Chapter 136 : Revealing the True Form
Revealing the True Form
After yet another search, several more minutes passed.
After nearly crashing into the top of a giant tree while distracted, Chen Zixuan finally decided to give up physical searching and activate the ultrasonic radar.
Even though it might alert the boss, he had no other choice—at least it was better than finding nothing at all, right?
Unable to do otherwise, after staring at an endless sea of green for several minutes, anyone would start to feel nauseous. What's more, the color of this forest wasn't even the refreshing and pleasing shade of light green; instead, it was an oily green tinged with yellow—a shade that felt deeply uncomfortable on a psychological level.
The uneasy feeling in his heart grew even stronger. This patch of jungle had left many psychological shadows for Chen Zixuan. To be safe, he raised his altitude by another ten meters before flying directly above the very center of the Mutant Jungle.
According to the usual rules in games, the boss would most likely be hiding in the deepest part of the map—that is, the central location—so starting from here would be most efficient.
However, just as Chen Zixuan was about to release the ultrasonic wave, his gaze inadvertently swept across a grove not far away, instantly noticing something off. His half-open mouth snapped shut.
At first glance, that grove seemed entirely ordinary—the types of trees were the same as everywhere else, as if they'd undergone thousands of years of growth and were now tangled together into a nauseating maze of twisted greenery. Aside from feeling sick, there was nothing particularly strange about it.
Yet, deep down, Chen Zixuan couldn't shake his unease. Looking more carefully, he soon detected something unusual.
Right now, about fifty meters away, there was a patch of trees and vines entwined together that looked noticeably different from the rest.
Chen Zixuan wasn't color-blind. In fact, ever since he created the "Cecilia" character, his five senses had become even sharper. He could clearly see that the color of the messy leaves in that area was much darker than the surroundings.
There were also a number of pitch-black protrusions, and the whole region was shaped like a long oval. It looked as if a giant shadow was lurking beneath the canopy.
What the heck is that?
Chen Zixuan wasn't sure if this shadow was the boss he was looking for.
Growing more alert, he patiently watched for a while longer but still couldn't sense the slightest hint of a living creature there.
Was it just my imagination?
A foreboding feeling rose in his heart. Chen Zixuan scrutinized the area, calculating the length based on the difference between the shadow and the surrounding colors. In the end, he found that this shadow was nearly twenty meters long and three to four meters wide!
"That big?"
When he realized this, Chen Zixuan was momentarily dumbfounded.
The average Sawtooth Crocodile was only six or seven meters long—compared to Cecilia, who was only about one and a half meters tall, even one was already a giant.
If that shadow really was the boss, then it was longer than three normal Sawtooth Crocodiles put together. It would be the largest boss ever since the game launched.
It seemed that he had found the Sawtooth Demon King Crocodile, but at this moment, Chen Zixuan didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Earlier he'd been somewhat confident—he'd thought that if it was a one-on-one fight, he might be able to take this boss on.
But judging by the current circumstances, maybe it would have been better not to have found this boss at all.
Though the Vampire Prince class was indeed overpowered—its stats and skills completely outclassing every other player—the monsters in this game were even more outrageous, especially the world-class bosses, which epitomized risk and reward.
Take the Sawtooth Demon King Crocodile, for instance. At this point, unless several hundred players teamed up, they probably wouldn't even be able to break through its defense.
In fact, Chen Zixuan's concern was justified. According to the usual logic of this game, the bigger the monster's physique, the higher its attack and defense.
A normal Sawtooth Crocodile had 220 points of physical defense, which was already enough of a headache for Chen Zixuan.
Conservatively estimating, the Demon King Crocodile was at least three times the size of a normal Sawtooth Crocodile. Not even considering other stats, just its physical defense alone might easily exceed 660 points.
And Chen Zixuan's current attack was only a little over a hundred. How was he supposed to deal any damage to it?
That being said, since he was already here, there was no point in backing out halfway.
He decided to move closer for a better look and then make plans.
To put it positively, maybe that shadow in the distance wasn't actually the world-class boss he was hunting?
