Chapter 2554: Chapter 2554: Its Purpose

The chaos was so vast that it was known to contain many unknown beasts.

Some people believed there were undiscovered beasts living in the chaos.

The top ten vicious beasts were known widely around the Source World. They were feared for their overwhelming strength and size. They would cause turmoil and unrest every time they surfaced.

Among the ten vicious beasts was the Sky Rending Rhinoceros. It was about ten million miles long. It resembled a large snake, and it did not have scales or claws. Its head had two wings fixed on both sides, making it able to fly up in space.

Many years ago, the Sky Rending Rhinoceros surfaced in the Source World. Chaos ensued as it caused disturbances and proceeded to destroy a city. Zhurong later stepped up to fend off the city against it. Although Zhurong had the advantage over it, he still failed to exterminate it. In the end, the Sky Rending Rhinoceros broke through the space and flew off to hide in the chaos.

(*TN: Zhurong, known as the God of Fire, is an important personage in Chinese mythology and Chinese folk religion.)

Emily had read this record in a book when she was young.

She was filled with fear when she read the description of the Sky Rending Rhinoceros in her childhood.

At that time, she did not expect to come face to face with her childhood fears in the future.

She felt her stomach turn when Leopold mentioned the Ruin Graveyard. At that time, she clenched her fists subconsciously as she felt anxious.

It was known when the Sky Rending Rhinoceros passed through the void, the space cave it left would exist for a short period. Since the space cave was opened, it meant the Sky Rending Rhinoceros recently passed through there. If they came face to face with the mighty beast, it would be worse than falling into dangerous lands.

Emily thought to herself about all the unfortunate events that could take place if they faced the beast. She attempted to calm her breathing and looked forward. Even if she decided to voice her troubles out to everyone, it would not make much of a difference. She silently prayed under her breath, hoping they didn't encounter it.

As she was in the process of collecting her thoughts, she looked up. Her worst fears came to life when the image of the Sky Rending Rhinoceros appeared in front of her. She froze and felt her soul leave her body. She forgot how to breathe as it filled her view.

“Hoo...” “Hoo...”

The Sky Rending Rhinoceros howled viciously as it twisted its body which was about ten million miles long.

Suddenly, the air in the space seemed to have stopped flowing. The atmosphere changed as fear and terror filled the space. The Sky Rending Rhinoceros flaunted its dominant aura. Its eyes were like two huge stars glaring directly at them.

Compared to the size of the mighty beast before them, the Trumpet Flying Ship seemed as minuscule as an ant.

Zen immediately stiffened up at the sight of the beast. He felt his throat dry up as if he had been thirsty for centuries. Tiny particles of sweat began to roll down his face.

A monster that size could swallow up the Source World if it wanted. The Trumpet Flying Ship was far too small compared to that.

Even though Yan's eyes were closed, she could still sense the powerful aura of the Sky Rending Rhinoceros.

A creature like that could destroy the souls of the True Gods by its own aura.

Zen and Yan both had the Soul of Light. Zen had undergone the baptism of the Sea of Truth, so he was able to withstand the aura of the beast. However, Yan hadn't gone to the Sea of Truth. As a result, her Soul of Light had to bear more pressure from the beast. 𝑅₳ΝồВËṣ

Sensing Yan's agony, Zen quickly took out a back pill.

Zen had prepared for any mishap that could happen during the journey. He kept every possibility in mind before leaving for it. The black pill was a gift from Timotheus. It could replenish soul power.

Zen even had soul pills stashed in his inventory for the journey. They were stronger pills, and he obtained them in the Sea of Truth. However, the pills came with rules. They couldn't be used outside the Sea of Truth.

He reached for her face and cupped it in his hand. He gently opened Yan's mouth with his fingers and made her swallow the pill down.

Yan's soul power was quickly replenished, and her frail Soul of Light finally calmed down. She opened her eyes and bit her lip. Despite what happened, she tried to put on the bravest expression she could to appear tough in front of her brother. She wanted to be his strength, not his weakness.

Lucky for them, the Sky Rending Rhinoceros just stared at the Trumpet Flying Ship with its star-sized eyes. It did not intend to make a move.

