After going into the sea, I met the witch.

"hiss--!"

The wounded Thunder Dragon let out an angry roar, and Ryan, who was at close range, was momentarily stunned.

He finally experienced the impact of something like a "Soaring War Cry".

Fortunately, the icy sensation from the Greatsword Fierce Ice in his hand allowed him to break free from the mild dizziness in just half a second, and Ryan immediately assumed a defensive stance.

The anticipated attack did not occur.

The Thunder Dragon, in pain, withdrew and easily coiled up the surface of the giant tree.

It stared down at Ryan with a look of dread, especially at the greatsword that had just injured it. Its whole body trembled, and the crimson in its eyes grew even more vivid.

As the Thunder Dragon trembled, the thick white hairs along its body edges and spine stood on end, crackling loudly. Pale blue electricity surged through them, and from a distance, the dragon appeared to have grown larger, its fury palpable.

Ryan's expression grew increasingly serious. The Thunder Dragon in this state gave him a feeling similar to the Dragon Head Crab entering a "berserk state." The only difference was that the Dragon Head Crab's berserk state was influenced by the approaching "Red Sun," while the Thunder Dragon in front of him didn't seem to be like that at all.

Regardless, the sense of threat posed by the Thunder Dragon in its "explosive" state increased dramatically.

The man and the dragon, one above and one below, faced each other. The Thunder Dragon slowly moved its feet, as if searching for the enemy's weakness, while Ryan was constantly adjusting his stance to deal with any possible attacks from the Thunder Dragon.

At this moment, the flow of time seemed to slow down.

After an unknown number of seconds, the Silent Thunder Dragon suddenly moved.

With a "whoosh" and accompanied by the crackling of tiny electric currents, the Thunder Dragon in Ryan's sight suddenly vanished.

A fierce gust of wind came from behind, carrying a burnt smell. Ryan, who had been preparing for a long time, was surprised but remained calm. Using his right foot as a pivot, he spun around and simultaneously completed the "half-stage" power-up of his greatsword, slashing in a perfect semi-circle towards the Thunder Dragon attacking from behind.

"clang--!"

The greatsword collided with the pulsating, electric scales.

The metal hummed, and a force three times stronger than before swept over him, sending Ryan flying backward. He rolled several times on the ground until he crashed into a giant tree and came to a stop.

At this moment, his hands gripping the sword and his body were tingling with a faint electric current, making his entire body numb and unable to move.

In this state, he completely lost the ability to resist. If Jing Leilong were to deliver a follow-up blow, the wandering clone would immediately die.

Fortunately, the Thunder Dragon isn't in the best condition right now either.

Its large scales were ripped open by the Greatsword - Ferocious Ice, and a thin layer of frost spread outwards from the wound, including the wound on its right limb.

The spreading frost even affected the static electricity generated in the fur of the Thunder Dragon, forcing it to exit the "explosive" state.

About two seconds later, Ryan felt the electric current subside. Although he still felt a slight numbness, it no longer affected his movements.

Ryan leaned on his greatsword and stood up, while the frost on the surface of the Thunder Dragon not far away began to recede.

The man and the dragon faced off once again.

After about ten seconds, the Thunder Dragon began to slowly retreat.

It gave up.

Faced with this potential threat, it chose to retreat.

This is a very normal natural phenomenon.

When predators encounter a prey that is evenly matched, or one that would cause them significant harm during the hunt, they will generally choose to give up unless they have been starving for a long time.

Not worth the candle.

Chapter 42 Arrives! The Crimson King

Seeing Jing Leilong retreat, Ryan remained standing with his sword, his expression unchanged and showing no fear. But in reality, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Jing Leilong's strength is extraordinary; if the fight continues, his chances of winning are very slim.

Once in its "Electrified State," the Thunder Dragon's speed and power far surpassed his. Coupled with the paralyzing electric current, if it weren't for the frost effect of the Greatsword - Ferocious Ice, which perfectly countered the conduction of the current, the Thunder Dragon, still in its "Electrified State," would not have been able to retreat.

The current situation is already excellent.

He needs to level up further before he's qualified to hunt down a special species like the Thunder Dragon.

Just as the distance between the man and the dragon had widened to a relatively safe distance of twenty meters, and Jing Leilong was preparing to turn around and retreat at full speed, suddenly, a sharp "screech" resounded through the sky.

The canopy of the giant tree shook violently, and a giant bird with a wingspan of ten meters swooped down from the sky, its sharp claws deeply embedded in the back of the unsuspecting Thunder Dragon.

Is that it?!

Ryan's pupils contracted as he recognized the attacker.

It was none other than the giant bird that had once snatched the carcass of a giant crab from the beach in the outer area.

At this moment, Ryan was finally able to see the true form of the giant bird.

Its entire body was covered in silvery-white scales, its face was red, and it had a pair of yellow eyes and a long, sharp beak. It was shaped like a crane, and its head had a huge crest like a folding fan. Its hind limbs were long and powerful, with three claws and a hind toe. At this moment, one claw was embedded in the back of the Thunder Dragon, and the other claw was pressed against the connection between the Thunder Dragon's tail and body.

