Chapter 65

"Found you!"

Lai Ang's thick nostrils exhaled a puff of white air; it did not choose to intercept in front of this giant bone python, but waited for the bone python to leave, then it vibrated its dragon wings and lunged toward the cave where the bone python emerged.

Inside the cave, the skeleton caster 'Ma Lei' was about to use the Wizard's Eye to watch the silver bone python's battle scene when suddenly its keen mental power sensed a strong threat.

The higher a caster's rank, the more sensitive they are to forces that could threaten them. Some casters even specially train in passive precognition danger spells, or equip special magic items.

"Bone Shield!" Ma Lei hesitated not at all, first instantly releasing several bone shields around his body, while quickly chanting, preparing the fourth-ring defensive spell 'Bone Wall'.

In his mind, he also distractedly controlled the silver bone python that had just gone out, ordering it to return immediately.

The casualties among those skeletons mostly just made Ma Lei feel heartbroken; its own life safety was the most important.

At the moment the Bone Wall chant was barely completed, a greenish breath carrying tremendous impact force surged in from outside the cave, violently slamming into the fourth-rank defensive spell Bone Wall.

The thick, hard Bone Wall shuddered violently, and fine cracks appeared.

Ma Lei was greatly shocked by this sight.

"Acid Dragon Breath? Such powerful Acid Dragon Breath? Could it be a juvenile black dragon?"

The Bone Wall creaked, cracks spreading ever more; Ma Lei had no time to think further, activating Swift Technique, he immediately fled toward the cave's secret passage.

Behind it, the Bone Wall over a meter thick, shedding a white gleam, was like a solid wall before a flood, but the next moment the wall shattered and vanished, corroded by the Acid Dragon Breath.

The Acid Dragon Breath surged wildly outward from the cave for over a hundred meters until it reached the deep stone wall inside, where it gradually subsided.

Outside, Lai Ang ceased exhaling dragon breath, his dragon eyes flashing a hint of solemnity.

It had just felt resistance when exhaling the dragon breath.

And the spell that could make its fourth-rank Acid Dragon Breath feel resistance must have reached fourth rank.

"To react and release a fourth-rank defensive spell in such a short time?" Lai Ang instantly raised this caster's threat level by one notch.

Ordinary fourth-rank casters would find this difficult, so it is likely a fifth-rank caster.

A whooshing sound came from the forest behind, indicating some huge beast was rushing along.

Lai Ang turned his head, and with his sight he already saw the silhouette of the silver bone python.

After a moment's thought, Lai Ang turned and charged toward the bone python.

Whether that caster escaped through the secret passage or teleported away, in short it got away.

In that case, kill this bone python to maximally weaken the enemy's strength!

For casters who control skeletons, at least half of their abilities and power lie in their undead minions.

Facing the black dragon's counterattack, the silver bone python's soul fire flickered in its eye sockets, showing no fear, but instead it accelerated ferociously.

Judging by size, the silver bone python is undoubtedly much larger than Lai Ang.

A boom sounded.

A black and a white giant beast collided fiercely, but the one that retreated was the larger white bone python.

Lai Ang's internal fourth-rank fourth-level liquefied battle qi boiled fiercely, clinging to his dragon body, greatly enhancing his basic strength in all aspects.

After repelling the silver bone python, Lai Ang's thought shifted, and he unleashed a near-instant Water Magic Cannon, moreover casting it twice.

Two Water Magic Cannons, whose power rivaled a third-ring attack spell, streaked like blue meteors, striking the silver bone python's body before it could dodge, directly shattering several of its serpentine ribs.

"The head and spine are harder, while the underside is weaker by one grade." After just two exchanges, Lai Ang probed the weakness of this fifth-rank silver bone python.

In a hidden spot one or two kilometers away, the skeleton caster Ma Lei, concealing his form with dark magic, was sharing vision with the silver bone python.

Upon seeing that the black dragon attacking it was merely a juvenile dragon under nine meters long, it felt great astonishment.

If we say that a juvenile dragon close to a juvenile dragon having this breath power could be barely accepted as a talent, but this black dragon before us had clearly become a juvenile dragon not long ago.

The dragon's age is estimated to be only in its early teens.

The juvenile dragon age stage ranges from eleven to thirty years.

"This acid breath's power, even an ordinary thirty-year-old juvenile red dragon might not match."

While Ma Lei was still feeling shocked, he saw the black dragon almost instantly cast twice, two blue meteoric spells shattering several ribs of its silver bone python.

This made Ma Lei's soul fire in its eye sockets jump violently.

The silver bone python's body is too huge; Ma Lei almost exhausted his accumulated wealth, merely refining most of its body.

The abdomen touching the ground had not yet been refined, its hardness far inferior to that of the skull and spine.

The black dragon evidently noticed this.

Ma Lei already had thoughts of retreat; the black dragon before him everywhere revealed abnormality—possessing a mighty strength that could hold its own against a fifth-rank silver bone python and even gain some advantage, able to cast near-instant spells without weakening, and having the breath power normal for a juvenile dragon.

Better not provoke it, better not provoke it.

In the forest, Lai Ang again cast twice, unleashing two near-instant Water Magic Cannons to continue bombarding the silver bone python.

Under exquisite spell control, Lai Ang struck the opponent's rib region again, breaking several ribs.

Sometimes, being overly large is not a good thing; at least when facing Lai Ang, the Silver Bone Python simply could not hide its entire belly.

A mouthful of acidic dragon breath, carrying a domineering impact force, was spat toward the Silver Bone Python.

