Chapter 140: Blood on the Blade, Sulfur Seals the Edge.
This Sulfur Slaying Dragon must’ve been killed by a gust of miasma-filled wind during one of those chaotic storms. Its taste was atrocious, and its Sword Tail was completely sealed by sulfur crystals. Jié Jié took only two bites before transforming into a Slaying Dragon to cut open and dismantle its shell.
The red-and-blue shell coloration settled into an ink-green with faint yellow hues like that of a Sulfur Slaying Dragon. The thick Sword Tail didn’t become slender but instead grew longer—a good thing since “longer is stronger.”
Its once messy shell patterns smoothed out, making it appear more streamlined. The blade still retained the spines typical of a regular breed’s Sword Tail, resembling a saw-toothed edge on one side and a sharp blade on the other. The steel tone of the tail now gleamed silver, flashing dangerously whenever it moved.
Sulfur Slaying Dragons are usually smaller than regular Slaying Dragons but make up for it with agility, allowing them to execute more sword techniques. Jié Jié’s current state combined the size of a regular breed with the flexibility of a Sulfur Slaying Dragon, perfectly integrating the strengths of both subspecies and standard breeds.
Taking a deep breath, Jié Jié no longer had to worry about inhaling too much miasma due to his high oxygen needs. Not only did he adapt better to the miasma, but his body also filtered out toxic gases through his organs, redirecting them to secretion glands in his tail. Upon contact with air, these toxins instantly crystallized into sulfur.
As he continued breathing and filtering toxins, the layer of sulfur crystal thickened, weighing down even the Sword Tail, turning it into something akin to a mace.
“Rad.”
Jié Jié swung his mace-like tail, scraping against the rocky ground, shattering the sulfur crystals into poisonous fumes that rose into the air. Still, this didn’t mean immunity to miasma—aside from Corpse Suit Dragons, who could truly resist such concentrated toxicity? He hadn’t lost the ability to spray magma like a regular Slaying Dragon yet and could still coat his tail in flames after sharpening it.
Too cool!
The integration of subspecies abilities worked wonders; combining Sulfur Slaying Dragon traits with regular ones far surpassed the fusion between Swift Dragons and Green Swift Dragons. Swinging his tail a couple more times, Jié Jié found the perfect center of gravity by lowering his head. With extraordinary resilience, his tail nearly bent in half, holding it vertically in a unique stance exclusive to Sulfur Slaying Dragons—perfect for sneaky tricks!
The escape of the Corpse Suit Dragon was long forgotten as Jié Jié focused on practicing new moves, imagining how impressed the Master Swordsman would be when they met again.
After performing two Large Spins, Jié Jié calmed himself and began searching for materials dropped from the Corpse Suit Dragon. This battle had advanced the Totem progress bar by about half. Another fight should complete it.
The biggest discovery was learning the transformation conditions of Ancient Dragons. A proper battle was needed to confirm if he could surpass them—not just fantasizing but relying on tangible results.
With a joyous swing of his tail, Jié Jié headed toward the middle level of the Valley of Miasma to rest briefly before challenging the Corpse Suit Dragon again.
Meanwhile, the battered Corpse Suit Dragon walked at the valley’s bottom. Vast amounts of miasma flowed from its body to nearby corpses and living creatures, siphoning their life energy to nourish itself. From previous encounters, it sensed the powerful enemy would return.
A terrifying wail escaped its torn throat, not comical but menacing. Waves of death energy rippled with the emotions of the Master of the Corpse Membrane, turning all nearby living beings into piles of corpses except for Large Monsters which might escape.
Life energy gathered within its body, healing numerous wounds. Beneath its glowing organ, the Corpse Suit Dragon’s true eyes glowed red as it scanned the heap of corpses.
The quality wasn’t sufficient.
Without hanging any corpse armor, the wounded Corpse Suit Dragon couldn’t float in acid pools. Instead, it chose a hidden path leading to its nest.
In the lowest part of the Valley of Miasma, a vast cave stood filled with mountains of corpses. Only those brought back by the Corpse Suit Dragon or difficult-to-decompose bodies resided here, including ancient dragon remains mixed indistinguishably among thief dragon carcasses. Death treated all equally.
Diving into the mountain of corpses, it swam through, selecting the oldest and toughest meat to wear, then broke through the top, sitting cross-legged atop the pile. Harnessing the concentrated miasma and active Earth Pulse Energy here, it began restoring its body.
The Earth Pulse Energy, normally pulsating like tides, flowed unusually calm now. The long-lived Ancient Dragon couldn’t recall how long it had been since the surging pulses.
While recovering, a flicker of life energy passed beneath him, but the Corpse Suit Dragon, accustomed to coexisting with death, remained indifferent.
Time trickled by. The Burst Scale Dragon swung its tail, clearing a path through encircling Great Thief Dragons. A single spin and stomp crushed one underfoot.
Another flash of cold light ended the last henchman of the gang, leaving only the gang leader standing. The Big Thief Dragon growled uneasily, realizing too late it had chosen the wrong opponent and tried retreating into a nearby coral rock cave, thinking its height and bulk prevented pursuit.
It underestimated its foe’s mobility.
With a thirty-meter leap and mid-air spin, the thirty-meter-long tail became a massive blade aimed directly at the Big Thief Dragon. In mere steps, the tail slashed through both the Big Thief Dragon and its escape route.
The blade dragged the corpse out, repeatedly testing its edge, painting the tail crimson.
Blood on the blade, sulfur seals the edge.
Turning what seemed like trivial monster kills into such grandeur made Jié Jié feel incredibly awesome.
Not a small fry? My apologies, didn’t notice.
With a cheerful heart, the Burst Scale Dragon resumed patrolling the Valley of Miasma, bringing romance and art to this lawless land while beginning the third capture attempt of the Corpse Suit Dragon.
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Chapter 141
