Chapter 472 (2/2)

He successfully survived the second icy blast. Shao Xuan was exhausted. He would not survive a third blast of the same scale. But what was this beast trying to do?

The glare in its eyes was not murderous, more like a threat.

Was it chasing them away?

A warning?

“Don’t worry. We will leave immediately.” After a pause, Shao Xuan said again, “We won’t return again.”

Shao Xuan wasn’t sure if the beast understood him but when he finished, the beast stopped thumping its tail.

Crackle ---

Faint sounds could be heard around them, some distance from the radius of the beast’s attack. Although a layer of snow had disappeared, there was still a half-meter-thick layer on the ground.

A red crystal pillar broke out of the snow, splitting into several branches like coral.

The salt flowers were blooming.

Not sure because of the weather or layer of snow, salt flowers were blooming, branching more and more. They didn’t look like blooming flowers now, more like salt trees growing on the salt flats.

When the salt flowers burst through the snow, the beast ignored Shao Xuan and crawled towards the salt flowers. It lowered its head to bite on one, pulling it out of the ground, then lifted its head to swallow it whole.

Crinkles that sounded like both breaking glass and ice sounded. Crunch. Crunch. Crackle. The sound of chewed up glass was very clear.

Some of the pieces fell on the ground. After the beast swallowed the salt flowers, it ate up the crumbs on the ground too.

Shao Xuan’s eyes widened.

This beast was a herbivore! More specifically, it ate salt. This salt was poisonous to humans, to the beast, it was a delicious meal.

So that was why this beast was not extremely furious at them taking the salt in the salt caves. To it, the salt mines were not attractive. Shao Xuan had not seen it eating any salt in the mines. However, the deathly salt here was its meal. As for the rest, it probably didn’t care much. It ignored everything else, just like the king stone worm. As long as the beings in its hole did not directly harm it, it would just ignore them all. Just puny beings.

After chewing up the salt flowers, and then all the crumbs, the beast turned to leave. Occasionally, it nudged the thick layer of snow with its snout like it was smelling for food.

Before it left, the beast roared at Shao Xuan once again and thumped its tail several times again. Shao Xuan used the last of his strength to stay alive. He only survived because the beast had roared from far away. If it were any closer, Shao Xuan would have died.

“We leave immediately!!” shouted Shao Xuan.

When the beast left, he moved his stiff muscles. His bones felt rusty, creaking in his joints. Every movement was difficult.

White powder flowed from his fist. He had absorbed all the energy from the fire crystal.

There was no strength in his legs. He wanted to take a step but lost his balance and fell.

“Chief! Where are you all?!” yelled Shao Xuan. “Is anyone there?!”

He did not hear an answer. After some time, as Shao Xuan struggled to pull himself up, he heard a muffled voice.

It was Duo Kang.

Duo Kang scrambled out of the snow, still shaken. He did not shake off the snow on him and looked at Shao Xuan in shock.

“Shao Xuan?” Duo Kang said in disbelief.

“It’s me.” Shao Xuan was still sitting on the cold ground.

“You’re still alive?”

“Yeah, still alive.”

“The king… beast?”

“Gone.”