Leroy was just coming to from painful la la land when the situation started to change for the better. The Old Tiger accompanied by a few younger ones was ripping apart several of the Sucking Plants.
If not for the ache in his gut, Leroy might have been able to summon the strength to free himself a little more. The blow he took earlier weakened his silky pod.
"I am touched you came back for me." Leroy gave the Demon Beast a look of respect as he started to get out even faster. "We just need to get out of here and hope whatever plan the others are doing or trying to do works out."
"Grrr." With a growl of affirmation, the Old Tiger went back to cutting him free to get out faster. 'What a mess this situation has turned into! That young cub has a lot of work to do to regain his influence!'
Several of the Blacktigers cut down the Demon Plants with a zealous hate. It took a lot for the Leader of the Strerak to allow the Old Tiger this task to be carried out. A few of the more stubborn Demon Beasts boasted they were not in any danger.
However, the young Demon Beasts gathered to help were powerful members of the Streak and they had trouble getting all the way here. When they get back, the youngins will let the elders know how wrong they were!
"Help.. me.." Awakened by the noise and screams, someone with the same outerwear as Tang Suo needed help. It was a teacher that barely had any strength left in him.
"Hold on..." Leroy couldn't really instruct the tigers so he did it himself. "..they already hatched from you... that is really bad..."
"..yes.. but I live, I can always cultivate again." The moment he was free, the teacher lifted his boot and took out a vial. Swallowing it, his wounds immediately healed and a bit of color returned to his face. "That bastard took my Storage Ring! If I had it back the situation would have already turned for the better!"
As the teacher searched himself Leroy picked up the discarded vial. Not a single drop was left but a bit of the medical aura remained. Enough that he perked up a little bit.
"Raaaarrr!" The Old Tiger gave a roar towards him. 'They enemy is coming back, we need to go now!' The other Blacktigers slashed in a furry that killed more of the Sucking Plants that arrived before darting to his side.
"I got you! You can call me Matsui my new friend!" Mindful of the Blacktigers and the overall situation, the teacher did not put on any airs of any sort and helped him up. "Who are you?"
"Leroy Agu Shentai," placing the vial in his pocket, Leroy didn't fight the man as they ran off. Him more of limping horribly due to his leg. "damn leg is busted. This is really going to hurt later."
Having wrapped himself with some of the silky pod's outer wall, Leroy hope it hold whatever was left of his stomach in place. he refused to look at it to prevent the worse from happening. But the pain was excruciating every time he almost loss balance.
Those who were healthy enough and in their right minds attacked in the front with the Blacktigers. Teacher Matsui was recovering a little energy but he kept using a fist technique to cause the cave to collapse behind them.
"Think it is enough.. to slow them down?" Leroy couldn't a single bit of light of the outside in the place. Yet the Blacktigers moved very sure of themselves. It didn't help they seemed to be going upward either. "How far down do you think we are?"
"Just a mile left..." Teacher Matsui stopped attacking as he felt the recovery elixir he took earlier was not helping anymore. Everything else he had left in the tank needed to be preserved fro safety. ".. to go. Slowing them down is better than nothing. As long as the Blacktiger's leads us the right way it will be fine."
"That's good can you carry me for like ..2 minutes?"
"Sure..." Teacher Matsui thought it was odd but thought nothing of it. Carrying him under the armpits, he was surprised at what happened next. "You think that is wise?"
"Yes." Ignoring the pain, Leroy straightens out his leg around two pieces of straight smooth rock. Wrapping it in the silky pod remains and a part of his sleeve, a splint was made. "You can put me down now."
The moment his feet touch the ground, Leroy put his full effort into running. It was bad enough he was dragging them all down and he only got this far due to the help of Teacher Matsui. The others were to busy fighting with the Blacktigers.
The further they went up, the more Sucking Plants they came across. A few of the captives went into a frenzy when the Sucking Plants latched on to them. Attacking with such abandon the Paralytic seemed to barely affect them.
Of course, they took more wounds and ended up with new eggs inside themselves as payment.
Hours later salvation was at hand. Making it to the exit, Leroy and the others were ready to jump for joy. Pausing to catch their breath and get their bearings couldn't be missed.
