novelraw Chapter 258 - 252: Your Excellency, Giant Turtle, Let’s Take Revenge Together
Chapter 258 - 252: Your Excellency, Giant Turtle, Let’s Take Revenge Together
The betrayal was swift and absolute.
Poison Fang’s hopes of escape were utterly extinguished by his ally’s desertion.
High in the sky, Raylo’s cold gaze swept over the fleeing Blood River before falling upon the trapped Poison Fang.
He naturally wanted to eliminate both Tier Five powerhouses, but the situation wouldn’t permit it.
Blood River was intent on escaping, and in his giant serpent form, he was incredibly fast in the marshlands. While Sun could catch up, killing him quickly was next to impossible.
The optimal choice now was to concentrate their power and eliminate the one right in front of them first.
"Sun."
Raylo commanded Sun.
"Come back. Work with the Eternal Giant Turtle and finish off that lizard."
Sun, who was in hot pursuit, let out a reluctant roar, but it still carried out Raylo’s command without hesitation.
The massive golden figure carved a graceful arc through the sky, changing direction to dive toward Poison Fang’s position.
Poison Fang, just recovering from the shock of his abandonment, was instantly locked in place by two terrifying, suffocating pressures from two different directions.
On one side was the Eternal Giant Turtle, which had devoured thousands of his subordinates and now advanced with heavy steps that made the very ground tremble.
On the other, the Golden Dragon, descending from the heavens with its immense Dragon’s Might, the Flame of Destruction burning in its golden eyes.
As a Lizardfolk powerhouse, Poison Fang was not one of the Nine-headed Demon Serpent’s direct subordinates. In this life-or-death crisis, Blood River had unhesitatingly sacrificed him as a pawn to delay the pursuers.
Despair instantly morphed into the desperate frenzy of a cornered beast.
"ROAR!"
Poison Fang let out a beastly roar. The dark green scales all over his body bristled, his muscles bulged, and he met the charging Eternal Giant Turtle head-on, launching the final assault of his life.
However, it was futile.
The mountain-like shadow on the Eternal Giant Turtle’s back flashed again. Then, with stark simplicity, it stomped.
The colossal foot, like a pillar of heaven, descended with the unstoppable power of a mountain, crashing down with a deafening roar.
Poison Fang exhausted all his strength trying to resist.
"CLANG!"
With a tremendous crack, the Magic Staff shattered to pieces the instant it collided with the turtle’s foot.
The bones in Poison Fang’s arms instantly turned to dust. His body was swatted away like a pebble, smashing violently into the swamp below.
Before he could struggle to get up, the breath of the Golden Dragon, Sun, was already upon him.
The golden Dragon Flame showed no mercy, striking with pinpoint accuracy at the spot where he had fallen.
"BOOM!"
The marsh was instantly vaporized, the ground scorched into a field of blackened, vitrified glass.
In the center of that Scorched Earth, Poison Fang’s corpse was a mangled, charred ruin, devoid of any signs of life.
A Tier Five powerhouse of the swamp had been crushed to death in the mud under the combined assault of the Golden Dragon and the Eternal Giant Turtle.
With the fall of Poison Fang, the curtain finally fell on this brutal swamp battle.
The stench of blood and the aura of Magic Elements hanging over the battlefield slowly began to dissipate.
"Griffin Knights, Pegasus Knights, pursue the fleeing enemy! Press the advantage!"
Raylo commanded.
"All other units, rest where you are! Tend to the wounded and clear the battlefield!"
At his command, the Griffin Knights and Pegasus Knights high above formed a silver cloud. They followed the path of Blood River’s retreat, giving chase to press their advantage as much as possible.
The remaining soldiers began the post-battle cleanup, recovering the bodies of their fallen comrades and collecting weapons and equipment scattered across the swamp.
Raylo paid this no mind. He patted Baofeng’s neck and steered the Griffin King into a slow flight toward the behemoth that stood like a mountain in the center of the battlefield.
The Eternal Giant Turtle.
The Golden Dragon, Sun, also retracted its Dragon’s Might. Its massive body circled down, landing not far from the giant turtle to act as a temporary bridge for communication.
As Raylo drew near, the Eternal Giant Turtle’s mountain of a head slowly lowered, its enormous eyes reflecting the images of Raylo and Sun.
It let out a low rumble, the sound so deep it made the very air vibrate.
"What is it saying?"
Raylo looked to Sun beside him.
Sun proudly raised its golden head. After communicating with the giant turtle for a moment using Spiritual Power, it cleared its throat and began to translate in a solemn, booming voice.
"Human Lord, the great and ancient existence, His Excellency the Eternal Giant Turtle, extends to you his most sincere gratitude. Your arrival is as the dawn that breaks the long night, dispelling the gloom that has long plagued this land."
The corner of Raylo’s mouth twitched as he listened to Sun’s flowery prose.
He seriously doubted the Eternal Giant Turtle’s original words had been quite so eloquent.
