Chapter 443 - Weed
TL: LifeisaJourney
What could be happening? Could it be that after killing it eight times, a second stage would emerge?
Astonishing. So was it now possible to kill the creature?
Just as predicted, the enraged Crocodile was more formidable. Its stats for speed and strength were at least twice what they were before. It really took a toll on Liu Gan keeping up with the fight.
Previous attacks that he dodged suddenly became impossible to evade. Almost every attack from the Crocodile would clash against his Mist Armor, sparks would fly. Every bite that landed on the Mist Armor would cause serious damage to it. As a byproduct, Liu Gan's fury counter was at maximum after a few attacks. Instantly, Liu Gan used his Enhanced Crescent Blade ability on the Crocodile's head.
What happened next was unexpected, Liu Gan's consecutive Enhanced Crescent Blade attacks were avoided by the Crocodile! His ultimate attack resulting in several missed attacks was frustrating and depressing. After tanking another round of attacks, Liu Gan had his fury counter maxed out. This time, he combined his Psychic Shock ability first, so the Crocodile was rigid during his next attack. He counter-attacked the same spot on the Crocodile's neck, landing four Enhanced Crescent Blades in that position. The creature was finally almost half-dead now.
The enraged Crocodile's movements were exceedingly fast. Liu Gan couldn't catch up with its movements. Nine out of ten of his attacks were misses. Only when he combined his attacks with Psychic Shock would his attacks hit the mark.
For the next fifteen minutes of his fight, Liu Gan focused solely on dodging. He avoided any confrontation, at least until his fury counter was at maximum. That way he could use another round of Psychic Shock with his Enhanced Crescent Blade combination attack.
Following the second round of the combination attack, the Crocodile's head was nearly chopped off. Its body fell to the ground in its final struggle.
"Ana, come over here." Liu Gan handed over his greataxe to Ana.
"Ah…" Ana hesitated about moving closer, but she woke up from her daze. She grabbed the greataxe and hacked downward on the neck several times. Finally, she severed the Crocodile's head.
A dense black orb leaked out from the Crocodile's body. Ana the was sole recipient of this experience orb. It didn't take long for the Crocodile's body to dissipate away like mist. Left behind on the floor was a shiny metallic object.
From the looks of it, the metallic object was a coin. The words engraved on the coin were something Liu Gan had not encountered before. It was not an apparition that passed through his hands. Perhaps the coin would be useful in the future. Liu Gan placed the foreign coin into his dimensional storage space.
"Did you level up?" Liu Gan turned around to ask Ana.
"Le… Level… I leveled up…" Ana stuttered as she checked her wristwatch.
"What happened? Did you give birth or something?" Stratos peeked over her shoulder.
"The hell! Lord Liu! I am now level 10! Thank you, Lord Liu!" Ana embraced the feeling of her body heating up. She stared at the wristwatch with the number 10. She was very happy with her results.
Now that she had reached level 10, she could really be a big sister. She could smack anyone on the back of head and they couldn't talk back to her. She really wanted to see who would dare say "no" back to her.
"You were right about what you said earlier. If we kill it over and over again, we can get the experience points," Liu Gan nodded at her. The last kill on the Crocodile was given over to Ana, fulfilling his promise of whoever found Wan'er first would be given a level boost.
Ana being the first member of their expedition group to reap the benefit of leveling up was a good sign. As long as the other members didn't die, they would have a chance to reach level 10 too!
Knowing that the Crocodile could be killed took a lot of pressure off of Liu Gan's shoulders. He felt better about himself knowing that he didn't waste his time and effort fighting against it. Even if his equipment was wearing down, he was still able to kill this boss figure. He was experiencing that refreshing feeling of being able to obtain rewards from heavy investments.
If they couldn't get any experience points from killing the Crocodile, it would make anyone feel hopeless about their situation. However, that was not the case here. Now, Liu Gan wished that more Crocodiles would come bother him. That way, every member here could reach level 10! That way, more capable people could help him finish his mission, and they would be fine additions to strengthen the elite battalion.
Even if Liu Gan wished for more intruders, his desires were not granted. They successfully took Wan'er to the public restroom without any further mishap. After Wan'er was finished with her business with the toilet, she agreed to go back to her mother.
The group ventured off to where Wan'er's mother had started the quest for Liu Gan, but the ghost was not there.
Cai Hao Chen and Liu Kang were responsible for tailing the mother. They left behind arrows designating the direction of travel. The pair did a commendable job; there were so many symbols tagged, it was hard to lose track. Liu Gan and the other three followed the trail without any problems.
It didn't take long before another Crocodile spawned. This time, Liu Gan knew that it would take nine deaths to truly kill the creature. From the beginning to the end of that process, it would take an hour of continuous fighting.
The next question was, who should the experience go to?
Star Yu was responsible for stirring up troop morale. It left a bad taste in Liu Gan's mouth, so he didn't let Star Yu reap the reward. It would serve as a punishment so he wouldn't act out again. In the end, Stratos ended up taking the free experience points by getting the kill on the Crocodile. Just like that, he increased his level to 10.
"At the end of the path to become an immortal, who is at the peak? All heavenly signs point to me! If it is destined to be mine, it will be mine! If it's not for me, then no one else can have it!" Stratos jumped onto a rock and started a monologue as an Elder of a cultivating sect.
"Are you ready to wake up from your daydream?" Ana kicked Stratos in the buttocks. He fell onto the grass on all fours.
"What… I, Stratos, am undefeated across the universe! How could I lose to a woman! Despicable! Unbelievable!" Stratos spat out the weeds he ate and sighed theatrically.
Ana kicked him again before he got up. This time Stratos slid across the grass. He ended up with another mouthful of grass.
Star Yu was standing on the sidelines, discontent and disappointed with the current situation. If he hadn't told anyone of his terrible past, then Sun Chao wouldn't have gotten scared and fallen into the well. He wouldn't have been punished for disrupting troop morale. It should've been him who leveled up! He lost such a precious opportunity, just like that!