"Next we meet, you will have to tell me how you know the Old Tiger Bihan!" A swirl of clear Qi wrapped around the area kicking up rock and dirt. "This situation must be reported!"
Teacher Matsui excused himself after he made it out. Shooting off like a bullet down the mountainside toward one of the Clear Tang Family encampments. Either it was anger that drove him or something else, all Leroy knew is that he erupted with a strength he didn't have while in the man-made cave.
'It took forever to get out, how did the Old Tiger find me?' Sparing a glance at the Demon Beast, he gave a weak smile. "Name is Bihan, what a name." The smile was returned but the beast moved to the front sniffing the air in anticipation. 'I know it has an enhanced sense of smell but the various smells such as decay and phosphorous should have messed with it from the cave. At least I would think so. That begs the question how it made it directly to me?'
"Grr!" Growling an order to the others to head back, Old Tiger Bihan was staying with Leroy. "Rawwrr!" With a roar, the younger members of the Streak took off to report.
The various captives shot off the moment they recovered a bit of energy. The fact they came from different territories was ignored as they just wanted to live and fault could be assigned later. A few of course didn't speak since they were not even from this very Continent.
One captive in particular looked at Leroy hard as if burning his image into his very soul. Having seen the other survived the blow already was impressive but the most impressive part is when he spat in the other's face causing the most damage.
'What was in his spit didn't affect the Undead Martial Artist directly but it did cause trouble for the Demon Plants and his ability to control them!' Their hand raised to the air, like a shooting star a ring landed on his finger. 'Think he can keep my items, just another reason to deal with that bastard once I recover!'
*Shine!* A piece of paper was ripped causing a bright light to shine. Once it vanished Leroy and the Old Tiger Bihan were the only ones left. That didn't last long as they both ran full speed away from the area.
.
Blasted Plant-
.
The trek down was a lot easier since gravity did most of the work. The pain had gotten to the point that Leroy had tunnel vision on only knew to run and keep breathing. Running pass all the Clear Tang Family members and the captives who were reporting to them.
Of course, a few of the captives were screaming in pain as the eggs they had inside them were starting to force a way out and hatching. The small little blood bath did not break Leroy away from what he was doing.
Leroy and the Old Tiger Bihan had just escaped the Plant Nest away from the others who went their own way. His broken leg was not the cause of concern, the problem was the Sucking Plant that put a bunch of eggs inside of him that survived. His insides were no longer leaking outward and had a silky type bandage holding his organs inside internally as well as externally.
But he got the creature back and its entire species in one go with the pesticides that entered into the hungry bitch!
That was not all as the Clear Tang Family instructed by Tang Suo who had made sure to push to the elimination of the creatures and whoever was behind it by using Leroy's Pesticides.
*Boom! Boom! Boom!* Three barrels full of a salty like substance exploded up high in the air. The Plant Nest was covered in it but that was the end of it. At the outskirts, Tang Ru activated his Formation and sent a charged current of electricity into the nest. It was not powerful but was very widespread.
The various animal extract of Hypochlorite mixed with the salt from the red rock and charged just right created an area of Chlorine. The Sucking Plants immediately started wailing in pain. The stronger ones however only had bubbles appear in their stalks.
"Fire!" A Tang Elder shouted out. Barrels of animal piss were flung into the Plant Nest in a barrage. But a moment of fear caused the man to order more. "Fire again!" More barrels were shot in before it was ordered closed on all points.
He did not care at all about some ore found.
It took only a few minutes for them to see the results. The weird, nasty, stank Mustard Gas burning the plants up. Some even started exploding and dropping the people they had wrapped up in capture.
Unfortunately for those people, there was no way the gas was going away anytime soon. They would have to rely on their cultivation and luck to resist. But the first time captured did not have the resistance like those who was captured a second time.
"This... filth is finally gone!" The Tang Elder was beside himself in joy. Then he frowned as he wished he treated the young man Leroy more nicely. "He may not have a high aptitude in cultivation but this alone helped us greatly!"
"Um! Told you, father!" A young man by the name of Tang Yousei smiled next to him with a nod. "We may not be able to go inside for a few days but it gives us enough time to have help come and clean up these plants safely!"
"Make sure everyone is accounted for!" The Tang Elder noticed a good member of the Brach Families moving around. "Tang Bo, come over here!"