Chapter 96: with translation of chapter title

Bang! Bang! Bang!

In the pitch-black Abyss, three figures almost simultaneously smashed onto the ground, emitting a series of dull thuds.

Even though the Slow-Fall Talisman had dissipated most of the force, the hard ground still left them bruised and battered.

Wang Shan was the first to climb to his feet, ignoring the soreness all over his body, he wiped the slick liquid from his face and shouted anxiously, "Zhize! Zhitao! How are you?"

"Cough cough……Grandpa……Grandpa, I'm still alive……" Wang Zhitao's voice trembled with tears, responding from not far away.

"Clan Leader, I'm also fine……" Wang Zhize's voice followed closely, sounding a bit calmer than Wang Zhitao's.

The light from the Second-rank Illumination Talisman atop Wang Shan's head had grown very dim, yet in this pitch‑black Abyss floor where you can't see your hand in front of your face, it remained the sole source of light.

He turned toward the sound and saw his two grandsons struggling to climb up from a pile of wet, loose rocks, looking utterly disheveled.

"Come here quickly!" Wang Shan hissed, at the same time warily scanning the surroundings.

The floor of the Abyss was broader than they had imagined, covered with strange‑shaped rocks, and the ground underfoot was sticky with some unknown liquid.

The air reeked of a strong sulfur smell and a nauseating stench, mixed with a faint trace of poisonous gas that made the throat burn with a single breath.

"What kind of damned place is this……" Wang Zhitao coughed as he edged up to Wang Shan, his little face deathly pale, "Grandpa, are we going to die here?"

Before Wang Shan could reply, the already faint light of the Illumination Talisman flickered violently, as if it might go out at any moment.

"Clan Leader, the Illumination Talisman is about to fail!" Wang Zhize also noticed the problem, his voice tinged with panic.

Wang Shan frowned, about to have the system exchange a few more, when suddenly an indescribable terrifying pressure spread from the darkness not far away!

"Roar——!!!"

A deafening roar burst forth like thunder from flat ground, exploding in the Abyss floor! The whole ground seemed to tremble with the roar, and pebbles rained down from above.

Wang Shan and his two grandsons felt a massive force hit them, their chests tightened, and they almost couldn't catch their breath.

"What……what is that?!" Wang Zhitao fell flat on his butt in fright, his teeth chattering.

Wang Shan's face grew grave beyond anything he had ever shown, and he fixed his stare on the direction the roar came from.

By the last flickering glimmer of the Illumination Talisman, he dimly saw a huge black mass slowly writhing about a hundred zhang ahead, two scarlet points of light standing out starkly in the darkness like two giant lanterns, full of violence and savagery!

"Damn……" Wang Shan's heart sank to the bottom of the valley. From this pressure alone he knew the beast's strength was likely far above the Foundation Establishment stage he knew of…… possibly even higher!

"System! Quick! Scan what that is!" Wang Shan called out urgently in his mind.

"Beep—Scanning target……Target is a high‑grade mutant beast, resembling a Giant Lizard, about fifteen zhang long, current assessment rank……Third‑rank Peak! Warning! The beast's energy fluctuations are abnormally violent, its life signs differ significantly from known beasts, suggesting deep mutation!"

Third‑rank Peak! And deep mutation?!

Wang Shan sucked in a breath of cold air—this damn thing really kicked a hornet's nest! He had thought jumping into the Abyss would shake off Wan Tianjue that old dog, but who knew there was an even nastier one in here!

"Grand……Grandpa……that……what is that……" Wang Zhitao's voice shook uncontrollably; he clung to Wang Shan just to stay upright. Though Wang Zhize said nothing, his clenched fists and pale face revealed his inner fear.

"Don't make a sound!" Wang Shan lowered his voice, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

Just then, the Illumination Talisman's light went out completely, and the surroundings plunged into dead silence darkness. Only those two scarlet points of light stood out, looking all the more ferocious in the black.

In the darkness, the giant beast seemed to sense their presence; its heavy breathing sounded like a bellows, each exhalation reeking of strong sulfur and blood.

"Clan Leader, what do we do now?" Wang Zhize's voice carried a hint of despair.

Wang Shan's mind raced. Fighting was definitely out of the question—a Third‑rank Peak beast could kill them with a breath. Running? In this damned place, where could they run to?

"System, does this beast have any weakness? Or……what's special about those energy fluctuations on its body?" Wang Shan forced himself to stay calm.

"Beep—Deep scan in progress……The target beast's internal energy is mixed and violently conflicting, with signs of multiple incompatible energy sources forcibly fused. A faint but complex rune imprint remains on its surface……now being matched against the database……"

"Rune imprint?" Wang Shan's heart stirred; he recalled seeing similar symbols on the mysterious inheritance stele in Hundred Beast Valley. Could it be……

"Beep—Match complete! This rune imprint closely resembles the high‑grade control rune in the Ten Thousand Beasts Method, but with multiple distortions and mutations. Preliminary judgment: this beast had been subjected to a secret art of forced enslavement and remodeling, but the remodeling process apparently failed, causing the beast to lose control and undergo vicious mutation."

Ten Thousand Beasts Method! Wan family!

Wang Shan's pupils contracted sharply! He instantly understood!

"Damn Wan Tianjue! Damn Ten Thousand Beasts Gate!" Wang Shan gritted his teeth, fury boiling in his heart. No wonder the Wan clan clung so obsessively to the inheritance of Hundred Beast Valley—turns out they've been secretly conducting this lunatic beast‑mutation experiment! This terrifying Giant Lizard is clearly their failed product!

