"It's like being pushed to an extreme state... By the way, is this a move unleashed by monsters combining their abilities?" Eudora asked tentatively.
"Yes, this move is a monster combination technique. I'd like to call it 'Twilight Wind'!" Li Fan introduced it with great solemnity.
"Although the name sounds cool, it gives me the feeling... it's just that no one wants to touch the stench cloud, so they're desperately flapping their wings to blow it towards the other side," Dilu voiced her understanding.
"Well... you're actually right. That's the basic principle behind Twilight Wind," Li Fan replied.
"Meow?" Dilu was surprised that she had guessed correctly.
The Night Bird, enduring the stench cloud by flapping its wings at high speed, indeed temporarily resisted the combined wind force of Little Fool and Gakku. However, this lasted for less than a minute before the frequency of its wing beats began to decrease. The reason was that even at its highest flight speed, the Night Bird's wings would never flap at such an extreme frequency. Under the immense physical exertion, the duration it could maintain was bound to be limited.
*Whoosh~ Whoosh~*
Seeing the stench cloud inevitably encroaching, the Night Bird stopped flapping. It lowered its head and tilted its body, raising one wing high as if lifting a cape to cover its beak and nostrils.
*Roar! Roar!*
*Wow! Wow!*
The Great Ape and Gakku let out joyful roars upon seeing this. Little Fool's mouth emitted black smoke as it charged up a fireball.
*Boom! Boom! Boom!*
The Night Bird knew it couldn't withstand it head-on. It spread its wings and took flight to evade. Although it successfully dodged, its body was completely exposed to the stench cloud.
*Hoo!*
The Night Bird folded its wings and landed, its gaze filled with a dark intensity.
*Coo~ Roar!*
With a sharp cry, the wing claws folded at the edges of its wings suddenly opened, splitting into three blade-like wing blades.
"It's entered an enraged state without even being attacked. It seems anyone seeing the Great Ape gets angry," Li Fan remarked with emotion.
"The edges of the wing blades the Night Bird unleashed are so sharp. Why doesn't it use them normally?" Eudora asked curiously, focusing her gaze.
"It would affect its flight posture. The Night Bird's wing structure is very intricate. The area connected to its back muscles is covered with feathers, just like many birds. These muscles have excellent flexibility, supporting the Night Bird's rapid wing beats. Towards the wing claws, it transforms into a high-strength support structure of a bird wyvern's wing membrane combined with wing bones. The wing blades that grow along the wing claws are usually retracted on the outermost edge of the wing, tightly integrated with the feathers to form composite wings, enhancing flight capabilities. At the same time, these three wing blades serve as a second layer of protection for the wings beyond the wing bones," Li Fan explained.
"So, with both wing blades fully extended, it means the Night Bird is sacrificing its flight capabilities and defense for greater lethality?" Eudora deduced.
"That's right. This time, we've successfully angered the Night Bird," Li Fan stated with certainty.
"So the Night Bird really detests stench that much, meow," Dilu, taking out her small notebook to record, noted that ecological records of relatively rare monsters like the Night Bird, especially those with habits leaning towards dung monsters, were scarce.
"It does indeed resist stench, but aversion isn't the primary reason," Li Fan informed her.
"Then what's the primary reason, meow?" Dilu immediately stopped writing and looked up.
"What the Night Bird truly cannot accept is the impact of stench clinging to its body on its hunting. This was just a hypothesis before, and now it's been confirmed," Li Fan explained.
The ancient forest, shrouded and concealed by towering trees, was a paradise for the Night Bird. The Night Bird was not a monster that fought to the death once engaged. Its high-strength composite wings were exceptionally difficult to damage. Without the ability to restrict its flight, even with continuous tracking using paintballs, pursuit would be too difficult for the current team. Li Fan believed the only viable strategy was to completely enrage the Night Bird, forcing it to commit to a death match.
