Lin Mu's earlier gamble in stirring up the battlefields of the tiger and deer kings had finally stabilized, for the time being, a flanking situation that had already tipped completely out of balance.
Because of this, Lin Mu had also gained a rare and precious moment to catch his breath.
He seized the time to recover his injuries and Primeval Essence, yet his gaze never once left the battle ahead.
The Crimson Armored Giant Lizard King, now completely surrounded, was at this moment suffering the furious joint assault of several Rank 3 clan elders of Black Blood Stockade.
Though this brute had a powerful Rank 3 defensive wild Gu parasitizing within it, and its russet scale armor was hard as iron, no armor, however thick, could withstand being ground down bit by bit by several experienced Rank 3 Gu Masters.
Attack after attack rained down.
The heavy scale armor shattered and peeled back.
Blood flowed ceaselessly from those hideous wounds.
Even the force behind each sweep of its enormous tail — its most threatening weapon — was weakening at a rate visible to the naked eye.
They're hitting it too hard…
Watching this, Lin Mu felt no joy in his heart. Instead, an irrepressible agitation slowly rose within him.
His hand settled on the Dragon Trap Gu at his waist without any outward sign.
To complete the second trial of the incomplete Black Bone King Inheritance, this single Gu in his possession was very nearly his only realistic means of capturing a Thousand Beast King alive.
But the premise of capturing it alive— was that this Thousand Beast King had to be alive!
And yet these clan elders, having been beaten down by three Thousand Beast Kings for so long, had long since built up a belly full of rage.
Now that they had at last managed to seal off the Crimson Armored Giant Lizard King, each struck more viciously than the last, plainly intent on slaughtering this brute outright.
If Lin Mu were to suddenly step forward now and call out "spare its life," it would appear far too abnormal.
It might very well even draw the suspicion of Lin Zhen and the others.
No good. I can't protect it by force.
Lin Mu's brows knit slightly.
If this Giant Lizard King really is killed…
The corner of his eye drifted toward the distance without any outward sign.
There.
The Thousand Beast Deer King and the Thousand Beast Tiger King had gone utterly red-eyed with slaughter.
The two equally massive Thousand Beast Kings tore and rammed at each other madly amid flying flesh and blood, and the wild Gu worms within their bodies had already activated one after another.
Strange Gu light surfaced from time to time around the Tiger King's body, while the Deer King's enormous figure flickered ceaselessly among the trees.
For the moment, the two were fighting with extraordinary savagery, not a whit less fierce than the battle on this side.
Lin Mu's gaze shifted slightly.
If the giant lizard really dies…
Then I'll have to find a way later to work on the Deer King or the Tiger King.
Only, looking at those two Thousand Beast Kings in the distance that had already gone completely mad, Lin Mu knew perfectly well himself— that was absolutely not a good option.
Just as Lin Mu found himself caught between advance and retreat—
Buzz—buzz—buzz!
An extremely urgent trembling sound suddenly came from Grand Clan Elder Lin Zhen's waist.
A Sound Transmission Gu!
And from the look of it, this was clearly the most urgent grade of message!
Up ahead, Lin Zhen had just channeled his Metal Sever Leaf Gu, forcing the Crimson Armored Giant Lizard King to retreat in disarray.
Hearing the vibration, his expression abruptly sank, and he immediately split off a strand of Primeval Essence and probed into it.
Only a few breaths later, Lin Zhen's face changed completely.
"How is that possible?!"
A clan elder at his side immediately felt his heart clench.
"Grand Clan Elder, what's happened?!"
Lin Zhen jerked his head up.
On that blood-smeared face, an undisguisable shock and fury surfaced for the first time.
"The front… has collapsed!"
Everyone's hearts shook in unison.
Lin Zhen clenched his teeth hard, his voice sunk to its lowest:
"That old dog Li Mang — I don't know what method he used, but he actually erupted with Rank 4 combat strength and has the Patriarch pinned down!"
"The White Bone Alliance has broken through the front line!"
"The Patriarch's urgent order — every Rank 3 that can be spared is to reinforce immediately!"
The instant these words were spoken, the faces of the several clan elders who had been besieging the Crimson Armored Giant Lizard King changed almost simultaneously.
Rank 4 combat strength!
They knew better than anyone what that meant.
The reason the front could still barely be held at present was, in large part, because Patriarch Lin Cang had been suppressing the White Bone Alliance with genuine Rank 4 cultivation.
But now, Li Mang had somehow, by some unknown method, forcibly pinned Lin Cang in place.
With that, the gap in the remaining combat strength was fully exposed.
The White Bone Alliance had already held the advantage in sheer numbers of Rank 3!
If they did not hurry over… The front would truly be finished!
"Then what are we waiting for!"
A clan elder drenched in blood spun around abruptly.
"Move!"
"Stop!"
Lin Zhen suddenly barked sharply, throwing out an arm to block him.
That clan elder whipped his head back around.
But Lin Zhen was not looking at him.
