After a few minor incidents, the group soon arrived at Rock Island. The island was aptly named; besides rocks, there was nothing else on it. The island was spacious enough, but if one walked around it, it would take no more than an hour or two at a normal pace.
The island was littered with debris—torn tents, ripped clothing, and medical boxes. These were likely remnants left by the previous team that came to exterminate the sea monsters.
That team suffered a crushing defeat. Instead of hunting down the sea monsters, they were chased away in a panic. After that, even seasoned hunters avoided the scattered sea monsters, and Lin Junxian lost all hope in this city.
"Look at this claw mark. The sea monster's claws must have been at least this long!" Jiang Yu observed carefully, quickly noticing a scratch on the rock.
Indeed, there was a claw mark on the two-meter-high rock, slashing down to its middle. The rock had three deep grooves, indicating that the sea monster had three claws.
"Can you tell what kind of sea monster it is?" Ai Jiangtu asked.
"A three-clawed, crimson one. These kinds of sea monsters are actually pretty rare. You won't find them in most monster guidebooks, but I'm guessing it's a Scarlet Rending Demon," Jiang Yu said confidently.
"A Scarlet Rending Demon? We haven't heard of those. Before we fight them, we'd better figure out their abilities and what deadly moves their more advanced forms might have," said Mu Tingying, a young woman with brown hair.
"These sea monsters aren't poisonous, but their claws are incredibly sharp," Jiang Yu explained as he detailed what he knew about the Scarlet Rending Demons.
"They're here," Mo Fan suddenly said, as the group was searching for more clues.
Both Ai Jiangtu and Nan Jue immediately sensed the approaching monsters as well. Ai Jiangtu, a space mage, and Nan Jue, a sound mage, were naturally more sensitive to such disturbances. They had been too focused on analyzing the sea monsters earlier, which was why they hadn't noticed the creatures immediately.
With Mo Fan's alert, Ai Jiangtu remarked, "Seems like our strategy is pointless. These Scarlet Rending Demons have no intention of hiding."
As soon as Ai Jiangtu finished speaking, more than a dozen red creatures, each three to four meters tall, leapt out in front of them.
These sea monsters had powerful hind legs, strange ring-shaped fins around their waists that looked razor-sharp, and thin but long front limbs, each ending in three claws like serrated daggers.
"Rawwwr!!"
Upon seeing the group, the Scarlet Rending Demons let out an angry roar.
Seeing this, Liu Meng, an ordinary fisherman, was so frightened that he collapsed on the spot. It was a miracle he hadn't wet his pants.
"Well, since we've run into them, this saves us some trouble. Let's just take them down," Guan Yu said, glancing at Mo Fan. "How about it, Mo Fan? Want to compete on who can kill more?"
Guan Yu, who had a grudge against Mo Fan due to Mu Ningxue, was eager to provoke him despite Mo Fan no longer being a reserve team member.
"Compete with me? Do you even have the strength for that?" Mo Fan chuckled.
Guan Yu was clearly overestimating himself.
"Are you scared?" Guan Yu teased, continuing his provocation.
"Alright, let's compete. But if we're doing this, there should be stakes, right?" Mo Fan replied.
"What do you have in mind?" Guan Yu asked.
"Whoever collects more monster cores wins. The loser has to do something for the winner."
"Anything?" Guan Yu asked, slightly surprised.
"Yeah, anything," Mo Fan nodded.
Guan Yu was taken aback. If "anything" was on the table, this bet just became serious.
"You realize that our instructor has strict rules about no personal conflicts within the team? If they find out, we'll be kicked off the national team. Are you sure you want to bet on anything?" Guan Yu double-checked.
"Are you chickening out, Guan Yu? If you don't have the guts, stop yapping in front of me," Mo Fan taunted.
Guan Yu clenched his fists, resisting the urge to lash out. He calmly replied, "Alright, let's do this. But just to be clear, the condition is that it can't affect the national competition."
Mo Fan shrugged and said dismissively, "Where's the fun in that? If you're that spineless, don't bother stepping up. I, Mo Fan, always think about how to knock down the people I don't like."
Guan Yu's face turned dark, but he wasn't going to jeopardize his future over this. Though the bet was off, he was determined to prove himself.
Without further ado, Guan Yu sprang into action. He had already set his sights on a Scarlet Rending Demon trapped by a shadow bind. Moving swiftly with a unique wind path beneath his feet, he blurred into motion and was upon the creature in an instant.
With a flash of brown light on his hand, his arm hardened into rock armor. The armor extended down his forearm, transforming his hand into a powerful, clawed weapon with jagged edges.
This magic tool was no joke. In just a few swift moves, Guan Yu killed the Scarlet Rending Demon.
After finishing the creature, he glanced over at Mo Fan, as if expecting some recognition.
"You used all that effort just to kill one sea monster? Saying you're useless isn't even an insult," Mo Fan remarked, shaking his head in mock pity.
Before anyone could react, Mo Fan casually raised his hand, silver light flashing around him.
"Hummmmm..."
An overwhelming force dragged eight Scarlet Rending Demons together, pulling them into a tight cluster.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
They collided with each other, completely unable to resist the force.
As they lay tangled together, Mo Fan's body ignited with a swirling azure fire.
"Fiery Fist: Exploding Heavens!"
A massive azure fire fist formed in the air above them. The moment it materialized, the scorching heat caused the terrified sea monsters to scream in horror.
"Whoosh!"
No matter how much they screeched in fear or tried to escape, it was all in vain.
The fiery fist descended.
"Boom!"
The fist engulfed the eight Scarlet Rending Demons in a sea of green flames. They screeched in agony as the fire consumed them.
"Flame Surge!"
And it wasn't over yet. As Mo Fan uttered those words, the ground erupted into a fiery wave, and a massive pillar of flame shot into the sky.
"Rumble!!!"
The towering pillar of azure fire was colossal. Within it, the eight Scarlet Rending Demons fell to the ground, one by one, completely annihilated.
It only took a single blow.
These warrior-level Scarlet Rending Demons were effortlessly destroyed by Mo Fan's power.
"That's insane!!" Jiang Yu stood frozen in disbelief.
"Damn, Mo Fan! You've become even more of a monster!" Zhao Manyan exclaimed, stunned.
Even Mu Ningxue, who was in the middle of fighting one of the creatures, couldn't hide the awe in her eyes.
Everyone, including Ai Jiangtu, was utterly shaken by Mo Fan's effortless annihilation of the warrior-level sea monsters.
(End of Chapter)