They moved through the terrain quite quickly. With Krune's gigantic Divine Sense, it was quite easy to avoid meaningless battles. Though, of course, it wasn't perfect. While he wasn't using it, two demon beasts had accidentally ambushed them. But with the combat strength of his group, unless a demon beast at the 7th Stage of Foundation Establishment appeared, they would more or less be able to deal with it.
Another reason to avoid battles was so that they wouldn't alarm the stronger beasts. The area they were currently in didn't have any demon beasts at the Core Formation Realm. In any case, there was still a chance of an 8th or even a 9th Stage Foundation Establishment Realm demon beast appearing if they made too much noise.
By the time they were getting closer to their target, the strength of the beasts entering Krune's Divine Sense had increased as well, with two demon beasts at the 7th Stage even entering the range of it. Still, just as he expected, unless it's a demon beast specialized in the soul, they wouldn't notice his Divine Sense.
At this time, Yusa looked at the map and commented, "We're more or less 500 kilometers away from the Blazing Alligators' lair. It should only take two hours before we arrive."
In response, Ao replied through the communicator, "That's good. Thanks to Krune's pointers, my control over the Wind Element has gotten much better during this trip. I'm very confident that I can hold my own against an ordinary beast at the 5th Stage if all I need to do is to stall for time. I should even be able to defeat one at the 4th Stage if I put in some effort."
Yusa agreed with Ao on that. Krune's views on manipulating the elements had opened her eyes as well.
"Our targets are the Blazing Alligators. As a Water Element user and with Krune's tips, I think I should be able to defeat one at the 5th Stage. Of course, that's because I counter their main element."
Krune looked a little embarrassed since he wasn't used to people praising him.
"Can you stop that? This is making me feel uncomfortable. All I did was just point out where you two were making mistakes. The rest was all up to you two to figure out, so I had nothing to do with that. Each person's view of the elements isn't exactly the same after all."
Yusa and Ao laughed after hearing his words, which made Krune realize something.
"You were doing it on purpose!"
They confessed that he was right. Krune was very easy to tease, and it felt very good to tease him as well.
Krune could not help but sigh helplessly after that. Then again, he quite liked this atmosphere. Until a few months ago, it wasn't something common for him.
Suddenly, Krune's face changed.
"Not good! Ao, retreat now!"
Ao Sulian instantly noticed that something was off thanks to Krune's voice. He didn't delay even for a split-second and rushed back at full speed.
Boom!
Just a second later, the ground caved in where he was previously standing! Inside, one could see two red eyes popping out. Krune's Divine Sense could reach over six kilometers above the ground. However, it couldn't do the same underground. It was only when that demon beast was a hundred meters away from Ao that Krune finally saw it. Fortunately, Divine Sense communication was faster than any gadget, and one could send their thoughts into their companions' minds straight away.
The three of them looked at the demon beast in front of them, and it was an Earth Dragon. Although it had the word 'dragon' in its name, it wasn't a real dragon. It was just like the Lizard Dragons. The difference was that the concentration of dragon blood in its body was much higher than the former, making it much stronger than ordinary beasts at the 7th Stage. Of course, because of that, it wouldn't be able to take human form before it reached the Late Stage of the Core Formation Realm. In the end, having a divine beast bloodline had its own disadvantages.
"You're quite the quick one to be able to dodge that, and I was pretty sure that no one had noticed me coming. But that's where it ends. To think that two 3rd Stage and one 2nd Stage Foundation Establishment cultivators would head this deep into the Kaliu Danger Zone. It would have been faster if you had simply killed yourselves, don't you think?"
Yusa then smiled after hearing that, saying in response, "Since we're going to die anyway, why don't you let us go? It wouldn't make a difference to you anyway, right?"
The Earth Dragon shook its head as it replied, "Even the meat of a mosquito is still meat. Why should I let it go?"
The Earth Dragon didn't even wait for them to answer and attacked straight away! He even targeted Krune because he had the smallest cultivation.
The three of them instantly spread their Divine Sense out to be able to communicate and immediately dodged. Then again, just because the Earth Dragon was a defense-type demon beast, that didn't mean it was slow. One also had to pay attention to the difference in their cultivation levels.
To the Earth Dragon's surprise, Krune was able to avoid his attack. On top of that, he was actually faster than Ao Sulian earlier. Then again, the Earth Dragon had vast battle experience, so it immediately used its Earth Element attacks to bind Krune in place. However, just as it hit the target, Krune's figure turned into water! It wasn't Krune who did that, but Yusa instead!
Water Frame!
During the days they were heading into the deeper parts of the danger zone, the group discussed about their own abilities to better coordinate during times of peril.
The Earth Dragon's Divine Sense caught Krune's silhouette appearing close to Yusa. That type of water skill was tough to see through, even for someone like the Earth Dragon.
