After going into the sea, I met the witch.

Love you all, Gugu~

Chapter 86 The Vortex Change, the Blood Moon's Lament!

As the light and shadows shifted, my consciousness returned to a state of calm after the fall.

Ryan opened his eyes and saw a flickering orange-red campfire.

Tiny sparks drifted away with the wind, scattered in the breeze.

Before setting off, Ryan took stock of his current situation.

-

[Level]: 9 (3%)

[Spiritual Value]: 32635

[Spirituality]: 2.5

[Physique]: 20.71

【战利品】：深红之角（匠心lv.1）、电之针（属性抵抗lv.1）、鱼龙心鳞（火属性抵抗lv.1）、火伞之冠（集中术lv.1）、火怪之羽（攻击lv.1）、折断的巨獠牙（体力lv.1）、赤色凶牙（集中术lv.1）

-

The data on the panel was clear and concise. Beyond the panel, Ryan carried six low-level artifacts:

Weapons: Greatsword - Ferocious Ice (Melee Ice Attack), Light Crossbow - Shatter Ice (Ranged Ice Attack), Bloodstained Flintlock Pistol (Bleeding)

Armor: [Umbrella Fire Scale Armor Set] (Sword Drawing Skill - Strength lv.1, Recovery Speed ​​lv.1)

Special Equipment: [Ring of Energy Resistance] (reduces energy attack damage received), [Ring of Black Corrosion] (corrosion, defense reduction)

-

In terms of equipment, it is quite luxurious.

Oh, right, besides the six low-level rare items mentioned above, there are also three special items: the [Abundance Necklace], the [Sacred Relic: Azure Medal], and the [Pure Water Crystal].

The Abundance Necklace accelerates the recovery of stamina and injuries, the Azure Medal artifact increases his Traveling Clone's physique by two levels, and the Pure Water Crystal creates a "water vapor environment," reducing fire damage and increasing frost damage.

Now, everything is ready.

It's time to begin the hunt for the Rathalos leader.

Ryan's gaze was deep and unfathomable.

Ever since he learned that the "mysterious fragment" carried by the Rathalos leader was the key to becoming a hidden profession, he has been "unforgettable" about the Rathalos leader.

Unfortunately, the difference in strength between him and the Rathalos leader at that time was too great, and he could only hope for it.

During this period, he left the land he had been traveling in almost always by dying at the hands of the Rathalos leader.

Even after dying so many times, Ryan still couldn't get used to the despair and loneliness before death.

It can be said that he harbored deep resentment towards the leader of the Rathalos.

To put it bluntly, one of them, the human or the dragon, must die.

He sat down by the campfire, placed his palms over the flames to heat them, and Ryan's body turned into countless sparks that scattered with the wind.

……

[Campfire Spot - Gap in the Giant Tree].

Ryan stood up and walked out of the campfire.

The fresh scent of earth filled his nostrils, and Ryan looked in the direction where the female Rathalos was resting, hesitating slightly.

He was considering whether he should deal with the female Rathalos before defeating the male Rathalos leader.

Based on his observations over this period, the distance between the female Rathalos's lair and the male Rathalos's leader's lair is quite far.

If you take care of the female Rathalos before fighting the male Rathalos leader, the subsequent hunt will be much easier, and you won't have to worry about the female Rathalos suddenly appearing.

Although the female Rathalos has only recently laid eggs and it is unlikely that she would abandon her "baby" to support the male Rathalos leader, what if she does?

With that thought in mind, Ryan made up his mind—he would go and hunt down the female Rathian first!

On the one hand, this reduces the risk. On the other hand, since the female Rathalos is weaker than the male Rathalos leader, if the wandering clone can be leveled up again before defeating the male Rathalos leader, the probability of a successful defeat will be greatly increased.

Furthermore, the female Rathalos can be considered a weakened version of the male Rathalos leader, allowing players to get used to the attack methods of "flying wyverns" in advance through battles with it.

Once the decision was made, Ryan immediately took action.

The location of the female Rathalos's nest is not far from the [Campfire Point - Gap in the Giant Tree]. After traveling for about half an hour, Ryan arrived nearby.

Standing in the shadow of the giant tree, Ryan could see it from afar—a tree that appeared exceptionally thick, tall, and bare-topped compared to its surroundings.

The female Rathalos's lair is located on the top branch of this giant tree.

Instead of rushing to "lure" the female Rathalos, Ryan began preparations for the hunt—digging traps.

Based on previously known information about the female Rathalos.

Unlike the male Rathalos leader who flies in the sky for long periods of time, the female Rathalos can also fly, but its wings are not as strong as the male Rathalos leader's, so it cannot fly for long periods of time and will spend most of its time on the ground.

