"What's that sound?"
Hopper was about to open his claws and eat the green-footed water strider in front of him.
However, the moment he heard the woman's voice, he immediately switched to battle-ready mode.
His open claws turned back into the shape of a dagger. His front legs, which were no different from the other six legs, also turned back into a spiked spear.
The dull grayish-brown fur all over his body was gradually glowing with a faint blue light.
Upon closer inspection, the vertical fur looked like steel needles that were flashing with a cold light.
This was a technique that Hopper had discovered after studying his body for the past three days.
Under normal circumstances, he could disguise himself as a spider that had nothing special except for its slightly larger size.
If the situation changed, he could also switch to his current state of battle readiness in the blink of an eye and give the enemy a 'surprise'!
"Is it my imagination?"
Hopper opened his eight eyes vigilantly and looked around his body.
However, he could only see the reeds that were three to four meters tall.
"No! This vibration...!"
Through the bristling fur, Hopper sensed a familiar vibration from afar.
The vibration was so strong that the water surface that was as flat as a mirror also stirred up several ripples.
The moment Hopper sensed the vibration, he and the green-footed water strider were dragged into the depths of the reeds.
After confirming that his current position was hidden, Hopper also used the short knife-like claws to bite and dismember the body of the green-footed water strider.
Then, he quickly ate and absorbed the pieces of its body.
[Eating the green-footed water strider. Experience points +5.]
"Just as I thought. After I reach a higher level than the green-footed water strider, I won't be able to gain any strengthening points if I continue to eat and absorb."
Seeing the notification on the screen, Hopper's guess was confirmed.
"But I've been hiding in this water for three days. I can't let this green-footed water strider expose my location."
The reason why Hopper had been hiding in this water for so long was not only because he relied on the 'blood-sucking' characteristic to heal his wounds.
There was another more important reason, and that was related to this familiar and strong tremor!
During the three days that Hopper had been hiding in this water, other than hunting small insect-type monsters like the green-footed water strider, Hopper only saw two types of monsters that were slightly larger than him.
One of them was the source of the tremors, which was the 'stone-scaled lizards'.
After observing for the past three days, Hopper found that every day near evening, five stone-scaled lizards would come to this area of water where he was hiding.
They were not here to hunt, nor to drink water, but more like they were here... to relax.
Hopper had once felt that it was too much for a few lizards to 'relax' at a fixed time every day.
However, every time he saw the stone-scaled lizard in the lead, he would feel relieved instantly. He wondered if this was a normal reaction.
This was because that stone-scaled lizard was really... too beautiful.
When Hopper was still on the Blue Planet, in addition to arthropods, he also liked reptiles.
Similarly, as a reptile lover, Hopper did not dare to say how much he knew about lizards. However, If he was asked to describe the features of a lizard, it would be very easy for him.
Now, when Hopper tried to describe the features of the stone-scaled lizard, he found that... He had run out of words.
So he could only use his first impression to summarize the beauty of the stone-scaled lizard.
That was the 'Venus' of lizards!
If there was a god in this foreign world, Hopper could swear to that god.
Whether it was in his past life or this life.
Whether it was on the virtual network or in real life.
Whether it was in movies, videos, or magazines.
He had never seen such a beautiful lizard!
It was different from the other four rock-scaled lizards whose scales and skin color were like gravel and soil, and looked like they had just crawled out of a mud puddle.
The scales of the rock-scaled lizard were dazzling golden in color. Every time the afterglow of the sunset reflected off the surface of the water onto her scales, her back seemed to be covered with pieces of rubies and yellow amber.
The part of her abdomen from her lower jaw to her tail was like pale yellow cream.
Every time Hopper saw it, he felt that it was a pity that he did not have a tongue now. Otherwise, he would definitely find an opportunity to lick her.
However, if Hopper really wanted to mention his favorite part, it would definitely be its nimble little tail!
Every time she walked towards this area of water, the first thing Hopper saw was her slightly raised little tail.
It was like a young girl's high ponytail, swaying as she walked, appearing playful and cute.
The only flaw was that her light blue eyes would occasionally reveal a trace of sadness.
This made Hopper, who had chosen to hide in the distance at that time, feel as if his heart was being cut by a knife.
Perhaps it was because he had experienced several brutal battles in the past few days, it had caused Hopper's spirit to be in a high-pressure state.
When he saw 'Venus' reveal such a sad emotion, Hopper's heart had an inexplicable impulse. An impulse to pull her into his arms.
So even though Hopper had encountered a powerful monster during the three days when he was recuperating...
He chose to fight with his life instead of leaving this body of water.
Because he knew that if he left this area, the monster might target the stone-scaled lizard.
"The frequency of this vibration is much higher than usual. It seems to be running over. Could it be..."
As he got closer and closer to the source of the earthquake, Hopper suddenly remembered the monster that he had fought with his life to kill.
Thinking of the cry for help that he had heard from somewhere just now, violent and restless anger rose in Hopper's heart.
Then, he pushed away the reeds in front of him and looked toward the shore.
What he saw completely ignited the anger in Hopper's heart.
"How dare you hurt her?"