THE DRAGON GOD AGAINST THE HEAVENS

9.

Wang Chen’s footsteps echoed softly against the damp, rocky ground. The air at the bottom of the abyss grew increasingly colder. The further he walked, the more suffocating and ominous the atmosphere became.

Sreeek... Sreeek...

Hearing the sound, Wang Chen halted abruptly. His ears were now far more sensitive, catching any sound within a thirty-meter radius of where he stood. The sound was not coming from just one direction, but from various corners of the darkness ahead.

"What is that sound?" Wang Chen whispered, his eyes narrowing as he tried to pierce through the remnants of the mist.

GRRRRRR...

A low, heavy growl echoed, making the hairs on his neck stand on end. From within the darkness, pairs of blood-red eyes lit up one after another.

"Damn it... I've barely tasted freedom, and it seems another trouble is already brewing..."

Woooooosh!

Driven by curiosity, he casually flipped his palm over. Instantly, the Dragon Flame ignited like a beacon, illuminating the entire floor of the Abyss of Despair.

Then, out of nowhere... right around him, within a thirty-meter radius, the rocky ground was swarming with dozens of giant crawling beasts.

The creatures resembled crocodiles, stretching up to five meters in length, with pitch-black hides covered in thick scales as hard as steel plates. Most terrifyingly, a pair of branching antlers grew atop their heads like those of a stag, yet they were charged with a dense, pitch-black murderous aura.

"W-what on earth are those crocodiles?!" Wang Chen’s eyes widened, his heart hammering so violently it felt as if it would leap straight out of his chest.

But suddenly, he recalled catching a glimpse of this demonic beast in the records of the Wang clan library. The creatures before him were Staghorn Crocodiles. And based on the energy fluctuations radiating from the bodies of this savage reptile pack, they were at the four-star Mortal Human realm.

In theory, Wang Chen’s cultivation—which sat at the five-star Initial Fighter realm—vastly outmatched theirs. Logically, he could easily sweep these creatures away. However, theory remained theory. The current Wang Chen was still an innocent youth who had lived oppressed for over a decade without ever once being involved in a life-or-death battle. For him, being surrounded by dozens of starving monsters with jaws dripping toxic drool was a nightmare far too real.

GRRRRRRR!

Even though the pack of crocodiles felt the heat of the Dragon Flame, they felt provoked. They lashed their spiked tails, smashing massive boulders into pieces, and began to crawl rapidly to encircle Wang Chen.

"Damn it! There are too many of them! I don't even know how to fight yet!" Wang Chen shrieked in panic. As terror consumed him, his survival instincts took the reins.

Amidst the panic, his mind automatically accessed the knowledge etched into his brain. Before long, a lightweight movement technique flashed vividly in his mind.

"RUNNNNN!"

Wuuush!

Wang Chen instantly extinguished the flame in his hand, focusing all the golden energy from his meridians into both legs. The moment the energy surged, his body felt as light as a feather caught in the wind.

ROAAARRR!

The three lead crocodiles lunged forward to snap at him simultaneously, their jaws clamping shut violently right where Wang Chen had been standing a mere second ago.

Unfortunately for them, they bit nothing but empty air.

Sssssh!

For Wang Chen's body had already shot forward at a speed that even he found hard to believe. Every time his feet grazed a stone surface, his body seemed to rebound weightlessly, leaving behind a faint, illusory afterimage.

“Incredible! So fast!” Wang Chen thought to himself, his panic subsiding slightly, replaced by sheer awe.

Even though his path was jagged and steep, he nimbly leapt over the backs of the crocodiles trying to block his path. His movements flowed so naturally, as if he had been accustomed to utilizing this lightweight movement technique for years.

Yet, what Wang Chen himself did not anticipate...

Seeing their prey escape, the pack of Staghorn Crocodiles flew into a frenzy. They spun around and pursued him at full speed, creating a thundering roar that shook the entire floor of the abyss.

The thundering rumble behind him grew increasingly maddening. The sweeping tails and slamming bodies of the dozens of chasing Staghorn Crocodiles caused the canyon walls to vibrate violently, raining down small rocks toward him. Wang Chen thought he only needed to run a little further to escape, but that hope was shattered the instant he looked ahead.

GRRRRRRR! ROAAARRR!

From within the darkness of the path he was about to cross, hundreds of pairs of blood-red eyes lit up once more. As it turned out, this area was their main nesting ground! Dozens, perhaps even hundreds of even larger Staghorn Crocodiles crawled out, completely blocking all access out of the bottom of the abyss.

"Damn it! There's a blockade ahead too?!" Wang Chen braked hard, sending clouds of dust kicking up around him.

He was now completely trapped in the middle. Behind him was a pack of pursuers, and ahead was a line of blockers. His room for movement shrank rapidly, and the foul, metallic stench of blood from the monsters' jaws was now right in front of his nose.

Panic briefly paralyzed his mind for a single second. However, seeing a giant crocodile in front of him leap forward with its staghorns ready to impale his chest, something within Wang Chen’s Ancient Divine Dragon Blood seemed to boil. The submissive nature from over a decade of oppression, which usually made him resign to his fate, was now replaced by a surging wave of wrath and wild survival instincts.

“Every time I run, I always get trampled! Now that I have power, why should I be afraid of a bunch of reptiles?!” his heart cried out, his eyes flashing with a golden gleam.

"You left me no choice!" Wang Chen growled low. He steeled his resolve, throwing away his innocence and fear.

In a split second, his consciousness dove into his mind, combing through the scroll of inherited combat techniques in his head. He needed something instant, lethal, and capable of utilizing his extreme speed.

"Found it!"

The name of an ancient martial technique resonated within his soul. This technique turned out to be an advanced form that merged perfectly with the lightweight movement technique he had been using all along.

The Dragon Shadow Step!

This technique relied on high-tier speed to create illusory afterimages, while the Qi energy within the body was funneled into the fingertips, condensing them into dragon claws capable of tearing through anything.

"B-but how do I use it?!"