Chapter 420

Chapter 420

Fa Meng let out another low roar, and Xiao Lan swiftly flung a shimmering sapphire-blue rope from its hand, accurately lassoing the tip of the giant sandworm's tail.

Then, its small body fluttered its wings, attempting to ascend. After a few futile attempts, it realized that pulling the worm out this way was a lost cause. So, it took a deep breath, assumed a martial arts horse stance in mid-air, and began to swing the rope backward like fishing.

Fishing was one of the earliest leisurely activities Xiao Lan had engaged in since its birth, and both Lorant and Fa Meng were particularly fond of this time-passing game.

In that moment, the mountain-like giant sandworm was yanked up by the delicate little elf.

It was a visually striking scene, as shocking as an ant tripping an elephant and then swinging it by its trunk.

Lorant, crouched behind a rock, gaped in astonishment, his face frozen in a silly expression as he watched the two little ones, who were usually so different, now displaying their might in mid-air.

It felt like seeing his well-behaved puppy transform overnight into a wolfhound, towering over him.

The contrast and sense of dislocation were stark.

In short, it left Lorant feeling quite complex.

Of course, the one feeling even more complex was probably the giant sandworm, which had been forcibly dragged out from the sand by its tail.

The giant sandworm never expected its swift, unannounced escape to fail, with the other party actually cutting a hole in its escape route and forcibly pulling it out by its tail!

It had been millennia since it had endured such humiliation.

Or rather, since the giant sandworm could remember, it had hardly engaged in many battles with other beings. As a legendary beast, even in its juvenile stage, it was among the world's top predators.

It didn't need combat skill; its powerful physique and energy sufficed.

So, when unexpected situations arose in battle, the giant sandworm was momentarily flustered.

But the next second, the combat genes in its bloodline calmed the giant beast. It stopped fleeing, bent its body into a 'U' shape, extended its head from the sand, and bit at Xiao Lan, who was mid-air, dragging the rope, and unable to dodge.

In the next moment, Xiao Lan, clutching the rope with nowhere to hide, was swallowed whole by the giant sandworm, vanishing from sight.

Lorant, crouched behind the rock, couldn't help but gasp and instinctively wanted to rush forward.

Whether his small frame could help or just add to the chaos, Lorant didn't ponder at that moment.

His mind blanked the moment Xiao Lan vanished, and everything around him dissolved into white noise, as if the world had paused.

But before he could run a few steps, he was stopped by a sapphire-blue light barrier, a defensive array left by Xiao Lan when it departed to protect Lorant.

After slamming into the air wall and feeling his nose throb, Lorant regained his senses.

This protective barrier was maintained by Xiao Lan's magic, and its presence meant Xiao Lan could still control its magic with precision.

In other words, Xiao Lan was likely unharmed.

Calming down, Lorant also realized that with Fa Meng and Xiao Lan, two beasts of the same level as the giant sandworm, they shouldn't be ambushed so easily.

Especially since Fa Meng and Xiao Lan had set the trap.

Indeed, as Xiao Lan vanished into the giant sandworm's mouth, Fa Meng's ferocious dragon face broke into a triumphant grin.

The dragon quickly moved forward, not to rescue Xiao Lan from the giant sandworm's mouth, but to help the giant sandworm close its cylindrical mouth.

It seemed as if Fa Meng was afraid that if the giant sandworm's mouth closed even half a second later, Xiao Lan might fly out again.

The giant sandworm, with its mouthparts clamped shut, was also stunned for half a second.

It was during this half second that Fa Meng zipped its mouth shut with a zipper imbued with magical rules, while beneath the entire desert, explosions powerful enough to level a city began to rumble.

The intense vibrations emanating from the giant sandworm's body caused the surrounding sand dunes to continuously crumble inward.

With its mouth zipped shut and unable to open, and its head firmly held by the dragon, the giant sandworm struggled to break free, thrashing its tail tip in agony, its cries drowned out by the explosions.

Its massive body, like an old hose filled with gas, writhed wildly across the desert.

In the next moment, as if reliving yesterday, azure, cone-shaped beams of light pierced through various parts of the giant sandworm's body, transforming it into a long, spiky hedgehog.

