PFC 0056 Rushing to the Stream
0056 Rushing to the Stream
The silly boy was responsible for carrying himself and the supplies, while Cui Cui was responsible for combat escort.
After assigning tasks to the two dragons, Li Ai attached the four saddlebags to the back of the little fool's waist.
The two female fire dragons then spread their wings and took to the air.
Lakes turned into puddles, mountains became veins, and beneath the thin clouds, everything on the earth's surface became tiny.
"The feeling of flying high in the sky is really great."
Li Ai closed her eyes for a moment to feel the sensation, then put on her goggles.
He soon noticed that the bandage he had used to bandage Cui Cui's tail, even though it was soaked in purple venom, was still being carried around by wrapping it around her tail spines.
"Is it for wiping away the venom? I'll get her a new one when I have time."
Li Ai thought to herself.
As the phone map unlocked rapidly, night quickly fell.
A huge full moon rose from the sea of clouds, bathing everything in a pale silver glow.
"Perhaps one day in the future, a golden moon will rise from the clouds."
As Li Ai was reflecting on this, she saw a black dot in the direction of the Silver Moon, which was rapidly expanding.
I took out my binoculars and saw that it was an electric dragon with a bright green carapace and transparent wing membranes that resembled insect wings.
"The electric dragon is approaching!"
At Li Ai's shout, the two dragons immediately became alert.
It must be said that wild monsters fight quite well. When the electric dragon swoops down and gets close, it immediately spreads its wings and hovers, roaring and howling in provocation.
Facing two female Rathalos, it showed no sign of launching a sneak attack.
Under Li Ai's guidance, Cui Cui had long since given up the habit of shouting before battle.
Monsters are not hunters and their movements are not slowed down by the roaring sound waves.
Even as the electric dragon's roar echoed high in the sky, the venomous tail of the lizard had already slammed into the curved crown of the opponent's head.
While the electric dragon was still wondering why the opponent attacked without roaring, the little fool had already charged head-on from below.
Thud!
The electric dragon that was hit lost its balance in mid-air and flipped backward.
As the two dragons passed each other, the electric dragon was even more shocked to see the human on its back.
"Take this throwing knife!"
Whoosh! Whoosh! ...
Li Ai threw the poisoned daggers one after another, aiming them all at the thin, transparent membrane of the wings.
As the electric dragon flipped to maintain its balance, six or seven throwing knives had already pierced its wing membrane.
The purple venom flowed clearly into the body along the veins of the wing membrane.
Just as the electric dragon regained its balance, Cui Cui's powerful dragon claws came slamming down again.
Although the powerful impact did not cause much damage, it caused the electric dragon to lose its balance and fall backward into deep space.
"Good job, Cui Cui! Let's go!"
When Cui Cui heard Li Ai's praise, she shouted happily, but then realized that she shouldn't be happy, so she shouted angrily.
The roar of the electric dragon soon echoed from below the clouds, but perhaps because it hadn't gained any advantage, it didn't pursue them.
Holding the odor bomb, Li Ai, who had been on guard for half a day, finally breathed a sigh of relief.
The electric dragon is a five-star monster, and the female Rathian is weak to lightning. Even if he wins, it will probably be a Pyrrhic victory. It can be said that this is the monster he least wants to encounter.
"It seems that even arch-enemies can be forced to retreat if they demonstrate a sufficient threat."
At midnight, Li Ai collected her daily supplies.
I took out four boxes of luncheon meat and shared them with Little Fool and Cui Cui.
After adjusting its flight direction, it lay back, strapped itself to the dragon's back, and closed its eyes to rest.
He didn't know how long he had been asleep when a roar of a fire dragon startled him awake.
Li Ai suddenly opened her eyes and found that the full moon had sunk into the sea of clouds, and the sky was brightening.
The high-frequency flapping sound of wings above indicated that Cui Cui was already engaged in a fierce battle with a male fire dragon.
"Dare to attack Cuicui! Take this throwing knife!"
Li Ai strikes again.
After working together to defeat the Rathalos, Cui Cui, exhausted, transformed into a monster girl and landed on the dragon's back.
Why did that male Rathalos attack you?
"I attacked it."
As Cui Cui spoke, she carefully slipped the heart-shaped bandage onto the end of her tail.
"I see...it must have done something threatening."
It was staring at my tail.
"That...that's really going too far."
Li Ai was speechless.
Even if fire dragons are known for their brutal nature, they wouldn't attack their own kind just because they've seen them a few times.
"In terms of aerial combat capabilities, the female Rathalos is indeed somewhat lacking compared to the male Rathalos. Is there any way to improve this?"
