Chapter 28: Fierce Battle Against the Ice Flood Dragon

Chapter 28: Fierce Battle with the Ice Flood Dragon

Tracing the bone-piercing cold aura to its source, Ling Xuance soon found it—a deep, secluded natural cave.

At the cave's end, a clear, deep cold pool came into view.

The pool was a sheet of ice-blue, mist curling off its surface as wisps of extreme cold surged endlessly from its depths.

Yet this cold, potent enough to kill cultivators outright, was a once-in-a-lifetime boon for Ling Xuance, who possessed the innate ice spiritual root.

At a thought, Lin Yu stepped out of the small world and landed on the cold stone path.

Ling Xuance turned to look at the young man, his tone gentle.

"Ah Yu, I'm going to dive in to investigate. The depths are unknown—wait for me outside the cave, alright?"

With unknown traps and beasts lurking below, he wouldn't let Lin Yu take the risk.

Lin Yu frowned, worry gnawing at him, and raised a hand to summon his natal ancient vine, sending tendrils toward the cold pool.

But the pool's cold far exceeded expectations—the moment the vine touched the water, its green faded and it sank straight to the bottom.

The lethal cold here couldn't sustain his source vine; going down with him would only make him a liability.

After weighing his options, Lin Yu nodded obediently. "Alright, I'll wait for you up here."

Even though the place was remote and rarely visited, Ling Xuance stayed cautious.

He raised a hand to form seals, laying down a maze formation and barrier around the cave entrance.

When he was done, he leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to the young man's brow.

"Ah Yu, wait for me to return."

Lin Yu tilted his head up and nodded slightly. "Mm, I'll wait for you."

With that permission, Ling Xuance slipped lightly into the ice-blue pool, instantly swallowed by the churning cold mist.

After a quarter-hour of diving, Ling Xuance still hadn't reached the bottom, and suspicion crept into his mind.

He closed his eyes, spread his spiritual sense, and probed his surroundings—instantly confirming his suspicion: from the moment he'd entered the pool, he'd been caught in a trap, circling in place without sinking an inch.

Seeing through the illusion, Ling Xuance snapped his eyes open, formed seals in a blur, and the Dark Moon Sword at his waist sang from its sheath, its cold gleam slashing precisely at a hidden, weak trap node on the left!

BOOM—!

A muffled blast echoed as the underwater trap shattered.

The scene shifted abruptly, revealing the pool's true bottom—deathly still and frigid, littered with beast bones of every size.

Wisps of extreme cold surged endlessly from the pool's deepest point.

Ling Xuance stepped toward the pool's core, where a translucent, lustrous ice-blue glow caught his eye.

It was a flawless crystalline orb, cold-ice spiritual power swirling within—clearly a high-tier demon core.

Coiled around the demon core was a massive beast—ice-blue scales, four razor claws, and a long flood-dragon body.

This flood dragon had already broken past the beast's limits—a seventh-rank infant-forming ice flood dragon.

The secret realm had rank suppression, but this cold pool was its own small world, hard for the realm's rules to detect.

It coiled beside the demon core, aura heavy and steady, clearly guarding it to break through to dragonhood.

Ling Xuance frowned, his expression turning grave.

A seventh-rank infant-forming ice flood dragon was no easy opponent, and with the terrain advantage, securing the core safely was far from simple.

Just as he was weighing his options, the Dark Moon Sword at his waist trembled.

Since obtaining the Dark Moon Sword, Ling Xuance had never seen it show any will of its own.

An ancient divine weapon, it craved the purest spiritual essence of heaven and earth.

This demon core was clearly no ordinary treasure!

Mind made up, Ling Xuance didn't act rashly. After a brief pause, he sheathed the Dark Moon Sword and shot upward against the pool's current.

The next instant, he broke the pool's surface, landing back on the frozen cave floor.

"Brother Che, what's down there?" The young man rushed over.

Ling Xuance held nothing back, quietly laying out what was below.

