Versatile Mage: The Young Master of Zhou Family

Under the bombardment of Lightning Strike – Warth Shock at Level Three, not a single scratch appeared on the Scarlet Armored Cockroach's shell.

"What the hell? Not even a scratch?!"

Zhou Haoyu was dumbfounded. This level of defense was simply absurd!

Such formidable defense could only mean one thing—it was a Great Warrior-level demon.

"First demon hunt and I run into a Great Warrior-level? My luck's seriously off the charts."

Zhou Haoyu forced himself to stay calm despite the panic churning inside him. He had already prepared mentally. After all, even two Elite Hunters had failed to complete the commission it obviously wasn't some low-tier Servant-level creature.

Great Warrior-level demons usually required a full team of Intermediate Mages to take down. Two Elite Hunters alone would struggle at best.

What's more, some powerful Warrior-level demons(Evolving Warrior) even required Advanced Mages to deal with.

At that moment, the Scarlet Armored Cockroach had already turned to face Zhou Haoyu, its football-sized head now locked onto his position.

Suddenly, the rock-hard shell split open from the middle, revealing a pair of translucent wings.

"This thing... can fly?!"

A bad feeling surged through Zhou Haoyu. He hurriedly drew his Demon-Slaying Weapon.

His grandfather had given him two Demon-Slaying Weapons: one was a slender Western-style sword, the other was the current eight-sided Han sword in his hand.

Truth be told, neither weapon suited Zhou Haoyu's preferences, but at the moment he had no choice. He'd have to make do for now and get a custom-forged one later.

With a loud buzzing sound, the next second, the Scarlet Armored Cockroach vanished from the staircase and melted into the darkness.

Rustle rustle~~

Zhou Haoyu's Mental/Spiritual Energy allowed him to sense his surroundings. Though his range was currently limited to twenty meters, it was already enough to deal with a Greater Warrior-level demon.

With just a single thought, Zhou Haoyu manipulated the rapier with his Space power and launched it into the air behind him.

In the darkness, the Scarlet Armored Cockroach was pierced through its abdomen by the blade from seemingly nowhere. The sword sliced through its outer shell effortlessly.

The shell that remained unscathed under a Level Three Lightning Strike crumbled like tofu before the Space-thrusted rapier.

Since advancing his Space Element to the Intermediate level, Zhou Haoyu's full-force Telekinesis had reached five thousand kilograms about the weight of a medium-sized delivery truck. It was a force no Scarlet Armored Cockroach could withstand.

BANG!!!

Driven by his Spiritual Energy, the rapier tore through the Scarlet Armored Cockroach's body and pinned it to the thick cafeteria wall.

The blast from that strike left spiderweb cracks across the wall, with a deep dent at the center of impact.

Although Zhou Haoyu had only just reached the Intermediate level and couldn't yet cast Intermediate-level magic, the addition of his Spiritual Energy meant his combat strength was far above that of other Mages at the same level.

In Zhou Haoyu's opinion, he could now handle most Warrior-level demons. Only a few with higher bloodline purity might pose a real challenge.

"It's still not dead?"

Zhou Haoyu was startled to see the Scarlet Armored Cockroach still struggling wildly on the blade. Its vitality was monstrous did it have the bloodline of some high-tier magical beast?

After a brief moment of awe, Zhou Haoyu raised his sword again and severed its head with one clean strike.

What surprised him even more was that, even after being decapitated, the body continued to thrash violently. Though the movement gradually slowed, it still took a while before it finally lay still.

"Ugh, what a stench!"

Suddenly, an overwhelming, nauseating stench hit Zhou Haoyu like a dozen rotten eggs left out for ten days. His stomach churned from the odor.

At that moment, yellow fluid began dripping from the gash on its abdomen, along with some thumb-sized spherical objects of unknown nature.

"Could these be... its eggs?"

Even so, Zhou Haoyu felt no remorse in the slightest.

Demons kill humans, and humans kill demons. If one felt pity for a demon, they were simply out of their mind.

"That strange smell Mu Nujiao mentioned must've been this. What's weird is why did this demon spare the two female students?"

As he pondered this, Zhou Haoyu used lightning magic to incinerate the eggs scattered on the ground.

After thoroughly handling the situation, Zhou Haoyu went over to the corridor for a quick inspection. He discovered a twenty-centimeter-wide crack in the corner beneath the stairwell.

Clearly, this Scarlet Armored Cockroach had been living inside. No wonder the cafeteria staff hadn't noticed anything.

Those two elite hunters were likely ambushed as well.

The corpse of the Scarlet Armored Cockroach was simply too foul-smelling. Zhou Haoyu had no idea where to dispose of it, so he just used his Telekinesis to float the body out of the cafeteria.

"That's a Scarlet Armored Cockroach. Its defense is among the top even among Warrior-level beasts. You actually killed it? How did you do it?"

Lingling, worthy of being a Master Hunter, immediately identified it as a Scarlet Armored Cockroach after only a brief glance.

"That's not important. The real question is—why didn't it kill those two girls?" Zhou Haoyu quickly changed the topic.

At this stage, Zhou Haoyu didn't want to reveal his Spiritual Energy. That was his trump card for surviving and defeating enemies beyond his level.

"That Scarlet Armored Cockroach was in its oviposition phase," Lingling said, her expression solemn.

"And what's that got to do with those two girls? Don't tell me it suddenly developed maternal instincts?" Zhou Haoyu asked with a strange expression.

"Of course not. The Scarlet Armored Cockroach lays its eggs differently from other demons. It requires an extremely specific environment one that's nearly impossible to find in the wild. However, there is... a substitute."

Though Lingling didn't finish her sentence, her implication was crystal clear.

Zhou Haoyu's expression changed. No wonder the two female students still hadn't woken up the source of the contamination had been inside them all along!

The mere thought of that scene sent chills down Zhou Haoyu's spine.

"Can they still be saved?" Zhou Haoyu took a moment to calm himself before turning to ask Lingling.

"Originally, it would have been very difficult. But now that we have the corpse of the Scarlet Armored Cockroach, there should be a way to treat them."

Lingling didn't seem fazed at all. It was like this kind of thing was just another day at the office for her.

"That's a relief," Zhou Haoyu let out a breath of relief.

"Though I don't know how you managed to kill that Scarlet Armored Cockroach, I should let you know these creatures are highly valued by some Summoners. A Greater Warrior-level one like this could fetch a very high price."

Lingling gave the bisected corpse a brief look, a trace of regret flashing in her eyes.

Fortunately, the mission was complete, and Zhou Haoyu's performance had far exceeded her expectations. All in all, not bad.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Haoyu was utterly stunned, face filled with disbelief. "There are actually people who like this kind of demon beast? Isn't it... weird and ugly?"

"Ugly?" Lingling gave him a sidelong glance and replied snappily, "This Scarlet Armored Cockroach's defense can resist most Intermediate-level spells, and it can fly. Selling it for twenty million wouldn't be strange at all."

Zhou Haoyu was completely floored. There really were Mages who rode these things?

Just imagining that scene made Zhou Haoyu burst into laughter.