Duan Shulin acted decisively, neither bargaining nor asking Chen Guan whether he would spare him after retrieving the pet. He directly transferred Tomb Lord's ownership back, which slightly surprised Chen Guan.
"Aren't you afraid I'll kill you after taking the pet?" Chen Guan glanced at Duan Shulin and asked.
"My life is in your hands now. If you want me dead, there's nothing I can do. I can only trust you and gamble on it." Duan Shulin fumbled with one hand to retrieve a medicine bottle from his robe, struggling to pour out a few pills and swallow them.
Nearly all the bones in one of his hands had been shattered, rendering it useless. The Blood Palm imprint on his chest had damaged his internal organs - only the inner armor he wore had saved his life from that strike.
The Blood Palm technique combined hardness and softness, its penetrating force partially bypassing even the inner armor's protection.
Ignoring Duan Shulin, Chen Guan summoned Tomb Lord and commanded him to enter the cave where the Profound Nether Yin Flames burned, to retrieve the Nether Lotus first.
Natural treasures that could increase a pet's growth rate were priceless commodities. Even a mere 0.1 growth rate boost could fetch astronomical prices.
Chen Guan naturally wouldn't sell it. He pondered which pet to give the Nether Lotus to.
Such items were best used immediately. If others learned he possessed the Nether Lotus, trouble would surely follow.
Among Chen Guan's current pets, Rouge and Consort Ming held the most value, while Tomb Lord could be excluded outright.
For a fleeting moment, Chen Guan considered Warring States. But recalling its abysmal innate potential and low growth rate, feeding it the Nether Lotus would be wasteful - a 0.1 increase wouldn't make any difference.
Warring States had been raised by Chen Guan since childhood and had now become his first spirit pet. More than just a pet, Chen Guan planned to nurture it continuously. Even if its combat ability remained lacking, he'd still raise its level - it required little effort anyway, as Warring States' type leveled up easily.
After deliberation, giving it to Rouge or Consort Ming seemed best. Pets breaking the 2.0 growth limit would become priceless if ever sold.
Duan Shulin leaned against the cave wall applying medicine to his wounds, helplessly watching Tomb Lord enter the cavern.
If not for his injured hand, he'd have slapped himself silly to remember this lesson.
Had he not gotten carried away, Chen Guan would never have learned about the Nether Lotus, which would have been his for the taking.
"Can't blame my big mouth entirely," Duan Shulin consoled himself. "If I don't act wild at this age, I'd regret it when too old to enjoy life later."
Under Chen Guan's command, Tomb Lord entered the cave and soon contacted the Profound Nether Yin Flames, his body instantly wrapped in blue ghostly fire.
Without pause, Tomb Lord advanced toward the Nether Lotus as the flames fully engulfed him. No burn marks appeared - instead, white frost formed and thickened across his body, gradually stiffening his movements until he moved like someone frozen solid.
Fortunately, Tomb Lord's Yin-Yang Bliss Body and Great Method of Yin-Yang Harmonization provided strong resistance against such yin flames, preventing actual harm.
Reaching the Nether Lotus, Tomb Lord grasped its stem and uprooted it completely.
"Excellent, return quickly!" Elated at Tomb Lord's success, Chen Guan urgently recalled him.
As Tomb Lord turned, black smoke suddenly erupted from where the lotus had been plucked - ink-thick and volcanic, instantly filling the cavern and engulfing Tomb Lord's form.
Chen Guan reacted instantly, ordering Tomb Lord to toss the lotus outward the moment he spotted the emerging smoke.
Snatching the Nether Lotus, Chen Guan turned and fled. That sinister smoke's terrifying momentum made him fear being caught in it.
Gritting through pain, Duan Shulin followed. Fortunately, a bend in the tunnel momentarily blocked the smoke's advance, sparing them immediate engulfment.
Both squeezed into a narrow, winding crevice, scrambling desperately outward, terrified of the pursuing smoke.
Chen Guan dared not touch even a wisp - Tomb Lord's information had vanished from his pet interface, which could only mean one thing: Tomb Lord had died.
Within mere seconds, without even a sound, Tomb Lord had perished - testament to the smoke's lethality.
As they emerged from the crevice, the smoke failed to follow, but suddenly the earth quaked violently. The entire Profound Yin Cave shook as if collapsing.
Smoke tendrils snaked from cracks like black serpents, reaching for the Nether Lotus.
Chen Guan abandoned all concern for Duan Shulin, summoning Rouge and handing her the lotus to consume. But Rouge only sniffed it without eating.
"The Nether Lotus is an ultimate yin treasure - only yin-aligned pets can ingest it," Duan Shulin shouted as smoke closed in from all sides and falling rocks threatened to bury them alive. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ novel_fіre.net
Without hesitation, Chen Guan summoned Consort Ming in her Empty Mystic Veil armor, having Rouge block Duan Shulin's view while passing her the lotus: "Eat this."
If Rouge wouldn't consume it, Consort Ming must.
Recognizing the lotus, Consort Ming smiled oddly before plucking its flower, separating petals to inhale while tossing the roots toward the smoke.
The smoke - almost sentient - caught the roots and paused its advance momentarily.
As Consort Ming swallowed the last petal, the smoke retreated into the fissures with the roots.
With the cave collapsing, Chen Guan recalled Consort Ming and fled headlong, dodging falling rocks that nearly brained him several times.
Emerging, he found many panting cultivators outside the Profound Yin Cave, numerous wounded among those who'd escaped.
Nearby mountains still trembled, especially the cave's host peak.
More cultivators kept bursting forth until even severely injured Duan Shulin crawled out alive.
Marveling at Duan Shulin's tenacity, Chen Guan suddenly heard a massive explosion as the mountaintop erupted, smoke pluming skyward like volcanic ash.
The smoke blotted out the sun, within which loomed a colossal shape alternately visible and hidden. Its breath spread darkness, turning bright day into pitch night.
Strangely, the giant creature within the smoke now glowed faintly, radiating eerie luminescence in the unnatural darkness.