From a loser to an immortal sage

Chapter 156 Fierce Battle Against the Guardian Monster

Crimson flames leaped from the behemoth's claws, like infernal fire from hell, scorching the surrounding air and searing my nerves. I had never seen such a terrifying sight; the destructive power contained within the flames instilled an instinctive fear in me. The evolved beast's strength far exceeded my imagination.

"Not good!" I cried out inwardly and quickly retreated. But the beast was much faster than before, and almost the instant I retreated, its flaming claws slammed down on me.

"boom!"

With a deafening roar, the ground trembled violently. I barely dodged the attack, but the force of the giant claw still knocked me to the ground. I scrambled to my feet, a trickle of blood escaping from the corner of my mouth. This beast was several times stronger than before!

"Hahaha! Xiao Yao, you're dead!" Elder Xuanfeng's maniacal laughter came from afar. He was continuously channeling his spiritual power into the giant beast's body, and the scarlet flames became even more intense.

I glared fiercely at Elder Xuanfeng, my heart filled with rage. This old bastard was willing to sacrifice the entire Immortal Medicine Valley just to obtain the elixir!

"Ling'er, what should we do?" I asked anxiously.

Ling'er appeared beside me, her little face filled with worry. "Sister Xiao Yao, this guardian beast absorbed Elder Xuanfeng's spiritual power, becoming incredibly strong, and it seems to have gained the ability to control fire. We must be careful!"

"Controlling flames..." I muttered to myself, quickly considering a solution. My spiritual power was far inferior to that of this evolved behemoth; a direct confrontation was definitely out of the question.

I took a deep breath, forcing myself to calm down. The beast was powerful, but its movements seemed somewhat sluggish; perhaps this was my chance.

I drew my spirit sword once more, its blade shimmering with a faint golden light. I dared not confront it head-on again, instead using my superior agility to dodge its attacks and seek an opportunity to counterattack.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The behemoth's attacks grew more ferocious with each strike, engulfing the surrounding trees in flames and blasting huge craters into the ground. I felt my spiritual energy rapidly dwindling, while the behemoth's power seemed limitless; it was like a bottomless pit, relentlessly absorbing Elder Xuanfeng's spiritual energy.

I was getting more and more anxious. If this continued, I would be worn down by it sooner or later!

Just then, I suddenly noticed that although the behemoth's attacks were fierce, it remained circling the icy pool. It seemed to be guarding something, unwilling to leave the pool even for a moment.

"Could it be..." A thought suddenly struck me, and a bold idea surged into my mind.

I dodged another attack from the giant beast, then flashed and rushed towards the icy pool.

"Roar!" The behemoth let out a deafening roar. It seemed to have sensed my intentions, and its attacks became even more frenzied.

I gritted my teeth and charged forward recklessly. The beast's flames almost grazed my body, and I felt my skin being burned.

Finally, I arrived at the edge of the icy pool. I looked down and saw a spiritual herb, emitting a faint golden light, quietly growing in the center of the pool.

"It's the Nine-Turn Golden Lotus!" I was overjoyed. This was the main ingredient for refining the Foundation Establishment Pill!

"Xiao Yao, how dare you!" Elder Xuanfeng's angry roar came again; he had obviously also seen the Nine-Turn Golden Lotus.

I ignored him and instead reached out to pluck the Nine-Turned Golden Lotus.

Just as my fingers were about to touch the Nine-Turn Golden Lotus, a powerful force suddenly blasted me away.

I fell to the ground in a sorry state. When I looked up, I saw the giant beast standing in front of me, its scarlet eyes fixed on me, emitting a low roar.

"No...no..." I struggled to stand up, but found that I couldn't move my body.

The behemoth slowly raised its massive, flaming claws...

"What...what is it going to do..."

The beast's massive claws, radiating scorching heat, were about to strike. I closed my eyes in despair; was this how I was going to perish?

Suddenly, a cool breeze enveloped me, and the giant beast's attack ceased abruptly. I opened my eyes and saw Ling'er standing in front of me, her small figure radiating a dazzling light, like a guardian deity.

"Ling'er!" I exclaimed.

