Not long after, Kuku and Yeye entered a mountain forest with complex terrain.
"Hoo~"
Yeye raised one of its clawed wings and pointed in a direction.
It seemed to indicate, "You wait here, I'll go scout the situation."
"Roar! Coo!"
The two monsters quickly reached an understanding.
Although the trees in the dilapidated shrine were not as tall as those in the ancient forest, providing perfect cover for Yeye, the complex, uneven terrain and the dark night environment were advantageous for stealth.
After Yeye flew away, Kuku's fan-shaped auricles unfurled.
Since becoming the Ancestral Black Wolf Bird, Kuku's fan-shaped auricles had significantly atrophied. However, its hearing range and interference resistance when opened had improved by more than a little.
As it activated, Kuku detected the sound of chewing and swallowing approaching.
It originally wanted to investigate, but remembering it was on standby and couldn't move freely, it continued to listen.
Before long, a three-star monster, a Great Tengu, passed overhead.
Great Tengu were Fanged Wyverns, similar in size to apes, covered in blue and white fur. Their three-toed tail claws were extremely strong, capable of supporting their bodies for leaps and spins.
Seeing a purple creature by the river below, gazing upwards in a daze near a cave entrance, the Great Tengu quickly swallowed the large persimmon in its mouth.
Then, it selected a yellow one from the various large persimmons in its belly pouch and held it in its claw.
"Whoosh! Splat!"
The yellow large persimmon struck Kuku's face, its juice and skin slowly sliding down the purple beak.
"Wugaga! Woohoo!"
The Great Tengu let out excited roars, propped itself up with its three-toed tail claws, swayed its body back and forth, and flapped its wings, clapping its claws.
"Waooh..."
Kuku narrowed its eyes and slowly looked up.
Remembering its agreement with Yeye, Kuku decided to endure for now.
Shaking off the persimmon juice from its beak, Kuku turned its head in another direction and continued to crane its neck to listen.
"Swish! Crack!"
Another yellow large persimmon came flying.
However, this time, Kuku's spiky tail whipped out, smashing the persimmon into pieces mid-air.
"Wow!"
Kuku issued a warning with a roar.
The Great Tengu was unfazed, pulling more large persimmons from its belly pouch and placing them on its wing-claws, apparently intending to launch a continuous barrage.
Seeing this, Kuku thought it was time to spar with the creature and show it what a "black hand" was.
"Waooh!" Kuku spread its wings and took flight, charging directly at the Great Tengu.
The mountain forest erupted in chaos, no longer peaceful.
Ahead, Yeye weaved and dodged through the trees, moving with near-silent stealth.
A nest of Great Izuchi appeared below.
Watching the Great Izuchi, who were snoring with snot bubbles, a desire to slit their throats with its sharp wing blades surged within Yeye.
Fortunately, Yeye suppressed the urge. However, as it lifted its claws to fly away from the tree, the branch it was perched on sprang back, dislodging an abandoned bird's nest and sending it flying into the air.
"Whoosh~ Thud!"
Just as the bird's nest was about to fall on the sleeping Great Izuchi, the inverted Yeye gently caught it with its sharp beak.
Just as Yeye felt a surge of relief, a noisy commotion suddenly erupted from not far away. "Woohoo! Waooh!..."
Realizing one of the roars clearly belonged to Kuku, Yeye's red, round eyes darkened.
The Great Izuchi were startled awake by the noise. Before they could even get up, they were shocked again by a pair of red, round eyes hanging above them.
"Goo..."
Yeye wanted to issue a warning with a cry, indicating that if they dared to make a sound, it would kill them.
However, halfway through its cry, it heard a crisp snap from above.
"Crack!"
The crooked tree, to which Yeye's claws were hooked, broke under its weight.
"Plop!" Yeye, falling vertically, plunged its sharp beak directly into the head of a Great Izuchi.
"Roar! Roar!..."
With a series of piteous roars, all the Great Izuchi in the nest were awakened and gathered, forming an encirclement.
Yeye quickly got to its feet, realizing its first stealth approach had failed, and decisively opted for a second.
Day turned to night, and the sun rose again.
The next morning, Kuku and Yeye flew back to the Fire
Kuku brought back a severed tail of a Great Tengu, with several scratches on its body.
Yeye's sky-blue feathers were soaked with a large amount of bright red blood, as if it had bathed in a pool of blood.
"Did you two really go scouting?"
Li Fan asked in surprise.
"Coo! Roar!"
