My gorgeous wife
Chapter 713 - 685: Fire Fox

Chapter 713: Chapter 685: Fire Fox

Seeing the object in his hand, Li Chen’s face couldn’t help but show a look of joy.

Having spent such a long time here, it was the first time Li Chen had discovered any trace of Wang Qianqian. According to Li Chen’s calculations, although Wang Qianqian had entered the relic, she shouldn’t have gone too deep.

However, after searching for a considerable amount of time, Li Chen hadn’t found even a slight trace, which made him grow increasingly anxious. But now that he had found Wang Qianqian’s hairpin, hope finally kindled in his heart.

"Let’s go!"

With a gesture forward, Li Chen’s expression was calm as he continued the search with his companions.

Any small trace would mean there was hope of finding Wang Qianqian.

As long as there was a sliver of hope, Li Chen would not give up.

"Hmm?"

After walking some distance, Li Chen suddenly halted.

The passages of the relic widened the further in they went and, as they descended deeper, the interior became brighter.

Li Chen felt that this brightness was definitely not due to the everlasting lamps alone; something else was illuminating the relic because the lamps by themselves couldn’t possibly make an underground relic this bright.

Li Chen’s vision was now clear enough to distinctly make out objects dozens of meters away, a stark contrast to the pitch-black conditions they had experienced upon first entering the relic.

And now, Li Chen clearly saw an odd creature covered in fiery red fur, watching them warily from a not-too-distant spot.

Li Chen couldn’t determine the identity of this fiery-red creature, but he could see that it resembled a fox. Yet compared to a fox, its body was several grades larger, even bigger than that of a full-grown wolf by a whole size.

However, upon seeing this fiery-red creature, Li Chen’s gaze turned grave for the first time.

After all, a wolf did not possess the terrifying aura that emanated from this creature.

Li Chen could clearly feel that the horrifying aura released by this creature had already surpassed the Yellow Rank he was familiar with!

This was a creature whose strength had definitely reached above the Yellow Rank!

"Be careful, everyone, fall back!" Li Chen looked back and ordered solemnly.

Upon hearing Li Chen’s words, the Nether Army behind him began to retreat without any hesitation.

For them, Li Chen’s words were an order, and they would not hesitate to follow his command.

At that moment, An Qin, who stood beside Li Chen, suddenly paused.

"What’s wrong?" Li Chen turned his head, frowning slightly at An Qin: "You should fall back too. This creature is powerful; you can’t handle it!"

"It’s not that," An Qin shook her head and pointed behind the fox-like creature: "Do you see that?"

Following the direction An Qin pointed, Li Chen looked intently.

Indeed, there was something!

Behind the Fire Fox, there was a small pond that at first glance appeared as unremarkable as a puddle by the roadside, very inconspicuous.

Yet, what caught his attention was not the pond, but something in the pond.

It was a lotus flower!

"If I’m not mistaken, that should be the legendary Fire Lotus, a Holy Medicine that aids in cultivation. If we could obtain it..." An Qin’s words trailed off, but her eyes already said a lot.

After exchanging glances, each saw the same intention in the other’s eyes.

They must get the Fire Lotus!

Li Chen was yearning for an increase in strength, and so was An Qin; however, in this world where spiritual objects were almost non-existent, anything that could aid cultivation was exceedingly rare.

Now that they had seen this one, they couldn’t let it slip away.

"Can we handle it?" An Qin also looked at the Fire Fox and asked.

"It shouldn’t be a problem," Li Chen didn’t turn his head, his gaze firmly on the Fire Fox: "If things go wrong, grab that Fire Lotus and run. I’ll hold it off. I can sense that its strength is close to mine; even if I can’t beat it, holding it off shouldn’t be an issue."

"Okay!" An Qin agreed, then retreated to stand beside the Nether Army.

But Li Chen went alone toward the Fire Fox.

The Fire Fox had been staring intently at Li Chen, and as Li Chen approached, its gaze became even more wary, issuing a threatening growl from its throat.

Its voice, however, was like that of a tiger, full of deterrence.

But clearly, Li Chen wouldn’t be deterred by the sound and strode towards the Fire Fox.

Seeing Li Chen come closer, the Fire Fox’s growls grew deeper and more urgent.

It seemed as if, should Li Chen advance even a little further, it would attack.

Finally, as Li Chen got within ten meters of it, the Fire Fox could no longer bear the tension and let out a fearsome roar, suddenly charging at Li Chen.

It had already issued a warning, but the opponent clearly did not intend to back down; therefore, there was only one option left—battle.

As the Fire Fox lunged, Li Chen too sprang into action.

"Whoosh—"

The two figures nearly disappeared into thin air in an instant, followed by a muffled sound of collision.

