Monster Hunter: Wild Pointer

The group quickly tidied up their clothes and armor that had been washed askew by the waterfall and poured out the water that had filled their boots.

He then took out a portable windproof gas lamp from his bag, assembled it and lit it.

The nimble professor was still the first to finish his preparations. He hung the lit gas lamp around his waist.

"Star-feather butterflies aren't as fragile as you think. Although they're named 'Star-feather butterflies' by the guild, their body structure is more similar to beetles like rhinoceros beetles.

By folding their wings and closing their elytra, they can turn into shuttles like cannonballs, and it is not difficult for them to cross the waterfall.

The Star Dragon can even command them to charge and attack the enemy in this way, so you should be careful when a fight breaks out afterwards."

"Is it similar to the feeling of being a beetle?" Orlan asked.

"Not much."

"Look at that!" Muti suddenly raised his hand and pointed somewhere.

"Keep your voice down." The professor reminded and looked in the direction Muti indicated.

On the top of the cave not far away, a square stone pillar was exposed crookedly.

The stone pillars have obvious traces of brick and stone laying, and are obviously some kind of man-made structure.

The professor narrowed his eyes, looked carefully for a few seconds, stomped his feet hard on the ground, and then quickly walked to the edge of the rock wall, wiped off the sticky moss on the rock wall, and confirmed the rock quality here.

"really."

"Could it be that this huge rock mountain that changed the river's course is a complete relic?!" Eric came closer with a somewhat excited look on his face.

Although he is interested in biology, he is not too concerned about ancient civilizations, ancient relics and the like.

But if you have the opportunity to participate in the discovery of a large ancient relic, you will inevitably feel excited. After all, it is something that will have your name included in papers and textbooks.

The professor's face darkened. "I warned you long ago not to just take the ecology-related classes that interest you and fail miserably in other subjects.

Anyone who has listened carefully in archaeology and geology courses should know that this is not a complete large-scale ruins, but a typical 'blended ruins' (note).

"It's a blend." Eric lost interest instantly.

Aolan, however, was somewhat interested in this term he had never heard of before. "What does 'integrated ruins' mean?"

The professor glanced at him and said, "You can simply understand it as a result of drastic geological changes caused by certain reasons, which caused the fragments of ancient relics to mix with the surrounding strata.

It's like impurities mixed into dough, eventually being squeezed out of the surface, forming a group of broken ruins.

Sky Mountain and Ruins Plain are typical and well-known examples of large-scale, integrated ruins."

"In other words, this is still an ordinary rock mountain, but due to geological activity, a small amount of relic fragments have been mixed in?"

"It wouldn't necessarily be considered ordinary. It depends on the number and type of ruins. Let me give you an example that you hunters should be familiar with: the Ratio Volcano.

There are also mixed-type ruins there, but there's a chance you'll find ancient relics like protective stones."

After hearing what the professor said, the hunters immediately perked up, even the calm Olivia was no exception.

Can they understand that if they are lucky, they can also dig up things like protective stones here?

Due to years of continuous mining in the Latio volcanic area, the amount of protective stones available is becoming increasingly rare. If we can seize this opportunity...

"Don't think about those things for now."

The professor interrupted the hunters' fantasies with a cold voice, "Complete the task at hand, and if you want to try your luck here again, no one will bother you.

Now, we are almost ready, we should move on, everyone stay alert."

Upon hearing this, the hunters perked up, gathered their formation, and followed the scent, escorting the two scholars deeper into the cave.

As the group moved away from the cave entrance, the light inside the cave almost disappeared. Only a small amount of light moss growing on the damp rock wall provided a tiny bit of light, which was better than nothing.

The portable gas lamps on everyone's waists could only illuminate a small area around them, so they had to slow down again to guard against monsters that might exist in the dark, and to avoid falling into dangerous pits and cracks in the ground.

The terrain inside the cave is very complex, with ups and downs, and countless forks in the road at the entrance.

At first, Orlan was still trying hard to remember the route and wrote down every cave he passed along the way in a memo as much as possible to avoid getting lost.

But soon he was confused.

In such an extremely complex underground cave, without a detailed map, getting lost is almost inevitable.

Fortunately, they didn't come on their own.

The three strange-faced people left many signposts along the way. The signs were of different shapes and seemed to correspond to different terrain conditions.

The professor never stopped writing. He declined Muxiang's invitation to sit on the back of the hound. He measured the distance with his feet and drew a topographic map of the area he passed as he walked.