"Alright, then, any results?"
"Roar!"
"Great Tengu only know how to run and use the terrain to hide, they're no match for you... And you, Yeye?"
"Coo!"
"The monsters here have a low sense of danger. Not only are they numerous, but their variety is also very rich. If Magnamalo were nesting nearby recently, they wouldn't be acting like this."
After understanding Yeye's report, Li Fan pondered for a moment and affirmed, "That makes sense. It seems the guild's intelligence is reliable."
Taking out a map, Li Fan drew a cross on the marked square where they were located.
The Firefly Flame continued to advance, preparing to move to the next designated area to continue the search.
This method of searching was indeed inefficient, but since the guild investigators stationed in the wild couldn't find any trace of the "Fat Tiger's Horn," only a straightforward carpet search remained.
Soon, half a month passed, and Kuku and Yeye's cooperation during reconnaissance became increasingly tacit.
Each time, Kuku would basically cause a large-scale disturbance, drawing attention, and then Yeye would calmly begin its stealth reconnaissance.
However, even with such meticulous searching, no useful information was obtained.
Li Fan, looking at the map filled with crosses on the deck, felt a slight headache.
Now, only two areas remained unexplored. One was the Verdant Leaf Fortress, which extended outwards from Firefly Village.
But the interception capabilities there were top-notch, and the village defense force was stationed there year-round, making it impossible for a Magnamalo to hide within.
The other area was the mountain forest behind Firefly Village, near the cliffs.
Because it was adjacent to the sea, there seemed to be nothing that would attract a Magnamalo.
Li Fan pondered for a moment. Although he knew Magnamalo had no connection to the sea, he decided to set sail and investigate.
After all, it was the only place in the vicinity they hadn't searched.
On a sunny noon, after a fruitless aerial search, the Firefly Flame descended to the cliff face behind the village. Since there was a fishing port on the coast with many passersby, Li Fan, to avoid causing panic with monster appearances and unnecessary trouble, chose to have the team search on foot.
Taking a roller lift used for transporting fresh fish, the team soon arrived at the mountain forest below the cliff.
In the jungle, Dailu held a large book, reading as she walked.
"No wonder Magnamalo's tracks are hard to find. It swallows even the bones when it eats, meow!"
Dailu said, continuing to flip through the pages.
"Consuming a large amount of bone matter not only strengthens Magnamalo's physique and promotes the generation of internal Ghostfire dust but also accelerates the growth of the horn on its head."
Li Fan added.
"Have they even investigated what it likes to eat?"
Yodora asked in surprise.
"Yes. If we can really catch the Fat Tiger, I'll send it to the Dragon's Graveyard. Piles of decaying bones are its favorite... Of course, we have to find it first," Li Fan said, looking ahead.
"Li Fan, what do the triangles on the map mean?"
Yodora asked curiously.
The entire map was covered in crosses, except for one area on the edge of the dilapidated shrine, which was marked with a triangle.
"That's the habitat of a Zinogre pack. Yeye and Kuku discovered it by chance."
Li Fan explained.
"Why mark that place?"
Yodora asked, confused.
"That seems to be Brother Lei's former pack."
"Uh... okay."
Yodora was a bit surprised to learn that Brother Lei, who had been active around Kulu Village for a long time, actually hailed from the dilapidated shrine area around Firefly Village.
Magnifying glass, small shovel, collection bottles...
Dailu began her specialized tracking investigation.
After spending an entire afternoon, they finally found a set of Magnamalo footprints.
Following the footprints, the team arrived at a dense jungle.
As the tracking deepened, Dailu's brow furrowed.
"Something's not right, meow. There are more and more footprints, and the depth varies significantly. There might be more than one Magnamalo active nearby."
Dailu explained her findings.
Sniffing the slightly pungent rotten smell in the air and glancing at the darkening sky, Li Fan marked the location and decided to return to the fishing port to rest for the night.
Late at night, in a small inn in the fishing port, Li Fan inquired about the local situation from the owner.
"Nothing unusual. But it's quite strange, isn't it? Fishing ports in other places are often attacked, but this place has been peaceful for many years." xxs
The male owner, leaning against the counter, spoke at length.
"Peaceful? Have monsters never attacked here?"
Li Fan was somewhat surprised.
"That's right, young man. At first, everyone was worried that it was too far from Firefly Village for reinforcements to arrive in time, but after so many years, it's now recognized as a blessed land."
The owner said with certainty.
Li Fan pondered for a moment and examined the map.
