Quit the team, then picked up a beautiful girl with problems

The islanders more often travel by water.

The girls were originally very interested in admiring the exotic flowers and plants along the way, but when the road became difficult to walk on, their interest diminished a lot.

Alulu held up her shield and sword and led the way. No matter how lush the grass was, it could not stop the sweep of the blood-burning giant sword. However, there were many flexible stems that could not be swept away immediately. She could pull them out by the roots by pushing them forward with brute force in front of the huge shield, but as they accumulated more and more, they would entangle the entire grass and shake it together, and she began to feel uncomfortable.

The other three were more concerned about the obstacles and mud under their feet.

"How long will it take?" Zoe asked.

Andasu stared at the thick grass rustling beneath her feet. "Although we are on different islands, the wilderness always hinders us."

Among the four members present, she was the only one for whom Leon had not had time to equip a full body of earth-attribute armor in the Flashing Field, so the effect was more obvious.

Dorothy, standing by, initially held up the hem of her robe, but later realized that the water on the grass and the puddles on the ground would not wet her robe, but would only pass over the surface. So she let go, just to avoid tripping.

"Almost there. Let's check around for any traces of monsters."

Li Ang said this and took out a small bottle of Reimu from his bag.

"What is that?" Zoe looked over curiously.

"One of the little props in the adventure, the fragrance that lures the enemy."

He pulled over a leaf, used magic to drive away the moisture on the surface, poured out the powder and lit it, and the powder immediately produced a large amount of smoke.

"What a lot of smoke!" Dorothy took a step back.

"The alchemist specially blended it for this exact effect. Stand back. This thing is called incense, but it's actually smelly. It's designed to anger monsters and make them show up."

Li Ang let the swirling smoke avoid the retreating girls, and the annoying smell immediately spread into the water with the wind.

The monsters in the semi-wet swamps by the lake are of relatively low levels. The truly powerful ones are all in the depths of the lake and around the tallest trees, which is where the islanders usually don't go.

"When will it come?"

Zoe, wearing golden scale armor, drew her sword and held it in her hand.

"A few minutes, very quickly. The effect of the scent of luring the enemy is very strong."

After Leon said this, Andasu put on her fist claws and adjusted the position of the silver gun. Dorothy also summoned the magic flower, ready to deal with the monsters that might attack at any time.

After a few minutes, there was no movement and the girls relaxed their guard a little.

After more than ten minutes, there was only the occasional rustling sound of plants rubbing against each other in the water, and no birds, insects or snakes were seen.

"Didn't you say it would take a few minutes?" Zoe adjusted her hair. Standing in the humid environment, her face was soon covered in sweat.

"In theory, yes."

Li Ang was a little confused: "I have been to Mengze Island several times. Judging from the ecology here, the monsters should have arrived earlier, not without movement."

His words aroused Dorothy's curiosity: "You have been here many times?"

"Yes, adventurers earn money by taking on commissions. Many of these commissions involve escorting people to the island to gather materials or wood."

Li Ang also said that in order to ensure that he could earn more, he would also take on missions to subdue monsters, specifically by luring them near the swamp to complete the mission.

"We've always done this before, but this time things are a little different." He shook his head.

"Ah, so even old adventurers have their moments," said Dorothy.

The half-elf was deliberately asking for trouble, but Andasu didn't like her saying that. She frowned and said, "How about going a little deeper and seeing what happens?"

"Any deeper, and we'll have trouble moving. There's really no point. We can't verify our true strength either. Such environments are rare in Newbis."

Although there are many sky islands, perhaps because there is no ocean, the least abundant element in the sky of Newbis is water, and there are very few like Mengze Island.

There are even fewer situations where there is water and lush wetlands. Even if you learn how to fight in such an environment, 99% of the time you won't be able to use it.

"If you can't summon the monster, then we'll return. We'll spend the rest of the day resting and head deeper into the island tomorrow morning."

Hearing this, Zoe's expression brightened: "It's still early now, does that mean we can go play in the water?"

Ah, this little girl, I remember she first introduced herself as liking to bathe in the mountain pool, maybe she really likes water. Li Ang thought.

He spread his hands and said, "It's up to you."

"Great……"

Roar

Before the girl finished her words, a roar came from the tall grass not far away.

"It's a monster!"

Alulu frowned and raised the giant sword, holding it across her body.

“It’s very big.”