This means that "pit traps" are effective against female Rathalos.

Even though a female Rathalos with wings can quickly break free from a "pitfall trap" by flapping her wings, in the process of hunting down this terrifying "flying dragon," even the brief moment of imbalance caused by the female Rathalos falling into a "pitfall trap" will create an excellent opportunity for Lion to attack.

Having gained experience several times, Ryan is now quite adept at digging "pitfall traps".

In a short time, he set up three "pitfall traps", each hundreds of meters apart.

"call……"

Ryan dusted himself off, sat in the shade of a tree, and tended to his greatsword.

Ready? Hunt begins!

Arriving not far from the giant tree where the female Rathalos's lair was located, Ryan looked up, and a light crossbow, its entire body ice-blue, flashed in his hand.

——【Light Crossbow - Ice Shatter】

Take the arrow and string it.

Ryan aimed at the location of the female Rathalos's nest and pulled the trigger without hesitation.

"collapse--!"

The crossbow string vibrated incessantly, emitting a buzzing sound, and a crossbow bolt shot out, leaving a dazzling ice-blue trail in mid-air.

Because of the previous blunder where he missed with his flintlock pistol at short range, Ryan spent his spare time practicing his shooting skills.

The difficulty of shooting a crossbow is similar to that of a flintlock musket; the two are not very different.

Thanks to his strong physique, Ryan quickly mastered the skill. Although he can't hit the target every time, he can still aim at a large target like the Rathian's nest without missing.

The maximum range of the Light Bowgun - Ice Shatter is 300 meters, and the distance between Ryan's current location and the Rathian's lair is about the same.

At such a distance, by the time the crossbow bolt reaches the target, its kinetic energy has been greatly reduced, and its direct lethality is very limited.

Klein's goal from the beginning was not to use the crossbow to destroy the female Rathian's nest, but to lure it out.

as predicted.

The crossbow bolts landed on the surface of the nest, penetrating only a few centimeters, causing virtually no physical damage. However, the ice enchantment on the bolts spread a considerable amount of frost across the surface of the nest.

As a monster that prefers heat and dislikes cold, the female Rathalos is extremely sensitive to low temperatures, not to mention that the current female Rathalos is still in a highly vigilant state after laying eggs.

"Roar--!"

With a deafening dragon's roar, the Emerald Queen spread her wings above her nest.

The powerful dragon's might spread with the sound waves, startling a large number of birds into flight. For a moment, the nearby sky was filled with birds darting about.

Soon, the female Rathalos's furious eyes locked onto the "culprit"—the "tiny human" standing on the ground, making no attempt to conceal his presence.

The crossbow bolts cause negligible damage to the nest, but as a mother, the Rathian will not allow anything to threaten her cubs, no matter how small the threat!

"Wow..."

With a flap of its wings, the massive dragon body slowly descended from the sky.

"Boom-"

Weighing tens of tons, the impact caused a noticeable tremor in the ground upon landing.

Under the sunlight, each thick, dark green scale has a golden edge, like an indestructible metal armor.

Step by step, the female Rathalos walked towards Ryan's location. When the distance between them was only about fifty meters, the female Rathalos suddenly spread its wings and let out a deafening roar.

"Roar!"

The sound waves spread out in layers, pressing the grass flat against the ground, and causing the branches and leaves of the surrounding trees to shake violently and rustle loudly.

The intense pressure made Ryan's eyes become extremely serious.

As a powerful monster of the "lower three-star" rank, and even when weakened after childbirth, it can easily defeat the Crimson Tyrannosaurus Rex. The Rathian is the most powerful creature in the Ancient Forest, apart from the Rathalos leader.

The wrath of the Emerald Queen can make all things in the forest bow down.

A strong wind whipped Ryan's hair behind his helmet, and he gripped the hilt of his greatsword tightly in his right hand as he calmly walked towards the female Rathian.

……

[Places for Viewing]

Looking at the investment screen that popped up on the "observation platform" in front of her, Freya nervously pressed down her fluffy witch's hat on her head.

[A wanderer with a "new heart" encounters a powerful enemy—a female Rathian—and a great battle is about to break out.]

【Comparison of combat strength between the two sides: Wanderer (30) vs. Rathian (34, weakened)】

Your current investment amount is [Spiritual Essence: 747]

[Battle ratio – Traveler: Female Rathalos = 4.0:1.8, minimum investment: 100 Spirit Essence.]

You have thirty seconds to place your bet...

The countdown was ticking away, and half of it had already passed in the blink of an eye. At this moment, Freya finally made up her mind.

"Besides keeping the minimum of 200 spirit essences, I'll bet all the remaining 547 spirit essences on the Traveler!"

Frey pursed her lips.