The two looked at each other and spoke simultaneously.
Lian Li: “Let’s just take it on!”
Yun Huizhou: “I’ll take the lead; you harass it from the side. Keep the lotus for protection.”
The two didn’t even consider the first option. The water was the monster’s domain to begin with, and no matter how good their swimming skills were, they would be restricted in the water and unable to exert their full strength.
Going into the water would be no different from jumping straight into the monster’s mouth.
Not to mention, if they tried to outswim the monster, it was a toss-up whether they would make it out before the creature caught up.
The smaller one might not have come ashore or entered the lake’s tunnel, but the larger one was a different story.
Given its size, it was likely capable of crawling out for a stroll.
Furthermore, even if they did manage to swim out, it was now dark, and the horse bandits would likely be returning to the lakeside.
If they emerged then, wouldn’t they be jumping straight into a nest of horse bandits?
God only knows how many horse bandits were waiting outside right now. The bandits who entered the desert were all major players; their leaders were not weak, and combined with so many other minor chieftains and cannon-fodder lackeys, it would be quite a hassle.
Most importantly, they had been at the lakeside for several hours. If two people suddenly jumped out from the lake bottom, anyone with half a brain would realize something was happening beneath the surface.
Humans aren’t fish; they can’t stay underwater for that long. People would definitely be sent down to investigate.
Of course, Transcendent masters could stay down longer, but neither of them was a Transcendent master.
The two made the same decision in an instant, each finding a position and waiting for the great monster to appear.
At the same time, they heard the sound of splashing water from the previously calm subterranean lake behind them.
Lian Li turned his head slightly to look. The smaller one had surfaced again. He could see the dark shadow of the small monster lingering beneath the surface, its tail occasionally lashing out with force, whipping out of the water and slamming back down hard.
The splashing sounds he heard were produced exactly like this.
The sound of the small monster’s thrashing was like it was taunting the two of them.
You wounded me before, so now that I’ve brought my elder, you’re in for it.
How very villainous, Lian Li thought briefly before pulling his thoughts back and staring intently at the tunnel entrance.
The small one in the water was nothing to fear. Although he wasn’t sure if it could come ashore, he was certain that if it did, he could handle it.
The only thing they needed to worry about was the large one.
Just how powerful was it?
As the crawling sounds drew closer, Lian Li also heard a sound similar to hissing.
Before long, a dark shadow appeared at the tunnel entrance.
Since they had already determined it was a legless crawling creature, it didn’t look very tall.
However, when he realized that the thing’s head was nearly pressed to the ground yet was still as high as their thighs, Lian Li knew this creature was definitely not thin or short.
Especially when the creature’s head fully emerged from the tunnel—though the light was too dim for him to see the patterns, colors, or fine details clearly—Lian Li still sucked in a breath of cold air.
He could hardly believe what he was seeing.
He had always thought they were going to deal with a massive snake that had grown incredibly powerful from eating many Youxia Fruits.
As it turned out, while the head that emerged had the shape of a snake’s head, it wasn’t entirely snake-like. Above its two glowing eyes, the top of its head wasn’t smooth like a python’s; instead, it looked somewhat like a horned lizard.
To call it a snake, its head was more like a horned lizard’s; to call it a giant horned lizard, it had no legs and crawled on its belly like a snake.
The teeth in its mouth were hook-shaped, not the fine, dense teeth of a python, and its tongue didn’t seem capable of extending very far like a lizard’s or a snake’s.
If Lian Li had to describe it, the overall body was like a snake, the head had horns like a horned lizard, and the internal structure of the mouth was like a Tyrannosaurus Rex.
Hard scales covered its head, making it look invulnerable to blades and spears.
Only then did Lian Li suddenly remember that the scales they had found in the cave earlier weren’t the keratinous scales of a snake, but the bony scales found on fish.
Except, these were much harder than fish scales.
Combining all these elements, one could certainly call it a “Four-Unlike” chimera.
Sure enough, the novel law that “exotic beasts always guard great treasures” was true.
It was just that this exotic beast was a bit too exotic.
These thoughts seemed numerous, but they flashed through Lian Li’s mind in an instant, not affecting his vigilance toward this “Four-Unlike” creature in the slightest.
Yun Huizhou was the one holding the Youxia Fruit, so as soon as the monster’s head poked out, it looked straight at him, not giving Lian Li so much as a glance.
In its eyes, Lian Li was not a threat.
Lian Li carefully shifted his position to hide himself better, looking for an opportunity to strike while also keeping an eye on the small monster in the water.
Unexpectedly, the large monster didn’t immediately attack Yun Huizhou. Instead, it stared at him, its massive head bobbing up and down as it hissed.
Perhaps it sensed that Yun Huizhou would be difficult to deal with on land, so it was trying to intimidate him into returning the Youxia Fruit?
Because the large monster didn’t move immediately, even the small monster in the water became much quieter.
However, the standoff did not last long.
Yun Huizhou had no intention of giving the Youxia Fruit to the monster, and the monster was unwilling to give up.
The monster’s tail, still hidden in the tunnel, lashed against the stone walls with a loud thwack, clearly indicating its patience was running thin.
After a massive slapping sound, the large monster shot out. Its massive frame moved with unexpected speed as it charged toward Yun Huizhou, opening its hideous maw.
Simultaneously, the small monster in the water lunged out onto the shore, flanking Yun Huizhou from behind in a pincer attack with the large monster.
Lian Li had been waiting for this moment. He sprang from his hiding place, meeting the small monster without hesitation.
Upon discovering someone was blocking it, the small monster immediately retracted half of its body into the water, its head reared high above the surface as it hissed at Lian Li.
Lian Li finally got a clear look at what this small monster looked like.
It looked similar to the large monster, except it had fewer horns on its head.
Lian Li held the blood-red transparent lotus in his hand. The small monster didn’t dare approach and kept trying to move away from him to circle around toward Yun Huizhou.
Seeing this, Lian Li tucked the transparent lotus into his robe and stepped back slightly, luring the small monster further onto the shore.
Knowing that Lian Li had engaged the small monster, Yun Huizhou took a quick glance over. Once he was certain Lian Li could handle it, he focused entirely on dealing with the large monster.
The large monster’s entire body had now emerged from the tunnel. If the small monster’s size was roughly comparable to a green anaconda over ten meters long, then the large monster was nearly fifty percent larger than the small one.