The Great Ape's stench attack was initially ruled out. The reason was simple: while monsters would indeed get angry when affected by stench, it wasn't enough to make them fight recklessly. Moreover, the stench would mask the scent of the marking fruits. However, Li Fan soon realized that for the Night Bird, a hunter adept at stealth and trailing, having stench on its body was more than just an annoyance. Small monsters might not be able to resist the Night Bird, but they could still perceive scents. The Night Bird hunting in the forest with stench on it would be like wearing a large bell around its neck. From this perspective, being affected by stench was akin to kicking over the Night Bird's food bowl. This was no longer a simple grievance but a survival crisis!
*Stomp... Stomp...*
The Night Bird advanced slowly, its wing blades fully extended and rubbing against the feathers coated with golden dust near its chest. It was like an assassin poisoning its blade, but the Night Bird performed the action with exceptional grace and naturalness.
The Great Ape, having roamed the dense forest for many years, sensed the atmosphere was wrong. After a low growl, it turned and quickly climbed up a tree. Gakku, though fearless, could only reluctantly fly away upon seeing Li Fan's gesture from the bushes. While monsters fighting together was theoretically possible, due to their large size and lack of coordination, friendly fire was a difficult problem to avoid. In the upcoming melee, Little Fool might withstand a few hits without major issue, but for Gakku and the Great Ape, the attacks of a four-star monster were already quite threatening. Furthermore, such attacks were bidirectional.
After coating its sharp, short beak with golden dust, the Night Bird rapidly charged forward. Little Fool took half a step back, bent its knees, and lowered its stance, its upturned tail tip's spines slowly unfurling.
*Clang!*
Its tail, thrust out in a backflip, was blocked by the raised left wing blade. Thick purple venom splattered onto the dark blue wing surface, spreading beneath the skin. Just as Little Fool righted itself, the Night Bird's right wing blade slashed down.
*Swoosh! Clatter!*
The head carapace, already bearing cracks, split open under this strike. However, Little Fool merely lowered its head, adjusted its posture with swift flight, and then, while leaning back, kicked out its claws to attack.
Knowing it had no advantage in size or strength, the Night Bird rapidly retreated. Little Fool, descending with its claws, flapped its wings vigorously, using the momentary hover created by the wind pressure to adjust its angle, moved forward by one position, and attacked again. This mid-air adjustment weakened the force, but it landed on top of the Night Bird.
*Swoosh! Scratch!*
Wing blades clashed against the tips of the attacking claws, creating a shower of sparks. However, it couldn't stop the assault and was pinned to the ground by the powerful claws. Gakku, witnessing this scene, lowered its head and pondered its own lower limbs. It seemed to be wondering, "Is this something I can do?"
"In a head-on confrontation, Little Fool is indeed more powerful," Eudora exclaimed in admiration. Both were four-star monsters, but differences in body structure and characteristics meant that even a crushing victory in actual combat wasn't unusual.
With the Night Bird struggling desperately, it finally broke free from Little Fool's pinning claws. However, seeing the blue feathers scattered across the ground and the cracks on the edges of its wing blades, one could tell the price the Night Bird had paid. Little Fool let out a low growl and prepared to charge, but as it lifted its right claw, it fell to the left. After taking just one step, its two lower limbs were crossed. Sensing something was wrong, Little Fool switched to charging up a fireball.
"Everyone, get down!" Li Fan shouted urgently. He didn't stop Little Fool's attack because he wasn't sure if the scale powder causing sensory distortion would affect the fireball projection. If it didn't, his贸然 intervention would disrupt Little Fool's attack rhythm.
*Boom! Boom! Boom!*
Three fireballs were launched: one into the sky, one towards the ground, and one that nearly knocked the Great Ape watching from the tree down. Little Fool tried to shake off the discomfort by violently shaking its head, but it only resulted in a stronger sense of dizziness with no other effect.