"Please convey to him that his bravery is just as admirable."
Raylo responded.
"We share a common enemy. It is the duty of every living creature to stand against the evil of the Jade Swamp."
Sun immediately translated his words—adding, of course, plenty of its own embellishments, such as "the wise and martial Black Stone Lord" and "the glory of the Knights."
Raylo’s voice was calm and sincere.
The Eternal Giant Turtle let out another low rumble.
Sun tilted its enormous dragon head and continued to translate.
"It says it owes you a favor. If you need help with anything in the future, just ask."
"That’s exactly what I had in mind."
Raylo didn’t beat around the bush, cutting straight to the point.
"Blood River has escaped, and the threat of the Nine-headed Demon Serpent remains. Neither my Black Stone Territory nor your power alone is enough to stand against it. I hope we can form a formal alliance to fight the evils of the Jade Swamp together."
At these words, the Eternal Giant Turtle fell silent.
Its gaze seemed to pierce through time and space, once again seeing the distant past.
The Jade Swamp had once been its home, but now it was occupied by the Nine-headed Demon Serpent and its brood.
A hundred years of hiding and enduring had nearly eroded all of its will to fight.
If not for being pushed into a desperate corner today, it might have remained slumbering at the bottom of the Black Water River until the end of its days.
Its eyes, as deep as lakes, gazed at Raylo. After a long moment, it let out another long, low rumble.
"It’s thinking it over."
Sun said in a low voice.
"It’s been hunted by the Nine-headed Demon Serpent for over a hundred years, just barely surviving by hiding in the Black Water River. It hasn’t trusted anyone in a very long time."
Raylo waited quietly, not pressing the issue.
He knew that an old monster that had lived for untold ages would be extremely cautious with every decision it made.
Finally, the giant turtle’s head slowly nodded.
"It agrees."
There was a trace of excitement in Sun’s voice.
"It says your army has proven your strength. It’s willing to join you to get revenge on that overgrown worm!"
A great weight lifted from Raylo’s heart, but he wasn’t satisfied yet.
A Tier Five ally was powerful, to be sure, but it would be a different matter entirely if that power could be maximized.
He followed up with his second proposal.
"Fighting alone, we cannot hope to stand against the Nine-headed Demon Serpent’s endless legions. We must raise an army of our own."
"I suggest you immediately begin unifying the entire Black Water River region. Subjugate the Aquatic Magical Beasts and organize them into a great army. With the Black Water River as your foundation, you can form a Magical Beast Legion capable of confronting the Snake-man Legion head-on."
These words struck the Eternal Giant Turtle’s heart like a clap of thunder.
’Unify the Black Water River?’
’Form a Magical Beast Legion?’
It had hidden for too long, thinking only of how to survive, how to defend its last remaining sanctuary.
It had never imagined that it could go on the offensive, that it could reclaim what was rightfully its own.
Raylo’s words had opened up a whole new world of possibilities.
’Yes, why not?’
’I am the true master of the Jade Swamp!’
’Why should I have to eke out a miserable existence at the bottom of the river like a thief?’
A century of humiliation and hatred for the Nine-headed Demon Serpent now transformed into a roaring blaze of battle intent.
"ROAR!"
The Eternal Giant Turtle abruptly threw back its head and let out a furious roar that shook the very heavens.
This roar was no longer a low rumble but was filled with boundless might and a thirst for vengeance.
The entire swamp trembled with this roar. In the distance, the Black Water River surged with monstrous waves, as if responding to its master’s proclamation.
"It says it has lain dormant for far too long."
Sun’s voice was also brimming with excitement.
"It’s time for those overgrown worms to pay for what they’ve done in blood!"
Sun relayed excitedly.
"It’s going back to the Black Water River to raise a great army of Magical Beasts! It wants the Nine-headed Demon Serpent to know that the Eternal Giant Turtle has returned!"
Seeing his new ally’s morale soaring, Raylo nodded in satisfaction.
The goals of his trip had already been exceeded.
Finally, he made a personal request.
"Master, I have heard that the marks left by the Magic Dominator a century ago are carved upon your back. I am a Knight who pursues the truths of Magic. Might I be so fortunate as to have a look?"
He spoke with great courtesy, as this could involve the legacy of a Tier Six powerhouse—an extremely private inheritance.
Unexpectedly, the Eternal Giant Turtle let out what sounded like a relaxed, unconcerned gurgle.
"It says to go ahead and look."
Sun’s tone was a bit odd.
"It says that fellow scribbled all over its back and left a few useless little trinkets. If you like them, you can even take a rubbing. They’re on the shell plates just above its right hind leg. Go find them yourself."
’Useless little trinkets?’
Raylo’s heart stirred.
The handiwork of a Tier Six Magic Dominator was merely "little trinkets" in the words of this ancient Giant Beast.
Suppressing his excitement, he solemnly thanked the giant turtle.
"Sun, you stay here and discuss with the Master how we’ll stay in contact."