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墨書 Inktalez
“Quick! Hold the umbrella!” I shouted, hurriedly retreating with A Li under the large umbrella.
Just in time, a deep rumbling sound echoed, and countless blobs of pus rained down like mortar fire. Our umbrella struggled to withstand the onslaught, its handle shaking violently, threatening to snap at any moment.
“What on earth did this creature eat? It’s been throwing up for so long and still hasn’t finished! Its digestive system must be terrible!” I exclaimed. A Li shook her head; half of the ribs on her umbrella had already broken, forcing her to huddle under the remaining half.
It was then that I noticed the umbrella was made of bronze, with a circular canopy about 90 centimeters in diameter, adorned with a dragon and a phoenix intertwined, and a conical peak about 5 centimeters high at the center. The umbrella had six ribs, intricately carved with auspicious cloud patterns—simple yet elegant. The handle was approximately 110 centimeters long, with a hole at the end for standing upright.
I recognized it; I had seen something similar in a museum. After a moment's thought, it hit me! This was the cover from the Zi Jia Six Bronze Chariots! Where did A Li get this?
After all, it was an artifact over two thousand years old. Most of the bronze had oxidized, and its survival until now was nothing short of miraculous. This showed how reliable ancient craftsmanship was compared to today's practices, where shortcuts often lead to subpar results.
Suddenly, my peripheral vision caught sight of a staff lying on the ground. I bent down to retrieve it, shielding myself under the umbrella. Just as I reached for it, there was a loud bang as a slender stick shot out from one of the openings and struck my umbrella hard, breaking eight ribs on the left side.
As I winced in pain, my grip jolted; with another crack, the handle snapped in two. What a disaster! Cursing under my breath, I quickly grabbed the broken end to stabilize the bronze umbrella. Looking down, I was shocked to see that the stick that had attacked me was none other than my junior brother's Ze Zhang.
A sudden thought struck me—could my junior brother be inside the belly of this Giant Tongue?
I speculated that this suction cup was part of Giant Tongue's feeding mechanism, and the pus it spewed was its gastric acid, which had mild corrosive properties. However, due to my unique constitution, I recovered quickly. In contrast, Old Qiao's body was already weak and had nearly been sucked into Giant Tongue’s belly; thus he exhibited symptoms of decay and unconsciousness after being affected.
Previously, I had stabbed at Giant Tongue’s opening with my sword, triggering gastric acid to spray out and injuring my eyes. That’s why I mistakenly thought it was attacking us. It wasn’t until just now that I realized my junior brother must have been causing all this commotion from inside—using some method to provoke Giant Tongue into retching repeatedly while trying to escape.
I picked up Ze Zhang and said to A Li, “My brother is inside Giant Tongue’s belly! We need to help him get out!”
A Li paused in disbelief, thinking I was joking. “Your brother… is inside this monster’s belly?”
I was struggling to hold up the nearly broken umbrella frame while saying, "I just found out too. There's no time to explain now, A Li. You go around the left side of the Giant Tongue, and I'll take the right. When you see the suction cup, stab it! Give it a little more stimulation!"
A Li responded affirmatively, and we both quickly flipped into position.
From the side, the Giant Tongue looked even more enormous and unbelievable. The bulging muscle fibers had turned completely black, resembling a mass of worms that had grown excessively due to hormones, intertwining on the bumpy surface of the tongue. At this close distance, I could even see the pulsating red veins on the muscle fibers. My goodness, it was utterly disgusting!
I forced myself to ignore the grotesque sight of the bulging muscle fibers and focused my attention on the suction cup. I noticed that what used to be bowl-sized had now expanded to nearly basin size, its rim densely packed with dark brown flesh lumps that looked ready to burst. Below the rim was a funnel-shaped cavity, its texture reminiscent of an infant's placenta, changing color from reddish-brown at the top to black at the bottom. Every half second, the cavity would suddenly contract and then expand again, ejecting a spray of pus along with an extremely foul odor that hit me like a punch to the gut! Damn it, I almost passed out from the stench!