*Coo! Coo!*
The Night Bird lowered its head, preening the golden feathers on its chest with its beak, and cautiously approached. Li Fan glanced at the direction where Poff was ambushed and decided, "Attack!"
*Hiss! Hiss! Sizzle!*
The two humans and one cat darted out from the bushes. Facing Eudora's direct slash with the Shield Crab Great Sword, the Night Bird warily retreated. Once it stabilized, Li Fan, Eudora, and Little Fool formed a triangular formation, surrounding it. Seeing the Night Bird attempt to coat its wing blades with scale powder again, Li Fan and Eudora charged forward.
*Whoosh!* With a horizontal swing, it swept its wing blades over its body. Li Fan, after rolling and getting up, delivered a powerful slash to its back. Blue feathers and a small amount of blood splattered. Feeling the pain, the Night Bird's body hadn't moved yet, but its head had already turned.
"It was me. No need to look," Li Fan admitted frankly, then lunged forward with a stab.
*Coo! Coo!*
The Night Bird quickly turned its body sideways, its three wing blades on the other wing fully extended, and forcefully slammed down. Li Fan activated his foresight, realizing he couldn't dodge. He raised the Shield Crab Great Sword in a non-standard grip to block.
*Clang!* Under the heavy impact, the Kamura Dragon boots sank deeply into the ground. "This strength is outrageous. It looked so easy when Little Fool fought it earlier..." Li Fan, his arms numb from the impact, quickly rolled backward to retreat.
"Hiyah!" Eudora's charged attack wasn't fully charged, but to ensure a hit, she had to strike early.
*Screech! Crackle!* The wing blade, already cracked at the edge, shattered and broke apart under this slash.
*Aaooo!!!* With a sharp cry, the Night Bird was enraged again and retreated repeatedly.
*Whoosh~* Its dark blue wings spread, and its head and body spun.
"Don't get hit by the Hypnotic Sonar," Li Fan warned, continuing to observe the Night Bird's movements.
*Buzz~ Buzz~* Pale blue powder sprayed from its beak, propelled by a slow-spreading sonic wave, forming rings of light blue spiral patterns. When the spiral patterns touched the wing membrane, they were refracted and transmitted, spreading outwards more widely.
Just as Li Fan was observing the principle of the Hypnotic Sonar's release, he was suddenly plunged into darkness. The entire world seemed to consist only of the Night Bird's constantly swaying red eyes. *What's happening to me?*
"Wake up! Meow!" Dilu's voice rang in his ears, followed by a sharp blow to his waist. The dark scene instantly vanished, and Li Fan rubbed his eyes vigorously.
"Whew~ That was close, meow." Dilu sighed in relief upon seeing Li Fan regain consciousness.
*Huh? What kind of judgment is this? Even the Water Dragon's ranged Iron Mountain Lean back then didn't expand this much.* *No... this is reality. There's no such thing as judgment.* Li Fan was a bit confused. The Hypnotic Sonar's location was clearly not in his direction. *Could it be...*
He looked at the Night Bird, which was releasing the Hypnotic Sonar, again. Soon, everything in his vision, except for the swaying red eyes, began to fade to grey. Li Fan turned his head. It turned out that the Night Bird could induce sleep not only with the powder from its sleep sacs but also by using its physical form to hypnotize its target during the release of Hypnotic Sonar.
Eudora, who had retreated while sheathing her sword, dodged the Hypnotic Sonar's range. Instead of flanking for an attack, she drew her sword from the side and slashed. The Night Bird leaped into the air and then plummeted downwards, the wind pressure forcing Eudora back. Unfortunately, the golden scale powder on its chest was nearly depleted, only shedding a faint layer. Even when fanned outwards by its wings, it couldn't pose a threat. Meanwhile, Li Fan's Great Sword slashed from the other side. Caught in a pincer attack, the Night Bird could only retract its wing claws and powerfully leap into the air. With a somewhat unsteady figure, it fled towards the rear.