Cui Cui asked, seemingly not quite satisfied with her performance just now.
"This is more difficult, after all, it's a difference in body structure, just like how the female Rathalos has more developed claws, giving it an advantage in land combat."
"That's difficult, so there must be another way?"
"Yes, the mutated and evolved monster girl will receive an all-round improvement, and the use of her characteristics will become extreme and powerful, gaining power that surpasses that of the original species."
Li Ai explained.
"Having honed my combat skills and achieved this level of improvement before, just how difficult is it?"
Cui Cui expressed her doubts.
"You possess the potential for one of those branches, but that branch is somewhat..."
"Stop being so mysterious, just tell me."
Cui Cui lost her patience.
"The Purple Poisonous Rathian has extremely well-developed venomous spines, and the venom dripping from its tail can even form a small swamp of poison on the ground."
Are there still female fire dragons like this in the world...?
Cui Cui has seen quite a few female Rathalos in the Forest Hills, but she has never seen a Purple Poison Princess like this.
"It's mainly because they're so rare, and you know the rules fire dragons follow when choosing a mate, so Purple Poison Princess generally doesn't go to the Forest Hills. Also, the conditions for meeting them are very demanding."
Li Ai provided an explanation.
"Just keeping other Rathalos away from me is enough..."
Cui Cui smiled and sighed, her eyes shining.
"What should we do?"
"You are still a bit far from meeting the basic star rating standards, and the specific procedures need to be carefully considered."
"You're making it sound so serious. Does failure mean you'll die?"
Cui Cui disagreed.
"Yes."
Li Ai looked helpless.
Why?
Li Ai scratched his head, unsure how to explain. In the game, monster girls could escape near death after failing their evolution trial, but in reality, death meant certain death.
"Even you can't give an explanation, so it seems really dangerous, but I'm willing to try."
"Okay, if the opportunity to try it arises in the future, I will definitely help you."
What does "opportunity" refer to?
"When the Elder Dragon, Chameleon, appears in the swamp."
After Li Ai finished speaking, Cuicui immediately understood why the trial was so dangerous.
Tick-tock~
In the blink of an eye, a drop of venom landed on the little fool's back.
Cui Cui quickly reached out and rubbed it on her hands, then rubbed it on the heart-shaped bandage.
"This one is soaked in venom. Do you want me to get you a new one?"
"Um...can we keep wrapping it up and maintain this shape to continue expanding?"
Cui Cui shared her thoughts.
"It's a bit wasteful of bandages, but it's okay. But you have to be extra careful when bandaging, and you can't do it from a height."
There is also a guild headquarters in Yukumo Village, where you can resupply after arriving.
"Let's talk about it when we land."
After Cui Cui finished speaking, she quickly swung her tail behind her as if protecting a precious treasure.
Three days later at noon, a large patch of dark clouds appeared in front of them.
The humid air, accompanied by strong winds, quickly dampened the goggles.
Boom!
A streak of purple lightning flashed through the clouds, and upon seeing this, the two dragons immediately lowered their flight altitude.
At this point, no guidance is needed; the unusual weather alone is enough to confirm that the stream is ahead.
As we flew into the dark clouds, the whole world went dark.
Trees several times taller than those in Bisen Hill dominate the mountains and forests, and numerous winding river channels appear on the ground.
After flying a short distance further, the highest peak in the stream, Lingfeng, came into view ahead.
The raging storm began to envelop the mountainside, rising upwards to connect with the clouds, and finally transforming into a twisted disc that swirled the clouds into a spiral.
Although it was the first time the two dragons had seen this, as monsters capable of flying high into the sky and experiencing various climates, they could tell at a glance that the weather was extremely abnormal.
The closer you get to Lingfeng, the more unpredictable the wind direction becomes.
The two dragons could only keep lowering their altitude in order to gain control of their flight.
Once they confirmed that Jieyun Village was not far away, Li Ai immediately directed them to land in the forest.
After flying for four days, the moment their feet touched the ground, they sank into the mud with a whoosh.
"Damn, this hunting environment is pretty bad."
gurgle~ gurgle~...
The silly boy and Cui Cui looked at their feet stuck in the mud with a sense of helplessness.
"You guys get used to the environment first, I'm going to Jieyun Village."
After Li Ai finished speaking, she set off towards the location of Jieyun Village, wading through the muddy water.
After walking for about two hours, we finally arrived at a section of road that was simply maintained and resembled a trade route.
After resting for a while, a wagon pulled by a Marubird appeared.
Li Ai was a little surprised to see that the driver was an Elucat, but she still greeted him and asked for a ride.
"Hitch a ride here, meow... Come on up, meow."
Elru's coachman looked curious, hesitated briefly, and then agreed.
