Chapter 995: Chapter 607: Rescue
“Awooo!” Before the group could react, two Flame Dogs howled at the sky, causing the ground to shake and the entire scene to become incredibly terrifying.
Zhang Fan and the others struggled to stabilize themselves and instinctively looked up at the two Flame Dogs, only to see their bell-like eyes fixed intently on everyone present.
Their eyes were filled with a blood-red hue, and even from a distance, everyone could feel the murderous intent within the Flame Dogs’ gaze.
“Boom! Boom! Boom!” Massive thudding sounds echoed from beneath the Flame Dogs’ paws. Though their size had increased, it did not hinder their speed; in fact, they were several times faster than before.
Seeing this, Zhang Fan’s expression darkened. He hadn’t anticipated that the Flame Dogs would suddenly mutate.
In the months since he entered here, he had never seen anything mutate so suddenly—this was a first.
But now, no matter what, they had to find a way to handle this, otherwise, they were all likely to die here.
Thinking of this, Zhang Fan hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth tightly, gripping his machete with a determined fierceness, and charged rapidly toward the Flame Dog ahead.
“Clang!” As Zhang Fan reached the Flame Dog’s feet, his face showed a hint of joy. He thought the Flame Dog, despite its mutation, reacted slower. If he could chop off one of its legs, it would make things much easier.
But as the machete landed on its leg, a crisp sound rang out, and Zhang Fan felt a jolt of pain in his hand, causing the machete to fall to the ground.
“Crack!” Before Zhang Fan could fully react, the Flame Dog lifted a paw and stepped on the machete, breaking it in half.
Witnessing this, deep terror filled Zhang Fan’s eyes as he realized that the mutated Flame Dog had become terrifyingly stronger in every aspect and was not something they could contend with.
“Run!” The thought immediately flashed in Zhang Fan’s mind. He knew if they stayed any longer, he would inevitably die here.
So without much thought, Zhang Fan moved to flee, but he suddenly felt a powerful force behind him. His body was hit as if by a mountain and was sent flying, crashing heavily against a tree before falling.
“Ugh!” A spurt of scarlet blood gushed from his mouth, and Zhang Fan lay there, devoid of color on his face, like a corpse. The severe pain in his back told him that his spine was broken, leaving him without any combat strength.
“Run!” Zhang Fan, enduring the intense pain, shouted to the others.
However, as soon as he spoke, the two Flame Dogs spewed two massive fireballs toward the group.
“Boom! Boom!”
Two consecutive huge explosions sounded in the field, raising a cloud of dust that obscured what was happening inside.
Once the dust settled, Zhang Fan looked at the devastated scene. No one was spared; everyone was severely injured, with one person barely alive, their legs burned off by the fireball.
Facing such a dire situation, Zhang Fan’s eyes widened, full of bloodshot veins. He was unwilling; the end was in reach, yet this happened, leading to the deaths of everyone here.
“Is this our final fate?” Zhang Fan murmured softly with his eyes closed.
He didn’t blame anyone for this outcome, as it was his choice from the start, and there was no one else to blame.
What Zhang Fan didn’t know was that the Flame Dogs’ mutation was due to the intervention of Liu Hun and Xue Lan, those two anomalies.
That’s also why the previous Guardian didn’t allow the two of them to enter.
“Something feels off. We need to hurry.” On a vast grassland, Liu Hun spoke gravely to Xue Lan beside him.
Upon hearing this, Xue Lan nodded to Liu Hun with a similarly serious expression.
Since entering here, Xue Lan had felt something was amiss. Through Liu Hun’s actions, she realized that he truly cared about Zhang Fan; otherwise, he wouldn’t risk entering.
Hand in hand, the two raced forward, not hesitating to exhaust their strength.
About half an hour later, Liu Hun heard a deafening roar in his ears, his expression changing slightly. According to the map given by the old man, Zhang Fan was nearby.
But the huge roar clearly indicated something had happened where Zhang Fan was.
Thinking of this, Liu Hun and Xue Lan exchanged glances and quickened their pace.
Soon, they arrived at the scene, where the two Flame Dogs were closing in on the others. With Zhang Fan gently closing his eyes, since he had tried, even in death, he had no regrets.
In his despair, Liu Hun saw this and before he could speak, Xue Lan said directly, “I’ll handle the other one; you rescue them.”
“Alright, be careful.” Taking a deep breath, Liu Hun nodded to Xue Lan, then with no hesitation, sped to Zhang Fan like a gust of wind.
Facing the Flame Dog ahead, it mercilessly lifted a paw and swiped at Liu Hun.
Seeing this, a cold glint flashed across Liu Hun’s face. His feet lightly tapped the ground, and he leaped into the air in an instant.