I quickly turned my head, held my breath, and thrust the tip of my umbrella down hard without worrying about whether any pus splattered on me (the umbrella was practically useless by now), swiftly reaching for the next suction cup. With a flick of my wrist, I struck down again.
Continuing this way, I had only stabbed about seven or eight times when A Li also landed a few hits from her side. The Giant Tongue couldn't take it anymore; it began thrashing wildly like a fish out of water, its body slamming against the surrounding granite and causing numerous small rocks to fall. The ground beneath me shook violently. I had no choice but to stop and dodge the falling debris.
I shouted across to A Li, "How are you doing?"
After two seconds, A Li's voice came back mixed with the sound of falling stones. "I'm fine, Brother Qian Yi! How about you?"
Just then, I felt a gust of wind whip past above my left shoulder. I quickly dodged to the side as a diamond-shaped rock fell right where I had been standing, its sharp edge striking the ground with a loud crack as it broke in two! My heart raced with fear; if I hadn't moved in time just now, it would have been my head splitting open instead.
A Li waited for a moment without response and then anxiously called out again, " Brother Qian Yi?"
While keeping an eye on both A Li and the Giant Tongue's movements above me, I replied, "Don't worry! I'm fine! At this rate, this place won't hold for long; we need to finish this quickly!" Resolutely deciding that lives were at stake and there was no time for hesitation, I said, "A Li, let's strike from both sides and go for a decisive cut!"
A Li responded with determination: "Okay!" With a whoosh sound followed by a ringing chime, her Nine-Tailed Whip firmly latched onto the left side of the Giant Tongue.
The Giant Tongue let out a furious roar as its tail shot up several meters high before whipping towards A Li.
"A Li! Watch out!" Panic surged through me; there was no way I could reach her over such a massive distance. In desperation and thinking quickly on my feet, I pushed off against the stone wall behind me and leaped up to strike at the right side of the Giant Tongue in line with where A Li had attacked with her Nine-Tailed Whip.
Suddenly struck by the blow, the Giant Tongue was momentarily dazed, its tip in disarray, unsure of whom to attack. It swerved over A Li's head and wobbled toward me.
Just in time! I swiftly drew my disciple's Ze Zhang with one hand and found the mechanism on the Sheep Eye. The Lotus Head Silk shot out, wrapping around the tongue's tip. The Giant Tongue, not to be outdone, let out a furious cry and curled its tongue back.
I was no match for it alone and nearly got pulled in. I quickly withdrew my hand. Seeing it had gained an advantage, the Giant Tongue lifted its tip high again and charged at me. At that moment, A Li suddenly shouted, " Brother Qian Yi, cut off its support!"
I was taken aback for a moment but quickly reacted. Using the momentum from the incoming tongue, I leaped into the air and landed on its back. The Giant Tongue resembled an enormous soft-bodied creature, lacking a spine; standing on it felt slippery and unstable as it twisted and turned, nearly causing me to fall several times.
The falling rocks in the cave grew larger, and a collapse seemed imminent. A Li urged me impatiently, " Brother Qian Yi, hurry!"
I steadied myself, crouching slightly before standing up again. I aimed for the moment when the tongue's belly surged upward once more and swung my right hand with Ze Zhang. Two strands of Lotus Head Silk wrapped around the belly of the tongue. Just then, both the tongue and its tip launched a simultaneous attack against me; success or failure hinged on this moment!
"Cut!" I shouted to A Li. Almost simultaneously, I flipped over, kicked off the wall, and felt Ze Zhang rapidly retract in my hand. I sensed the extreme opposing force created by A Li's Nine-Tailed Whip and Ze Zhang. With a thunderous bang, before the Giant Tongue could let out its final roar, its body split in two.
In an instant, countless foul-smelling fluids erupted like a volcanic explosion, mixed with chaotic soft tissue and large yellowed bones that were indistinguishable as human or animal.
Worried about why my disciple hadn’t emerged yet, I was about to jump down to check when I heard his familiar expletive from below: "Damn it! I'm suffocating! You should have used this move to cut it in half sooner! Why are you dragging this out? Are you plotting something behind my back?"
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