Chapter 361: Chapter 331: Retreat

Riding Qizai, Li Qian used their Soul Contract to tell it to move as quietly as possible.

The moment the man and his pet flew out of the underground pit, they drew the attention of everyone else.

Dakoli, An Duowan, Pilo, Li Yuhu, Ding Ganmao, Wang Guanjun, and Wang En Ci all turned to him with questioning gazes.

Instead of immediately answering their questioning looks, Li Qian recalled Qizai and headed straight for the outskirts of the Black Stone Forest.

He set off at a brisk pace, calling over his shoulder, "Let’s get out of here. This place isn’t safe..."

The other seven heard him and immediately fell in step. Once they had gone a short distance, the ever-impatient Li Yuhu couldn’t hold back any longer and asked, "Li Qian, what in the world happened?"

"There’s something terrifying at the bottom of that pit—more than ten Dominator-level Rock Giants." Li Qian scanned their surroundings before quickly explaining the situation.

Upon hearing his words, everyone was stunned, their faces filled with utter disbelief.

Even An Duowan, who was usually calm, collected, and sparing with his words, couldn’t help but stare wide-eyed.

Before the others could recover from their shock, Li Qian spoke again, his next words even more horrifying. "And that’s not all. I also saw three exceptionally tall, Emperor-level Rock Giants, each wielding a Rock Giant Sword."

"More than ten Dominator Level, and three Emperor Level... T-that’s impossible..." Pilo stammered, his voice filled with disbelief after hearing Li Qian’s words.

His first reaction was denial; he found it utterly impossible. He retorted, "Li Qian, are you sure you’re not joking with us?"

Before Li Qian could respond, Dakoli suddenly spoke up. "He’s not joking!"

His words drew everyone’s attention, and they all turned to him with questioning looks.

Dakoli didn’t leave them hanging. He immediately named an Extraordinary Creature he knew of. "If I’m not mistaken, those exceptionally tall Rock Giants you mentioned, the ones wielding Rock Giant Swords... they must be the Extraordinary Creature with Emperor-level Potential: the Rock Sword Master!"

"Rock Sword Master..." The name echoed among the group, their faces a mixture of confusion and surprise.

Clearly, some among them had heard of the Rock Sword Master, while others, naturally, were completely in the dark.

Li Qian, for instance, had no idea what a Rock Sword Master was. Otherwise, he would have recognized them at first sight.

Although he had been reading extensively lately, there were countless Extraordinary Creatures in the world. It was impossible for him to know them all, so his ignorance was understandable.

"The Rock Sword Master is no ordinary creature," Dakoli said, noticing the confusion. He gave a brief explanation. "It’s an extremely Powerful Pet Beast of the Rock Element, which is a Mutated Attribute of the Earth Element."

"Like the Rock Monster, it’s not very fast. However, both its attack and defense are top-tier."

"Its defense is especially noteworthy. Among Pet Beasts of the same Level and Potential, it’s absolutely in a class of its own."

...

Dakoli continued to explain the details about the Rock Sword Master. As they listened, expressions of dawning realization spread across their faces.

And after hearing Dakoli’s explanation, they finally understood why he had insisted that Li Qian wasn’t joking.

Li Qian had no prior knowledge of the Rock Sword Master; he couldn’t possibly have described them so accurately without having seen them with his own eyes.

The fact that he could describe them proved he wasn’t lying. He really had seen the Rock Giants and Rock Sword Masters at the bottom of the pit.

Reaching this conclusion left them all stunned and bewildered. Logically, it should be impossible for so many Overlord-level Pet Beasts to be concentrated in one area of the Black Stone Forest.

After all, their current location wasn’t even considered part of the Central Circle Zone, let alone the core of the Black Stone Forest.

Besides, it was highly unlikely for even one Emperor-level Pet Beast to appear in the core, to say nothing of three.

Amid their shock, they finally understood why Li Qian had been in such a frantic hurry to leave.

The group of eight hurried toward the outskirts of the Black Stone Forest without stopping. Along the way, Ding Ganmao couldn’t contain his curiosity any longer. "What exactly did you go through down in that pit?" he asked.

Li Qian had given them the highlights, but they still only had a vague idea of the full story.

As they walked, Li Qian began to recount his experience. "At the bottom of that pit, there’s a corridor...’

Li Qian spent the next few minutes recounting everything he had just experienced.

He did, however, choose to conceal one detail: the fact that a Rock Monster had evolved into a Rock Giant.

After hearing Li Qian’s more complete story, the ever-blunt Li Yuhu immediately commented, "That Dark Red Rock must be worth a fortune."

Li Qian could hear the regret and disappointment in her voice, and the corner of his mouth couldn’t help but twitch.

Wang En Ci couldn’t help but roll his eyes. "A pity we’d be dead before we could get our hands on it," he said.

He wasn’t just being dramatic. If they had gotten any funny ideas about that Dark Red Rock, they wouldn’t even have known what hit them.

The group moved at a breakneck pace, and before long, they reached the edge of the Black Stone Forest.

Now that they were here, they could finally relax. At this distance, even if something unexpected were to happen, they should be well out of its reach.

"So, what’s the plan now?" Wang Guanjun asked, sounding a bit lost as they were about to leave the Black Stone Forest.

His question was met with silence. Turning back now would be incredibly anticlimactic.

It was supposed to be a training expedition, but they’d barely done anything—just like the last trip to the Dimension Plane.

That was probably why Li Qian could detect a hint of frustration in Wang Guanjun’s tone.

In truth, Li Qian felt much the same way—a bit helpless and unsatisfied. After a moment’s thought, he spoke up. "Let’s change our route. We’ll go to Yellow Sand Ridge."

"Going back now would feel like this whole thing was a joke."

Ding Ganmao and Wang En Ci immediately agreed with Li Qian. "I agree with Li Qian," Wang En Ci said. "Let’s head to Yellow Sand Ridge."

"Otherwise, what’s the difference between this expedition and a picnic?"

Seeing that the three of them on his side were in agreement, Li Qian turned his gaze to Dakoli, who was the de facto representative for the other four.

Dakoli listened to Li Qian and sank into thought, his brow furrowed in a clear display of indecision.

He then began discussing the matter with Pilo and An Duowan, leaving Li Yuhu standing alone, looking a little lost and isolated.

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