Eudora looked up and said, "The direction of its escape is fine, but I wonder if Poff can bring it down?"
"Poisoned, fatigued, wings damaged, with so many negative statuses... it probably can't escape," Li Fan thought it was feasible. Poff couldn't fly, and in a forest full of giant trees, its effectiveness was further limited. Before its flight capabilities were restricted, it was difficult to pose a threat. However, if the Night Bird was severely injured and Poff ambushed it, Li Fan believed the chances were quite high.
Not long after, a streaking stream of water flashed in the distant forest, followed by a dull thud. Little Fool's walking and flying were still uncoordinated, so Li Fan simply put it back into its Poké Ball and headed there together.
"Where's the Night Bird?" Looking at the large area of flattened grass and a few blue feathers, Li Fan asked Poff.
*Woof?* Poff tilted its head, indicating it was also confused.
"Alright... anyway, stench is also a smell. Great Ape, the tracking is up to you." *Roar!* The Great Ape responded, sniffed the surroundings, and jumped onto another giant tree to guide them.
The team soon found the Night Bird in the forest. *Screech... Screech...* The Night Bird dragged its left wing, which was dragging on the ground, and was moving with difficulty. The Great Ape jumped from the tree to the front, raising an unknown yellow object in its palm. Turning its head to look back, the pursuing hunter team blocked its path. The Night Bird's eyes remained wide open, its emotions unreadable, but its body directly collapsed. Lying on its side on the ground, it adopted a posture of resignation.
"What's going on? Has it accepted its fate?" Eudora thought the Night Bird would struggle a bit longer.
"The Night Bird indeed has no natural predators in the ancient forest, but it also has no one to rely on. If severe injury and the inability to hunt occur simultaneously, it's not much different from death," Li Fan explained.
"Looking at it that way, the wild ecosystem treats both humans and monsters equally," Eudora remarked with emotion.
"Alright, welcome to our team." Li Fan said, throwing a Great Ball. *Tsk! Tsk! Tsk!* The Great Ball twisted in place but showed no signs of breaking free. The Night Bird was successfully captured.
[Night Bird] Female (Unnamed)
HP: 110/3701
Status: Critically injured, severely fatigued, hungry, left wing damaged, depressed.
Level: 42
Strength: 176
Agility: 220
Intelligence: 165
Skills: [Composite Wings] The Night Bird's wing claws, when retracted, increase wing strength.
[Bewitching Scale Powder] Sheds scale powder from its chest feathers, which can be widely dispersed outwards by wing wind pressure.
[Hypnosis] Induces hypnosis in its target by swaying its body rhythmically.
[Reflective Wing Membrane] The Night Bird spreads its wing membrane to amplify and disperse sound waves.
[Hypnotic Sonar] The Night Bird emits fine sleep powder, which can be dispersed outwards with sonic waves from its beak.
[Nightmare Strike] The Night Bird will attack sleeping targets with all its might.
Description: A bird wyvern monster, a natural predator. It likes to trail its prey at night and strikes mercilessly when an opportunity arises. Due to its hypnotic and sensory distortion attacks, it is also known as the "Magician of Bewitchment."
After reviewing the Pokédex entry, Little Fool carried the team back to the camp. Since it was a fixed wilderness camp, there was no need to fold and pack it, so the gear was quickly prepared. Seeing that Little Fool was injured, Li Fan suggested resting at the tree-branch camp for another night.
Deep in the night, a red light point fell into the ancient forest...
The next morning, Little Fool burst out from the canopy of leaves that blocked out the sky. The team members, whose vision suddenly cleared, felt a wave of relief. The Ancient Jungle area was indeed quite secluded, and few hunter teams ventured there, but the overall atmosphere was too gloomy. No sunlight during the day, and a faint glow at night. Li Fan felt that if he were alone, he wouldn't dare leave his tent at night.
