Chapter 061: The River-Turning Crocodile (Part 2)

Very few had ever truly seen the River-Turning Crocodile; after discussing among themselves, the group found no better strategy than simply waiting it out. By evening, golden sunlight spilled across the surface of the Tianqing River. The riverside scene, which should have been radiant with the glow of sunset, carried an uneasy undertone.

“Du, a herd of Red-Tufted Boars is running this way. Be careful,” Ben Yi, who had been warming himself by the fire, suddenly looked up and communicated telepathically with Shen Duo.

“It’s not just the Red-Tufted Boars,” Yu Sha added from within the Spirit Beast Space. “There are also Gold-Eating Rats, Fire Serpents, and Blackwood Scorpions.”

Shen Duo’s relaxed posture instantly tensed. These spirit beasts were all low-ranked—individually not much of a threat, but en masse, they could spell disaster.

Narrowing his eyes, Shen Duo gazed deeper into the purple reed thickets. It seemed the River-Turning Crocodile lurking within was about to advance in rank.

Clearly, Feng Jun beside him had sensed this too. Even Xiao Lan, who had been confined to the Spirit Beast Space to avoid revealing her strength, was now restlessly stirring.

The two exchanged a glance. After a moment’s thought, Shen Duo decided they should inform Zoe and her party, since after all, they were acting on the City Lord of Shaker City’s behalf.

Upon hearing the news, Zoe’s face darkened, but she quickly regained composure. After expressing her thanks, she began to arrange a strategy to deal with the situation.

With so many freelance spirit tamers camped on the riverbank, winning the River-Turning Crocodile would require careful planning. Though Zoe had yet to cross the threshold into the ranks of the Seven-Star Spirit Tamers, she had survived dozens of beast tides, both large and small, and was seasoned in such crises.

Gathering her people, Zoe instructed, “We’ll split into two groups. Shen Duo, Feng Jun, Princess Doris, and I will form one team. The rest will make up the second. Follow my orders when the time comes.”

Everyone understood the gravity of the moment. Even the usually headstrong Princess Doris made no objection—she merely rolled her eyes at Shen Duo and Feng Jun.

Sure enough, as their preparations were completed, the approaching spirit beasts grew closer from all directions. The purple reed forests along both banks began to rustle ominously. Many skilled spirit tamers, sensing that something was amiss, readied themselves for battle.

The rustling in the reeds grew louder and closer. Suddenly, countless blue lights, each the size of a fingertip, lit up within the thickets, flickering and floating eerily, sending chills down everyone’s spine.

“Teacher, what are those?” Princess Doris gasped, turning to Zoe.

Zoe’s frost-white brows furrowed deeply. “Princess, if my guess is right, those are Gold-Eating Rats—a whole horde of them!”

Gold-Eating Rats were social spirit beasts. Their pups were adorable, much like hamsters, only slightly larger. As adults, they grew to the size of cats, their eyes glowing and their teeth razor-sharp. They fed on metals and minerals, their fur extremely tough. The corrosive and sharp leaves of the purple reeds posed no threat to them.

If such a swarm of Gold-Eating Rats invaded the camp, not even a tent pole would be left standing within moments.

Freelance spirit tamers familiar with the rats’ habits scrambled to pack up, plunging the camp into chaos. Suddenly, a deep, angry roar echoed from the heart of the reeds.

At the sound, the Gold-Eating Rats became even more excited, chittering as they charged the camp. One by one, the gray, cat-sized rats with glowing blue eyes surged forward—a truly chilling sight.

“The River-Turning Crocodile is summoning low-ranked spirit beasts. We must be cautious—everyone, fall back. It’s not our turn to act yet,” Zoe said calmly.

The moment the rats flooded the camp, anything not yet packed away vanished into their bellies, leaving only muddy riverbank behind. The freelance spirit tamers responded in unison, unleashing blasts of spirit energy into the horde. Orbs of spirit energy of various hues exploded among the rats.

Though only low-ranked spirit beasts, their individual strength was limited. Moreover, among the defenders were many expert spirit tamers. In short order, the camp was littered with rat corpses. The spirit tamers deftly used their energy to form blades, extracting the magic crystals from the slain rats, some even capturing the wounded to sell to beast trainers.

The Songyan brothers watched the others reaping such rewards with greedy eyes, itching to join the fray, but seeing Shen Duo and his companions hold back, they reluctantly restrained themselves.

Half the vanguard of Gold-Eating Rats had been wiped out when the River-Turning Crocodile let out another roar. Instantly, the remaining rats ceased their attack and retreated en masse into the reeds.

Everyone was left bewildered. Just as the battle was going their way, the low-ranked spirit beasts had vanished.

A burly, bearded spirit tamer joked, “By the ancestors, even beasts know how to be afraid! I haven’t had my fill yet!”

The Songyan brothers looked regretful, wishing they’d seized the opportunity to profit. Shen Duo shot them a subtle glance.

Before the smirks could fade from the onlookers’ faces, the reeds rustled again—and then everyone was stunned speechless.

A dense tide of low-ranked, small-bodied spirit beasts surged forth, nearly covering the entire camp. This time, there were more Fire Serpents and Blackwood Scorpions, with Gold-Eating Rats and Red-Tufted Boars interspersed among them. It looked like a veritable spirit beast army.

A rough count put their numbers in the thousands, while the combined freelance tamers, even counting the weakest one-star adepts, totaled no more than a hundred. The River-Turning Crocodile was clearly attempting to wear them down through sheer numbers.

One low-ranked beast might be nothing, but what of a hundred? A thousand? Once the tamers’ spirit energy was depleted, the beasts would leave not even bones behind.

The thought alone sent chills down their spines.

No one could muster a laugh now. Arrogance was replaced by terror as the tamers retreated step by step, the spirit beast horde advancing inexorably.

With another furious roar from the River-Turning Crocodile, the herd charged like arrows loosed from a bow. The tamers hastily conjured protective shells of spirit energy. The Blackwood Scorpions, smaller than a human palm even when grown, were deadly—one sting would sap a tamer’s strength so thoroughly that escape was impossible, leaving them to be devoured by the rats.

Chaos reigned in the camp. Bursts of light from various formations flickered amid the screams of the tamers. One low-ranked adept was ensnared by a Fire Serpent and stung by a scorpion, his leg devoured by the rats before his very eyes—a gruesome sight.

Shen Duo and his group, having kept to the rear, watched the carnage with furrowed brows. Soon, the tamers began to falter; only a dozen or so high-ranking spirit tamers could still hold their ground. Even so, their once-spotless robes were now filthy, and they panted heavily, drained from overexertion.