A Fantasy Love Story Across the Warring States Period

The eerie aura emanating from the behemoth grew stronger, as if a layer of gloom had enveloped the area. The surrounding air seemed to thicken, each breath carrying a sense of oppression and heaviness. The already misty environment was now thrown into chaos by this aura, with the clouds surging wildly like a raging sea, constantly churning and obscuring the group's vision, making them increasingly uneasy.

The woman in black robes had finally managed to free herself from beneath the giant beast. She was now disheveled, her clothes tattered, and the excruciating pain from her wounds made her face slightly pale. However, her eyes remained resolute, revealing an unyielding stubbornness. "Even if it costs me my life, I will not let it succeed," she vowed silently, gripping her sword hilt tightly. Even as her hands trembled slightly from the exertion, she refused to loosen her grip for the slightest.

The man in white watched the increasingly bizarre changes in the giant beast, his heart filled with worry. He knew that if he couldn't find a way to deal with it quickly, everyone would likely perish. "What kind of evil magic is this? It's so troublesome," he thought to himself, gripping his jade flute tightly, ready to launch another attack at any moment. Large beads of sweat rolled down his forehead, but he paid no attention to wipe them away; all his thoughts were focused on the life-or-death battle before him.

Ling'er clutched the book tightly, her face flushed red with tension. Her large eyes were filled with terror, yet she struggled to hold back her tears. "It has to work! It has to work!" she kept muttering, praying that the spell she had just cast would continue to work, while anxiously flipping through the book, hoping to find another way to resolve the current crisis.

The gray-robed old man, leaning on his cane, breathed heavily, his wrinkles deepening with worry. His gaze was fixed intently on the behemoth, trying to decipher the mystery behind its eerie aura. "I'm getting old, I'm getting old. I can't afford to fall here. I must protect these children," he silently vowed, the spiritual energy on his cane flashing incessantly, ready to counter any possible attack from the behemoth.

Just as everyone was on high alert, the eerie aura emanating from the giant beast suddenly condensed into streaks of black lightning, which struck down towards them. The lightning was incredibly fast, carrying an aura of annihilation, blasting large craters into the ground wherever it struck, sending debris flying everywhere.

"Get out of the way!" the woman in black shouted, dodging to the side first. Everyone else also used their movement techniques, desperately trying to avoid the deadly bolts of lightning. But the lightning was too dense, and the man in white couldn't dodge in time. A bolt of lightning grazed his arm, and a sharp pain shot through him. His arm instantly bled profusely, and he almost dropped his jade flute.

"Brother!" Ling'er exclaimed, her eyes reddening with heartache, but she had no time to check on the white-clad man's injuries.

Seeing this, the gray-robed elder was extremely anxious. He slammed his cane on the ground, chanting incantations. A powerful spiritual shield appeared at the tip of the cane, enveloping everyone. Black lightning continuously struck the shield, crackling and popping. The shield flickered and teetered on the brink of collapse. With each attack, the gray-robed elder's face paled further; clearly, maintaining the shield was extremely taxing on him.

"This can't go on, we have to take the initiative," the woman in black said through gritted teeth. She looked at the giant beast, pondering the weakness in its abdomen that she had just seen. Although the situation was extremely dangerous, sitting idly by and waiting to die was not in her nature.

Taking advantage of a lull in the lightning strikes, the woman in black robes charged at the beast again. Her movements were ghostly, dodging its lashing claws and nimbly circling to its side. She then leaped high into the air and thrust her sword again into the wounded area on the beast's abdomen. This time, the sword, wielded with a desperate resolve, successfully pierced the beast's belly once more. The beast roared in agony, its body convulsing violently, and the black lightning's attack paused.

"Now!" Seeing this, the man in white, enduring the pain in his arm, once again played his jade flute, producing a melody imbued with powerful spiritual energy. This melody transformed into chains of spiritual energy, coiling towards the giant beast and attempting to restrain its movements. Ling'er also quickly retrieved an ancient rune from a scroll, reciting it aloud. The rune transformed into beams of golden light, flying towards the giant beast and, together with the chains of spiritual energy, binding it tighter and tighter.

Taking advantage of the situation, the gray-robed elder increased the spiritual energy output of the shield, stabilizing the shaky shield. At the same time, he released waves of spiritual energy towards the giant beast, constantly impacting its body and attempting to further weaken its power.

With everyone working together, the eerie aura emanating from the giant beast gradually dissipated, the black lightning ceased to appear, and its struggling movements became weaker and weaker, as if it had reached its limit.

Everyone was overjoyed, feeling that victory was in sight. But at that moment, the giant beast's body suddenly began to swell, as if an invisible force was constantly accumulating within it. Its scales were stretched so much that they creaked, and its eyes, which had been burning with flames, were now so red that they seemed to be dripping blood.

"Oh no, it's about to self-destruct!" The gray-robed elder's expression changed drastically, and his voice trembled slightly.

Upon hearing this, everyone was terrified. If the giant beast were to self-destruct, its earth-shattering power would be enough to annihilate them all, leaving them with no chance of escape.

"What should we do? What should we do?" Ling'er cried out in distress, looking at everyone in a panic.

The woman in black robes looked at the giant beast, a resolute glint in her eyes. She had thought of an extremely risky plan, one that, if implemented, might mean she would never return. But at this moment, for everyone's survival, she couldn't care less about anything else.

"You all go quickly, I'll hold it off!" the woman in black shouted, then charged towards the giant beast, preparing to use her own strength to stop it from self-destructing.

"No!" the man in white and Ling'er shouted at the same time, but the woman in black robes ignored their advice and headed towards the giant beast without hesitation.

Just as the woman in black robes was about to approach the giant beast, a huge crack suddenly appeared in the ground, from which a mysterious power surged forth. That power transformed into a wall of light, blocking the woman in black robes and the giant beast, while also suppressing the self-destructive power emitted by the giant beast.

This sudden turn of events left everyone stunned. Where did this mysterious power come from? Was it friend or foe? Could they use this opportunity to escape their predicament and continue their search for the key to the divine artifact? Everything was shrouded in mystery once more, waiting for them to uncover the truth…