Because of the continuous explosions coming from above, Heng and Olga Marie reflexively quickened their pace. When they finally climbed to the cavern entrance, they froze—not just because of Aru resting at the mouth, but because of the battle within.
The main force of the fight was undoubtedly Lancer. Currently, Lancer, wielding his crimson spear, was like a bolt of blue lightning flickering through the cave. The once-mighty Teostra was now covered in scars and puncture wounds, its arrogant expression replaced by rage and exhaustion.
On the other side, Lunastra was in better shape.
Jack, who usually liked to act cool, was now on all fours with his blade gripped in his teeth. His cold, aloof expression had turned feral. Having completely thrown caution to the wind, he was focused solely on taking down his opponent, uncaring of his appearance.
The refined techniques he had once taught to Shoto Todoroki were replaced by wild, savage attacks. Against a massive opponent, the simple and brutal "dodge-and-strike" method was the most effective.
Lunastra, sporting several large gashes on her body, roared repeatedly as she tried to aid her husband, but Jack—on all fours with the hilt in his mouth—constantly harried her, preventing her from looking away.
When Lancer's crimson spear finally pierced Teostra's forehead and the massive body collapsed with a thud, Lunastra let out a heart-wrenching wail. She no longer cared about Jack's attacks.
Her massive wings were nearly shredded, yet she lunged desperately to the side of Teostra's body. This forced Lancer, who had been standing on the beast's head, to pull his spear and retreat.
Lancer couldn't help but sigh, but his expression and movements remained unchanged. He was no longer the rookie who would waver for an "enemy." Regardless of the foe's reaction, only a dead enemy is a good enemy.
However, he felt something strange. From the dying Teostra, he felt energy leaking out—energy that felt incredibly familiar.
Before he could sense it clearly, Lunastra, realizing her mate was dead, completely snapped.
A brilliant blue aura surrounded her, and powder fell from her body like snow. She reared up on her hind legs, nearly standing upright.
Lancer sensed the danger reflexively. He lunged to Jack's side and snatched the cat into his arms with one hand.
Almost simultaneously, Lunastra slammed her front paws down.
A blinding light erupted from her, expanding rapidly. Beautiful blue flames ignited the suspended powder, and a massive ring of fire from the explosion instantly swept through the entire cavern.
BOOM!!
The blast nearly collapsed the cave. But more unexpectedly, the crystalline floor beneath everyone's feet shattered and gave way.
Lancer, holding Jack, was closest to the epicenter. Not only was he struck by the shockwave, but he was also caught in the cave-in. They plunged into the abyss.
Seeing this, Tiger grabbed a small parachute and leaped after them. Olga Marie followed suit immediately. Finally, even Zero, who had been lazily clinging to Olga Marie's back, grabbed Aru and leaped into the gap.
Heng, watching the massive hole before him, gritted his teeth for two seconds before jumping in as well.
Falling from the height, he couldn't see a thing until he felt himself hit something soft. Pushing himself up, he saw he had landed on the carcasses of the Elder Dragons. They had saved his life. But then, he froze in place. Directly in front of the corpses, a massive blue crystal was pulsing with a dazzling light...
Lancer, on the other hand, had no time to look back. During the explosion, he had shielded Jack in his arms and conjured an ice wall behind him. However, the hasty wall didn't fully stop the blast; the shockwave slammed him violently into the depths below.
Unlike Heng, he had no cushion. When his feet hit the ground, he slammed into the floor, creating two small craters. He could feel his ankles were damaged, but he had no time to care.
During the fall, his focus was entirely on the landing. Only after landing did he realize what he had run into.
Lying quietly amidst the crystal forest, a blue dragon snorted in annoyance at being disturbed by the explosion.
Slowly opening its eyes, it raised its arrogant head and looked down at the tiny beings below.
There was no emotion in its gaze; it was like looking at a pebble on the side of the road.
But as its gaze swept over Lancer, every hair on his body stood on end. An ominous premonition filled his mind.
"The Azure Star?"
With a mutter, Heng stepped off the Teostra's corpse. Whether the name caught its attention or it simply reacted to the sound, the awakened blue dragon finally moved.
A sweeping claw strike whipped past, creating a literal gale. Heng, entirely captivated by the creature's presence, had no time to react. Just as he was about to lose his life, a black-and-white "cannonball" slammed into him.
WHAM~!
Struck hard in the gut, he was sent flying into a nearby crystal wall. He retched upon hitting the ground, but the searing pain was accompanied by the relief of a narrow escape—the spot where he had been standing was now utterly pulverized, the crystalline floor turned to dust.
The blue dragon seemed momentarily stunned by the missed attack, but then it was consumed by rage.
The massive wings on its back snapped open along with its roar. The sonic wave from the terrifying shriek forced everyone to cover their ears. Lancer used his blood aura to temporarily seal his hearing, but the physical force of the sound still made him wince.
The blue dragon, with its wings spread, was undeniably mesmerizing.
Its blue body possessed a degree of transparency; through the skin, one could see orange blood and internal organs. But accompanying that "work of art" beauty was a soul-chilling intent to kill.
Wary of an attack at any second, Lancer pushed his perception to the limit. It was then that he noticed a strange energy flow. Energy was gathering from the ground toward the dragon. The direction was——————
Lancer's eyes widened as he realized the truth. He had thought it was absorbing energy from the crystals, but in fact, the source of that strange energy was the carcasses of Teostra and Lunastra behind him.
At that moment, he finally realized why the energy he sensed from the crystal fragment earlier felt so familiar.
When he killed that Kirin, it had released a similar energy upon death. He hadn't paid much attention then, but now it all connected.
This blue dragon before him, looking like a literal work of art, was absorbing the energy of dead Elder Dragons!