Of course, Ao didn't stand still either. He was using Wind Pierce and Wind Blade to target the Earth Dragon's eyes. Ao was, in fact, a sword user. Nevertheless, he knew he didn't have the necessary attack power to breach the defense of the Earth Dragon, so he could only use such methods to distract the Earth Dragon. At the same time, Krune prepared an attack strong enough to kill it or at least force it into retreat.
Sure enough, the Earth Dragon was annoyed with Ao's barrage of attacks. Although it could use its Divine Sense to see the battlefield, it felt really uncomfortable not being able to keep its eyes open. Though, it didn't fall for Ao's provocation because it was angry. It just thought that Krune and Yusa had no way of doing anything to it. Krune was faster than Ao, but the Earth Dragon thought that because of it, Krune's attack power wasn't anything worth looking at. As for Yusa, she was obviously a Water Element user, so her attacks had minimal effect on it.
Krune's eyes soon lit up as he immediately focused his power to create 62 Blazing Wind Blades! He couldn't use his Stone or Water Prison on that Earth Dragon, though. The first didn't have the power to hold a demon beast with cultivation much higher than his own, and the second one didn't have enough power to breach the dragon's defense.
With Ao's Wind Movement and Yusa's Water Frame, they were able to hold the dragon for a few seconds, enough to bring its attention away from Krune. Even though they knew Krune was strong, there was one thing puzzling Ao and Yusa. Demon beasts were usually stronger in their real forms. However, Krune was still using his human form even in a dangerous moment like this. Could it be that he didn't trust the two of them enough to show his real form? But then, they discarded such an idea. If that was really the case, they could have simply signed a blood contract stating that they shouldn't reveal Krune's real form to anyone. The problem would have been resolved just like that.
As for Krune, he was currently in a dilemma. It's not that he didn't trust the two of them. It's just that after he heard that even Divine Soul demon beast cultivators kept an eye open for the situation in the danger zones, he was afraid of catching their attention. For now, he could only try to do what he could in his human form.
Eventually, the chance had finally appeared.
"Skill Merge! Blazing Wind Blades!"
All 62 Blazing Wind Blades were aimed at the same point! The Earth Dragon, who wasn't paying any attention to Krune a second ago, felt danger approaching. When it used its Divine Sense to check, it could see a sea of fiery red blades coming at it. Fast! Really fast! It was already too late to dodge as well! The Earth Dragon then focused all of its spiritual energy on his scales, using the Earth Element to strengthen them!
By the time the two collided, blood spurted out and was burnt away as soon as it left its body. The Earth Dragon couldn't help but roar in pain. Krune had left a gruesome injury close to his neck. If the Earth Dragon hadn't noticed the Blazing Wind Blades in time, it wouldn't have reinforced its scales with the Earth Element, and death would be its only outcome.
Krune started to let out a bit of sweat after that. To use so many Blazing Wind Blades at the same time was quite hard, even for himself. Not to mention that because he was in his human body, he had to circulate spiritual energy throughout his body before he could use any skill. That's the main reason for him to be weaker in his human form.
The Earth Dragon soon got up and looked at Krune in hatred. It almost died just now and then. In an instant, it decided to get rid of Krune before dealing with his companions first. The Earth Dragon immediately pounced at Krune while using its Earth Element to stop him from dodging. Unfortunately for it, Krune still had his friends with him. Now that the Earth Dragon was focusing on Krune, they had the space to act as they liked. Ao kept doing his best to disturb the Earth Dragon. At the same time, Yusa kept using her Water Frame to save Krune every time he couldn't dodge.
Just as it was about to attack, the Earth Dragon noticed a problem. The injury on its body was too deep, and its blood kept flowing out. If it continued like this, it would have to flee. Then again, how many battles had it gone through before? It then used Krune to get close to his companions without them noticing. Just when it was about to pounce at Krune another time, a water frame appeared in front of Krune again. Fortunately, the Earth Dragon was waiting for it. It didn't know if Yusa could use two water frames at the same time to deceive its sense, but it felt it was worth a shot. At worst, it would just flee since these cultivators wouldn't be able to follow it underground anyway.
The moment the water frame appeared, the Earth Dragon changed direction and pounced at Yusa instead. Krune's group wasn't expecting that at all, and sure enough, Yusa couldn't use two water frames at the same time. She had just used one in front of Krune, so she couldn't use it again straight away. Krune was too far away, so he wouldn't get there in time. Yusa also didn't have the necessary speed to dodge, and just as the Earth Dragon was about to kill Yusa, Ao appeared between them. He had a formation runestone in his hand, which was a protection formation. As long as it was charged with enough spiritual energy, it could be activated at any time. Ao had been charging it ever since the Earth Dragon appeared. It was another one-time-use runestone, and now was the time to use it!
A barrier then appeared in front of Yusa and Ao. After that, the Earth Dragon's attack, which should have killed Yusa, hit the barrier instead. But how could a barrier created with the spiritual energy of a 3rd Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator resist the attack? It only lasted a split second before breaking apart. After that, Yusa and Ao were sent flying!