Landing on the plains outside the ancient forest, Little Fool took flight for free hunting, accumulating more stamina for the return to the village. The team began preparing breakfast on the plains.
"I am Doraemon, meow..." Dilu, humming a tune, went to fetch water with a bucket, but suddenly her feet slipped, and she flailed her paws to barely stand. "Is this a pit, meow?" Dilu looked at the sunken earth around her and retreated to higher ground to observe. "These are claw marks, meow!" Forgetting about fetching water, Dilu ran back to the awning where they were cooking.
"Large, deep claw marks... Could it be a Tigrex?" Li Fan speculated after hearing the description. Dilu shook her head firmly and said, "No, meow, this monster only has two feet."
"The Dragon Scanner is in the sky," Eudora pointed to the sky.
"It's going to the Ancient Jungle? Good thing we came out early," Li Fan said with some relief. Otherwise, if they had encountered it while riding Little Fool, it would have been hard to explain.
"Well... Little Fool is hunting right now, so it's not convenient to call it back. I'll accompany you to take a look." Li Fan followed Dilu towards the riverbank and arrived at the claw marks.
"Such big claw marks..." Li Fan exclaimed in surprise, feeling like he could lie down inside them.
"There are many more ahead, meow." Dilu pointed forward. After squatting down and examining them for a long time, Li Fan was still clueless. He could guess a monster with reasonable accuracy by looking at its claws, but footprints were a bit more difficult.
"I found new traces, meow!" Hearing Dilu's distant call, Li Fan got up and ran over. Standing on a small grassy hill, a black indentation that seemed to have no end was visible on the ground below. Upon closer inspection, Dilu used a pair of iron tweezers to pick up a small piece of slag-like substance from the center of the indentation.
*Poof!* The slag smoked and ignited. Dilu quickly threw the slag out, but before it could land, it exploded into a ball of flames.
"So terrifying, meow!"
"It's a Zinogre."
"So it's a Zinogre... It's a Zinogre, meow! Is it the Zinogre that severely injured Instructor Yin Tie?" Dilu asked in shock.
"Instructor Yin Tie dealt with a special variant, the Stygian Zinogre. I haven't seen this one yet, so I'm not sure," Li Fan replied. After a moment of thought, he asked, "Dilu, when we left the Ancient Jungle from high above, you said you saw many monsters fleeing?"
"Yes, meow."
"Hmm... I understand."
"Understand what, meow?"
"At a certain point yesterday, a piece of superheated carapace should have fallen into the Ancient Jungle, but we didn't observe it. The activated dragon energy attached to the carapace made the monsters think an Elder Dragon was nearby, so they collectively began to flee. The arrival of the Dragon Scanner was to retrieve the carapace." Li Fan felt that all the information had been sorted out.
"So we're taking that carapace with us, meow? Is it really that scary... oh, it's quite scary." Dilu paused halfway through her sentence and then recalled the scene when they first discovered the carapace, thinking it was normal for monsters to be afraid.
"Let's wait for Little Fool to finish eating, and then we'll try to track it from high up. If we can confirm it's a Zinogre, we'll submit a sighting report to the nearest village or town guild branch." Li Fan felt this was worth participating in, as it fulfilled his hunter's duty and would earn him money.
Spreading out the map, he began to search. "Let me see which village or town is so unlucky... Huh?" After Li Fan's repeated confirmation, the village closest to the Ancient Jungle in a straight line was actually Kalara Village.
"Uh... I forgot. When I chose this place as a wilderness camp, didn't I think it was close by?" After sighing, Li Fan became even more concerned about the Zinogre's whereabouts. In the Ancient Jungle, a Zinogre could rampage without anyone intervening. However, once it migrated to the outside world, it would be a moving time bomb. Among five-star monsters, it was undoubtedly in the top tier in terms of both aggressiveness and attack power.
"If only I had the special sheath skill now..." Li Fan had wanted to face a Zinogre for a long time, but of course, it was just a thought.