With this thought in mind, Chen Zixuan circled once in the air, then carefully flew towards the shadow.
The closer he got, the more Chen Zixuan felt that the Darkwing Demon Bat was getting restless, as if it sensed the danger in advance and was even on the verge of breaking free from his control.
But since things had come to this, there was no turning back. While soothing the Darkwing Demon Bat, he steeled himself and pressed on. After flying another dozen meters, he finally drew near.
Because of the thick undergrowth and the poor eyesight of bats, even though he was already very close, he still couldn't see any details. But Chen Zixuan could now confirm that beneath those trees, a giant creature was definitely concealed.
A behemoth over twenty meters long!
Leaves and vines covered its surface, but a strange black aura could be seen leaking out. Just as Chen Zixuan was hesitating about whether to get even closer, suddenly, the long-missed voice of System Miss echoed in his head.
"System prompt: Congratulations! You have discovered a world-class boss—[Sawtooth Demon King Crocodile]! Defeat it to receive unimaginably generous rewards!"
A few days ago, the memory of having run into the Goblin Hero in the wild resurfaced. If he were in his human form right now, Chen Zixuan thought, his face would be spectacularly grim.
Sawtooth Demon King Crocodile, I've found you!
Although the Darkwing Demon Bat was good for scouting, it had little fighting power, and reviving it was costly.
Now that he'd confirmed that the creature below was indeed the D-rank world-class boss this time, Chen Zixuan had no intention of getting any closer.
While memorizing the terrain below so he could return to his original body, a cacophony of crackling noises suddenly erupted from the trees below.
The canopies surged like green waves, huge trees were ripped up by the roots, and strong trunks and vines snapped under a tremendous force, sounding like strings of firecrackers exploding.
Amid the chaos, it seemed as if a deep, guttural roar of a giant beast could be heard.
Suspended midair, the pitch-black bat was frozen. Chen Zixuan stared in shock as the shadow slowly shrugged off the tangle of branches and leaves, gradually revealing a rugged, pitted black hide.
Next, a crocodile's head the size of an SUV slowly rose, pushing out from the undergrowth. A pair of crimson blood-red eyes fixed unerringly on Chen Zixuan's position.
Chapter 137 Take a Long-Term View
The moment the Sawtooth Demon King Crocodile's gaze locked onto him, the Darkwing Demon Bat's mounting unease finally reached its limit.
A sharp pain shot through his mind, like being smashed by an iron hammer. Chen Zixuan instantly snapped back to consciousness as his awareness was forcibly yanked back into his body.
......
On the cliff at the edge of the Mutant Jungle, a bored Gu Yanxi propped her chin with one hand, silently staring at the profile of Cecilia.
Ten minutes had passed, but the big bat still hadn't returned.
Let alone any possible enemies, there wasn't a living thing around.
At first, she had diligently followed Chen Zixuan's instructions to keep watch, but people's attention spans are limited. After a while, realizing there was nothing worth seeing around, Gu Yanxi's patience was worn thin; she began observing the girl beside her, who was as exquisite as a work of art.
Bathed in sunlight, Cecilia's silver hair gleamed with brilliant rays, slightly fluffy but not at all messy.
Her bangs seemed as if they had been meticulously trimmed every day. Her cute, high nose, perfectly shaped cherry-pink lips, and snow-white skin made the girl's face look even more beautiful and radiant.
"How can someone be this beautiful? Even celebrities don't compare, do they?"
Staring blankly at Cecilia's profile, Gu Yanxi sighed enviously.
Indeed, in her memory, Cecilia was always flawlessly perfect, no matter the time.
"She seems to be frowning? Having a nightmare...?"
Noticing the silver-haired girl's brows twitch, Gu Yanxi suddenly felt an inexplicable tenderness and wondered—
"Should I wake her up?"
This thought surfaced, but only after a couple of seconds did she remember—Cecilia wasn't asleep; she was searching for enemies together with that big bat.
Ever since the two met, Cecilia had always been busy—if she wasn't fighting monsters, she was on the way to find monsters.
Truly, being the world's number one player wasn't an easy job.