"There's a seventh-rank infant-forming ice flood dragon at the bottom. It's using the pool's terrain to dodge the secret realm's suppression, its cultivation is deep, and it's guarding a demon core—a real pain to deal with."

Lin Yu's heart clenched at that.

Seeing the unease in the young man's eyes, Ling Xuance spoke softly to calm him.

"Don't be afraid. This flood dragon depends on the pool—once it leaves the water, the secret realm's rules will bind it. It won't come out lightly."

"I'll plan carefully. If things go south, I'll pull back and return—I won't push my luck."

Despite the words, Lin Yu's worry didn't ease one bit, still twisting painfully in his chest.

He thought quietly for a moment, then frowned. "Brother Che! The vines can't work in the pool—why not lure the ice flood dragon onto the shore?"

"Once it leaves the pool, it'll be suppressed. Then we can fight it together—a hundred times safer than you going in alone!"

Ling Xuance didn't hesitate for a second, refusing in a low, firm voice.

"No."

He could gamble, but he would never let Lin Yu come anywhere near danger.

At that, Lin Yu's frown deepened, his tone tinged with dejection.

"Then I won't accept it either. Brother Che, if something happens to you down there and I don't know a thing... What am I supposed to do?"

Ling Xuance's heart ached. He raised a hand, wanting to smooth the worry from his brow, coaxing and reassuring.

"Ah Yu, it won't happen. You're still here—I wouldn't dare let anything happen to myself."

Lin Yu turned his face away, dodging his touch, lips pressed thin, refusing to answer.

Ling Xuance stared at his rigid profile, at a loss for how to keep persuading him.

After a long silence, Lin Yu finally softened his voice and spoke.

"Brother Che, on the shore you can suppress the Iceflood Dragon, and I can be of some help to you. What lies beneath the cold pool is unknown—if something truly happens to you, then I would..."

Before he could finish, Ling Xuance abruptly reached out and covered his mouth, cutting off his ominous words.

"A Yu, I will keep myself safe. If the day ever comes... even if I'm gone, you have to live well."

Lin Yu pulled his hand away, stubbornly insisting.

"Then don't get hurt or do anything reckless."

After a moment of silence, Ling Xuance finally gave in.

"I promise you, I'll lure it ashore."

The Iceflood Dragon had lurked in the depths of the cold pool for a millennium, guarding its Demon Core as it waited to transform into a dragon. Any ordinary disturbance would just make it hunker down deeper in defense.

After a brief discussion, the two got to work.

Ling Xuance moved to the edge of the cold pool, using his innate ice spiritual root as a guide, quickly tracing seals across the water's surface.

Layer after layer of formation patterns sealed off the freezing aura at the pool's bottom, cutting off the flow of spiritual energy between the pool and the outside world.

Guided by Ling Xuance's will, the Dark Moon Sword plunged into the depths, heading straight for the Demon Core.

The Iceflood Dragon's massive form, combined with the sealed aura, meant that if it stayed put at the bottom, it could only watch as the sword energy slowly chipped away at the Demon Core. The only way to protect the Core was to come ashore and chase off the intruder.

Weighing its options, the wary, cautious dragon would inevitably leave the pool to give chase.

Once the dragon left the cold pool's home-field advantage, it would instantly suffer the secret realm's backlash, boosting their odds of winning.

With the plan set, sensing the dragon's seething rage, Ling Xuance warned, "A Yu, stay inside the barrier, don't come out!"

In an instant, the once-calm pool water erupted violently!

Boom—!

A colossal Iceflood Dragon with gleaming, icy scales burst out of the pool, its massive body radiating overwhelming, freezing killing intent. Its claws struck without a moment's hesitation, slashing down with deadly force!

Ling Xuance twisted in midair, dodging the deadly strike, then lightly kicked off the slick rock wall. Sword raised against the cold, he clashed with the Iceflood Dragon in fierce combat.

Even with its cultivation suppressed, the dragon's peak sixth-level combat strength was still ferocious, forcing Ling Xuance to fall back on the defensive.