The Verdant Leaf Fortress extended outwards in a fan shape, forming an almost comprehensive barrier to the outside.
The fishing port, located far behind, had never been attacked, which seemed reasonable.
However, the investigation earlier that day had confirmed that Magnamalo could visit this area, meaning the fishing port was not within the protection range of the Verdant Leaf Fortress.
Could it be that Firefly Village's blocking capabilities were too strong, combined with sheer luck? Li Fan was surprised by the lack of any defenses when he arrived at the fishing port. So, it turned out they relied on luck to stand firm.
"Perhaps the coastal ecosystem, combined with the outward barrier, has led to monsters rarely visiting," Li Fan speculated.
"There's actually another theory."
"What theory?"
The owner smiled and pointed to the dark sea outside the window.
"An old fisherman who often goes out to sea said that there's a Dragon Palace left by a lost civilization in this sea. When this Dragon Palace reappears, the world will come to an end, so even monsters don't want to touch this place."
Could this be referring to the Dragon Palace Ancient City?
"Are there any more detailed descriptions?"
Li Fan pressed.
"No more."
The next day, the weather was clear and the air was fresh.
The team went to the marked location from yesterday early in the morning to continue their investigation, but the scene shocked everyone.
Trees were broken, rocks were cracked, and countless dense claw marks were visible on the ground.
A strong rotten smell permeated the air, and several unextinguished clusters of purple Ghostfire were scattered everywhere.
Dailu approached a cluster of purple fire to observe. After a moment, the flickering flames suddenly turned pink.
Dailu leaped back.
*Boom!* A small amount of purple powder exploded, creating a pink fireball that detonated along with the surrounding Ghostfire clusters.
However, due to the small amount of residue, it did not pose much of a threat.
"Is this the monster that Lone Hunter used to hunt?"
Yodora exclaimed, looking at the hellish scene.
"This battlefield looks like it was left behind by two Magnamalo fighting."
Li Fan inferred.
"That's right, meow... But why would two Magnamalo fight?"
Dailu couldn't understand.
Based on their known habits, Magnamalo wouldn't engage in a deathmatch upon encountering each other like a Fatalis.
"Let's investigate first. Be careful of the still-exploding Ghostfire."
Li Fan said, drawing his Dragon-Slayer Greatsword and beginning to defuse the unexploded Ghostfire clusters.
Dailu followed behind, starting her investigation and collection of traces.
Twenty minutes later, the initial investigation of the scene was complete.
"There are also female Magnamalo at the scene, at least three?"
Li Fan was also amazed by Dailu's findings.
"Yes, meow."
Dailu said, taking out a thick book from her backpack and opening a page to show Li Fan.
"Female Magnamalo weigh less than males, so their footprints are slightly smaller and fainter, meow. Also, there are no signs of combat near the concentrated areas of these footprints, which is consistent with females participating less in fights."
Dailu pointed at the page with her cat claws and began to explain.
"What could be the motive?"
Li Fan couldn't fathom what Magnamalo would fight over.
Why would they come to the barren coastal mountains to fight alone, instead of occupying the abundant ecosystem of the dilapidated shrine, and even bringing three females?
Fighting for mates?
Male Magnamalo could have harems as they pleased, except for...
"I know, the Magnamalo we're looking for is likely one of them."
Li Fan speculated.
"Huh? But there are no Magnamalo occupying the dilapidated shrine area, meow?"
Dailu found it incredible.
The motive for Magnamalo fighting each other might only be territorial disputes, but what was there to fight over in the coastal mountains?
"I can think of three possibilities, the most likely being that they simply disliked each other."
Li Fan explained.
"That can be a reason for fighting?"
Yodora asked, confused.
"As it stands, yes. The Magnamalo saw the other one parading with many mates, and remembering its own misfortune of a damaged horn, it targeted the other. The two engaged in a prolonged struggle, fighting all the way to the coastal mountains."
Li Fan explained.
"Uh... that seems quite reasonable. What about the second possibility?"
"This possibility is less likely. The Magnamalo sensed that the other had formed a purple gem internally and wanted to consume it for mutation. However, according to the secret archives of the Dragon Lore Institute, only extremely powerful or ancient individuals usually form precious gems. If it were at that level, the Magnamalo would likely not be a match."
Li Fan informed.
"What about the third?"
"The third possibility is even less likely. The Hundred-Beast Night is coming, and the Magnamalo wants to have it all to itself."
Zhao Lala reminds you: Please remember to bookmark after reading.