Chapter Thirty-Three: The Valley of Miasma!

“Mmm...” In a daze, Su Yi heard a cacophony of noise by his ear.

What’s happening?

Fragments of memory flickered through his mind. The Blackhorn Dragon, the Dragon Slayer, the Bursting Scale Dragon, the collapsing rock wall... and that bottomless abyss plunging at terrifying speed!

Su Yi jolted awake in an instant.

Right! I fell into the fissure in the canyon! Where am I now?!

He jerked his head up, but felt pain all over, his limbs heavy as lead, his skin still stinging from burns.

“Awrooo!”

“Gah!”

Two familiar cries rang out nearby. Su Yi looked up: in the dim light, the Savage Jackal Dragon and the Scrapper Bird were standing guard, angrily facing off against some noisy creatures.

“Su Yi, nya! You’re awake, nya! Thank goodness, nya!” Dewgrass’s excited voice called out.

“Where are we?” Su Yi asked, struggling to his feet with Dewgrass’s help.

Hissing! Haa! Sssk!...

The noisy sounds were a chorus of reptilian cries, rising and falling in waves.

Focusing his eyes, Su Yi saw that in the gloom, eight or nine large lizards with black scales and yellow markings were circling them like a pack of wolves, constantly pestering his group.

At some point, the Savage Jackal Dragon and the Scrapper Bird had emerged to drive these creatures away.

“Those are Grimjaw Lizards! I’m in the Vale of Miasma?!” Recognizing the creatures, Su Yi quickly figured out his location.

Seeing that he was awake, the Savage Jackal Dragon and the Scrapper Bird both pressed close, forming a protective circle around him.

“Thank you both!” Su Yi patted them gratefully. He had no idea how long they’d stood guard for him.

“These pests... their presence must mean their leader—the Dire Grimjaw—can’t be far,” Su Yi muttered, frowning.

And as he spoke, as if summoned by his words, a figure slightly smaller than the Savage Jackal Dragon strode into the midst of the Grimjaw pack.

It bore similar colors to the Grimjaw Lizards, but its neck was fringed with a wide cobra-like hood.

This was none other than the Dire Grimjaw, the apex fanged monster of its kind.

It opened its jaws and let out a savage screech, revealing two long, venomous fangs dripping with paralyzing yellow-green venom—ferocious and deadly.

With the Dire Grimjaw’s roar, all the Grimjaw Lizards rustled forward, baring their fangs as they closed in on Su Yi and his companions.

“You think I’m an easy target? Savage Jackal Dragon! Dragon Claw! Scrapper Bird! Iron Boulder Bash!” Su Yi barked orders, his voice cold.

The Savage Jackal Dragon roared, its razor-sharp claws flashing as it lashed out, swatting aside several charging Grimjaw Lizards in a spray of blood and flesh; some unluckier ones were disemboweled on the spot.

The Scrapper Bird, agile as ever, hefted a massive stone and smashed it down, one after another, on the heads of the Grimjaw Lizards. Each blow rang with the chilling crack of bone.

The Dire Grimjaw threw back its head and bellowed again, its enormous hood vibrating, amplifying the sound across the area.

Within seconds, another five or six Grimjaw Lizards scurried out from every dark corner, as if their numbers were endless.

If the Savage Jackal Dragon, leading its pack of Jackal Dragons, was a gang leader, then the Dire Grimjaw was the true mafia boss; at its call, countless underlings would swarm in.

“Take the head to end the threat!” Su Yi commanded, directing the Savage Jackal Dragon to charge straight at the Dire Grimjaw.

After swatting aside the relentless Grimjaw Lizards, the Savage Jackal Dragon rapidly closed in on the Dire Grimjaw.

“Use Dragon Claw!” Su Yi shouted.

The Savage Jackal Dragon’s claws shimmered with draconic light as it struck with all its might, slamming the Dire Grimjaw hard to the ground.

The Dire Grimjaw tried to counterattack, but its strength was nothing compared to the Savage Jackal Dragon’s unleashed might. In an instant, it was pinned, writhing helplessly.

“Crushing Avalanche!” Su Yi pressed on.

The Savage Jackal Dragon heaved up and slammed its belly down with force, wringing a pained cry from the Dire Grimjaw. The surrounding Grimjaw Lizards rushed in, trying to save their leader.

“Dragon Tail!”

Obeying, the Savage Jackal Dragon whipped its long, green-scaled tail, sending the attackers flying with a single sweep.

“Another Dragon Claw!”

The Savage Jackal Dragon roared and raked its claws across the Dire Grimjaw, carving fresh, gruesome wounds and sapping the monster’s will to fight.

“Never thought the next one I’d tame would be the Dire Grimjaw,” Su Yi mused, drawing out a Poké Ball and throwing it at the wounded beast.

Snap!

The Poké Ball dropped to the ground without effect.

“What? Poké Balls from the Pokémon world can’t capture monsters? Does that mean I can only use the capture balls from the system?” Su Yi wondered, surprised.

It meant he’d have to be careful using his limited supply of system-issued capture balls.

He quickly swapped in one of his last seven, and hurled it at the struggling Dire Grimjaw. In a flash, the beast was sucked inside.

Thunk!

The capture ball shook violently.

Thunk!

It rocked again.

Su Yi’s brow furrowed. Was he not forceful enough?

Bang!

The Dire Grimjaw burst from the ball, panting and glaring warily at Su Yi.

A terrifying roar echoed from deep within the Vale of Miasma.

“What now?!” Su Yi’s nerves were fraying; monsters could leap out at any moment from anywhere.

The Dire Grimjaw, hearing the sound and feeling its injuries, turned and fled without a backward glance.

“Hmph! Think you can run?” Su Yi swiftly recalled the Savage Jackal Dragon, mounted the Scrapper Bird, and dashed off in pursuit, following the Dire Grimjaw’s trail.

With their leader gone, the Grimjaw Lizards broke ranks and scattered like startled animals.

...

Within the Vale of Miasma, thick toxic fumes blanketed many areas. Breathing them in could harm the body; prolonged exposure could be devastating.

But there was a temporary solution: burn away the miasma with fire, creating a fleeting pocket of clean air.

So, Su Yi rode atop the Scrapper Bird, holding a Burning Bug in his arms and using its ember to clear the vapors as they went.

As they traversed the bone-strewn, rubble-filled valley, the scenery grew ever more disturbing: rotting flesh, twisted skeletons of unknown beasts, and the ceaseless clicking of insects.

“So this is the Vale of Miasma, nya? Cough, cough—it stinks, nya! Why is it like this, nya?” the cat covered its nose and asked.

“This is a massive graveyard,” Su Yi explained, coughing. “Besides corpses that fall here from the Coral Highlands, this place is also the eternal resting ground for many ancient dragons, powerful and old.”

“See that gigantic bone? That’s the remains of the colossal serpent dragon,” Su Yi pointed to a massive rib jutting out from earth and stone in the distance.

“Such a huge bone, nya! Does that mean we’re walking atop the skeleton of some gigantic monster, nya?” the cat exclaimed in awe.

Su Yi smiled. “Astonishing, isn’t it? The New World.”

The Scrapper Bird picked its way carefully through bones and carrion, ascending a winding slope where the miasma grew thinner and it was easier to breathe.

Roar!

The dreadful roar echoed again. The guiding beetles ahead shrank back in alarm.

“Don’t tell me it’s another big shot... Let me think, who are the tough ones in the Vale of Miasma... Damn! Why do I only picture those few officers in my mind?” Su Yi groaned, his head throbbing.