'First, it was Qin Yihua, now it's this Guan Heng guy… these big sect disciples are more exceptional than I expected…' Continuing the ascent towards the mouth of the Earth Dragon's corpse, Jun Li considered her competition.

  'If that Frost River Sect girl is just as strong as these two, it's not going to be easy to claim even one of those drops of blood, let alone both like I planned…'

  As Jun Li was considering Bai Yuelin's potential strength, she noticed something strange above. At the top of the mountain, near the edge of the flattened plateau of the mountain peak, Bai Yuelin had stopped moving and was silently looking towards the center of the plateau.

  Within only a moment, Jun Li, Qin Yihua, and Guan Heng had joined her.

  With the same perspective came the same understanding, and all four fell silent.

  Resting beneath the hanging jaw of the Earth Dragon's corpse, a great mass of flesh, half-clothed in dark scales, trembled and undulated as its limbs pulled and twisted its bulk, trying to find comfort across the unevenly worn ground.

  For the four silently observing, the beast's bizarrely warped anatomy made it difficult to grasp which end was which, and how many limbs it possessed. And none of the four could immediately identify the specific species.

  The innumerable lumps and folds on its body were obscure in purpose and uneven in placement, bearing signs of uncontrolled mutation. With the great size of the beast, coupled with the unknown material of these growths, it could easily weigh multiple tonnes.

  But more than anything, what caused the four to remain still in the face of this beast was the seeping miasma they sensed from it. The Qi that flowed from this monster was thick and murky with foulness, mixed recklessly with all manner of conflicting aspects.

  The aspect that dominated, however, was the deep and indomitable presence of the Earth Dragon's blood.

  In the eyes of a common Magical Beast, an undiluted drop of draconic blood would surely radiate with a baleful aura, deterring any from approaching. It was this understanding that caused the Sect Elders to assume the blood would have remained untouched over the last decade.

  And yet… the creature before them had absorbed it, and it had consumed them in turn. "Damn it…" Guan Heng scratched his head as he muttered. "There's no telling what drove this thing to take the Drop, but now we have to deal with it…"

  "Deal with it…?" Bai Yuelin immediately expressed skepticism. "That thing's a little extreme to bother fighting for no reward. The Drop is already gone."

  "There's still the second Drop that will condense at the end of the week." Qin Yihua spoke up, contemplating with his hand on his chin. "Besides… I think that thing will still have some value left in its body, being such a… unique beast."

  When Jun Li looked towards Qin Yihua, she was about to mention her interest in the possibility of distilling the beast's blood to reclaim part of what was lost.

  Yet, before she could open her mouth, a shadow fell over Qin Yihua's body, and behind him, an undulating hill of flesh appeared within the blink of an eye.

  Within a half-second, the four responded. Jun Li jolted back and traced the Spatial Ring on her finger, Guan Heng braced himself where he stood, and Bai Yuelin vanished entirely.

  Turning in an instant, Qin Yihua responded to the subtle changes in wind and light at the edges of his senses, planted his greatsword into the ground, and braced himself.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  From one of the many unidentifiable lumps of the mutant beast, a thin limb with gangly, finger-like claws shot towards Qin Yihua, as if spat forcefully out of its body.

  With the ear-piercing screech of mutated bone shearing across metal, the many thin claws impacted Qin Yihua's blade, the force of the impact causing the ground below to crack. "Hmm!?" The force of the beast's rapid attack was far greater than Qin Yihua had expected, and caused his planted sword to drag back through the ground, peeling up debris.

  "Damn!" Qin Yihua was only pushed back for a moment before he adjusted the angle of his guard, redirecting the beast's force down to his feet.

  But then, when that force had nowhere to go but down, it began to crumble away at the edge of the plateau where Qin Yihua had been pushed, before finally, the mountainside shattered, shearing away from under Qin Yihua's feet.

  The force of the claw sent him flying through the air, off the side of the mountain, amidst a rain of his own broken footing, the claw itself following him for a great distance, tethered to the mutant beast's body by a boneless limb that extended out like the loosely coiling rope of a harpoon.

  His body rapidly becoming smaller in the distance, Qin Yihua's voice rang out with great force. "Retreat! Gather in five days!"

  Although none of those gathered were sure what Qin Yihua intended, they needed little convincing to retreat in the face of this beast, who so easily sheared away a corner of this mountain.

  With Qin Yihua blown away, and Bai Yuelin vanished from sight, only Jun Li and Guan Heng were left to retreat. "Go on before me. I'll retreat, but I prefer not to outright turn my back on an enemy." Glancing towards Jun Li, he seemed neither fearful nor tense. "Consider it repayment for offering such a good deal for me the other day."

  Jun Li, whose hand was tracing her Spatial Ring, felt an odd feeling at the sentiment. 'I suppose that's how greatly normal Cultivators value alchemy, huh? Or maybe that's just an excuse?'

  "Don't die or get maimed, I'd like to compete with you for the second Drop at full power." Genuinely interested in the man's abilities, Jun Li spoke those words with truthful intent.

  With his acquaintance vanishing down the mountain behind him, Guan Heng looked towards the mutant beast, which roiled and undulated horribly in front of him, slowly reabsorbing the limb that had been launched out towards Qin Yihua. "Now then…"

  Just barely, he caught a glimpse of what might have been a face in the twisted folds of uncontrolled growth that comprised its body.

  From the dark and beady eyes that flickered in and out of view, he sensed nothing, not so much as an ounce of killing intent, even as it menaced towards him. "...Awful thing… I'll be sure to put you out of your misery as soon as possible…"

  … … … … … …

  Hopping down the mountain swiftly, Jun Li lacked the doubt to spare a second thought towards the safety of Guan Heng, and instead looked out, towards the landscape of the Earth Dragon's Grave. 'Qin Yihua wants us to gather in five days, huh? I bet he's going to try and gather everyone he can to fight that thing…'

  A smile began to form on Jun Li's face, beneath her mask. 'But I have no intention of waiting that long…' She looked towards the direction from which everyone had entered the Grave, and scanned the nearby biomes of this subterranean 'wilderness' for points of interest.

  If they had entered from the 'south' of the Earth Dragon's Grave, then the 'west' was dominated by swampy pools and cloying overgrowth that crept up and hung down from the massive, arching bones of the Earth Dragon's coils.

  The 'east,' on the other hand, was comparatively drier, with dens and burrows pockmarked over the vast swathes of stony ridges and ravines that dominated that corner of the Grave.

  'I could check the north, but there's no point… I don't care about gathering natural resources anyway.' Beneath her mask, Jun Li's smile turned to an amused smirk. 'Besides, I'm sure most people would choose to linger in those 'nearby biomes' before exploring further, and that's all that matters…''

  As Jun Li's Cultivation Method, the Pale Mist Sutra, was aspected towards cold and frost, the Metal, Wood, and Water aspects of the Wuxing suited her best, and that soft dependence guided her choice. 'Lush with life and damp with moisture… West it is…'

  Redirecting her steps towards the 'western' biome, Jun Li felt a thrill at her own intent, and with effort, pushed down the excitement that caused her hands to tremble.

  'Time to go human hunting…!'