"These heaven‑despicable scoundrels, using live beasts for experiments—don't they fear heavenly retribution?" Wang Zhitao also caught part of the system's hint and couldn't help muttering a curse.

"Shh!" Wang Shan gestured for him to keep his voice down.

The Giant Lizard beast seemed to lose patience, accompanied by an even more violent roar, the two scarlet lights lunging toward them! Its heavy footsteps sounded like war drums, each step making the earth tremble.

"It's coming!" Wang Zhize exclaimed.

"Dodge!" Wang Shan shouted, pulling his two grandsons into a ground roll.

"Sss——!"

Just as they dodged, a stream of dark‑green liquid poured down from above, splashing the spot where they had been standing.

A pungent stench spread, followed immediately by a hissing "sizzle" of corrosion. The hard stone floor was actually eaten away by the venom into a large pit emitting white smoke!

"Good……good poison!" Wang Zhitao felt his scalp go numb. If even a bit touched him, there'd be nothing left but bone scraps.

Having missed, the Giant Lizard grew even angrier, letting out another roar as its massive tail swept sideways, accompanied by a howling wind.

"I'm doomed!" Wang Shan's heart turned ice‑cold. In this narrow Abyss floor, they had almost nowhere to evade.

At that critical instant, the corner of Wang Shan's eye caught a faint glimmer: not far to their rear‑side, beneath the rock wall there seemed to be a narrow crack, within which water light flickered and a thin but pure spiritual energy ripple emanated.

"Is that……the Dark River?!" Wang Shan's spirits lifted.

"System, quickly scan that Dark River!"

"Beep—Scan complete! An Underground Dark River exists in this area, its flow direction leads to an unknown region, very likely connecting to the Outside World. The water contains trace special purifying energy, which has a certain restraining effect on the current environment's toxic gas and the target beast's corrosive attacks!"

Heaven leaves no one without a way!

"Zhize, Zhitao, see that crack over there? Jump down!" Wang Shan made a snap decision, pointing toward the Dark River and roaring.

"Jump……jump into the river?" Wang Zhize blinked.

"No nonsense! Want to live? Then jump!" Wang Shan barked, as the Giant Lizard's next attack was already gathering.

"Follow the Clan Leader's orders!" Wang Zhize acted decisively, dragging the still‑hesitating Wang Zhitao toward the Dark River.

"Roar!" The Giant Lizard obviously had no intention of letting these pesky bugs disturb its peace, opening its blood‑filled maw and spewing another foul‑smelling venom, aimed straight at the fleeing Wang Zhize and Wang Zhitao.

"Beast, your opponent is me!" Wang Shan roared angrily, not retreating but advancing, charging toward the Giant Lizard. He must buy time for his two grandsons!

"Clan Leader!"

"Grandfather!"

Wang Zhize and Wang Zhitao turned back to see this scene, their eyes nearly bursting.

"Don't worry about me! Jump quickly!" Wang Shan's voice carried an unquestionable authority.

He urgently thought: "System, exchange one Second-rank Water Escape Talisman and one Third-rank Maze Talisman! Use them immediately!"

Ding—exchange Second-rank Water Escape Talisman, consuming twenty Spirit Plant Points. Exchange Third-rank Maze Talisman, consuming one hundred Spirit Plant Points. Zhuren's current Spirit Plant Points remaining: negative fifty. Warning! Insufficient Spirit Plant Points; the system will automatically record the debt, and the next Spirit Plant Points obtained will be deducted first.

No time for that! Wang Shan felt two rays of light merge into his body; his body instantly became incredibly light, and the surrounding scenery began to turn somewhat illusory.

He barely dodged the Giant Lizard's venom, while desperately pouring his remaining Spiritual Power into his legs, he sprinted wildly in the direction opposite the Dark River, shouting tauntingly: "You idiot! Come chase after your grandfather!"

The Giant Lizard's intelligence was obviously low; seeing this tiny worm dare to provoke it, it flew into a rage, abandoning the two small snacks about to reach its mouth, it strode heavily with an earth-shaking roar and chased after Wang Shan. Its massive body surged back and forth at the bottom of the Abyss, sending fragments flying and dust filling the air.

Wang Zhize and Wang Zhitao watched the Clan Leader's (Grandfather's) figure disappear into the dust kicked up by the chasing giant beast, tears blurring their eyes.

Plop! Plop!

The two dared not hesitate any longer, filled with grief and indignation, they leapt one after another into the bone-chilling Underground Dark River. The river water instantly engulfed them, sweeping them toward an unknown distance.

And just as Wang Shan lured the Giant Lizard away, and shortly after Wang Zhize and Wang Zhitao jumped into the Dark River, at the top of the Abyss's fissure, Wan Tianjue's figure finally appeared. His clothes were somewhat torn, his face ashen, evidently breaking open the collapsed cave entrance had cost him considerable effort.

He extended his Spiritual Sense downward, but could only sense a chaotic energy fluctuation and the terrifying aura of that Third-rank Peak Mutated Giant Lizard.

"Wang—Shan—!" Wan Tianjue trembled with rage, never expecting that he would be toyed with by a junior to this extent, nor that beneath this cave lay hidden such a terrifying existence and a Dark River!

He furiously slammed a fist into the rock wall, unleashing an earth-shaking roar: "Even if you flee to the ends of the earth, I will surely tear your body to ten thousand pieces!!!"

Echoing in the Abyss, besides his roar, was the Mutated Giant Lizard's still ferocious roar.