piratefiction Chapter 26 Xi'er was swallowed, and then Xi'er came out.
Chapter 26 Xi'er was swallowed, and then Xi'er came out.
The sword-backed crocodile rushed to Xi'er's side, suddenly opened its blood-red maw filled with sharp white teeth, and swallowed Xi'er and the baby crocodile whole.
"No--"
A heart-wrenching roar burst from Cai Xuan's throat.
His mind exploded as if struck by a heavy hammer, a blinding crimson light flashing before his eyes. All the sounds of the world vanished in that instant, leaving only the pounding of his heart and boundless terror. He gripped the rough spear so tightly his fingers nearly cracked the wooden shaft, and with a sudden burst of power, he charged madly toward the sword-spined crocodile.
At this moment, he had no thoughts in his mind except for one idea.
That means killing this beast, cutting open its belly, and rescuing Xi'er.
Cai Xuan unleashed a speed he had never known before, the wind whistling in his ears, his clothes fluttering, and each step he took made the ground tremble. But just as he had taken a dozen steps, he suddenly froze in place.
The adult sword-spined crocodile that swallowed Xi'er suddenly froze, its originally fierce and violent body stiffening without warning.
For the first time ever, a trace of extreme pain and an overwhelming fear surfaced in those vertical pupils, which were always cold, lifeless, and devoid of any emotion. It was the instinctive despair that only a ferocious beast at the top of the food chain would reveal when faced with a terrifying power far beyond its comprehension.
"puff--"
Suddenly, a small, pale, and tender fist, covered in hot, viscous, dark red blood, burst out from the center of the sword-spined crocodile's hard, iron-like back!
The fist was small, with slender and distinct knuckles; it was clearly a child's hand.
Yet this seemingly weak fist pierced straight through the incredibly tough, thick scales of the sword-spined crocodile. Tiny bits of internal organs and slowly dripping blood clung to the fist; though seemingly immature, it exuded a brutal and oppressive aura that chilled the sword-spined crocodile to the bone.
The little fist slowly opened in mid-air, then suddenly clenched and retracted in the next second.
"Hoh—woo—!"
The sword-backed crocodile let out a low growl that sounded less like a beast's cry and more like a dying wail. Its massive body, several meters long, convulsed and trembled violently. Its sturdy back was as fragile as paper before the small fists.
"Sizzle"
Suddenly, an extremely piercing tearing sound rang out.
The spine of the sword-spined crocodile seemed to have been ripped open from the inside by an invisible giant hand, with blood and flesh flying everywhere. A small figure leaped out from that hideous and terrifying rift, landing on the completely dead corpse of the sword-spined crocodile, covered in blood.
Yes, Xi'er.
She was soaking wet, covered from head to toe in bits of sword-spined crocodile flesh and blood, her hair matted together, making her look like a little blood-soaked figure. But her eyes shone with an astonishing light, like two burning flames, and the expression on her small face was not fear, nor crying, but—anger.
An offensive, pure, undisguised anger.
"You dare to swallow me?" Xi'er looked down at the dead sword-spine crocodile at her feet. Her voice was not loud, but it carried a chilling aura that sent shivers down one's spine.
"You dare to swallow me?" Her fists clenched so tightly they cracked, and her small chest heaved violently.
Despite being a small child, standing atop the carcass of a ferocious beast several meters long, her aura silenced the entire riverbank. But this silence didn't last long; the pungent, acrid smell of blood swept through the Crocodile Creek on the wind.
Enraged by the bloodlust and the death of their kind, countless sword-backed crocodiles lurking in the stream burst forth from the water, their rough, hard limbs digging through the mud and sand of the riverbank, charging madly towards Xi'er.
A dozen or so adult giant crocodiles charged at the front, their gaping maws and sharp teeth ready to tear this tiny creature that was tearing its own kind apart.
Xi'er stared wide-eyed at the menacing swordback crocodiles, her anger surging. Instead of backing down, she charged forward to meet the crocodile pack!
Her tiny body shot out like a cannonball, hurtling straight at the adult saber-toothed crocodile in front of her. The giant crocodile opened its jaws to bite, but Xi'er neither dodged nor evaded. Her small fist went straight for its gaping maw and slammed into it!
There was no earth-shattering roar, only a dull, penetrating sound.
Her fist pierced straight through the upper jaw of the sword-spined crocodile, emerging from the top of its skull.
The crocodile, which had been so ferocious just moments before, didn't even have time to utter a mournful cry before its massive body suddenly stiffened, crashed heavily to the ground, and fell silent instantly.
Xi'er slowly withdrew her arm, which was covered in brain matter and blood. She shook her wrist to shake off the sticky blood droplets on the ground. Her expression was so calm that it was as if she was just brushing off the dust on her hands, as if it were just a little bit of weathering and nothing to be surprised about.
