As Qin Shilei and the others were about to reach the mountaintop, the pack of thunder beasts reappeared at the foot of the mountain.
"Hurry, they're catching up," Xia Yunyan urged her subordinates to keep pace.
One man, weary, said, "Leader, we can barely run anymore."
Another voiced his concern, "If there's no way back from the summit, will we be trapped here to die?"
Upon hearing this, everyone's expressions turned grim.
If there was no way back from the summit, they would be killed by the pursuing thunder beasts before they could starve to death.
Hope lay at the summit, and perhaps treasures as well.
With renewed effort, they rushed to the mountaintop.
However, the scene that greeted them made their pupils contract, and they inwardly knew they were in trouble.
"Roar!"
A colossal thunder beast, upon spotting their arrival, lifted its head from a bloody corpse, baring its teeth and letting out a roar.
This thunder beast was as massive as an elephant, its forelegs planted on Hua Feng's corpse, crimson blood dripping from its maw onto the ground.
This had to be a Thunder Beast King.
"Let's work together to kill this beast first," Qin Shilei declared, charging forward.
An Qian and the others followed, swords drawn.
The thunder beast slowly chewed the flesh in its mouth before suddenly lunging.
Its movement was as swift as lightning, like a speeding tank crashing towards Qin Shilei.
With An Qian close behind him, Qin Shilei had no choice but to raise his sword to meet the charging thunder beast.
A tremendous force transmitted through the Blood Soul, pushing his body back involuntarily. His feet gouged two deep furrows in the ground as he retreated until he stopped before An Qian.
In contrast, the thunder beast hadn't moved an inch, save for a shallow gash on its head. Qin Shilei was no match for it in a battle of strength.
Perhaps the injury to its head incited the thunder beast's ferocity. It shook its dazed head and charged again.
"Hit and run!" Qin Shilei exclaimed, pushing off the ground and evading its second charge to the left.
An Qian and the others also dodged the thunder beast's path, weaving and darting to find opportunities to attack.
"Thousand Vine Technique!"
Zhang Xiaoli pointed her finger, and thick vines snaked towards the charging thunder beast.
However, as soon as the vines wrapped around it, the thunder beast tore them apart with brute force.
This thunder beast not only possessed the immense size and strength of an elephant but also the agility of a leopard.
Without any wasted motion, its simple headlong charges forced everyone to retreat, preventing them from leveraging their advantage in a coordinated attack.
"Ah!"
Two screams rang out in succession. Two weaker individuals, unable to dodge in time, were sent flying by the thunder beast, spitting out a large mouthful of bloody froth and internal organs before they could no longer move.
"We can't let it keep charging like this, or we'll all die here," Lu Tiangang shouted.
"My vines can't control it at all. Do you have any other ideas?" Zhang Xiaoli had already used the Thousand Vine Technique twice with no effect.
"Ah!" "Ah!"
Two more people were flung off the mountaintop platform, likely beyond saving.
At this point, only two individuals below the Black Iron realm remained. Facing such a terrifying thunder beast, they were already petrified. They turned and fled towards the other side of the summit, attempting to escape.
However, the thunder beast seemed to know how to pick on the weak, fixating on them and charging again.
"Ice Seal Sphere!"
Xia Yunyan produced a scroll, tore it open, and threw it at the thunder beast.
The thunder beast, which hadn't been defending, was struck by the Ice Seal Sphere, and its movements suddenly slowed.
A bolt of lightning gathered on its single horn, and the chill emanating from its body began to recede rapidly.
"Mud Puddle!"
Lu Tiangang also tore open a scroll and threw it at the thunder beast's feet. Instantly, a three-meter radius around the beast's feet became soft and marshy.
The heavy thunder beast sank into it.
"Ice Seal Sphere!"
Xie Xingjian also threw a scroll.
"Thousand Vine Technique!"
Zhang Xiaoli's vines finally managed to ensnare the now-slowed thunder beast.
"White Rainbow Piercing the Sun!"
Seizing this rare opportunity, An Qian and the others unleashed their combat skills.
Immediately, combat techniques of various colors bloomed on the thunder beast.
Wounds, large and small, appeared on its body, and crimson blood sprayed out.
"Roar!"
Despite its apparent injuries, the thunder beast's roars did not convey much weakness. Instead, it seemed even more enraged. The chill from its body was being driven back, and the mud puddle beneath its feet was slowly hardening. Once it broke free, it would unleash a terrifying strike.
Qin Shilei, who had intended to save "Superman Punch" as a trump card, chose to activate his attribute upon seeing the situation. He then executed the final strike of "Seven Stars Falling to the Long Sky."
As Qin Shilei's fierce sword strike descended, the thunder beast seemed to sense the presence of death. It struggled with increasing intensity. First, it broke the vines on its body one by one. Its forelimbs were pulled out of the mud puddle, and it slammed them towards Qin Shilei. Simultaneously, the dense lightning energy brewing on its horn rapidly struck towards the Blood Soul in Qin Shilei's hand.
With a flash of electricity, the powerful lightning entered Qin Shilei's body through the Blood Soul. Even though he was immune to most attacks, Qin Shilei was momentarily numbed by the shock. However, the Blood Soul in his hand relentlessly cleaved down.
*Bang!*
The thunder beast's sturdy foreleg was slowed by the Oak Shield on Qin Shilei's chest, then further blocked by the shield formed by his Golden Silk Soft Armor. By the time the strike hit Qin Shilei, it had been greatly weakened. Before it could knock Qin Shilei away, the sharp Blood Soul sliced into its neck.
The Blood Soul cut through as if nothing were there.
*Pfft!*
A stream of crimson blood sprayed onto Qin Shilei, drenching more than half of his body.
*Crash!*
The thunder beast's headless corpse crashed to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
An Qian quickly stepped forward, asking with concern, "Qin Shilei, are you alright?"
Zhang Xiaoli followed up by casting two Revival spells on Qin Shilei.
Qin Shilei shook his head, "I'm fine. Let's find a way out quickly."
He surveyed the surroundings. The mountaintop was bare, with no vegetation. The only notable feature was a crystal-clear skeleton at the northernmost edge. A human skeleton.
Xia Yunyan's last remaining subordinate was reaching out to touch the rusted armor surrounding the skeleton.
"Ah!"
With a flash of white light, the man was sent flying backward as if struck by a heavy blow, landing seven or eight meters away and spitting blood. He was clearly severely injured.
"Let me see."
To avoid Qin Shilei and the others misunderstanding his intentions as treasure-grabbing, Xie Xingjian spoke first before extending his spear, intending to dislodge the armor.
The white light flashed again, and Xie Xingjian, spear and all, was repelled five or six meters, his aura weakening.
"This must be a lightning-attribute attack. Qin Shilei, it's up to you," Xia Yunyan said to Qin Shilei after feeding her subordinate a healing potion.
"Then I'll try." Qin Shilei walked towards the skeleton and poked it with the Blood Soul.
Lightning flashed again. Qin Shilei felt a tingling sensation flow through his body, but it was within his tolerance. He then put away the Blood Soul, bent down, and unfastened the armor. Beside the lumbar vertebrae in the skeleton's abdomen lay a silver bead, about the size of an egg.
"Quick, those thunder beasts are coming up!" Lu Tiangang shouted anxiously.