With them around, hunters can move forward confidently and boldly without worrying about getting lost.

We walked around like this for almost an hour.

According to the professor, they were generally moving upwards and were now almost at the waist of the mountain.

"The smell is getting stronger. The Star-Feather Butterfly is right in front and has been staying there for a while." Orlan lowered his voice and spoke in a whisper.

The professor nodded and said, "Be prepared to break in. We should be able to see the target after passing through the corridor ahead."

If it's really here."

The hunters changed their formation. The hunters who were originally guarding the scholars in a diamond shape began to move forward. The three swordsmen entered the corridor first, followed by the archers.

Only the Fang Hound Xiang was left behind to guard the two scholars, one old and one young. In case of any unexpected situation, he could immediately take the two of them and evacuate.

Before walking out of the corridor, Olivia raised her hand to stop Muti, who subconsciously walked at the front of the team and wanted to rush out first.

She gestured behind Muti with her eyes.

Now you are a katana user, not a heavily armored vanguard wielding a musket and a large shield.

Muti nodded, and together with Orlan, he followed Olivia a few steps behind, keeping an eye on her back and sides.

Olivia made a countdown gesture, three, two, one, go!

The moment Olivia swung her hand, the swordsmen, led by her, rushed out of the corridor in an assault formation and plunged into the cave ahead.

Their palms clenched the handles of their weapons, but the expected attack did not come.

As far as the eye can see, there is nothing, and there is no sign of any large monster at all.

"It's up there!" Muti suddenly reminded.

Orlan and the others immediately looked up and saw the star-feather butterfly, which had been dyed pink by the dye bullet, quietly clinging to the rock wall at the edge of the cave, motionless.

It seemed to be mocking the long journey they had taken.

Chapter 287 You Are the Bait

"Being fooled."

After receiving the signal of safety, the professor entered the cave with a gloomy expression.

Orlan glanced around quickly, observing the environment inside the cave.

This cave covers an area of ​​about two thousand square meters. It is not big, but it is just right as a lair for large monsters.

The light in the cave can barely be considered sufficient. The light source comes from above the cave. There is a huge hole here that is big enough for large monsters to squeeze through, which leads to the outside world.

This type of cave with a crater-like structure is the favorite nest of flying dragons. Once discovered by monsters such as fire dragons, it is very easy to cause a dispute over territory.

However, the opening at the top of the cave is very hidden, presenting a huge oblique angle. There is also a giant tree rooted in the cave, winding through the opening and growing towards the outside, concealing the existence of the cave entrance.

Most of the spring water and rainwater outside the cave were blocked by the lush tree canopy, but a lot of it flowed into the cave through the gaps in the tree canopy and the tree trunks, making the ground inside the cave extremely humid, and in many places, pools of water that were higher than the thighs formed.

The pond was clear, with colorful aquatic plants and many small fish of unknown species growing in it. Eric almost couldn't help but jump into the water.

On the damp inner walls of the cave, large patches of luminous moss cluster together, which, together with the wonderful aquatic plants and entangled vines, make the cave look like a dreamland.

(so)

"It's really a beautiful place." Olang couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

Muti's train of thought was rather strange. She looked at the Star-Feather Butterfly lying motionless on the rock wall of the cave, and then at the big hole at the top that led directly to the outside world.

He tilted his head, "So why did it take so long to circle around in the cave? Wouldn't it be more energy-efficient to just fly in through the entrance?"

They followed the scent trails left by the Star-Feather Butterfly along the way, so they naturally knew its flight route.

Olivia speculated, "Maybe the Star Feather Butterfly noticed something was wrong and deliberately led us to the wrong place?"

"Maybe it's not the wrong place." The professor walked into a pool of water and picked up a piece of dazzling dragon scale that seemed to be condensed with starlight from the bottom of the pool.

“This is the scale of a star dragon. This should be its nest, but it just happens not to be inside the nest.

As for the flight route of the Star-Feather Butterfly, don't overestimate their intelligence.

Existing research results show that their behavior is slightly similar to that of insects such as ants and bees, and their behavior is affected by pheromones.

If the route we just took is one that star dragons often take, then they will naturally follow that route."

At this point, the professor paused before continuing, “The Star Feather Butterfly’s IQ is not high, but the Star Dragon’s is quite the opposite.

