In Li Huai's eyes, the entire bolt looked like a shimmering shell as it shot toward the Mountain Eater.
With every inch it traveled, the light upon it grew a fraction more intense.
The bolt was incredibly fast.
It had already flown forty or fifty meters in the near-instant Li Huai expanded the wind wall.
A second later, it slammed directly into the Mountain Eater's body.
Pfft!
The quill sank completely into the creature's flesh.
Then, everyone heard a strange creaking and cracking sound coming from within the Mountain Eater.
Li Huai watched closely, only to find the creature's body swelling up like a balloon being pumped full of air.
"Get back!"
Sensing something was wrong, Li Huai shouted a warning. The terrified Zhao Dulay, who was at the very front, pulled the ropes securing his shields even tighter.
Boom!
Following Li Huai's shout, a massive explosion erupted from the direction of the Mountain Eater.
Then came a series of sounds—splattering, crashing, and heavy thumping.
The noise was so loud that even Li Wufeng and the others hiding around the corner of the fork could hear it clearly.
"Zhao Dulay, are you guys okay!"
Unsure of what was happening and not daring to show his face, Li Wufeng could only shout at the top of his lungs.
"We're fine! You can come out now!"
Hearing his good friend's booming voice, Li Wufeng finally let out a sigh of relief and relaxed.
A voice that loud meant he wasn't injured, at the very least.
So, Li Wufeng poked his head out to check.
Don't blame him for being cautious; after all, all sorts of bizarre things could happen in this world.
Now that there were monsters that ate mountains, it wasn't a stretch to imagine there might be monsters capable of mimicking human voices.
However, just as he poked his head out to look, his eyes were hit by a flash of intense light.
"Ah! My eyes! I'm blind!"
"Hahahaha!!!"
Hearing Li Wufeng's cry of pain, Zhao Dulay burst into laughter.
It turned out that where the Mountain Eater had been, clusters of shimmering crystals had appeared. While they weren't exceptionally bright on their own, looking at them directly made them feel blindingly bright.
The kind that could sear your retinas.
It wasn't just Li Wufeng; Zhao Dulay, Otto, and Li Huai had all been caught off guard once the explosion ended.
It was only because they hadn't dared to move a muscle immediately after the blast that they hadn't cried out.
Once everything settled and Zhao Dulay didn't dare look directly at the site anymore, he came up with this little prank.
"Zhao Dulay, you bastard, you set me up!"
"Haha, just a joke, just a joke. Does anyone have sunglasses or something? Put them on and see what's going on."
After all, they had just finished a 'big battle.' It was only right to crack a few jokes to lighten the mood.
At least, that was what Zhao Dulay thought.
"Who would have something like that?"
Li Wufeng grumbled, his eyes still watering from the glare.
"Um, I'm wearing glasses. Should I give it a try?"
Lisara, standing to the side, spoke up.
"Be careful then. Just peek through a tiny slit. If there's a problem, close your eyes immediately, okay?"
Seeing a volunteer step forward, Li Wufeng, still rubbing his eyes, gave her instructions.
There were eight women among the twenty-odd people in his team, and Lisara was the youngest. It was said she had turned exactly eighteen on the day they were transported, so everyone looked out for her.
"Okay."
Lisara nodded, then mimicked Li Wufeng's earlier action by peeking out slightly, squinting as she examined the situation ahead.
In Lisara's eyes, a stunning visual boundary line appeared before her.
This boundary split the cave into two completely different worlds.
Behind the 'temporary defense line' built by Li Huai and the others was a suffocating darkness.
But in front of that 'defense line,' the Mountain Eater that had looked like a giant hedgehog was gone. In its place was a strange space emitting a soft green light.
Hundreds of long, pale green crystals had appeared on the ceiling, walls, and floor—crystals that hadn't been there before.
The surfaces of these crystals were as smooth as mirrors, and a fluorescent green energy flowed within them, illuminating the entire cave like a green gallery.
From time to time, a viscous, pale green liquid would drip from the tips of the crystals on the ceiling, making a crisp 'tap-tap' sound in the silent cave.
Most amazing of all, the walls and ceiling of the entire cave were covered in a bioluminescent film that seemed to breathe, brightening and dimming with the flow of air as if the entire cave were a living organism.
Reflected in the green glow, tiny glowing spores floated in the air like countless miniature stars.
Lisara noticed that the dripping liquid would rapidly crystallize the moment it touched the ground, gradually forming new crystal clusters.
The entire space was filled with an eerie stillness that was both beautiful and unsettling.
Wait!
The liquid!!
As Lisara focused on the liquid, she suddenly realized something.
If that liquid formed new crystal clusters after hitting the ground, what would happen if it flowed onto Zhao Dulay and the other two?
Looking at the pale green liquid that was already nearly a meter high outside Li Huai's wind wall, Lisara felt a surge of dread.
She immediately snatched the magic lantern from Li Wufeng's hand, waving it toward the three men while shouting at the top of her lungs.
"Li Huai! Don't drop your wind wall! Zhao Dulay! Otto! Both of you, run back! Now!"
"What's happening!?"
Hearing the sheer panic in Lisara's voice, Li Wufeng grew anxious as well.
But since he currently couldn't see a thing, he could only fret and ask Lisara what was going on.
Compared to Li Wufeng, who wanted to know 'why,' Zhao Dulay and Otto were much more direct.
Though their vision was still blurry, they immediately retreated upon hearing Lisara's voice.
Fortunately, the light from the magic lantern Lisara was waving gave them a general direction to follow.
And while Li Huai didn't understand the reason, he held his ground and maintained the wall.
"The rope! Quick, give me the rope!"
Seeing Zhao Dulay and Otto running toward her, Lisara handed the magic lantern to Li Wufeng and took a rope from another teammate.
"Captain, just keep waving it like that. I'm going in to save Li Huai."
"..."
Not being able to see is such a hindrance.
Li Wufeng took the magic lantern and began waving it mechanically in the air.
Meanwhile, Lisara handed one end of the rope to Kam and ran out holding the other end.
After all, she was the only one in the entire team who could look directly at those crystals right now. She was the only one who could complete this task.
"Wufeng, what's the situation?"
When Zhao Dulay and Otto reached the fork, they were immediately grabbed by the teammates who hadn't gone out and pulled into the side tunnel.
"I don't know, but we have to trust Lisara's judgment for now."
Li Wufeng gave a bitter smile.
He couldn't help at all during such a critical moment. It was all the fault of that idiot Zhao Dulay—joking around at a time like this. He'd have to give him a proper earful once they got back.
Rate on N.U.