The Thunder Dragon, in pain, bristled with fur, but before it could enter its "electrified state," the strange bird had already opened its beak.

"boom!"

It spat out a fireball, which landed on the back of the Thunder Dragon.

The raging flames charred the back of the Thunder Dragon.

The intense pain caused it to let out a shrill roar, and with a sudden roll, it pinned the strange bird beneath it.

An unprecedented battle against monsters unfolded right before Ryan's eyes.

Because of the distance, Ryan couldn't tell what the monster with the umbrella-shaped bird head was called, but looking at the scene before him, he wanted to get away immediately, but a different thought arose in his mind.

As the saying goes, when the snipe and the clam fight, the fisherman gains.

Under normal circumstances, he is indeed no match for Jing Leilong, but what if Jing Leilong is in a weakened state? Then it's hard to say.

Thinking of this, Ryan carefully retreated and hid in a hole in a giant tree a little further away, peering out to observe the bird and the dragon.

Seemingly due to a long-standing grudge, the battle between the bird and the dragon was quite intense, with dirt and fallen leaves constantly being thrown into the air, accompanied by the surge of electricity and flames.

The battle lasted a full minute, and the already injured Jing Lei Long, having been ambushed, couldn't hold on any longer.

Its breathing became rapid, and saliva dripped uncontrollably from the corners of its mouth.

Although the strange bird was also seriously injured, with scars all over its body from being electrocuted, its overall condition was still much better than that of the Thunder Dragon.

If the fight continues, this battle between bird and dragon will ultimately end with the tragic death of the Thunder Dragon.

Ryan, hiding in the tree hole, sighed with some regret.

It looks like Jing Leilong is going to die...

Judging from the course of the battle, the strength of the Thunder Dragon and the strange bird should have been roughly the same, and the two maintained a delicate and fragile balance.

His appearance led to the injury of the Thunder Dragon, and the strange bird seized the opportunity to attack without hesitation, which led to the current situation.

In some ways, he actually became the strange bird's accomplice.

Ryan wasn't planning to make a move right now, even though the Thunder Dragon was about to die.

It should be noted that even a trapped beast has its strength; if he were to intervene now, he might become the target of both monsters.

Rather than doing this, it would be better to wait until Jing Leilong dies before he takes action against the strange bird.

Although the strange bird might fly away, it was an unexpected gain, so losing it wouldn't be too much of a pity.

However, accidents always happen unexpectedly.

Just as the strange bird was about to finish off the Thunder Dragon, suddenly, the canopy above the giant forest began to shake violently, and at the same time, a majestic roar resounded in all directions.

Unlike the voice of the Thunder Dragon, this roar contained a strong aura of majesty, which made people instinctively tremble.

The strange bird and the Thunder Dragon, who were in the middle of the battle, froze at the same time, and a deep look of fear appeared in their eyes.

Without the slightest hesitation, the strange bird abandoned the Thunder Dragon it could kill immediately, turned around and ran away, disappearing into the dense bushes in the distance. The Thunder Dragon, weakened, limped away in another direction, leaving a trail of blue blood in its wake.

About five seconds after the two monsters left, a sudden gust of wind arose, and a colossal creature crashed down upon them.

Wherever it goes, even the thick branches of giant trees are easily broken.

With the flapping of its powerful wings, a strong wind blows.

Hiding in the tree hollow, Ryan stared blankly at the sky.

That's a dragon?

To be precise, it's a Western dragon?!

Unlike the Silent Thunder Dragon, a toothed dragon species whose name includes "dragon" but is actually just a "reptile lizard," what appeared high in the sky was a huge monster with a completely red body, extremely similar to the image of a Western dragon in movies and TV shows.

Its head, tail, and body length are estimated to be over 20 meters. Even without the tail, it is still close to 15 meters long. When its wings, covered with a fleshy membrane, are spread out, they reach an astonishing length of over 10 meters.

Unlike the strange bird, which had a long wingspan but a slender build, this dragon was quite robust.

Beneath its body, covered in thick scales, lay powerful muscles.

In terms of sheer size, the strange bird and the Thunder Dragon are probably not even a fraction of this giant dragon monster!

It was like a crimson king descending to survey his territory; wherever it passed, all spirits fell silent, lest they utter a sound.

Ryan hid in the tree hollow, holding his breath, his body trembling slightly from instinct.

This is the body's instinctive stress response when the gap in strength is so large that there is absolutely no possibility of bridging it.

Compared to this giant dragon monster, what are the Thunder Dragon and the strange bird?

This is not even in the same league!

After circling in the air for a while and finding no worthy prey, the crimson dragon chose to leave.

The intense dragon's might only gradually faded a minute later.

Ryan let out a long breath; the prolonged breath-holding had made him gasp for air.

"Is this... the terror of the monsters that inhabit the ancient forest?"

"Is that crimson dragon the leader of this area?"

After calming his breathing and emotions, Ryan began to think.

I thought the Thunder Dragon was powerful enough, but it turns out that in this area, it's just a low-level creature in the food chain.

Be careful, be careful, be very careful...

Ryan repeatedly reminded himself of this.