Within the barrier, Lin Yu silently channeled his spiritual energy. Hidden vines under the cavern floor spread silently, creeping up behind the dragon unnoticed.

The next moment, he shouted, "Entangle!"

Several vines shot out suddenly, wrapping around the dragon's tail, tightening until the dragon's scales cracked.

"ROAR—!!"

Searing pain tore through its body. Enraged and wounded, the dragon threw its head back and let out a thunderous roar that shook the cavern.

The force behind its claws suddenly doubled, slamming hard into Ling Xuance's chest.

With no room to dodge, Ling Xuance took the brutal hit head-on and slammed heavily to the ground.

The dragon's crimson, slit-like pupils locked onto Lin Yu behind the barrier. Its massive body lunged forward, slamming hard into the translucent, tough barrier!

Crack—!!

A sharp, piercing crack—the once-solid barrier's surface was now covered in crisscrossing cracks, about to shatter completely.

"A Yu!"

Ling Xuance's face changed drastically. He slashed fiercely at the dragon's back again.

Seeing the dragon and Ling Xuance locked in battle, Lin Yu's fingers flickered with spiritual energy as he kept manipulating the vines to harass the dragon.

With the vines binding it, the dragon's movements were hampered, and its attacks kept getting interrupted. This only enraged it further. Ignoring Ling Xuance behind it, it charged straight at the barrier in front of it.

Boom!!

Another brutal impact—the barrier couldn't hold any longer and shattered instantly!

Lin Yu reacted fast, rolling aside with practiced agility, barely dodging the dragon's next strike.

The next moment, a figure in pristine white stood firmly in front of him.

Ling Xuance stood tall, robes stained with blood, shielding the young man protectively behind him.

His fingers moved quickly, forming hand seals. Complex formation patterns spread out in an instant, and an illusory maze formed, enveloping the enraged dragon.

Suddenly caught in the illusion, the dragon's massive body froze for a moment. Half a breath later, with a furious roar, the formation shattered to pieces.

The moment it broke free, the dragon's claws came down with overwhelming force!

Ling Xuance raised his sword to block—a deafening clash of metal rang out, and the Dark Moon Sword was knocked from his hand, flying through the air to embed itself in the rock wall.

In that critical instant, Lin Yu channeled his spiritual energy into the vines. Scattered vines converged, transforming into streaks of cyan light that precisely wrapped around both their waists, pulling them out of harm's way to land safely several dozen feet behind the dragon.

Its strike missed, the dragon turned its head, its crimson, vicious eyes locked onto the pair. Refusing to yield, it lunged again, and the battle resumed.

Ling Xuance raised his hand, forming a seal. Fierce cold energy burst from his palm, and several sharp ice spikes shot through the air, striking precisely at the dragon's vital points.

Lin Yu wove the vines into layers, forming a thick protective barrier to withstand the onslaught.

The enraged dragon, having lost all patience, swelled in size and charged forward once more. Ling Xuance pulled Lin Yu aside, narrowly evading the frontal assault.

But the next second, a thick, powerful tail swept through the air with a whistling sound!

Without a second thought, Ling Xuance shielded Lin Yu tightly in his arms.

"Brother Che!" Lin Yu's heart raced with panic as he steadied the swaying Ling Xuance.

He formed a secret seal, instantly activating the Taiyi Sect's protective art—the Azure Lotus Bloom Technique!

A massive, translucent lotus phantom rose into the air, its petals forming the sturdiest shield, firmly protecting the two within its heart.

Boom!!

The dragon's claws slammed against the Lian Hua shield, the immense force causing the lotus patterns to tremble violently, yet it could not breach even a fraction.

In that fleeting opening, the Dark Moon Sword in the distance blazed with spiritual light, unsheathing itself and streaking through the air to strike fiercely at the dragon.

Lin Yu quickly looked down, asking anxiously, "Brother Che, are you alright?"

"I'm fine."