Monster Hunter: I can hear the monsters' thoughts

Chapter 514 Have you heard the story of the Heavenly Returning Dragon? In the second year of the Yuanhe era…

"Gululu..."

Lin Lin exhaled a series of bubbles from his mouth, and with a few gentle swaying movements, he darted forward like a fish.

There, a monster that looked quite similar to an aquatic beast, but whose overall color was blue, was swaying its fish tail as it swam above the colorful coral reef, occasionally opening its mouth to nibble on the floating algae, looking completely at ease.

This is an aquatic herbivorous dragon.

(As shown in the picture, this thing doesn't seem to have a proper name yet, and the translations have been all over the place. So, we'll just call it the aquatic herbivorous dragon based on player habits.)

Despite sharing the same ancestor as other sea dragons like the Sea Dragon and the Flame Dragon, and having a standard sea dragon skeleton, this creature, which is not aggressive and spends its days leisurely drifting in the water, is actually classified as a herbivore according to the guild's classification.

Aquatic herbivorous dragons, as the name suggests, are herbivorous dragons that live in water. Their position in the ecosystem is almost exactly the same as that of herbivorous dragons on land. They are both at the bottom of the food chain and delicious food for various predators, pure moving raw meat.

It has to be said that this aquatic herbivorous dragon is probably even more clueless than a herbivorous dragon. Although the herbivorous dragons on land are slow and can't outrun anyone, at least they are alert and ready to run away at the slightest disturbance. But this aquatic herbivorous dragon doesn't even have the most basic alertness. Lin Lin had already rushed to its face before it realized something was wrong and tried to escape.

Lin Lin wouldn't give it that chance. He simply raised his hand, drew his shield axe, and delivered a clean downward slash in axe form.

Watching the red mist emanating from the corpse of the aquatic herbivorous dragon, Lin Lin curled his lip, once again feeling the difference between the land and the water.

When hunting on land, the smell of blood is mainly carried by the wind, which may only attract predators from one direction. However, underwater, the currents are ever-changing and complex, and before long, predators from the entire surrounding sea area will likely be heading towards this place.

No sooner had Lin Lin pulled out his cleaver than a bull shark charged out from behind him, its gaping maw blazing as it pounced.

It has to be said that even in a world teeming with monsters, sharks remain as ferocious as ever. Despite having a corpse right in front of it, it still chose to target Lin Lin.

'Huh? What's that noise?'

Feeling something bump against his back, Lin Lin turned around in confusion and saw a large shark thrashing about wildly, looking extremely painful, with blood spilling from its mouth.

After a moment of stunned silence, Lin Lin realized that he seemed to have just been attacked by a shark.

Tsk tsk, those sharp teeth broke all his teeth when they bit into his armor. They really posed no threat at all. No wonder he didn't notice the attack from behind.

Rolling his eyes, Lin Lin ignored the shark that was struggling and had a headache, turned around again, and prepared to continue skinning it. But when he turned around, he was completely dumbfounded.

No, so you're pretending to be asleep to lure the enemy?
A shark comes to distract me, so you can take the opportunity to steal my prey?

Shut up! Shut up right now! That's my dinner!

Lin Lin rushed toward the sharks that were tearing at the flesh and blood of the aquatic herbivorous dragon, brandishing his skinning knife to try and drive them away. But these sharks had probably seen the fate of the shark that had tried to attack Lin Lin earlier, and knew that this small creature was not to be trifled with. As soon as Lin Lin got close, they turned around and began to flee.

'Tch...pretty smart...'

Lin Lin did not chase after him, but instead picked up the peeling knife and began to measure and prepare to cut the raw meat.

Then he saw the sharks that had just fled circle back and start tearing at the corpse from the side away from Lin Lin—what's worse, these sharks were just the beginning.

As the stench of blood spread with the current, all the sharks that lived nearby converged on this place, joining in this carnival feast. In this world, sharks are merely bottom-level creatures in the ecological niche. They can bully small fish and shrimp without much trouble, but that's about it. In a one-on-one situation, they can't even beat the aquatic herbivorous dragons that anyone can step on.

