As Lü Dandan and Ye Yunfei—two powerful experts—took action simultaneously, a fierce gale of energy immediately howled across the black mountain.
Yet, that massive Poison Dragon Crocodile merely remained crouched there, watching Lü Dandan and Ye Yunfei, seemingly without a shred of fear.
As the barrage of attacks launched by Ye Yunfei and Lü Dandan were about to strike the Poison Dragon Crocodile’s body, it suddenly opened its maw wide and sucked with tremendous force. Every single attack from Lü Dandan and Ye Yunfei was forcibly swallowed whole by the beast in a single gulp.
“How is that possible?”
Both Lü Dandan and Ye Yunfei were startled and immediately activated their movement techniques to retreat a considerable distance in an instant.
Although they hadn't been going all out in their initial assault, both had deployed the majority of their strength. For attacks of that intensity to be swallowed in a single mouthful was simply terrifying.
Looking at the still-crouching Poison Dragon Crocodile, both Ye Yunfei and Lü Dandan felt a chill run down their spines. They understood perfectly well that this creature's power was far too monstrous; likely, neither of them alone was a match for it.
“It seems plucking those Dark Bodhi Fruits will be difficult,” Lü Dandan transmitted to Ye Yunfei.
“To think such a powerful being was hidden within your Dark Realm,” Ye Yunfei said, feeling somewhat helpless as he gazed at the colossal Poison Dragon Crocodile.
“I already tried to suppress it using the Dark Heart, but this Poison Dragon Crocodile seems to completely disregard the Dark Heart,” Lü Dandan stated.
“If we truly can't deal with it, then forget it. There's no need to take such a risk,” Ye Yunfei thought for a moment before making a resolute decision. While the Dark Bodhi Fruits were indeed precious, the power of this Poison Dragon Crocodile was too fearsome. The risk was not worth it.
“Although this Poison Dragon Crocodile is immensely powerful, once I fully and completely merge with the Dark Heart in the future, I might gain the strength to deal with it. We can return here then. Moreover, this place belongs to our Dark Faction after all. When I return, I'll convene the upper echelons of the Dark Faction and discuss whether there are ways to handle this creature,” Lü Dandan said after a moment's thought.
“Good. Let’s prepare to leave,” Ye Yunfei replied.
Having made the decision, Lü Dandan and Ye Yunfei began cooperating discreetly to retreat, vigilant in case the Poison Dragon Crocodile suddenly attacked as they withdrew.
However, to their surprise, the Poison Dragon Crocodile remained crouched motionless beneath the large black tree, its gaze fixed on Lü Dandan.
“It seems the Poison Dragon Crocodile's purpose in appearing was solely to protect those Dark Bodhi Fruits. It harbors no intention to proactively attack us,” Ye Yunfei said with a sigh of relief, observing the creature's behavior.
At this moment, both Lü Dandan and Ye Yunfei were employing extremely sophisticated movement techniques to continuously distance themselves from the Poison Dragon Crocodile and the black mountain.
Meanwhile, the more than ten Poison Dragon Crocodiles Lü Dandan had previously subdued using the Dark Heart had now gathered behind the massive creature and ceased following Lü Dandan.
Throughout their retreat, the Dark Heart floated constantly above Lü Dandan's head. This Dark Heart was Lü Dandan's greatest trump card; indeed, the majority of her current strength stemmed from it.
Soon, Lü Dandan and Ye Yunfei had put a significant distance between themselves and the black mountain, then finally slowed their pace.
“Miss Lu, let’s leave this Dark Dragon Pool,” Ye Yunfei suggested to Lü Dandan. This place was fraught with peril. Even Lü Dandan, the Master of the Dark Faction, could encounter danger here, so it was best to depart swiftly.
Yet, precisely at this moment, Lü Dandan’s body suddenly stiffened. An incredulous expression appeared on her face as she looked towards the distant mountain, her gaze settling on the Poison Dragon Crocodile halfway up its slope.
“Miss Lu, have you discovered something?” Ye Yunfei promptly asked, noticing her strange expression.
“You should leave first. Wait for me outside,” Lü Dandan replied after staring intently at the black Poison Dragon Crocodile on the far mountain for a moment, her expression fluctuating. She then turned to address Ye Yunfei.
“What? Miss Lu, you intend to stay here? Is something happening?” Ye Yunfei couldn't help but be taken aback.
“Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. However, I cannot leave just yet. You go wait outside. I’ll explain everything in detail once I come out,” Lü Dandan said.
