When Li Fan returned the book the next day, Puxian confirmed the contents of the book one by one.
He also took out an ink wash painting, displaying the level classification of the Hundred-Beast Migration by the village of Enamored Flames.
It stated that each monster convoy had a super-strong individual as its leader, guiding the entire convoy forward.
Monster leaders could generally only lead monsters of a lower star rating than themselves; the higher their own star rating, the stronger their commanding ability.
Therefore, the classification of levels was based on the observed scale of the monster convoy and the star rating of the leader monster.
The Hundred-Beast Migration crisis levels had a total of 7 stars, with 1 star being the lowest and 7 stars being the highest, consistent with the guild's mission classifications.
However, there were two exceptions: one was the Magnamalo, which could stimulate monster migration, and the other was the Wind Serpent Dragon, which drove the monsters and caused the Hundred-Beast Migration.
If the Wind Serpent Dragon was sighted approaching the Emerald Canopy Fortress, the crisis level would be directly raised to 7 stars. If a Magnamalo was involved, it would be at least classified as 5 stars.
After rating the crisis level, hunters would be widely recruited through contracts at the guild branch in the village of Enamored Flames.
When Li Fan shared his conjecture, Puxian's reaction greatly surprised him.
"Really? If that's the case, we need to intensify our investigations recently."
Seeing Puxian's eyes full of excitement, Li Fan was a bit bewildered.
"Won't it cause panic or a crisis?"
"The Emerald Canopy Fortress has been expanding for a hundred years, and the permanent number of the village defense force has exceeded two hundred, all to resist the Hundred-Beast Migration. Of course, if the Wind Serpent Dragon is sighted, the villagers will still be somewhat worried, but we have made ample preparations." Puxian explained.
Combining the village chronicles and historical texts, Li Fan quickly understood the meaning of Puxian's words.
Those elder dragons were indeed moving towards the village of Enamored Flames, but they had never truly arrived all at once.
Even the Wind Serpent Dragon, the source of it all, did not appear in every Hundred-Beast Migration, and attacking the Emerald Canopy Fortress was a low-probability event.
Furthermore, the village of Enamored Flames was extremely martial; even ordinary villagers could use Wirebugs, meteor hammers, kunai, or standard hunting weapons.
Combined with the Emerald Canopy Fortress's top-tier city defense capabilities, even a concentrated monster attack would pose a very limited threat.
While the Hundred-Beast Migration posed a threat to the village of Enamored Flames, the massive monster convoy also brought significant economic benefits.
If it were compared to a game, the Emerald Canopy Fortress would be a super monster-spawning point. As long as the monsters could be defeated and the battlefield cleared, a vast amount of materials could be obtained from their corpses.
This completely surpassed the traditional hunting process of traveling, tracking, fighting, and pursuing in terms of efficiency.
Monsters would be delivered to your doorstep for you to fight. As long as you could withstand them, you could obtain enormous profits. This was unique in the Monster Hunter world.
"So I was overthinking it."
"Not at all. The abnormal movements of the Magnamalo are very worthy of attention. That monster seems to have the ability to predict the Hundred-Beast Migration first. We still thank you for the information."
Despite his happiness, Puxian did not underestimate the abnormal behavior of the Magnamalo.
"First? Can other monsters also sense the arrival of the Hundred-Beast Migration?"
"Yes, they will sense it successively."
"All of them?"
"Well... their reactions are not entirely the same, but based on years of observation in the village, this is generally the trend." Puxian informed him.
"This is truly an incomprehensible ecological phenomenon." Li Fan sighed.
"Yes, the village, the guild, and the Dragon Calendar Institute have conducted many investigations, but we still haven't found the cause."
"Village Chief, have there truly been no sighting reports of the Nakarkiri?"
"No, it is currently a creature that exists only in legends. However, the last line of the legendary ballad, 'With its kin, the world will be unified,' always sends a chill down my spine."
After Li Fan understood the information, he felt much more at ease.
Leaving Puxian's house, he went to the craftsman's workshop to inspect his equipment.
Since the Felynes couldn't move it, Daizen, along with two apprentices in the workshop, moved the custom-modified Iron Tower Heavy Shield to the front of the shop.
Before long, the dull yellow and rough Diablos Lance was also transported over by several Felynes using a cart.
Most of the villagers of Enamored Flames had participated in battles with monsters and had a deep understanding of hunting weapons.
Driven by interest, a crowd of onlookers quickly gathered.
The Iron Tower Heavy Shield was designed to be the largest full-body heavy shield with the widest shield surface currently available.
