Goblin Dependency

Standing in place, the solid muscles beneath the thick, resilient skin suddenly swelled, causing the already burly body to expand two circles larger in an instant.

With a wild howl towards the sky, a beastly roar almost solidified into a tangible sound wave in the air.

The already tattered robe on the upper body, shredded by the enemy's fierce gale, was completely torn apart.

Revealing an extraordinarily robust physique and beast-like rough, dense hair on the skin.

And beneath the skin, something peculiar seemed to be brewing, a strange, vivid crimson.

Xia Nan raised an eyebrow lightly, sensing something amiss in his heart.

The Beheading Longsword, originally aimed at the opponent's chest and heart, suddenly withdrew force.

As his steps shifted, a wolf's howl once again echoed.

In just a blink of an eye, under the effect of [Teeth Hunting], he retreated over ten meters away.

At the same time, the crimson beneath Buck's skin had also fully brewed.

Suddenly it burst forth!

Transformed into countless tiny, dense blood arrows shooting out from the pores, enveloping a small surrounding space like a rain cluster.

Of course, this posed no threat to Xia Nan, already retreated over ten meters away in an instant.

Gazing at the steaming blood pool on the ground beside Buck.

Xia Nan narrowed his eyes slightly, with his Longsword pointing upward.

Luckily, he reacted quickly and evaded in time. If he had forcibly thrust out the already fully charged sword just then,

even if he could have killed the opponent in a single strike, he himself would have faced a subsequent barrage of blood arrows.

And as long as he got injured, allowing the opponent's blood to touch his wound...

"Beastification" is no joke.

Xia Nan was very satisfied with his own body, though being furry seemed appealing too, he definitely didn't want to live under watchful eyes all the time.

Meanwhile, on the other side.

Buck, who temporarily forced Xia Nan to retreat with a blood Qi burst, stood gasping for air, his face slightly pale.

Clearly, that move had also taken a huge toll on him.

In the beastly eyes filled with wildness, human rationality once again took dominance in the face of a life-and-death crisis.

Gazing at Xia Nan with deep wariness.

Undoubtedly, the young man who suddenly appeared in the sewer and attacked him had a strength far beyond what his current state could handle.

"Is he a professional?"

Buck speculated in his heart.

Such exaggerated speed and mobility, as well as the spell-like effect that had immobilized him earlier, are certainly not something an ordinary adventurer could master.

"Trouble..."

In his memory, apart from that accidental encounter in the morning, he had never met the other person, so there was naturally no cause for offense.

"Could it be related to the Gray Badger Gang?"

"No, it shouldn't be."

Buck denied his own thought.

This sort of middle-to-small-sized organization, unranked even in the slums, which even someone of Ben's power level would scoff at, couldn't possibly be involved with a professional.

"Then it must be..."

The adventurer association!?

Buck's expression darkened, feeling the situation spiraling out of his control.

"Based on his easy and effortless demeanor earlier, even if I have no idea how much of his strength he used, he surely has more tricks up his sleeve."

"At least in the sewer, I'm definitely not his match."

In his heart, he resolutely decided:

"I have to get out!"

"If I want to survive, I must get outside!"

With thoughts racing through his mind, merely a few seconds passed in reality.

Seeing the distant black-haired young man with a sharp gaze, his Longsword appearing as if it would swing at his neck in the next moment.

Buck suddenly exerted strength in his chest and abdomen.

"Roar!!!"

The beast-like roar stirred ripples in the blood pool on the ground, its momentum fierce.

And just as Xia Nan tensed his body and remained vigilant, thinking the opponent intended to launch a counterattack against him.

The burly figure before him suddenly turned around, exerted force with his feet, and rushed into the depths of the tunnel behind.

The mission target was right in front of him, and Xia Nan was unwilling to let it go.

With a step forward, he directly followed.

The Neum Sewer was vast and complex, filled with countless forks and turns, with no apparent logic.

Even though Xia Nan, with the help of [Teeth Hunting] and [Gravity Control], had a speed far exceeding the opponent, in such a foreign environment, he had no way to unleash it.

He could rely on his speed advantage to gradually shorten the distance between them.

But it requires some time.

And because he hadn't yet gauged the opponent's strength, as well as the potential danger of "Beastification," he couldn't rush forward recklessly.

If the opponent managed to ambush him, even if it didn't cause severe injuries, just a scratch from the opponent's claws or teeth would make things very troublesome.

But he didn't dare to hang back too far, given the complex and unfamiliar terrain; just falling slightly behind would make it easy to lose track.

And if they got detached from the opponent, it would be extremely difficult to catch up again.

And so, they proceeded one forward and one behind for about ten minutes.

Another ninety-degree corner appeared.

The footsteps in the corridor ceased, replaced by a wellhead opening at the end of the sewer, and a shadow cast by the moonlight on a towering figure.

Without hesitation, Xia Nan hurried forward and climbed the iron ladder.

At the same time, he was inevitably wary, alert to an ambush at the wellhead, waiting for him to climb up and launch an attack.

A trace of gray light flashed in his dark eyes as [Heart-drawing Vision] silently activated.

The originally dim and blurry environment instantly became clear black and white.

Countless lines intertwined and collided like ripples in water.

Suppressing the slight dizziness in his head, Xia Nan raised his head, capturing the figure rapidly moving away from the wellhead.

Feeling slightly at ease, he closed the [Heart-drawing Vision] that consumed significant spiritual power while exerting strength in his hands and feet, leaving twisted marks on the iron ladder and instantly rushing out of the wellhead.

Landed lightly.

The surrounding scene entered his view, and his brows furrowed lightly.

After following for so long in the sewer, he couldn't tell what place corresponded to the ground above.

It was certainly still within Neum City, seemingly some vacant lot within the Lower City District slums.

Basketball court-sized, crowded on both sides by grass huts and mud houses characteristic of the slum.

But it seemed abandoned for a long time; even though it was nighttime, there was no sign of light in the shacks, no traces of human life.

On the other side, opposite the vacant lot.

Buck had stopped running away.

Just faced Xia Nan, quietly standing.

A deep animal roar, like an engine, echoed in the cold night air.

Dark red crystalline iron scab moss powder gently fell from the skin surface.

The wounds dripping with flesh and blood, extending from the shoulder blade to the side waist, quietly healed amidst the wriggling granulation.

The already towering body expanded like a balloon, skin ruptured by muscles, seeping blood, with brown mane proliferating.

Sharp canine teeth naturally extended as the skull elongated, with viscous saliva spreading at the corners of his mouth.

Silver white rays streaked past Xia Nan's peripheral vision.

It's a layer of gleaming moonlight gently drifting around Buck like a thin veil.

As if drawing nourishment from it, specks of stardust fell and absorbed into the body.

Instinctively, Xia Nan raised his head, his gaze looking up.

What met his eyes was not the filthy stone ceiling of the sewer full of mildew and moss.

But the deep, dark night sky, the brilliant vast stars, and at the center of it all, radiating incomparable bright light,

——a round, pure, translucent full moon.

...

...

Reflecting the bright Silver Moon in his pupils, the Holy Emblem surrounded by stars on his chest gently swayed.

Isidor withdrew his gaze, his expression calm and serene.

"The time is about right, are you ready?"

Behind him, Cornell was still clad in his indigo mage robe, absent-mindedly nodding.

"We've been preparing for so many days, let's start directly."

Although he said this, his gaze did not drift towards the Priest, nor the altar where the golden-haired Elf's corpse lay, waiting for resurrection.

He merely hung his head low, staring fixedly at the entirely blue-black, bizarre effigy that resembled a goat or deer in his hands.