After the Flame Dog missed with its swipe, its eyes, as big as bronze bells, showed a trace of anger. Just as it was about to shoot a fireball to incinerate Liu Hun, Liu Hun had already reached it.
With a movement of his palm, the dagger he obtained from the old ghost appeared directly in his hand. He gently moved, slicing open a gash on the Flame Dog’s neck.
As Liu Hun landed, he watched the Flame Dog collapse onto the ground with a crash. He glanced at Zhang Fan, who was not far away, with closed eyes waiting for death, and shook his head, not calling out to him but moving toward Xue Lan instead.
The Flame Dog’s hide was extremely tough, and Xue Lan could only hold it off for now. Killing it wasn’t an easy task.
Arriving in front of the Flame Dog, Liu Hun grasped the dagger in his hand and continuously struck at its legs.
For a moment, the Flame Dog howled in pain, its eyes full of fury.
“Now is the time!” Seeing the Flame Dog getting angry and preparing to conjure a fireball, Liu Hun’s body moved. In an instant, he was airborne, slicing open the Flame Dog’s neck.
“Boom!”
Another thunderous sound resounded. Watching the Flame Dog collapse to the ground, Liu Hun finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Luckily, he arrived just in time; otherwise, Zhang Fan’s life would have ended here today.
“Get up, the danger is over.” Liu Hun glanced at Zhang Fan not far away and couldn’t help but sigh.
Upon hearing that familiar voice, Zhang Fan was slightly surprised. Subconsciously, he opened his eyes and saw Liu Hun right there. Zhang Fan was momentarily stunned.
“Buddy, thanks for saving my life just now. Once we’re out of here, I’ll definitely repay you!” At this moment, before Zhang Fan could speak, a young man earnestly spoke to Liu Hun.
Hearing this, Liu Hun scanned the people and said, “I didn’t come to save you. I was just passing by.”
“Hiss!” The moment Zhang Fan saw Liu Hun, after a brief pause, he forced himself to endure the pain and got up from the ground.
But as soon as he stood up, leaning on his waist with both hands, he let out a wail of pain.
“Brother Fan!” The young man who had just spoken to Liu Hun, seeing this, his expression changed slightly. He quickly approached Zhang Fan with the girl beside him, supporting him with concern, “Brother Fan, are you okay?”
“Before, maybe there would have been a problem, but now it’s okay.” Zhang Fan shook his head and gave the others a slight smile.
Despite Zhang Fan’s words, the two didn’t believe him. After carefully checking his condition, they found his spine had been fractured. Instantly, their expressions turned grim.
“Brother Fan, your… your spine is broken…” The young man said to Zhang Fan, his face a bit pale.
“It’s nothing. As long as he’s here, even if I’ve set one foot in the grave, I’ll still survive.” On Zhang Fan’s pale face, a grateful smile appeared as he looked deeply at Liu Hun.
He knew this wasn’t a dream because, apart from Liu Hun, no one could kill the two Flame Dogs. They were utterly powerless.
Liu Hun appearing here meant Cheng Feng had returned safely, and now Liu Hun had come to rescue him.
No one knew better than Zhang Fan how terrifying the Land of Death was. Yet, despite everything, Liu Hun risked his life to save him, underscoring how much Liu Hun valued their bond.
“Brother Fan, do you know him?” Following Zhang Fan’s words, the others looked at Liu Hun in surprise.
The combat ability Liu Hun had just displayed was insanely strong. Instantly, he killed two mutated Flame Dogs, which had nearly killed them all.
Yet, such a terrifying person turned out to be someone their leader Zhang Fan knew, leaving them pleasantly shocked.
“This is the legendary Liu Hun I always tell you about.” Zhang Fan explained to them.
As soon as he spoke, everyone’s faces were astonished as they looked at Liu Hun in disbelief.
Before, when Zhang Fan had free time, he would talk about Liu Hun’s legendary past, but they never really believed it. After all, how could such a god-like doctor exist in this world?
But now, they believed.
“Fan, you and Feng shouldn’t have come here,” Liu Hun said, not caring about the others’ admiring gazes, approaching Zhang Fan with a sigh.
“This was our own choice, and if the boss doesn’t blame us for leaving, we’re already satisfied.” Zhang Fan smiled weakly at Liu Hun, shaking his head.
“Things aren’t as simple as you think. Forget it, we’ll discuss it later once we’re out. I can only temporarily reconnect your bones for now. For full recovery, you’ll need to rest after we return. Time is pressing, and who knows what else might appear here, so we must leave quickly.” Liu Hun finished speaking and took Zhang Fan from the young man’s hands, channeling energy into Zhang Fan’s body, starting to mend his fractured spine.