A terrifying explosion occurred inside the giant sandworm, dealing a massive blow to this once seemingly invincible legendary beast.

Lorant had always believed that such a creature might lack facial features.

Or at least, in his imagination, its facial features were probably hidden in some obscure places, difficult to detect, given its enormous size and the fact that its body was a complete elongated shape, with the only notable feature being the massive mouthparts, leaving no space for facial features.

But when the giant sandworm, with its eyes rolled back, hung upside down in front of him, Lorant, as if discovering a new continent, inappropriately mused that the eyes of this legendary beast were surprisingly large.

And their placement was strikingly obvious...

Fa Meng had no time to lose in daydreaming like the boy on the rock; it immediately flapped its wings and carried the giant sandworm high into the sky.

After flying so high that even the mountain-sized body of the giant sandworm became a tiny dot in the sky, Fa Meng, without hesitation, released its grip, letting the unconscious giant beast free-fall.

The moment the desert king hit the sand, the entire desert trembled, sending up a sandstorm towering thousands of meters high.

Lorant instinctively shielded his face from the flying sand and rock fragments, though, protected by Xiao Lan's barrier, none of these could breach the azure shield.

Centered on the fallen giant sandworm, sandstorm waves rippled outward in concentric circles for hundreds of miles.

It was like a massive stone thrown into a small pond, creating a massive disturbance that nearly upended the entire pond.

The entire process lasted for several tens of minutes.

Lorant emerged from behind the rock just in time to see Xiao Lan, with its sharp claws, tear open the giant sandworm's belly and climb out through the bloody wound.

Lorant stood rooted to the spot, staring in horror as his usually timid and shy little creature, now drenched in blood, looked like a fiend emerging from the depths of hell.

Xiao Lan immediately sensed Lorant's mood.

The bloodthirsty elf, who had just been elated from a successful hunt, now stiffened in place.

In the next moment, a burst of azure light enveloped Xiao Lan.

The elf immediately became clean again, even shimmering with tiny, gem-like fragments all over, looking no different from the kind and adorable elves in fairy tales, a stark contrast against the blood-drenched surroundings.

It even seemed to shift into a different artistic style.

As if forcibly detaching itself from the real world, it became a perfect fairy tale that fit others' imaginations.

It was Lorant's good child, and it would never get itself dirty outside! Not even in battle!

Xiao Lan silently thought.

It then carefully smoothed its wings and long hair, ensuring it was clean enough, before cautiously clutching its hair and floating over to Lorant, gazing up at him with beseeching eyes.

The cautious expression on its face seemed to worry that Lorant might disdain it for its previously dirty appearance.

Like a stray puppy without a sense of security, worried that its performance might not be good enough to be chosen and taken home.

Lorant, however, completely missed the anxious demeanor of the little one.

All his attention was focused on the little one, who in his eyes seemed to have narrowly escaped death. He didn't have time to notice the complex psychological changes in the little one. The young man stepped forward and scooped Xiao Lan from mid-air, holding him tightly in his arms.

Xiao Lan, being tightly hugged, twisted a bit shyly but then obediently allowed Lorant to check every part of his body.

From the strands of hair to the tips of his toes, Lorant checked Xiao Lan thoroughly and found no injuries.

'I'm fine, Lorant! I'm not hurt,' Xiao Lan hugged Lorant's neck and communicated telepathically.

Lorant breathed a huge sigh of relief, ruffled Xiao Lan's hair a bit, and then nonchalantly set him down.

Xiao Lan, who had just been soaking up Lorant's endless care and attention, was suddenly left stunned, flapping his wings to keep from falling onto the sand. He then watched as Lorant ran towards Fa Meng, who was slowly descending from the sky, looking extremely weak.

Fa Meng was slowly floating down, her massive body seemingly unable to maintain its form any longer, changing back into little fat dragon. She drifted down lightly from the air, like a falling leaf, into Lorant's open arms.

The short wings behind Fa Meng drooped limply from Lorant's hands. The usually energetic and seemingly tireless little one now looked listless, with tiny wounds all over her body, some still oozing blood.

The heartbreaking sight brought tears to Lorant's eyes.