As the crafting materials were of ordinary rarity, there was nothing particularly noteworthy about it.
The Diablos Lance, however, was different. Not only were its materials extremely precious, but it was also one of the top-tier lances.
After preparations were complete, two Felynes walked over carrying two metal brackets.
"Chief Hunter, these are the heavy shield straps and lance clasps with the strongest load-bearing capacity. Before trial use, they need to be installed on your arm guards and chest armor. If your armor is made according to the new blueprint, you can install them directly. Do you need help with the installation?" One of the Felynes introduced.
"Okay, thank you." Li Fan said, then removed the scabbard strap and the Zinogre Greatsword and handed them to Dilu, extending his arm forward.
*Creak!* As the heavy shield strap was embedded into the Zinogre gauntlet, Li Fan felt his entire arm sink.
It was clear that the strap capable of bearing the heavy shield was itself quite heavy.
"It's stuck, meow... Hmph! Hmph!" The Felyne responsible for installing the lance clasp found that the clasp was only halfway embedded and stopped. It then jumped onto the top and stomped on it.
*Click!* The lance clasp slid into place quickly.
Dillu, who was holding a small notebook to record the embedding method, also practiced by stepping on one paw, preparing for future installation and removal.
Next was the embedding of the clasp and the shield. Li Fan had seen many lance hunters demonstrate this step.
Many shop entrances had weapon storage areas, where lances and gunlances were the most frequently seen weapons.
This was because, apart from the guild branch, almost no merchant was willing to increase the height of their doorframes and ceilings for hunters carrying lances.
Therefore, if you walked around on the street, you would easily see hunters at shop entrances loading or unloading their lances and shields.
Li Fan moved to the inner side of the Iron Tower Heavy Shield, bent his knees, and squatted down, reaching for the lock at the center with his guard.
*Click!* A crisp sound of the clasp closing echoed.
Then, he used the strength of his legs to push himself up slowly.
There was a small trick to this: keep your arms as horizontal as possible, straighten your back, and ensure the heavy shield is lifted straight up and down.
Otherwise, before getting used to arm-carrying a heavy shield, it would be very easy for the hunter to fall over with the shield.
"Hmm... not bad, this Iron Tower Heavy Shield is made with truly sufficient materials." Li Fan praised, his face slightly flushed.
"As expected of the Chief Hunter, to be able to lift the Iron Tower Heavy Shield so easily." Daizen exclaimed.
*Grumble~ Grumble~* The cart arrived. Li Fan gripped the handle with one hand, lifted the Diablos Lance, and thrust it diagonally towards the sky.
Seeing the airflow emanating from the tip of the lance, Li Fan felt that its attack power should be quite considerable.
*Thump! Thump! Click!* After three attempts, the Diablos Lance was embedded vertically into the lance clasp on his back.
*Puff! Puff!*... Li Fan took several steps forward, kicking up dust, and several deep footprints appeared.
His legs felt so heavy. This lance and shield combination seemed to demand a lot of leg strength.
However, the Iron Tower Heavy Shield was a shield type that prioritized defense to an extreme, and the Diablos Lance was also not light. This level of weight was expected. Li Fan summarized his wearing experience in his mind.
There was no restriction here that required drawing the lance to block.
This meant that if he encountered danger, Li Fan could simply smash the heavy shield on his right arm to the ground and immediately enter a defensive state. Of course, it would have no offensive capability.
He felt that thanks to his long-term Greatsword training, his hand strength was just enough to bear this lance and shield combination. However, to use it as flexibly and freely as in the game was basically impossible. The problem was not the familiarity with standard movements, but the lack of leg strength. The most straightforward solution would be to replace the overly heavy shield and lance, and gradually adapt to using the lance and shield with lighter equipment. However, considering the application scenario, Li Fan felt he wanted to adapt for a while first. After all, his current monster team was already formed, and he no longer needed to be on the front lines to fight. This lance and shield combination, which could both defend and train his leg strength, was a relatively good choice.
In the crowd, a young Dragonborn girl in a red shrine maiden outfit exclaimed, "It's the Diablos Lance! So cool!"
"It's alright." A Dragonborn girl of the same age, holding her hand and also wearing a shrine maiden outfit, replied indifferently.
"How can it be alright? Aren't you, Shui Yun, the one who likes lances the most?"
"Sister, don't talk nonsense... I just appreciate it occasionally." Shui Yun said unhappily.
"Okay... uh, that hunter is looking this way." Huoya took half a step back in fear.
Li Fan observed them for a moment and began to ponder. Since Huoya and Shui Yun were still children, could they still resonate with the Wind Serpent Dragon and the Nakarkiri?
