Start the Hunt

Chapter 29: 28 the Hunt

Drawing the spear before her, Nedeli felt the snakewood shaft's lightness and resilience. She swung it a few times, infusing it with magic. The moment the energy connected, Nedeli realized how formidable this spear was.

After a month of recovery, Nedeli's arm had healed by more than half. While she couldn't fight, her daily life was no longer affected—well, Yuan Chen wouldn't need to keep feeding her water anymore.

Though it was her first time handling it, Nedeli clearly possessed extensive experience with spears and polearms.

In Nedeli's perception, the spear in her hand was as light as a feather. But with the infusion of magic, the instantaneous increase in weight was enough to make it a nightmare for any of Nedeli's enemies and prey!

Even a hundred-pound impact could be generated by swinging a mere one or two-pound warhammer. This spear, whose weight was already difficult to quantify based on the amount of magic—

If Nedeli threw it with all her strength, she was confident she could draw blood even from a dragon.

Although she knew it was only lent to her, Nedeli couldn't help but admire it carefully. A moment later, she turned her gaze to Yuan Chen beside her. Perhaps having received her desired weapon, Nedeli's eyes held a hint of relaxation as she looked at Yuan Chen.

"Your judgment is good. This kind of spear can only unleash its greatest power in my hands! I'll help you with this hunt with all my might, but I won't settle for less than my share of the prey!"

Nedeli's voice was filled with confidence. Yuan Chen wasn't surprised by this—

While the phrase "only in my hands can it unleash its greatest power" was a bit of an exaggeration, considering Nedeli had never left this jungle to see the outside world, it wasn't something to fuss over.

Instead, this straightforwardness made Yuan Chen feel very comfortable—

Yuan Chen detested any form of red tape.

"You won't get less. More importantly, get ready. The operation will begin soon, and by then, you won't have a chance to back out even if you wanted to."

Hearing this, Nedeli scoffed dismissively, "Wild creatures never know fear!"

"You didn't say that at the beginning."

"That was before."

The day before the dragon-hunting operation, Yuan Chen, Lupe, Nedeli, and the Meat-toothed Beasts reconfirmed the battlefield.

After ensuring all facilities were in order, the next day, all the villagers except the young adults—the old, young, women, and children—were evacuated to the deep mountains to take shelter, preventing the rampaging dragon from affecting the village.

Then, the hunting operation officially began.

Donning full protective gear, the village's young adults headed to the valley on either side of Nedeli's beast den to conduct the final adjustments of the ballistae.

In addition to the ballistae, Ixialia's craftsmen had also built some relatively simpler ballista carts.

These ballista carts were far inferior to the ballistae smuggled from Noxus by Mordas, both in terms of destructive power and accuracy, but they could still be useful.

They conducted a test firing session over an open area, and then came the final mission confirmation. The most crucial element among them was Nedeli.

Handing Nedeli the jar containing Azure Starfire, Yuan Chen looked into her brown eyes and said earnestly:

"Don't activate the Azure Starfire immediately. Wait until the Elemental Dragon enters the Ambush Site before activating it. Otherwise, there's a high chance the dragon will fly out of the combat zone before being weakened. And we don't have that much Anti-air Weaponry."

Upon hearing this, Nedeli nodded and took the Jar, saying:

"Understood."

Then, Yuan Chen turned his gaze to the rest of the group. Seeing this, Mordas nodded and then looked towards a Fleshfang Hunter named Kona:

"Begin the operation! Just as planned!"

According to the plan, someone had to lure the Elemental Dragon to Nedeli's Beast Den. This task was undoubtedly extremely dangerous, as it required venturing directly into the dragon's lair to provoke it, and reaching the target area before the dragon tore him to shreds.

The mountain peak where the dragon resided was a full fifteen kilometers away from Nedeli's Beast Den. Soaring through the sky, a moment's carelessness could result in being instantly incinerated by a Breath!

For this reason, the Fleshfang Hunters drew lots. Kona was the Chosen One determined by the lottery.

Kona's eyes showed a hint of Fear. But after a long silence, a flicker of Determination rose in his beastly eyes: "I'm ready!"

Sensing Kona's resolve, a trace of Sorrow appeared in Mordas's eyes, but it vanished in an instant, quickly hidden from view.