"Boom!"

Li Chen landed, retreating three or four steps.

And the Fire Fox, too, fell to the ground, rolling several times and looking somewhat in a sorry state.

Li Chen turned his head slightly and on his shoulder appeared three deep claw marks, left by the Fire Fox earlier.

At the corner of the Fire Fox’s mouth, blood was also seeping out.

It had given Li Chen a claw strike, and in turn, Li Chen had hit it with a punch; neither had gained an upper hand.

Of course, if one were to say who had taken the greater loss, it would obviously be the Fire Fox.

"Li Chen, be careful." At this moment, An Qin’s voice came from behind Li Chen.

"Truly extraordinary," Li Chen didn’t turn around; instead, he glanced at the bloodstain on his shoulder, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.

The Fire Fox’s strength was indeed around Upper Yellow Rank, but it was still not as strong as him; however, from the exchange just now, the fact that it could injure him was enough to show its formidable nature.

Remember, the Black General, after using a secret technique, had enhanced his strength to Yellow Rank, even reaching Mid-Yellow Rank, but when facing Li Chen, who had absorbed Mysterious Energy and reached Upper Yellow Rank, he was simply outmatched.

The energy within the Fire Fox was clearly only about Mid-Yellow Rank, yet it had managed to injure him, which showed its extraordinariness.

"This place is indeed out of the ordinary," Li Chen’s gaze flickered slightly, and in the next moment, he suddenly made his move again.

The strength of the Fire Fox was indeed extraordinary, but it had not reached a level that Li Chen could not deal with.

At least, Li Chen felt he could still subdue it.

"Bang!"

The Fire Fox’s claws reached toward Li Chen once more, but this time, Li Chen did not let it attack as it pleased. The moment the Fire Fox extended its claws, Li Chen dodged to one side.

At the same time, he reached out towards the Fire Fox’s jaw.

If he could just grasp the Fire Fox’s vital point, it would be left with no road to survival.

However, to Li Chen’s surprise, the Fire Fox’s reaction speed was somewhat beyond his expectations. As he reached out his hand, the Fire Fox suddenly lowered its head, biting at Li Chen’s fingers.

From the looks of its sharp teeth, if Li Chen were to be bitten, he would certainly lose those fingers.

"Hmph!"

Forced to withdraw his hand, Li Chen changed trajectory and kicked towards the Fire Fox’s abdomen.

His kick landed, and the Fire Fox’s entire body was sent flying backward in an instant.

With Li Chen’s immense strength, even though the Fire Fox was huge, it became like a kite with its string cut, slamming hard into the wall nearby.

"Roar!!"

Being struck by Li Chen, the Fire Fox finally became enraged.

It raised its claws and fiercely slapped the walls beside it.

"Boom!!"

Next to the Fire Fox, the seemingly sturdy wall began to collapse, and rocks continued to fall from above their heads.

Li Chen’s expression changed drastically at that moment.

Because, to his shock, as the rocks fell, the Fire Fox opened its mouth wide at him.

"Whoosh!!"

A blast of scorching breath suddenly sprayed out from the Fire Fox’s mouth.

This creature could actually breathe fire!!

Li Chen’s eyes widened in an instant. The pieces of rock, under the assault and incineration of the sulfur-scented flames, instantly turned into countless red pebbles, hurling towards him.

Without a moment’s hesitation and knowing well the temperature and impact force of the pebbles, Li Chen chose to dodge at the first opportunity.

"Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh—"

"I always knew you were holding back an ultimate move, but I didn’t expect such a big surprise!" Li Chen thought to himself, dodging all the while.

"But..."

As the fire spewed from the Fire Fox, a spark of light flashed again in Li Chen’s eyes, and his body accelerated once more. This time, his speed surpassed that of when he was exchanging blows with the Fire Fox.

In an instant, even the Fire Fox failed to react and was overtaken by Li Chen, who had forcefully broken through the surrounding rubble and charged at it.

Arriving close to the Fire Fox, Li Chen leapt up, fists clasped together.

"Boom!"

The terrifying attack landed directly on the Fire Fox’s head. The flames from the Fire Fox’s mouth were instantly snuffed out, and its wide-open mouth was forcibly closed by Li Chen’s blow.

And there was more.

The Fire Fox’s head was driven straight into the ground by Li Chen.

Streaks of blood seeped out, soaking into the earth around them.

The Fire Fox’s head was smashed to pieces.

Looking at his sleeve that had been burned in places, Li Chen frowned slightly, "That was a close call."

After dealing with the Fire Fox’s corpse, Li Chen went over to the pond and picked the fiery red lotus flower. Seeing An Qin approaching, he couldn’t help but smile.

"Fortunately, I still won."