Never mind. Anyway, if the Hundred-Beast Migration truly came, the Emerald Canopy Fortress could defend against it, so what was he worried about?
After completing the inspection and paying, Li Fan went to the airport, attracting considerable attention along the way.
The moment he stepped onto the deck, he vaguely felt that the "Enamored Flames" was slightly sinking.
He went to the kitchen and saw fresh apples in the fruit bowl. Li Fan picked one up and took a big bite.
"Huaye, prepare a separate Felyne meal using Barroth as the ingredient."
"Oh! Are you going on an expedition recently, meow?" The head chef Huaye asked curiously.
"No, I'm doing strength training recently and want to supplement it with Felyne meals."
"It's a bit sudden, meow, but no problem! I'll prepare it right away! Ye Zi! Please go to the cabin's cold storage and find the Barroth leg meat. We're making Felyne meals!" Huaye called out.
"Oh, and prepare one for the Felynes too." Li Fan suddenly remembered something and said.
"I get one too, meow?" Dilu was greatly surprised.
"Yes, the stronger you are, the further danger will be from you. Since the team's conditions are so complete now, Dilu, you can also participate." Dilu looked down at her cat paws and nodded seriously, saying, "I will work hard, meow!"
His unease dispelled, and his lance and shield equipment collected, the "Enamored Flames" set sail again.
Late at night, in the shrine of the village of Enamored Flames.
Huoya, who was fast asleep, suddenly opened her eyes, got up from her bed, and looked up at the night sky in the courtyard.
Her vacant eyes glowed with blue light, and she repeatedly murmured, "Where are you, where are you..."
At the same time, on the cliff behind the coast, after several large chunks of beast meat were thrown from the ship, Li Fan grabbed a cable and descended to the ground.
After a brief exchange, Li Fan learned that apart from a few escaping Chameleos, Lei Ge was living quite comfortably. Of course, his hunting area was restricted, so he wasn't eating enough, but with the newly delivered beast meat, this problem was solved. As for Magnamalo, it hadn't visited.
"Lei Ge, when you see Magnamalo again, say that another new subordinate wants to join."
*Roar?* Lei Ge stopped eating and looked up in realization.
"Magnamalo doesn't want to recruit subordinates for a common cause? Let's try to satisfy it." Li Fan explained.
*Roar...*
"You eat first, I'll let Xixi familiarize herself with the environment." Li Fan said, walking a short distance away and taking out a Poké Ball.
*Roar!* Xixi appeared and, hearing the sound of the distant waves, let out a happy cry, eager to fly towards the sea.
"Wait, Hui Hui isn't here, don't go catching water beasts!" Li Fan quickly stopped her.
Xixi slowed down, flapping her wings, and returned to the forest with disappointment.
"This time I need you to go undercover. Do you know Magnamalo?"
*Roar...*
"It's normal if you don't remember. This time, you need to pretend to be its subordinate."
*Roar!*
"Yes, I know you only have Hui Hui as your big sister, but this is pretending. Lei Ge will act with you."
*Roar... Roar...* Xixi lowered her head and let out a very unwilling cry.
"The ecological environment here is very unfavorable to Hui Hui. If the team can train another combat member like Zhan Zhan, Hui Hui won't have to risk participating in battles most of the time. Moreover, although Magnamalo is petty, I feel it's quite good to its subordinates." Li Fan persuaded.
*Roar!*
"Ah? You agreed so quickly."
*Roar!*
"You said you were the most professional... Alright, anyway, monsters don't have much insight into deception. As long as you and Lei Ge maintain safety, just try to complete the tracking."
According to the thinking patterns of ordinary monsters, monsters do not deceive monsters.
*Roar!*... *Roar...* Xixi cried out happily, then suddenly sensed something, turned her head towards the coast, and let out a vigilant low growl.
"You sensed it too?" Li Fan asked incredulously.
*Roar...*
"I can't explain the feeling, but I just want to fight?"
*Roar!* Xixi confirmed.
Li Fan felt as if he had seen a ghost. It was understandable that the Zinogre living in the ruined shrine had a sense, but Xixi had grown up in the Elder Peaks since childhood.
Puff from the Flooded Forest and Zhan Zhan from the Sandy Plains were released. Soon, although their expressions differed, both showed strong hostility towards the depths of the ocean and a strong desire to fight. The same sense, despite different living areas. Many monsters would even abandon interspecies gaps and migrate collectively. What kind of monster could make the entire ecosystem hostile and confrontational? Wait, if we think about it this way, perhaps the Hundred-Beast Migration was not an escape, but an expedition!