"Sister Xiao Yao, don't be afraid, I will protect you!" Ling'er's voice was firm and powerful. She formed hand seals and chanted incantations, and golden runes flew from her hands, wrapping around the giant beast.

The behemoth let out a painful roar, its body trembling violently. The flames on its body gradually died down, and its scarlet eyes slowly regained their clarity.

“Ling’er, you…” I looked at her in surprise, never expecting that she possessed such powerful strength.

Ling'er turned her head and smiled slightly at me: "Sister Xiao Yao, I'm fine."

Just then, a sharp voice came from afar: "Everyone, come quick! Xiao Yao has offended the gods of Immortal Medicine Valley, that's why the guardian beast has gone mad! She's a jinx!"

I looked in the direction of the sound and saw Zi Ling standing in the crowd, loudly spreading rumors. The herb gatherers around me, who had been watching, all turned hostile towards me after hearing her words.

"Nonsense! It was clearly Elder Xuanfeng who controlled the guardian beast!" I retorted, but my voice was drowned out by the murmurs of the crowd.

"Xiao Yao, don't try to deny it! The guardian beast is always docile, why would it attack you for no reason? You must have done something blasphemous to the gods!" Zi Ling continued to fan the flames.

My heart was filled with anger and helplessness. This Zi Ling, in order to obtain the elixir of immortality, actually resorted to such despicable means to frame me!

Just then, I felt a gust of wind behind me. I quickly dodged, only to see Lei Hu wielding a sharp blade, thrusting it fiercely towards me.

"Lei Hu! What are you doing!" I shouted angrily.

"Hmph! Xiao Yao, you stole my elixir, today I will make you pay the price!" Lei Hu's eyes were filled with killing intent.

I had a bad feeling. This Lei Hu actually took advantage of my fight with the giant beast to launch a sneak attack on me!

I quickly swung my sword to defend myself, but my spiritual power had been mostly depleted in the previous battle, and I was unable to unleash my full strength.

With a "bang!", my sword was knocked away by Lei Hu, and I was sent flying backward, crashing heavily to the ground.

"Xiao Yao!" Ling'er exclaimed and rushed over to help me.

I struggled to stand up, but felt a sharp pain in my chest. I looked down and saw that Lei Hu's blade had cut a deep wound on my chest, and blood was gushing out.

"Hahaha! Xiao Yao, you're dead!" Lei Hu laughed triumphantly, raising his blade again and thrusting it at me.

My vision blurred, and I felt my body growing heavier and heavier...

“Ling… Ling’er…” I managed to utter a few words.

Ling'er's eyes filled with tears. She gripped my hand tightly and said, "Sister Xiao Yao, hold on! I will definitely save you!"

Suddenly, a figure appeared before us, blocking Lei Hu's attack… “Stop.” “Stop.” A deep and authoritative voice rang out, and a powerful pressure instantly enveloped the entire area. I barely opened my eyes and vaguely saw a familiar figure standing between Lei Hu and me. It was Mo Yaoshi!

"Pharmacist Mo, what do you mean by this?" Lei Hu reluctantly withdrew his blade, his tone tinged with apprehension.

The apothecary glanced at him coldly. "You ambushed a seriously injured person, and you still have the nerve to ask me what I mean? Get out of here immediately, or don't blame me for being impolite!"

Lei Hu glared at me resentfully, but eventually left dejectedly.

"Xiao Yao, how are you?" Pharmacist Mo asked with concern, handing me a pill at the same time. "This is a Rejuvenation Pill, take it quickly."

I took the pill and nodded gratefully. After taking it, I felt the pain in my chest lessen considerably, but my spiritual energy was still depleted, and my body was so weak that I could barely move.

Ling'er supported me and said anxiously, "Pharmacist Mo, Sister Xiao Yao's spiritual energy is too depleted. We need to leave here quickly."

The apothecary nodded and was about to lead us away when his expression suddenly changed. "Oh no! That monster is chasing us again!"

I strained to look up, and there it was again, the monster in our sight. The flames on its body burned even more fiercely, and its eyes were filled with a ferocious killing intent.

My heart sank. Was I really going to die here today?

"Xiao Yao, can you still fight?" Mo Yaoshi asked with a solemn expression.