Fortunately, the barrier had enough power to reduce the damage, so they didn't die even though they received severe injuries. The Earth Dragon didn't waste time, and those two wouldn't be able to dodge the next attack with those injuries. It also knew that Krune couldn't use that many of those blades that quickly either, so he wouldn't be able to save them. The dragon then immediately pounced at Yusa and Ao.
It was at this moment that it felt extreme danger come from behind, which didn't make sense! That 2nd Stage Foundation Establishment guy shouldn't be able to use that many fiery blades to attack again so soon. When the Earth Dragon used its Divine Sense to check, the human form beast cultivator was nowhere to be seen. However, right above his dragon head, there was something that shouldn't have been there. It had a spiritual energy body, but the strange part was that it was completely red! Crimson red! The dragon couldn't help but think to itself, 'Is that a wisp?'
And that was the Earth Dragon's last thought.
Krune was enraged, and his body crimson because of his anger! When he saw that his companions were about to die, he completely threw caution to the wind! He reverted back into his true form and used Wind Movement. Now that his human body wasn't in the way, his control over Spiritual Energy soared. The weight of his body wasn't a hindrance anymore as well, so he immediately appeared above the Earth Dragon. All around Krune, one could see that over a hundred Blazing Wind Blades had taken form! Not only were there more blades, but they were also even more powerful than any other he had ever used! Krune used all the spiritual energy available to him till the very last strand.
The blades soon showered down, and the Earth Dragon didn't even have the time to focus on its defense. Its body was cut into hundreds of pieces to the point that even its demon core was split in half! The energy inside the core then released all the spiritual energy like an explosion! In the end, the Earth Dragon was no more!
Ao and Yusa looked at that and were left aghast! They saw the entire process. They saw the moment Krune reverted to his wisp form till the moment he killed the Earth Dragon. They thought they would die, but Krune reverted the situation at the very last second. Still, they simply couldn't believe that Krune was a wisp! Where have they ever seen a Foundation Establishment Realm wisp before?
Krune's crimson spiritual energy body reverted back to the wisp's natural white-bluish color. Nevertheless, the energy making up his body was very dim at the moment. Even his core could totally be seen. As for Krune himself, he had never used so much spiritual energy at once before. In the end, he lost his consciousness. He floated there without moving, just like that.
Yusa was the first to come back to herself. She struggled to get up while looking at Krune and then told Ao.
"Hurry, we need to leave. There will be demon beasts heading to this area very soon. We need to leave and hide as fast as possible. We are in no condition to battle anymore."
Ao nodded in agreement as he got up and rushed at Krune. He then grabbed Krune's core and left with Yusa. He also helped her on their way out since he was a little better than Yusa after the attack. Thanks to his faster reactions, his condition was the best one at the moment. As expected of a Wind Element user!
Not long after, they could hear roars coming from where the Earth Dragon died. The body of an Earth Dragon was extremely precious, especially its blood, which has some dragon blood in it. It would undoubtedly create chaos among the beasts in the area.
Around 1700 kilometers away, an old man was sitting inside of a sealed cave. He wasn't human, but a beast in human form. He was actually an Early Stage Divine Soul Demon Thunder Lion! He was doing his surveillance in the area as he always did with his Divine Sense when he noticed the battle between Krune's group and the Earth Dragon. He didn't pay attention at first since such scenes happened way too often, after all. He was sure that the Earth Dragon was going to win when suddenly, Krune became a wisp. At that moment, he was left shocked! It was a Foundation Establishment Realm wisp and a very strong one at that! If he were to get his hands on Krune, he might be able to use his spiritual energy to break through into the Middle Stage of the Divine Soul Realm!
The Thunder Lion was ecstatic! It was just about to move when suddenly, he felt pressure coming from above at him. It was extremely strong, and whoever was doing it to him could totally smash his body to a pulp with just a finger! The lion had to use all his strength just to say a few words.
"Senior, did I do something wrong?"
He was afraid! He had never felt so terrified before. After a few seconds, the pressure disappeared, and only a powerful presence remained. The Thunder Lion then heard a voice that it couldn't tell from where it was coming.
"About that wisp, you didn't see anything, and you didn't hear anything either."
"Am. I. Clear?"
The Thunder Lion nodded its head so vigorously that it felt its neck was going to break. The voice then just said one more word.
"Good."
And with that, that presence that could destroy a planet was finally gone, just like that.
The Thunder Lion was sweating all over. It decided that it won't touch another wisp for the rest of its life!
---
Countless galaxies away, the old man who had noticed Krune's success during his first Spiritual Energy Meridian creation closed his eyes. One could just hear him murmuring, "Little friend, you better get strong fast. I won't be able to protect you for long."
The cave then turned silent once more.