Andasu's tall ears trembled slightly, and she heard richer sound information than others. She drew out the silver gun. Leon thought that she must have judged that it was risky to use close combat to deal with large monsters before finding their weaknesses, or that it would be more appropriate to use long-range restraint first, so she gave up the idea of close combat.

As the tall grass continued to sway, others including Leon could hear heavy thumps and the sound of a massive body crushing large grass stems.

Of course, Leon's perception of magic is stronger, and he can sense earlier that the magic level of this monster is around level 5.

"Based on my experience fighting here, it should be the Mossback Mugger, a relatively ferocious monster with brute force. It can combine water-attribute attacks with its claws and whip tail attacks." Leon said.

Although he had summarized the monster information, he began to have doubts. The Mossback Mugger should be in the swamp deeper on the island. They would occasionally follow the waterway to the outer lakes, but they should not approach the wetlands near Lakeside City.

Although he had some thoughts in mind, Leon was also prepared to prevent the girls from getting hurt because they were not paying attention to the monster's attacks.

However, as the monster approached, there was the sound of people breathing.

"Someone is being chased." Alulu also heard it.

She took a few steps forward and used her greatsword to chop down the surrounding vegetation.

I saw a few locals running out of the bushes in a panic. After seeing the Star Flower Brigade, I saw them dressed in adventurer costumes, and they ran towards this side, calling for help as they ran.

"Help us! The reward is negotiable!"

These locals understood the adventurers' code of conduct very well. After approaching, they pounced forward and landed on the ground behind the girls.

They did this to speed up, because the next moment, a thick sharp claw broke through the grass and swept across.

Alulu immediately raised her shield to meet the blow. The hard keratin of her claws collided with the surface of the shield, which was also made from the monster's shell. The impact sound was not crisp or harsh, but rather a dull sound and splashing water.

At the point of impact, a stream of water suddenly formed and exploded. Alulu was originally able to take the attack, but was displaced a few steps by the extra water attack.

The sharp claws splashed on the ground, creating waves. There wasn't much water in this area, but it all flowed towards the giant monster that had revealed its figure as if it had consciousness.

It is at least fourteen or fifteen meters long and looks like a crocodile at first glance. What makes it different from ordinary crocodiles is the thick moss on its back, which even has branches growing in it, making it look like a plant.

There is a thin layer of water flowing on its dark green scales. That is the water armor it controls, which can also turn into water-attribute impact when attacking.

Seeing the girl from the Star Flower Troupe blocking the way, the giant crocodile opened its mouth and bit.

Alulu raised her sword and slashed vertically at an angle perpendicular to its bite, intending to use offense as defense to block its attack.

However, the monster discovered her motive, twisted its neck to avoid the blow, and bit her arm instead.

The bull girl raised her shield and smashed it hard. The shield, with its huge force, hit the scales on the side of the crocodile's neck. The water flow absorbed its impact, but the earth element on the shield surged, driving away the flowing water armor, which still effectively made the monster turn its head and did not bite the girl's arm directly.

The giant crocodile rolled in the wetland and pressed down like a wall, forcing everyone to retreat.

Alulu originally wanted to wrestle directly, but Li Ang shouted at her to step back. She did not doubt and followed the order.

Dorothy used the vines to support herself and move. Seeing that the three people were having difficulty walking, she hurriedly pulled them up.

After retreating a certain distance, Zoe raised her sword and threw it at the crocodile. Before that, she let the soil and rocks attach to the blade.

The earth element broke through the water flow, and the sharpness of the Sword of Breath of Wind broke through the crocodile's scales, but the power of the throw was not as strong as her magical slash, and this attack did not really break the defense.

Zoe recalled the sword, and the crocodile kept rolling, so everyone had to move away a certain distance.

Andasu fired a few shots from the shotgun. The gun itself was only level 4 in strength, and when it hit the giant crocodile's body, it only made some splashes, but did not break the defense at all.

Even if a monster's level is there, it's not completely on par with a human of the same level. The magic power level is the same, but the physical strength and magic power reserves are not necessarily the same.

Dorothy's star crystal vines wrapped around the arcane wand, while the flourishing branches grabbed the golden sand tower. The golden sand mist pounced over, and because of the restraining effect, it sucked the moisture from the crocodile's armor. The arcane wand immediately launched a set of stored level 5 arcane missiles.

The shining blue-purple energy exploded on the scales, leaving a large white mark, but still did not cause any substantial damage to the giant beast.

Zoe stood at the back, transformed into the Holy Snake posture.