Mordas didn't speak. He simply clenched his broad hand into a fist and pounded his Chest, producing a dull thud.

Nodding, Kona turned and picked up a barrel of Beast Blood, dousing himself with it. The scarlet and black blood poured down, and soon coated every inch of Kona's body.

His originally yellow Mane was stained a dirty dark red. The nauseating stench made him as conspicuous as a firefly in the night to creatures with keen senses. Grabbing the Explosive Barrel filled with Gunpowder, Kona didn't say a word. He simply gritted his teeth and sprinted towards the Dragon's Lair without looking back.

About ten minutes later, a fierce Firelight erupted from the distant mountain peak. It wasn't just Kona's single Explosive Barrel. Before this, the Fleshfang Hunters and the village's craftsmen had buried a large amount of elemental explosives around the mountain.

Now, ignited by the Explosive Barrel, the long-buried explosives created a violent chain reaction. In an instant, a section of the original mountain peak was roughly shaved off by flames!

Holding a Telescope smuggled from Noxus, Mordas's gaze was filled with gravity. Through the lens, Mordas clearly saw a pair of massive Flesh Wings open amidst the blazing firelight—

This dragon was bipedal and winged. Its wings connected to its massive forelimbs, with an extremely large wingspan. Even through the rolling smoke, those Flesh Wings were incredibly conspicuous.

Almost the next moment, accompanied by a violent Wind Pressure, the enraged Elemental Dragon soared into the sky. Below, Kona, covered in black and red blood, was less than the size of a sesame seed in the lens.

Beside him, Yuan Chen conducted a final reconnaissance of the dragon:

Name: Flame Drake

Race: Elemental Drake

Status: Full, Enraged, In Heat, Ferocious

Profession: Epic Beast Lv8

Skills: Fire Mastery Lv8 / Fire Immunity Lv7 / Dragon Might Lv4 / Hard Scale Lv7...

Trait: Dragon Legacy (Excellent):

From the direct bloodline of a pure-blooded Dragon, possessing a naturally powerful physique, elemental mastery, and magic resistance. However, due to inherent bloodline limitations, its intelligence will only truly mature after a century.

Although Yuan Chen had already detected the Flame Drake's numerous attributes earlier, no matter how many times he looked, he felt immense pressure.

In response, Mordas roared:

"Kona succeeded! Prepare for the handover!!"

Racing along the dirt road, which had been cleared and prepared for the Fleshfang Beasts to gallop, the Fleshfang Hunter named Kona's eyes were bloodshot. Accompanied by a wafting stench, the enraged Flame Drake in the sky let out an angry roar.

ROAR!!!

Amidst the roar that threatened to shatter eardrums, a scorching breath was spewed from the dragon's maw.

Dodging by the narrowest of margins, the proximity of death ignited a speed in Kona that surpassed anything he had ever achieved.

But alas, before the speed and power of a Dragon, the hunting talents that the Fleshfang Hunters prided themselves on were as fragile as paper.

After running for less than three kilometers, with the Dragon's wing beats, Kona's form was engulfed in dense flames. Even the surrounding land turned into boiling lava under the intense heat!

But the very next moment after Kona's death, another Fleshfang Hunter, who had been prepared, rushed out from the dense forest, splashing blood all over him. In a relay fashion, he continued to sprint towards the target location from where Kona had died.

Although a powerful Dragon species, Elemental Drakes do not possess the same high level of intelligence and foresight as pure-blooded Dragons. Limited by their bloodline, most Elemental Drakes have the intelligence of a three-year-old child—

An extremely irritable age!

As if in response, upon seeing another Fleshfang Hunter appear, the Flame Drake let out an impassioned and furious roar!

Flapping its wings, which churned with blazing flames, it swooped towards the Fleshfang Hunter like a low-flying fighter jet!

Fifteen kilometers didn't sound far; in Yuan Chen's previous life, it would have been a mere step on the accelerator. But under a Dragon's pursuit, a single hunter could not complete the diversion—

Therefore, the Fleshfang Beasts' lottery wasn't to select one person for diversion, but for everyone, to proceed in a relay based on the lottery results.

Even with pre-emptive enchantments, reinforcements, and road repairs, when the Dragon truly approached Nedeli's Beast Den, four Fleshfang Hunters still lost their lives.

