Chapter 280 - 281 Cat and Mouse Game
The Ice Morning White Dragon led the way, carrying a swath of snow-white ice fog that spread across the cliffs of Floating Mountain.
It was indeed strange. Ordinary vegetation would instantly freeze into vine frost upon contact with such an extreme breath of ice, but these Sky Support Vines seemed unaffected, merely coated with a little white frost on their verdant skins.
Those Mourning Dragons were not nearly as resistant to the cold. They eyed the approaching Ice Morning White Dragon warily, and when they realized it was coming for them, they let out sharp cries!
Quickly, the Mourning Dragons prepared for battle, climbing to different heights on the Sky Support Vines. Some swiftly crawled into the cliffs, while those with bat wings glided out to confront the unwelcome guest!
These Demon Awakening Fruits were obviously treasured by them, not permitting any creature to compete for them.
“Squeak squeak squeak!!!!!!”
In flight, the Bat Wing Sorcery Dragons were extremely flat, making them look like sharp black blades as they sliced through the canopies, severing branches and leaves.
They maintained a long formation, launching attacks with rhythm.
But to Zhu Minglang, this rhythmic assault was an orderly death march.
The Ice Morning White Dragon possessed a pair of feathered wings, which meant it could soar with the might of an eagle and make powerful swooping attacks, as well as dance through the air with the grace of dragonflies and butterflies, dodging enemy attacks while delivering lethal blows.
In the sky, the Bat Wing Sorcery Dragons were no match for the Ice Morning White Dragon. Without even needing to cast a single spell or Profound Art, the Ice Morning White Dragon could kill all the Bat Wing Sorcery Dragons by simply expending a bit of its strength.
“These cunning creatures, Bai Qi, don’t waste your time with those Bat Wing Sorcery Dragons, they are stealing the Demon Awakening Fruits!” Zhu Minglang quickly noticed this.
It turned out the Bat Wing Sorcery Dragons were purely on a suicide mission.
They sensed the powerful aura of the Dragon King from the Ice Morning White Dragon and knew they were no match, but this tactic allowed the other Mourning Dragons time to enjoy the Demon Awakening Fruits.
Just one fruit was enough for a Mourning Dragon to become a Shadow Funeral Dragon, wielding Lord Level strength.
With their numerical advantage, they could even battle the Ice Morning White Dragon.
“Woosh”
The Ice Morning White Dragon received the command, its majestic wings bursting with strength as it unfurled. The Ice Morning White Dragon descended like a white star, striking fiercely beneath the cliffs of Floating Mountain, plunging directly into the crowd of Mourning Dragons.
Those Demon Awakening Fruits were not simply hanging from the Sky Support Vines. Each fruit was surrounded by a cage-like sphere of vines, protecting the fruit within. The Mourning Dragons had to patiently use their hooked claws and teeth to break open these cage-like spheres to enjoy the fruits.
This gave Zhu Minglang time. Without the shadowy transformation, these Mourning Dragons were nothing but Monarch Level creatures; facing Monarch Level strength, they had no chance to resist.
The Mourning Dragons were clever, however. They came here for the Demon Awakening Fruits.
Furthermore, they knew that only by consuming the fruits could they hope to contend with the Ice Morning White Dragon, so they rapidly dispersed among the Sky Support Vines, burrowing into them like moles into their burrows.
“They want to play a game of cat and mouse with us, but unfortunately, they’ve chosen the wrong opponent,” Zhu Minglang said with a laugh.
If the Ice Morning White Dragon was the heavyset type like Big Black Tooth, it would have been quite difficult to deal with the Mourning Dragons using this method of approach. It might have chased them for half the day and only killed a few, and in the end, those crafty creatures might have stolen away all the Demon Awakening Fruits.
However, the Ice Morning White Dragon was agile, keen, and swift. Its dragon pupils could move over a wide range, unlike humans who could only see directly in front of them and to their sides, leaving them with a large blind spot.
And the sense of smell and hearing of the Ice Morning White Dragon were also at the level of a hunting animal. The Mourning Dragons might bury themselves under the vines without moving, but the scent they emitted while they were active, including saliva and dander, would linger on the vines. These traces all had a scent, not to mention some Mourning Dragons were actually afraid of higher beings, so whenever the Ice Morning White Dragon flew past them, they couldn’t help but tremble, and the sound they made would be heard by the Ice Morning White Dragon.
Stepping lightly like a cat, the Ice Morning White Dragon trod on the Sky Support Vine, hardly making a sound with its footsteps, and the vines did not bend under its weight.
Walking elegantly forward, there was a ripe Demon Awakening Fruit right in front of the Ice Morning White Dragon, caged by the vine balls, and on the vine balls were the bite marks of a Mourning Dragon.
The nose of the Ice Morning White Dragon, similar to that of a deer, twitched as it followed the scent.
Behind Bai Qi, a row of hanging vines concealed a Mourning Dragon. When it saw the Ice Morning White Dragon following the trail of saliva it had left, this cunning Mourning Dragon even split its mouth in a sneer, as if mocking!
“Swipe!” Suddenly, the Ice Morning White Dragon, which had already passed by, flicked its tail with uncanny precision, stabbing towards the Mourning Dragon’s head!
For some reason, this originally delicate and soft tail had suddenly become hard and sharp, easily piercing through the skull of the Mourning Dragon.
The Mourning Dragon hidden behind the hanging vines still had its mouth agape, showing its ugly teeth. Slowly, its shape became visible as the camouflage from lying still dissipated due to the passing of its life!
“Hahh”
The Ice Morning White Dragon opened its mouth and spewed out some ultra-cold particles from its throat. Upon touching the air, the particles instantly turned into a powerful crystalization, wrapping around the Demon Awakening Fruit and its enclosing vine ball.
Slapping the vine ball hard with its claws, the Ice Morning White Dragon intended to break open the outer protection of the Demon Awakening Fruit and retrieve it. However, Bai Qi shattered only the ultra-cold crystals he had spat out; the extraordinarily tough vine ball did not break at all.
“Hmm???”
Little Bai Qi himself was surprised. Could it be that the vine ball could only be gnawed open bit by bit with teeth?
To pick all the Demon Awakening Fruits here, one’s teeth would have to be worn as smooth as pebbles.
“Hmm” Little Bai Qi called out, summoning Zhu Minglang to think of a solution.
When it came to using brains, it was better to leave it to the master.
“Your ice can’t freeze these vine balls till they crack?” Zhu Minglang was also somewhat troubled.
No wonder those Mourning Dragons had lingered here for so long, and only a few actually managed to eat the Demon Awakening Fruits.
“Hmm”
Little Bai Qi indicated that it was better for him to stick to hunting Mourning Dragons, leaving the Demon Awakening Fruits for Zhu Minglang to figure out.
“Fine, try to kill as many of these Mourning Dragons that haven’t obtained the shadow as you can, and I’ll call Qing Zhuo over,” Zhu Minglang said.