Emily, Leopold and the other masters at the Other Shore Realm stood their ground and studied the movements of the beast. They did not dare to act impulsively to confront it. They did not want to tempt it to attack them.

The silent wait made Leopold restless. He switched his gaze from the beast to Emily and asked in a low voice, “Emily, what should we do?”

Emily shook her head gently while her body remained stiff. “Such a fierce beast is not something we can fight against.”

“But it keeps glaring at us like that. Is it going to kill us with its eyes?” Leopold said with a bitter face. He could not stand the wait anymore.

Such an experience was not easy to comprehend. Watching the beast staring at them with no movement made it seem like they were on borrowed time. It felt like the wait before a prisoner was sentenced to their death. Leopold turned his gaze to the ground and closed his eyes in anticipation. He wished the Sky Rending Rhinoceros could just swallow them in one gulp and end their suffering.

After five minutes that felt like five hours, the Sky Rending Rhinoceros finally began to move.

It slowly stretched and twisted its huge body as it made its way towards the Trumpet Flying Ship. Everyone froze and watched as it drew closer to them. The wrinkles on its skin now flashed before their eyes. Every wrinkle was as deep as a canyon.

Studying it up close, they realized how invincible it was. Even if Zen and the others transformed into the huge Wild Gods, they would still fall short in front of it.

As it continued to shorten the distance between itself and the ship, everyone could feel their heart sink. It was as if they were paralyzed in fear.

When the Sky Rending Rhinoceros was hundreds of miles away from the Trumpet Flying Ship, a gust of strong wind howled.

“Hoo, hoo, hoo...”

The Sky Rending Rhinoceros began to inhale. It took in deep breaths as it focused on something. It appeared to be trying to smell something in the air.

As the wind blew viciously, the Trumpet Flying Ship shook again. Leopold quickly controlled the jade plate to keep it steady.

It appeared the monster didn't intend on attacking them. If it did, they would have suffered the consequences by now.

“Hoo!”

The Sky Rending Rhinoceros seemed to be struggling. It sniffed the air several times, trying to catch a whiff of what it was sensing. The wings on both sides of its head suddenly spread out, and at the same time, it let out a shrill scream.

“Shh!”

Hearing its long cry, Zen and the others instinctively covered their ears. The noise was so loud that it pierced through their ears into their heads.

They all stood and watched in confusion. What could it want? Why was it desperately trying to sense something? What could it possibly be looking for? For a while, they ignored the pain as they continued to study the movements of the Sky Rending Rhinoceros.

“What is the Sky Rending Rhinoceros trying to do?” Leopold said, looking exasperated.

“Beasts like the Sky Rending Rhinoceros have extraordinary wisdom. If it wants to know something, it should be able to communicate with us directly,” a woman of the Snake Goddess race said with a grimaced look in her eyes.

Emily showed a helpless expression. “Maybe it doesn't think it's worthy of communicating with us.”

Emily was also confused.

From the way it looked, the Sky Rending Rhinoceros did not have any intentions of swallowing the Trumpet Flying Ship. It seemed to have sensed something within the ship. It continued its attempts to locate it.

But on the ship, there were only Zen, Yan and the warriors at the Other Shore Realm.

At this moment, Zen felt strange warmth in his chest as No. 9527's voice resounded in his mind. It seemed to have calmed his nerves down from the intense situation. “Zen, leave the Trumpet Flying Ship. Let me talk to the Sky Rending Rhinoceros.”

The Sky Rending Rhinoceros was sensitive enough to perceive anything. Although No. 9527's soul power was very weak, it could still perceive it.

No. 9527 didn't want to announce its presence to Emily and the others. It wanted to meet the Sky Rending Rhinoceros under discretion. It asked Zen to leave the ship so it could communicate with the beast.

“Does the Sky Rending Rhinoceros aim at you?” Zen's face turned pale as he asked No. 9527.

“Yes, I knew this would happen when you entered the space cave. However, the Trumpet Flying Ship was unable to get rid of the gravity of the space cave, so I could do nothing to stop this from happening.” A hint of helplessness could be heard in No. 9527's tone.

This made Zen curious. He had never felt such an emotion from No. 9527.