Aren't games supposed to just pass the time and have fun?
If even playing a game was this intense, Cecilia must be even more exhausted in real life.
Pity welled up in her heart again, and unknowingly, even the look Gu Yanxi gave Chen Zixuan softened with affection.
But beautiful scenes never last long.
A few seconds later, the silver-haired girl, like a sleeping beauty, suddenly shuddered and snapped open her eyes, coughing violently into her palm as if something was stuck in her throat.
Seeing this, Gu Yanxi panicked, didn't have time to think, and rushed to embrace Cecilia, gently patting her armored back while anxiously asking, "Are you okay?!"
Chen Zixuan didn't have the energy to answer. The forceful separation of consciousness from the Darkwing Demon Bat seemed to have severe side effects; in just that brief moment, her HP had plummeted to half.
Only after several seconds did the silver-haired girl finally lower her right hand. Gu Yanxi glanced at her palm and was shocked by the sight.
It was already soaked in fresh blood, which was also oozing from the corner of her mouth, making it look like she was suffering from some deadly disease—the bleeding was enough to frighten anyone.
Gu Yanxi had never seen...
Wait! She actually had seen something like this before.
Last time, when Chen Zixuan got into a fight, he'd been even more badly injured than Cecilia was now.
How could she have known that Cecilia and Chen Zixuan were the same person?
Only several seconds later did Chen Zixuan slowly recover. With pain simulated at one hundred percent, this body's every injury felt just as real as in reality.
The only thing to be grateful for was that, after being fully healed, there would be no lasting aftereffects.
Pulling a Basic Life Potion from her bag and downing it, the girl felt her HP gradually restore, and her pale face finally regained some color.
"Cough, cough... I'm fine. Is your Divine Healing skill off cooldown yet?"
Normal potions didn't recover much HP. After a quick wipe of the blood, Chen Zixuan asked Gu Yanxi.
"Mhm, it's ready!"
Gu Yanxi snapped out of it, hurriedly stood up, took two steps back and raised her staff, targeting Cecilia—Divine Healing, cast!
+186!
Brilliant white light flashed, and a stream of green numbers appeared; in less than a second, Chen Zixuan's almost-empty HP was nearly full again.
"I've got more life potions. Do you want some?"
Seeing Cecilia still wasn't back to full HP, Gu Yanxi set down her staff and offered.
Chen Zixuan shook her head; a little missing HP didn't matter. What truly concerned her was that the Darkwing Demon Bat hadn't returned yet after losing her control.
But when Chen Zixuan tried to reconnect, she realized that the distance was too great and it was no longer possible to share senses as before.
Although the Darkwing Demon Bat could fly, there was no guarantee that the Sawtooth Demon King Crocodile didn't have some kind of ranged attack.
A vague unease grew, but there was no better option for now. At this moment, Chen Zixuan could only look anxiously south, hoping for a swift reunion.
Not long after, a small black dot began to grow in the distant sky. Seeing the Darkwing Demon Bat return safely, Chen Zixuan finally relaxed.
The price to revive a pet was too high. If the Darkwing Demon Bat really died, even with his current wealth, Chen Zixuan would be heartbroken.
Gu Yanxi's eyesight wasn't as good as Chen Zixuan's. A few seconds later, spotting the incoming bat, she nervously took a step back.
Even knowing it was Cecilia's pet, the monstrous appearance still gave her the creeps.
However, after landing, the massive black bat didn't show any of its earlier fierceness; instead, it dropped to all fours and frantically crawled to the silver-haired girl's side, whining like a puppy.
"For a world-class boss, you sure act like a dog,"
Chen Zixuan remarked wryly. Yet, recalling that the Darkwing Demon Bat had done most of the hard work, he hesitated briefly, then crouched to embrace its furry body.
Even in its master's arms, the Darkwing Demon Bat didn't calm down, rubbing its large head repeatedly and whimpering.
"Don't be afraid. In a few days, I'll definitely go and kill that crocodile."
While comforting the bat, Chen Zixuan's expression grew increasingly cold.
Although they'd successfully located the world-class boss, actually killing it would require meticulous planning.