A fresh carcass of an aquatic herbivorous dragon that hasn't been targeted by a large monster is a gift from nature to them.

'Tsk...'

Lin Lin was quite helpless. He felt like a lion on the African savanna, ready to enjoy the fruits of his hunt, only to be targeted by a pack of hyenas.

He would turn and flee the moment he got a little close, and then rush up from a different direction to devour you. You couldn't hit him or drive him away.

Lin Lin exhaled a few bubbles heavily, abandoning his plan to drive away the sharks. He selected two of the fattest parts, cut off two half-meter square pieces of meat, and considered the rest as a gift from nature, to be given to them.

……

On the shore, Yoko and Shion had already lit a bonfire and were warming themselves around it to dispel the dampness from their bodies.

"Brother Lin! Come sit here, Brave will be back soon!"

Upon seeing Lin Lin come up, Ye Zi shifted her position to make room for Lin Lin, and Lin Lin didn't stand on ceremony and sat down next to Ye Zi.

Ziyuan took the dragon meat that Lin Lin brought and tossed it aside to marinate. Next to the dragon meat, sashimi fish, tuna, gluttonous tuna, and moccasins were piled up into a small hill. There were also various fruits to cleanse the palate, land vegetables, and seaweed from the sea, all peeled, skewered, and stuck on the ground.

Not long after, Breve also came over carrying a large wooden barrel, carefully placed it on the spread-out canvas mat, and then unscrewed the opening.

Immediately, a rich aroma of wine wafted out.

"Sorry for keeping you all waiting! The price of this Daren beer has gone up quite a bit, which caused the delay. Sorry!"

Kayamba, who was following behind Bref, put down the package he was carrying and distributed the oak wine glasses inside to everyone.

"There's nothing to apologize for. We just brought the ingredients back not long ago."

Lin Lin took the glass, thanked Kayamba, and then shrugged at Brev.

The four had been separated for a long time, and now that they had reunited, they were bound to have a good get-together and share their experiences over the past six months. It just so happened that Breve and Shion had been fighting for a long time and needed to rest, while Lin Lin and Ye Zi wanted to try naval combat training. After discussing it, the four of them immediately decided to go camping and have a picnic on the island next to the village.

Lin Linye was in charge of catching ingredients, such as shrimp, crabs, scallops, sea urchins, and various fish. She would catch everything she saw, which would also help her adapt to underwater activities. Breve was in charge of preparing drinks. The beer from the expert was excellent, but unfortunately, the supplier seemed to have run out of stock recently, which made him visit several more households and wasted some time. As for Shion... she was in charge of showing off her culinary skills.

Don't forget, when Ye Zi was figuring out how to win Lin Lin's heart, she spent some time learning cooking from this young lady from the Zi Jin Merchant Guild. Even simple barbecue requires a lot of attention to seasoning. Besides the four hunters, their companions were also dining together.

Nia, a cat, naturally prefers food with a stronger fishy smell. Today's seafood feast made her very excited. She took her fishing rod and pulled Date with her and ran to the beach to cast her line, intending to make the ingredients for this meal more abundant. Date, on the other hand, helplessly let her drag her around. Anyway, her cat-style dragon-slaying gun prototype was successfully completed, so it was good for her to relax a little.
Chachakayanba was once taken to the sky by Rathalos in the struggle for the "Supreme Mask" and was forced to part ways. Now these two old rivals have reunited and are bickering together, making the atmosphere quite lively.
Yoko's fang hound, Shiro, and Bref's fang hound, Zacian, having spent the past six months in Moga Village, naturally developed a considerable friendship. They chased after the light bugs flying in the air, running and jumping, playing and frolicking. Fukumo Rabbit, Afu, stood on a tree branch not far away, tilting his head and watching them for a while, before turning his head to look at the campfire, seemingly pondering whether to go and mooch a few bites from his master.

"Alright! Now it's my turn to perform!"

Ziyuan quickly finished cutting the dragon meat and rubbed her hands together with great interest.

Lin Lin and Ye Zi clapped in unison, acting as the straight man in the joke.

