The monster greeted Dante with a roar that rattled the cave rocks. On the ground, lion bodies were numerous to the point of being almost piled up. Dante had strengthened his body against the white fire to the maximum.
The cultivator moved quickly. There was no time to lose, after all, a quick fight was in his favor. Dante's problem was actually his Qi reserves. Although large for a Silver cultivator, in a long fight he needed to choose between attack and defense.
The beast accepted the invitation. Paws the size of pigs propelled the beast through the air towards Dante.
The beast opened its mouth in mid-air, white fire spurting toward Dante. He used his Qi to dodge it while still in the air, focused only on approaching the monster as quickly as possible. And using as little Qi as possible.
He screamed when a ball of white fire hit him. The beast's fire differed from the other lions. The flames bathed Dante's body, enveloping him in an embrace of pain and suffering.
To mitigate the damage of the attack, Dante emitted an aura of Qi throughout his body. A courtesy of the thunder alpha, who had done the same when fighting the cultivator. The defense was enough to keep him focused on the battle.
When the lion ceased its flame attack, the beast's long eyes searched for the Silver cultivator who dared to challenge it.
That moment was enough for the cultivator.
Like a comet, Dante hurled himself at the lion's body, which fell to the side by the impact.
Now it was time for the truth. Dante grabbed the lion's mane with all his strength, sticking to the beast's back.
The lion roared, trying to pull the parasite off its back with jerky movements that would have mowed down an ordinary cultivator.
But Dante was no ordinary cultivator. Not anymore. After these months of training, he could call himself a Slayer, even though he did not possess the title. Not yet.
Now was the decisive hour. Dante had planned his new technique by observing the alpha of the wind.
In the fight against the winged being, the monster had cornered Dante with an attack that comprised accumulating an immense amount of Qi in his entire body. At the time, Dante only survived because he had already fought other monsters with air Qi, which guaranteed him resistance.
He accessed his Core and visualized his Qi. Life energy flowed through his channels, brighter than ever. Like a king commanding his army, Dante ordered the energy to accumulate to the maximum in his meridians.
As the channels filled with Qi, Dante roared. The excruciating pain coming from within his own body was unrelenting.
When he was reaching his limit, Dante called Ikarus with a mental command.
He felt-albeit briefly the gentle touch of the monster. His Qi became softer, and Dante was able to accumulate even more energy.
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When he could no longer think, such was the pain, Dante let the energy run its natural course.
If before Dante's body made the air around the cultivator boil, now it was as if a giant fire bomb had gone off.
Sunfire poured out of the cultivator, who now concentrated on continuing to cling to the beast.
The lion's body was shaking, totally overwhelmed by the extreme heat. Dante smiled as he felt, for the first time, the beast's obsidian skin yield to his attacks.
Now it was time for the final blow. Blocking the flow of Qi as an aura, Dante redirected all the energy into his hands. He felt his claws forming, the largest he had ever conjured.
His hands licked the lion like tongues, leaving voids of flesh where they passed.
Dante pressed down, squeezing even harder. He tried to aim where he believed the monster's core was, so as not to leave any chance to chance.
By now, Dante could feel the white flames of the lion lashing his body. He concentrated as hard as he could to prevent his regenerative abilities from activating. He needed all the strength available.
When the lion's body glowed white, Dante smiled. The beast was trying to do the same as him. Learning from him.
But in a battle of wills, he would never lose to that beastly being.
Dante's body-or what was left of it-released into the monster's guts the last of the cultivator's Qi. Like a poison, Dante felt the flames consume the beast's insides, until the monster finally stopped struggling.
He had won. Finally, Dante had fulfilled his part of the bargain with Zay.
He detached himself from the beast's body, looking up at the ceiling. All its evolution, all its pain. It had all been worth it.
Finally, Dante would no longer need to be helped. Now he could help, as a real cultivator, and not as a coward.
He focused his Qi, commanding the energy to finally follow his will. He could barely feel parts of his body, such was the damage caused by the white flames.
Had he not been so prepared, death would have been a certain fate.
But Dante was who he was. He had learned never to underestimate a monster, after the fateful encounter that resulted in his rescue by Sabrina.
After cultivating for hours until his body was whole again, Dante felt his eyelids grow heavy.
At least for the moment, he needed to rest.
His heart, completely possessed by absolute exhaustion, did not delay accepting the invitation made by his mind.
Lying in that lion's graveyard, the last thing he noticed was the sound of footsteps coming towards him. Soon after, everything went black. At least it wasn't the black of the bottom of a lion's stomach.
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Xun Draco looked with disdain at the other members of his clan gathered there.
There was not a shred of dignity in all those miserable people. They were all like dogs, eager for their next meal, beyond all reason. Of course, this could only be a symptom of the breeding justified by the Draco as essential to the evolution of the clan.
Xun knew better. The advancement of the clan meant the evolution of the elders, and only that. If only the other two thought so.
"Everyone must be ready on the appointed date. Take your weapons as soon as you wake up. It shouldn't be long before the outside force starts the fighting," said Xing, with the gazes of the crowd affixed to him.
For Xing, there was no hope. That boy was like a caged beast, thirsty to break out of its cage and wreak destruction.
If only they knew. Cannon ammunition, pure and simple. Of course, he enjoyed being treated like a promising young master. Even so, that wasn't right. More than wrong, it was dangerous.
He knew that a school as reputable as Aquamarine would not go down easy. Even with an almost sudden attack, giving the instructors no time to prepare, the end would still surely be uncertain.
The way to his room was short. Upon entering, he closed the door and sat down on the bed. Looking to the side, he saw the naked back of the girl on his bed.
Dan, den, Din...he couldn't even remember which one it was this time. Torn between enjoying the benefits of his position or worrying about the others, he felt his muscles stiffen with tension.
Whatever fate was in store for him, he hoped it would be favorable. His priority was to survive, even if his clan didn't follow him.