Chapter 617 - 388: The Few Clues

Chapter 617: Chapter 388: The Few Clues

"Given the look of the sky, it’s going to pour soon. Since this incident is settled for now, let’s head back to the Bureau."

A middle-aged man in black-framed glasses, a Peak Tier Two Cultivator who had accompanied Wang Jing as reinforcements, spoke up.

Everyone nodded in agreement. The Investigators then reported the situation to their superiors before leaving the ravaged battlefield and returning to the Superpower Administration Bureau.

The helicopter hovering overhead descended. Wang Jing and her group re-boarded and flew back to the Superpower Administration Bureau.

Meanwhile, Liu Jialin and her team headed back to where they had parked their car.

"Captain, that mysterious Peak Tier Two Cultivator is incredible! He fought such an intense battle against a Peak Tier Two Mutant Beast all by himself and didn’t even lose ground," said the rookie Investigator, Xiaowang.

"It wasn’t just about not losing ground. Right before we were forced out of the bushes, the Peak Tier Two Mutant Beast seemed to show signs of wanting to retreat," Liu Jialin said, recalling the scene.

Due to their vantage point, Liu Jialin and her team, hiding in the bushes, didn’t see Lin Li consume the Spirit Fruit.

All they saw was the Red-horned Purple-scaled Lizard Beast realize Lin Li’s Spiritual Energy had been restored. It recognized he was now in a better state than it was and showed signs of wanting to flee.

"In that case, if we hadn’t been forced out of the bushes, that mysterious Peak Tier Two Cultivator could have killed the Mutant Beast all by himself," the Investigator with the high-bridged nose surmised.

"That’s hard to say. If it couldn’t win, it could have chosen to flee. After all, a Peak Tier Two Mutant Beast isn’t so easy to kill," Liu Jialin said reservedly.

After leaving the battlefield, Liu Jialin’s group discussed the intense battle they had just witnessed as they walked. Before long, they disappeared into the wilderness.

The battlefield, which had just been ravaged by the fierce clash between two Peak Tier Two beings, fell deathly silent once everyone had departed.

BOOM...

WHOOSH...

The roll of thunder and the howl of the wind became the only sounds on the battlefield, adding a chilling edge to the dead silence.

Meanwhile, over ten kilometers from the battlefield, the fleeing Red-horned Purple-scaled Lizard Beast noticed no humans were pursuing it and began to slow its pace.

Still, to be safe, it didn’t stop completely. Instead, it maintained a steady pace, continuing toward the lair it had stolen.

RUMBLE...

The sky was thick with dark clouds. Dazzling, silvery-white lightning flashed frequently through the inky-black cloud cover, and the deafening peals of thunder made the creatures on the ground tremble.

After more than half an hour, the Red-horned Purple-scaled Lizard Beast reached the Muddy Swamp it had claimed as its own.

SPLASH...

Muddy water churned as the exhausted-looking Red-horned Purple-scaled Lizard Beast crawled through the swamp.

Reaching the center of the swamp, it lay down and sank its body into the mire, leaving only its head above the surface. From time to time, it scanned its surroundings.

It did this to guard against any humans who might have tracked it to its lair, allowing it to spot them immediately and flee deeper into the wilderness.

The Red-horned Purple-scaled Lizard Beast remained on high alert, its nerves taut as it watched for any movement. Half an hour later, a deafening thunderclap cracked overhead, and the downpour that had been brewing for some time finally began.

Fat drops of rain hammered down on the Red-horned Purple-scaled Lizard Beast’s head, and it lifted its gaze to the sky.

Illuminated by the frequent flashes of lightning, it could see the raindrops falling thicker and faster, soon blurring into solid sheets of rain.

Driven by the gale, the sheets of rain moved like joyous, energetic dancers, swaying wildly with the wind.

"ROAR..." As the rain grew heavier, the Red-horned Purple-scaled Lizard Beast let out a low, relieved rumble.

’Now that the downpour has started,’ it thought, ’the wilderness will turn to mud. The humans can’t possibly track me in this awful weather. I can finally get some rest.’

Lowering its head, the Red-horned Purple-scaled Lizard Beast submerged itself completely in the swamp.

Although the wounds from its fierce battle with Lin Li had already scabbed over and were no longer a major issue, the mental and physical exhaustion could not be so easily restored.

It would need several days of rest to recover.

Before succumbing to sleep, the Red-horned Purple-scaled Lizard Beast, submerged in the swamp, quickly replayed its fierce battle with Lin Li and came to a conclusion.

’The closer I get to that region with the colorful lights, the more likely I am to run into humans. I have to be more careful in the future and avoid that area as much as possible.’

...

BOOM...

WHOOSH...

Outside the tent, thunder boomed and lightning flashed as the wind howled.

DRIP, DRIP, DRIP...

Large raindrops fell from the sky, pattering in a dense, crisp rhythm against the flowers, grass, and trees of the mountain forest.

The tent swayed violently in the wind. ’I wonder if this tent will hold up,’ Lin Li thought. ’If it can’t take a beating from this storm, Su Yue and I will have to run back to the car in the rain.’

"What are you spacing out for? The wind’s picking up out there. Hurry up and close the flap! Don’t let the rain in," Su Yue prompted Lin Li.

"Oh." Lin Li reached out and zipped up the flap, completely sealing the tent from the rain outside.

"You were pretty bold just now, running so fast. Weren’t you afraid of tripping?" said Su Yue. She was already nestled in her sleeping bag, lying on her side with her head pillowed on her arm, watching Lin Li climb into his own.

"I was just worried I wouldn’t make it back to camp in time and would get soaked to the bone. That’s why I ran so fast," Lin Li replied with a smile as he lay down as well.

"Wow, it’s really pouring out there," Su Yue murmured, listening to the drumming of the rain against the tent.

"Say, this tent you bought can handle a storm like this, right?" Lin Li asked. "Otherwise, we’ll have to make a run for the car to get some sleep."

"Don’t worry! This tent is high quality. Unless a typhoon hits, it can handle a downpour even more intense than this one. We’ll be fine," Su Yue said confidently.

"That’s good. It’s getting late. We should get some sleep," Lin Li said, closing his eyes.

"Mhm," Su Yue agreed softly.

Lin Li had just fought a huge battle in the wilderness against that Peak Tier Two Mutant Beast.

Although he could quickly restore his spent Spiritual Energy by eating a Spirit Fruit, his physical stamina couldn’t be recovered so easily.

His body was now exhausted. After he closed his eyes, the sound of the wind and rain outside acted like a lullaby, and he fell asleep in moments.

In the pitch-black darkness of the tent, Su Yue listened to the steady sound of breathing beside her. Her mind drifted back to the moment Lin Li had so carefully and intently massaged her injured ankle.

The corners of her lips curved up into an involuntary, radiant smile. It was a shame that in the darkness, no one could see the joy on her face.

Time passed. An unstoppable wave of sleepiness washed over her. Su Yue yawned, slowly closed her eyes, and soon drifted off to sleep.

BOOM...

WHOOSH...

SPLASH...

The sounds of thunder, wind, and rain intermingled. The chirping of insects in the grass vanished the instant the downpour began.

In the hazy curtain of rain, some of the other campers in the mountain forest were startled awake by the thunder, while others slept soundly through the storm, lulled by the sound of the rain.

...