Hidden genius: Black belly snake

Tang Yue did not wait for the damned monstrous dragon to make a move and she quickly jumped, plummeting down further.

She decided to flee in the downward direction rather than running towards the palace entrance as the beast had blocked her way tactically.

And just as she jumped, the dragon's eyes moved to trail her slender body falling down, wondering just how she was planning to escape its grasp.

Every beast above the mid-grade had plenty of intelligence and were complex creatures with greed, lust, and pride, just like the higher beings.

It knows that it could probably kill Tang Yue in one single swipe or one single dragon breath.

But how could it let off someone who had dared to step inside its territory and rob its cave so easily?

It snorted coldly, wisps of smoke coming out of its jagged snout that was pitch black in color, its canines shining like bright silver.

Its eyes trailed Tang Yue in amusement and anger as it watched her morph into her serpentine form as soon as she hit the ground, the few snakes coiled on her body scattering in various directions at her command.

She then hardened her scales to the maximum that she could and kept continuing to burrow downward, after casting 'Loose Earth'.

Her plan was obvious and the dragon sneered seeing her hail mary attempt since it already knew the result.

It snorted coldly and moved, its movement a blur and its figure instantly hovering over the hole on the ground through which Tang Yue had burrowed into.

Flapping its two gigantic wings, the dragon then casually clawed at the earth, ignoring the spikes and the rocks standing in its way.

Swoosh!

A giant hole appeared on the ground and the moat became deeper in that part where the dragon had scooped out the rocks and red grains of sand, and of course, along with it a slender blue snake.

The others including Jin Wei had already run away in a different direction like Tang Yue had instructed them to.

She didn't think that the dragon would pursue them while she was still alive and she was right to think so.

It paid no attention to the weaker snakes as its eyes glinted, only looking at the culprit with its eggs. Not that it planned to forget them, it simply prioritized its hunt.

Tang Yue felt her head spin and it only took her a fraction of a second to see what had happened.

She didn't hesitate and jumped down once again, plummeting directly from the dragon's claws back down to the ground, burrowing further deeper inside, as fast as she could.

Her body was aching from the various injuries top to bottom, but she kept burrowing using the full power that she could.

In retrospect, she would have perhaps landed into the palace safely if she hadn't gone back to look into the cave, but then again the dragon would have probably noticed her anyways as she was flying towards the palace.

There was no time or space for regrets now.

Though the old man had warned her that this island had beasts that were beyond her level, she had never expected something so disastrously powerful.

She could at least run away if she could take a single direct attack from the beast but against this glorious dragon, she didn't even stand a minuscule chance.

Watching Tang Yue once again burrow into the ground, the dragon lost its patience and its interest, as she was not doing any fancy magic spells.

It had expected more from the emerald-eyed snake spirit beast and let out a small sigh before loudly harrumphing and opening its mouth, revealing all the sharp and long glittering canines.

"Snort! I will give you a taste of my power before you die, you foolish beast." The dragon unexpectedly grumbled and its loud voice thundered across the entire island, making all the beasts shiver in fright.

"This thing can talk?" Tang Yue felt her body vibrate from the sheer aura and pressure the beast exuded, making her vision blurry. 

However, she didn't stop and kept fleeing in the general direction downward and towards the palace as her life depended on it.

But it was already too late…

She had at most only covered three-quarters of the moat, and she knew that she neither had the strength or time to persist much longer and survive until she reached the palatial gates.

Tang Yue, however, still refused to give up. She couldn't give up until the very end even if she wanted to because she had promised some people that she would be back.

And unlike her mother, who never kept her promise, she was determined to keep hers and to return back no matter what.

The dragon squinted its eyes at her vain efforts and opened its mouth again, this time a small silver black ball forming at the center of its mouth, right above its tongue.

The ball grew exponentially bigger in size in just a couple of seconds and with a single breath, the dragon sent the ball towards the ground where Tang Yue was currently fleeing under the surface.

Kara Ka BOOM!

A loud deafening noise echoed as the ball of the black and silver energy swirl hit the ground and exploded on the spot, carving out a huge gaping hollow curve on the ground.

All the earthen spikes in the area shattered into a million pieces and the pieces of rock and dark red sand flew everywhere.

Unmistakably intermixed within this mess were shreds of sturdy blue flesh and purple blood.

The dragon's eyes darted here and there before landing onto a chunk of blue flesh, slightly bigger than the others and it snorted contently.

It had taken care of the foolish pest who had dared to steal from it, but suddenly the dragon's eyes froze.

Its movements paused for a moment as if it was pondering something and then it raised its head to let out a loud enraged roar! 

Even in death, the pest had seemingly dealt a blow to it, as its possessions had also been shattered into smithereens along with the snake that took them.