Chapter 14: Earth Dragon Araba
Falling... falling indefinitely...
It felt like a bottomless abyss. Shiro felt the wind howling past her ears, and her entire being was shrouded in terror. She struggled desperately, wanting to escape, wanting to grab onto anything.
"Hold me tight," his low, raspy voice whispered in her ear. "Otherwise, don't blame me if you fall to your death."
"This is not the time to talk about such terrifying things!" Shiro retorted through gritted teeth, but she obediently clung to him, straining her eyes to watch the pitch-black environment around them.
*Thwip!*
The sound of silk being spat rang out. Shirazawa used a thread to hook onto a protruding rock face. Carrying Shiro, he slowly drifted downward and landed steadily on the ground.
"Whew~~" Shiro panted, still shaken, but a surge of survivor's joy bubbled up inside her. "That scared the life out of me."
"Yeah," Shirazawa replied flatly, his gaze shifting upward. "It's not over yet."
*Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!*
The sound of countless insect wings vibrating reached them. Shiro followed his gaze. Above them, a massive swarm of giant wasps was diving toward their position.
"Aaaah! What are those things?!"
[High Finjicote Lv5] x N
"It's a swarm. Let's go!"
Shirazawa's brow furrowed. He immediately led Shiro into the darkness ahead to retreat.
*BOOM—!*
However, in the next second, a violent crash echoed from the dark.
"Not good!"
Shirazawa's expression shifted. He pulled Shiro tight against him and, with several leaps, reached the ceiling of the stone cavern, hanging upside down like a bat.
[Elroe Baraggish Lv9] x 3
Three massive serpents lunged out of the darkness, their blood-red maws snapping at the wasps.
"Are you kidding me? We just got down here and we're already running into this many monsters," Shiro complained with a long face. "We're never going to survive at this rate."
Shirazawa glanced at her. "You can't say that. While the monsters in the Lower Stratum are ridiculously strong, some are relatively 'weaker' in a way."
"Weaker?" Shiro asked skeptically. "Like what?"
"Creatures like us that are naturally venomous. Because our bodies are toxic, other monsters don't like dealing with us. We taste bad, and eating us leads to poisoning. Most poison-type monsters can carve out a quiet corner to live in, as long as they don't go looking for trouble," Shirazawa explained.
Shiro had an epiphany. "So that's how it is."
She hadn't expected that being poisonous would come with such a "privilege." However, there was one thing Shirazawa didn't mention: these toxic creatures tasted *absolutely foul*. For a long time to come, they would be fighting a war against meat that was nearly impossible to swallow.
Just as they were thinking, a terrifying roar erupted from below. An unspeakable, horrific pressure swept through the area, making it hard to breathe. A strong sense of crisis surged into their hearts; alarm bells were ringing!
*Hiss—*
Both spiders took a sharp breath in unison. *What is down there? Just its aura alone is this terrifying.*
*THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!* Accompanied by heavy footsteps, a massive black shadow slowly crawled out of the darkness.
"Holy..."
Shiraori's mouth twitched, and she swallowed hard. The creature before them was dozens of meters tall, with a robust build and bulging muscles. It resembled a Qilin, with blue-gray skin covered in thick dragon scales. Red, diamond-shaped crystals grew along its back, looking like a pair of crimson crystal wings. A long single horn grew from the center of its forehead, and its sharp eyes glinted with a cold, metallic light. With every step of its powerful limbs, the ground trembled.
＜Earth Dragon Araba Lv31＞
＜Appraisal of stats failed＞
"ROAR—!"
Earth Dragon Araba roared toward the sky, the sound deafening. Shiro felt like her ears were going to explode; she clutched her head and crouched down. Shirazawa pulled her into his embrace, calmly observing this "arch-rival" of her destiny.
Although the current "Appraisal-sensei" couldn't detect Araba's specific stats, Shirazawa estimated his ability values were around 5,000. For two small-time mobs with stats under 200, he was indeed a nightmare incarnate.
"What do we do?" Shiro leaned tightly against Shirazawa's chest, looking up at him with worry.
"Don't be afraid, I'm here," Shirazawa patted her shoulder, speaking softly. "As long as you stay by my side, I can protect you no matter what happens."
"..." Shiro blinked, her heart inexplicably skipping a beat. She hurriedly looked away, stammering, "Wh-who needs your protection? You aren't much stronger than me anyway..."
"Heh..."
Shirazawa laughed and shook his head. *This silly kid is actually blushing.*
"ROOOOAR!"
Araba's presence startled the Basilisks and giant wasps engaged in battle. Clearly, this newcomer was a far greater threat. They abandoned each other and turned their attacks toward the Earth Dragon. In an instant, various attacks rained down on him.
*CLANG! BANG! THUD!*
The sounds of impact followed one after another. Araba was massive, and as a high-ranking Dragon, his defense was the "ceiling" of the early game. Even the combined attacks of hundreds of monsters failed to leave a single mark on him; he was completely unscathed.
"So powerful..." Shiro murmured, unable to hide her look of envy.
Shirazawa rubbed her head dotingly. "We will surpass him."
"Yeah!" Shiro nodded firmly.
Below, the pestered Araba seemed to grow irritable. He suddenly unleashed an earth-shattering roar.
**BOOM!**
A massive surge of pressure descended, instantly blasting a deep crater into the ground. Earth shattered, and soil flew everywhere. When the dust finally settled, not a single living thing remained. The ground was littered with corpses and flowing blood; the thick scent of iron filled their nostrils.
Shiro's eyes widened at the carnage. With just one move, he had wiped out every single monster that had been chasing them. How brutal.
*Crunch, crunch!* Araba didn't care about the gaze of these two "ants" above; he began to feast on the remains on the ground.
Shirazawa looked at Araba, his expression solemn. This guy was too troublesome; they had to get out of here fast. He gently stroked Shiro's head. "Let's go."
Shiro nodded and followed his lead. As they left, she stole one last glance at Araba. It was a terrifying face, with a maw filled with razor-sharp fangs and vertical pupils like brass bells flickering with a cold, ruthless light.
Their gazes miraculously met for a split second. Shiro froze, then quickly averted her eyes and lowered her head. She saw it in his eyes—intense disdain and contempt. It was the contempt for the weak, as if she were nothing but lowly dust, not even worthy of becoming his food.
Shiro lowered her eyes to hide the rising resentment in her heart. She clenched her "fist" and turned away.
*Just you wait! One day, I will stand at the top of the food chain and make everyone who looked down on me pay the price.*
*Dignity is not to be trampled upon.*
Shiro composed her thoughts and followed Shirazawa as they wandered through the Lower Stratum. Fortunately, having learned the new skill
During their journey, the monsters of the Lower Stratum vividly demonstrated the meaning of "survival of the fittest." A Mantis monster that could easily slaughter giant wasps acted as if it owned the tunnels, only to have its head bitten off a moment later by a sudden giant spider. A centipede that could breathe fire and possessed a sturdy shell easily killed dozens of pythons, only to be devoured by a swarming army of black ants in the next second.
This was the Elroe Labyrinth Lower Stratum. Stronger monsters were everywhere. If you didn't know how to hide, a single mistake would cost you your life. Every monster lived in this hell with extreme caution; no one dared to gamble with their lives.
Except for one kind of creature... Snail-sensei...