The second saber-toothed crocodile pounced, its massive jaws snapping shut.
Xi'er leaped high into the air, dodging the attack. She landed squarely on the crocodile's hard back. Before the beast could struggle or retaliate, she delivered a violent punch. The crocodile's thick, hard scales shattered instantly, and a deep, bone-revealing hole was punched through the flesh, scalding blood gushing out.
The sword-backed crocodile rolled around in pain, its limbs flailing wildly, leaving deep bloody streaks on the riverbank.
Xi'er leaped off the crocodile's back and rushed forward, raining blows on its soft belly.
One after another, bloody holes exploded, and gushes of hot blood gushed out. The sword-spined crocodile twitched a few times and then stopped moving.
Article 3, Article 4, Article 5… Xi'er, like a maddened little beast, rampaged through the crocodile herd as if it were her own backyard. Her fists slammed into the hard scales of the sword-spined crocodiles, producing dull thuds and leaving deep craters of blood.
Her clothes were torn, her hair was disheveled, and her face was covered in an indistinguishable mixture of blood and sweat, but her eyes remained bright, radiating a chillingly fierce light.
In no time, the ground was littered with the corpses of sword-backed crocodiles, and the pungent smell of blood filled the air, so thick it was suffocating.
But the danger was far from over.
In the distance, in Crocodile Creek, the water churned and churned, drawing in more and more sword-backed crocodiles drawn by the scent of blood. Countless gray-black figures swam swiftly in the water, their cold, vertical pupils fixed intently on Xi'er, a dense, endless array.
"Xi'er, run!"
Cai Xuan finally came to his senses, rushed forward, and grabbed Xi'er's wrist.
Xi'er struggled for a moment, wanting to fight again, but Cai Xuan wouldn't let go. With his other hand, he grabbed the tail of a dead giant sword-spined crocodile and dragged it along, pulling Xi'er up and running away. Seeing this, Xi'er shook off Cai Xuan's hand, ran to the side of an even larger sword-spined crocodile carcass, grabbed its thick tail, and dragged it along with Cai Xuan, running wildly forward.
The sword-backed crocodiles pursued closely behind, but after chasing for a distance, they seemed to realize they had left their territory and stopped.
After pacing around and roaring in frustration for a long time, it finally turned around unwillingly and climbed back to Crocodile Creek.
Cai Xuan ran all the way to the foot of the rocky mountain. He glanced back and, seeing no pursuers behind him, his tense nerves finally relaxed. His legs went weak, and he almost collapsed to his knees.
He tossed the crocodile he was dragging aside, braced himself on his knees, and gasped for breath, his heart pounding so hard it felt like it would jump out of his throat.
Xi'er stood beside him, dragging the huge sword-backed crocodile, her breathing as steady as if she were strolling in a garden.
Cai Xuan caught his breath for a while, then raised his head and looked at Xi'er, who was covered in blood, her clothes were tattered but she was unharmed. He opened his mouth, but a thousand words were stuck in his heart, and for a moment he didn't know what to say.
After thinking for a moment, she said softly, "Xi'er, that was too dangerous. We can't be so reckless in the future. Before we act, we must first check our surroundings to see if there are any other ferocious beasts lying in ambush. You just killed a sword-backed crocodile, but you attracted the entire Crocodile Creek clan. If we keep killing like this, it will never end. Even if you have a lot of strength, you will eventually be exhausted."
"Brother, I'm incredibly strong," Xi'er said proudly and earnestly, dragging the sword-backed crocodile along and raising her chin.
"I know, but no matter how strong you are, you'll eventually run out of strength, won't you?"
"I don't know, I've never finished using it." Xi'er blinked her clear eyes and answered very honestly.
Listening to her innocent words, Cai Xuan glanced at the giant crocodile she had easily dragged back, then at the little guy who looked completely matter-of-fact, and suddenly felt a deep sense of powerlessness.
He was speaking the truth, but Xi'er was clearly not one of those truths.
Forget it, let's talk about it when we get back, lest the smell of blood attract other ferocious beasts.
Cai Xuan thought for a moment and said, "Let's go back, brother will cook you something delicious."
"I want to eat the Nine Oxen Divine Power Sweet Potato. It's sweet and it gives you strength." As soon as food was mentioned, Xi'er perked up and said excitedly.
"Okay, then I'll add a little more. Today we'll have alligator meat stewed with Nine Oxen Divine Potatoes."
"Uh-huh"
The setting sun cast long, long shadows of them.
Cai Xuan dragged a sword-backed crocodile, while Xi'er dragged a ferocious beast even larger than herself. The two, one tall and one short, one big and one small, walked slowly towards their mountain dwelling, bathed in the afterglow of the setting sun.