His gaze was fixed on what lay ahead.
There, the blood-covered Crimson Armored Giant Lizard King was dragging its massive body up, struggling once again to prop itself out of the quagmire.
"Hissss—!!"
A low, tyrannical hiss echoed outward.
Even wounded to such a state, it had still not completely lost its ability to fight.
The veins at Lin Zhen's temples throbbed ceaselessly, the irritation in his eyes nearly taking physical form.
Leave?
How could they leave?!
Though this brute was at the end of its strength, it was in the end still a Thousand Beast King.
The moment they all withdrew, once the restraint of the Rank 3 Gu Masters was gone, it could perfectly well lead the remaining lizard horde in continued assaults on the flank.
By then, a defensive line already riddled with holes would still be torn to shreds.
But if they stayed and kept killing it…
How tenacious was a Thousand Beast King's vitality?
To truly grind it to death was absolutely not something that could be accomplished in a dozen-odd breaths.
And yet, right now, time was exactly what the front lacked most!
For a moment, every face there had turned as ugly as could be.
It was at this moment—
"Grand Elder!"
A resounding voice suddenly came from behind them.
Everyone instinctively turned.
They saw Lin Mu, the green wings at his back beating, swiftly rushing toward them.
In his eyes, for the first time, an excitement he could not fully conceal had surfaced.
The next instant, Lin Mu tore the Gu worm from his waist.
"If it can't be killed—"
"Then capture it!"
"Use the Dragon Trap Gu!"
Once these words fell, Lin Zhen was momentarily stunned.
Then his gaze abruptly landed on that Rank 3 Gu worm in Lin Mu's hand.
The Dragon Trap Gu!
After that brief astonishment, a sharp light instantly lit up the depths of Lin Zhen's eyes.
That was right!
The Patriarch had handed this Gu to Lin Mu before their departure precisely to deal with the Thousand Beast Kings.
Since it could not be killed in time, then don't kill it!
Just trap it!
So long as this Crimson Armored Giant Lizard King could be sealed into the Gu, it would be as good as vanishing completely from this battlefield.
And every one of them could immediately pull out!
"Good lad!"
Lin Zhen spun around sharply.
"Quick thinking!"
The next instant, hair and beard bristling, he barked sternly at the group:
"All of you, heed my order!"
"Cover Lin Mu!"
"Work with him! Set the formation and close the net!"
The opportunity!
This was a heaven-sent opportunity!
Lin Mu's heart pounded madly within his chest, yet on the surface he still forcibly suppressed his emotions.
The green wings at his back beat sharply, and he rose swiftly into the air, his gaze sweeping over the Crimson Armored Giant Lizard King's massive body.
This was not the first time he had crossed hands with this Giant Lizard King.
Which parts of its body had been wounded.
Which scales had once shattered.
Lin Mu knew far better than anyone else!
Very quickly, his line of sight locked onto an old wound on the Giant Lizard King's hind leg.
"The hind leg!"
Lin Mu abruptly raised his hand.
"There's an old wound there!"
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The several Rank 3 clan elders, already burning with anxiety, did not hesitate in the slightest.
Every attack shifted direction in an instant!
Powerful Rank 3 attack Gu worms blasted one after another at that hind leg, which had already been far from lightly wounded!
"Hissss—!!"
Sensing the danger, the Crimson Armored Giant Lizard King thrashed its body madly.
But it was no longer as ferocious as it had been at full strength.
Especially that Rank 3 defensive wild Gu, whose protective effect had already obviously weakened after being continuously channeled for so long.
"Boom!"
Another attack landed.
Shattered red armor scattered in all directions.
Immediately after—
Crack—!
A teeth-grating sound of shattering bone suddenly rang out!
The Crimson Armored Giant Lizard King's massive body lurched sharply to one side.
That hind leg, already covered in wounds, could at last no longer support its own heavy weight.
Crash!
Muddy water erupted skyward.
The Giant Lizard King crashed heavily into the quagmire!
Its four limbs pawed frantically, its enormous tail sweeping wildly, trying to prop its body back up.
But that crippled hind leg could no longer muster the slightest strength.
"Now!"
Lin Mu's gaze turned abruptly vicious.
Within his aperture, the last of his Flowery Silver Primeval Essence poured into the Dragon Trap Gu in that moment, almost without reservation.
"Hummm—!"
The Gu worm suddenly flew up from his palm.
The next instant, pitch-black chains extended out from within the Gu light one after another, crisscrossing and interweaving, swiftly forming an enormous net of chains!
Boom!
The net crashed down!
The Crimson Armored Giant Lizard King's entire massive body was instantly bound tight!
"Tighten!"
Lin Mu channeled the Gu worm fiercely.
The chains abruptly tightened.
But in that very instant, the Crimson Armored Giant Lizard King, which had already been on its last breath, seemed to realize the true crisis.
"Hissss—!!!"
It suddenly began to struggle madly!
