Chapter 82: The Fleshy Abomination

The creature's multifaceted eyes glowed brighter as it let out a guttural roar that shook the very foundations of the passageway. Tendrils of pulsating flesh shot out from its body, hurtling towards both groups. Chen Jiuzhang raised the crystal - key, summoning a shield of blue light just in time to deflect the incoming attack. The impact sent shockwaves through his arm, nearly knocking him off his feet.​"Spread out!" Su Nian shouted, her chains whirling as she sliced through another tendril. "We can't let it pin us down!"​On the other side of the rift, Zhang Chengying charged forward, his broken peachwood sword crackling with electricity. He aimed for one of the creature's eyes, but a thick layer of fleshy armor emerged, blocking his strike. "It's too tough!" he grunted, barely dodging a counterattack.​Luna, her starlight - woven gown now hanging in shreds, closed her eyes and concentrated. A constellation of stars materialized above her head, then rained down on the creature. But the stars merely sizzled and fizzled upon impact, doing little damage. "It's absorbing our attacks!" she cried, her voice laced with panic.​Shen Qingluan, still struggling to regain her senses, clutched the fragment of the Imperial Jade Seal tightly. A faint golden light emanated from it, but it was nowhere near enough to combat the creature's onslaught. She watched in horror as more tendrils snaked towards her, their tips dripping with a corrosive liquid.​Wu Laogou finally retrieved his amulet, his hands shaking. He waved it frantically, chanting an ancient incantation. A barrier of shimmering light formed around him, Su Nian, and Chen Jiuzhang, temporarily protecting them from the tendrils. "This won't hold for long!" he shouted.​Chen Jiuzhang's mind raced. He could feel the crystal - key resonating with the creature's energy in a strange way. Images flashed through his mind—visions of a long - forgotten laboratory, where dark experiments were conducted on the very fabric of life. "I think... I think this thing was created, not born," he said, his voice filled with realization.​Su Nian's eyes widened. "What does that mean?"​Before he could answer, the creature let out another ear - piercing roar. Its body began to swell, and a gaping maw opened in its chest, revealing rows of jagged teeth. It lunged towards Chen Jiuzhang's group, its massive form threatening to crush them.​Just then, Lyra, who had been lurking in the shadows, emerged. She held a staff in her hand, its tip glowing with a cold, silver light. "You're right, Chen Jiuzhang. This abomination is the result of a failed attempt to create a perfect guardian. But now, it's a mindless beast that will stop at nothing to destroy anything that enters its domain."​With a wave of her staff, Lyra sent a blast of energy towards the creature, temporarily halting its advance. "We need to find its core, the source of its power. Only then can we destroy it."​The group nodded, their determination renewed. But as they prepared to launch a counterattack, the creature let out a final, earth - shattering roar, and the entire passageway began to crumble around them. The battle against the fleshy abomination had just entered its most perilous phase.