slit pupils narrowing slightly. He watched the Crow Flock suspended in the air, remained silent for a moment, and did not move.

Inside Qingfeng Ravine, Wu Li stood at the cave entrance. His Blood Pupil swept over the Crow Flock in the air, and after confirming the formation was correct, he raised his claw and waved it: "Open the gate."

Heida and Heier leaped out from both sides of the waterfall and landed in front of the fissure blocked by dead branches and rubble. Their claws swept in unison; gravel flew, and dead branches snapped.

The fissure, which appeared to be a solid rock wall from the outside, was pushed open, revealing a deep, dark passage inside.

Hu Lie stood inside the fissure, his yellowish-brown pupils fixed on the dense mass of Yao soldiers at the mountain pass. His tail swayed slowly behind him, and a low rumble emanated from his throat, like a beast that had caught the scent of blood, grinding its teeth.

"Hmm?"

On Horned Dragon's side, he let out a soft sound of suspicion when he saw Hu Lie emerge.

"Great King..."

Behind Horned Dragon, a slender, pale-grey Yao creature walked out from the formation. It hugged the ground, its nose tip almost touching the soil, sniffing all the way until it stopped at Horned Dragon's feet.

The creature looked like an elongated wolf, with slender limbs, a narrow head, and two slit-like nostrils on its snout that opened and closed like two flapping fish gills.

It crouched beside Horned Dragon, raised its head, its slit pupils gleaming with a murky light, and emitted a hoarse sound from its throat.

"Great King, this is the place."

"The Yao Race in this cave are outsiders. Their Qi is unfamiliar; they are not of our Black Stone Ridge kind. The scent on the Pig Vanguard also came from here. He is the one who killed him."

Horned Dragon's dark yellow slit pupils narrowed slightly, his gaze sweeping over the Crow Flock suspended above the mountain pass in the distance.

"Outsiders?"

"Aohou~" A tiger's roar.

Hu Lie walked slowly out from the fissure, his yellow and black fur gleaming with a dull luster in the twilight.

He walked to the edge of the pool in front of the waterfall and stood firm, his four claws digging into the gravel. His tail raised slowly behind him, and his yellowish-brown pupils swept across the dense mass of Yao soldiers opposite him, without a hint of retreat.

"What is the meaning of this?"

"A bunch of rabble, daring to invade!"

Hu Lie's voice was not loud, but every word was clearly conveyed to the ears of every Yao opposite him.

He stood by the pool, his back straight, the aura of his Early Stage Third Stage strength released without reservation, like an invisible wall standing before the entrance of Qingfeng Ravine.

Horned Dragon said nothing, his dark yellow slit pupils watching Hu Lie calmly.

"Arrogant!!"

The formation of Yao soldiers behind Horned Dragon had already erupted into chaos; several small Yao whispered to each other, their voices buzzing.

Beside Horned Dragon, a burly great Yao walked out from the formation first.

The Yao's original form was a Black-Maned Wild Boar. In human form, he was two zhang tall, covered in coarse, hard black bristles. His arms were as thick as stone pillars, and he gripped a heavy stone hammer in his palms, the head of which was still stained with dried blood.

He walked to the front of the formation and slammed the stone hammer onto the ground, cracking the earth.

"What nerve!"

The Black-Maned Wild Boar's voice was like muffled thunder, exploding in the mountain pass and causing ripples to spread across the surface of the pool.

He held the stone hammer horizontally, pointing at Hu Lie.

"This is the territory governed by my Great King!"

"You foreign Yao, trespassing on our Black Stone Ridge domain and killing our vanguard, yet today you dare to spout wild words! Do you know who is standing before you?"

"Black Water Horned Dragon Lord, Lord of the East Ridge of Black Stone Ridge, ruler of a hundred miles! You ignorant tiger cub, why don't you kneel and confess your crimes!"

Hu Lie listened, flicked his tail lightly, his yellowish-brown pupils filled with disdain.

He tugged at the corner of his mouth, revealing half of his fangs: "Black Water Horned Dragon Lord? Never heard of him."

"I don't care what Dragon Lord you are; this place is under our control now."

The Black-Maned Wild Boar's face instantly turned purple, his bristles standing on end. He slammed the stone hammer onto the ground and roared.

"You seek death!"

He kicked off the ground with both legs, his two-zhang-tall body rolling toward Hu Lie like a mountain of flesh. He swung the stone hammer, carrying a fierce wind as it smashed toward Hu Lie's skull.

Just as Hu Lie was about to rise and counterattack, an ink-purple figure swept over his head, landing in front of him faster than he could.

"Let me try!"

Hei Yu folded his wings and landed in front of Hu Lie, his ink-purple feathers gleaming with a cold light in the twilight.

"Be careful."