Powerful Monster

"Get out of here, fast!"

Roy paused briefly, then said decisively.

He realized that their group's good luck had completely run out, as they had unintentionally stumbled into the monster's habitat.

The others felt the same way. For safety, they had specifically chosen to travel through the Great Wind Land Hills, near the mountainous area.

The Wizard Tower taught knowledge about various monsters and otherworldly creatures. Mermen, being common low-level monsters, were topics even low-level apprentices learned about.

They all knew that these monsters were relatively short compared to humans and not well-suited for long-distance running on land, so they never ventured inland.

Unless they were migrating along rivers.

Heading towards the mountains was a more sensible choice.

However, just as they had traveled several kilometers east, nearing the point of leaving the river, a ferocious-looking figure suddenly appeared on the high slope of a small valley ahead.

Following closely behind were over a dozen mutated mermen elites with mottled scales.

Roy's Spiritual Power was stronger than the others, and he immediately felt a chilling Magic Power gathering, with high-voltage electricity surging ahead.

Goosebumps rose all over his body. "Why isn't that monster staying by the river and running up the mountain?"

They had run this way precisely to avoid the creature, only to walk right into a trap!

Without hesitation, he pulled on the reins, dragging Nia, who was slightly slower to react, with him. He turned their mounts around at full speed.

The others snapped back to reality and quickly turned their mounts as well.

But Chad and Shan Lu were a step too slow, falling within the area where the Lightning Bolt was about to strike.

A crackling sound of electricity filled the air, and a thick white beam, like a blade, pierced their bodies.

Powerful Magic Power spread in all directions. In a moment, their skin was charred and smoking as they fell to the ground.

Their Necromancer Warhorses, their animating Magecraft energy dispersed, also instantly collapsed.

"Save... save me!"

Thomas, though he had dodged the initial attack, was also paralyzed by the surging electricity and fell behind the group.

More than ten bone spears whistled through the air, piercing him with a whistling sound.

His body stiffened, he spat blood, and soon there was no more sound from him.

"Help!"

Andov and Tigro fled in a panic, crying out in terror.

Fortunately, the Merman Sorcerer needed a casting interval, which allowed them to escape.

"How could there be mermen ambushing here? We didn't detect any before!"

Roy's heart pounded like a drum. He spurred his horse with all his might, fleeing towards another slope. Only when he felt they had put a considerable distance between them did he dare to look back.

The ferocious figure made him hold his breath instantly.

"That monster... is indeed a Lord-level creature. It's not something ordinary Advanced Apprentices can handle!"

The creature was several times larger than a normal merman, its body a golden-green hue. Its scales looked like they were cast from Exotic Copper, and sharp, shark-like spines covered its back.

Even more striking was that the Merman Lord had a bright red Eyeball embedded in its palm, giving it a somewhat ferocious appearance.

Lightning crackled around it. The terrifying "Lightning Bolt" that had just struck was clearly generated from it.

Seeing this, Roy was momentarily stunned, feeling a faint ache between his eyebrows.

But he couldn't afford to think about it and quickly urged Nia and the surviving members of the group to continue their escape.

"Don't go back to the river. Let's go over this small hill and out the other side. It'll be faster!

I remember there's an exit over there. We'll be safe once we get outside!"

At this critical moment, Roy felt his mind was still clear.

At least...

He hadn't gotten lost!

"Aimo! Aimo, run!"

Suddenly, Tigro sensed something was wrong. He turned to look and shouted in alarm.

The others turned to see that Aimo had fallen behind at a crucial moment.

He was so nervous that when he turned to flee earlier, he couldn't control his Necromancer Warhorse and was thrown from the saddle!

The mermen behind them were catching up.

With no other options, the group could only watch helplessly as he was surrounded by several Elite Warriors.

Aimo roared and began to fight like a cornered beast, but he couldn't break free from the Elite Warriors' entanglement.

"We can't save him. Let's go!"

Roy grunted and decisively moved on.

A short while later, the group reached the safety of an open, uphill slope.

Looking back, everyone saw that Aimo had already been killed. The mutated Lord-level monster was furiously baring its fangs and claws at them, seemingly annoyed that they had escaped.

"This monster! Damn it!"

Tigro trembled with rage.

He had lost his good companion, Aimo, here.

As for Chad and the other two, their entire team had been wiped out.

Roy could only offer his sympathies.

At the critical moment, he could only pull Nia, who was beside him, to safety. He couldn't manage Chad and Aimo and the others.

This was the difference between closeness and distance.

"We absolutely cannot stay here any longer. We'll take a detour to the other side and then hurry back.

The Great Wind Land Hills are originally a place with many dangerous missions. We must remain vigilant and guard against other monsters, and even attacks from Wizard apprentices!"

At his reminder, everyone could only put away their grief and fear, put on cold and serious expressions, and leave the original spot.

"We're finally back!"

"So tired..."

Two days later, everyone returned to the Wizard Tower, finally able to relax their taut nerves and let out a long sigh of relief.

During this period, they had indeed encountered other adventuring teams heading to the Great Wind Land Hills and had attracted the attention of ill-intentioned individuals who tried to probe them with words.

Fortunately, Roy was a genuine Advanced Apprentice, possessing considerable deterrence.

The others also surrounded him, appearing like an elite force, so no one dared to make a move against them.

"Everyone come to my place. As promised, I will distribute the spoils of this adventure."

Roy looked around and saw that everyone beside him looked dejected, like eggplants withered by frost. He decided to say something encouraging to lift their spirits.

Upon hearing this, the expressions of the group finally improved slightly.

With only 6 people left in the team, Roy waved his hand and equally divided 5 Sorcerer Fish Pearls among everyone except Sailen. The other spoils were distributed as much as possible to the injured, ensuring everyone received something.

Sailen had a special status and didn't need mission points or promotion materials, so she was compensated with some Magic Stones.

Even so, everyone still received gains worth at least 2000 Magic Stones each.

Roy himself obtained various materials worth over 5000 Magic Stones!

Even though he had predicted good gains from this adventure mission on the way, when the spoils were finally in hand, everyone couldn't help but feel a sense of daze.

So, if fewer people shared, the final gains would be this much more?

When the divisor decreases, the quotient increases...

A simple math problem, and also a life-or-death problem!

For a moment, no one knew whether to call this luck or misfortune.