EFB Chapter 8 Deep in the Cliff
Chapter 8 Deep in the Cliff
Zhao Chen began to descend slowly in the thick fog, each flap of its wings appearing gentle and steady.
The surroundings were deathly silent, with only the soft rustling of wings cutting through the air. The fog grew thicker and thicker, so thick that even with Zhao Chen's hawk-like sharp eyes, he could only see within a radius of about ten feet.
Soul perception was also heavily suppressed. The area that could originally cover two thousand feet was now compressed to five or six hundred feet, as if it were blocked by an invisible barrier.
But Zhao Chen could clearly sense it—
In the darkness, countless hidden eyes continued to watch him intently.
They are waiting.
When Zhao Chen fell in, he fell into the trap.
Zhao Chen let out a sneer, spread his black and gold wings, and continued to descend.
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Five hundred feet.
Eight hundred feet.
One thousand feet.
Finally, Zhao Chen broke through the layers of fog.
Suddenly, the view opened up before me, as if I had stumbled into a secret realm.
The bottom of the canyon was far wider and deeper than Zhao Chen had imagined. An underground river flowed from afar, its dark waters flowing silently in the darkness, gleaming with a cold, eerie light.
The two banks were covered with lush vegetation of many different kinds, all of which were strange plants he had never seen before—glowing mushrooms that blotted out the sky like giant umbrellas, dark green moss that stretched along the ground in all directions, and unknown vines that emitted a ghostly blue glow. They were emitting a faint blue-green light, making the entire bottom of the canyon look like a dream, as if he were in a dream.
"So this is what it looks like down there."
Zhao Chen slowly landed on a huge black rock by the river, his soul perception spreading outwards.
Upon seeing this, Zhao Chen's dark eyes immediately lit up with excitement.
Many creatures are hidden around.
In the shadow of the rocks a hundred feet to the left, three giant scorpions were lying, each about half the size of him in his prime. They were dark brown, with a wisp of eerie blue venomous light swirling around their stingers, and exuded a fierce aura.
Two hundred feet to the right, in a dark cave, lay a giant python, much larger than the one he had encountered before. As it coiled, its scales gleamed with a cold light, and its breathing was steady and heavy.
Further away, in that mist-shrouded area, countless figures were moving about, numbering no less than a hundred. Their gray-black fur could be vaguely seen swaying. This was a group of unknown creatures, watching this area with a wary attitude.
"Is this a welcome banquet prepared for me?"
Zhao Chen gently licked the bird's beak, which gleamed with a dark golden luster, his voice low and tinged with a bloodthirsty excitement, "Then I won't be polite."
With a flap of his black and gold wings, Zhao Chen transformed into a black shadow and swooped down towards the swarm of giant scorpions on his left.
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The three giant scorpions sensed the movement and instantly shot out from behind the rocks with lightning speed.
Three dark blue needles, like spears, slashed through the air and pierced Zhao Chen's body from three different directions.
Zhao Chen didn't even bother to dodge, letting the first two tail stingers pierce his body with two soft "plop" sounds. The tail stingers only penetrated half an inch into the feathers before they could go no further.
Zhao Chen's feathers, having undergone numerous enhancements and evolutions, had long since become as hard as iron, even comparable to refined steel. Attacks of this caliber now couldn't even break through his defenses.
The third needle was thrust straight into his right eye.
Zhao Chen tilted his head slightly, narrowly avoiding the attack. At the same time, his beak, like an iron cone, bit down hard, severing the tail. Then, Zhao Chen charged forward and pecked through the giant scorpion's head.
The remaining two giant scorpions were instantly stunned.
They had never encountered such a formidable opponent before; that seemingly soft layer of feathers had become an insurmountable defense for them.
Before they could react, Zhao Chen extended both claws, like two divine iron hooks, and fiercely grabbed a giant scorpion, tearing it in two with force.
The last giant scorpion turned around in terror to flee, but Zhao Chen bit its neck, ripped it off, and swallowed it whole.
In less than ten breaths, he had killed all three giant scorpions.
Zhao Chen landed on the pile of corpses and began to devour them.
The scorpion meat, once consumed, carried a faint but pure toxicity, but it was not only harmless to him, but also further nourished his poison resistance system. The most precious part, however, was their carapace—after Zhao Chen refined it, a special mineral seeped into the feathers, making his defenses even more robust, and his black-gold wings became even more radiant.
"Well enough."
Zhao Chen stood up, shook his feathers, and turned to fly towards the cave on his right. A giant python was lurking there.
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This giant python was far more cunning than the one Zhao Chen had encountered before.
Unlike the giant scorpions that rushed forward impulsively, it lurked deep inside the cave, clearly trying to lure Zhao Chen in before strangling him.
Zhao Chen scanned the cave with his senses, a knowing smile playing on his lips.
This cave has a unique structure with only one narrow entrance, but the interior space is incredibly spacious, making it the perfect arena for the giant python to demonstrate its size and constricting skills. If any ordinary, unintelligent creature were to rashly enter, it would almost certainly face certain death.
