Translated by XephiZ
Edited by Aelryinth
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Mo Fan followed Wen Xia and slowly wove through a chaotic street with fallen buildings and houses. They noticed a few young Mages fleeing for their lives, and experienced Hunters taking on the Rock Generals. They would hear cries of agony at times, before a new Rock Monster was born in an alley somewhere…
“These Mud Morphing Monsters have the ability to conceal themselves. They will change their color to match their surroundings when they are crawling on the streets or the walls, making it difficult to sense them.” Mo Fan had noticed the Mud Morphing Monsters’ strange ability along the way.
“We weren’t prepared for these creatures because we knew too little about them. Those idiots of the Research Union! I seriously wonder why the Magic Association even bothers paying them when they never do anything useful!” Wen Xia grumbled.
They had already encountered the Rock Monsters prior to the invasion. They had even saved a few Mages that went missing. The Research Union should have been able to figure out the traits of these creatures with the information they had, yet they did not learn anything useful. Otherwise, with such tight security, the city would not be so passive now!
As she thought, the local Research Union was not reliable at all. They were completely useless for practical matters!
“How are the two of us going to deal with those Black-Silver Rock Demons?” Mo Fan was not planning to use his brain, since he was only tagging along. Besides, he was just a weak Intermediate Mage if the woman did not get rid of the Seal!
“Look ahead,” Wen Xia pointed.
Mo Fan looked at the Black-Silver Rock Demon and noticed it had caught another young Mage. The young man looked a little familiar to Mo Fan. He recognized the young man was Liang Junheng from the group after taking a closer look, the person who kept arguing with Zhou Donghao.
“You know him?” Wen Xia asked with a frown.
“Oh, I’m not close with him,” Mo Fan said dismissively.
Wen Xia gave Mo Fan a disdainful look. She pointed out, “These Rock Monsters will turn into mud briefly to devour people.”
“I know that!” Mo Fan observed the Black-Silver Rock Demon quietly. He did not have any intention to save the young man. Going out there was no different from killing himself.
“My magic will have trouble breaking through its defense, but if its body turns into mud, I should be able to deliver a deadly blow to it!” Wen Xia declared confidently.
“Oh, that’s really a good idea. We’ll wait until the Black-Silver Rock Demon strikes again. I’ll keep it distracted while you ambush it. I seriously didn’t expect you to be so smart despite your solemn and inflexible attitude,” Mo Fan complimented her backhandedly, earning him another scowl.
Wen Xia’s plan was quite effective. These Rock Monsters’ strength was their defense, especially since Earth Magic was not destructive enough. The Rock Monsters might even remain unharmed when being struck by an Earth attack. However, the Rock Monsters would be vulnerable when they were ‘eating’ in their mud form!
“We can’t wait for someone else. If I attack it when it’s devouring somebody, won’t I kill the person too?” Wen Xia grit her teeth.
“Oh, that’s true. There’s a high chance you will hurt the person too, but I think it’s reasonable since the fate of the country and the Earth is at stake here,” Mo Fan bobbed his head.
Wen Xia rolled her eyes at Mo Fan’s mockery. “I’ll never do anything like that!”
“What should we do, then? The Black-Silver Rock Demon will only enter its mud form when it is eating someone. The person is going to be caught by your attack regardless,” Mo Fan said.
“Which is why I brought you here,” Wen Xia said.
“What do you mean? You want me to save the person right before you attack? That’s very difficult with the spells I currently have…” Mo Fan noticed Wen Xia staring him in the eyes while he was talking. His voice softened before he snarled all of a sudden, “F**k me, are you asking me to be the bait?”
Wen Xia nodded sternly.
“Girl, it’s your duty as a soldier to protect the country. It has nothing to do with an insignificant citizen like me! We’ll meet again if it’s our destiny. Mm, don’t worry about the Seal. I’ll just leave the city and leave the Barrier Core’s coverage,” Mo Fan turned and left after finishing the sentence.
What kind of f**king joke is this? The woman’s asking him to present himself to the Black-Silver Rock Demon and let it devour him. Was she out of her goddamned mind? There was no need for Mo Fan to risk his life like that when he was merely a visitor to the city!
“Are you a man or not!?” Wen Xia snapped.
“Of course I’m a f**king man! If it weren’t for the grim situation now, I dare you to ask the same question in the middle of the night. I’ll teach you the true meaning of firm and indestructible!… Get rid of my Seal, and I’ll eliminate that Black-Silver Rock Demon right away. There’s no way I’m doing it if you don’t take out the Seal!” Mo Fan said.
“You should have more confidence in me. I won’t let it devour you!” Wen Xia swore.
“I’m more confident in myself! I’m telling you, the Barrier Core is going to fall into the hands of the demon creatures. You should just undo the Seal now. I can at least get rid of all the Rock Monsters in the city center and protect the city! If you don’t undo the Seal, not only are you going to lose the Barrier Core, we are all going to die too!” Mo Fan promised.
“Let’s switch roles, then! I’ll be the bait, and you will defeat it,” Wen Xia compromised.
“Girl, are you out of your mind? How is my magic going to inflict any serious damage on those Black-Silver Rock Demons!” Mo Fan said.
“What do you want, then?” Wen Xia’s face reddened with rage. It was the only method she could think of. They would not be able to defeat the Black-Silver Rock Demons with just the Earth Element if they were to fight them head-on. They might end up being eaten if they lost, allowing the Black-Silver Rock Demons to grow even stronger.
“Let’s be reasonable. I’m only here to lend a hand, not to get myself killed!” Mo Fan said.
“Then do as I say!” Wen Xia said.
“Screw you, other people’s lives are important, but mine isn’t?”
“You won’t die, since you are strong enough!”
“You are really thinking highly of me…”
Mo Fan did not argue with Wen Xia any further. He had no intention of following her plan.
He waved his hand to say goodbye and began packing his stuff.
Wen Xia did not urge him to stay, either. Mo Fan did turn around a few times, but he retained his cold attitude.
He had gone less than two streets away when he heard a woman’s scream.
Mo Fan turned around and saw the Black-Silver Rock Demon grabbing a Battlemaga. It was obviously going to devour her to get stronger.
“Tao Jing?”
Mo Fan frowned when he happened to see her face.
