Chapter 459 - 427: Wounded Retreat
Chapter 459: Chapter 427: Wounded Retreat
A three-colored beam of light shot forward at incredible speed, reaching the Dimensional Rift in the blink of an eye.
Li Qian was still some distance from the Dimensional Rift. Seeing this, he didn’t hesitate for a second, immediately releasing his Tidal Sea Spirit.
He had brought one of each of his evolved Pet Beasts on this training expedition to the Dimension Plane. Naturally, this included a Tidal Sea Spirit, which had reached the Dominator Level upon evolving.
At this critical juncture, Li Qian acted on instinct, releasing it and using Telepathy to command it to cast the Water Curtain Celestial Splendor Skill.
At almost the exact same moment, Bai Bingbing and Irina summoned their Pet Beasts and cast Defense Skills as well.
Other students near the Dimensional Rift also reacted, summoning their own Pet Beasts and unleashing a variety of Skills. Of course, their timely response was largely due to the earlier ground tremors, which had already prompted many of them to subconsciously summon their Pet Beasts.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
As expected, all sorts of Defense Skills were thrown up, only to be popped one by one like balloons.
Only the Defense Skills cast by Li Qian’s and Irina’s two Overlord-level Pet Beasts managed to hold on for a moment longer.
However, the gap in Power Level between the Pet Beasts was simply too vast. The clash of Skills could only offer a partial blockade, momentarily slowing the attack.
KABOOM!
In the end, a violent explosion erupted. The three-colored beam of light shattered all the Defense Skills and slammed into the area around the Dimensional Rift.
The resulting shockwave was like a Tsunami, sweeping over the entire region surrounding the Dimensional Rift.
In an instant, both people and Pet Beasts were blasted into the air, then came showering down like scattered pellets.
After hitting the ground, student after student coughed up blood. Some passed out on the spot, losing consciousness entirely.
Li Qian’s group of three was also sent flying by the shockwave. However, they had started to retreat in time and weren’t at the epicenter near the Dimensional Rift, so they weren’t seriously injured.
Furthermore, because their desperate attempt to block the attack had bought some time, the other students had either seized the opportunity to dive into the Dimensional Rift or had quickly moved away from the epicenter. Thus, while many appeared to be injured, it seemed no students had been killed.
Only a few Guards, who had diligently carried out their duties to the end... they and their Pet Beasts vanished together in the terrifying explosion.
Li Qian witnessed it all. His pupils dilated slightly as he felt, for the first time, the fragility of life and his own insignificance.
’Faced with an attack of this magnitude, I feel like an ant,’ he thought. ’Completely powerless.’
THUD!
Riding the shockwave from the explosion, Li Qian performed a backflip and landed steadily. His insides churned a bit, but he wasn’t seriously hurt.
The moment he landed, Li Qian looked toward the epicenter of the blast. The dust was being sucked backward, as if being inhaled by a whale’s giant mouth.
Li Qian clearly saw a funnel-shaped vortex form. Just as he was trying to make sense of it, Irina hurried over and explained, "This is bad. After taking such a terrifying hit, the Dimensional Rift has turned into a spatial vortex!"
"This kind of spatial vortex is extremely dangerous. It’s filled with spatial turbulence. Even an Emperor Level Pet Beast would risk death inside. What’s more, with a vortex like this, the other side of the Dimensional Rift could be scrambled. It might not lead to Luoying Valley anymore."
Hearing Irina’s quick, concise explanation, Li Qian’s heart sank.
"So, you’re saying..." Li Qian picked up immediately.
"It means we can’t go back for the time being. We have to wait for the spatial vortex to stabilize," Irina said with a sigh of resignation.
A wry smile touched Li Qian’s lips. "Sigh. What a senseless disaster."
With that, he scanned the students who were slowly getting back to their feet, then shouted at the top of his lungs, "Everyone, grab the injured and let’s get out of here! The Dimensional Rift is impassable for now!"
The words had barely left his mouth before he summoned Qizai and an Extreme Fierce Sky Escape Eagle. Without a moment’s hesitation, he hoisted several injured, unconscious students onto his shoulders, leaped onto Qizai’s back, and shot into the sky. He picked a random direction leading away from Luoying City and fled.
Seeing his example, the others behind him didn’t hesitate. They also grabbed the wounded, mounted their Flying Pet Beasts, and made a swift escape.
They knew perfectly well that if they stayed, there would be only one outcome: death.
In a battle of this magnitude, even lingering on the outskirts meant risking becoming collateral damage.
As one Flying Pet Beast after another took to the skies, everyone at the scene, including the remaining Guards, evacuated in an extremely short amount of time.
Not far away, the Armor-Subduing Beast emerged from the ground again with Captain Hao. Looking at the consequences of his decision to dodge, Captain Hao’s expression turned grim.
The situation had been dire, and he had acted on pure instinct, taking evasive action without a second thought. He never imagined it would lead to such dire consequences.
"You beast! You’re courting death!" Furious and dismayed by his mistake, Captain Hao roared and immediately summoned all of his Pet Beasts.
Teacher Liang and Teacher Yang also summoned all of their Pet Beasts. Back in the narrow tunnels of the Earth Palace, the cramped terrain had prevented them from unleashing their full strength. But now, out in the open with no restrictions, they were determined to go all out.
Nearby, Teacher Liang and Teacher Yang could only look on with resignation.
Strictly speaking, Captain Hao wasn’t to blame for what happened. In such a critical moment, there was no time to overthink.
Besides, from the looks of it, although some students were injured, it didn’t seem like there were any fatalities.
With all their Pet Beasts deployed, they began to slowly gain the upper hand. Despite the difference in Levels, their superior numbers and coordination started to turn the tide of battle.
Just as the three were beginning to feel a flicker of hope, thinking it wouldn’t be long before they could drive back their opponent, the situation changed once again.
"WOOF WOOF WOOF..."
"WOOF WOOF WOOF..."
A dense swarm of canine Pet Beasts of all kinds began pouring out of the ruptures in the ground.
"Damn it!"
Seeing this, Teacher Liang cried out, "Send some Pet Beasts to intercept them!"
Teacher Yang said nothing in response, simply sending one of his Pet Beasts forward and making his position clear.
Captain Hao did the same.
They were all keenly aware that the students were badly injured. If they allowed these vicious hounds to run free, it would be a disaster for Li Qian and the others, even if the strongest among the hounds was only at the Dominator Level.