Breve stroked his chin, his gaze shifting back and forth between Lin Lin and Ye Zi:
"To be honest, I felt something was off from the moment we first met again..."

"Huh? What's wrong? What's wrong?"

Ziyuan stuck several skewers of sashimi fish into the ground next to the campfire, and asked curiously upon hearing this.

"It's just... I feel like you two have much better chemistry than before?"

After thinking for a moment, Brave used a more tactful approach.

But what he really wanted to say was that the distance between the two of them had obviously shrunk a lot, and it felt like they were even closer than comrades-in-arms.

"This..."

Lin Lin and Ye Zi exchanged a glance. Ye Zi smiled slightly, took Lin Lin's hand, interlocked their fingers, and waved it at Bref and Zi Yuan:
"We're together."

"Huh?! Really?! When did this happen?!"

It was Shion who exclaimed in surprise. Although Bref was also somewhat surprised, he had already had a vague guess when he asked the question, but he wasn't quite sure.

What are you surprised about?

Yoko gave Shion a strange look:

"Didn't you already know I liked Brother Lin Lin? Back in Jieyun Village, you even gave me advice!"

Ziyuan still maintained that shocked expression. She knew it, but who would have thought that she could actually win Lin Lin's heart!

She did offer advice to Yezi, but she knew absolutely nothing about love. All her experience with love came from novels and stories, and she had no idea that this stuff would actually be useful!

'So it was Ye Zi who actively pursued Lin Lin?'

Surprised, Bref carefully recalled his experiences after meeting Ye Zi with Lin Lin, and suddenly remembered something.

Back in Flame Village, when they returned from the Frozen Islands, Puff burned down Lin Lin's place. Ye Zi suggested that Lin Lin stay at her place. He felt it wasn't right for a young girl like her and offered to squeeze in with Lin Lin, but then he felt a hint of murderous intent in Ye Zi's eyes...

Now that I think about it carefully, there were actually far more unintentional things like this that ruined Yoko's plans than just this one... No wonder I often felt out of place standing next to them, so that's why! That makes sense, that makes sense...

"Tell me quickly, tell me quickly, what exactly happened!"

Ziyuan had an excited look on her face, but Lin Lin reminded her, "Be careful not to burn it!" Only then did she remember that she was in charge of the barbecue.

"You say it, I say it?"

Lin Lin turned to look at Ye Zi, seeking her opinion.

Yoko blinked, her cheeks flushed red in the firelight.

She was unusually shy, her voice barely audible: "You tell me..."

"Then I'll do it."

Lin Lin cleared his throat:
"You all know what happened before we parted, so I won't go into details. Let me start from when I set off for Barbare."

"Do you know the story of the Black Dragon? In the second year of Yuanhe... oh no, the 337th year of the New Calendar..."

……

As the setting sun cast its last rays, the sea turned fiery red, shimmering with golden light, its still reflection like a jade disc. Night gradually crept into the sky, the stars twinkling, the full moon like jade.

"That's pretty much how it is. Compared to your legendary experiences, there's really nothing to talk about about our experiences in Moga Village."

Brave rubbed his stomach and let out a satisfied sigh.

Before Bai Jifeng, the most dangerous battle they had ever experienced was fighting the sea dragon underwater.

It must be said that the fighting power of the sea dragon underwater is completely different from its fighting power on land.

To deal with this guy, Bref made a special trip to the Frozen Isles to hunt a strange dragon and craft a set of strange dragon armor with maximum lightning resistance. The buffs that this set of equipment can activate include [Elf Blessing], [Recovery Speed], and [Increased Stamina Recovery], all of which are life-saving skills.

Even so, he was still almost electrocuted. When the sea dragon used its ultimate move, the lightning-filled vortex it created was no less powerful than the tornado of the storm dragon. It was practically a thunderstorm. If it weren't for Shion distracting the sea dragon in time, and Chacha's dance with its mysterious power, he probably would have been killed in that battle.

Honestly, even now, it still seems absurd. In Bref's opinion, a five-star rating should be the danger level of a sea dragon on land. But once you're in the sea, fighting on the enemy's home turf, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a seven-star danger level.

(End of this chapter)