I gritted my teeth and forced myself to stand up. "I can still fight!" Even if I die, I will fight to the death!

The monster let out a deafening roar and pounced on us. The Pharmacist Mo stood in front of us and engaged the monster in a fierce battle.

Although my spiritual power was almost exhausted, I still tried my best to gather the sparse spiritual energy around me, hoping to be of some help.

Just then, I noticed a tiny gap in the frequency of the monster's attacks. Although this gap was so brief as to be almost imperceptible, it was my only hope!

I took a deep breath, mobilized the last bit of spiritual power in my body, concentrated all my strength into the tip of the sword, and launched a fierce attack on the gaps in the monster's defenses!

"Break!" I shouted, and the sword light flashed like a rainbow, piercing the monster's abdomen.

The monster let out a painful roar and paused slightly.

I was overjoyed; I never expected it to actually succeed!

But this is only the beginning. I understand that this brief pause cannot completely defeat the monster.

As expected, the monster quickly realized what was happening, roaring angrily and becoming even more ferocious in its attacks.

I endured the excruciating pain in my body, skillfully dodging the monster's attacks while using the terrain of the cliffs to constantly maneuver around it, searching for its weaknesses.

During our repeated encounters, I noticed that the monster's left hind leg seemed somewhat stiff, making its movements slightly sluggish.

Could it be... its weakness?

To attack that weakness, I had to get behind it, but that was easier said than done. The monster's attacks were relentless, and I had no chance to get close to it.

While dodging the attacks of the monsters, I racked my brains for a solution.

Suddenly, a thought struck me, and a bold idea surged into my mind...

"Pharmacist Mo, buy me some time!" I shouted.

“Alright!” Pharmacist Mo agreed without hesitation. He increased his spiritual power output to draw the attention of the demon beasts to himself.

I took a deep breath, my gaze fixed on the monster's left hind leg, and silently chanted in my mind, "Now!"

I……

I leaped onto a protruding rock, using the momentum to launch myself into the air, my body tracing a graceful arc. The beast roared, and a jet of flame shot from its mouth, heading straight for me. I quickly twisted my body in mid-air, narrowly avoiding the fatal blow. The flame grazed my sleeve, the scorching heat causing a stinging pain.

Upon landing, I dared not linger and immediately ran towards the cliff face. The monster pursued relentlessly, its massive body crashing against the mountainside, sending rocks raining down. I nimbly weaved through the falling rocks, using the terrain to my advantage to fight off the monster.

"Xiao Yao, be careful!" The voice of the Pharmacist Mo came from afar. He was busy fighting another wave of attacks from the demonic beasts and couldn't pay attention to me for the time being.

I gritted my teeth, my gaze fixed on the monster's left hind leg. Each time it landed, its left hind leg would pause slightly; this almost imperceptible pause was my only hope.

I took a deep breath and leaped onto another boulder. The monster roared and pounced on me. I held my breath, waiting for the perfect moment.

Just as the monster was about to pounce on me, I suddenly leaped down, my body almost sliding along the ground, passing under the monster's belly.

"Now!" I silently chanted, gathering the last bit of spiritual power within my body, concentrating all my strength at the tip of the sword, and fiercely thrusting it towards the monster's left hind leg!

"Aow!" The monster let out a shrill scream, and its massive body crashed to the ground.

I made it!

I was overjoyed, but before I could even rejoice, a sharp pain shot through my entire body. I looked down and saw that the monster's claws had slashed a deep wound across my abdomen, from which blood was gushing out.

I staggered back a few steps, and my vision went black.

"Xiao Yao!" Mo Yaoshi's anxious voice came. He quickly dealt with the remaining attacks and rushed towards me.

I tried to stand firm, but I felt my body getting weaker and weaker, and everything in front of me began to blur.

"Ling'er... Master Mo..." I murmured softly, then everything went black and I lost consciousness.

In a hazy state, I heard a gentle voice in my ear: "Xiao Yao, how are you feeling?"

I struggled to open my eyes and saw a familiar face.

"Wen... Wen Chen..." I said weakly.

He smiled gently and reached out to stroke my cheek. "Don't be afraid, I'm here..."