The two-legged bird had been running for less than ten minutes when a stone staircase appeared, behind which was the red torii gate at the entrance of Yukumo Village.
The map on the phone was also unlocked.
"Wow, it's so close... Thank you so much."
Li Ai jumped out of the car, stepped onto the steps covered with fallen leaves, and entered the village.
The villagers on the street, wearing straw hats and cloud-patterned clothing, were quite surprised to see hunters from out of town.
The current stream ecosystem is relatively stable and does not require additional support.
Because of the long distance, not many hunters are willing to travel this far to hunt.
Not to mention, the other party also wore a heart-shaped hunter badge on their chest armor.
Li Ai walked into the guild hall, and apart from the connection to a natural hot spring bath, the furnishings were not much different.
Soon, I was greeted warmly by the receptionist and led to the counter.
When the Love Hunter Medal and the Guild Knight Special Investigation Certificate were submitted together, and the purpose of the visit was explained, the young female receptionist was completely stunned.
"Please wait a moment. Your request is quite unusual. I need to find a more experienced receptionist."
Li Ai was not surprised and sat down at the round table to wait patiently.
After a middle-aged female receptionist arrived, she carefully examined the documents according to the guild's records and said that there was no problem with the Love Hunter Medal, but if the hunter wanted to issue an investigation commission, he would have to talk to the village chief first.
"Okay, I understand."
After Li Ai finished speaking, she walked towards the outside of the guild.
"Hunter! The village chief is here..."
"I know it's by the bridge outside the guild."
As Li Ai spoke, she raised her hand and waved it.
"That's strange, how did he know the village chief was there?"
The older receptionist asked curiously.
"Perhaps we visited a long time ago?"
The young receptionist speculated.
"But he looks so young... He's a four-star hunter at such a young age, and he even has a special role. His future is limitless."
"That's right."
The young female receptionist clutched her uniform collar, expressing strong agreement.
Seeing this, the older receptionist thought of the past and sighed helplessly, "But these kinds of hunters from out of town will leave after completing their missions; they won't stay in the village for long."
"Too."
The young female receptionist immediately looked disappointed.
"By the way, the village chief said this morning that he hasn't seen Ai for many days and told the hunters who are out hunting to keep an eye out for her."
"Okay, but Ai has been disappearing every now and then over the years, so she shouldn't be in any danger."
The young female receptionist said, and then picked up a pen to write down the words "searching for Xiao Ai".
Under the trees outside the guild gate, beside the small bridge.
The dragon-woman village chief, with long ears, was sitting dignifiedly on a bench.
Several children surrounded her, laughing and making a ruckus. She didn't chase them away, but instead looked at them with doting eyes.
"Hello, village chief. I am Li Ai, the hunter of love. I have a special investigation certificate from the guild knights and would like to establish an investigation commission with the guild to conduct a hunting investigation in the stream."
Seeing that hunters were coming, the children wisely ran away.
"Love Hunter... What a romantic name. My name is Chie."
Chie's tone was languid and pleasant to listen to.
He glanced at the special investigation warrant and then handed it back to Li Ai.
"It's been a long time since any guild knights have come to the village. I wonder what they're investigating in the stream?"
"The target is that blue bear beast that has been repeatedly injuring people."
"It's rare for the guild to take this so seriously, we will definitely do our best to cooperate, please follow me."
Chie stood up as she spoke.
Just as Li Ai was about to turn around, the children suddenly ran over and placed pieces of bone at the bottom of the bench.
Only then did Li Ai notice that beneath the bench where the village chief was sitting, there was a small pile of broken bones.
Although it seemed a bit unusual, he didn't take it to heart since he wasn't there to seduce the village chief.
With the village chief's permission, the hunting commission, titled "In the Name of Love: Blue Bear Beast," was quickly and successfully posted.
Because it involves a relatively dangerous individual, even a two-star commission carries a reward of 5100z.
After obtaining the last sighting area and the stream map, Li Ai inquired about the rescue team at the counter.
They received a response that the woodland was too muddy to push the flatbed cart, forcing them to suspend operations.
However, the receptionist also recommended a rescue boat as a supplementary rescue option.
"A rescue ship?"
"Yes, but the cat can only carry the seriously injured hunter away relatively smoothly when the team is close to the corresponding water area."
"Let's get one then."
Li Ai didn't think taming the blue bear beast would go wrong, but for someone like her who was hunting in a stream for the first time, it was best to be cautious.
"If you encounter a Thunder Wolf Dragon, please be sure to avoid it. We wish you a safe return."
After the young receptionist finished speaking, the seal of the Jieyun Village Guild was affixed.