The Star Dragon discovered our whereabouts early and allowed the returning Star Feather Butterfly to lead us on a detour to its nest. It is entirely possible that it took the opportunity to escape."

"Are you so timid?" Orlan muttered in a low voice.

Attracting abnormal monster activity, triggering ferocity, and causing changes in the dense forest do not sound like things a good person would do. When you put them together, you can easily imagine the image of a terrifying mastermind behind the scenes.

It seems a bit inconsistent with the guy in front of me who, upon hearing the slightest sign of trouble, immediately abandoned his younger brothers as bait and ran away from home?

"Don't forget, the Star Dragon is a young beast. Mastering the ability to influence the environment is one thing, but it doesn't change the fact that it is a young beast.

For young animals, seeking benefits and avoiding harm is a biological instinct. Just like the rock dragon, it possesses considerable strength, but most of the time it hides in quiet places, disguised as a boulder, and slowly grows."

After hearing what the professor said, Orlan nodded thoughtfully.

"So what should we do now?" Muti said with a bitter face.

Be it capturing, hunting, using a rifle or a sword, as long as the target can be eliminated quickly and efficiently, she will accept it.

But now there is no trace of the target, and even the clue of Xingyudie is broken. Where can I find it?

The professor's expression was equally grim. "Let's start the pursuit right away. If Star Dragon really fled in such a hurry, there should be some traces left nearby. We can try to find and track them."

We were more cautious this time. Once we made any discovery, Olivia, who had received training in covert operations, would approach carefully with Athos and Yuwan.

After finding the Star Dragon, immediately fire a flare and fight with it at the same time to prevent it from escaping again. The other hunters quickly provide support.

There is another simpler way, which is to wait here, lie in wait, and bet that the Star Dragon will return to its lair and block it at home."

After finishing his words, the professor paused and looked at the hunters, "What do you think?"

It is true that he is the commander of the operation, but the hunters are the final executors, so of course he has to consider the hunters' opinions.

"I'm leaning towards the first option, which is more proactive." Olivia pinched her angular chin. "Although I haven't seen a star dragon in person, based on the description in the intelligence, it shouldn't be difficult to entangle it."

Muxiang nodded in agreement. Her Fanghound and Fukumu Rabbit could play a huge role in searching and tracking, but lying in wait on the spot would be tantamount to giving up these advantages.

Muti held the opposite opinion. Wearing heavy armor, she moved relatively slowly. Even if she had the physical strength to run around, she was worried about missing the opportunity to fight.

It would be more suitable for her to stay where she is.

Seeing that the three had different opinions, Aolang thought for a moment and said, “How about we carry out the two methods simultaneously or act separately?

Sister Ao takes Atos and Yuwan to track down the Star Dragon, with Muxiang assisting her, Fukumu Rabbit can expand the search range, and Fang Hound can help her provide quick support.

Muti and I will stay here. The cave is full of vines and bushes, so it shouldn't be difficult to hide with the help of the invisible clothes."

The professor nodded slowly, "Well, that's not bad. With your strength, even if you split your forces, suppressing the Star Dragon won't be difficult.

If one side encounters a Star Dragon first, they will be marked with a dye ball first. The Star Dragon will be unable to fly, and once it is hit by a dye ball, it will be unable to escape."

"Then teacher, how should we arrange the relationship between the two of us and the strange-faced people?" Eric raised his hand and asked.

The professor pondered for a few seconds and then said, "The Strange-Faced Tribe has joined the search team. They are natural jungle hunters, skilled in tracking and hiding, and should be able to help.

I am traveling with Muxiang, and we have the Fang Hound and Fukumu Rabbit with us. If anything happens on either side, Muxiang can discover it first and provide quick support.

Eric, you and Oranmuti will stay in this cave together. You can take pictures or collect samples as you wish."

"Really?!" Eric's eyes lit up.

"Well, the smarter the creature, the better it is at judging its opponent's strength. The Star Dragon probably won't regard you, who are completely harmless, as a threat. It might even be curious about you.

Plus, we've been in this cave for a while, so we're bound to have left some scent behind. If you wander around out in the open, it might help lower the Star Dragon's vigilance and make it ignore Aolang and the others lurking in the shadows."

"You're the bait!" Muti summed it up simply.

Eric was silent for a few seconds and shrugged. "Well, I'm happy to have the opportunity to investigate the ecology inside the cave. Anyway, you won't watch me get taken away by monsters, right?