“Miss Lu, this place is dangerous. If you stay alone and encounter any danger, being outnumbered won't be easy to handle. If you truly have important business requiring you to remain, let's stay together. We can look out for each other,” Ye Yunfei responded after some thought.
“No, you leave first. Truly, you needn’t worry for me. I’ll be fine, and moreover… I might even obtain an opportunity,” Lü Dandan stated, shaking her head.
“Obtain an opportunity?” Ye Yunfei was momentarily stunned by her words.
“It seems Miss Lu has discovered something, likely something beneficial for her. She is the Master of the Dark Faction, possesses the Dark Heart, and this is Dark Faction territory. Therefore, she should understand this place better than you. We don’t need to worry on her behalf,” Hun Lao transmitted to Ye Yunfei.
“Miss Lu has always been very sensible. Since she is this confident, alright, I’ll leave first,” Ye Yunfei decided after a moment's consideration.
“Take care and be safe. This jade slip is of my special make; even in this environment, it can serve for communication. If you encounter danger here beyond your ability to handle, send me a transmission immediately. I will rush back in as soon as I receive it,” Ye Yunfei said, retrieving a transmission jade slip and handing it to Lü Dandan. Recently, following substantial improvements in all aspects of his abilities—Soul Power especially—Ye Yunfei had specially crafted a batch of transmission jade slips.
“Don’t worry. You go out first and wait for me,” Lü Dandan said, accepting the transmission jade slip.
“Also, on your way out, if you encounter any other dark creatures or dark-type medicinal herbs, do not provoke or harvest them without cause. Previously, because I and the Dark Heart were beside you, those dark creatures and herbs showed no hostility towards you. But if you are alone, you could easily draw the group attack of such beings,” Lü Dandan cautioned Ye Yunfei.
“Rest assured, Miss Lu, I understand,” Ye Yunfei acknowledged before turning and making his way upwards through the space. Soon, he was back within the pitch-black, ink-like waters of the lake, with vast volumes of dark water rolling in from all sides.
With a thought from Ye Yunfei, a formidable energy surged forth from his body, forming a protective energy barrier around him. It blocked the encroaching dark waters and simultaneously allowed him to accelerate, swiftly ascending towards the surface above.
Along the way, Ye Yunfei once again spotted numerous Dark-type Medicinal Herbs and dark creatures, but he chose to actively avoid them. Perhaps because he had previously appeared in these dark waters alongside Lü Dandan, and the surrounding dark creatures had already seen him, none rushed forward to attack.
Finally, after some uneventful tension, Ye Yunfei broke through the lake's surface, soared into the air, and landed beside the shore.
“Finally out. Truly worthy of being a core site of the Dark Faction. Even I could encounter terrifying dangers within this Dark Dragon Pool,” Ye Yunfei mused inwardly, gazing back at the vast, ink-black expanse of the Dark Dragon Pool.
Next, Ye Yunfei found a flat area near the Dark Dragon Pool, sat down, set up a small spatial formation, then entered the Phantom Shadow Tower. He then began checking each of his gains from within the Dark Dragon Pool.
Inside the pool, Ye Yunfei had harvested a considerable number of various Dark-type Medicinal Herbs. He had been too rushed previously to study them in detail. As an alchemist, and moreover a Sovereign God-level alchemist, Ye Yunfei certainly knew how to approach researching a herb.
Before long, he had examined every single herb obtained from the Dark Dragon Pool.
“These Dark-type Medicinal Herbs all contain exceptionally pure Dark Energy and Laws of Darkness. Likely only an environment like the Dark Dragon Pool could give birth to such herbs. In the outside world, one probably couldn’t buy these even with vast wealth. Old Huang, I think a few of these herbs are quite suitable for you. Furthermore, I recall several types of pills that can be concocted using them. I’ll start refining them for you immediately,” Ye Yunfei said to Huang Shang as he selected several Dark-type Medicinal Herbs.
Subsequently, Ye Yunfei directed his clones to begin using these herbs to refine pills for Huang Shang.
“I wonder, what exactly is the use of these Dark Infant Fruits?” Ye Yunfei finally took out several black fruits. These fruits resembled human infants just after birth, but they were pitch-black all over and only about the size of an ordinary gourd, presenting a very strange appearance.
“These Dark Infant Fruits seem to contain a very special type of Darkness Law, yet despite my alchemical knowledge, I can’t determine their specific purpose,” Ye Yunfei muttered after studying the fruits over and over more than a dozen times, unable to discern what pills they could be used to refine or what their concrete functions might be.