And when the fifth Fleshfang Hunter was vaporized by the dragon's breath, leaving not a trace, Mordas, who had been suppressing his emotions for a long time, finally roared in a low, hoarse voice:

"Enough! Is the distance enough!"

"It's enough!"

Seeing the sacrifices made by the Fleshfang Beasts, Yuan Chen's gaze lost all its previous flippancy. With a calm and solemn expression, he roared, "Lupe! Activate the ritual!"

Upon hearing this, below the valley, at the original site of Nedeli's Beast Den, Lupe spread her arms. Her Vydalian Robe, smooth as silk and refracting colorful light under the sun, fluttered without wind.

The solidified magic instantly transformed, her white hair dancing in the storm of mana conversion, her eyes emitting a yellowish-brown glow with the surge of magic. The LV7-level magic, upon erupting, formed a tide that covered the entire valley.

Sensing the massive accumulation of magic, the Flame Drake, which had been in a rage, suddenly realized something was amiss—

Even without true high intelligence, seeking advantage and avoiding harm is an innate talent for every creature. This is even more so for a powerful creature like the Elemental Drake, whose intelligence is close to that of a three-year-old child.

But the moment it flapped its wings to ascend to the high sky, a rough, rock-like ring flew out from Lupe's sleeve, accompanied by surging demonic energy.

"In Skarner's name! Heavy Pressure!!"

As she spoke, the rough ring instantly shattered into six earth-yellow light wheels that burrowed into the ground around it, embedding themselves precisely into the pre-drawn magic circuits.

Activated by the energy, the entire valley erupted in yellow light. The space within this radiance became exceptionally heavy, as if the light air had been filled with invisible jelly. The instantly increased gravity pressed the ground down an inch, compacting it immensely. Nedeli's nest, which she had been living in, collapsed directly!

High in the sky, pulled by the gravity, the Flame Drake, which had been preparing to soar, let out a piercing roar. Its body then helplessly slid towards the ground due to the change in the gravitational environment.

But it was, after all, an epic-level powerful lifeform. After falling less than a hundred meters, the Flame Drake forcibly controlled its wings to regain its balance. With a surge of magic, it began to slowly climb back towards the sky.

"Fire!!"

It was at this moment that Yuan Chen waved the small flag in his hand. On the distant mountainside, the artisans, having seen Yuan Chen's signal, did not hesitate to pull their hands from the triggers of the giant mechanical crossbows.

The next moment, swoosh swoosh swoosh swoosh!!

With the sound, giant arrows, each about 1.3 meters long and made of thick wood, shot out. Especially those from Noxus's finely crafted ballistae, their hardened steel arrowheads, already poisoned and covered in ferocious barbs, left streaks of dull, dark arcs in the air.

With a few thwack sounds, the Elemental Drake was hit by three of them. Two of them only caused superficial flesh wounds to its body, which were not critical. However, one arrow struck the Flame Drake's left wing, which it was struggling to flap.

The moment its wing was hit, Nedeli unhesitatingly poured her power into the Azure Starfire.

Instantly, flames boiled, and myriad splendors surged from the jar in Nedeli's hand like a flowing river of stars. Though it was daytime, a sea of stars was forcefully inverted in the sky!

Within this surging seed of order, Nedeli's aura rapidly climbed from weakness to full power. Dense Heavenly Power poured into her body, turning her originally wheat-colored skin into a translucent azure dotted with dreamy starlight!

On the other side, its flesh wing struck, the Elemental Drake let out a terrified roar—

Even with its limited intelligence, at this moment, it vaguely realized that this was a trap set for it.

But just as it prepared to reinforce its body with magic to break free from the oppressive gravitational restraint, accompanied by the inverted river of stars in the sky, a pressure originating from its bloodline suppressed its magic as if it had solidified!

Not only its own magic, but even its body and blood seemed to freeze. Even with all its might, it could only muster less than thirty percent of its full power!

Losing its balance and strength, coupled with the tearing force of gravity, the Elemental Drake's massive body, nearly thirty meters long, began to freefall from the sky.

It was at this instant that Mordas, who had been holding back, roared with red eyes and leaped out:

"Meat-toothed Beasts! Begin the hunt!!!"