The Silver Bone Python barely dodged most of it, but its tail was still hit by the dragon breath; now even the hardened silver bone skeleton that had been forged began to crack and slightly blacken, this being corrosion from the acidic dragon breath. "Huh? Trying to run?" Lai Ang noticed the Silver Bone Python's intention to retreat; seeing its movement, he knew it wanted to flee.

A hint of hesitation flashed in its mind.

Should it let the Silver Bone Python go and then silently follow it to find that spellcaster, or should it unleash all its power and keep this Silver Bone Python? Lai Ang knew that the spellcaster hidden in the shadows was surely watching this battle.

Once it revealed all its trump cards to keep the Silver Bone Python, the other side would surely know as well.

Either retreat, or later return with greater power to sweep in.

Lai Ang could choose to seek help from the emerald dragon of Senbao, or even from the Emerald Dream; the spellcaster from the Wailing Wasteland could naturally also seek help.

At that point, Lai Ang, having revealed all his strength, faced the enemy hidden in the shadows whose strength was unknown, and Lai Ang made his choice.

It continually maintained the strength it had just revealed, pursuing the Silver Bone Python while constantly attacking it with breath and water magic cannons, inflicting multiple wounds on its body.

The once imposing Silver Bone Python, in a short time, became a tattered patchwork of white and black.

And Lai Ang, unable to catch up, could only let the Silver Bone Python escape helplessly.

The forest was dense, flight blocked the view, and the opponent was Fifth Rank while Lai Ang was Fourth Rank, so it was normal for him to escape.

At least, in Ma Lei's eyes, it was quite normal.

What it didn't know was that Lai Ang had just used the first-ring spell Breath Barrier, bolstered by Black Water Battle Qi, silently following the traces left by the Silver Bone Python's movements.

"Learning more spells is definitely not wasted." Lai Ang was glad he had learned the Breath Barrier spell.

Although the rank wasn't high, only at first-ring level 4, but often what was lacking was just this effect.

Otherwise, with Lai Ang's huge size and vigorous life aura, no matter how careful, getting a bit closer to pursue would easily be detected by the Silver Bone Python.

But with the breath-concealing spell, Lai Ang's life aura within a certain range had dropped to almost nothing, perfectly shielding him from the Silver Bone Python's perception.

After shaking off that strange black dragon, Ma Lei did not let the Silver Bone Python come to him immediately; instead, he himself moved away from the forest while having the python detour dozens of kilometers, crossing ridges and diving into rivers.

As for those Skeleton Armies?

Ma Lei had completely given up on them at this point.

Although it was painful, Ma Lei valued his own life more.

The Skeleton Army was gone, but it could be rebuilt in two years; if life was lost, then truly nothing remained, and Ma Lei was still clear on that.

"He should have shaken them off, right?"

In an inconspicuous patch of forest a hundred kilometers away from the battlefield where the Skeleton Army and Monster Army fought.

The skeleton caster Ma Lei, clad in gray robes, stood under the tree shade; after again checking through the Silver Bone Python's sight and perception and detecting no sign of that black dragon or any other ambush or pursuit traces, he finally decided to summon the Silver Bone Python to his side.

By then, two hours had passed since shaking off the black dragon.

When the Silver Bone Python returned to his side, seeing his beloved snake covered in wounds, Ma Lei's soul fire flickered wildly and his heart ached.

The good news is that most of the bones refined with silver and dark magic cores remained intact, with only a few fractures.

The bad news is that Ma Lei himself is now penniless and cannot restore the Silver Bone Python at all.

"Still, his strength remains at about eighty to ninety percent; it's just that his appearance is a bit ugly." Ma Lei consoled himself.

Suddenly, its keen mental sense detected danger approaching, making its soul tremble and its scalp go numb—oh, it was an undead, lacking a scalp, so it must have been the skullcap going numb.

Two deep blue spheres shot toward Ma Lei like meteors.

Several bone shields were released almost instantly for defense, but the second-ring Bone Shield Technique could not withstand the power comparable to a third-ring Water Magic Cannon.

With a crack, the bone shield shattered; Ma Lei, still chanting a stronger defensive spell, cried out in pain as the two Water Magic Cannons, having consumed part of their power, struck him.

His gray magic robe flashed with a faint light, blocking the Water Magic Cannon for an instant before being torn apart.

The final unhindered blast struck Ma Lei's silver‑glimmering bones, and then he emerged completely unscathed.

In the forest, Lai Ang, who had just successfully launched two Water Magic Cannon sneak attacks, saw this scene, took a deep breath, and felt like cursing.

He had even refined his own body! Generally, casters focus on spells and mental power, so their flesh is far weaker than warriors of the same rank.

After all, not everyone is a genius who can cultivate battle qi to strengthen the body while also training the spirit and researching spells—that's the exclusive domain of geniuses.

Skeleton casters also don't have much energy to simultaneously cultivate battle qi and mental power.

Even if it had a long enough lifespan, living several thousand years would be no problem.

But it is a skeleton, an undead, and can fully refine its own body without too many psychological reservations.

If the refinement fails, it simply replaces the bones with others.

This is an advantage that casters of flesh-and-blood bodies do not possess.

Ma Lei, howling in pain, quickly got up.

The Silver Bone Python coiled around it, vigilantly watching the black dragon.

Once the black dragon made any move, it would surely be entangled by it.

Undead have far greater immunity to dragon's might than the living, and besides, Lai Ang's dragon's might isn't particularly strong.

Later, there will be another chapter.

(End of chapter)