But Zhao Chen was human in his previous life.
He did not choose to rush in.
Instead, it landed on a rock above the cave entrance, emitting sharp and piercing cries towards the cave's interior, deliberately provoking it.
The giant python remained unmoved.
It remained coiled deep within the cave, silent and still.
Zhao Chen shouted a few more times, then grabbed a few pieces of gravel and threw them hard into the cave entrance, making a commotion.
The giant python remained motionless, as if it had long since ignored the outside world.
"She's quite composed."
Zhao Chen thought to himself, then his mind raced, and he turned around and pretended to leave, flying away into the distance.
He flew several meters, but kept his soul perception locked on the cave entrance, never wavering. Sure enough, not long after, a slight noise came from the depths of the cave. The giant python, thinking Zhao Chen had left, curiously poked its head out, wanting to investigate the situation outside.
Just as its head peeked out of the hole—
Zhao Chen's figure, like a black lightning bolt, suddenly turned back and swooped down!
The python reacted extremely quickly, instantly trying to retract its head and shrink back.
But Zhao Chen was obviously faster. He rushed into the cave entrance, grabbed the giant python's head with both claws, and slammed it against the cave wall. His beak was like a sharp blade as he began to peck wildly!
The hard snake scales instantly began to crack, and blood gushed out.
The giant python began to struggle frantically, its massive body tumbling violently within the cave. With a sweep of its tail, pebbles flew everywhere, and the cave walls were left pitted and uneven.
But Zhao Chen's claws were like nails driven into a rock, gripping the snake's head tightly and refusing to yield an inch.
After pecking countless times, the python's struggles finally weakened, and its massive body went completely limp and motionless.
Zhao Chen dragged its corpse out of the cave and began to devour it.
This giant python possesses far more refined and ferocious energy than the previous one.
The flesh and blood entered the stomach, turning into a warm current that flowed through the limbs and bones, nourishing every inch of muscle and bone.
After devouring everything, Zhao Chen's size increased dramatically again, his body length exceeded three zhang, and his wingspan was close to nine zhang, making him look like a moving black mountain.
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After dealing with the giant python, Zhao Chen looked towards the densely packed figures in the distant mist.
This is a pack of giant wolves.
Each one was two-thirds his size, with incredibly thick gray-black fur, protruding fangs, and fierce eyes. They were in groups of over a hundred, watching Zhao Chen from afar with a wary and fearful attitude.
Zhao Chen smiled.
With its black and gold wings spread, it took the initiative to fly towards the wolf pack.
The wolves hesitated for a moment, then let out a series of howls and pounced on Zhao Chen.
Hundreds of giant wolves converged from all directions, their sharp teeth and claws gleaming, fearless and charging forward.
Zhao Chen executed a graceful maneuver in the air, dodging a wave of attacks, then folded his wings and swooped down. He grabbed a giant wolf by the neck with his claws and ripped it in two with brute force, blood and flesh splattering everywhere.
Landing on the corpse, Zhao Chen swept his wings, knocking away two giant wolves that pounced at him; his beak then precisely pierced the head of one of the giant wolves; immediately afterward, his wings shattered the spine of another giant wolf.
He was like a ruthless killing machine, reaping savagely among the wolves.
One, two, ten...
Wolf blood stained the ground red, and wolf carcasses piled up like mountains.
The wolf pack was finally terrified by this extreme slaughter and began to scatter and flee, no longer daring to fight.
Zhao Chen did not chase after him.
He landed on the wolf carcass and began to devour the giant wolf's corpse.
One after another, the pure flesh and blood of the giant wolves transformed into surging energy, merging into his muscles and blood vessels.
When the remains of the last giant wolf were completely devoured, Zhao Chen's physique had undergone another transformation—his body length had increased to over four zhang, and his wingspan was close to ten zhang.
The feathers became denser and harder, each one as if forged from fine steel, with a stronger black-gold luster, and a faint sense of pressure emanating from them.
Its claws grew increasingly sharp, and with a light scratch, they could leave deep, bottomless grooves in the rocks;
Its beak was incredibly hard, and the dark golden light at its edges shone even brighter, as if it could tear the sky apart.
His soul perception was finally fully restored and broke through again, covering a range of three thousand feet.
Within three thousand feet, every rustling of wind, every breath, every pulse was under Zhao Chen's control.
-
Zhao Chen stood atop the boulder, his figure imposing, the eerie light within his black-gold wings trembling slightly.
He gazed deeper into the darkness, into a thick, impenetrable void.
There, an extremely powerful being resides.
This aura was violent, heavy, domineering, and even carried a hint of oppressive power.
Even from thousands of feet away, he could clearly feel the heart-palpitating oppression, as if an invisible mountain was pressing down on Zhao Chen's heart.
This is his real prey in this canyon.
That was his only goal at that moment.
Zhao Chen took a deep breath, his chest burning with both fighting spirit and desire.
Black and gold wings suddenly unfolded, as if obscuring half the sky.
"I am coming."
Zhao Chen transformed into a streak of light and flew deeper into the bottom of the cliff.