The wall of water conjured by Hachymuga hovered in the air for perhaps a second or two, seemingly gathering its strength, before it surged forth like a tsunami, crashing down with devastating force.

The sheer momentum of this expulsion was akin to a mountain flood bursting its banks. In that instant, at least half of the entire underground lake's volume was forcefully drawn out and launched away, infused with the agonizing fury of the giant octopus Hachymuga.

Hachymuga had clearly refrained from using this maneuver earlier because its sheer scale would inevitably endanger the eggs it had laid nearby. Now, with no reservations, it unleashed its ultimate power, giving everything it had, even drawing upon the very energy it had used for nurturing.

Although the subterranean cavern was vast, under Hachymuga’s maximum suction and drive, the entire space instantly transformed into a rampant ocean. The surging flood still possessed immense residual force, crashing through the massive natural arch on the eastern side of the cavern and venting directly into the comparatively lower mountain passage to the right.

Only now could one truly gauge Hachymuga's terrifying strength. If it was a Rank Five Legendary creature before, then upon entering the water, its power had at least soared to the very pinnacle of Rank Six Legendary (Upper Tier).

Fang Senyan, caught completely off guard, saw his hiding spot instantly submerged. He himself was even tossed adrift by the violent deluge. Fortunately, with lightning speed, he managed to grip a nearby stalagmite, though his entire body was stretched taut against the raging current.

Fortunately, his strength in his naked form was still 23 points; he managed to gouge several finger impressions into the stalagmite. Even so, rock fragments from the pillar cracked, scraped, and fell off, seemingly on the verge of fracturing the next second. Fang Senyan barely managed to stabilize himself, gritting his teeth to avoid being swept away.

It was at this precise moment, watching the churning, surging flood, that Fang Senyan understood why Hachymuga’s eggs were scattered throughout the canyon passage they had entered earlier.

It appeared Hachymuga, the giant octopus, had attempted to lay eggs here multiple times—perhaps because this specific location, with its uniquely warming rocks that possessed a near-body-temperature phenomenon, was the only suitable environment. This condition, however, was caused by the influence of the Balrog lurking hidden within. Thus, every attempt at breeding had been thwarted by the cunning Balrog.

When the octopus was enraged, it invariably stirred up massive waters, resulting in a colossal flood. This torrent turned and rushed toward the canyon path they had taken to enter. Because a large boulder (the one used for climbing the reef) blocked the end of that passage, the water flow slowed as it was obstructed. Most of Hachymuga's eggs had settled sporadically throughout that canyon passage. The floodwater then slowly overflowed through the channels beneath the boulder, flowed past the pine forest beyond, and rejoined the lake.

The bizarre behavior of the Orc tribe previously controlled by Saruman was now crystal clear. They flayed their captives and threw them off the ice cliff, yet they had to ensure the captives’ bodies remained relatively intact. This was because if the flayed bodies survived the fall and struggled on the ground, in that severe cold, the ice-preserved corpses Fang Senyan had seen would gather a significant amount of mud, sand, and stones—and, crucially, the object these Orcs/Saluman sought—the Hachymuga eggs at the bottom of the valley.

Clearly, the Uruk-hai and Orcs, and even Saruman’s Avatar, could not climb down the thousands of meters of ice peaks to retrieve the bodies thrown down. They faced not only the extreme cold and sheer danger of the snow mountain but also the massive threat of the lake they would have to cross on their return. But their inability did not mean other creatures could not.

It must be said that Saruman’s Avatar was indeed a genius. By studying the Great Eagles of the Misty Mountains—the Sons of Throrndor—he managed to synthesize the scent they preferred (the smoke from the crude stone censers) and tossed the censers into the ice valley.

The Great Eagles, naturally, followed the source of the smoke and, consequently, discovered the frozen corpses that had fallen to the valley floor (enhanced with an attractant: Hachymuga mucus). Encountering such fresh, delicious food, they naturally gorged themselves. According to their habits, they would inevitably snatch a few bodies back to their aerie, either to feed their young or to bring a midnight snack to their mates.

Given the topography of the ice peaks and valley, eagles after feeding usually flew over the Orc camp. Saruman would then coordinate an attack from the Wizard’s Tower. Since the eagle’s sharpest weapons are its beak and talons, when provoked into retaliation, it would instinctively loosen its grip, causing the captured corpses to fall. If a corpse had Hachymuga eggs clinging to it, Saruman’s Avatar profited. Of course, the vast majority of the time, this was not the case.