Its massive body exerted force with a thunderous surge.
Chain after chain was pulled taut, even letting out teeth-grating creaks.
Lin Mu's face instantly went pale!
He felt only an utterly terrifying force transmitting continuously through the Dragon Trap Gu, and his whole body pitched sharply forward in midair, nearly dragged bodily across!
So heavy!
How was this reeling in a savage beast?
This was plainly like hauling a mountain!
Lin Mu channeled the Gu worm with all he had.
His Flowery Silver Primeval Essence drained away at speed, like a dam bursting.
But with every inch the net contracted, the Crimson Armored Giant Lizard King erupted into even more violent struggling.
For the moment, the two sides had actually locked into a stalemate!
"Help him!"
Naturally, Lin Zhen could not simply watch.
At the same time his furious shout rang out, the Metal Sever Leaf Gu had already flown out once more!
Boom!
The golden leaf blades slammed viciously into the Giant Lizard King's body.
Immediately after, the remaining clan elders closed in once again as well.
Every time the Giant Lizard King tried to gather strength to break free, what greeted it was another, more violent round of attacks.
Its head had only just lifted, before it was beaten back down.
Its forelimbs had only just braced against the ground, before the next assault came thundering down.
Once.
Twice.
Three times!
The amplitude of the Crimson Armored Giant Lizard King's struggling began to weaken rapidly.
And the net formed by the Dragon Trap Gu contracted inward, bit by bit.
Tighter and tighter!
"Get in…"
Lin Mu's eyes were now completely bloodshot.
The Flowery Silver Primeval Essence in his aperture was near exhaustion.
"There!!!"
The chains shuddered abruptly!
The next instant—
Bang—!
An exceedingly muffled air burst detonated within the quagmire.
All anyone saw was a flash of crimson light.
That Crimson Armored Giant Lizard King, once as massive as a small hill, was suddenly transformed under the ceaseless contraction of the net into a streak of crimson streaming light!
In the blink of an eye, that enormous body vanished completely.
All that remained in place was a huge mud pit.
Along with blood and shattered scales strewn across the ground.
Plip.
The Dragon Trap Gu fell from midair.
Lin Mu instinctively reached out and caught it.
But in the very instant the Gu worm entered his hand—
"Ngh!"
Lin Mu's body abruptly sank downward!
His legs nearly buckled and dropped him to his knees in the mud on the spot.
So heavy!
The Gu worm was no bigger than a walnut, yet in his exhausted hand it felt as though ten thousand catties of black iron hung from it.
He felt as though the Crimson Armored Giant Lizard King sealed within were still pressing down on him through the Gu worm itself!
Lin Mu clenched his teeth and barely managed to hang it back at his waist.
Yet this single simple motion alone was enough to make large beads of cold sweat seep from his forehead once more.
However, the battle raged like fire.
No one had the time to celebrate.
"Move! Come with me to the main battlefield at once!"
Seeing the greatest threat subdued, Lin Zhen, burning with anxiety, did not even catch his breath before turning around, ready to forcibly assemble every clan elder still capable of standing.
But when he turned and took a look at Lin Mu — face pale as paper, whole body soaked in sweat, one hand braced against the Dragon Trap Gu at his waist, and still struggling to straighten his back— a trace of reluctance flashed through Lin Zhen's eyes, and he then said decisively:
"Lin Mu!"
"You just forcibly subdued a beast king and overdrew your Primeval Essence, and now that Gu worm must feel like ten thousand catties to you. You're already at your limit! Even if you forced yourself to come along to the main battlefield, you couldn't accomplish anything!"
Lin Zhen stretched out a large, blood-smeared hand and clapped Lin Mu heavily on the shoulder, his tone carrying a certain trust:
"Take the Dragon Trap Gu and withdraw from the battlefield first. Return to the stockade immediately and recuperate! A Thousand Beast King is sealed within this Gu worm — it absolutely cannot be lost!"
"Once you've recovered, come to the front and reinforce us! We'll go on ahead!"
Before his voice had even faded—
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Lin Zhen did not even wait for Lin Mu's answer. He and the remaining clan elders turned into several streaks of streaming light and, like arrows loosed from bowstrings, rushed impatiently toward the main battlefield.
And behind that huge, mud-caked boulder, Lin Mu knelt alone on one knee.
He gasped in great mouthfuls of air, forcing back the violent trembling that ran through every muscle from overexertion and depleted Primeval Essence, looking as though he were in unbearable agony.
It was not until the figures of Lin Zhen and the others had completely vanished at the far end of the dense forest, that Lin Mu slowly lowered his head.
His gaze fixed itself on that ponderous Dragon Trap Gu at his waist.
Inside, was a living Thousand Beast King.
Lin Mu slowly raised his mud-covered right hand and pressed it against his chest.
Yet even so, that heart still beat faster and faster.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
The second trial of the incomplete Black Bone King Inheritance—
Capture a Thousand Beast King alive.
Now, only the final step remained.