Under Nekomata's surprised gaze, a group of battered Bangboos appeared in the distance, rushing toward Zhu Yuan and Qingyi.
They were rusty, broken-down, with dents all over.
Some were missing an arm; others had cracks in their heads.
Hearing Nekomata's voice, Nicole, No. 11, Caesar, Piper, and the others quickly turned to look—sure enough, a whole group of Bangboos had reached Zhu Yuan and the others.
Nicole looked astonished.
"Are those really Bangboos?"
Billy frowned in confusion.
"I thought Bangboos from the outer ring were timid. What are they doing here?"
Piper shook her head.
"No idea..."
Still, they didn't pay the group much attention at first.
Then they turned their eyes back to the battlefield—where Sam Li and Azhdaha, Dragon King, clashed in the distance.
The mountain peak beneath Azhdaha had been flattened by dozens of meters upon impact.
...
At the same time...
On the other side, Zhu Yuan, Qingyi, Jane, and Seth also noticed the Bangboos running up behind them and turned to look.
They were a sorry sight—
wounded, worn, and dented...
But every single Bangboo held a stick or a small spiked club, standing in clear battle stances.
Seth flinched and quickly waved his hands.
"Hey, don't attack! We're not from the Lion Fang Gang—we're not your enemies!"
Just then—
One Bangboo, covered in scars, stepped forward.
"Mm-hmm, mm-hmm da, mm-hmm mm-hmm (They're not enemies. They saved me earlier and even repaired my damaged parts)…"
"Mm-hmm, mm-hmm (Put away your weapons)..."
And just like that, the Bangboos lowered their makeshift weapons.
Seth and Zhu Yuan exchanged stunned glances.
They had never seen Bangboos this beaten up, yet so well-disciplined.
Then another Bangboo stepped forward.
"Mm-hmm, mm-hmm mm-hmm (Lord King Azhdaha is fighting the bad guys. You should leave quickly—it might get dangerous)…"
Seth paused.
"Lord King Azhdaha? Hold on—he's really your boss?"
They'd guessed earlier that the massive beast might be connected to the Bangboo Gang...
But it had seemed too absurd, so they dismissed it.
Yet now—
It turned out to be true.
Not only was the giant beast part of the Bangboo Gang, it was their leader, King Azhdaha.
But seriously...
That towering hundred-meter-tall creature was a Bangboo?
Who could possibly build something that massive?
After a moment's thought, Seth hurriedly tried to explain.
"Mr. Sam Li isn't a bad guy—and neither are we. Please tell your boss to stop fighting."
One Bangboo replied,
"Mm-hmm da, mm-hmm (Lord King Azhdaha is fighting the bad guys)…"
Seth emphasized again,
"Mr. Sam Li is not a bad guy!"
But the Bangboo continued,
"Mm-hmm da, mm-hmm (Lord King Azhdaha is fighting the bad guys)…"
Seeing this, Qingyi immediately realized—
This Bangboo's speech module was broken.
Talking to it was pointless.
All they could do now was pray that Sam Li would defeat this so-called King Azhdaha.
Thankfully, it still looked like Sam Li had the upper hand.
With that in mind, the group stopped trying to reason with the Bangboos and focused their attention back on the battlefield.
...
Right now—
Sam Li and Azhdaha, Dragon King, had already exchanged dozens of blows.
Both had spent immense amounts of energy and elemental power.
After a brief moment of stillness, the enormous Azhdaha slowly rose again from the crushed mountain, its eyes bloodshot as it glared at Sam Li.
"To settle a thousand years of hatred... today, one of us dies."
With a furious roar, it prepared to draw more Geo energy from the mountain and resume battle.
But suddenly—
A faint, familiar voice echoed in its ears:
"Mm-hmm, mm-hmm da…"
It was the voice of the Bangboo underlings.
Azhdaha immediately turned and saw them—
a dozen Bangboos gathered near Zhu Yuan, Seth, Jane, and Qingyi.
Instantly, rage exploded inside him.
"Morax! How dare you—you've let humans take my followers hostage!"
Sam Li blinked.
"Your followers?"
He looked behind him and saw them too—the little Bangboos, standing with Zhu Yuan and the others.
Realization dawned.
Did this dumb dragon actually think Zhu Yuan and Qingyi had kidnapped them?
Sam Li took a deep breath.
"That's not a hostage situation. They came to find you. Even if just for their sake... let's end this fight."
That kind of plea might have worked on a rational person.
But Azhdaha had long been blinded by rage, hate, and corrosion.
If Sam Li didn't die, it wasn't going to stop.
"Morax! I'll kill you first—then wipe out those wretched humans—!"
"If words won't work... then I'll let my spear do the talking."
...
Sam Li sighed.
He finally summoned the Vortex Vanquisher, ready to face Azhdaha head-on.
If he could subdue it now—before it fully recovered—he might be able to seal it.
But his current roleplay progress was still too low.
His sealing ability wasn't strong enough yet to contain something as massive as the Dragon King.
He took a deep breath and gripped the Vortex Vanquisher.
Then, he soared skyward.
Raising the weapon high, he pointed it at Azhdaha, Dragon King.
In that moment—
Countless Geo elements surged toward him. In just seconds, an enormous amount had gathered.
At his command, they converged—
forming massive spears of rock, each glowing golden and stretching over ten meters long.
With a single shout from Sam Li—
they launched.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The spears tore through the sky like a rainstorm, all aimed at Azhdaha.
But Azhdaha didn't flinch.
It roared toward the heavens, its body blazing with golden light—
and endured the entire barrage head-on.
Tough as ever.
It seemed almost unscathed.
Then, in a single leap, it launched itself from the mountain peak—charging straight at Sam Li.
Sam Li didn't dodge.
He met it head-on, clashing with the Vortex Vanquisher against Azhdaha's claws.
BOOM!
The collision shook the land.
Even the ground beneath Sam Li's feet caved in several meters, forming a massive crater.
Then—
Sam Li gritted his teeth, mustered all his strength, and hurled Azhdaha into the air.
But Azhdaha wasn't backing down.
It countered immediately, unleashing move after move:
Mountainfall Quake, Faith's Collapse, Earth's Burial...
They traded blows, dozens of rounds back and forth.
Azhdaha couldn't kill Sam Li—
and Sam Li couldn't yet restrain Azhdaha.
They were locked in a stalemate.
Still, it was clear—
Sam Li had the upper hand.
If this dragged on, Azhdaha would eventually lose.
His energy was draining fast.
His massive body—reconstructed through sheer force of will—was starting to falter.
And if his strength dropped any further...
He wouldn't be able to maintain that colossal form.
Before long—
he'd shrink back down into a tiny Azhdaha again.