However, Saruman had clearly gained significant benefits from the Hachymuga eggs, likely achieving breakthroughs in his research:

This was evident not only in the breeding of those powerful tentacle monsters but also in the "Hachymuga Mucus" that Fang Senyan and his companions had consumed earlier.

The former were extremely potent biological weapons—loyal, intelligent, and capable of thought. The latter was a miraculous healing agent capable of raising battlefield survival rates by several times.

The only thing Fang Senyan currently couldn't determine was how Saruman found the very first Hachymuga egg... Perhaps a half-orc dredged one up from the lake, or it was folklore passed down from some annihilated half-orc tribe, or perhaps through evil, sinister sacrificial divination, and so on.

But Fang Senyan was certain that Saruman must have explored this area multiple times, even suffering extremely heavy losses, before resorting to the highly inefficient method of using flayed-eagle bait.

"Then..." Fang Senyan suddenly understood something else: "The Uruk-hai and Eyeballs outside weren't targeting the three of us at all; we were just collateral damage."

Clearly, Saruman had been plotting this for a long time. By his power level, he was probably not far inferior to Hachymuga. However, Hachymuga was an aquatic creature and possessed an immense positional advantage in the water. As long as it guarded the sole passage of Lake Carn Dûm, Saruman could never defeat it.

But Saruman was strong not just physically, but also possessed a brilliant mind and intellect. It was estimated that after long, meticulous investigation and calculation, he had predicted that this Legendary creature, Hachymuga, would be laying eggs around this specific time. He intended to launch his expedition now, taking advantage of Hachymuga’s distraction.

The large quantities of spell components Fang Senyan had prepared in the Wizard’s Tower cellar were likely preparations for this expedition. Fang Senyan's escape had become the trigger for Saruman to launch the expedition prematurely—the location of this secret breeding base for modified Uruk-hai had cost Saruman immense effort and could absolutely not be leaked to the outside world.

Of course, Saruman was a man, not a god, and could never have guessed that Hachymuga would enter a direct conflict with the ancient Balrog over the issue of laying eggs. The main goal of his expedition was likely to seize the opportunity while Hachymuga was away from the lake to enter that narrow valley they called the "Land of Hope" and collect the Hachymuga eggs within.

But as the saying goes, man proposes, God disposes. Hachymuga’s explosive rage directly caused the Half-Orcs/Uruk-hai/Tentacle Monsters entering the path to the "Land of Hope" to suffer collateral damage, forcing them to face the terrifying, overwhelming deluge.

Fang Senyan clung desperately to the stalagmite before him, able to hear the faint "creak, creak" sound of his fingernails and skin scraping against the stone. He bit down hard, and the nails of the hand gripping the stalagmite even curled backward, drawing beads of blood. Nevertheless, Fang Senyan exerted all his strength to keep his body stable in the torrent, knowing that if he were swept away, the violent collisions with the surrounding rocks alone would be enough to kill him.

Fortunately, his position was toward the rear half of the cavern, closer to the underground lake, not directly facing the water Hachymuga was driving. Thus, he occasionally received backwashes that gave him a moment to breathe.

Seizing an opportunity when a backwash surged toward him, Fang Senyan powerfully lunged forward, then used his hands and feet to firmly wrap around the stalagmite. A large rock blocked him from the front, allowing him to remain surprisingly well-hidden. He finally managed to catch his breath. Hachymuga had vented its rage by driving the water for nearly ten minutes before it finally subsided. Fang Senyan estimated that the tonnage of water it expelled was certainly not less than the peak flow of a flood in a medium-sized river.

"Splash," "Splash," the currents gently lapped against the surrounding rock walls. Even Hachymuga, a supremely powerful Legendary creature, felt a noticeable weariness. Its intact tentacles lay flat upon the water's surface, clearly seeking respite. The displaced water rapidly receded, causing the dry land to quickly reappear in the underground space that had momentarily become an ocean-like lake.

Undoubtedly, both Fang Senyan and the giant beast Hachymuga stared fixedly at the center of the cavern. That spot was still covered by water, churning with white foam and murky yellow, forming several small whirlpools—this was where the Balrog had been situated before the flood.

The water retreated quickly, leaving no trace of the Balrog. Only a small scorch mark on the rocky surface served as tangible proof of one thing: a Legendary creature had stood there a very short time ago, and it possessed an extremely high temperature.