The white skirt fluttered, and the slender arms with golden arm rings were raised high. The light of the star soul gushed out, and in an instant, a heavy rock shuttle more than two meters long condensed.

She is also a 5th-level elementalist, but not an ordinary elementalist. The earth shuttle contains a large amount of earth element and flies out, hitting the crocodile scales. The crocodile scales resist for a moment, and then break instantly, and blood splatters everywhere.

The earth shuttle penetrated a large part of the crocodile, which immediately made it furious.

Roaring, its thick and huge tail swept towards them suddenly, the speed was beyond the girls' imagination.

Alulu didn't even have time to raise her shield to defend everyone. Her position and the direction of her shield were not in time. In the emergency, she had to raise her sword and chop hard.

The blood-burning giant sword and the crocodile tail collided with each other, and the entire tail carrying a large amount of water elements came into contact with the sword edge that had no real strength. Although the 7th-level giant sword easily broke through the water shield and scales, it did not cut much muscle, and Alulu was knocked backwards.

"Lulu!"

The three of them looked over nervously and found that she was not injured. It was just because she didn't use the right posture and strength, which resulted in her using her weight to compete with the power of the giant beast, and she was directly knocked away.

Given her weight, she has to rely on her legs to keep herself stable on the ground during a power fight.

Leon frowned. He felt that this crocodile was much stronger than similar monsters he had encountered before. At least it shouldn't be so difficult for the girls to fight against it.

He looked at the panel that held the object.

【Mossback Mugger [Vulnerable]】

A water-attributed monster that lives deep within the marshes. Its scales, hide, claws, and teeth are excellent water-attributed materials. Its skull can even be processed into a figurehead for an airship. Many adventurers have challenged it for its materials, and countless have perished at its fangs and claws.

[Species: Sub-dragon]

【Battle Wisdom: Level 5】

Servant: None

[Energy Source: Secondary Dragon Crocodile Heart [Surrounded by the Power of Destruction], Level 5 (+1)]

[Body Strength: Water Armor, Level 5. Water-Moistening Green Scales, Level 5. Armor-Piercing Jaws, Level 5. Water-Gripping Crocodile Palm, Level 5. Water-Controlling Whiptail, Level 5]

[Special Attack: Water Splash]

[Skills: Dragon Bloodline, Water Affinity, Ancient Beast Strength]

[Combat Power Increase: 71%]

Going berserk?

Its magic power was indeed restless, and Leon had just thought that it was due to its own ferocity.

The combat power increased by 71%. Considering the monsters that had been fought before, it shouldn't have this level among the 5th level. What is that destructive power?

"T-That thing doesn't usually come to this area. There's been other trouble lately, so things are really messed up."

A local who was rescued said tremblingly.

"Really? Is there anything else unusual?" Li Ang took the opportunity to ask.

"Many monsters haven't been in their original places lately. We just wanted to pick some herbs, but we didn't expect there were also..."

"Didn't you tell the guild office here?"

"They did, but they said that two or three days of unusual conditions wouldn't warrant a special commission. We need to observe further."

After the local finished speaking, the Mossback Mugger raised his head and roared, and a hint of black appeared in his light blue eyes.

The magic power it attracted continued to rise, and people around it could vaguely hear the rapid beating of its heart.

In Leon's spiritual vision, all the spirituality in its body was activated, and it seemed that its strength was approaching that of a level 6 monster.

　Zoe approached the crocodile and attacked it at the wound caused by the rock shuttle. The crocodile wanted to raise its claws to attack her, but its movements were much slower. The girl used its tail to propel it up on the ground and it dodged easily with a somersault.

Leon looked at Andasu, whose head was covered with beads of sweat. The moss-backed crocodile's movements slowed down not because it slowed down after being activated, but because she had just released a paralyzing fragrance after her long-range attack failed.

"Hey!" Alulu held the sword in both hands, shouted delicately, jumped up, and used all her strength to slash down with holy power.

The sacred blade cut into the flesh at the moment the scales were brittle, and cut directly into the bones without any hindrance.

The hardness of the bones was not enough to resist the sword's edge, but a black lightning burst out and collided with the sacred fire, opening the heavy sword.

Alulu was blown back several steps by the black lightning.

"Gah——!"

The Mossback Crocodile's eyes rolled back, and it seemed to be dead, but its body did not fall. Instead, it shook its half-fallen head more violently, preparing to launch its next attack.

The locals were so frightened that they were speechless.