During the next period, Brandon quickly signed contracts with all the humans in the Snake Valley. He was a bit annoyed that the remaining humans had all broken through, which left Brandon with no one to vent his anger on. At the last moment, Cindy also managed to break through, which was quite a relief.

The excavation work proceeded smoothly. In three days and nights, Brandon and a few other giant beasts dug a tunnel over ten kilometers long underground. The tunnel connected to the deep pool in the Snake Valley, hidden by a large boulder. When humans attacked, the beasts could lift the boulder and escape down the stream to the canyon.

Although the work was going well and the excavation speed was fast, Brandon still felt an increasing sense of urgency and unease. Three days had passed, and he knew the humans would arrive soon. Time was running out.

Brandon hadn't slept for three days. His dragon eyes, as bright as searchlights, were bloodshot from the pressure that weighed on him like a massive stone.

The humans, after signing the contracts, had become noticeably more obedient. Despite their small stature, they were quite strong, quick with their hands, ate little, and worked hard. Brandon found their assistance quite useful; they had helped a lot.

In the canyon, beside an oval-shaped enormous space, there was a large stone mortar filled with thick, fresh blood, roughly estimated at four or five tons. The giant ape and the five giant pythons lay exhausted on the ground, unwilling to move. They had bled profusely today; despite their size, giant beasts didn't have much blood. Each had shed a quarter of their blood. Several humans stood on the mortar, each holding a wooden stick, continuously stirring the blood. The thick blood was hard to stir.

Brandon lay on the ground, his huge claw constantly carving on the smooth stone floor. The hard rock under his dragon claws was like tofu, easily sliced into deep lines.

Brandon continued to carve, and soon the smooth ground was filled with intricate patterns made up of straight and curved lines. The patterns interlocked and connected, becoming dizzying if looked at for too long. The humans, while stirring the blood, watched the dragon carve with fervent eyes.

After half a day, a huge magic array, with a diameter of about a hundred meters, was finally completed. The complex lines formed a complete design. Brandon stretched his massive body, feeling sore from lying on the ground. After carefully comparing it to the teleportation array in his mind and finding no mistakes, he stood up, satisfied.

He picked up the sword hilt lying nearby, a relic Brandon had found in an abandoned temple when he was still a small lizard. The hilt was silver-white, seemingly made of some alloy. At its base, a multicolored crystal gleamed brightly. Brandon gazed at it for a moment, feeling a slight pang of reluctance. He sighed and pried the crystal out of the hilt.

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Holding the radiant crystal, he placed it into a groove at the center of the magic array. Then he instructed the humans to pour the blood from the stone mortar into the channels of the array.

The lines of the magic array, etched by Brandon's enormous claws, were about ten centimeters wide, resembling small trenches.

A massive amount of blood slowly flowed through the channels, gradually filling the entire array. As the last line was finally soaked in blood, the magic array emitted a faint energy ripple, and a dazzling light radiated from its center.

The intense light made Brandon blink involuntarily. After a second, the light vanished as if it had never appeared. Now, the entire array emitted wave-like energy ripples, radiating outward in concentric circles. Brandon knew this was the array's frequency, which could be adjusted by repositioning the energy crystal. Only when the frequencies of two arrays matched would the teleportation activate.

Brandon memorized this frequency and taught the usage of the teleportation array to the beasts and the four humans. Since the humans had switched sides, Brandon saw no reason to discriminate against them.

Despite being coerced, their loyalty was unquestionable. Having signed demonic contracts, their very souls belonged to Brandon, leaving no room for mistrust. Moreover, their intelligence surpassed that of the beasts. The five giant pythons, despite their lack of limbs, were treated equally by Brandon, who always maintained fairness.

With the teleportation array completed, Brandon's unease intensified, his intuition warning him of imminent danger. Suppressing his anxiety, he gave thorough instructions to the beasts and humans to retreat into the mountain and await the array's activation if any danger arose.

Ignoring his physical and mental exhaustion, Brandon hastily left Snake Valley, heading towards the coast. He needed to reach the island in the sea to set up another teleportation array.

Brandon dashed through the jungle at high speed, his massive body like a moving hill. Trees fell in his path as he barreled straight ahead. His urgency spurred him to run faster, his body becoming a blur. Time equaled victory—a lesson Brandon now fully grasped.

As Brandon charged through the dense forest, a straight path formed. A previously unmarked jungle now had a clear trail, but Brandon paid no attention to his achievement. Two hours later, he plunged into a wide river, swimming swiftly towards the sea.

"Water! Water!"

"Oh, handsome young man, you’ve finally woken up."

Augustus slowly opened his eyes, squinting slightly from the bright light. He found himself in a hospital, surrounded by white walls. A middle-aged nurse with brown skin seemed delighted to see him awake.

"Oh, handsome young man, you’ve been unconscious for a whole day. It’s wonderful you’ve woken up. I’ll get the doctor."

Before Augustus could respond, the slightly chubby nurse ran out excitedly.

Looking around the room, Augustus saw the sunlight streaming through the clear windows, and he could almost smell the sunshine. A sense of relief spread from his heart—he had finally escaped. He was safe. Thinking back to everything in Dragon Valley felt like a nightmare.

At last, he was free from torment. The dragon would pay for this. A cruel smile crept onto his handsome face.